Post by L Roebuck on Sept 28, 2005 9:42:33 GMT -5
Behind the scenes of: Tunnel in the Gap
“Gateway to the West,” that’s the Cumberland Gap. From Tennessee heading north and west it also happens to be the road to Kentucky, or ‘Ken – tuck – ee” depending on which century you’re talking about (and if you’ve seen “Last of the Mohicans” or not!).
We had the opportunity to visit the Tunnel in the Gap. It’s really a 4-lane road comprised of two, two-lane 4400 foot tunnels through the mountain at Cumberland Gap. Construction of the tunnel began around 1991 and was completed in 1996. That’s when the tunnel opened. It’s of interest to us because we’ve had the good fortune to follow its development for the last 15 years, or so.
When we first started telling the story of the Cumberland Gap, Highway 25E was a dangerous, 2-lane highway that ran from Morristown, Tennessee through the Gap into Boones borough, Kentucky. It ran through Harrogate and Cumberland Gap, Tennessee, though the gap, into Middlesboro, Kentucky and beyond. It wasn’t a long road, but curvy, and dangerous. Then Park Ranger, Jack Collier, an old friend from Big South Fork National River and Recreational Area, showed us around. Jack said that 6-7 fatalities a year occurred on the old 25E. It went right by Cudjo’s Cave, too. The day we visited is was freezing cold, but Jack made it exciting...walking in the footsteps of where Daniel Boone traveled, the Native Americans, and the woods bison before them. We all traveled along highway 25E then.
Over time, we returned. (This was in 1996) The tunnel was nearly complete. Folks were excited because when the ‘Tunnel’ was completed, they would begin to restore old ‘Highway 25’ – Boone’s Trail, the actual ‘Wilderness Road’ where the great migration westward went through.
Our visit, recently, brought us up to date and included a look at the modern world of technological wonders that the Tunnel utilizes. 22 cameras picked us up as we arrived at the Cumberland Gap Tunnel. It’s operated by, appropriately, the Cumberland Gap Tunnel Authority. And a tip would be…don’t do anything in your car going through the tunnel that you wouldn’t want your mother to see. Because you’re being recorded on digital camera and it’s saved on computer.
25,000 vehicles a day go through into Kentucky and or into Tennessee. The numbers are fairly similar each way. Safety and security is of prime importance. The main objective is to keep the Tunnel open.
With the recent concerns of national safety and security it is interesting that Daniel Boone had similar concerns. We always remembered Ranger, Jack Collier telling us that Cumberland Gap was the ‘best place on the frontier to be bushwhacked and killed.” He related that in 1775 though only 150 Europeans lived in the land that was to be Kentucky at that time – when folks went through Cumberland Gap it was usually at a dead run. They ran from White Rock, Virginia about 5 miles away.
We’d never been to White Rock, Virginia. It’s just up Powell Valley from ‘the Gap.’ We’d heard about it because Martin’s Station was there. Today, there is a small but very nice, educational Visitor’s Center, part of the Wilderness Road State Park.
As we finished our work at the Gap, we drove up Powell Valley to White Rock, Virginia to see it, and the buffalo at the Park there, but we couldn’t find them. We hoped to get video of them for the story. Finally, after directions from the Visitor’s Center staff, in a big field overgrown with beautiful purple joe-pye weed and goldenrod we spied what looked like a big, brown lump sticking up. It looked like a dump truck had just unloaded a big pile of dirt in the middle of the field. But, no, on second glance, it was one of two buffalo that were lazily sleeping on the job. It’s in the show, a buffalo lump. Right where it’s ancestors for thousands of years rumbled through just like us.
An interesting video is on the site.
www.wbir.com/Heartland/story.aspx?storyid=28928
“Gateway to the West,” that’s the Cumberland Gap. From Tennessee heading north and west it also happens to be the road to Kentucky, or ‘Ken – tuck – ee” depending on which century you’re talking about (and if you’ve seen “Last of the Mohicans” or not!).
We had the opportunity to visit the Tunnel in the Gap. It’s really a 4-lane road comprised of two, two-lane 4400 foot tunnels through the mountain at Cumberland Gap. Construction of the tunnel began around 1991 and was completed in 1996. That’s when the tunnel opened. It’s of interest to us because we’ve had the good fortune to follow its development for the last 15 years, or so.
When we first started telling the story of the Cumberland Gap, Highway 25E was a dangerous, 2-lane highway that ran from Morristown, Tennessee through the Gap into Boones borough, Kentucky. It ran through Harrogate and Cumberland Gap, Tennessee, though the gap, into Middlesboro, Kentucky and beyond. It wasn’t a long road, but curvy, and dangerous. Then Park Ranger, Jack Collier, an old friend from Big South Fork National River and Recreational Area, showed us around. Jack said that 6-7 fatalities a year occurred on the old 25E. It went right by Cudjo’s Cave, too. The day we visited is was freezing cold, but Jack made it exciting...walking in the footsteps of where Daniel Boone traveled, the Native Americans, and the woods bison before them. We all traveled along highway 25E then.
Over time, we returned. (This was in 1996) The tunnel was nearly complete. Folks were excited because when the ‘Tunnel’ was completed, they would begin to restore old ‘Highway 25’ – Boone’s Trail, the actual ‘Wilderness Road’ where the great migration westward went through.
Our visit, recently, brought us up to date and included a look at the modern world of technological wonders that the Tunnel utilizes. 22 cameras picked us up as we arrived at the Cumberland Gap Tunnel. It’s operated by, appropriately, the Cumberland Gap Tunnel Authority. And a tip would be…don’t do anything in your car going through the tunnel that you wouldn’t want your mother to see. Because you’re being recorded on digital camera and it’s saved on computer.
25,000 vehicles a day go through into Kentucky and or into Tennessee. The numbers are fairly similar each way. Safety and security is of prime importance. The main objective is to keep the Tunnel open.
With the recent concerns of national safety and security it is interesting that Daniel Boone had similar concerns. We always remembered Ranger, Jack Collier telling us that Cumberland Gap was the ‘best place on the frontier to be bushwhacked and killed.” He related that in 1775 though only 150 Europeans lived in the land that was to be Kentucky at that time – when folks went through Cumberland Gap it was usually at a dead run. They ran from White Rock, Virginia about 5 miles away.
We’d never been to White Rock, Virginia. It’s just up Powell Valley from ‘the Gap.’ We’d heard about it because Martin’s Station was there. Today, there is a small but very nice, educational Visitor’s Center, part of the Wilderness Road State Park.
As we finished our work at the Gap, we drove up Powell Valley to White Rock, Virginia to see it, and the buffalo at the Park there, but we couldn’t find them. We hoped to get video of them for the story. Finally, after directions from the Visitor’s Center staff, in a big field overgrown with beautiful purple joe-pye weed and goldenrod we spied what looked like a big, brown lump sticking up. It looked like a dump truck had just unloaded a big pile of dirt in the middle of the field. But, no, on second glance, it was one of two buffalo that were lazily sleeping on the job. It’s in the show, a buffalo lump. Right where it’s ancestors for thousands of years rumbled through just like us.
An interesting video is on the site.
www.wbir.com/Heartland/story.aspx?storyid=28928