A Trail Town is a destination along a long-distance trail or adjacent to an extensive trail system. Whether the trail is a hiking trail, water trail or rail trail, users can venture from the path to explore the unique scenery, commerce and heritage that each trail town has to offer. A Trail Town is a vibrant hub where people come together and is a friendly place that encourages trail town users to visit and welcomes them with warm hospitality. 

Any trail, long or short, is a valuable asset to a community. A trail can provide recreation for people of all ages and fitness levels and offers the chance to study nature or local history. Studies have shown that the longer/larger the trail system, the further people will travel to visit it and the more likely they are to stay longer and spend more money. A day-tripper will spend four times as much as a local user, and an overnight visitor will spend twice as much as a day-tripper. 

In 2016, Morgantown started working on becoming a Kentucky Trail Town with the hopes of creating tourism opportunities and improving the health of our locals by also creating a trail system in the area. Morgantown formed a Trail Town Task Force, which the Family & Consumer Sciences Agent is a member and chairs the Volunteer Committee.  The Trail Town Task Force designed a plan, developed the plan to bring it to a reality and then implemented the plan of a water trail route that would allow individuals to travel the Green River through scenic Butler County. The application process was started and the work began with the first “float” happening in 2016. This float had 15 individuals to participate and then allowed us to work on improvements for the next event. The Green River Ramble was held June 3-4, 2017 and consisted of 39 miles (divided into 3 legs) of water trail to be canoed or kayaked. There were 40 individuals that took part in one leg or another. Food, entertainment and other activities were available during the event. The application process is still in the works, as there are several components to complete, but the committee feels that the Trail Town status will be received in the near future.  

Recreational trails and rivers can really help boost a community’s tourism traffic. Being a Trail Town is designed to help leaders take advantage of the economic opportunity brought by the attraction of trails and rivers. It will help transform your town into a more inviting and memorable tourist destination as well as a better place for residents to live, work and play.