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Nearly half the communities in cities adjacent to the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge are Black. But visitors are mostly white.
Refuge officials are hoping to change that. The latest way is through a revamped trailhead at the Jericho Lane entrance to the swamp in Suffolk.
Visitors currently have to drive two miles down a gravel road to get to the trailhead, said refuge manager Chris Lowie. Schools don’t want to send their buses down the old logging roads.
A new trailhead will be much closer to the road, with new signs and an outdoor pavilion. The idea is to draw in more casual visitors from surrounding communities, not just those seeking adventure.
“Some people aren’t comfortable going deep into the swamp where there’s black bears and venomous snakes and biting insects,” he said.
The closer location will allow visitors to walk the trails while feeling like “you’re still in society,” he said.
The project has been part of the refuge’s plans for 15 years, Lowie said. It’s moving forward now with a $50,000 grant from Dominion Energy.
Volunteers with Dominion will also repair damage to the existing trailhead from bears. The animals have chewed, scraped and clawed their way through the telephone poles holding up a kiosk there.
“It’s getting to the point where it’s unsafe,” Lowie said.
Moving forward, leaders also hope to better highlight the historical significance of the refuge.
The Great Dismal Swamp and the land that surrounds it have a long story to tell, beginning with the last Ice Age when there were mastodons, bison, elk and bears.
Later, the land was occupied by Indigenous people who lived off the swamp. Then came colonists who drained and logged it. Inside the swamp, enslaved people sought freedom.
“It’s always been a refuge for wildlife and people and it always will be,” Lowie said.
Educating visitors about all this history is now a priority. The new Jericho Lane trailhead will include some historical information on its signs, but Lowie said officials hope for further funding to do more.
The city of Suffolk is also getting involved. With the help of local and regional partners, the city’s buying land next to the main road to build an education center with interpretations from the Nansemond Tribe and African Americans who have ancestral ties to the swamp.
“There’s a lot of untold stories about the swamp and how it helped shape that area of our country,” Lowie said.
