Public Lands

Cumberland-Pine Mountain Corridor Recreation Plan

The Nature Conservancy
Panoramic view of Cumberland

SE Group developed a multi-state recreation investment strategy spanning 13 counties across Southwest Virginia, Eastern Kentucky, and Northeast Tennessee. The corridor encompasses nationally and regionally significant recreation assets, including Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, national forests, state and interstate parks, long-distance trails, community trail systems, waterways, and communities linked by the Cumberland and Pine Mountains.

The planning process addressed recreation, conservation, economic development, and community livability as interconnected regional issues. SE Group combined recreation and visitor-use analysis, asset mapping, existing planning efforts, and partner knowledge to identify where stronger connections, infrastructure, management capacity, and coordinated investment could generate the greatest regional benefit.

TNC Asset Map

 

Visualizing Regional Opportunity

SE Group developed a corridor-wide Recreation Asset Map as both an analytical and investment-planning tool. The analysis revealed recreation assets clustered along the mountain corridor but often operating as isolated destinations, highlighting gaps in trails, access, visitor information, and cross-state coordination. Mapping helped the team identify opportunities to connect major destinations, strengthen multi-day recreation experiences, improve access to gateway communities, and better align recreation investment with the corridor’s ecological and economic assets.

From Engagement to Investment

The process engaged land managers, local governments, tourism and economic-development organizations, recreation groups, conservation partners, and community leaders across three states. Interviews, site visits, workshops, and a community survey generated 63 project ideas.
SE Group helped partners evaluate those ideas using shared criteria such as connectivity, feasibility, local support, readiness, safety, and multi-state impact. Nine priority projects advanced into a detailed Pitch Book with concepts, implementation needs, funding considerations, and resources.

The portfolio focused on three outcomes: strengthening recreation infrastructure and local economic activity, building regional capacity and partnerships, and supporting long-term stewardship.

Paving the Way to Implementation

Alongside the regional plan, SE Group developed an Investment Pitchbook to move priority projects toward funding and implementation. It outlines project sequencing, partnership needs, funding strategies, design and permitting considerations, and long-term stewardship.

That framework is already producing follow-on action: SE Group is now working with The Nature Conservancy to advance the Russell Fork River Whitewater & Scenic Blueway, one of the plan’s priority Pitch Book projects, from concept toward implementation.

  • 300,000
    Acres of Public Lands
  • 250+
    Miles of River

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