SLADE, Ky. (LEX 18) — If you plan to visit the Red River Gorge before the end of the year, you might notice some new red signs going up around the region. They’re called wayfinding signs, and it’s part of a new initiative for surrounding counties to capitalize on the popularity of the gorge.
Project manager Eric Bean knows his way around the Red River Gorge. Though he didn’t live in the area, he practically grew up in it.
“My dad took me here quite a bit to hike, and we would do cross country hiking and camping, and I did that all as I was growing up,” Bean said. “I would start bringing friends that I got to know through high school, and we would come here.”
“My wife, really that was one of our first dates, was to come out here and camp. It was that trip, I think, that really started our relationship. When we got married, we honeymooned here. We’ve raised our kids a lot of time here.”
On Tuesday morning, five counties around the gorge unveiled a wayfinding sign project managed by Eric and QK4 Inc. of Louisville.
“We designed the whole system for the entire region,” Bean said, “including the brown signs that you see on the side of the highway, plus the local signs that you see in the background.”
According to Bean, QK4 Inc. first found out about the project last summer.
“I can tell you that the folks at QK4, a good portion of the folks at QK4 are just like me, are extreme enthusiasts of the region. So when we saw it, we knew we wanted to go for it,” Bean said. “Knowing that it’s that Red River Gorge, I think that the heart was brought out with a lot of our folks.”
“Once you see a sign, basically you’re going to know you’re in the right place,” said Pete Fingerson, executive director of Powell County Tourism. “You’re going to know you made it to the Red River Gorge region, and you’re free to explore throughout the whole area.”
The project incorporated Powell, Menifee, Wolfe, Estill, and Lee counties. Before the end of the year, 22 signs will be placed across the five counties.
“To be able to get all five of those counties on board with a similar goal and a similar project was just a huge accomplishment within itself,” Fingerson said.
The system of red signs with similar branding will guide visitors around the Red River Gorge and the surrounding region with the goal of boosting tourism across the counties.
“We’ll be able to kind of disperse some people out into the other hidden gems that are found in the area that some people might not know about,” added Fingerson.
When all is said and done, there will be about 290 signs placed around the region. This includes places around Powell County, like the Slade Welcome Center, the Kentucky Dragway, and the Nada Tunnel.
With his knowledge of the area, Bean was instrumental in creating the system.
Fingerson shared, “there was a few times that Eric would say, ‘oh we’re going to put a sign here at the intersection of this and this, and it’s going to point this way,’ and a lot of the times we would be like, ‘wait, we don’t even know where that is Eric, like hang on a second.’ His passion and drive for the project was tangible.”
“Getting to know the people, more so than the sign, has been really the best part of this project,” Bean said.
Phase I of the Wayfinding Signage Master Plan is set to be completed by Dec. 31, 2024.
