Meet Kody Crawford and the Guyandotte River.

For the past three months, Kody has been working in and around Wyoming County to help clean up the river and promote it as a recreational asset to the region.

Kody sees this work as being incredibly important to increasing recreational tourism in the southern coalfields.

He recently kayaked part of the Guyandotte to get a first-hand look at what the river has to offer.

“Overall, the experience was incredible; the river was very enjoyable and exciting,” Kody says. “There is plenty to see and so much fun to be had.”

But, Kody says, efforts must be taken to make the river healthier. And so that’s what he’s doing.

“The underlying fact remains that the river is dirty and needs to be cleaned,” he says. “This glorious resource can be such a benefit for the region and can be a source for recreation for locals and visitors.”

Kody is currently working with the Guyandotte Water Trail Alliance committee, a group of people and organizations dedicated to helping this waterway reach its full potential. They hope to organize a river clean up in late summer or early fall, before it gets too cold.

Want to learn more? Here’s Kody’s email address, or you can call him at 304.465.3720.