Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, January 28, 1992 TAG: 9201280334
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: NEW RIVER VALLEY BUREAU
DATELINE: PULASKI LENGTH: Medium
CRUISES COMING TO CLAYTOR '
Moonlight cruises on Claytor Lake, complete with dinner and dancing aboard an excursion boat, will be a new attraction in the New River Valley by May.Howard and Joyce Barrett will launch the New River Cruise Co. in the form of the Pioneer Maid, a 60-foot-long diesel-powered double-decker boat that can hold up to 140 passengers.
Howard Barrett, who holds a master mariner certificate, retired from the U.S. Navy after 20 years as a chief petty officer. The Wythe County native and his wife approached the state Tourism Division with the plan to operate out of Claytor Lake State Park nearly two years ago. After the state had considered the idea and searched for the best people to accomplish it, the Barretts were selected.
They announced their enterprise Monday night to the Pulaski County Board of Supervisors.
Barrett said the Pioneer Maid would make its first voyage May 1 after it is shipped to the lake in April and reassembled. The date will coincide with a state tourism promotion for Southwest Virginia.
There will be excursion rides for $7.50 per person, lunch trips for $12 and dinner voyages using old Virginia recipes for $24 on weekdays and $26 on weekends. The route will be between the state park and Lowmans Ferry Bridge on Virginia 672, including Peak Creek.
At the beginning, the enterprise will employ nine people: a captain, a food services manager, a mate who will be an engineer, an office manager, four food service people and a deck and maintenance person. All the positions will be filled locally.
Barrett said Pulaski County has two major scenic attractions: its mountains, which every driver can see, and its lake, which fewer people have been able to experience. The excursions will open the water not only to local people but also to visitors, he said.
He expects family sightseeing excursions to be popular enough to justify a second boat, and a 60-foot-by-16-foot, 100-passenger vessel is under construction.