ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Wednesday, September 4, 1996           TAG: 9609040072
SECTION: VIRGINIA                 PAGE: C-3  EDITION: METRO 
DATELINE: CHESAPEAKE
SOURCE: Associated Press

SWAMP LOW ON VA.'S LIST OF ATTRACTIONS

It's one of southeast Virginia's greatest natural treasures, but few people who live in the region and even fewer tourists venture into the 107,000-acre Great Dismal Swamp Wildlife Refuge.

That isolation probably won't change anytime soon, although plans to expand access to the refuge are under discussion.

``It's a Catch-22,'' said Jaleh Pett, a planner for the city of Chesapeake, which borders the refuge. ``We need better access to get more visitors, but we need more visitors to argue for better access. We have to work on public awareness.''

Chesapeake has only one public entrance into the refuge. The Dismal Swamp Canal, which runs for 22 miles from Norfolk into North Carolina, acts as a barrier - a long moat along the refuge's eastern border.

On the western side, in Suffolk, the only trails are old timber roads.

Lloyd A. Culp Jr., the refuge's manager, estimates that 25,000 to 30,000 people - mostly boaters - visit the refuge each year.

``It's an awareness thing,'' Culp said. ``It's easy to forget about us down here.''

But the refuge has a lot to offer, including the largest collection of black bears on the East Coast, miles of canals and the 3,100-acre depression at its center, Lake Drummond. According to legend, the lake was created by a meteorite.

Each year, several hunters and hikers veer too far off the 150 miles of old timber roads, lose their bearings and require rescue, Culp said. The refuge beyond the timber roads is generally untouched by man.

``It's kind of rustic in the woods, and at times you could be out here alone,'' Culp said. ``We don't want to turn the Dismal Swamp into Disneyland. But, at the same time, it could accommodate more people.''

One of the concerns about expanding access with more trails or a visitors' center is the impact on the main mission of preserving the refuge's ecosystem.

George T. Wallace IV, a motorboat tour guide whose family has lived by the swamp for four generations, said its importance shouldn't be underestimated.

``It's hard to believe the whole area used to look pristine like this,'' he said. ``At least we have a piece of it left to see.''

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