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Virtual tours of some of America’s most important places—its parks, waterways and even battlefields—went online this week in Street View in Google Maps. The Conservation Fund and Chimney Rock at Chimney Rock State Park unveiled a host of sites across the Eastern seaboard that they hiked, paddled, and explored with the Street View Trekker, a mapping tool from Google that allows anyone with a screen and internet access to journey beyond the road for a tour of iconic American sites where Chimney Rock and The Conservation Fund played a role in permanent protection.
Last year, Chimney Rock’s staff and The Conservation Fund borrowed and set out with Trekker, a 4-foot-tall, 40-pound camera and backpack, that’s part of Google’s project to create a digital reflection of the world for people to explore and enjoy.
Now, these spectacular places that we protected together are online for the world to see, including virtual tours of eight sites, stretching from Delaware to North Carolina. We are thrilled to share that Chimney Rock is available to visitors and outdoor enthusiasts across the globe seeking a glimpse of places they might not typically see on the web-based mapping service.
“We hope that panoramic, fully navigable imagery of these places on Google Maps enables people to explore and learn about these sites of historic significance and national pride,” said Deanna Yick, Google Maps Street View Program Manager. “The imagery collected with The Conservation Fund and its natural resource partners truly brings Chimney Rock to life.”
“For three decades our entrepreneurial staff has worked with the best partners to find innovative conservation solutions that make economic sense,” said The Conservation Fund’s president and CEO, Larry Selzer. “Conservation means including people, not excluding them. Google Trekker enables people everywhere to experience the beauty and significance of the places we protect—even if they aren’t able to travel there. As we become more of an urban nation, and as the demographics of our country continue to change, reconnecting people—especially young people—with nature will be less about bringing kids to nature, and more about bringing nature to the kids.”
“Chimney Rock Management, LLC and State Parks feel fortunate to partner with The Conservation Fund to offer people around the world a completely new and unique way to experience the beauty of our Park,” said Mary Jaeger-Gale, General Manager at Chimney Rock at Chimney Rock State Park. “It is our hope that by providing a variety of ways to access nature, we’ll encourage people to join us in protecting and preserving the precious natural resources we’ve been given.”
Take a virtual tour of Chimney Rock at Chimney Rock State Park by visit https://www.google.com/maps/@35.433292,-82.258945,3a,75y,90t/data=!3m5!1e1!3m3!1sEc5wuJVQSBjurTQUZOe4Xg!2e0!3e5
Chimney Rock at Chimney Rock State Park is a developing international outdoor destination located 25 miles southeast of Asheville on Highway 64/74A in Chimney Rock, N.C. It is recognized as one of the Southeast’s most iconic sites and popular travel destinations. The Park’s 535-million-year-old monolith called Chimney Rock can be accessed via a 491-step Outcroppings Trail or a 26-story elevator and offers guests 75-mile panoramic views of Hickory Nut Gorge and Lake Lure. The Park features one of the highest waterfalls of its kind east of the Mississippi River, Hickory Nut Falls, at 404 feet. Hickory Nut Gorge, one of the state’s most significant centers of biodiversity, is home to 36 rare plant species and 14 rare animal species. The Rumbling Bald section of the greater State Park off of Boys Camp Road in Chimney Rock is the only other area of the Park that is currently open to the public. Visit Chimney Rock’s website at chimneyrockpark.com.
