The open road awaits! Buckle up and get ready to explore Belmont County. Join us on Saturday, April 27th from 11a.m. to 4 p.m. and spend the day enjoying stunning views, historical sites and Belmont County heritage while driving along our scenic byways during the Belmont County Heritage Trail/Rubberneck Tour.

Every mile tells a story, and along this route you will discover the heritage that built Belmont County through the importance of transportation, agriculture, and industry, and the history that helped shape the region.

Explore the buckeye backroads while driving along parts of all three scenic byways in Belmont County: Ohio River Scenic Byway, Drovers’ Trail and the Historic National Road.

Sponsored by the Belmont County Tourism Council, this self-guided driving tour will feature points of interest through the Blaine, Martins Ferry and Bellaire areas. With its beginnings, as a tour of the local farms and homesteads in 1971, the route changes each year.

The 2024 Heritage Trail/Rubberneck Tour will feature stops at: the 1828 Blaine Hill “S” Bridge, Sedgwick House Museum, Historic Walnut Grove Cemetery, National Imperial Glass Museum, Union Square Park, the Great Stone Viaduct and the Willow Grove Mine Memorial.

This family-friendly event is free to the community and stops will include activities, demonstrations, and food trucks all along the route. Heritage Trail Passport books will be available the week before the event at the Tourism Office and online at visitbelmontcounty.com, and they will also be at all stops during the event.

The passport books contain a route map and details to learn more about each stop. Complete your passport by checking in and getting a stamp at every stop along the trail, to be entered to win one of five “Belmont Prize Baskets” (valued from $50-$200).

Don’t miss a chance this spring to get back outside and enjoy the wonder of nature as it comes back alive! And, just like those spring flowers, events will start popping up all around the county, too! From community events to museum reopenings to wildflower walks, now is the time to embrace the change of the season and start exploring right here in our own backyard in friendly, beautiful, Belmont County.

To find out more about all the upcoming events happening in Belmont County, go to our website at www.visitbelmontcounty.com.

Each month this space will be devoted to a column written by Jackee Pugh, executive director of the Belmont County Tourism Council. She will provide information about the tourism office, local attractions, upcoming events, and other local finds in Belmont County. She will share information about the travel and tourism industry and how it impacts our local economy.