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Carbondale named in new book, '101 Best Outdoor Towns'

by les winkeler, the southern

Thursday, July 12, 2007 11:45 PM CDT

CARBONDALE - Carbondale is an unspoiled place to visit, live and play - at least if you subscribe to the views offered by authors Sarah Tuff and Greg Melville in "101 Best Outdoor Towns."

The book, published by Countryman Press, is hitting the bookstores this summer.

Tuff and Melville, both former editors of the Men's Journal, place Carbondale in the same category as places such as Lake Placid, New York: Apalachicola, Fla.; Boone, N.C.; West Yellowstone, Mont.; and Taos, N.M.

Carbondale is the only Illinois community mentioned in the book.

"We've been trying to highlight some of our positives over the past few years, to bring some attention to what we have to offer in the area," said Carbondale mayor Brad Cole. "Recognition like this helps in that sense.

"Part of it is you have to let people know what you have. If you don't tell people, they don't know. We've been trying to get the word out more lately."

Apparently, some people, Tuff and Melville in this case, have noticed.

Debbie Moore, director of the Carbondale Convention and Tourism Bureau, said she submitted information to the authors upon their request.

Just over three pages of the 472-page volume are devoted to Carbondale. Given the title of the book, it stands to reason most of the three pages is devoted to the outdoor resources surrounding the city.

"Even though Illinois has fewer acres of protected public lands than all but two other states, its biggest park is a doozie," the authors write. "The Shawnee National Forest is a diverse, 420-square mile spread of lakes, forests, steep hills, rocky bluffs and grassy floodplains, cobbled together within seven wilderness areas."

The book goes on to highlight Little Grand Canyon, Cedar Lake, Kinkaid Lake, Devil's Backbone and the River-to-River Trail.

"We always promote the natural areas in any promotion that we do," Moore said. "If we were to promote something specific about Carbondale proper, we would still mention the Shawnee National Forest or Giant City State Park."

Incredibly, Giant City State Park escaped notice of the authors.

However, as Cole noted, it's easy to overlook much of the area's natural beauty.

"I have traveled quite a bit," he said. "A lot of times you'll go some place and you'll think this is really nice and you go home and you look past the same exact thing or something better. We've just gotten used to it."

While Moore acknowledged being mentioned as a prime destination for outdoor activities is a positive, she doesn't expect the mention to pay great dividends.

"I think there are travel writers that probably pay attention to those kinds of books," she said. "The spin-off from that is a positive thing."

Moore said being mentioned in the book can be important in terms of bringing developers or retirees to the area.

"We're looking at ways to promote Carbondale as a good retirement community," she said. "The mayor is looking at some development opportunities. From that standpoint, I think it is a fabulous thing. For a tourism standpoint, I don't think people study tourism destinations to that degree anymore. There may have been a time when potential travelers did that."

Cole said being mentioned brings benefits for all of Southern Illinois.

"That's the way we look at it," he said. "Everything I have said and done is to promote the region, with Carbondale being the central focus. From here, you can access all these wonderful things. Anything that highlights us highlights the entire region."

The book can be ordered at various bookstores around town, or by visiting www.countrymanpress.com.