Seeking a break from what has been a long Buena Vista winter, my husband and I decided last week to take a short trip out to Moab, Utah for a spell of some warmer climes. What we did not realize until we got there was that just about every body else who lives within a six hour drive of Moab had the same idea as we did.

The morning after our arrival we drove down Main Street (Hwy 191) in search of breakfast. I instantly felt overwhelmed with what I saw. The street was jam packed with SUVs and trucks parked along the sides of the road full of mountain bikes, dirt bikes, kayaks, and trailers hauling jacked up 4×4 trucks. I’d guess that three out of four license plates adorning the vehicles came from somewhere other than Utah. I saw two from as far as British Columbia and others from the likes of Maine and Virginia, and still many more from Colorado and Nevada. People were everywhere. In that moment, I could not help but wonder where all the Moab localers were and what they thought of their town having this many visitors at once.

There are some interesting similarities between Moab and Buena Vista. Both are fairly remote towns surrounded by significant outdoor adventure opportunities. Moab is sandwiched between two truly spectacular national parks – Arches and Canyonlands. Buena Vista is directly adjacent to the Collegiate Peaks Wilderness. With eight mountain peaks rising higher than 14,000 feet, it has the highest average elevation of any wilderness area in the lower 48 states. Moab serves as the put in for the well known Cataract Canyon whitewater trip on the Colorado River. Buena Vista plays host to nearby Brown’s Canyon, The Numbers, and many other classic stretches of the Arkansas River. Both towns have extensive mountain biking opportunities as well as areas designated for motorized off-road back country access. The towns are both of modest size. In the 2000 census, Moab had a population of 4,800 and BV had 2,200 in town proper with many more in the outlying areas.

Some may say that Moab offers the slightest bit more than Buena Vista, but all in all, I think they are quite comparable. When I stop to consider that Moab is a four and a half hour drive from Salt Lake City and five from Denver, while BV on the other hand is only two hours away from Colorado Springs and an additional half hour away from Denver, it causes me to want to question whether BV is just a few years away from a similar tourist fate like that of Moab.

Upon our arrival into Moab we where expecting to see a built environment made to match the grandeur of the stunningly beautiful and dramatic red wind gate sandstone that accompanied our drive for much of our way in. Instead we were greeted by hotels and motels with tacky road signs and cheap construction lining the highway for a mile leading into town. In seeing “for sale” signs for other commercial properties dotting the highway, I could not help but wonder what the next graceless edifice would be to go up, removing just one more bit of soul from such an extraordinary place and to imagine the parade of buildings that in 30 or so years will be nothing more than rapidly dilapidating eyesores. I could not help but imagine how it compares to the the potential future of our own Highway 24.

There has been so much talk and thought lately in the Buena Vista community about “smart growth” with regards to the potential of incoming permanent and semi-permanent residents, but what has been thought of with regards to the oncoming tourist industry? Almost without exception I get the impression that tourists coming in to our community is a good thing. I have always agreed with that outlook for the most part and still do. But now, after seeing how the heart of Main Street Moab has been overrun by tourists and how in some ways I think Moab has welcomed its tourist industry without enough forethought, I have to wonder what may end up happening in BV if we don’t more actively consider this issue.

At times it seems we are desperate to have any economic help we can get to vitalize our town. Lets consider how we want tourism to impact our town and where. Lets put standards into place before this exponential growth continues further. Better sign codes is a great place to start, but it is just the beginning. In addition, lets support those who are making efforts to establish clearly defined uses for trails in our back country. How do we create a culture within our tourists of deeply caring about Buena Vista and the surrounding areas, not just seeing it as a place for disposable fun?

So, is Moab just a few years ahead of us? If so, where did they go wrong and where did they go right? My next post will be about the many wonderful things that I observed in Moab that can serve as inspiration to us.