24th Annual Gateway to the Cumberlands Jeep Jamboree will be biggest ever

Hundreds of Jeeps like this one will roll into Williamsburg next week for the Gateway to the Cumberlands Jeep Jamboree.

History will be made in Williamsburg next week as the town hosts the 24^th Annual Gateway to the Cumberlands Jeep Jamboree.

“It is the biggest, largest Jeep Jamboree gathering ever. It is impressive,” said Jeep Jamboree Kentucky Coordinator Don Ford.

This is the third year in a row that the Gateway to the Cumberlands Jeep Jamboree will be the largest in the nation.

Ford said that there are a few reasons why the event is so popular.

After the Gateway to the Cumberlands Jeep Jamboree got back into the trend of holding their event around Oct. 21, they have typically had the beauty of the fall colors being in their prime each year for the event, Ford noted.

“Ever since we have gotten back in that trend, the Jeep Jamboree in Williamsburg has grown and grown. A lot of that is contributed to the area itself – the mountains – and the city of Williamsburg,” Ford said.

“I can’t stress enough what the people think of and how much they talk about the city of Williamsburg being so receptive to us. The people that live in that area, the same thing. They are so receptive to us when we come over there. I think Williamsburg has a slogan, ‘Feels Like Home.’ It truly does.”

About 300 Jeeps are pre-registered and organizers are currently planning to feed about 520 people at dinner each night, including participants, trail guides and Jeep Jamboree staff.

In addition, another 30 Jeeps are on the waiting list.

Ford said that he is expecting participants from 25-30 states from all over the country.

“We are excited to be number one in the world again,” said Williamsburg Tourism Director Alvin Sharpe.

Jeep Jamboree USA is an organization out of California that conducts jamborees all over the United States.

“You have to have a Jeep to be able to get involved in it. You can’t go out there in just any four-wheel drive. It has to be a Jeep,” Sharpe noted. “Really, basically it is a lot of these people who have Grand Cherokees, Wranglers, and so forth that have probably never had them in four-wheel drive.

“This gives them the opportunity to come here. We have trails from the novice all the way up to the extreme trails for the advanced.”

This year there are 19 trails, most of which are located in either southern Whitley County or northern Campbell County, Tennessee. Last year there were only 15 trails.

Sharpe said he isn’t surprised that Williamsburg’s event keeps growing nearly every year.

“We have the perfect environment for it. The leaves are perfect this time of year,” Sharpe said.

He added that Ford and his staff do an excellent job of setting up the trails each year, and the city tries to make all the participants feel welcome.

Started 24 years ago

The Gateway to the Cumberlands Jeep Jamboree started in 1994. For the first four years, it was held at Cumberland Falls, but quickly outgrew that venue.

Ford said that one Saturday after all the riders had left out for the trails, he took a drive in his Jeep looking for somewhere to expand.

“I took a little drive and it was like my Jeep had sonar in it. It took me right straight to the Williamsburg Tourism Center,” Ford noted.

Sharpe happened to be in the lobby that morning standing there to great him.

“I talked to him and he didn’t know the meaning of the word no. It was, ‘Yes I can. Yes I can. Yes I can.’ I called the office in California and our founder, Mark Smith, who passed away a couple of years ago, made a special trip to Williamsburg,” Ford noted.

After meeting with Sharpe, they quickly decided to move the event to Williamsburg, which hosted its first Gateway to the Cumberlands Jeep Jamboree in 1998. It has been here ever since.

Improving local economy

Sharpe estimates that about $120,000 will be pumped into the Williamsburg economy through things like hotel stays, food and beverage purchases at local stores and gasoline.

In addition, the event will also benefit Corbin hotels, which received a lot of the overflow crowd from Williamsburg.

“They will get the carryover there, which is good for the whole area,” Sharpe said.

Another way the event pumps money into the local economy is that Jeep Jamboree pays the property owners for the use of their land and trails.

Organizers also do work on the property to get it ready for the event, and to make any necessary repairs after the event.

The Jamboree will start with registration at the Williamsburg Civic Center on Thursday, Oct. 19. Organizers will hold a cookout that night with hamburgers and hotdogs. The crowd of 500-plus participants, trails guides and organizers will be entertained with bluegrass music played by the band Tad Paddle.

The following two days, participants will gather at the Kentucky Splash Waterpark where they will line up their vehicles behind their trail guides, pick up their bag lunches that will be prepared by Millie’s on Main, and then depart for their destinations with a police escort guiding them out of the waterpark.

When participants return to town, the University of the Cumberlands Women’s Softball Team will wash mud-drenched Jeeps as a fundraiser.

Oral Lewis Catering will provide the evening meals on Oct. 20 and 21, and the University of the Cumberlands Cheerleaders will work as servers for the dinners as a fundraiser.

Prior to hitting the trails the first morning, participants will receive a warm welcome from local dignitaries, such as Sharpe, Williamsburg Mayor Roddy Harrison and Whitley County Judge-Executive Pat White Jr., who Ford noted have all become personal friends of his.

“You can’t find anybody better than they are at what they do,” Ford noted. “They are terrific. I can’t say enough about them. They make my job easy. I will say that.”

He added that not every town Jeep Jamboree he goes to has the same level of community involvement as Williamsburg does, which can make it difficult.

“A lot of places we have a difficult time because the community doesn’t get involved. You can imagine what would happen going into an area with 300 or 400 people and the city or community isn’t involved. It really makes it tough,” Ford said.

“With a city like Williamsburg, they look forward to it. Everybody wants to help us. I am still amazed by the receptive attitude that all the local people have with us coming in there.”