Tourism businesses are voicing concern about the impact of high gas prices on an important part of the county’s economy. While most say it’s too soon to tell what the total impact will be, especially with a wet spring that kept visitation down, most of those interviewed have already seen a downturn in advance reservations. Several report cancellations of big groups. Many have seen more people from the local area rather than from distant states.

Adrian Lambert with the Polk County Chamber of Commerce said calls have been down and those who do call are from nearby states. She said they used to get a lot of calls from Florida, Ohio, New Jersey and even California. Now, she said, calls are more likely to be from Georgia and Alabama.

Hits on the website are about the same so far, around 250 a week, which increases to 500 in July and August. “We’ll see what happens then,” she said. She said nearly all of the last 100 hits came from nearby -- Tennessee, Georgia, Mississippi, Kentucky, with just a few from places like Washington, Arizona and Wyoming. “It’s kind of scary,” Lambert said.

The lodging industry may be the hardest hit if vacationers opt for day trips instead of weekend or week-long getaways. Brian McMillian, who manages around 30 cabins, said there has been a dramatic drop in advance reservations.

“People are waiting for the last minute to see gas prices,” he said, noting his cabins were 15-20% down on Memorial Day weekend. He said he normally has a lot more reservations for July, the biggest month of the year. He said the cabins rent for $100-225/night, with the lower prices doing better than previous years. He said he thinks people will scale back rather than not go on vacation at all.

Richard Scott, who owns Copperhill Country Cabins, said the early season was up but May was off by 35%, as is June so far. He, too, said people are waiting until the last minute, calling on Monday or Tuesday for Friday.

“People are spooked. They’re putting it off to see if they have enough money.” He said  more people seem to be spending a day and then going home. He said he has not seen a huge drop but “it’s enough to scare you.” Scott said advance bookings are off considerably. He said bookings for June, July and August are down from last year and he is not getting the big groups who take all four cabins like he had in previous years. One church group that had made a reservation has cancelled, even though that meant forfeiting a deposit, he said, noting they told him they can’t afford to come.

Advance bookings for July are down 78%, Scott said. “People are clearly waiting for the last minute,” he said. “They usually call in February and March.” He said it’s been unheard of to have cabins available on weekends in July, noting he usually turns away three times as many as he has booked. While he’s figuring there will be last-minute customers, he expects the business to be down 10-15% this year. He’s taking extra steps to cut costs, such as turning off the electric breakers and water heaters when a cabin is empty.

Jerry Weicken with Reliance Fly & Tackle said he is about 12% ahead but Memorial Day weekend was 20% short of last year for his camping sites. He said he is seeing more people from Chattanooga to Sweetwater rather than Florida, Alabama and Louisiana. Some commented that they are camping this year rather than staying in a motel. Guided fishing trips are also down, he said, as people do more wade fishing, but he noted his revenue from fishing gear and tackle is up. Sales of arts and crafts items are down, he said, but food and camping equipment is on target.

Weicken said his campground was booked up about three weeks in advance of a holiday, noting Fourth of July would normally be booked by now but he had just two of his 10 sites reserved. This year, some of the advance bookings have backed out but there are more walk-ins. He does have one site booked for the summer, as a customer form Chattanooga decided to leave her popup in Reliance and come on the weekends rather than visit different places.

Gee Creek campground saw an increase in May, with more local use than in the past and a lot more from Tennessee than out of state. Sherry Sparks with the Ocoee office of the Cherokee National Forest said they seem to be selling more annual passes this year. In the improved recreation areas, she said, revenue was down, especially in April and May.

Whitewater rafting on the Ocoee is down about 200 customers compared to last year, which was a record year. According to information compiled by State Parks, there was a total of 15,743 customers -- 13,193 on the middle river and 2,550 on the upper (May only). Last year, there was a total 15,933 customers through May -- 13,503 on the middle river and 2,430 on the upper. The number of private paddlers was also down, from 5,744 last year to 5,362 this year so far.

Larry Mashburn with Ocoee Adventure Company and Big Frog said he doesn’t know if the difference is due to gas prices or just a cool, wet spring. “Once the asphalt starts heating up in Chattanooga and Atlanta, people will want to raft,” he said. He said his company is marketing closer in than normal and not spending as much effort trying to reach potential customers in Ohio and Missouri, for example. He said advance bookings are slow but not way off. He said they normally get a lot of advance bookings for groups, but that is down, especially for groups farther away.

Mashburn said the gas prices are affecting rafting companies’ bottom line because of the growing expense of filling the rafting buses. He noted that June, July and August are the key to the season.

Harold Webb, owner of Webb’s Float Service and the Watchman’s House in Reliance, said his business is down quite a bit, with nobody staying in the Watchman’s House on Memorial Day weekend and advance bookings down. For Hiwassee rafting, he said, there is water available every day now but the group bookings are down, including one big group that booked in March and then cancelled. Webb has been providing trips for groups staying at Coker Creek Village, but that business is also down. He said he has been getting some walk-ins, which is expected to increase as it gets hot, but “at  this pace it will be way down.” He said it’s difficult to plan for staffing.

Ken Rush, curator at the Ducktown Basin Museum, also said there is an increase in visitation from people within a half-day’s drive. He said last year was the best ever, adding museum attendance has gone up every year since 1994. Through May this year, he said, it has been comparable to last year even though there were not as many school groups as usual and not as many people from the Midwest. Rush said the museum usually gets school groups from Atlanta and Chattanooga but none came this year. “I think we’ll weather the storm,” he said, adding he hopes day trips will pick up the slack. He said he is a little concerned, noting this is just the beginning of the season, but said it has been steady so far.

Carole James with Stateline Fireworks, which just reopened after renovations, said her vendors are talking about the impact of the trickle effect, adding “I’m sure it will hurt.” She said it appears that people will be doing more things closer to home. She noted it’s a tough year to decide about ordering, adding she cut back some on this year’s fireworks order.

Tammi Mann with Christmas Is Here! In Copperhill said they’re holding their own so far, but she said it’s obvious that the train passengers have less disposable income than last year as their buying is off.