Montgomery plunges into whitewater as development tool to expand regional narrative
By John Bricken and Max Vaughn
Ask recreationalists to name some of the top whitewater kayaking areas in the United States, and images of the New River Gorge in West Virgina, Salmon River in Idaho, and even the Ocoee River on the Tennessee-Georgia border come to mind. Now, Montgomery, Ala., is emerging as a new site for recreationalists to visit.
For a city known more as the birthplace of the Civil Rights Movement, where top tourist attractions include the National Memorial for Peace and Justice and the Legacy Museum, sites like Maxwell Air Force Base and a Hyundai manufacturing plant also classify Montgomery as part of the New South. The city has diversified its economy and, as a result, its fortunes.