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PARKERSBURG -- The governor and the secretary of tourism in West Virginia on Wednesday touted Outside Magazine naming the New River Gorge as the Best Family Trip in the United States.
"This is a big, big deal," Gov. Jim Justice said during his online administrative briefing.
"West Virginia has been getting the word out about all its spectacular nature of late -- notably the churning whitewater, forested trails and sandstone cliffs of America's 63rd national park, New River Gorge," the magazine said. "With so many recreational opportunities for every age and expertise level, this is our pick for families."
The New River Gorge National Park and Preserve is the country's 63rd national park and the newest. The magazine this week cited hiking trails, disc golf, a zip line, multi-bedroom home rentals, whitewater rafting, mining communities, rock climbing and horseback riding to the rim of the gorge.
"It's easy to see why West Virginia's slogan is Wild and Wonderful," Outdoor Magazine said.
"We are frogs proud of our pond," Justice said.
Similar accolades have been received in the last year, Tourism Secretary Chelsea Ruby said. Among those were Travel and Leisure, Conde-Nast, Lonely Planet, Time, CNN and USA Today.
"Super excited about this," she said.
Outdoor Magazine is a premiere publication for outdoor enthusiasts, Ruby said. The magazine is seen by 50 million people around the world, she said.
The state hosted the magazine editors several times, Ruby said.
The promotion will continue, according to Ruby.
"We've got a couple more publications we haven't gotten yet," Ruby said.
In other business, Justice said the unemployment rate in April in West Virginia dropped to 3.3 percent. The national average was 3.4 percent, he said.
The state also added another 1,000 people to the employment rolls, Justice said.
Dr. Clay Marsh, state COVID-19 adviser, encouraged residents to remain cautious despite the end of the COVID-19 pandemic emergency on May 11.
"It's important to be cognizant that COVID-19 remains a serious infectious disease challenge," Marsh said in a message videotaped on Tuesday.
Justice also declared June 19, known as Juneteenth, a state holiday in honor of the last day of slavery in the nation. State offices will be closed that day, he said.
A free event will be held 5-9 p.m. Saturday on the west side of the Capitol Complex, Justice said. June 20 is West Virginia Day, when West Virginia became a state in 1863 during the Civil War.
"We'll get a real long weekend for great, great, great state employees," he said.