Whoever said the wheels of progress turn slowly had to be from Elkhorn City. The wheels on our progress train are like those on a brokedown shopping cart: two turn fine, one turns but wobbles non-stop right to left, and the last one is locked up half the time.
Still, there are signs progress is being made.
It's been nearly twenty months since the citizens of Elkhorn voted to allow alcohol sales. It took a while, but before too long (but longer than it takes anywhere else) the Double Kwik in town was selling beer. I was one of the first people carrying a six pack out the door that day.
Not too long after that, a liquor store opened in town. It looked like we were well on our way. Any minute, a handful of alcohol serving restaurants would open in our town and tourists would follow.
Except the one thing no one expected to happen happened. A global pandemic shut restaurants, bars and other socially centered businesses down. For months, nobody went out to eat. And tourists flocking to Elkhorn? Tourists weren't flocking anywhere.
Whatever restaurants and watering holes that had planned to get on board with the new wet Elkhorn were put on hold. We just couldn't pass that final hurdle that signifies a modern and welcoming destination for the eager traveller: being able to get a beer or glass of wine with a meal.
But while the pandemic still rages in places not too different from our own, the summer and vaccinations have opened things up at home. Pass through Elkhorn City any day of the week and you'll see cross-country bicyclists, river rats in kayaks and innertubes, and dozens of ATV's passing through town between the many trails that wind between the hollers and ridges.
The 4th of July weekend doubled and tripled the population of our tiny town. You could catch live music, enjoy snowcones and grilled hotdogs next to the corner caboose and revel in a fireworks induced frenzy of bright flashes and gunpowder smoke.
No, if you are allergic to fireworks or have PTSD, Elkhorn was not the place for you.
I had planned not to be in Elkhorn City on Saturday evening, but several factors made me change my mind. Many old friends in town to catch up with, way too much sweat lost trying to mow and weed the yard, and a real desire to catch the annual fireworks display for the first time in a couple of years.
When someone told me the Dave Adkins Band was playing at Ducker's Bar'n Grill, my mind was made. Dave is one of the country's finest bluegrass singers and if you haven't seen him and his band, you need to. I may not be the biggest bluegrass fan, but I am a real fan of good music and that's what Dave brings.
What I didn't know was that Ducker's finally got their alcohol license. Saturday night I got to mark off a bucket list item I've had since about the age of 18. That item was simple: buy a beer and drink it in a legal establishment in Elkhorn City.
Sounded like several acquaintances scratched that item off as well. And that's what I call progress. Now where's my jetpack.