Knott County tourism director desires to assist Jap Kentucky develop

KNOTT COUNTY, Ky. (WYMT) – Zack Hall was born and raised in Knott County and currently serves as the county’s tourism director, but what many of you may not know is that he has a long line of production credits.

He has appeared on several popular shows for Discovery and Animal Planet, including Deadliest Catch and Dirty Jobs. Hall said he was proud of his eastern Kentucky roots.

“I love the people here, I love being with my family,” said Hall.

But a life changing opportunity came from an unexpected place while Hall was at Alice Lloyd College.

“I was a cop in the police force and our boss at the time came to work one night and said there was a Craigslist advertisement for a production job and he knew we all just love to make videos and stuff,” said Halle.

Hall said he decided to send them his résumé without expecting what was coming next.

“I got a call and they said, hey, you’ve got the experience, they ended up working on Finding Bigfoot in London when they were shooting on location. Made some connections, kept chasing people, so yeah, it started here at Alice Lloyd and went all the way back to California, ”Hall said.

Hall said although he was grateful, he knew he had to come back and help his county to become his tourism director.

“It’s not busy in southeast Kentucky and I wanted to find a way to be part of the community and help it grow and do things for myself, my family, and future generations here in southeast Kentucky. Said Halle.

Hall said even though they made a dent, there is still a lot to be done.

“We’re actually working with the state now to have one of the greatest road systems in America. It will be the largest in Kentucky for sure. These are the First Frontier Trails that connect counties from Laurel County to Bell County. In the very east and southeast of Kentucky, ”Hall said.

Hall said he hoped to be inspired.

“You never have to settle down and I hope I slip into this role now to show people, hey, these young people, you can do this and you will love it, it’s great. Said Halle.

Hall became the district’s tourism director in 2019.

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