Inside West Virginia's Most Remote Holler

Hidden deep in the mountains of southern West Virginia, Dingess is one of Appalachia’s most isolated communities. For decades, the town has carried a reputation for hostility toward outsiders, with locals warning us to stay away and describing the area as lawless, suspicious, and unwelcoming. We went anyway, winding through the mountains and passing through a mile-long tunnel originally carved for coal trains to capture what life in Dingess is really like. About Roca: RocaNews is an independent media company started by 3 friends in 2020. Our mission is to cover the news without bias or fear. We deliver daily news to 2M+ people via the products below. If you want unfiltered, independent reporting like this, subscribe to our daily newsletter on Substack: https://rocanews.substack.com/subscribe Our Products: ► Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ridethenews ► App: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/rocanews-unbiased-fun-news/id1630180690 ► Substack: https://rocanews.substack.com Our Series: ► The South: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPeAGR_Bf_D0R5OH3S3pOqMjOTuoyfqJO&si=gNefb5fKwfePMlSZ ► Pakistan: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPeAGR_Bf_D3Dc07Xay6AUtGomrzxE2pZ ► East Coast: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPeAGR_Bf_D0kfAVY9wv-ko6eN7TWR-WA ► Appalachia: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPeAGR_Bf_D1NPe26BHDdE_6X1pk6UysX&si=3eXpFF7-t_C3S2hi ► Rust Belt: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPeAGR_Bf_D2Di5bzXIMrM6Ef_IIiRNYU&si=Q5ewau_4vb0tGkMC ► The Southwest https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPeAGR_Bf_D2p0GvEpSo5HoiDdm9tOhR-&si=6O7usDcjlNY6j5if ► The UK https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPeAGR_Bf_D3f3SHy6GGx1ZsLl3qbHBmC&si=f3toQ8ta5E6qA03u Want to help us report? ► Sign up here: https://shorturl.at/xPrUx 0:00 Intro 1:28 Williamson, West Virginia 2:15 Into the Hills 3:40 Wandering Appalachia 4:33 The Infamous Tunnel 5:20 “There’s not much to know” 7:24 Into the Hidden Hollers 8:11 Meet John Wayne 10:51 Meet Payne 11:38 Is There Crime in the Hollers? 12:58 Raising Kids 13:35 A Divided Symbol 14:59 Family Values 21:22 Outro Episode 141 Subs: 790k subs kentucky westvirginia appalachia dingess