2024 Kentucky Trip
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Natural Bridge State Park
Hemlock Lodge has a big parking lot that I’m sure fills up on nice summer days. We stepped out into gentle rain and thought we had time to get one trail done before more rain came, but heard thunder. Change of plans; had lunch and waited until RADAR looked mostly clear for a bit. The…
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Red River Gorge Geological Area
A most fortuitous meeting while ordering pizza at Callie’s campground led to our adventure today. A couple who work down the road at Four Guys Campground absolutely love Callie’s pizza. While we were all waiting for our orders we discovered that he was born and raised in the Dubuque area and she has family living…
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Ft. Boonsborough State Park
Ft. Boonsborough is near Lexington, so we are back near that city and will see the horse park that was closed earlier in the week. The current fort was built in 1974 to represent a typical fort, and has people in costume showing what frontier life would be like . We saw a blacksmith, weaver,…
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On the Sunny Side of 90
My title is how our tour guide described her age. Jenemarie is the granddaughter of John Walter; he and his son were the last Lock Masters at Lock #10 on the Kentucky River with John Jr. retiring in 1975. Jenemarie delights in telling family stories. It’s her therapy, she says. She recited a lengthy family…
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Kentucky Horse Park
We are seeing lovely countryside and geological features. We have learned about frontier days and Revolutionary War, Daniel Boone, and Civil War battles. We visited a distillery and learned proper techniques for tasting bourbon and whiskey. What’s left? Oh, yeah, horses! Kentucky is famous for horse racing with the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs and…
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Cumberland Falls and a Weird Plant
Paul and Roxann suggested the Natural Bridge that we visited last week and this visit to Cumberland Falls. Great suggestions! This waterfall is 68 feet tall and 125 feet wide with 3600 cubic-feet of water spilling over the edge. It roars and creates mist and does not dry up in the summer. On our way…
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Horseback Ride and the Sheltowee Trace
While Tony set up for a meeting, I enjoyed a horseback ride at the Cumberland Falls Stables here in the park. My mount was General, a twelve-year-old Kentucky Walker. I never had to guide him as he followed the lead horse pretty closely. It was a short train with two guides and three guest riders.…
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Eagle Falls Hike and a Ginormous Tree Gall
The Eagle Falls Trail is across the Edward Moss Gatling Memorial Bridge. There is a small parking area, but we found a bigger one just a short distance up the road that was an open paved area with billboard advertising along the edge. The trail follows the Cumberland River across from the park and gives…
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Anniversary Choice—Cave or Corvettes?
What do you think I chose—a boat ride through a cave or a museum full of hot cars? A boat ride and a cave tour sounded like double prizes to me, so we stopped at The Lost River Cave in Bowling Green, KY, which was about the halfway point to Barkley Lake State Park. The…
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The Land Between Two Lakes
The Land Between Two Lakes is in Western Kentucky and partly shared with Tennessee. On the west side the Tennessee River is dammed up to form a long skinny Kentucky Lake. On the north and east side the Cumberland River is dammed up to form a long and skinnier Lake Barkley. The land between is…