After the dead of the summer in south Texas, we were ready for a cooler change. With repairs completed, we packed up and headed northwards to Kentucky to visit our son. We had not been there since getting him settled in to his new Chiropractic practice and wanted to see how things were going. We also wanted to visit Kentucky when it wasn't cold and snowing!
We found a small campground near Ravenna, KY. During the summer the area is a church retreat and summer camp facility. Off season they rent out sites in the RV Park. The park itself is beautiful. Located in the valley with wooded mountains on either side, it is secluded and quite serene. The downside is that the roads to it are narrow and winding. In fact, the last three miles are on a single lane road with no shoulders and steep ditches. If you meet any oncoming traffic, somebody has to figure out a way to pull over. To top things off, about half way to the campground, an overhead electric line was perilously low and threatened to get snagged on the roof of the coach as we drove beneath it. To say the least, we arrived a bit frazzled. The campground management were very nice and listened to our comments and suggestions for better access by bigger rigs. To their credit, they even located the appropriate utility company and had the offending wire shored up and raised well above passing traffic.
One of our first visits was to old Boonesborough fort. This was the first fortified settlement in Kentucky and named for famous Daniel Boone (who lived here along with other members of his family). The fort has been painstakingly restored and was staffed by docents in period costume, each eager to discuss aspects of frontier life in the late 1700's.
Within walking distance of our campsite was the Fitchburg Furnace National Historical Site. The furnace was built in 1868-70 and only operated for four years. It was reportedly the largest charcoal burning furnace in the world, standing 81 feet wide, 40 feet deep, and 60 feet tall. It became the last charcoal burning furnace built in America. An extensive stabilization and restoration effort on the furnace was completed in 2010 by the National Forest Service. This was an interesting site to visit and we took Misty on walks there frequently. All that remains is the stone furnace building. All of the wooden structures have long been gone. It was fascinating to crawl in and around the large furnaces and imagine the charcoal it took to heat huge quantities of iron ore and produce huge quantities of molten metal.
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| Side view looking through the furnace |
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| Looking up the chimney |
Something we discovered about Kentucky is it seems that there is some sort of festival somewhere in the state every weekend! We attended the Bar-B-Q festival in Danville and the Railroad festival in Ravenna. We went back to Danville the week after the festival to visit the town itself. Danville is where the Kentucky Constitution was written. In fact, Danville was suggested to be the first Kentucky Capital, but it went to Frankfort instead. Old historic buildings and recreations are in the town square.
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| The Old Danville Jail |
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| Kentucky's Constitution was written here |
On the outskirts of town lies the Wilderness Trail Bourbon Distillery. This is a new craft distillery and has yet to release bourbon product in the market. They are known however as major suppliers of yeast to distilleries around the world. They also make a vodka and a unique rum made from sorghum. They are building a huge barrel house capable of storing 2,100 full sized barrels of bourbon. Within the next year or so they will hit the market. We took the tour and really enjoyed it. We were the last tour of the day and we were the only people on the tour. So we got what felt like a personalized visit. Not only do they offer a discount for Military, once you pay for and take a tour you can come back as often as you wish and tour at no additional charge! As part of the marketing strategy, we were allowed to complete a registry entry. When they begin to distribute bourbon, we will get two bottles FREE!! We are excited to go back next year and see how they have progressed.
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| Yeast and cultures made and controlled here |
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| Slowly becoming Bourbon |
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| Notice: We signed this barrel. We will come back to collect... |
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| The Barrel house under construction |
Towards the end of our visit, we packed up and headed to the south end of the state and visited Mammoth Cave. Shawn, his girlfriend Shelby, and their friend Tyler (also a Chiropractor with Bluegrass Chiropractic) came out and toured with us. The cave itself, as the name implies, covers a huge area. Over 400 miles have been explored and surveyed to date. The 52,830 acres that comprise Mammoth Cave National Park are ripe with caves, scenic vistas, bluffs, forests, hiking and aquatic trails. There are several different tours that you can take of the cave. One is a self guided hike through the original entry and proceeds about a half mile into the cave. Here you can see the remains of a saltpeter mining operation used to make gunpowder during the civil war.
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| Looking up through the original tourist entrance to the caves |
The other tour we took wound through deep pits and high domes. This was entered by negotiating a steep, 280 step spiral staircase. One thing that we noticed is the lack of usual cave formations. Things like Stalactites, Stalagmites, Columns, etc. were only rarely seen on the tour. This is explained by the unique geology of the area. Above the cave structures lies a "cap" of sandstone which does not allow water to penetrate below. Towards the edges of this "cap" the rock turns to limestone and allows the penetration of groundwater. It is here that you can find the presence of expected cave formations.
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| Rock lined passageway |
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| Some cave formations |
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| More cave formations |
In between our cave tours we hiked around the countryside. It was a warm day but all of us really enjoyed the natural beauty. S'mores and a campfire, followed by a good night's sleep were the order of the evening. We bid farewell to Shawn, Shelby, and Tyler the next day and headed to Red Bay, AL for our annual trip to the Tiffin Service Center.
Nothing major in the way of repairs, but we did need some engine work. Above is the coach on jacks while getting the oil changed. Some paint issues, carpentry and cabinet fixes, and a few poor performing electrical parts were repaired/replaced. We returned to Texas to drop off the motorhome then a quick trip to Kansas for some doctor visits. Next week we return to Texas and plan to stay until the Christmas Holidays.
