Any KY hikers here?

[FishEyeGuy]

I live in KY, and usually hike either Mammoth Cave NP or the Hoosier National Forest.  I've got plans to hike somewhere in the Red River Gorge area this fall, but i still don't exactly know where to go.

[Mark Wetherington]

I lived in Kentucky until 2014 and hiked extensively in the Red River Gorge and Daniel Boone National Forest, and I did a decent bit of backpacking in the Big South Fork and Mammoth Cave National Park.

I moved to Montana in 2014 so my info is getting a bit outdated, but I'll be happy to share what I know!

[wspscott]

I just posted on your intro, I live in Lexington.

If you are looking for RRG info, head over to kywilderness.com, lots of nice people.

I can give you some ideas for the gorge and Mark can correct me with better ideas Are you interested in backpacking or dayhikes?

[FishEyeGuy]

I am interested in both day hikes and 1-2 day overnight trips.  I would really like to drive down to the Gorge and get there before noon, hike in somewhere and camp, and hike out a different way back to my truck.

The fewer people I encounter, the better.  Not that I am unfriendly in any way, I just enjoy the solitude if I am on a solo hike.

I have a day hike planned for Cloudsplitter, but if I could turn that into an overnighter, I wouldn't complain.

[Mark Wetherington]

Cloudsplitter itself is less than ideal for an overnighter, at least in my opinion. It sees a fair amount of visitors, you have to haul all your water up, the few spots for a tent aren't that great, and it isn't fun to scramble up there with a pack. That said, the views are incredible and it's an amazing place. I'd recommend sticking with Cloudsplitter as a day hike and camping somewhere else in the RRG.

If you like creekside camping, then taking Rough Trail down to Parched Corn Creek and then following the creek downstream to several great campsites in pines/hemlocks is hard to beat.

If you'd rather have big views, then I'd hear out Tarr Ridge or perhaps the Veranda Trail (both of these are unofficial trails and are described in the book "Hinterlands" by Jerrell Goodpaster).

Edited September 1, 2016 by Mark

[FishEyeGuy]

4 minutes ago, Mark said:

Cloudsplitter itself is less than ideal for an overnighter, at least in my opinion. It sees a fair amount of visitors, you have to haul all your water up, the few spots for a tent aren't that great, and it isn't fun to scramble up there with a pack. That said, the views are incredible and it's an amazing place. I'd recommend sticking with Cloudsplitter as a day hike and camping somewhere else in the RRG.

That is kind of what I was thinking.  I wanted to go hike Cloudsplitter, drive around and see some of the other places in the area, and make my way back home in a day.  In part to hike Cloudsplitter, and in part  just to see that area, as I haven't been there since I was a kid.

[wspscott]

There are some interesting unofficial trails in the Cloudsplitter area. If you think you will spend much time in the RRG, get the Hinterlands book that Mark mentioned. I suspect any place that sells the camping permits will also have the book.

[FishEyeGuy]

40 minutes ago, wspscott said:

There are some interesting unofficial trails in the Cloudsplitter area. If you think you will spend much time in the RRG, get the Hinterlands book that Mark mentioned. I suspect any place that sells the camping permits will also have the book.

I have been searching Google for that book, to no avail.  Hopefully when I visit I will be able to find it there.

[beef]

I'm in Indiana, but I lived half time in Lexington for three years until last year. I'm running the Rough Trail race in RRG in November, and I'll probably try to tack on a couple days of walking somewhere before/after.

[Todd_the_Hiker]

You can find the 'Hinterlands' book online here:  http://lostbranch.com/orders.htm

Another resource I highly recommend is the OutrageGIS map set for RRG here:  http://www.outragegis.com/gorge/

I also have a couple of suggestions on my website:  https://toddthehiker.com/kentuckys-red-river-gorge/red-river-gorge-off-trail/