Kentucky: Lincoln, Mammoth Cave and Cumberland Gap
Capital: Frankfurt
Largest City: Louisville
Population: 4.5 million
Admitted: 1792
Kentucky is a southern, midwestern state. It is known for bluegrass, the Kentucky Derby and the city of Louisville. My earliest memories of Kentucky were driving through on interstate 75 on the way to Florida. Since seeing the interstate, I have returned to Kentucky a few more times to see what else the state has to offer.
Returning to Kentucky
On a visit to see several state high points in July of 2018, we included Kentucky's highest point. Kentucky's highest point is Black Mountain at 4,145 feet. It features an ugly radio tower at the top.
In May of 2021, we returned to Kentucky with our purpose being to visit national parks and national historical parks.
Our visit began in Cave City at Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park. Former president, Abraham Lincoln, was born in Kentucky. The park had a memorial and a replica of a log cabin that he lived in. Once finished we went to our motel which was a wigwam motel. The motel featured rooms that are shaped like teepees.
Our next stop on our Kentucky roadtrip was at Mammoth Cave National Park. Because of Covid-19, Mammoth Cave needed reservations. Glad, I found out when I got there. No reservations were available, and I still do not know what the cave looks like. Instead of seeing the cave, we did a short hike in the park.
We decided to not let our mis-cave adventure let us down and continued onto the next park - Cumberland Gap National Historical Park. Cumberland Gap is on the border of Virginia, Tennessee and Kentucky. The park had little traffic, which was a plus. In the park, we hiked to the state tripoint, which was 2.4 miles roundtrip. Along with that, we stopped at an overlook where the car was parked in Kentucky, we were standing in Virginia and viewing the historic town of Cumberland Gap, Tennessee.
Final Thoughts
The visits to Kentucky were nice, though, I definitely need to return to see the actual cave at Mammoth Cave National Park. I have also yearned to visit the Kentucky Derby to see what it is all about.
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