Archive for the ‘Eastern’ Category
It is time again for the popular State Parks Family Adventure Quest. Teams of 2-6 will work to complete various challenges and answer questions throughout the State Parks system. This is a great way for families to discover our Parks and have a lot of fun while doing it. Each State Park has its own unique character and history, and this is a great way to explore the Parks and learn more about them. There will again be prizes this year for teams that complete a required number of challenges. 20 out of 25 will earn you a $25 State Parks Gift Card, while completing all 25 will ne
t a $50 State Parks gift card.
While it may be called the Family Adventure Quest, it is also great for groups of friends and outdoor enthuasists. Visit the Family Adventure Quest website to see what other participants are saying & to get your team registered: http://www.parks.ky.gov/family-adventure-quest/default.aspx
So, it’s time to get your team rounded up, get out the camera and the hiking boots and take off on the 2012 Kentucky State Parks Family Adventure Quest!
The last weekend in January is an exciting time to be at Carter Caves State Resort Park. This January 27-29 will be the popular Winter Adventure Weekend. The Winter Adventure Weekend is arguably the best time to visit the park all year. There are a host of activities that people can participate in: cave tours, rappels, guided hikes, float trips & a number of craft sessions and demonstrations.
This weekend is a great chance to get outside and stretch your legs during the winter months when most people stay bundled up indoors. All trips and workshops are led by knowledgeable guides with years of experience providing guided services. Those wanting to join in the fun need to pre-register to ensure their space on the trips. Registration information may be found at www.adventureweekend.com. Also, you will find tons more information about this exciting weekend, as well as pictures from previous years. Also, check out their facebook page where you can “like” the Winter Adventure Weekend & share with your friends. www.facebook.com/winteradventureweekend.
This will be one adventure you want to make sure you don’t miss out on. So, get your friends, family and fellow adventurers and plan to spend the weekend at Carter Caves State Resort Park.
A snowbird's view from the park's dining room.
Tend to get cabin fever? Do the doldrums of winter get you down? Brush off the stay-inside blues and head to Pine Mountain State Resort Park on the weekend of January 13-15 for an early-season hiking adventure.
Winter is perhaps the best season for hiking in the Southern Appalachians. Free of stifling humidity and summer crowds, the crisp air invigorates as leafless trees reveal stunning mountain views. All you need is a sturdy pair of boots and the will to explore.
On this occasion, you can join multiple, Naturalist-guided expeditions to hike a total of 8 miles on three guided hikes in one weekend. Gaze out across the Cumberland Mountains from Knobby Rock in the midst of the celebrated Blanton Forest, stand on the mountain peak where KY-TN-VA adjoin, feel the weight of history in the saddle of the Cumberland Gap Pass. Investigate a Native American camp in a sandstone rockhouse, re-live the folk history of the legendary Chained Rock, and examine a natural arch on the vaulted south slope of Pine Mountain.
Evening programs will feature an introduction to the adventure sport of Geocaching, a GPS primer, Leave No Trace Concepts, and a Backpacking 101 session.
Winter at Herndon J. Evans Lodge.
It’s a nice add-on that the event is hosted at one of Kentucky’s premiere natural history parks featuring a full-service lodge complete with cozy guest rooms and a dining room with a specatular mountain view. Rustic (but modern) log cabins with fireplaces are also available for those that prefer a more authentic winter mountains getaway experience.
If you’re looking to escape winter malaise and are up for a bit of hiking, Hike the Highlands Winter Getaway may be just what the doctor ordered. There may be no better opportunity this winter to blend travel, sightseeing, adventure, and a little exercise than a mid-january visit to Pine Mountain State Resort Park.
The park is offering special getaway packages for two that include accommodations, evening meals, a complimentary hiking stick, and admission to all hikes/programs. The non-package registration fee for participation is $20 for adults, $10 for youths 13-17, and children 12 & under is free. Pre-registration is required. To register or make a reservation, phone the park’s Guest Services Desk at (800) 325-1712 and mention the Hike the Highlands Winter Getaway.
How do you get there? From I-75 South or North, take exit 29 at Corbin onto US 25E, then travel south on 25E, approximately 34 miles to Pineville, KY. Continuing on 25E south, the park entrances that are located about 1.5 miles south of Pineville. Pine Mountain State Resort is located south of Pineville, KY on US 25E and 10 miles north of Middlesboro, KY.
Eligibility for the 2012 US Wildwater team was determined in Elkhorn City on Sunday, October 16 from 33 competitors in four categories. Boaters from coast to coast, Canada and France raced in timed events over the weekend to take honors.
Known as one of the friendliest destinations in American whitewater, the Russell Fork river again provided perfect conditions for racers and dedicated boaters alike. And as the bumper sticker says, “It’s always sunny in Elkhorn City.” Representatives of USA Canoe and Kayak, Kentucky Sports Authority and the Elkhorn City Area Heritage Council worked together to make sure the weekend was a success both for the race organizers and for the local economy.
Trials participants raced in two events: the Classic, a mile long course through downtown Elkhorn City and the Sprint, a less than quarter mile course a mile upstream of town. The single heat of the Classic was Saturday afternoon, the two heats of the Sprint were Sunday morning/afternoon. Spectators from all over the region lined the banks of the river both days to watch the unique racing boats glide through the choppy waters of the Fork.
The team selected to compete for the US in one or both events in the World Championships by category were:
- K-1 Emmanuel Beauchard, Kurt Smithgall, Jeremy DiCasolo, Chris Norbury, Terry Smith, and Jeremy Rogers
- K-1(W) Tierney O’Sullivan, Marin Millar, Haley Popp, Joetta LaBadie, and Jennie Goldberg
- C-1 Tom Wier, Jack Ditty, John Pinyerd, and Tom Popp
- C-2 Colton Popp and Bryson Popp
If you ‘d like to see more pictures from the USACK Whitewater Team trials and from the rest of the October whitewater season on the Russell Fork, go to http://www.russellfork.info/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=14
On my way to Great Meadows campground in McCreary County where I will be joining the Sheltowee Trace I had to stop by Cumberland Falls State Resort Park. The main purpose behind my stop at the park was to drop off food to pick up in a few days, but luckily it coincided with the final day of the U.S. Adventure Racing Association National Championship competition.
Teams of three raced over twenty four hours on foot, bycicle and canoe using only topographical maps and compasses to find their way to the finish line at the duPont Lodge.
It was a truly beautiful weekend in Southeastern Kentucky for an adventure or a race or both and proves that there is plenty to do on fall Saturdays even when UK and U of L are both playing out of town.
USA Canoe/Kayak Team Trials highlight October release season
Paddlers from all over the world are about to descend on the friendliest little whitewater town in the east. Every weekend in October, Elkhorn City will be filled with kayakers, canoeists and other random water junkies to challenge their skills on the legendary Russell Fork.
Team trail competitors compete in specialized "wildwater" boats.
This year’s season is highlighted by the USA Canoe & Kayak wildwater team trials, the first such event to be held in Kentucky. Competitors from all over the country will arrive for the two events on October 15-16 that will determine the USA wildwater team for next year’s World Whitewater Championships in Europe.
Saturday’s downriver event sends individual racers down a 2 mile course ending in downtown Elkhorn City. These racers will compete in the sprint race on Sunday at the Breaks River Access. Over 50 competitors are expected.
This premier event isn’t the only attraction for the month. The 4th annual Baddlun on the Russell Fork, an extreme triathlon featuring biking, kayaking, and running, is at noon, October 8. The first annual Baddlun-lite (less extreme) is at 4pm, also on the 8th. It will be followed by the annual Paddler Appreciation cookout at Elkhorn Beach.
The 15th annual Lord of the Fork extreme downriver race returns on October 22. This race brings the best downriver kayakers in the world into the Breaks Gorge trying to post the fastest time through 2 miles of Class V rapids. Last year’s winner, from New Zealand, will return to defend his title. There’s extra incentive this year, as a cash prize is being offered for the male and female with the best accumulated times in the three biggest extreme races in US whitewater: the Animal on the Gauley River, the Lord of the Fork on the Russell Fork, and the Green River Race.
The Russell Fork is a world recognized whitewater river with sections for every level of paddling enthusiast. The Breaks gorge is the best known section, 4.5 miles of Class V rapids and waterfalls. Commercial rafting is available on the upper and lower sections of the Russell Fork. Both sections are class III.
The colors of the fall season combined with hundreds of boaters and adventure seekers make Elkhorn City a must visit in October. For more information about whitewater, check out www.russellfork.info. For more about Elkhorn City, visit www.elkhorncity.org.
Colorful leaf-droppers make for a photogenic fall adventure.
There’s likely no season more longed for across the eastern region than the arrival of fall. Fall displays many contrasts for it brings both vivid and drab landscapes; reassuring warmth and intimidating coolness, cheery turquoise skies and gloomy, rainy days.
The background chatter of songbirds goes unnoticed until it’s no longer there. Then it’s evident that most have gone and with them the summer. Silent, indeed, are the woodlands with their songsters departed. Only rarely thereafter is the hush of the forest stirred. A woodpecker’s busy hammer or a consternation of crows may sometimes break the stillness, but the interruption is characteristically brief.
September days may have considerable warmth, but October evenings carry a prophetic nuance of winter’s coldness to come. Early morning sun and shadow conspire to accentuate serene hardwood hollows where fog creeps eerily among the trees suggesting that all is well. But leaves and branches murmur knowingly on afternoon breezes as hindered sunrays provisionally warm the air.
Through these wavering days, warmth and coolness romp, tumble and chase one another like playing pups. Far and wide, for a brief few days, leaf-dropping trees momentarily glare with the season’s garish coat-of-arms in hues of red, yellow and gold. The absolute high-tide of autumn is then upon the land for little more than the space of an afternoon or two before the colors begin to recede, draining away into the seasonal abyss. Then, just as quickly as it came, it’s passed away.
If winter is the first season then autumn is the summing up of seasons having come full circle. It’s the annual period of scaling back, weaning off and wrapping up; the time when peace and quiet no longer stroll hand in hand, for peace soon departs in fall but the quietness abides.
Still, though fleeting, fall is fun while it lasts and the glory of autumn will soon blanket the mountains beckoning all who would revel in the outdoors to come quickly and celebrate the season. There’s no better place than Kentucky’s Pine Mountain to enjoy bright, humidity-free days and drink in the pageantry as the fall leaves sing along on key. Join us, won’t you?
This upcoming weekend promises to be a good one. Saturday June 4 is National Trails Day. Parks, trail associations, paddling associations and many others are hosting special events across the state. If you haven’t yet made plans, hop onto the homepage, www.getoutky.com, and check out the National Trails Day Calendar. There is something for everyone all over the state. Round up the kids, friends & family and get outside and enjoy one of Kentucky’s scenic trails. This weekend is also the “Free Fishing Weekend” in Kentucky. Anglers young and old can fish anywhere in the
commonwealth without having a fishing license this Saturday & Sunday, the 4th & 5th of June. With more miles of navigable water than any state in the lower 48, no matter where you live in Kentucky there is good fishing nearby. A great option for fishing opportunities is in one of the Fishing in Neighborhoods Lakes (FINs) operated by the Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources. There are 34 fins lakes in 21 counties currently, and all of them are regularly stocked. For more information on Free Fishing Weekend, FINs lakes or anything fishing related, visit www.fw.ky.gov. No matter what outdoor pursuit you choose this weekend, make sure you’re outside taking advantage of the great opportunities we have here in the Bluegrass!
BWA and Vikings host a great spring paddling clinic
It’s been a damp spring down here in the Appalachian rain forest and all the local streams have been running at healthy levels. Great conditions for whitewater lovers! They couldn’t have been much better for a first time event last weekend on the Russell Fork River.
Milling around Saturday morning...
200 beginning and experienced whitewater paddlers from all over Kentucky gathered in Elkhorn City for a unique whitewater paddling clinic May 13-15. The state’s two largest kayak/canoe clubs, the Bluegrass Wildwater Association and the Viking Canoe Club, sponsored their first shared clinic. It was also the first of BWA’s annual spring clinics to be held in Kentucky.
Over seventy students, from first timers to Class II/III intermediates, took part in a two day program overseen by ACA certified swiftwater rescue and paddling instructors. Nearly 100 volunteers made sure there was plenty of personal instruction, easy shuttles, and good food and entertainment at the Carson Island/Pine Mountain Trailhead base location.
Students spent 3-5 hours each day in their boats, learning basic skills and paddling river sections based on their abilities. Intermediate paddlers honed basic skills and tackled more advanced whitewater techniques, such as eddy hopping, peeling out in rushing water, and ledge boofing in select Class III rapids. Many students worked on rolling techniques…and some got first ever “combat” rolls (rolling in moving water). And there were a few who got a little swimming practice in.
It's all good!
I had the pleasure of helping out with the intermediate group with local paddling buddies Gerald Delong and Mark Blair. We first took them upstream to the upper Russell Fork, stopping at features to work on specific skills as we paddled downstream. It’s great to see someone’s confidence grow before your eyes as they pick up the more subtle techniques you need to run more difficult whitewater. We got to see that from each one of our students.
There was nothing but smiles all weekend from the group. Early reviews point to a return next year, so keep your eyes and ears open. You couldn’t find a better place or a better way to learn to kayak with great people. For more information about clinics or either club:
Bluegrass Wildwater Association
BWA students and instructors
Beginner's class at the put-in
Smiling Kyle
A kid's class all-star!
Steve Ruth
Eastern
Wild Columbine
Now, as spring approaches its fever pitch, there’s perhaps no better time to take to the mountainous woodlands of southeastern Kentucky in search of flowers and feathers. Ample seasonal warmth and abundant rainfall have conspired to adorn the craggy slopes and cryptic hollows with a flourish of blossoms and a variety of avian dynamos.
An assortment of field trips, pilgrimmages, and special events celebrating birds and blooms will be hosted across eastern Kentucky in the days to come. Why not pick one, make a short drive, and get back in touch with your wild side while having a passel of fun?
Glorious spring annually adorns the vaulted slopes of Kentucky’s Pine Mountain in a cloak of green and the lush forest enters an enchanting period of flowerings. By late April, the blooming of wildflowers is nearing its peak, and an assortment of warblers can be observed migrating through Kentucky. This year, Pine Mountain State Resort Park will host an adventurous weekend opportunity to celebrate the occurrence of both on April 29-30, 2011.
Enjoy guided outings that will include seek-n-find wildflower hikes, a misty morning bird walk, and a how-to wildflower photography field trip. Enjoy breakfast with the birds by the enourmous dining room windows as the park’s Naturalist directs observation and build your own take-home bluebird box in a hands-on workshop session. Feature evening programs will showcase spectacular wildflower photography, lovely native wildflowers and shrubs, and an up-close live birds of prey show featuring barn owl, great horned owl, peregrine falcon, Mississippi kite, and a golden eagle. Don’t miss this outdoor celebration of the arrival of spring to the mountains.
You can request additional program information or make a reservation by phoning the park’s Guest Services Desk at (800) 325-1712. Look into it; it just might be your best outdoor experience of the spring!
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