June | CS On The Road | D. Fran Morley

Find Hidden Treasures In Kentucky’s Remote Region 

Renfro Valley Entertainment Center Historic Lodge Restuarant & Gift Shop.

Editor’s Note: This is a first-hand account of D. Fran Morley’s visit to Kentucky.

Southern and eastern Kentucky is a lesser-traveled area and perfect for the adventuresome SMERF (social, military, educational and fraternal) group. On a recent trip, I followed in the footsteps of the 300,000 pioneers who traversed the Wilderness Road between 1775 and 1810, across the Alleghenies from Virginia, and through the Cumberland Gap into Kentucky. Groups willing to venture off the beaten trail will find plenty of choices here, with varied meeting and lodging choices convenient to hiking trails, scenic rivers, historic sites, glorious spots for arts and traditional mountain music, and even a real coal mine, now open to visitors as part of the state park system.

About an hour south of Lexington, the Renfro Valley Entertainment Center is home to one of the nation’s oldest radio shows, the Renfro Valley Barn Dance, first broadcast in 1939 and still aired in syndication around the country. The center includes two professional performance venues (the 600-seat Old Barn and the 1,500-seat New Barn), a self-guided pioneer village with audio tour plus a restaurant suited to groups of around 350 in down-home, boardinghouse style.

New to the area, The Kentucky Music Hall of Fame and Museum has interactive displays, exhibits and memorabilia on the many musicians, singers, songwriters and producers in all genres who have Kentucky roots, from jazz great Lionel Hampton to country stars Loretta Lynn, Ricky Scaggs and John Conlee.

Just south of the valley in the Daniel Boone National Forest is the Rockcastle River, one of Kentucky’s “wild rivers.” Jim Honchell, owner of Rockcastle Adventures, led our group on a four-hour float down the mild upper Rockcastle, but thrill seekers are welcome, too; he leads tours on the lower river that has numerous class IV whitewater rapids.

We explored three parks on our trip: Levi Jackson Wilderness Road State Park, Cumberland Gap National Historic Park and Pine Mountain State Resort Park. While natural beauty abounds at each, Pine Mountain takes care of groups with a lovely lodge with 30 guest rooms, each with private mountain-view balconies, 18 cottages and cabins, an outdoor pool, hiking trails and a championship golf course, Wasioto Winds. Group facilities at the park include a 120-seat dining room, a convention center that can accommodate up to 300, and a 1,000-seat outdoor amphitheater.

At Levi Jackson, a charming costumed guide named “Ma Sible” led us through the displays of the park’s Mountain Life Museum and never once broke out of character.

Cumberland Gap Park has scenic drives, hiking trails, rippling creeks, and beautiful overlooks that compare favorably with those at Smoky Mountain National Park, yet, without all the traffic.