Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 12
T H E G O O D WA L K
'S
KENTUCKY
R
E
RED RIV
GORGE
100Arches
HOME OF
You can scale your walk just to view the stunning formations, or to get up-close and personal.
Text by LEONARD ADKINS | Photos by LEONARD AND LAURIE ADKINS
SOAR
ABOVE THE
GORGE
A tour with Red River
Gorge Zipline Tours
(redrivergorgezipline.
com) provides a different perspective of the
gorge. Tours feature
five ziplines taking
you from 75-300 feet
above the gorge at
speeds of up to 55
miles an hour.
ABOVE: This view of the
Double Arch is from the
Auxier Ridge Trail.
FACING PAGE UPPER:
Courthouse Rock looms tall.
FACING PAGE LOWER:
These steps are along the
Auxier Ridge Trail.
12
BLUERIDGECOUNTRY.COM
G
etting to the Red River Gorge in Kentucky may involve a bit of a drive for
some Blue Ridge Country readers, yet
it's worth those few hours on the highway. Memories of towering cliff faces,
lush vegetation and soaring natural rock
arches have lured me back time and
again. With more than 100 arches, the area has the
highest concentration of such formations east of
the Mississippi River.
One of the most intriguing is Double Arch,
reached by the out-and-back Double Arch Trail
of less than five miles. That route runs below and
onto the arch. However, I most often find myself
doing a different outing. It's a looping route of five
miles that not only provides a better perspective
on the arch from a distance, but also passes several
other interesting rock formations.
Less than two miles in is the soaring viewpoint
that, to me, is the big draw. The Auxier Ridge Trail
breaks out of the forest and onto an open rocky
area with steep cliffs on both sides. Nearby is the
stone tower of Haystack Rock and across the gorge
WHEN YOU
GO
THE WALK: An easy out-and-back of less
than four miles to a view of Double Arch
with the option of continuing on a moderately strenuous loop going by Castle Rock.
Total distance that way would be five miles.
TRAILHEAD DIRECTIONS: Take Exit
33 (about 10 miles east of Stanton, Kentucky) off Bert T. Combs Mountain Parkway,
go north .1 mile on KY 11 and turn right
onto KY 15. Turn left onto (gravel) Tunnel Ridge Road in 3.5 miles and continue
another 3 miles to the Auxier Ridge Trail
parking area on the right.
MORE INFORMATION: Brief descriptions of the trails, along with a topographic
map, are available on fs.usda.gov/Internet/
FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd491186.
http://www.BLUERIDGECOUNTRY.COM
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - Intro
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - Cover1
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - Cover2
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 3
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 4
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 5
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 6
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 7
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 8
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 9
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 10
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 11
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 12
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 13
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 14
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 15
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 16
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 17
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 18
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 19
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 20
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 21
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 22
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 23
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 24
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 25
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 26
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 27
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 28
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 29
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 30
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 31
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 32
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 33
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 34
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 35
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 36
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 37
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 38
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Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 40
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 41
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Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 49
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 50
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 51
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Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 54
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 55
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 56
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 57
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Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 61
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 62
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 63
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Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 65
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - 66
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - Cover3
Blue Ridge Country - March/April 2019 - Cover4
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