Baker Natural Area

The Baker Natural Area consists of sixty-six acres within the city limits of Russellville, Kentucky. The landscape is quite diverse and contains open prairie, limestone barrens, sinkholes, forestland, and a small wetland area. Two thirds of the sixty-six acres is woodland and habitat for migratory birds and home to deer, wild turkey and small game.

The site has not been intensively farmed for more than twenty years and much of the native flora and fauna has returned to the landscape. A biological review has identified a total of three hundred seventy-seven plant species on the property. Five of these plants were listed in 2004 by the Kentucky Nature Preserves Commission as of special concern in Kentucky. These species include Purple Prairie Clover, Carolina Larkspur, Hairy Fimbry, Inland Muhly, and also Tansy Rosinweed.

There are about two miles of walking trails with benches for use by the visitor. There is also a bird  watching shelter with other study shelters on the property. Study can be conducted for aquatic wildlife also. The trail is easy to walk and the benefits to the public are many. School children on field nature study trips or the average walker and hiker can enjoy this area for many years to come.

Logan County Glade

Logan County Glade State Nature Preserve is perched on the south-facing slopes of a knob within the city limits of Russellville. It is one of the best examples of a limestone slope glade community found in Kentucky. Limestone glades are naturally open areas with scattered ledges and slabs of limestone outcropping at or near the surface. The soil is thin and the hot, dry conditions on the south-facing openings leave exposed trees sparse and stunted. These seemingly adverse conditions offer a special refuge for many prairie and glade plants.

Logan County Glade protects several species that are considered state and globally threatened or endangered. These include the Fame Flower, for which this is one of only two known occurrences in the state; the Carolina Larkspur, a tall, pale, whitish-purple flower similar in shape to the garden variety; a nondescript shrub commonly known as Upland Privet; and the Glade Violet. Many prairie species are found here because rocky soils and steep slopes have made Logan County Glade unsuitable for agriculture.

There are a number of cultural features that hint at the area’s past uses. The limestone fence along the  preserve’s southern border was built before the Civil War. The trail along the base of the knob was an old county road. In the early twentieth century, the John Dockins family farmed the top of the knob for corn and tobacco. In 1960 the land was sold to the county to build a hospital. Other than constructing a radio tower and a small building that housed communication equipment for the hospital, the glade and knob were generally left undisturbed by the county.

The preserve was officially opened to the public in 1991 after local Boy Scouts from troops 303 and 58 helped to clear cedars and other trees from one of the glades and built a trail through the property. The half-mile loop leads hikers to one of the glades, through the woods to the top of the knob and back to the trailhead. The preserve is open to hiking, nature study and photography from sunrise to sunset. Picnicking, camping, hunting, pets, bicycles and ATV’s are prohibited.

Big Rivers WMA

The Kentucky Division of Forestry and the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources have jointly acquired nearly 2,500 acres at the confluence of the Ohio and Tradewater Rivers. The property is the state’s newest Wildlife Management Area and State Forest. The site near Sturgis is a portion of one of the largest private landholdings in Kentucky; known locally as the Alcoa Property, or more recently as the Kimball Property.

“It’s the gem on the Ohio River,” state Senator Dorsey Ridley said of the expansive area. “It’s a historic area. Lewis and Clark camped at the mouth of the Tradewater on their trip to the Pacific Ocean in the early 1800s.”

Big Rivers WMA and State Forest provides public recreational opportunities for hunting, fishing, hiking, canoeing, and wildlife viewing. The property will also be managed to provide watershed and water quality protection; protection and recovery of endangered, threatened and rare species; preservation of existing cultural and geological treasures and a sustainable forest. It will be permanently protected from development and agricultural conversion.

This area is described as having steep to very steep upland hardwood forests, flat to rolling bottomland hardwood forest, and agricultural lands bordered by the Ohio River to the west and the Tradewater River to the south. The online map of the site depicts the trails; however, notation of the distances is lacking. Upon hiking the area and studying the map, I would estimate four to five miles of trails. Many of these trails are more like access roads for those managing the property and one trail appears to be an old abandoned railroad bed.

Jackson Purchase Medical CTR Trail

The following information was retrieved from the Jackson Purchase Medical Center website concerning this unique hospital located in Mayfield, Kentucky: “Soliant Health, a leading specialty healthcare staffing provider and part of Adecco Group, is proud to announce the top 20 Most Beautiful Hospitals in America. Jackson Purchase Medical Center came in at number fifteen.”

“The design of Jackson Purchase Medical Center provides our patients, visitors and staff with a comfortable, pleasant environment. We believe that such an environment improves their overall experience and patient outcomes,” said Fred Pelle, C.E.O. Jackson Purchase Medical Center combines state-of-the-art equipment, advanced technologies, and a nurturing, friendly environment to merge the science of medicine with the art of healing” (JPMC Website).

Perhaps one of the attractions making the Jackson Purchase Medical Center the fifteenth most beautiful hospital in America is the addition of the Fitness Trail out front. This trail is an estimated one mile in length, making a picturesque loop around a small lake with scenic landscaping. This trail can be done as a side trip after hiking the much longer Kess Creek Park Trail in Mayfield. Hiking the Kess Creek trail is still on my “to do list.”

Paducah Greenway

Paducah, originally known as Pekin, was settled around 1815. Settlers were attracted to the community due to its location at the confluence of the Ohio and Tennessee Rivers. In 1827, William Clark (of the Lewis and Clark expedition) arrived in Pekin with a title deed to the land, which was issued by the United States Supreme Court. The town was platted out and named in honor of the largest nation of Native Americans that ever roamed North America, the Padouca Indians. The community was incorporated in 1830.

The Clyde F. Boyles Greenway Trail currently has two completed sections with the third phase under construction, and an additional phase planned. The Paducah Greenway is funded in part thanks to income from an endowment from the Boyles estate. Lanelle Boyles, who died December 31, 2005, bequeathed a portion of the estate to the City of Paducah to be used for walking and biking trails in memory of her husband, Clyde F. Boyles. The endowment is managed by the Community Foundation of West Kentucky, Inc.

The trail is open to non-motorized traffic from dawn to dusk. Once completed, the Paducah Greenway will stretch five and one-half miles linking residential neighborhoods with numerous city parks and lead downtown to the bustling and beautiful riverfront. The Greenway will link the following four parks when completed: Perkins Creek Nature Preserve, Stuart Nelson Park, Noble Park, and Schultz Park.

Mike Miller Park Trail

After approximately four and one half years of planning, designing and construction, Marshall County’s first full amenities park, Mike Miller County Park, opened to the public in September 2000. Before the park came to be, the Fiscal Court appointed a five-member park board to assess the recreation facilities within the county and the cities of Benton, Calvert City, Hardin and also the two state parks in the county.

The Park Board held a series of public meetings to determine peoples’ desires for additional recreational opportunities and traveled to other parks with outstanding facilities in the state of Kentucky and surrounding states. Armed with the information they collected, the board began a search for property. The perfect property would be centrally located and large enough for the development of recreational facilities, but not an excessive expenditure.

The Park Board recommended the purchase of an eighty-acre site in the community of Draffenville, located on U.S. Highway 68 West, near the interchange of the Purchase Parkway. In 1997, the county purchased the property. The Park Board then commissioned Brandstetler-Carroll of Louisville, Kentucky for a master plan of the park’s development. Construction began in the winter of 1998 and approximately two and one half years later, the park was opened for public use. 

Park facilities include an 18-Hole Disc Golf Course, Soccer fields, Baseball Fields, Batting Cages, Basketball Courts, Tennis Courts, Sand Volleyball Court, Playgrounds, Five-acre Stocked Fishing Lake, Pavilions and Restrooms; and last but not least, a two-mile long Walking Trail with inclines and flats.

Kenlake Golf Trail

The Commonwealth of Kentucky began negotiations with the Tennessee Valley Authority in 1946 to lease a portion of land known as Aurora Landing. The land was situated on the western shore of Kentucky Lake near the Eggner’s Ferry Bridge. This leased land would be used as a state park dedicated to recreation.

The Tennessee Valley Authority leased an initial 1,146 acres to Kentucky. After the land transfer was officially completed on March 13, 1948, the new park at Aurora Landing was named Kentucky Lake State Park and joined the commonwealth’s state parks system. By the 1970’s, the name of the park was shortened to “Kenlake State Park.”

In 2013 the Bill Hamrick Memorial Golf Course at Kenlake State Park was permanently closed. Gil Lawson, spokesperson for the Kentucky Department of Parks, said there were a number of factors leading up to the eventual closing of the nine-hole course, including its reduced amount of play, its location in comparison to other available courses and pending reductions to park budgets.

Lawson said, however, the land would not be wasted, as the department is actively searching for something to replace the course. “We are looking at other outdoor uses for the facility,” Lawson said. “We would like to make it something to use” (Murray Ledger and Times). Upon speaking with someone at the front desk of the lodge, I was informed that the trail is open for biking and hiking. I estimate there to be at least two miles of trail.

North Paved Trail

The North Welcome Station is the gateway to the Land Between The Lakes and serves as a mini visitor center. You will find regional information, maps, brochures, snacks, and restrooms. The North Welcome Station serves as the main access point to numerous trail systems including the Canal Loop Trail, the North/South Trail; and also the North Paved Trail, which can be hiked all the way to the Hillman Ferry Campground by connecting with an unmarked trail system which will be noted below.

The North Paved Trail runs parallel to The Trace for an estimated two miles heading south through some wooded areas, past open fields, behind the Nickell Cemetery, and officially terminates at Road # 110. If you walk about one quarter mile west on Road # 110, you will pick up the unmarked Hillman Ferry Walking and Biking Trail located to the left of the road and accessed via a twenty foot long gravel trail. I include this additional hike, which is an estimated mile in length, as part of the North Paved Trail.

Administration Trail

The Golden Pond Visitor Center serves as the information hub at Land Between The Lakes National Recreation Area. Visitors will find brochures, recreation maps, trail maps, state maps, restrooms, gift shop, children’s play area, a pavilion, trail heads and more.

An exhibit room of historic photographs and interpretive messages explains the rich heritage of the land and the people who lived “between the rivers.” The exhibit also delves into the construction of the dams  on the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers with the eventual forming of Land Between The Lakes.

Visitors will also find Golden Pond as a great place to relax, picnic, and teach your children how to fish. For a small fee, visitors can see a show at the Planetarium on topics that include space exploration, planets, and the night sky. An Observatory sits out back which hosts free Star Parties at dusk from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

The Administration Trail can be found by hiking the Central Hardwoods Scenic Trail east. After walking a few hundred yards from the Visitor Center you will come to a “Y” in the trail. The Central Hardwoods Scenic Trail goes to the left, and  the “unmarked” Administration Trail goes to the right and through a tunnel/underpass.

This trail is an estimated one and one-half miles, making an out-and-back trip around three miles. The trail loops behind the administration office, goes behind the employee housing, and then continues on to the grounds maintenance buildings. There used to be published maps for the Administration Trail, but they are no longer available and the trail is no longer publicized.

Hillman Heritage Trail

The Hillman Heritage National Recreation Trail located at the Hillman Ferry Campground in the “Land Between The Lakes” is very interesting, having an old stone hut called the Vogle Homestead built around 1872, panoramic views of an abandoned rock quarry, a designated overlook of the lake, and miles of both wooded and lake view trails. This is a scenic hike; however, the drawback is waiting in line at the campground entrance booth to get registered and obtain a temporary hiker’s rear view mirror tag, and having to park a quarter mile away from the trailhead.

The following information is obtained from the “Land Between The Lakes” website (lbl.org): The 5.47 miles of trails within the Hillman Ferry Campground woods are listed as a Heritage National Recreation Trail. The trail system often follows old historic roads used by the former Star Lime Works community which was the site of a thriving lime industry that began some time before the Civil War. The community survived through changes in lime works ownership and many economic fluctuations in the production of lime and limestone, until it was disbanded sometime after 1945 due to construction of the Kentucky Lake Reservoir.

Star Lime Works is being recorded as a historic district and the remaining cultural features, landscape,  and history are just beginning to be portrayed through interpretive stops along the trail. Current interpretive stops are along Bohanon Loop and Vogle Loop. The trails are open to Hillman campers, as well as the general public, for hiking and biking only. There is a small parking lot on the north (right) side of the Hillman Ferry Campground entrance road, just before the gatehouse, for the general public.

The Bohanon Loop is 2 miles in length, and takes you up and over ridgelines and offers users an excellent opportunity to view wildlife. The Brown Spring Loop is a 0.66-mile trail that winds its way through mature hardwood stands and meanders up and down ridgelines. The James Nickell Loop is 0.48 miles in length and leads hikers to a scenic overlook of Kentucky Lake; the trail follows the ridge top along the edge of Kentucky Lake and then dips back into the bottoms. The Vogle Loop has heritage markers along this 0.94-mile trail that takes you past an old home site and limestone quarry associated with the Star Lime Works District.

Grand Rivers Walking Trail

The Grand Rivers Walking Trail is located in Grand Rivers, Kentucky, which is considered the state’s premier waterfront resort community. With two of the lake region’s finest resort marinas – one on each lake – Grand Rivers offers waterfront cottages and condos and unlimited access to water recreation.

Connecting the two lakes and the two marinas is the heart of Grand Rivers with the nostalgic Main Street feel of simpler times. The town offers shopping from antiques to boutiques and from bikes to biker  apparel. Grand Rivers is made complete with the award winning Patti’s 1880’s Settlement and Restaurant,  and the Badgett Playhouse with up to twenty special productions each year.

In commenting on the walking trail, the Grand Rivers website (www.grandrivers.org) states, “This two mile walking trail takes you from the Jetty at Lighthouse Landing through downtown into Little Lake Park. If you would start at any point along the walking trail and complete the loop from the end of the Jetty to the end  of the walking trail by Little Lake you will travel 2.18 miles. You will have ascended 222 feet and descended 231 feet.”

The Grand Rivers Jetty is located at Lighthouse Landing Resort & Marina on Kentucky Lake. It is named one of the Top 50 Romantic Spots in the Country by Cosmopolitan Magazine. Little Lake Park is located on Commerce Street behind the Badgett Playhouse, and is home to the Grand Rivers Street Dance and the Labor Day Arts & Crafts Festival. The park includes picnic areas and pavilion, bandstand and dance area, basketball court, green space, Little Lake with a small fishing jetty, and playground and parking area.

Jeffers Bend Recreation Area

Jeffers Bend Recreation Area and Environmental Center is located near downtown Hopkinsville, Kentucky off Highway 41A North at the end of Metcalfe Lane. Jeffers Bend consists of 40-acres of grassland, a 1-acre lake, 2.7 miles of hiking and biking trails, and six buildings which once housed the old Hopkinsville Water Treatment Plant.

The Pennyrile Resource Conservation and Development Council formed the North Fork Little River Committee in 1990. Mayor Wally Bryan, being aware of the NFLRC efforts to increase recreation and tourism activities along the river, in the spring of 1995, convened a meeting to talk about saving the old Hopkinsville Water Treatment Plant from demolition for environmental education activities. In August 1997, the groups agreed that the water treatment plant should be saved and developed in memory of former Hopkinsville Mayor, Sherrill L. Jeffers.

From 2000 to 2002, the Pennyrile Resource Conservation and Development Council secured money from various sources totaling $100,400 in order for Gary Burks Construction to install 8,200 feet of compacted gravel trail. A gravel parking lot was installed in 2003. TEA-21 federal money, to be matched on an 80/20 basis by the City of Hopkinsville, was then secured in order to construct about two miles of compacted gravel trails along North Fork of Little River, CSX Railroad, and Metcalfe Lane at Jeffers Bend Environmental Center.

The trails at Jeffers Bend are suitable for hiking and biking, and the main loop follows alongside the North Fork of the Little River through open fields and woodlands. There are opportunities for fishing, canoeing and bird watching along the trails. The main trail actually heads west out of Jeffers Bend alongside Metcalf Lane in order to tie in with the Hopkinsville Greenway behind the Riverside Cemetery; however, the trail alongside Metcalf Lane is barely distinguishable for lack of maintenance.

Kentucky Dam Trail

The region around Kentucky Dam at one time belonged to the Chickasaw Indians. On October 19, 1818, this portion of western Kentucky was acquired by the United States as part of the Jackson Purchase. This famous land transaction added 8,000 square miles to the states of Kentucky and Tennessee. The Chickasaw received $300,000 over a fifteen-year time period for their lands. Former Kentucky Governor Isaac Shelby and General Andrew Jackson of Tennessee negotiated the purchase with the leaders of the Chickasaw Nation.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had originally made field studies regarding the feasibility of building a dam on the Tennessee River, in the vicinity of Eggner’s Ferry. After the creation of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), a new field investigation took place that recommended a dam be built near the town of Gilbertville, Kentucky. On May 28, 1937, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the act to authorize funding for the construction of a new dam on the Tennessee River. At one and a half miles long and 206 feet high, Kentucky Dam is the largest dam built by the TVA.

On May 19, 1949, the Tennessee Valley Authority officially turned over land to the Kentucky State Parks System for the construction of Kentucky Dam Village. Between 1949 and 1955, the state spent over a million and a half dollars updating and improving this state park. Although the park began with a major group of buildings, the need for recreational facilities to make the park a major resort demanded a large infusion of money. A new 18-hole golf course was installed. There is also a convention center which seats 900, and a 4,000 foot lighted runway for light air traffic.

The Kentucky Dam Trail system is located on both TVA property and state park land. The Tennessee Valley Authority constructed a portion of trail across the top of Kentucky Dam by converting an old road. This section is about one mile in length; and the website tva.com/news states that it should eventually cross the entire dam and tie in with the Livingston County Trail System with some additional funding.

The other section of the trail, which is also about one mile in length, was constructed by the Kentucky State Parks System along the shoreline of Kentucky Lake at Kentucky Dam Village. Both trail sections converge at the parking lot located on New Beach Road, just off of Hwy 641.

Hopkinsville Greenway

The Hopkinsville Greenway is a concrete walking and biking trail system stretching from behind the City of Hopkinsville Police Department to behind the Hopkinsville Christian County Public Library. The Greenway contains one section which is city sidewalk, another portion which is a converted railroad (rail to trail), and another section which is called the River Walk that follows the North Fork of the Little River. The existing Greenway system is “estimated” at around two miles in length.

When walking the Greenway, there is another opportunity to increase your mileage and workout. Start heading north from the Police Department on the sidewalk which follows North Main. When you intersect Means Avenue, go one block east and begin following the gravel walking trail that runs behind the Riverside Cemetery. At the end of the gravel trail, head east on Metcalf Lane where you will soon intersect the hiking trail system at Jeffers Bend Recreation Area.

The Hopkinsville Greenway will soon be expanded with the addition of another three miles of converted railroad, which will tie in with the existing section of rail to trail. Groundbreaking for the phase one expansion took place on Thursday June 27, 2013, according to the Pennyrile Rail Trail Foundation page on  Facebook.

In a recent press conference, Mayor Dan Kemp stated, “We are excited about the tremendous enthusiasm behind this project . . . With over fifty distinct donors, the response to this project has been very positive thanks to the ongoing generosity of our town.” An Internet article states of the Hopkinsville Greenway that “along with other  park redevelopments getting underway this summer, this first class rail trail addition will greatly enhance recreational opportunities for local residents and area visitors alike.”

This same Internet article elaborates, “An ambitious community development project, the rail trail project includes conversion of a five kilometer abandoned railway corridor into safe, accessible greenway space. This proposed public/private collaboration includes connection to an existing river walk rail trail conversion, development of three trailheads and a neighborhood connector. Offering convenient access to users, the trails will include trailheads established adjacent to parks, trails, pavilions, restrooms, play areas, and playgrounds.”

Audubon State Park

On October 3, 1934, the Commonwealth of Kentucky dedicated the John James Audubon State Park. Some of the members of the crowd attending the dedication included members of the Henderson Audubon Society. Founded in 1898 to preserve the legacy of the great American artist and naturalist, John James Audubon (1785-1851), the Society had worked for over three decades to establish a fitting memorial.

In 1930, the Henderson Audubon Society requested $100,000 from the Federal government to help construct an Audubon Museum. A bill introduced in Congress to appropriate money for the Audubon project failed to pass. Undeterred, local citizens continued to raise funds for the proposed museum. By 1934, 275 acres had been acquired through donations and purchase. Work began on the John James Audubon State Park on October 3, 1938.

The Civil Conservation Corps (CCC) Number 1540 constructed cabins, gardens, shelter houses, picnic areas, a lake, trails, and a museum. Architects Donald Corley representing the WPA and Barnard Stebbins of Kentucky designed the Audubon Memorial Museum building. The structure contains many of the artist’s oils and watercolors, along with personal belongings and furniture belonging to the Audubon family. 

John James Audubon State Park has nearly six miles of hiking trails. The location of this trail system can be deceptive, leading one to believe the routes will traverse gradual slopes and rolling hills. Before I hiked here, I read an Internet article stating that some people use the trails as training for hikes in the Rocky Mountains and the Appalachian Trail; and now I see why. There are numerous steep climbs; making it one of the toughest trails I have hiked in western Kentucky.

A recent auction purchase by a local group of park supporters of a 649-acre tract of land bordering the park may soon serve to further diversify the recreational accessibility of Audubon. Julie McDonald, the Program Services Supervisor at Audubon, says there is a possibility that the land acquisition would allow for more handicap trail access. There is also potential to significantly expand the existing hiking trail system.