Forever d
Some days
you’re meant to fail in what you originally set out to do. Recognize this, and these inevitable
days will be a whole lot easier.
I started out
the day ready to get out on the water again
I’ll tell you
one thing about
Today, however,
I was a little concerned about the ticks that I’d had problems with earlier in
the summer. What ticks me off (get it?...ticks…ticked
off?...no?...not funny?...OK, nevermind!) is that the bites I got on the
last hike I took a month and a half ago are still there! I
was thinking that if I were to have any tick run-ins today I might put off
hiking until the fall! I was to
be OK in this regard, but it was not all smooth sailing. I'd gotten half way
to
The rest of the drive went OK despite this realization and I noticed that it looked like the Boone Tavern (website here) had reopened. It had been closed for renovations. This is a fantastic place to stay! I now come here every Spring for a vacation to start the hiking season.
At any rate, I
pulled into the parking lot of
I gave it some
of the water I’d brought and even some of my protein bar.
Well, the dog ended up following me all the way up the mountain, left for a
time, and then I saw it again on another peak. It later
followed me all the way back down the mountain. Well, half
way down I finally noticed the tag on it's collar and I was going to call the name on it so
that they could get their dog back. Well, as I read the tag my
heart leapt into my throat. Here’s what it said:
Hi!
My name is Tillie
I am not a
stray
I live next
door
Let’s go for a
hike!
!?!
Stunning.
I guessed that
the owner, having grown weary of all the people like me calling up and reporting
a stray dog, decided to just put this heartwarming tag on Tillie’s collar.
What fantastic people to have done something so endearing! It
was also very kind of them to share their pet with the hikers who come to this
place. Long live Tillie!
I always hope
to see Tillie again when I come out here. I don’t always.
Sometimes I don’t see her at all and other times she’ll be hanging out
with other people (she seems to follow those who are new to this forest – she
only followed me the first time). Anyway, every time I do see her
she seems to recognize me and will jog out from under whatever car she’s
lying under to let me pet her.
Well, I got lucky today. There she was, under the car I had pulled up near. She sauntered out when she saw me and we were able to “catch up”. I hadn’t seen her since last year. By the way, when I tell people the above story, I get the feeling that they think it’s too incredible to be true and that Tillie must be a figment of my imagination. Well, here’s a picture of the figment!
As I set off on
my way down the beautiful winding trail through the park I noticed the gnats
well before I’d gotten to the Indian Fort Amphitheatre. I’d
need my mesh hat. This is a baseball cap I have that unzips
at the top and lets down a net which will cover your entire head and prevent the
gnats from getting into yours eye’s, nose, ears or mouth.
I need my hat…let’s see… not in that pocket… not in that… DAG! I must have left it in the trunk of the car! I walked all the way back to the car and looked for it. Not there. This was getting a little ridiculous! I’d been having really bad luck in bringing things with me today but I did have good luck in seeing Tillie. I decided to go on. There was an old t-shirt in the trunk which I draped over my head instead. That would help a little bit in keeping the gnats away.
The good thing
was that from here on out my day would get better. I wouldn’t
get quite as far as I wanted, but it was a lot better. I
began my hike down the winding paved path which was bordered by large trees
through the first part of the park. I understand that they
have craft fairs in this area. The aforementioned Indian Fort
Amphitheatre lies further down this path. I know they use
this for the craft festivals too, but I’m not sure if they still have shows here
anymore. If anyone can tell me I’d be curious.
It would sure be a pleasant place to see one.
The trails
really start here at this one path and then they’ll begin to branch off at the
top of a fairly steep climb which takes you directly up the first part of a
mountain. Not having hiked in a while, I could start to feel
my quad muscles by the time I reached the trail junction at the top.
Logs have been cut and placed in the ground throughout this grade to
provide “steps” and make the footing easier. The path kind of
winds up in spots and at one point there’s a very sharp turn in which you almost
completely double back upon yourself.
At a junction at the top of a grade I turned right and began following the path to the East Pinnacle. The first part of this path is relatively flat as it winds through the forest. I didn’t notice it for some reason this time but I know there’s a marker in this part which indicates that a forest fire occurred here in the 80’s. Apparently arson, but I think I missed the sign because I was noticing quite a few flower blooms. I’ve seen so many diverse kinds of flowers on my trips but I’m woefully ill equipped to comment more on them because I simply don’t know what kinds they are.
In a cleared out spot at the next trail junction there were a lot more of these. I was somewhat surprised that flowers were still blooming this late in the summer. Looking to my left at this cleared out spot I saw an outcrop in the distance which could have been the Eagles Nest.
The trail junction just mentioned was that for Indian Fort Lookout/East Pinnacle, and it indicated that the pinnacle I was heading toward was 2000 feet further. I passed through the clearing which was now getting a little overgrown, and began an ascent to the pinnacle. When you reach the top there are plenty of little paths which you can follow to different points of this rock outcrop. Each one offers a different view. All are awesome.
Some offer
unbelievable views of the
After you’ve taken all this scenery in (and by all means, take your time!) you can head back down the same path you came in on back to the aforementioned junction. Here I headed in the direction of the Indian Fort Lookout on another fairly steep incline. (I'll oversimplify it a bit but East Pinnacle is on one mountain while Indian Fort, Eagles Nest and Buzzards Roost are on another. West Pinnacle is on a third.)
By the time I
finished the climb I was definitely feeling the burn in my quads.
It felt good though! Paddling works your upped body
and core muscles while hiking works your lower body and core muscles.
Alternating
the two makes for a powerful combination which can really get you into shape
quite rapidly.
Anyway,
you'll have come to another junction now. The sign here has
a lot of info on it, but I had decided to visit each of the peaks in sequence
from east to west, so I headed in the direction of the Eagles Nest (right).
You can shorten the trip and head directly to Indian Fort Lookout if you
want though - this seems to be most popular spot.
It’s relatively
level again as you head toward Eagles Nest. Actually, this
path will take you to both Eagles Nest and Buzzards Roost.
Before the trail junction for these 2 lookouts though, there’s another path
which branches off on the left. I took this path once and it
goes for quite a way but it eventually just ends. It’s a bit
confusing and I wasn’t sure if it was actually a recognized part of the trail
system.
Passing this I presently came to an unmarked junction. To reach Eagles Nest (a shorter hike) you turn right while Buzzards Roost will be to the left. I again passed through a pine forest just before reaching each of these. You’ll have to climb over and through some rocks at the Nest. Please be careful at all the peaks but especially this one. Each time I’m here I startle some turkey buzzards into flight.
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Once I’d enjoyed this particular peak for a while, I retraced my steps and headed towards the Roost. There will be a rocky clearing with more views just prior to reaching this and you might think that that’s it. I hope you’ll stop to enjoy these, but if you keep going you'll find that the path continues at the far end of these rocks. Following it, you'll soon reach a large level boulder on your left and as you climb up this boulder you'll get your clearest views yet until you reach Indian Fort Lookout.
When you're ready to go you’ll retrace your steps again, and as you come back to the junction you'll turn right (going straight will take you back to the Nest). You’ll soon be back at the junction with the multipoint sign on it and from here it's on to the magnificent Indian Fort Lookout.
By the way, after this sign you’ll want go right at the first junction. Going left will take you back down the mountain to the parking lot if you want. Then, at the next intersection go straight (unless you want to go right for a short while and visit a cave ominously called the Devil’s Kitchen) to reach the peak.
Assuming you
do go straight you’ll soon start to see signs of a
clearing ahead - this is the Indian Fort Lookout. A sign back
at the theatre had indicated that the Indians (
When I arrived,
however, it was quite clear that a storm was coming from the look of the clouds
that were moving in. I was only able to get a few quick
pictures before having to head back down. I met some guys up
here on another day who informed me that you can see the
Please keep a
sharp eye on where you came in here because there are many intersecting paths
which can be confusing. I ended up going back the way I came
in, turning right at the first trail junction. The West
Pinnacle would have to wait for another day.
The way down is
pretty steep, and they still have the log steps, but you’ll have to watch your
footing nonetheless. The large rocks can be quite slippery
even when they aren’t wet, and this klutz has fallen on them a couple times.
The forest was getting quite dark on the way down, and I got my gear in the car and headed out just as a downpour was starting. I had some great fortune on the way out though! I heard somebody calling Tillie in and I decided to risk asking them about the dog. I was very happy to discern who Tillie’s owner was so I could thank them for sharing. Sure enough, they did put the tag on her because of all the concern expressed for this “stray”. Hiking in this park is, indeed, an amazing experience in many ways!
Some days
you're meant to fail, it's true, but those seeming failures may lead to an
experience which MORE than makes up for them!
DIRECTIONS:
I75 to KY21
exit. Go left on KY21 into the city of