Rockcastle Cumberland

Rockcastle and Cumberland River Junction Loop

May 2008

Today I felt like doing a day hike and this looked about right. It turned out to be more of an adventure than I expected, however, due to some missed confluences and some deadfalls which blocked the trail in spots. In fact, while driving in I think I would have missed the trailhead itself if there hadn’t been another car stopped there (see directions below).

The trail I took is called Ned’s Branch (trail #405) and I had probably gone ½ mile or so when I came to my first problem. The trail just seemed to end and I looked around for a while to see where I might have gone wrong. I knew it couldn’t possibly have ended so soon because I had the trail book with me. Frustrated, I retraced my steps and eventually found the trail again about a hundred yards down.

There's a pleasant descent here with a dense feel to the forest and you'll come across an occasional rock outcrop which may have a little steam trickling over it. This being the case, the area is something of a fern and moss haven. There are also quite a few rhododendron thickets and more than a few new blooms in the Spring. Spring is such an awesome time of renewal!

Further down I came to my second quandary. There, right in front of me was a cluster of downed trees. The cluster came in 3 series. Upon crossing a first series there was a second which effectively formed a fence of 3 large trees - one right on top of the other. It completely blocked the trail and I had to actually climb this fence to continue. Once passing the third series I was on my way again.

Soon after this came the convergence with the Lakeside North Trail, and at this point I got confused again. You’ve really got to be on your toes on this trail! It seems to peter out quite a bit and you have to really be alert to find your way. The markings seemed to me to be a little sparse and confusing as well – especially at this particular point. You’re supposed to follow Ned’s Branch Trail, you see, but it wasn't readily apparent to me which way to go. Having come to a rock outcrop I went left, crossed a little stream, and the trail was gone. I went back to the outcrop, took a right and that was the correct way.

You’ll soon catch views of the Rockcastle River as the path takes you along a paved road. You've reached the loop at the end of the Rockcastle Campground. This campground looks pretty nice and, according to the Falcon Guide it has 24 campsites with drinking water. There are also restrooms here. You’ll follow this road a little while and once you see a sign for Scuttlehole Trail (#404) on your left you can follow it up to an overlook if you like.

As you can image there's a fairly steep climb to the overlook, and at one point a steep set of wooden steps takes you straight up a cliff face. At the top the trail kind of meanders around and there’s a series of stone and wood fences which, in themselves, are nice to look at. They offer great views of the Rockcastle River confluence with the Cumberland River.

It was quite amazing the difference between what the river looked like in the Falcon Guide picture and what it looks like now with all the work being done on the dam. The river is supposedly 1/3 lower than normal or something like that but it looks more like ½ here.

After taking quite a while to enjoy the view, I returned down to the campground road.. You don't have to do this. You could make the trip shorter if you want by continuing on Scuttlehole Trail until it ends at KY3497 (the road you'll have come in on). Once there you can take take a left on the road and follow it back to your car (assuming you parked where I did).

Anyway, for me I hiked back down to the campground road and then took a left. In doing so I passed a large parking lot with a boat ramp. This is the point of the London Dock Marina near the confluence of the rivers - Cumberland and Rockcastle. From here the campground road becomes KY3497 and I followed this for about ¼ mile until I reached the next trail turnoff. There was supposed to be a sign for it but it had the looks of having been vandalized. The post was there, you see, but not the sign. This is the Lakeside South Trail (#412) and it descends to the bank of the Cumberland River, but right after the entrance I met with another deadfall. You’ll want to be careful here. It’s a fairly steep fall down if you lose your footing. This trail takes you in a semicircle which follows the banks of the river and crosses over several little tributary streams. Many of these are disappointingly trash strewn, however.

In a couple miles or so you’ll come to Clark’s Bottom which, according to the guide, is a private summer community which has a few cabins. It also has its own road which heads down toward the river. I was tempted to go down, but at a certain point on these hikes (generally after several miles) my knee joint area begins to act up. That's the point at which I know I should probably be getting back.

Anyway, a couple miles further you'll come to the Twin Branch Shelter which is a 3 sided structure for backpackers. It looked to have an outhouse as well. After this, the trail curves back up to the road again (becoming Twin Branch Trail at some point along the way) and at one point you'll pass a really pleasant spot which might have a little trickling waterfall. Even though I was getting pretty tired here, I did stop for a while to enjoy the sights and sounds of the spot.

The last part of the trail is an ascent back up to the road and you’ll emerge from the trail on the other side of the road from you car – almost directly across. The car that was there when I arrived was gone. Considering the state of the trail and the lack of footprint evidence, it seemed to me that we might have been the only hikers to have explored the trail so far this year. This was quite a nice little adventure!

DIRECTIONS:

Take exit 38 of I75 and turn right at the end of the ramp onto KY192. Then turn left at the fork about 15 miles down onto KY1193. Shortly after that curve right on KY3497 and about 4 miles down you’ll see an unpaved spot in a grassy/meadow area before it gives way to the woods. Be on a sharp lookout though for the sign.