The theme of of the year: Covid-Cancelled. Family Thanksgivings were, of course, Covid-Cancelled. Frustrating, for sure, but that opened the long weekend up for another social distanced activity; camping! Mammoth Cave National Park has been on our to-do list for years. It's the second closest (roughly) National Park to our home, yet we had never been! The park remained open, albeit on a very limited basis. That was good enough for us! We packed up the van and headed out mid morning, arriving mid afternoon. We parked and got changed, and headed off for our 2 hour cave tour. Normally I would opt for the absolute longest, most extreme tour available (that's how I roll), but during these crazy times, we'll take what we can get. The 2 hour 'historic' tour is all that was permitted, so we gladly accepted!
It was an enjoyable afternoon tour, and had me excited to come back some day when I can do more!
It was an enjoyable afternoon tour, and had me excited to come back some day when I can do more!
We had some extra time so we added an extra couple miles to our tour by hiking around the visitors center, before heading back to the van. The weather was quite nice, so I went to the camp store to buy a bundle of firewood. This was the first time we've staying in a true campground and had a campfire in our van! Unfortunately, the park's firewood is some ridiculous eco-friendly wood/wax pretend logs. Is this the most unfortunate looking campfire you've ever seen, or what?
Regardless, we enjoyed being outside near our pitiful fire for an hour or so... but then it was time for Thanksgiving!!!
As this was Thanksgiving day, we weren't going to go without the grand dinner! Alicia prepared everything ahead of time and packaged our dinners up in Pyrex dishes so we could simply pop them into the camp oven. About 20 minutes or so in the oven and we were enjoying Vansgiving Dinner! I haven't gotten as far as installing our swivel seats and removable table, but the bed worked just fine as our not-so-formal dining room this time!
We spent half of the next day hiking all the available trails around Mammoth Cave. Unfortunately, the National Park is split in half by the Green River and the ferry crossing was closed. That kept us limited, but the weather was perfect, so we enjoyed what we could. Even more reason to come back some day!
After that we headed east towards Berea Kentucky, home of The Pinnacles, arguably the greatest hike in the state! We weren't planning on hiking again till the morning, so we were able to take our time this afternoon. We couldn't drive through the heart of Kentucky without stopping at a distillery. Wilderness Trail Distillery was aptly named, near our route, and proved to be the perfect stop! We enjoyed the tasting and bought a bottle to support them through these tough times.
We stayed at a Harvest Host near Lexington this evening. Wildside Winery would be a great spot for a Harvest Host member enjoying the Bourbon Trail or hiking the hills in the area. They have a wonderful outdoor space, and plenty of room for campers. I believe there were 4 other campers here with us, including one other campervan. After enjoying a wine tasting on their patio, we retreated to the van for VansGiving dinner round 2!
The next morning we walked the grounds of the winery while enjoying our coffee before heading south to Berea for our hike. The parking area was huge, and while the park was not, they managed to create a great trail system. The full out and back trail, including the offshoots to overlooks, would be about a 10 mile hike with substantial elevation change. This was intended to be a relaxing trip (post Colorado!), so we hiked about half of the trail system and plan to be back someday. At only about 3 hours from home and 1 hour from Red River Gorge, this is an area we visit somewhat frequently. There is also great kayaking nearby (and distilleries), so we're no strangers to these parts. Summary: The Pinnacles of Berea Hike is a great hike for those looking for a hilly 5-10 miles with countless overlooks.
After our half day on the trails, we headed north towards home. We were torn whether to go all the way this afternoon, or stop for one more night. The drive wouldn't have been difficult in the least, but the alternative was to stop exactly halfway home at another winery for an evening of wine tastings. The choice was obvious.
We headed towards Meranda-Nixon winery, just over the Ohio River on US-62. We happened to have timed it right, and they were hosting their annual barrel tasting event. They were hesitant to accept a camper this evening because of the event, but once they understood we were in a 'small' van, they welcomed us to join. The owners and staff were wonderful, the event was a riot, and the wine was great. We did a standard bottle tasting first, and the wine was some of our favorite in Ohio (not too sweet!), then we made our way to the event space where we were permitted to join in the barrel tasting event. The wine samples, pulled out of the barrels surrounding us, were absolutely wonderful!
A great time was had by all!
We headed towards Meranda-Nixon winery, just over the Ohio River on US-62. We happened to have timed it right, and they were hosting their annual barrel tasting event. They were hesitant to accept a camper this evening because of the event, but once they understood we were in a 'small' van, they welcomed us to join. The owners and staff were wonderful, the event was a riot, and the wine was great. We did a standard bottle tasting first, and the wine was some of our favorite in Ohio (not too sweet!), then we made our way to the event space where we were permitted to join in the barrel tasting event. The wine samples, pulled out of the barrels surrounding us, were absolutely wonderful!
A great time was had by all!
We were a little slow to start the next morning, but not too bad off. We made coffee, and headed the last 2 hours home.
The trip was nothing crazy, but we checked off a new National Park, a new Ohio Harvest Host, and the 'best hike in Kentucky'. It was a great way to spend a long weekend!
The trip was nothing crazy, but we checked off a new National Park, a new Ohio Harvest Host, and the 'best hike in Kentucky'. It was a great way to spend a long weekend!
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