Day 41: Kentucky

Had to head back west to get Kentucky crossed off the list. From Roanoke I headed south on I-81 before heading west to Kentucky. The Western part of Virginia is nice, the leaves were changing and It’s not that much different from Vermont.  The first picture below is a roadside scene in Western Virginia.

I drove though the Cumberland Gap, a tunnel, much like the Eisenhower tunnel in Colorado, through the mountains where Virginia, Tennessee and Kentucky meet. Once through the tunnel, I was in Kentucky. There is the Cumberland Gap National Park just off the highway, and that was my stop for the day.  There is a visitor center, explaining the importance of the Cumberland Gap as the passage the settlers would have taken from the Virginia colonies, over the Appalachians to the West. It was also a strategic location to hold during the Civil War and it changed hands a few times.  The park has a winding drive to a lookout point. The second picture below is from that drive, it shows a Civil War earthwork with a cannon that was used to fire down into the gap.  At the top there is a nice view of the 3 states and that is the third picture.

I’m staying in the little town of Middlesboro, KY tonight.  I noticed at lunch, as I was sitting outside, that I kept hearing the sound of revving motors.  I asked the hotel desk clerk and she told me that the local high school boys, like to do that with their trucks as the cruise up and down main street. She also said they like to gather in local parking lots and checkout each other’s trucks. America!  I thanked her for putting me on the other side of the hotel, away from the highway.

Song of the Day: Kentucky Rain, Elvis and Wagon Wheel, Darius Rucker (It mentions Cumberland Gap)

Podcast: Nothing today

Book on Tape:  Talking to Strangers, I am finding this really interesting.

Beer of the Day: Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale, Lexington Brewing

Total Miles: 280