Momentous Adventures:Sheltowee Trace-Red River Gorge to the Mouth of the Laurel

Yeah, where was I? Oh yeah, at the Earthen Berms at the end of the Red River Gorge section, 89 miles deep. They look kinda like poles you would see in a harbor by the ocean, but instead of being stuck out of the water they are stuck in the ground. Go past an ATV camp and follow the Trace onto FS Road 350 where you go by a church (no spigot this time) onward to Hollerwood ATV Park where some free candy, cold beverages and ice cream can be found. I had an interesting conversation with an older dude about section hiking the A.T and old school hiking equipment. Begin your decent down to Kentucky River on a road walk. On the way is Lago Linda Kitchen, you can get showers, camps for $7 and grub. This Trail is rad for gems like this one! You can give them a holler ahead of time. We didn’t stay here because we took took a nero and a zero day at Hemlock Lodge and Lil’ Agner Motel because I had heat exhaustion really bad. Seriously, I have never had anything as taxing on my body as this crap. Almost 25 years of avid backpacking and serious skateboarding for longer didn’t prepare me for the level of suck that I experienced. Anyway, get yourself a good sun shirt in April or May to protect you from the evil sun and heat that can sometimes plague this season in the South. Alright, back on the Trail, stay on Crestmont Rd for a little over 2 miles until you are riding next to Sturgeon Creek. Find open rooty spots a short drop from the Road and bunker down for the night. The Creek looked like a normal flow, but was crazy deep. I put my trekking pole down to my shoulder and still didn’t touch. The next day bounce from Todd’s Rd onto some dugout ATV roads that you can cover some ground if you need to. Most of the old road/multiuse  parts may be beat up but they are mostly a good grade to cover some quick miles. By the time you hit Polly Sparks Rd, it is apparent you are in a rad area! Start descending into a nice canyon with all the good stuff that makes the Cumberland Plateau so special, big cliffs, interesting geology, great clean running streams and isolation. Really, what else would a wilderness traveler want eh? When you hear War Creek come rumbling out of a cave, you are at your camp. Enjoy a very peaceful night of fireflies and stars as you drift off to sleep listening to music softly.

Get your day started right and proceed onto the trail crossing War by Resurgence Cave. Head up to meet a FS Road to Turkey Foot Campground before ditching it to ride along Elsam and then Middle Fork. Soon there is FS Road 376 and then Hwy 89 to 3115 before hitting Hwy 421 next to Elisha Branch. Little Turtle Rentals, a great little eclectic place to spend the night that is right on the trail plus it has a soda/snack machine and Door Dash from a local Mexican restaurant that was pretty good, especially if you have trail hunger. Have a good morning and when you’re ready to take off, just head into the woods across the main road. Follow a multi use trail up a bit to meet up with a grip of FS Roads heading to the left and right. Pass over Rd 3085 and head down to Hooten Branch. Next, the way hangs next to a FS road before hitting South Tree Tower Road/89 and following it into the lovely Horse Lick Valley. It soon became apparent to me that this area deserves better protection than is provided. The richly diverse forests in this Valley are not fit for some renegade ATV bullshit that they have been subjected to by these motorized beasts tearing up the land in every direction. Nevertheless, find a nice camp along a bend of Horse Lick and enjoy the solitude of this seldomly visited gems of Southeast. After a particularly nice sleep, Start out along the Creek again as it empties into Rockcastle River and has a couple of fords. Keep that in mind if you get some rough thunderstorms 12 hours or less, you might have a hard time with this one. Once you go past Hwy 490, get on a proper hiking trail for a bit before to Camp Wildcat Battle Monument. Now you are on Old Wilderness Rd heading down to Hwy 909 that will take you over Hwy 75, the big one in this neck of the woods. Now it’s time for a delicious burger at the 49ers’ Truck Stop. It’s hard to say at this juncture what kind of food you might be craving. When you’re stuffed ass is ready to head up a dicey looking road that soon becomes a multi use trail as it heads to higher ground. Views extend to the west and east as you hit cruise mode heading towards camp. Start start a lovely decent into another gem of a valley, Hawk Creek. The way gets cliffy and ends up revealing a nice little waterfall before ducking down to a nice shelf above Hawk. Set up here and enjoy the gorgeous surroundings of this fantastic camp.

After a restful night’s sleep get up slowly as the birds sing in the trees above you. Tea time starts and ends as the gear gets packed up and you cross Hawk on a nice big log bridge that replaces the suspension bridge that was blown out from must have been a monumental storm. Climb up and cross Hwy 1956 and 80 before dropping down to Poison Honey Fork and ultimately landing by Pine Creek. Continue to FS 747 and merge onto it for a couple of miles and drop down to a nice suspension bridge over Sinking Creek. This is a nice camping destination, however we needed to make a few more miles so we pushed onto the beginning of Big Dog Creek. If you’re lucky enough to get some water from this trickler, you can camp in this more open part of the forest with nice rounded hillsides around you. I had to craft a small pool to harness the delicious water that Big Dog had to offer. Enjoy a warm night while Barred Owls call across the small valley, living the good life you know? Enjoy coolness in the morning as you get your day started out with homemade freeze dried breakfast scramble and conversation about trail life vs our “real” life back in the hustle and bustle we’ve been subjected to. Climb up to FS 119 where you see a sign that marks the way to Vanhook Falls, another gem of this amazing trail! Begin dropping down to the Falls as the landscape changes in a favorable way. The area around Vanhook is amazing! It reminds me of a greener Sierra waterfall setting than most southeast places of this likeness. Next up in Pounder Cascades that features an excellent camp and swimming hole. We did the latter and enjoyed the perfect pool it had to offer. After soaking in the goodness, hit Hwy 192 and follow it to the edge of Laurel River Lake that you will follow for another 7 miles where you will shift gears from wilderness experience to a party location for lucky Kentuckians that made their way out for a swim, volleyball and chilling with their buddies. Drop back into the wilderness when cross a bridge on your right. A welcoming sight. Stay on high before dropping down to Whitman Branch that contains big boulders and great water, saddle up with what you can before camping past the Mouth of the Laurel boat ramp on a shelf above the river. Enjoy a nice sunset as a questionable snake swims to shore. Enjoy the random banter of the fishermen out for a late night cruise. Fade out feeling satisfied of your Sheltowee trip as the music plays on.