March 19, 2025, An Interesting And Informative Day In Prestonsburg, Kentucky

On March 19, 2025, my wife Candice and I took a trip to Prestonsburg, Kentucky, to complete a variety of intended actions including a minor amount of shopping, eating out for lunch, and a hike for me at Jenny Wiley State Park where I often hike when we are in Floyd County. Our first stop was at Wal Mart to do a minor amount of shopping, and then off to Jenny Wiley State Park where one of my favorite hiking trails starts near the lodge and has about 4 miles of linked trails around the mountain, over and along the ridge, and a connecting trail which can take you off the mountain to the site of the former Jenny Wiley Amphitheater which still exists as a building but is, sadly, no longer in use due to the demise of the Jenny Wiley Summer Music Theater which functioned there for several decades. When we got to the park, I left Candice reading in the van as I often do and headed out to hike toward the trailhead near the lodge. As I approached the trailhead, I could see yellow construction barrier tape across the start of the trail with a printed message taped to a post. The message stated that this portion of the trail was closed due to a mudslide, and that the remaining portions of the trail could be accessed at the amphitheater spur. I started back in that direction, stopped for a few minutes to read the names and text on a monument to the children and bus driver who died in the 1958 Floyd County School Bus Wreck, and then headed on toward the amphitheater which is situated near the convention center which is used for a variety of purposes including state employee training sessions, weddings, banquets, and other public events. I have even once seen a rained out performance of the Roger Miller written musical "Big River" in the convention center. As I approached the convention center parking lot, I realized that several vehicles including a group of travel trailers, several cars from various othet states, and one or two vehicles actually marked with signs for the American Red Cross were in the parking lot. I realized the convention center must be in use as the stationary site for the Red Cross Disaster Response to the recent flooding in Eastern Kentucky which had devestated larger portions of Eastern Kentucky and Floyd County in particular. I also remembered that the Jenny Wiley State Park Lodge was once again in use as emergency housing for flood victims as it has been used on at least one other occasion under the incredibly effective and compassionate leadership of Governor Andy Beshear. I had to walk past the rear entrance of the convention center to get to the trail and when I turned that corner I saw two people sitting at a table outside the rear entrance. I suspected they were Red Cross volunteers and stopped to verify that and thank them for their work. We introduced ourselves and my hike turned into a long conversation with these two people and a third who showed up a bit later. They were from three different locations in the country, all long term Red Cross workers, one with ten years of service, one with sixteen years of service, and the third with an amazing forty-one years of work with the American Red Cross and on their third deployment to Eastern Kentucky in disasters. Our conversation quickly turned political and they opened up to me about their fears for the future of FEMA and the likelihood that TRAITOR Trump will destroy that agency and further worsen the disaster response to upcoming hurricanes, floods, forest fires, and other disasters. I expressed my own identical opinions and they reassured me that the Red Cross will always continue to provide disaster services since it is a private non-profit agency. But we all agreed that the future response from the federal government to disasters in the next four years, if TRAITOR Trump is not removed from the White House, will be slipshod at best with any federal funding likely to come to the states in block grants which will be pillaged on two or three levels before any of it actually reaches victims themselves. One of these Red Cross workers had actually been part of the response to the most recent Puerto Rican hurricane disaster when TRAITOR Trump was living in White House the first time and sent almost nothing to the people of Puerto Rico for a variety of reasons including his racism, ignorance, TREASON, and total lack of compassion and empathy. It was very refreshing to have this conversation with people who have traveled the world doing good works for the betterment of the human race, who understand the dire straits our country has been in since January 20 2025, and who can speak as openly as I do about the danger which is presented to the country by TRAITOR Trump and his Criminal Syndicate. I never finished my hike due to the length of that conversation but I have put in about a half hour between my parking location at the parking lot of the old golf course, the lodge, the closed trailhead, and the convention center. I also got a second half hour afterward at the Big Sandy Community and Technical College walking track and campus. As I walked across the campus, I encountered the sign at the top of this blog post, realized immediately that it would be considered a violation of TRAITOR Trump's malicious executive order against Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and decided to document these signs for my readers before the Right Wing Radical Repugnican head of the state community college system in Kentucky can force these signs to be removed from the campus, and order that racism, sexism, and mysogny be practiced in the community college system across the commonwealth. Below is the seond sign which was available on the BSCTC campus and all the other community colleges in Kentucky.

Buffalo Night At Jenny Wiley State Park, January 25, 2025

Yesterday, January 25, 2025, my wife Candice and I went to Buffalo Night at Jenny Wiley State Park. Historically, these events have always been held in the lodge dining room. In fact, we had the Thanksgiving Dinner there this past November. When we arrived at the park, we found that the event was being held in the convention center near the now abandoned amphitheater. I had been in that facility once or twice before including once, not long before the long running Jenny Wiley Summer Music Theater had been abandoned along with the amphitheater. At that event, we had gone to see the Jimmy Dean written musical "Big River". It got rained out and instead of offering rain checks the theater gave the performance in the convention center which had been a total bust. There is actually a large commercial kitchen in the convention center. But the room where this Buffalo Night was held is simply a large, windowless convention room set up with tables, all of which are designed for eight people doing work sessions in which they must face each other. That was a bit of surprise to be seated at a table for eight when, at brief times, the dining room door was left open and others, waiting to be seated for as much as half an hour, were able to look through the door and see two people seated at a table for eight. A windowless room is never a good site for anything other than a jail. Despite some bad weather in the last three weeks, the turnout was predictably large and the place was reasonably well staffed. But for these events, all of the state parks seem to schedule employees in the park system who have nothing to do with food service to work on event night and many of them have no experience in the areas in which they are working. We spoke to one woman who said she was working as a housekeeper in the lodge. We were seated at that large table conveniently in the front row near the buffet line which makes it a lot easier on Candice if she serves herself, or if I serve her and make two trips to the buffet for each of us to get a plate. The room was probably 40 feet wide and buffet was set up with the salad bar against one wall, the dessert table across the opposite wall forty feet away, and the main buffet line across the end wall at least fifteen or twenty feet away from the other two sections of the buffet. Thankfully, we had a young male waiter serving our drinks, napkins, etc. who was excellent, highly attentive, and robustly working the room all the time we were there. Ethan was a blessing in the middle of much that wasn't in other areas. In general, all of the staff, despite their sometimes being forced to work well outside their expertixe, are friendly, congenial, and nice. But it would be far better if other food service staff could be shifted from within the state park system for these high volume special events. The buffalo was served three ways, roasted and sliced on the line, presliced and cooked in deep hotel pans in boiling water, and as meat loaf. The roast was excellent and the female employee who served it was gracious, friendly, attentive, and experienced. The meat loaf was excellent, self service on the line, and made in the Eastern Kentucky style with catsup on top. The presliced and boiled was unappetizing looking and I niether of us even tried it. The vegetables were short sections of corn on the cob (over cooked but tasty); good, well made scalloped potatoes; green beans;greens with ham hocks sliced in them; and, there was also buffalo chili and fried catfish which Jenny Wiley usally serves as an alternative to the main meats at any special dinner. There were only two deserts, banana pudding in which I never saw a banana, and a berry cobbler. I happened to reach the dessert table after a cobbler had been demolished and left with only a thin skim of berries in the hotel pan. But I had manfully picked up one of their overly small, plastic (I assume disposable but maybe not) dessert dishes and was ready to settle for berries only (they appeared to have been mixed berries.) when a servers stepped up beside me and said, "I'm getting ready to set another cobbler down, would you like to wait." I had the pleasure of taking the first piece of that cobbler out of the pan to my table. I enjoyed some parts of the meal and the trip, was very appreciative of the waiter Ethan, and won't totally slam the event. But it did have some things lacking and could definitely be improved on before the next event. It is usually done far better at Natural Bridge State Park in Slade, Kentucky, where we also go regularly. Yes, I will probably be at the next special event dinner at Jenny Wiley, but I must insist that it be held in the lodge dining room.

Picking Roses In Eastern Kentucky On Thanksgiving Day 2024!

 

Yesterday, Thanksgiving Day, November 28, 2024, my wife Candice and I chose to travel to Prestonsburg, Kentucky, for the Thanksgiving Day Buffet at Jenny Wiley State Park Lodge rather than cook a Thanksgiving dinner for the two of us.  When we are away from the house and have the time, I nearly always try to walk or hike somewhere while Candice waits for me in van at a safe parking area and reads.  Since it was fairly cool and damp, I chose to not hike in the woods near the lodge. There are several fairly good hiking trails in the park and I have used them quite a bit over the last few years. We have also attended other holiday dinners at the lodge with members of my extended family over the years. I went to Big Sandy Community and Technical College to walk on their paved walking path near the Big Sandy River instead.  I have walked there numerous times and actually enjoy that walking path since it is mostly paved with an unpaved gravel loop around a grassy area near old US 23 or North Lake Drive.  The paved area is a big loop with one fairly good uphill which overlooks the river.  Between the river and walking path, there is also a fairly large, relatively flat grassy area which can also be used for walking if it isn't too wet.  There is also a consistent population of black squirrels in the trees around the walking path and along the river bank.  I only saw two squirrels yesterday while I was there and never clearly established that either of them was black since both were on the ground near trees and probably at least a hundred yards away when I spotted them and they immediately ran up the back side of the trees.  

 

I only saw one other walker while I was there yesterday and he only made one loop before disappearing.  He was wearing shorts and the temperature was only 40 degrees or so.  I suspect that he might  have not been enjoying the shorts.  But, to my amazement, I spotted a few late fall roses blooming on some plants which are situated at a little memorial rock garden between the college parking lot and the hiking path.  The rock garden is dedicated to some former employee whose name I don't remember.  There were also some beautiful flowers on several small shrubs at both the rock garden and near a swing which is situated at the opposite end of the grassy area in the center of the walking path.  Since it was already only forty degrees with a subfreezing forecast, I chose to cut one of the roses and several of the other flowers for Candice who was waiting for me in the van.  It was a pleasant surprise for both of us to learn that all these flowers were actually still in bloom on Thanksgiving day.  It also amazes me  how many people choose to totally ignore signals such as these flowers about the fact that global warming is very real and very dangerous for the planet.  

After my walk, we drove up old US 23 from Prestonsburg to Allen where I showed Candice some of what is left of Allen.  Then we returned to the lodge for the buffet.  It was acceptable but a bit overpriced.  There was ham with pineapple served in thin slices, fried cat fish which the lodge serves at nearly all of their major events, turkey served sliced and/or shredded, some turkey dressing which I chose not to try, some fairly good shoe peg corn and carrots, and banana pudding, pecan pie, and pumpkin pie for desert.  The lodge was fairly crowded with what was almost universally an older crowd. It was an enjoyable day all things considered. 

Elk Night And Hiking At Jenny Wiley State Park, Saturday, September 16, 2023

The flyer for Elk Night at Jenny Wiley State Park, 2023 

On the afternoon of Saturday, September 16, 2023, my wife Candice and I traveled to Jenny Wiley State Park to engage in their annual Elk Night at the lodge restaurant and for me to hike on my favorite trail among those in the park which begins and ends just at the upper end of the lodge parking lot.  We have been there for Elk Night on several occasions and I have written about both Elk Night and Jenny Wiley State Park on other occasions.  One other of my blog posts detailed a previous hike on the Jenny Wiley Trail at the park which follows the ridge across the lake from the lodge.  On another occasion, I reviewed a short biography of Jenny Wiley by Floyd County author Henry P. Scalf who is, perhaps better known for his numerous genealogical works and his career as a reporter for the Floyd County Times in Prestonsburg, Kentucky.  Both Candice and I like the park a lot and it has been a part of my life nearly as long as I can remember.

My hike went well and shortly after I returned to our van to meet Candice we entered the lodge for the feast.  We got there about 3:30pm at a time when the dining room was not crowded which makes life much simpler in most cases.  We found elk roast actually being carved on the serving line, fresh fired catfish, hunter's stew, elk chili, and elk meatloaf.  The first elk roast we got servings from must have been on the line a bit longer than usual and was a bit dry but very nice in flavor and appearance.  But the return trip for seconds was great because a new roast had just arrived on the line and it was hot, juicy, tender, and everything  a good elk roast should be.  The elk meatloaf was great with the traditional Eastern Kentucky topping of ketchup and made from finely ground elk with just the right amount of spiciness.  The elk chili was robust, sufficiently meaty, and well flavored.  We did not try the hunter's stew but probably should have.  The most ordinary part of the entire all you can eat buffet was the salad and vegetable bar which was comprised of the usual suspects, lettuce, carrots, broccoli, cucumbers, etc. with nothing unusual or outstanding added to the bar.  The vegetables were fresh, crisp, clean, etc. but nothing about them was a cut above average at a good restaurant buffet.  

But the best was yet to come!  The flyer above, and more than one other I have seen from state park elk nights, advertised "Assorted Appalachian Deserts".  It has usually been my experience when I see that line in a flyer that the deserts will be some very ordinary, traditional offerings which you might find in any restaurant from Maine to California.  I have lived nearly my entire life in Central and Southern Appalachia and can make an argument, based on my education and publishing history, for being an expert on Appalachian Culture.  I have rarely, if ever, seen deserts in a state park lodge that I would say are "Appalachian Deserts".  I would also not say that the deserts that I saw on this particular evening were "Appalachian Deserts" but they were definitely among the best deserts I have ever eaten in any restaurant I have ever been in among the thirty-one US states I have visited or in which I have lived.  There was a fairly common looking chocolate pie which I did not try.  There was also a deep dish lemon pie with actual lemon slices garnishing the top and a genuine lemon flavor, without any disagreeable sourness, and a meringue which was quite deep, pretty to look at and tasty.  It was an excellent deep dish lemon pie.  But the best dish of the evening was yet to come, something of which I had never heard, and with a primary ingredient which I have eaten in several other presentations all my life.  That desert was Pinto Bean Pie, Yes!, Pinto Bean Pie!  And I don't mean some joke presented under the title Pinto Bean Pie in order to monopolize on the fact that pinto beans have been a part of life in the area of the lodge for the last one hundred years at least.  It was a real pie with a filling comprised of canned (presumably) pinto beans and with a top of crushed nuts of some kind or other. The entire offering was sweet, juicy, incredibly tasty, and clearly comprised in large part of pinto beans. I made a point of complementing the two staff members on the serving line for the entire meal after I finished eating and they told me that a chef in another state park lodge had sent them the recipe for Pinto Bean Pie and they loved it also.  I am attaching a recipe for the desert which I found on the internet but I cannot guarantee that it is the same recipe which was being used at Jenny Wiley.  I can only suggest that if you are interested in trying it that you should find one or two recipes which appeal to you and try them at different times before settling on your favorite.  But I can assure that if you have never had Pinto Bean Pie you should as soon as possible.  I can't wait to see what comes up next year at the Jenny Wiley State Park Lodge Elk Night. 

 

 

Elk Night And A Good Hike At Jenny Wiley State Park Lodge, September 14, 2019

This past Saturday night, my wife Candice and I went to Jenny Wiley State Park Lodge for Elk Night in the lodge dining room.  We got there about an hour or so early so I could take a hike on one of the trails I had never been on, the Moss Ridge Trail which starts up the hill above the lodge and just below one of the rental cottages.  It runs for about 1.3 miles total.  It begins in the general direction of the amphitheater and then doubles back along the ridge to the lodge.  It is labeled as "Strenuous" in their little flyer about the trails.  I agree that it is a bit tough and should not be attempted by anyone who is not used to hiking some in the mountains but I think it falls a bit short of "Strenuous".  The staff description states that it has steep uphills and steep down hills and that is accurate.  It begins with a short hundred yards of pretty level hiking and then has some treated wooden baffles across the trail to prevent erosion which are not remotely steps but purely water baffles which are too far apart to be considered steps on the first uphill.  It is in timber all the way and well shaded.  But for me the worst part of the entire deal is that it and the linked Steve Brackett Memorial Trail were both primarily bushwhacked out of the woods with a small bulldozer and it will show for many more years that it was accomplished in that way.  The trail itself is level in large sections but does have some steep uphills and, on the return loop, some steep downhills which are over some sections of exposed rock and gravel which tends to make it a bit risky about falls due to small, rolling rocks. The other drawback to the trail is that it has several large down trees which have not been dealt with and a few are in full blown widow maker mode.  But they are nice trails with the two or three objections stated above and they appear to be somewhat better maintained than the Jenny Wiley Trail which I hiked part of about a month ago and wrote about on this blog. The area of the Moss Ridge Trail that runs along the ridge is nice and flat and was not damaged so much with the bulldozer.  It apparently runs along the property line of the park on the ridge because there are several three foot tall steel markers in the ground which are painted bright red and labeled "Boundary Line".  The land on the opposite side of the markers is also timber land and brings up another idea I have about the need for the state park system to be funded to increase the acreage and uses of  nearly all the state parks.  I also realize that this idea is not one that would get very far at this point in Kentucky politics. I spent an hour on the trails which included probably a half mile of the Steve Brackett Memorial Trail until I reached a point where it starts to drop off rapidly toward the level of the lake.  Candice was waiting on me near the lodge reading a book in a shaded parking spot so I turned around and doubled back.   

We attended the Elk Night Dinner a the lodge after my hike and have also eaten there on other occasions.   I have never been shy to say that the kitchen staff and food are much better at Natural Bridge State Park Lodge where we also eat fairly frequently and usually attend their Elk or Wild Game Night Dinners.  The food at Natural Bridge is always better prepared and the staff do an overall better job of presenting and servicing the entire affair of a well-attended special dinner.  But on this occasion at Jenny Wiley they did have one food which I had never had and found somewhat pleasing.  They served smoked elk in reasonably sized slices which were well prepared and pleasing although, for my personal taste, the smoked elk was a bit too lightly smoked.  I love a good, somewhat strong smoky taste similar to what you find in good smoked pork chops.  The elk roast on this night was overcooked and served in a somewhat stingy manner by the person serving it on the buffet line.  The deserts which Jenny Wiley describes as "Appalachian deserts" are not remotely regional or Appalachian.  There was peach and blackberry cobbler.  The peach was somewhat odd tasting as if it had been too heavily laden with margarine but the blackberry was better and well received by our group.  The other deserts were nothing that could not have been expected on a normal menu in any sit down restaurant in the eastern half of the country.  Our waitress whose job only involved serving drinks and paying attention was hard working, funny, attentive, and a welcome sight in the place.  But we did notice that a waitress who had served us competently and well only a month ago was not present on a night when such a restaurant would have called all hands on deck which leads me to suspect high turnover in the kitchen staff. 

My primary reason for returning to the Jenny Wiley Lodge for an Elk Night Dinner was primarily to eat out with my cousins and their spouses because they live in the area and like the lodge.  But I much prefer Natural Bridge.  But you should try them both and make up your own mind. 

Hiking The Jenny Wiley Trail, Saturday, August 24, 2019

On Saturday, August 24, 2019, my wife Candice and I traveled to Prestonsburg, Kentucky, to Jenny Wiley State Park to have lunch at the state park lodge and for me to put in an hour hiking on the Jenny Wiley Trail which is just across an arm of Dewey Lake opposite the lodge, amphitheater, and marina.  Candice had the lunch buffet and I ordered a barbecued chicken breast off the menu since I did not like the looks of the beef and pork on the buffet.  Both were in hotel pans on the warmer and immersed in a watery sauce.  I had one bite of each off Candice's plate and the pork was actually fairly good.  The beef was way too bland and just did not meet my standards especially in light of the fact that I rarely eat either meat these days.  My chicken breast was a typical frozen and partially precooked breast which had been briefly grilled and then covered in what tasted a lot like Sweet Baby Ray's sauce.  But it was moist, tender, fairly tasty since I actually like Sweet Baby Ray's Original Sauce.  We arrived late in the lunch hour after 1pm and found only three other tables occupied in the large restaurant.  Four or five staff members spent much of the time in conversation at the check out counter and seemed to have nothing to do.  But the female hostess and waitress who served us were both friendly, talkative, and attentive.  

After the lunch, we parked in the shade near the Jenny Wiley Amphitheater where Candice could read a book and wait for me to return.  There seemed to be absolutely nothing happening at the amphitheater and that is a shame because for many years it was one of the better entertainment venues in Eastern Kentucky.  But it seems to have lost much of its success in recent years and has moved most of its productions to Pikeville, Kentucky.  I have seen many pleasurable and well done productions there over the last fifty years.  It is a shame that it is no longer what it used to be. 

Official Map Jenny Wiley State Resort Park by KY State Parks

I have included the official map of the state park above since it can be helpful if you go there to visit, hike, fish, camp, eat, boat, or see a play.  I have also included the reverse side of that map below which gives the official descriptions of the 6 hiking trails within the park along with the rules for users.  The map describes the Jenny Wiley Trail as being 4.5 miles and "Strenuous" and "not recommended for solo hikers".  I must admit here that I broke two key rules for hikers anywhere during my hike.  First, I totally disregarded the disclaimer that the trail is "not recommended for solo hikers",  and after having hiked on it for an hour, I have no idea why it is labeled that way.  The first few hundred yards of the trail are a fairly steep uphill hike on what we natives of the area call a "point" which is a projection of land which rises out of the landscape.  But once you are past that few hundred yards, I found the trail to be only mildly challenging and capable of being hiked by any reasonably healthy and fit human.  Second, the trail begins near a rental cottage near the lake and has an aged, decrepit set of wooden steps up the first twenty feet or so from a paved driveway to the actual beginning of the trail proper.  There was an old caution tape tied to but torn down from the entrance to the steps with a dirty sign saying that "This section of the Jenny Wiley Trail is temporarily closed". I realize that going past that tape and sign is a cardinal mistake for most people and I did it anyway.  But I know the mountains of Eastern Kentucky better than most.  I am in fit condition and hike regularly.  I still do not recommend taking such actions and would not have done so in an area in which I had never spent time. I interpreted the sign to be referring to the decrepit condition of the steps and not the entire trail.  The steps are in bad need of replacement and for a few hundred dollars of lumber, screws, and labor, the Commonwealth of Kentucky could solve the problem for several years.  Actually, I must say that the trail does not appear to be well maintained in general and I eventually encountered an area near the ridge with several blown down trees which block the trail to a considerable degree and, since Candice was waiting for me alone, that is where I turned around after a little more than half an hour.  I also saw at least two fairly dangerous "widow maker" trees which were dead, partially fallen, and hung up in other living trees.  If the trail were well maintained, it would be a fairly nice hike of probably an hour and half for an experienced and fit hiker.  As it is, it is somewhat more time consuming and might take the same hiker two hours or a bit more if the remainder of the trail also has similar down timber blocking it.  

For me the most interesting part of the trail is that I saw a small cemetery beside the trail in that initial climb up the point which has only two clearly marked graves, one of which is marked with a Confederate States Of America tombstone.  Both carry the same last name.  The little cemetery is totally hidden in the timber and if a marked hiking trail were not there it would probably be long forgotten by now.  Speaking of marked trail, the trail is fairly well marked ever hundred yards or so with blue paint blazes on trees.  It is also well used and nearly as visible to the trained eye as a cow path might be.  I also noticed a lot of young poplar trees on or near the trail ranging from about two years old to having recently sprouted.  They varied from about two or three inches to maybe eight inches in general and seem to indicate that the area was more open in the past few years since poplars are generally regenerative growth.  They also indicate that, on this particular trail, the Kentucky State Parks Department is not doing its job. 

Thanksgiving With Family At A State Park Lodge

Today, my wife Candice and I had Thanksgiving Dinner with ten other members of our extended family at the Jenny Wiley State Park Lodge which has recently been refurbished after a major fire.  There were twelve of us at the dinner which had at least a couple of hundred diners during the time we were there.  Apparently, nobody wants to cook a traditional Thanksgiving Dinner anymore.  We represented three generations of our maternal grandparents' descendants.  There were four of us first cousins there from the seven which were raised by our mothers, sisters Mellie Hicks Hicks and Ellen Hicks Terry. Two of that original seven are now dead.  There were three spouses or significant others of that group, one daughter of my cousin Jack Terry, one daughter of my cousin Greg Terry, and several of Jack's grandchildren.  This was the first time many of us in the family had met Greg's daughter, Shay, who suddenly appeared in his life not long ago after finally learning who he biological father is.  Neither of them had known of the identity or existence of the other until very recently.  That, in and of itself, made it an interesting meal. 

The buffet was served in a large dining room, one of two, which must have seated at least a hundred people.  The staff worked constantly and kept drinks refilled, dirty plates bused, and minor requests for information answered.  I am certain they never received, in that kind of setting, anywhere near what they deserved in tips. The standard 18% for large groups would be in order in that setting.  I tried my best to be reasonable with my tip and so did at least one other in our party.  The setting, twelve people spread along the length of a long table, did not do a lot to benefit conversations.  The tables were a bit too close together and the overall layout of the room made traffic to and from the buffet a bit congested.  Salads, vegetables, and meats were on a steam table along the left side of the room with both sides open for self service.  Desserts were on two tables along the perpendicular  wall on two tables with only one side open for self service.  A staff member was on the right side of the room slicing and serving ham and roast beef from another table with heat lamps.  This setup caused too much traffic across the room, back and forth, and sideways.  

The food was generally acceptable but not outstanding by any measure.  When I got to the turkey to serve for my wife Candice, I found a wet mess of shredded turkey in the bottom of a hotel pan.  There were a couple or three dishes on that steam table which kept eliciting questions among strangers to the tune of "do you know what that is".  The salad makings were a bit too few to make a good salad for the person with vegetarian leanings.  The coleslaw was good and made along a traditional Eastern Kentucky recipe.  The green beans came straight out of an institutional can.  The pies, pecan, peanut butter, and pumpkin, were straight out of a box.  The baked Alaska was good and made on the spot.  The roast beef was far overcooked for my taste without a wink of pink in sight.  The ham was minimally acceptable.  Overall, this was a large restaurant buffet designed to minimally please diners who did not have high expectations without minimizing the potential profit from the occasion.  Nearly every time I have eaten at Jenny Wiley State Park Lodge, which is a frequent choice of some of my relatives who live close to it, I have left once again convinced that most of the other state park lodges in which I have eaten do the job better, especially Natural Bridge State Park Lodge.  I nearly always prefer Natural Bridge to other parks and the setting is usually far more picturesque.  

After the dinner, we hung out for a short time in the lodge lobby talking and split up until this coming Saturday when we will get together for a second dinner at the home of a cousin in Prestonsburg which is a much better idea.  I had told a friend in an e-mail today that I would rather eat bologna sandwiches in a genuine family setting with family than a high class buffet in a restaurant setting anytime.  This dinner convinced me I was correct in that statement.  A home cooked meal with shucked beans, hog jaw, ground hog, squirrels, pinto beans, corn bread, cushaw, and hominy would be far better anytime. 

Jenny Wiley State Park Is Hosting A Hate Group

Today, I was appalled to read Internet news from WKYT-TV27 in Lexington, KY, and learn that Jenny Wiley State Park in Prestonsburg, KY, will be hosting a meeting of the Traditionalist Workers Party, a hate group as defined by the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, AL.  I also confirmed the accuracy of the story by watching the evening news on WKYT-TV27  and by calling the park office to protest the fact that a state park would be hosting a meeting of a hate group.  When I contacted the park office in Prestonsburg, I was told that staff there could not comment on the issue and was given the name and telephone number of Gil Lawson, the information officer and official spokesperson for the KY State Parks in Frankfort, KY.  When I called Mr. Lawson, he would only read the official statement which the parks department had prepared and which is included in the Internet news story from WKYT-TV27.  Here are the contents of that statement: 

""The executed contract for this event was for a family reunion, and the parks department was not notified of the intent of this meeting until late last evening. As a public event, a different contract will be required. The new contract will include safety and other provisions, and the group will have to reapply under the correct process. As a public agency, the Kentucky State Parks cannot discriminate against individuals or groups under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. However, we will continue to monitor the situation and any threats to our guests, and we will take appropriate actions as necessary." Official Statement From The KY State Parks System Downloaded on February 8, 2017, at 8:40pm.

Upon hearing the statement on the telephone, my response to Mr. Lawson was that he was "talking out of both sides of his mouth".  We both graciously allowed the conversation to end on that note.  My logic for that assessment is based on these facts as stated in the statement.  The parks system is attempting to imply, but not clearly state, that they were mislead when negotiating the contract and they may well have been mislead.  At the same time, the parks system is stating they have no intentions to attempt to do the right thing by voiding the contract and refusing to host the event.  The parks system is also attempting to claim they have no legal means by which to refuse to host such a group.  The portion of the statement which says "we will continue to monitor the situation and any threats to our guests, and we will take appropriate actions as necessary".  By virtue of that sentence, they are admitting that possible threats to their guests do exist.  

The Southern Poverty Law Center describes the Traditionalist Workers Party as:

"...a white nationalist group that advocates for racially pure nations and communities and blames Jews for many of the world’s problems. Even as it claims to oppose racism, saying every race deserves its own lands and culture, the group is intimately allied with neo-Nazi and other hardline racist organizations that espouse unvarnished white supremacist views." Southern Poverty Law Center Downloaded on February 8, 2017, at 8:51pm.

For those of you who do not know the Southern Poverty Law Center, they were founded by Morris Dees, one of the most successful civil rights attorneys in the history of the country, and are located in Montgomery, AL.  They track, confront, and litigate against hate groups all over the country and do a phenomenal job of gaining, protecting, and preserving human rights all over America.  The bottom line is that if the SPLC tells you a group is a hate group you can bet your boots on their assessment.  The Traditionalist Workers Party is described in their own literature as being strongly anti-Semitic and homophobic although they attempt to couch those beliefs in language which can avoid the possibility of constituting hate crimes on its face.  At the same time, they attempt to disguise their supremacist views behind stated intentions of "fighting for faith, family, and folk".  However, it is interesting that on their official website they list their philosophical literature on a web page they have named "Propaganda".  According to the Concise Oxford English Dictionary Eleventh Edition, the definition of "Propaganda" is: "information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote a cause or political view".  It is fascinating that such a group would use a word to describe their teaching which means "...biased or misleading...". 

In their statement about the goals of the event which is linked from the WKYT-TV27 web site, the Traditionalist Workers Party makes several statements that cause concern.  They state that: " Pike County is 98.35% European and went over 80% for Trump in the recent elections."  It is fascinating that an organization that SPLC has identified as a hate group is choosing to visit and hold a meeting in an area which supported Donald Trump who has always denied his support from and possible connections to such white supremacist hate groups.  They go on to say that Pike County is an area that is "in need of advocacy and organization".  They also gloat that " Given that the venue is a State Park, they cannot shut down the event".  That statement, and the likely fear of state park officials, is probably why the official statement from the KY State Parks is so unwilling to confront the fact that they have agreed to host an event from a hate group.  The TWP go further near the end of their statement by discussing possible "...possible Leftist attacks, we will not be driven from the streets, under any circumstances" which appears to state that they are prepared for violence during their street demonstration in Pikeville on April 29th, 2017.  

Every citizen, every elected official, every church, every legitimate social organization in the Eastern Kentucky and Southern West Virginia area should immediately and unequivocally denounce this group, their proposed event, and their potentially violent agenda.  Every member of such churches, groups, and organizations should immediately contact Gil Lawson and the Kentucky State Parks to protest this event and to demand that it be cancelled.  Potential violence, which is openly discussed in that statement and that is alarming and potentially very dangerous.  Such plans, such groups, and such threats of violence must be confronted and must be stopped.