Hiking In Greenbo Lake State Park

 A few days ago on my birthday, one of the big ones, my wife, Candice, wanted to take me somewhere so I could hike in the woods and we could eat out which we haven't done much of in the last fifteen or eighteen months due to the Covid 19 pandemic.  The numbers in Kentucky hadn't quite fully turned the corner as they have now and we decided to take a chance since we are both fully vaccinated.  We had been to Greenbo Lake State Park once before and enjoyed that trip a great deal.  Greenbo Lake is one of the smaller man made flood control lakes in Kentucky.  The largest, Kentucky Lake has over 160,000 surface acres.  Greenbo Lake, at 225 acres, is not much more than a pond compared to the largest lakes which all have over 100,000 acres.  But it is a very pretty little lake with some really good hiking trails in the state park which contains it.  

 

Greenbo Lake State Park also has some historically important coke ovens, a restored one room school, and two unmolested small cemeteries which is unusual in the Kentucky State Park System.  I have written in other places on this blog about the relocation of graves during the construction of lakes and highways in the state.  I have hiked in numerous Kentucky state parks situated around lakes and nearly everyone I have ever hiked in has relocated cemeteries in them which usually were placed in a common government cemetery near or in the park.  I have also published a short story about the relocation of family cemeteries for the construction of a lake this past spring in Seeds 2021, the literary magazine from Northeastern Illinois State University.  My short story is entitled "Damn!" and can be found at numbered page 74 in the online journal at the previous link.  However, the page numbers in the online version do not synch with the page numbers in the table of contents.  That story is actually located at page 85 according to the internet counter.  

 But, let's get back to the hike at Greenbo Lake.  The park has three marked trails which come to a total of 32.8 miles of possible hiking without leaving marked trails and striking off into the woods with a compass or GPS.  I chose the trail which begins near the handicapped fishing pier not far from the boat launching and storage area because Candice has been in a wheelchair for over twenty years and wanted to read near the pier while I hiked for an hour.  I  rarely hike an entire trail anywhere but instead hike out for a little over a half hour and double back to wherever Candice is waiting for me and we always choose a safe location for her to stay.  This particular trail, so far as I hiked it for about 1.5 miles is within sight of the lake in the woods with a few relatively easy uphills and downhills.  I would rate that portion of this trail as easy.  I never saw another human on the trail except for one fisherman in a pontoon boat who happened to be fishing alone within sight of the trail.  He and I had a friendly conversation as he fished for a couple of minutes which was a unique experience for me while hiking to be able to talk to someone actively fishing although I have done it at Eagle Lake on the campus of my alma mater, Morehead State University.  I hiked outward for about 40 minutes and turned around which brought me out of the woods exactly on the one hour mark.  Early in the hike, I encountered the only interesting wildlife of the hike, a small black racer about two to two and a half feet long.  It froze when it saw me on the trail about ten feet above it.  I started to bend over to pick up a small peeble to toss near it to see how it reacted and it instantly turned and disappeared into the leaf mold below me even before I could grasp a pebble.  It was about 85 degrees at the time and any cold blooded animal such as a snake was in firm fettle for traveling on such a day.  I did not have a camera with me and do not have a photo of my little friend.  

After my hike, Candice and I returned to Grayson, Kentucky, to search for a place to dine inside which we hadn't done in quite some time.  After driving all over Grayson looking for an open dining room, we wound up at Huddle House which was the only one we could find with indoor seating.  We went in wearing masks, which is my suggestion to anyone in public until the pandemic is over.  The only people in the restaurant in early afternoon were the cook, the manager, and one waitress behind  the counter and one other couple eating in a booth well away from us.  So we took off our masks which is necessary if you intend to chew anyway.  The hired help was friendly and we talked freely about whatever popped up.  The manager said the day before had been his birthday and I mentioned that this particular day was mine.  A bit later an older man and a young boy who appeared to be his middle school aged grandson came in and sat down well away from us and also ate.  No one else came in the place during our meal.  We actually felt safe in the face of  Covid 19 in light of the low population, good social distancing, and our vaccination.  After eating, we drove back home and it was, according to all measurements, a day well spent. 

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. 

Kingdom Come State Park--July 25, 2019

Kingdom Come State Park is the highest elevation state park in Kentucky and one of the most unique with respect to the natural features it holds.  It is just outside Cumberland, Kentucky, in Harlan County.  My wife and I visited the park on our long day trip on July 25, 2019, and I hiked for about an hour on an old road which passes from the park toward Whitesburg, Kentucky, fourteen miles away.  The one lane gravel and blacktop road extends 38 miles along the crest of Pine Mountain from Whitesburg to Harlan. It is sometimes known as the Little Shepherd Trail, a name taken from the book "The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come" by John Fox, Jr.  The road crosses through the park near the summit of Pine Mountain. The great majority of the road lies outside the boundaries of the park on what I suspect is primarily corporate land being held by coal and timber companies.  Only about a mile of the road lies within the park boundaries.  But there are rumors of an attempt by the Kentucky Parks system to use the road as part of a longitudinal park which would run from Harlan to the Breaks of the Mountains Interstate Park on the Virginia border in Pike County.  Kingdom Come State Park allows vehicular, but not ATV, traffic on the road inside the park.  Outside the boundaries of the park, it is my understanding that ATV's, dirt bikes, horses, and vehicles all travel the trail/road which is an absolute shame.  Dirt bikes and ATV's do nothing except destroy flora and fauna and severely disturb larger animals.  It is my considered opinion that those who use such vehicles to "see" the mountains and parks anywhere are simply too lazy to hike on foot, too uncaring of wildlife to stop disturbing them, and too unaware of the importance of the flora to stop destroying it.  But Harlan county has catered to ATV and dirt bike riders in order to gain more tourism dollars and have actually developed what they call the Off Road Adventure Area for such vehicles on abandoned strip mined land.  Since that land has already been mutilated, destroyed, and left a wasteland by the coal companies, in most cases, I have to admit that this ATV "adventure area" is the best answer for the problem.  It would be a wonderful  thing if all ATV and dirt bike riders stay off all other land in the mountains  and let the flora survive and the wildlife live in peace.  

Path To Kingdom Come Overlook--Photo by Trip Advisor

Now to my hike which was in the heart of bear country.  The Little Shepherd Trail, as it is sometimes called, does allow vehicular traffic and during the hour I was on it I did see three cars as I recall.  They were all driving slowly and safely. I probably traveled about a mile each inside the park and outside the park boundaries since I did a straight hike and a round trip. The trail begins at an overlook which does have protective railing, bear resistant garbage cans, and a small parking area.  I have to say that the microchip in my camera had run out of storage space during my long day trip, and I did not take any photographs on the hike.  I will try to post a few here from the public domain.  This overlook allows you to see the valley below over a portion which extends probably two or three miles.  It is a fabulous view but, since I was married at the main overlook of the New River Gorge National Park, I know it is not the best overlook you will ever see.  Also, since my wife is in a wheelchair, handicapped accessibility is important to us and the path to the overlook is not accessible.  It has several steps on a stone path leading to it.  There is also a small piece of land to the right of this path which could be easily converted to wheelchair accessibility with a bit of leveling and stone work. But for now that possible wheelchair route to the overlook is blocked by tree roots, rocks, and one tree which would make it too narrow without some effort to widen it.

Kingdom Come Overlook--Photo by Harlan County Trails

The hike was in the heart of bear country and I was mildly apprehensive about the possibility of contacting a black bear.  But during my entire hour long hike of perhaps 3 to 4 miles round trip, I saw absolutely no wildlife other than a few butterflies and mosquitoes.  I saw no bear, elk, deer, coyote, coon, bobcat, possum, skunk, rabbit, or squirrel, and the area was one where I had thought I would see a few animals.  But do not take this as a blanket statement that no wildlife are in the trail area.  It was a hot day and I hiked in mid-afternoon when many animals might have been laying up in the shade between their morning and afternoon feeding periods.  The trail is nearly one hundred percent shaded so in cool weather you probably need long sleeves or a jacket. There is quite a bit of uphill and downhill along the trail and they can be fairly steep.  I would rate the difficulty of this trail as moderate due to the grades even though it is along an old highway.

The park also has a small man made lake which allows fishing and paddle boating with compliance to the Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Regulations.  There are also a fourteen other short hiking trails inside the park with none being longer than a mile.  There is also a multi-use amphitheater at the base of Raven Rock which we did not see due to our intense schedule for the day.  Overnight primitive camping is allowed in designated areas with a fee. According to the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife "as part of the Fishing in the Neighborhoods (FINS) program, this lake is regularly stocked with catchable-size catfish up to four times annually. Additionally, this lake is stocked with rainbow trout in the spring and fall. Largemouth bass and sunfish are regularly sampled and stocked if necessary". The park does not have a lodge or restaurant and that is a shame.  But the park is well worth a visit especially if you like to hike, bird watch, or fish.