2005/04 Deep South trip - Cumberland Falls |
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We were traveling on the Cumberland Parkway, a pleasant road across some of Kentucky’s rolling scenery. The parkway is due to be upgraded to become Interstate 66, but it’s hard to see why as there was very little traffic. At the end we passed through Corbin, home to Colonel Sanders’ first restaurant and Kentucky Fried Chicken. We passed up a visit to the KFC museum. We couldn’t think what you’d put in a museum, maybe some historic 1941 chicken nuggets. Think I had some of those once at the Earl’s Court KFC.
We had a short trip to from there into the mountains and the Cumberland Falls state resort. It’s a state park but called a “resort” because it has a lodge and some cabins, not to mention swimming pools and a square-dancing pavilion. We 
made do with the campground, which is perched on a narrow ridge, with very short and wide campsites, all with very steep drops behind them. We hiked down through the woods to the Cumberland River on a nice warm afternoon. It was still early spring here in Kentucky’s mountains. The trees had a tinge of green as the leaf buds were opening, and there were tiny wildflowers 
blooming in the sunshine.
The park is famous for its waterfalls and its “moon bow”. It’s one of the few places in the world where the spray causes a moon bow under a full moon. However, that night there was no moon and we didn’t plan on sitting there for a fortnight. The falls are quite large and are described as the “Niagara of the South”, but there’s really no comparison. I was rather disappointed with the east side of the falls: lots of concrete and parking lots and signs saying “Don’t” and “You’ll die if you do”. Most of the more interesting viewpoints, constructed back in the 1930s, had been closed, either because they’d been damaged by floods or because they are considered too dangerous by modern standards.
Later we walked across the river bridge and found the trails on the west side. These run up and down
the cliffs, under the overhangs, and along the edge of the river. This was more like it: cliffs, boulders, mud, chains to hang on to, and some really great views and thunderous echoes from Cumberland and Eagle Falls. There were also plenty of places to fall off the cliff and into the river, but that’s just part of an interesting hike. See the picture of the falls taken from above: from a rock that overhangs the river.
I climbed to the top of the cliff for the view, but couldn't see past the undergrowth. However, I found the wreckage of a slide and then a merry-go-round. There must have been a funfair up on the cliffs in the early days of the park. Now, it's just crumbling into the forest.
Back at the campsite it was a bratwurst and beer evening. The beer of course was drunk from anonymous coffee cups. The fire was augmented with some Kentucky coal that Sandie had picked up along the riverbank. It was great to sit outside in the warmth without having to swat anything.