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Visit
Kentucky’s first and oldest state park.
Awe-inspiring scenery and rugged mountain trails await you in this
outdoor paradise located near historic Cumberland Gap on Daniel Boone’s
Wilderness Road. You can camp
beneath the stars or stay in a cozy lodge room or cottage.
Recovered as one of the state’s few remaining near-pristine and
protected areas, it is adjacent to the 11,363-acre Kentucky Ridge State
Forest, and dedicated nature preserves makes up half the park’s acreage.
The park is easily accessed from I-75, by traveling U.S. Route 25#. Dean Henson, the park’s Interpretive Naturalist, thinks it
may very well be the finest of Kentucky’s resorts, “the natural
integrity of this landscape is unequaled over much of the rest of
Kentucky,” he declared. “Few
localities in Kentucky feature mature climax forest timber as is found in
the Pine Mountain region. Nine miles of hiking and
nature study trails lead to such features as Honeymoon Falls and Chained
Rock, where local legend says a massive chain attached to a huge boulder
perched menacingly above town prevents the rock from loosing itself to come
crashing down on the residents. Great
Rhododendron prevails in the hardwood forest, and seasonal displays of
Mountain Laurel give rise to an annual festival by the same name during the
last weekend of May. The park offers a
respectable lineup of special event weekends.
The special event year beings in March with New Astronomer’s
Weekend which offers lectures, audio-visual presentations and evening
stargazing. The Kentucky
Mountain Laurel Festival, the state’s second longest-running festival, is
held in May and features a full week of festivities and highlights.
The Great American Dulcimer Convention in September gathers some of
the country’s finest folk musicians and instrument makers to play in
concert and offer lessons. The
Fall Photo Weekend in October features a first-class slide competition and
evening highlight audio-visual presentations offered by guest professionals. Click Here To View Pine Mountain State Park
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308 Avery Hall
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