First step was getting out of Nashville. The gas stations near Music Valley and the highway were clip joints. Worse yet the one I opted for pumped gas slower than molasses running up hill in the wintertime--or was that sorghum? The stretch from Nashville to Park City, Kentucky was heavy with truck traffic. On the advice of the good ole boy at the Kentucky Visitor’s Centre I stopped in Franklin to fill up my tank at $2.09. As warned the price rose to $2.39 as I drove North. I did not take his advice on visiting Maker’s Bourbon Distillery. Kentucky makes 90% of the world’s sour mash whiskey.
Wherever my GPS thought it was taking me it didn’t seem to know where Mammoth Cave was at so I took my own head for it and headed North on paved country roads until I got to a sign that directed the way. The park is approximately 7 square miles with little apparent development above ground. The Headquarters Area features a Visitors Centre, Campground, Park Store with pay showers and post office, and a Hotel. Below ground are over 400 miles of interconnected caves and counting. Although the area was formerly extensively farmed the Civilian Conservation Corps--CCC Boys planted trees which today cover much of the landscape with towering hardwoods. They also cleared underground passages, and built stairs, railings, pathways above ground and below along with buildings and shelters. The campground provides a paved parking space, finding a level one being no small feat, concrete picnic table, fire pit, and lantern stand. The water here filtered by limestone is gloriously soft, the bathroom has hand soap, water, and blow dryer, even lights. The Visitors Centre provides Wi-Fi though a turtle moves faster.
The visitors centre has an information desk and Kentucky Tourism stand. A regimented sales area for underground tours complete with overhead display seems more like an airport desk than a park. All tours leave from the visitor’s centre, remote tours by school bus transport. The requisite book store is separate from the section selling clothing and memorabilia. The ‘museum’ is a maze lined with rock and has a small theatre with movie telling the history of cave exploration and mapping today assisted by laser. Outside is a walkway leading to the Hotel, several shelters for tours to wait protected from sun or rain, and a walkway leading down to the “Historic Entrance” and on to an above ground walk through a ravine.
I should have known better than to opt for a caving tour involving 120 people. The squalling baby and people who just wouldn’t shut up were just the capper. Mammoth cave may be the longest cave system in the world but the 2-mile section we hiked on the Historic Tour was rather featureless. The info imparted in the four talks was already available in the Guide Book. The caves are a uniform 54º F and humidity 80%. The lighting is quite low, our guides used flashlights, the pathways uneven, and the ceiling frequently low. So-called fat man’s misery wasn’t all that narrow. The 385 steps were all too real, the bottomless pit 150 ft. Coming out into 80º heat sent me looking for water--two large glasses after the water fountain. The Historic Tour Route has seen a lot of traffic over the years and was even mined for saltpetre.
Getting out of Kentucky proved a bit of a challenge. To put a cynic’s view on matters someone voted for the right party. A majority of my route to Cincinnati was under construction, add heavy truck traffic and not a pleasant drive capped by a 5-mile traffic jam in Cincinnati caused by a broken down tractor trailer. Stopped once more at a busy Krogers and discovered first hand the ethnic diversity of at least that part of town. The majority of shoppers and store staff were African American. Found what I needed and was treated with respect by all. Learned that although the sky turned black while I was driving I missed a humdinger of an electrical storm. When I reached Winton Woods Campground water and broken branches lay everywhere.
This is my second visit to Winton Woods Park. I have fond memories of my last visit having spent time exploring what is a large suburban county park outside the campground itself. The gal who signed me in seemed new to the job and lacked knowledge of her park and also sympathy for a customer who had just spent 3 hours fighting traffic to get to her counter. I did eventually get signed in and then bought an ice cream cone. With allergies to chocolate and nuts my options were limited and the double scoop of lemon sorbet I received was over soft and around too long. It melted so fast my beard seemed to get more than I did.
The site I had selected was surrounded by standing water but was at least level. Wi-Fi Service is provided by Tengo, a service I’ve had issues with in the past. Here it provides free service and does not appear to indulge in internet squelching but it requires an extra browser-based log on and cuts out at unpredictable moments. At times it doesn’t seem to want to let one in and as usual makes getting online nearly impossible in early evening. Important to me this because I’ve spent three days with recurrent thunderstorms and heavy rain so I haven’t been out much. One crack of lightening seemed right on top of me, despite tornado watches no funnel clouds here. Hearing about the flooding, downed trees, and power wires elsewhere in Cincinnati does not make me feel any better.
Dumped my tanks and filled my smaller fresh water tank upon entering the park. My site backs onto the lake but until today, Saturday, I have not braved the standing water in the grass to approach it. At least I’m fairly isolated from the bulk of camp activity, this being the weekend the place has filled up with families and children. Today I have made sweet and sour salad and I’m about to put together Chili con Carne having just fried the meat, I’m about to assemble the chopped ingredients and spices in my crockpot. Does campground life sound prosaic?
Wherever my GPS thought it was taking me it didn’t seem to know where Mammoth Cave was at so I took my own head for it and headed North on paved country roads until I got to a sign that directed the way. The park is approximately 7 square miles with little apparent development above ground. The Headquarters Area features a Visitors Centre, Campground, Park Store with pay showers and post office, and a Hotel. Below ground are over 400 miles of interconnected caves and counting. Although the area was formerly extensively farmed the Civilian Conservation Corps--CCC Boys planted trees which today cover much of the landscape with towering hardwoods. They also cleared underground passages, and built stairs, railings, pathways above ground and below along with buildings and shelters. The campground provides a paved parking space, finding a level one being no small feat, concrete picnic table, fire pit, and lantern stand. The water here filtered by limestone is gloriously soft, the bathroom has hand soap, water, and blow dryer, even lights. The Visitors Centre provides Wi-Fi though a turtle moves faster.
The visitors centre has an information desk and Kentucky Tourism stand. A regimented sales area for underground tours complete with overhead display seems more like an airport desk than a park. All tours leave from the visitor’s centre, remote tours by school bus transport. The requisite book store is separate from the section selling clothing and memorabilia. The ‘museum’ is a maze lined with rock and has a small theatre with movie telling the history of cave exploration and mapping today assisted by laser. Outside is a walkway leading to the Hotel, several shelters for tours to wait protected from sun or rain, and a walkway leading down to the “Historic Entrance” and on to an above ground walk through a ravine.
I should have known better than to opt for a caving tour involving 120 people. The squalling baby and people who just wouldn’t shut up were just the capper. Mammoth cave may be the longest cave system in the world but the 2-mile section we hiked on the Historic Tour was rather featureless. The info imparted in the four talks was already available in the Guide Book. The caves are a uniform 54º F and humidity 80%. The lighting is quite low, our guides used flashlights, the pathways uneven, and the ceiling frequently low. So-called fat man’s misery wasn’t all that narrow. The 385 steps were all too real, the bottomless pit 150 ft. Coming out into 80º heat sent me looking for water--two large glasses after the water fountain. The Historic Tour Route has seen a lot of traffic over the years and was even mined for saltpetre.
Getting out of Kentucky proved a bit of a challenge. To put a cynic’s view on matters someone voted for the right party. A majority of my route to Cincinnati was under construction, add heavy truck traffic and not a pleasant drive capped by a 5-mile traffic jam in Cincinnati caused by a broken down tractor trailer. Stopped once more at a busy Krogers and discovered first hand the ethnic diversity of at least that part of town. The majority of shoppers and store staff were African American. Found what I needed and was treated with respect by all. Learned that although the sky turned black while I was driving I missed a humdinger of an electrical storm. When I reached Winton Woods Campground water and broken branches lay everywhere.
This is my second visit to Winton Woods Park. I have fond memories of my last visit having spent time exploring what is a large suburban county park outside the campground itself. The gal who signed me in seemed new to the job and lacked knowledge of her park and also sympathy for a customer who had just spent 3 hours fighting traffic to get to her counter. I did eventually get signed in and then bought an ice cream cone. With allergies to chocolate and nuts my options were limited and the double scoop of lemon sorbet I received was over soft and around too long. It melted so fast my beard seemed to get more than I did.
The site I had selected was surrounded by standing water but was at least level. Wi-Fi Service is provided by Tengo, a service I’ve had issues with in the past. Here it provides free service and does not appear to indulge in internet squelching but it requires an extra browser-based log on and cuts out at unpredictable moments. At times it doesn’t seem to want to let one in and as usual makes getting online nearly impossible in early evening. Important to me this because I’ve spent three days with recurrent thunderstorms and heavy rain so I haven’t been out much. One crack of lightening seemed right on top of me, despite tornado watches no funnel clouds here. Hearing about the flooding, downed trees, and power wires elsewhere in Cincinnati does not make me feel any better.
Dumped my tanks and filled my smaller fresh water tank upon entering the park. My site backs onto the lake but until today, Saturday, I have not braved the standing water in the grass to approach it. At least I’m fairly isolated from the bulk of camp activity, this being the weekend the place has filled up with families and children. Today I have made sweet and sour salad and I’m about to put together Chili con Carne having just fried the meat, I’m about to assemble the chopped ingredients and spices in my crockpot. Does campground life sound prosaic?
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