I was going through a box of old photos the other day and came across a solo road trip I took back in the late 1990’s. Honestly, I can’t even remember the year, my guess would be 1999. I dropped the kids off with my parents in London, Ontario and headed west then south to Corbin, Kentucky and Cumberland Falls State Park.
It’s funny looking back through the collection of images taken on film. If went to Cumberland Falls today, I would probably have no less than a few hundred images of the waterfall and surrounding area. Back then, when buying film and developing it actually cost money, I have just these three shots of the waterfall to show for a 3-4 night stay.
My short stay at Cumberland Falls State Park was not lacking in adventure. When I arrived after the long drive down I-75, I was itching to put some hiking in. It was fairly late in the day, so I planned a short hike upstream from the waterfall. I took nothing with me. No water. No food. No money. There were cell phones back then, of course, but they were mostly useless outside of major centres.
I decided to venture off the main trail to explore a small brook. There was somewhat of a trail beside it so I thought I’d be okay. Trouble started after I forgot how many times I crossed the stream. Up a ways, I got onto a forest road (Cumberland Falls is within the Daniel Boone National Forest) and was pretty confident I was heading back toward the campground. I was not. There are 20 miles of trails in the state park and I had to be a deviant.
After a few hours of hiking in an unknown area with no resources, I came across a paved road. I followed it a ways and passed some houses that were set back a ways. A large plywood sign was posted in front of one place with the words “Keep Out or Get Shot” spraypainted in black letters. Welcome to Kentucky.
I passed one house and there was a family with small children playing out front. At this point, I knew I was quite dehydrated and figured it wouldn’t hurt to ask for some water and some directions. They were extremely friendly and offered me a ride back to the campground. I was a bit hesitant after seeing their Ford Escort that was held together with duct tape and probably a bit of crazy glue. But, what choice did I have.
After seeing way too many movies, I feared for my life but these people were simply decent folk helping out a stranger. When we got back to my campsite, they even refused my offer of cash for their help. As it turned out, I was about 15 miles from Cumberland Falls and had been walking in the wrong direction the whole time.
The rest of my week went much smoother. I had to take quite a drive to get some beer. At the time, the area was dry. I had to drive into Tennessee before I could find alcohol. It turns out, that in 2004, the town of Corbin has allowed alcohol sales at larger restaurants and in February, 2012, a vote went through to allow full retail alcohol sales.
I drifted down to Chattanooga, Tennessee before making my way back north on the I-75. A bit of a sports nut, I stopped in Cincinnati, Ohio and caught a Cincinnati Reds baseball game at Cynergy Field (Riverfront Stadium). At the time, construction was well underway on a new stadium and it would be the last chance for me to see a game there. I returned to the city for the 2004 Flying Pig Marathon and by the that time Riverfront was gone.
Cumberland Falls State Park
Back in the 1920’s, there was serious talk about putting a hydroelectric plant at the waterfall, ruining it for eternity. Private interests swooped in and bought the surrounding land in order to stop the process. On August 21, 1931, the area was dedicated as a state park.
The state park encompasses 1,657 acres and is fully within the Daniel Boone National Forest. The closest town, Corbin, has a population of around 7,500 and is home to the Harland Sanders Cafe and Museum. The area is in southeast Kentucky, just north of the border with Tennessee.
The waterfall is 68 feet high and 125 feet wide. It has been dubbed the Niagara of the South. Cumberland Falls is reknowned for being the only waterfall in the Western Hemisphere where a ‘Moonbow’ is present. This nighttime rainbow can only be seen for a few hours on a clear night during the full moon.
The campground is small but nicely forested and fully serviced. A night in the camground runs about $22. There is a historic lodge right next to the waterfall and rooms there run between $50 and $170.
