GIANT
SANDSTONE ARCH IS THE STAR IN KENTUCKY'S NATURAL BRIDGE STATE PARK
By Bob Downing
Knight Ridder News Service
January 30, 2005
SLADE, Ky. -There are two ways to the Natural Bridge - by land and by air.
The giant arch is the featured attraction in eastern Kentucky's Natural Bridge State Resort Park. The park lies
within the Daniel Boone National Forest and the Red River Gorge Geological Area.
You can take a half-mile chairlift to the Natural Bridge or you can hike to the top of the mountain. My
recommendation would be to take the chairlift to the top (it's a hold-your-breath, straight-up, 10-minute
ride that climbs 600 feet) and then take a leisurely hike down the mountain.
The only problem is that the trails end up a mile away from the chairlift parking lot.
From the top of the chairlift, it's an easy 600-foot flat walk to put visitors atop the arch atop the ridge. They
can also get a look at the arch from Lookout Point.
The park's namesake sandstone arch is impressive - 78 feet long, 65 feet high and 30 feet wide. It weighs an
estimated 900 tons. That's a lot of rock. The view of the wild country around the arch and the nearby Middle
Fork of the Red River is equally compelling.
The 100,000-year-old structure that forms the arch was originally a rock shelter with a solid back wall. Over
the years, that wall eroded, leaving the arch, the rim of the rock shelter, still standing. It's the best-known
and most-visited arch in the area and one of the largest in Kentucky.
From the park's Hemlock Lodge, you can find a number of fairly short trails - three-fourths of a mile in length -
that will take you to the top of Natural Bridge. These include the Original, Balanced Rock, and Battleship Rock
trails. Several trails converge below the arch's span.
In all, the park has 11 hiking trails ranging from a half mile to 8.5 miles, and together stretching 18 miles.
The Balanced Rock Trail is the steepest trail in the park, with 450 steps. It takes you to a large sandstone
boulder that sits atop another rock, and ends at the Natural Bridge. Most hikers use the trail to get down
off the mountain.
Battleship Rock is the most scenic route to the arch; the Original Trail is the shortest and easiest route to the
top, a 500-foot climb. Original is a National Recreational Trail, in use since 1895.
The Sand Gap Trail is the longest and the most challenging trail at 81/2 miles. That can take four to six hours -
and has no shortcuts. It begins near the upper end of the Balanced Rock Trail and follows an old logging road
along the ridge top. It then descends steeply into the Lower Hood Branch, a stream.
The state park land was deeded to Kentucky in 1926 by the Louisville & Kentucky Railroad.
There are 150 stone arches within five miles of the Natural Bridge state park, some easily accessible and some
a long, tough hike away in the 26,000-acre Red River Gorge Geological Area. The arches have been sculpted by
water and wind for 70 million years.
The gorge area features an additional 36 miles of hiking trails.
Be warned: About 40 people a year fall from cliffs into the Red River Gorge, and a few die each year. Most victims
are young men who come too close to the edge of the cliffs.
The 2,100-acre state park has a 35-room lodge, dining room, 10 cottages, two campgrounds with 95 sites,
swimming pool, nature center, pedal boats, miniature golf, picnic areas, playground, and an outdoor dance patio
for weekly square dances.
The campgrounds will open in mid-March, and remain open until Oct. 31.
A Kentucky Park
Natural Bridge State Resort Park, in Slade, Ky., is 52 miles southeast of Lexington.
• Getting there.Philadelphians can fly to Lexington on US Airways, Continental, United, Delta or Northwest from
Philadelphia International Airport. Lowest recent round-trip fares were about $200. From Lexington, take
Interstate 64 to the Mountain Parkway, then state Route 11 to the park.
• More information.Phone Natural Bridge State Resort Park, at 606-663-2214; the Web site is
www.naturalbridgepark.com. Lodge reservations: 1-800-325-1710; rates are from $56 a night off-season
to $86 in the summer.
The sky lift operates from Easter weekend through the last Sunday in October, opening daily at 10 a.m.
Closing time varies.
For information on the nearby Red River Gorge, contact the U.S. Forest Service's Stanton District Office,
606-663-2852.
Local outfitters offer canoe trips and climbing instruction in the Red River Gorge.
For information about them, visit the Natural Bridge/Powell County Chamber of Commerce Web site at
www.powellcountyky.com.
By Bob Downing
Knight Ridder News Service
January 30, 2005
SLADE, Ky. -There are two ways to the Natural Bridge - by land and by air.
The giant arch is the featured attraction in eastern Kentucky's Natural Bridge State Resort Park. The park lies
within the Daniel Boone National Forest and the Red River Gorge Geological Area.
You can take a half-mile chairlift to the Natural Bridge or you can hike to the top of the mountain. My
recommendation would be to take the chairlift to the top (it's a hold-your-breath, straight-up, 10-minute
ride that climbs 600 feet) and then take a leisurely hike down the mountain.
The only problem is that the trails end up a mile away from the chairlift parking lot.
From the top of the chairlift, it's an easy 600-foot flat walk to put visitors atop the arch atop the ridge. They
can also get a look at the arch from Lookout Point.
The park's namesake sandstone arch is impressive - 78 feet long, 65 feet high and 30 feet wide. It weighs an
estimated 900 tons. That's a lot of rock. The view of the wild country around the arch and the nearby Middle
Fork of the Red River is equally compelling.
The 100,000-year-old structure that forms the arch was originally a rock shelter with a solid back wall. Over
the years, that wall eroded, leaving the arch, the rim of the rock shelter, still standing. It's the best-known
and most-visited arch in the area and one of the largest in Kentucky.
From the park's Hemlock Lodge, you can find a number of fairly short trails - three-fourths of a mile in length -
that will take you to the top of Natural Bridge. These include the Original, Balanced Rock, and Battleship Rock
trails. Several trails converge below the arch's span.
In all, the park has 11 hiking trails ranging from a half mile to 8.5 miles, and together stretching 18 miles.
The Balanced Rock Trail is the steepest trail in the park, with 450 steps. It takes you to a large sandstone
boulder that sits atop another rock, and ends at the Natural Bridge. Most hikers use the trail to get down
off the mountain.
Battleship Rock is the most scenic route to the arch; the Original Trail is the shortest and easiest route to the
top, a 500-foot climb. Original is a National Recreational Trail, in use since 1895.
The Sand Gap Trail is the longest and the most challenging trail at 81/2 miles. That can take four to six hours -
and has no shortcuts. It begins near the upper end of the Balanced Rock Trail and follows an old logging road
along the ridge top. It then descends steeply into the Lower Hood Branch, a stream.
The state park land was deeded to Kentucky in 1926 by the Louisville & Kentucky Railroad.
There are 150 stone arches within five miles of the Natural Bridge state park, some easily accessible and some
a long, tough hike away in the 26,000-acre Red River Gorge Geological Area. The arches have been sculpted by
water and wind for 70 million years.
The gorge area features an additional 36 miles of hiking trails.
Be warned: About 40 people a year fall from cliffs into the Red River Gorge, and a few die each year. Most victims
are young men who come too close to the edge of the cliffs.
The 2,100-acre state park has a 35-room lodge, dining room, 10 cottages, two campgrounds with 95 sites,
swimming pool, nature center, pedal boats, miniature golf, picnic areas, playground, and an outdoor dance patio
for weekly square dances.
The campgrounds will open in mid-March, and remain open until Oct. 31.
A Kentucky Park
Natural Bridge State Resort Park, in Slade, Ky., is 52 miles southeast of Lexington.
• Getting there.Philadelphians can fly to Lexington on US Airways, Continental, United, Delta or Northwest from
Philadelphia International Airport. Lowest recent round-trip fares were about $200. From Lexington, take
Interstate 64 to the Mountain Parkway, then state Route 11 to the park.
• More information.Phone Natural Bridge State Resort Park, at 606-663-2214; the Web site is
www.naturalbridgepark.com. Lodge reservations: 1-800-325-1710; rates are from $56 a night off-season
to $86 in the summer.
The sky lift operates from Easter weekend through the last Sunday in October, opening daily at 10 a.m.
Closing time varies.
For information on the nearby Red River Gorge, contact the U.S. Forest Service's Stanton District Office,
606-663-2852.
Local outfitters offer canoe trips and climbing instruction in the Red River Gorge.
For information about them, visit the Natural Bridge/Powell County Chamber of Commerce Web site at
www.powellcountyky.com.
