Got back Sunday night around 10:45 from UHR 2004, our annual backpacking trip that celebrates its fifth year with this past adventure. This time around it was Red River Gorge in central Kentucky, a tiring 9.5 hour drive from Madison. But worth it.
Right off the bat I was a little skeptical. The campsite/trailhead was just off the highway and nestled among some very nice double-wide trailer homes. There were some hikes in Washington, particularly at Mount Rainier, that followed the road for a good long way before turning away into the woods only to meet up with the busy road again around the bend. I hoped this wouldn’t be the same. Not a very satisfying backcountry experience.
I didn’t have to worry. After getting off to our traditional late start (although in fairness we had to pack up in a light drizzle and cold) we headed out under partially sunny skies. The first section of the hike was on a paved path–again raising questions about the backcountry ruggedness. This path lasted for a little over a mile to the one natual rock bridge in that corner of the park. From that point on the pavement ended and the adventure began.
The narrow path twisted and wound and climbed and fell alongside the river. It was wet and slippery and studded with roots and rocks and made for slow going, especially when the shoulder-width trail plunged a hundred feet down to the river on one side. We didn’t make it very far the first day mostly because the sun started giving out at 4:30 pm but we found a great riverside camp and enjoyed a mild evening. I slept like a log until about 5:30. About thirty minutes later a light rain began and I fell back asleep.
Two hours later the rain continued to come down and a peek outside the tent revealed an overcast sky. So that morning was another chilly one, although our nifty tarp-rigging kept a good dry patch to cook, eat, and pack under. Folding a wet tent in the rain in the low 50’s is no one’s idea of a good time but we made the best of it. We got another late start (around 11:00) and hiked straight through until 4:30 again. The trail got rougher and the rain made us slow even more, but it sure was pretty. It looked like a Costa Rican rainforest and the day stayed in the high 50’s I would guess.
The temperature dropped quickly as the sun set and we were all wet and tired and starting to get cold, so we started looking for a good camp and, lo!, we found a great one. It was at the base of an enormous overhanging rock, almost like a wide cave mouth. It kept us out of the rain and after setting up camp, I whipped up a quick fire to keep away the chill while the others cooked dinner. The wood lasted a lot longer than I figured and we stayed up pretty late just as we did the night before, sipping Jameson and smoking cigars.
We vowed to make it an early departure the next morning and succeeded. It was cool and clear–no rain! We packed up and had a cold b’fast of granola bars and hit the trail by 8:00ish. We motored through the last few miles as we rose out of the gorge and up to the ridge line where chilly winds blasted us. Stopping for more than a few minutes wasn’t an option; the temps were only in the high 30’s. We made it back to the cars without incident, drove back to a rest stop, changed clothes, and went about our merry ways back to civilization…or at least out of Kentucky.
It’s hard to believe this is the fifth UHR. The others were:
2003 – Joshua Tree Nat’l Park, CA
2002 – Pecos Wilderness, NM
2001 – Death Valley Nat’l Park, CA
2000 – North Cascades Nat’l Park, WA
It’s motivated me to put some of the best pictures from these trips on my website. Planning for next year’s UHR already under way. Zion Nat’l Park in Utah is the early frontrunner. More information as it becomes available.