On the road again!

Well, we did take that trip afterall. We loaded up the old airstream and hit the road to Cave City, KY. It was a long drive, lots of stops along the way, but we made it there in one day and spent our first night at Jellystone Park, in Cave City. It's a great park for young families. Lots of activities for kids, clean, and close to all of the area attractions. We got a nice spot backing to a big open field, with a cow pasture beyond that. So just before dawn every morning we would hear cows mooing in the distance. Not a bad way to wake up. The park had a nice pool, a waterslide, an arcade, a store, a fishing pond, and golfcart rentals. The second day there we rented a golfcart and had the best time booking around the park for 48 hours. They also have Yogi himself walking around each day to greet the kids and take photos with. Quite a highlight for the little ones! So, I recommend that RV park to anyone traveling with kids. They also have nice cabins and cottages to rent if you don't have an RV.
Cave City is really interesting. It is a true time capsule, not much has changed there in the last 50 years or so. Same roadside attractions, same old shops, same old motels, pretty much stuck in 1970 for the most part. But it gives it that old feeling of traveling from when I was a kid. It's an adventure. We stopped at a small go-cart track that also had the old alpine slide. It was something I remember doing as a kid. And I don't think there are many left these days. So, both of my boys decided to do it. We rode the chairlift to the top of a small foothill, and from there you sit in a little flat cart with a lever to slow you down. Then, you basically just ride down the mountain on your cart on a cement track. No helmet, no safety to speak of actually. Just the hopes that you know not to take your hand off of the break! And the locals who work the slide, the chairlift, and the other parts of the park are all characters right out of a movie. They ALL chew tobacco, they all look somewhat dirty, and the one at the top of the slide even had a twitch, probably from too much tobacco! Plus they all have a very strong southern accent, which my 6 year old daughter can now recreate in perfect dialect! Pretty much everywhere you go in Kentucky, the accent is the same. You get quite used to it after a week. And we didn't meet one person who was not completely hospitable and kind. We also toured Mammoth Cave, which I highly recommend! The tours go all day, every couple of hours or so, and it's good to call ahead if you are there during their busy season. But they are guided tours that are about 1 to 3 hours long depending on your preference. We did an hour and a half tour of the New Opening. It was really wonderful, and the kids just loved it. We also toured the Lost River Cave, which takes you on a boat tour into a short cave and tells the stories surrounding the Lost River and Jesse James and his gang. There are lots of different caves to see and tour in the area and they are all amazing. There is also a lot of antiquing in the area, which we did a bit of, but it paled in comparison to the caving.
So, after 3 nights at Jellystone, we loaded up and drove to Cumberland Falls State Park, which is outside of Lexington. Cumberland Falls is called the Niagara of the South. The falls are really impressive and there is a lot of history about them which you can read about at the tourist center and viewing areas. The campground was more rustic. But still we had bathrooms and showers close to our site. It is black bear country there, so there are lots of signs around about being careful with your food. Of course the first night there, my husband carved a mellon and threw the insides into the woods next to our Airstream! Within minutes, we had a raccoon hanging out under our picnic table looking for more free meals! Not the most brilliant move on his part! But luckily, no bears.
We decided to go horseback riding through the mountains the first day and the kids loved it! It was a huge highlight for me too. The next day we heard about a hike that leads you to a smaller waterfall that you can swim in. So we found the trailhead and went for it. The kids did the hour long hike like pros! And it wasn't easy, lots of tight areas, narrow spots and huge rocks to climb over. But when we reached the falls it was breathtaking! We had it all to ourselves. We all jumped into the water under the falls and cooled off. The kids were awe-struck! Just us, the water, the rocks, the river and the views of the bigger falls in the distance. It was the highlight of the whole trip! So, we stayed there for a while and took lots of pictures before hiking back out. It was one of those moments in time with your family that you know you will cherish forever! The ones that stay with you, long after you go back to the daily grind.
So we spent two nights at the State Forest. We also ate dinner one night at the old Dupont Logde which has rooms for rent and a nice restaurant with sprawling views of the forest and valley below. When you eat dinner there, the racoons come up to the windows and eat birdseed outside, so it's really fun for the kids to watch them. And they have really good berry cobbler and banana pudding! We also spent an afternoon swimming at the Dupont pool which is only $2.00/person if you stay at the campgroud. A nice way to cool off and relax before heading out to see the Kentucky Horse Country. It was something that I really wanted to see since I had heard about it, and seen glimpses in movies. And Lexington had the most unbelieveable equestrian estates around! The properties are amazing, prettier than I've seen in movies and the Horse Race Museum is fun to visit too. They have tours, but not on the day we were there and a nice gift shop. But we did do the scenic driving tour which takes about an hour and drives you through all of the fanciest estates. Wonderful!
Then, it was time to head home. But on the way back we decided to surprize the kids with an impromptue stop at Cedar Point. There were beyond thrilled, so we settled in at the campgound for the night and woke the next morning to spend the whole day at the park. It was really hot, so we spent most of the day at Soak City which was a perfect way to end our vacation. I must admit, nothing beats floating down the Lazy River on a 90 degree day in August! By 5 pm, it was time to hit the road, and drive home to Franklin. We were all cooled off, tired, relaxed and happy. Our second Airstream adventure may have even topped the first one to the Adirondacks, or at least it tied for the best. But now Maryann is parked back at Hentennial Farm where she will spend the winter, and await our next travel destination....