Scenic South Fork River Train Ride / Cumberland Falls State Park

Exploring on the weekends while in Kentucky was a must.

One weekend, we took the 14-mile South Fork Scenic Train ride.  

We started out at Stearns, Kentucky, where the old mining office is now a museum.

The tracks followed the South Fork River,

passed through Barthell, an old mining town, 

before stopping at Blue Heron Mine, now a National Park.  it was abandoned in 1962.

There were several “ghost” buildings we could visit that had displays to commemorate what life in a mining town was like.

The miners had to fight the mining company to get  this bathhouse

Someone else thought April 8 was a good day to get married~

Sand for the mine was stored here.

After the ride, we stayed the night at the lodge in Cumberland Falls State Park.  

A side note:  We are impressed with the state parks we have visited in the south.  All have great amenities and the campgrounds are wonderful; clean, spacious and easy access!

We took the rest of the afternoon and evening to just relax, and sit and read on the deck (didn’t even take a  picture).   It was so peaceful!   The next morning we took a mile hike down to the waterfall before we left.

What a treat! We were even blessed to be able to see the moonbow. It is a rainbow produced by the moon rather than the sun. Cumberland Falls claims to have the only moonbow in the Western Hemisphere.  It only appears under certain conditions, when there is both a cloudless sky and a full moon.  It is not quite as bright as a rainbow, and this was during the day.

 On the way home, we visited the birthplace of Kentucky Fried Chicken in Corbin, and ate lunch there.

A replica of the first kitchen was on display.  Some of the items were original.

It was a great, relaxing weekend get away.