Green River – OsteoPraxis on the road

Continuing north and beginning the travel westward (towards home) took us back through Kentucky, but this time on the west side of the state. We had bypassed Mammoth Cave National Park on the journey south…so we took the opportunity to visit on the return northward. As I searched the campgrounds around the area , and found a Boondockers Welcome site just 15 minutes from the park gate…… Ideal.!!

This BW host had power and water available…bonus in the warm, humid July weather in Kentucky.

Mammoth Cave NP, despite its proximity to The Great Smoky Mountains (the US’s most visited park) is one of the least visited parks. I’m not sure why….we found it to be a fabulous place to visit.

On our first trip in to the park we booked tickets to do the self guided tour into the first part the Mammoth cave system. Being a bit on the claustrophobic side, I was expecting this to be slightly challenging…….but no……. Mammoth Cave is just that….mammoth….!!! Going down the steps into the cave you transition from that warm humid air of the surrounding forest….. quickly into the cool 54F (12C) of the cave.

After moving through the security gates at the entrance, the cave quickly opens up into the Rotunda, a chamber that feels like a huge ballroom. The dome of the chamber looks like a carefully crafted coffered ceiling.

There is a bit of an adjustment to the low light and a realisation that a flashlight would have been a good thing to bring.

At the far end of the area available for this self guided tour we met and chatted with a young and enthusiastic ranger who had many stories and insights into the history of the cave.

Like much of Kentucky and Tennessee, the cave has its own history of enslavement. It was a rich source of saltpeter during the War of 1812 when slaves were utilised to extract the minerals to feed the war machine. (NB. The Revolutionary war ended in 1783 and resulted in the Declaration of independence of the United States from British rule. The War of 1812 was about establishing Maritime rights and resolving trade restrictions imposed by the British fleet hence requiring a domestic source of gunpowder ingredients…!!!)

Mammoth Cave is the longest cave system in the world…..with much of it still unexplored. The whole system has been formed by water seeping down through the limestone layers…….the architecture of the walls and ceiling are a testament to the power of water and time.

On our way back out we were fortunate to meet up with the young ranger again as he shared more stories and pointed out some of the relics found in the cave from its pre 18th century history.

We were quite enthralled by the cave….so the plan for the next day was to find an above ground hike for the morning and then follow the Historic Tour underground in the afternoon.

The Green Bluffs Trail.

Green Bluffs trail was the overground choice. We packed a lunch and a change of clothes. (It was a very warm and very humid day……this part of the world seems to experience sudden short thunderstorms with impressive….but thankfully short downpours)

….and set off on the trail.

The trail follows a high path above the Green River, luckily in shade most of the way.

The trail weaves back down to the river…….we followed the boardwalk out of curiosity and found that it led to the outflow river from the cave itself….

Continuing on the path which was not the most challenging we have ever done….but definitely as hard as one wanted to be working in the humidity.

Beautiful trail….strangely no bugs…!!! (not complaining)…then a bit of a diversion as they were constructing boardwalks on part of the trail.

We found one of the strangest….and coolest fungi I have seen on our travels……

….and much evidence that the river has seen very large volumes of water recently. The ford and boat launch were closed and you could see how high the muddy waters had flowed recently.

Due to the harvesting of the early settlers, the native trees of the area have been largely replaced by maples which were considered low quality lumber…..so were not harvested thereby reseeding and becoming the dominant tree species…..