The Red River Gorge Geological Area, Winchester, KY is a great place for visitors to go to in order to see beautiful landscape and rock formations. This special geological area is part of the much larger Daniel Boone National Forest, which contains more than 700,000 acres. The Red River area is just over 25,000 acres.
The Red River Gorge Geological Area is unique in its topography. There are many ridges in this region with lots of forest all around. In addition, there are over 3,400 miles of sandstone cliffs packed into this little area.
Another wonderful feature of the Park area is that there are over 80 rock arches throughout. This occurs because there is a harder rock layer on top of the softer sandstone. The sandstone gets weathered first, leaving the top layers of the arch remaining. This particular region of Kentucky has more natural arches than anywhere else east of the Rockies. The largest of these arches, called Sky Bridge, is on the top of a ridge, and visitors can get an excellent view of the Gorge area from there.
Part of the area where the cliffs are - over 12,000 acres - has been labeled the Clifty Wilderness by Congress in 1993. This enabled the region around the Red River and the cliffs to become a protected area - keeping it free from any encroachment of civilization and anything that disturbs the magnificent solitude of the region.
The Red River Gorge National Recreation Trail is a series of trails that runs for many miles through this wilderness. While some of the trails only lead to other ones, some of them will take you to some excellent sights. The Sheltowee Trace is another trail system in the Daniel Boone National Forest, and the two Trails do connect. Because of the rugged terrain, it is not recommended that young children be brought on most of the Trails.
Also in the Gorge, visitors will find the Kentucky Reptile Zoo and the Red River Historical Museum. This museum presents some interesting history of the area and also shows some of the territory. For those visitors who like to do some serious climbing, there is the Torrent Falls Family Climbing Adventure. Chimney Rock rises 900 ft above the Gorge and provides an excellent view. Creation Falls is a marvelous waterfall in the Park.
Research is currently taking place in the Red River Gorge Geological Area. Scientists are studying some of the places where Indian cultures stayed in the region because of the abundance of natural shelters. In some cases archeological digs are also taking place.
Other activities that visitors can engage in are hiking, fishing and hunting, boating, canoeing and camping. There are some scenic drives that are nearby such as the Red River Gorge Scenic Byway. Visitors can also bike their way along special paths that go for 27 miles through the Red River Gorge. There are some special days that visitors can ride with organized groups from the Bluegrass Cycling Club, but be aware that the terrain can be treacherous and rather steep in places.
Three lakes are in the area the Red River Gorge Geological Area, Winchester, KY. There is the Cave Run Lake, the Laurel River Lake, and Lake Cumberland - and each of these are large enough for boating. There is plenty of fish in the waters, and you can find smallmouth and largemouth bass, black bass, bluegill, walleye, rainbow trout, sauger and rockfish, and more - but they may be different in each of the lakes.
