Backpacking The Red River Gorge In Kentucky
Back in April (seems like ages ago already) Sara and I went on a backpacking trip with my buddy and podcast guest Casey Heeter. Casey is what I would call an expert level backpacker, having spent hundreds of nights in the woods, some of them below -30 farenheit!
Sara and I took our 1993 Fleetwood Bounder RV “Doris” to Natural Bridge Campground in Slade Kentucky for three days and two nights. We wanted to spend a few nights in the bus to simulate what a backpacking trip will be like once we hit the road. We alerted the campground hosts that we’d be leaving for a couple of days and even offered a small extra fee for keeping an eye on Doris.
Casey picked us up after work on Friday evening at the campground and shuttled Sara, myself and our 5 year old Australian Shepherd mix into Daniel Boone National Forest. Casey took us to a trailhead that led to a small, relatively unknown campsite only a couple of miles into the woods. We had a liesurly walk to the camp and quickly made haste setting up camp as the sun was soon to set.
On Day 2, we took a short drive to the trailhead for the Auxier Ridge Loop, and did a 4.5 out and back along the elevated portion of trail. We made our way back to camp and enjoyed a final evening in Kentucky, at the top of a cliff, with a very small fire and good conversation. Sara and I tucked into our hammocks and Casey graciously offered to tent camp, making room for us at the edge of the overlook.
We stopped at Miguel’s Pizza and Rockclimbing before getting ourselves cleaned up and back on the road home to St. Louis. I’d highly encourage you to stop at Miguel’s after a trip to the gorge, the pizza is great, and the atmosphere in their large outside dining area is not to be missed. Trust me, I thanked Casey for making us stop, which we normally do not.
Casey’s First Episode of the Podcast: https://www.outdoorspodcast.com/podcast/Casey-Steele-Heeter
New Episode we did on this trip: https://www.outdoorspodcast.com/podcast/campsite-conversations-casey-heeter
