13 Best Things To Do In Red River Gorge, Kentucky

Red River Gorge is a stretch of the Daniel Boone National Forest in eastern Kentucky, and the Forest Service lists it as a federal Geological Area and National Natural Landmark. It suits hikers who want a sandstone arch at the end of the trail, plus climbers and paddlers. Families with young kids get easier options too, from the Natural Bridge skylift to a boat tour through a flooded mine.

1. Gray's Arch Trailhead

Start at the Gray's Arch Picnic Area off Tunnel Ridge Road, where one parking lot opens onto four trails: Gray's Arch Trail #205 to the arch itself, Rough Trail #221, D. Boon Hut Trail #209 and the Sheltowee Trace. There are picnic tables and a vault toilet. There's no drinking water at the site.

From the Slade exit of the Mountain Parkway, the Forest Service's directions run 3 miles east on KY 15 to Tunnel Ridge Road. A standing order bans camping within 600 feet of Gray's Arch.

2. Tunnel Ridge Road to Auxier Ridge

Keep driving Tunnel Ridge Road and you reach the Auxier Ridge area, the start of the trails to Double Arch and Courthouse Rock. The Forest Service describes it as a five-mile ridgetop road with the last two miles gated, and it warns that the open part gets very busy on weekends and holidays.

The Forest Service posts trail closures on its alerts page.

3. Sky Bridge

The arch here measures 23 feet high and 75 feet long. Sky Bridge Arch Trail #214 loops over the top of it, drops underneath, then comes back along a high cliff shelf. Hold small hands on that last stretch.

There's no fee, and the picnic area is open for day use from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.

4. Chimney Top Rock and Princess Arch

Drive to the end of Chimney Top Road for a view straight down into the gorge. The overlook stands 400 feet above the Red River, reached on Chimney Top Trail #235 from the parking lot.

Princess Arch Trail #233 starts at the same lot and goes to a slender arch you can walk both over and under. The gravel road runs 4.5 miles from KY 715.

5. Rock Bridge and Creation Falls

A waterfall and an arch share one short loop at the Rock Bridge Recreation Area. Rock Bridge Trail #207 passes Creation Falls and then Rock Bridge, an arch over Swift Camp Creek. The Forest Service calls Rock Bridge the only arch in the Red River Gorge that extends over water.

Past the arch, Swift Camp Creek Trail #219 heads deep into the Clifty Wilderness. That's a harder day.

6. The Scenic Byway and Nada Tunnel

For a day with no hiking, drive the Red River Gorge Scenic Byway, which loops through the gorge on KY 11, KY 77 and KY 715. It's about 46 miles and roughly an hour without stops, and parts of it follow the river.

Nada Tunnel carries KY 77 into the gorge from the Slade side. Vehicles more than 12 feet wide or 12 feet tall are told to enter from the KY 715 end, because they may not fit through.

7. Gladie Visitor Center

On a first trip, stop at Gladie Visitor Center for visitor information. Inside are interactive exhibits on the gorge and the Red River. Outside there's a pioneer cabin, a barn and old farming equipment to walk around.

8. Natural Bridge State Resort Park

Natural Bridge is in Slade, inside a state park with its own lodge. The park puts the sandstone arch at 78 feet across and 65 feet high. Its top is a 30-foot-wide sandstone walkway you can cross on foot.

There are two ways up:

• Hike. The park has ten trails, from half a mile to seven and a half miles long, with maps at Hemlock Lodge.
• Ride. The Natural Bridge Skylift is privately run. The park says it runs daily from the first weekend of April through the last weekend in October and drops you within 600 feet of the arch.

Turn right off the top platform for the footpath to Lookout Point, which the skylift's operators call the best place to photograph Natural Bridge.

Most of the park's trails lie in a state nature preserve, and dogs are allowed only on the Whittleton Trail. The park notes that trails in the wider gorge are open to pets.

Mill Creek Lake is the park's fishing and paddling spot. Its fish include bass, bluegill, crappie, rainbow trout and channel catfish, and the park lends fishing gear for free, though you'll still need a Kentucky license. Canoe and kayak rentals run Memorial Day through Labor Day.

9. Rock Climbing

The Forest Service says climbers come from around the world for the overhanging sandstone here. Outside the national forest, climbers also use private preserves bought by the Red River Gorge Climbers' Coalition. It owns and maintains over 1,800 acres in the region.

The Pendergrass-Murray Recreational Preserve is its largest tract, at 727 acres with over 650 routes. Miller Fork and Bald Rock are coalition preserves too. At Pendergrass-Murray, hammocks and drones aren't allowed, pets go on a leash, and you're asked to sign the coalition's waiver before you visit.

On Forest Service land, a standing order bans climbing and rappelling within 300 feet of Sky Bridge, Gray's Arch, Nada Tunnel and the Chimney Top Rock overlook.

10. Kayaking the Red River

Kayak rentals on the river start from a riverside campground run by Red River Gorge Kayaking, about 5 miles past Nada Tunnel where KY 77 meets KY 715. Both of its trips are self-guided:

• The Swimming Hole Tour is a calm 4-hour float that starts and ends at the campground. A single kayak is $50, a tandem $90.
• The Adventure Tour is an 8-mile run from the Copperas Creek launch past sandstone cliffs. It runs only when the river is high enough, so call first.

Take kids on the swimming-hole float.

11. Gorge Underground

Guided boat and kayak tours at Gorge Underground go through an old mine near the gorge. The operator calls it a 100-year-old flooded limestone mine, and rainbow trout live in the water.

The kayak tour takes one hour and costs $65 Monday to Thursday, $70 Friday to Sunday. Paddlers must be at least 5 years old. Children from age 3 can take the shorter boat tour instead.

12. Red River Gorge Ziplines

In Campton, five ziplines run over the gorge at Red River Gorge Ziplines, two of them side by side for racing. The longest is a 1,900-foot zip. At the high point you're 300 feet over the gorge, and the whole course takes one to two hours.

Riders have to weigh between 70 and 250 pounds, and anyone under 16 zips with an adult. Tickets are $99 for adults and $89 for children.

13. Kentucky Reptile Zoo

Venomous snakes are the focus at the Kentucky Reptile Zoo in Slade. The zoo calls its venomous snake collection one of the largest in the world.

The schedule lists a venom extraction at 1 p.m., and the zoo asks you to call that morning to confirm it's on. A guide gives a live reptile talk at 3 p.m. Admission is $14 for adults and $11 for ages 4 to 15, and kids 3 and under get in free.

Getting There and Staying Over

The gorge is reached from the Bert T. Combs Mountain Parkway. Gladie's directions start at exit 33 at Slade, and Lexington is about an hour's drive.

Each winter the Forest Service closes several gravel roads to cars, among them Chimney Top Road, Rock Bridge Road and Tunnel Ridge Road past Gray's Arch. They stay open to foot and bicycle traffic until spring.

For a developed campground, book Koomer Ridge Campground off KY 15. It has 54 sites, 19 of them fit for RVs without hookups, and its trailheads connect to more than 50 miles of trail. Backcountry campers need a recreation pass displayed in the car overnight, sold at $5 a day, $7 for three days or $50 a year. To sleep indoors, book a room at Hemlock Lodge or a cottage through the Natural Bridge State Resort Park reservations system.