Following the Underground Railroad in Kentucky on Bikes

It all started with a phone call.  We used to call it long distance, but these days nothing is long when it comes to communicating with our son who was spending his last year of high school 900 miles from home in St. Louis.  The call had to do with a certain capstone project whose topic was to be chosen in the very near future. I threw out some ideas that missed the mark by a few area codes and we decided to reconvene the next day to share ideas. A few long distance, smart phone calls later we had mutually decided that a long distance bike ride was just the project he was looking for.  Ideas are a dime a dozen, implementation is where the rubber meets the road.  We knew the when, the two weeks just after Ben, the high school senior, was released to complete his project and just before Jake, our college senior was to graduate from college. We had to figure out the where and the how.

After some nifty Googling we figured out that Adventure Cycling had a bike route that started in Alabama and ended in Canada and ran through Kentucky which isn’t too far from St. Louis.  The route is called the Underground Railroad and it pays homage to the covert flight to freedom of the slaves from the pre-emancipation South to the free states north of the Ohio River. It sounded like it might have some education in it which would help the approval project. The portion of the route we were to ride through roughly followed the Ohio River in a serpentine route through Kentucky, Illinois (just one night), Indiana and Ohio.

The “how” involved a new bike, 20 miles of training (for Ben), arranging a designated dropper-offer and picker-upper (thanks Kristy!), Ben successfully pitching the trip at school, planning the beginning the ending points and waypoints in between and getting things all set at home so that I could play hooky from work during the busiest time of the year.  In the end, it all came together.  And before you knew it, ready or not, we were off!

DAY 1: Grand Rivers, KY to Cave in Rock, IL – 58 miles

We headed out just before May 1st and this was exactly the right time of year to do this trip.  Not too hot, not too much rain, comfortable sleeping in the tent and no bugs! I have done many bike trips in the past and racked up thousands of miles with full panniers but this was Ben’s first rodeo. Did I already mention that Ben’s training consisted of one 20 mile ride without panniers?  Up to this point, this was his longest ride. As we rode that first day testing our legs we both appreciated the quiet roads, the courteous drivers and the varied landscapes.  Within 20 miles we were riding against the current of the Ohio River which was to be our companion for the next 562 miles.

We could tell that we were on the back roads because the cows, sheep, horses and donkey’s would run away en masse when we rode by.  We got a kick out of seeing the calfs sprinting away ahead of the bulls.  This kind of stuff doesn’t happen in Boulder where there are almost as many bikes as cars.

We followed the back roads through small towns, up some steep hills (as you can tell from the video above) and finished our day crossing the Ohio River using free ferry to Cave in Rock.  We camped at the state park and had a great meal at the state park restaurant,  We had the camping section entirely to ourselves and after dinner checked out the cave where Jesse James and his gang used to hide as they hijacked and robbed barges steaming up and down the river.

DAY 2: Cave in Rock, IL to Henderson KY – 77 Miles

One of the joys of traveling by bike is to watch and feel the landscape changing gradually.  This day, we started out in bike bliss and ended the day in dodging cars in Henderson.  After riding the ferry back to Kentucky, we started out on on bucolic quiet roads, grinding up forgotten hills listening to the birds and enjoying a full canopy of trees.  After not seeing a soul for many miles we rounded a corner to see an Amish farmer’s wife hanging the laundry on the front line. My friendly wave was answered with a wary stare. Within a few minutes we had taken our first wrong turn and by chance ended up in an Amish tack/bake shop and filled our noses with the smell of fresh leather and filled our mouths with beautiful homemade glazed donuts the size of softballs. After wiping the sugar from our cheeks we glanced at the map and found an alternative way back to the designated route.

After lunch the rolling hills had turned into flat farmland and we continued the back way through small towns that seemed to be mostly shut down.  After awhile we started to see and understand the Wal-Mart effect.  Main street was boarded up and Wal-Mart was the new destination of choice for the big shopping trips.  Dollar General was for quick trips and those could be found on the main route just out of town.  Nobody seemed to mind the 30 mile drive to save a buck and get a warm greeting.

My journal says “Henderson is no place for a bike”. We arrived at rush hour and had to use our best bike skills to navigate the broken sidewalks, high curbs and heavy traffic on Highway 41.  Our destination was the campground at John J Audubon State Park.  The name Audubon brings to my mind bird calls in an old growth forest.  In the campground, if it wasn’t closed for the year, you would have been hard pressed to hear a trumpeter swan over the roar of the four-lane highway which we risked life and limb to cross.  So, instead of camping in the virgin forest that we had erroneously envisioned, we retreated to the Comfort Inn and to some Mexican food across the thruway.

DAY 3 – Henderson, KY to Owensboro, KY 41 miles

We got a late start because we had to wait for the UPS Store to open.  Long story having to do with certain missing maps… Anyway once we got going, we spent most of the day riding on winding farm roads. There was a bit of a wind that we felt from all angles because of the twisty roads.

After passing a unique, rotating railroad bridge, we came up a rise and saw a lone biker in front of us, which was a rarity.

After drawing closer we saw that it was an older gentleman out for a ride.  Apparently out collecting cans and running other errands.  I pulled up next to his yellow cruiser bike outfitted with a small American flag behind the seat and had a mostly unintelligible conversation with him.  When we made it to a stop sign I videotaped the last bit of our conversation.  The video is below but you probably won’t be able to understand much.  At first we were talking about the blacktop and then I was asking him what he was going to do for the rest of his afternoon. His reply was “some mowin and some weed trimmin”.  He then headed off and left us with some words of wisdom.  “You know them dandelions grow at night?”

We arrived for lunch in Owensboro after 2 pm and after fixing our one and only flat tire of the trip (if you look closely at the photo below you can see the flat) we consulted the map and didn’t see any great camping nearby, so we decided to stay the night in town. The first rule of bike touring is to take each day as it comes.  On this day it was coming a bit slow and labored so we listened and went with the flow. Ben chose the all you can eat buffet at the Golden Corral. Our appetites needed to be fed.

DAY 4: Owensboro, KY to Hawesville KY – 45 Miles

We were sure glad to be safely in the hotel when we woke up to heavy rain and thunderstorm warnings.  We left at 10:30 in a drizzle that thankfully didn’t amount to anything more.  We dodged a rain storm by having a “first lunch” in a little league dugout in Thurston and as we left the rain stopped.

Rode all afternoon in the flood plain of the Ohio River.  Very flat and easy riding on the back roads.  We camped at a Vastwood park in Hawesville and found a great campsite right on the lake.  After showering, organizing and eating we rode over to the ball fields and took in a few innings of the Little League game, had some ice cream and then turned in early.  We needed an early start tomorrow!

DAY 5: Hawesville, KY to Corydon, IN 75 Miles

We did get an early start and we covered a lot of ground.  Ben did great! And by this time in our trip he was consistently passing me up every hill and waiting for me at the top.  On this day we had 5 major hills and he led me up each one!  The hardest riding we have found so far is entering and leaving the larger towns. The combination of rumble strips, skinny roads and heavier traffic made for a few challenging, and tiring sections.

We had some beautiful vistas today; roads overlooking the river, quiet roads overlooking lonely farms in beautiful green valleys and forgotten floodplain roads. We saw less farming areas today and more rolling hills.

As we rode we crossed paths with history of all sorts.  During our first few days we had crossed the “Trail of Tears”, seen the judges house where Abraham Lincoln won his first court case as an attorney (on his own behalf), saw where the Lincoln’s first crossed the Ohio River as a family as they moved from Kentucky to Indiana, saw various Civil War historical sites, etc.

After waiting our turn, we sprinted across the one open lane of Hwy. 135.  And instead of taking the easy route, we took to the hills and finally rolled into Corydon Indiana at 5:45.  But not before we were chased by a huge Mastiff who wasn’t quite sure what to make of two cyclists stopped at the top of HIS hill.  Our legs soon forgot they were tired as we sped up the next hill.  We camped right in town and walked to dinner.  When we arrived back to our site our campground neighbors, who were permanent residents, brought us a plate of dinner.  Hot dogs, chips and beans.  Ben was up for a second dinner and we thanked them profusely.

We had two other nice interactions today with folks along the way.  The first was at a convenience store.  I was waiting in line with a few guys and the older of them asked “is that you on those sickles?”  I confirmed. A few minutes later Ben and I were out front draining our Gatorade’s and the old guy rolled down his window.  I walked up and he said “how far are you ridin’ those sickles?” I answered.  “Cincinnati? … Must be a real pretty girl waiting for ya.”  I confirmed.

Between Cloverport and Brandenburg an old white pickup passed us slowly and gave us a big wave as he drove by.  About a quarter of a mile ahead he had pulled over at an unmarked four way intersection and as we rode close he got out of his truck and walked toward us.  As he handed me $15 for dinner he said “This is a young man’s world. Get out and enjoy it just like you are.  I’m proud of you both for getting out there and living life!”  He didn’t want to talk too much but as he walked back to his truck he twice raised both of his arms as if in victory.  That’s my kind of advice. Thank you sir!

DAY 6: Corydon, IN to New Albany, IN 19 miles

The wettest day in Kentucky Derby history didn’t make for a good riding day.  The clouds were sitting heavy all morning but the rain held off until just after we rolled into an all you can eat breakfast buffet restaurant.  We felt like we had just stumbled into a gold mine as we piled our plates high with hot food (three times!) We took our sweet time eating, but after an hour and a half of waiting out the now heavy rain we realized that our best bet for the afternoon was to make a break for it across the street to the hotel. New Albany, is on the north side of the Ohio and Louisville is on the south side.  The Derby was being held eight miles from where we stayed so the hotel rates had doubled.  We made the best of it and slogged through the rain to the Carnegie Center Museum which has a great standing exhibit about the Underground Railroad.  We took a long tour and then walked through downtown New Albany after the rain had stopped.

DAY 7: New Albany, IN to Carrolton, KY 75 Miles

By the next morning the skies had completely cleared and it was a beautiful morning for a ride!  Sunday morning after the Derby must be one of the quietest mornings of the year around here because we rode through the northern suburbs of Louisville along the river.  The roads were flat, the air was cool, the fields and large yards had some low lying fog and the slow moving scene was both varied and interesting.  By late morning we had moved away from the river up to rolling farms and small towns with some suburban neighborhoods mixed in.  It was a perfect and fast ride!

We had ridden 45 miles by the time we had ‘first lunch’ and then had ‘second lunch’ in the historic river town of Madison, Indiana. Lot’s of Harley’s cruising town on this beautiful Sunday afternoon.  After crossing back into Kentucky we went another 13 miles to General Butler State Park.  A great day!  Both of us are riding strong and are amazingly well matched.

DAY 8: Carrolton, KY to Concord, KY 75 Miles

We both felt a bit worn down as we left in the cool of the morning. All trip we had noticed old barns in various stages of decay but this morning it seemed like that was all we saw.  The hillsides were reclaiming what was rightly theirs and the barns were slowly succumbing.  After a needed snack at a gas station in Sparta we turned onto the hard-to-find and beautiful route 467 and rode to Glencoe (no services). It was just one and a half lanes wide and it was a beautiful ribbon of new pavement.  We were used to being barked at by dogs (more on that later) but we were both surprised and delighted to be barked at by a fox.  The video of the train below gives a good sense of this rolling road.  Before tackling a 9 mile uphill section that we needed to conquer before having lunch.  After mustering our gumption by laying down in the grass by a barn, we made the last push and treated ourselves to a big lunch at Cracker Barrel right on I-75 in Dry Ridge.  The mashed potatoes did the trick and we felt stronger for our afternoon ride.

It felt like we were riding through the green hills of Ireland, but with more trees.  We missed an unmarked turn on a small road and rode downhill over two miles to a dead end.  On our way down we had passed four sets of off leash dogs who all took varying interest in us either coming or going.

We ended the day at the beautiful Kincaid State Park.  There are 157 campsites at the park and that night just 6 were occupied.  We were the only tent and we had the entire tent area to ourselves. Quiet and beautiful, we camped directly next to a cemetery.  The cemetery was a family cemetery still used by the family who donated the land for the park.  We were serenaded by an owl as we fell asleep.  I enjoyed the sunrise down at the lake while Ben slept in a bit. I’m sure this was the best time of year to be here. We caught it just right.

DAY 9: Concord, KY to Ripley OH  58 Miles

A hilly day of riding. We rode through beautiful green hills this morning and into the afternoon. Had lunch in Germantown where nearby plantation homes were once stations on the Underground Railroad.  Cooked brats in the shaded sidewalk in front of a closed restaurant.  During the afternoon we started to feel the more population and started riding through nice suburban neighborhoods outside of Old Washington. We then rode into the historic village with a number of buildings from the 1790’s.

Late in the afternoon we coasted down an epic hill into the beautiful little town of Maysville and then crossed the river the last time by walking our bikes across the metal bridge.

DAY 10: Ripley, OH to Milford, OH 59 Miles

We camped our last night at a private campground on the backwaters of the Ohio River that was still cleaning up from flooding.  The accommodating host cleaned up the shower for us and had us set up camp in the covered shed with the lawnmowers.  In the morning we headed for the the John Rankin House above Ripley.  The road to the historic house of the famous abolitionist was amazingly steep.  It was the only time I during the trip that I thought about walking.  I didn’t, because Ben led the way up the hill and that gave me the inspiration to put down my head and weave my way up the hill.  We worked our butts off to make it and found a homemade sign saying that the museum was closed for school field trips.  We hung around long enough for the nice volunteer guide to take mercy on us.  While the kids ate their lunch we got a private tour of the house. Harriet Beetcher Stowe credited John Rankin for being one of the key figures in the abolitionist movement and thousands of freed slaves made their first stop on free soil checking in at the house with the candle in the window.

After leaving the museum we spent the rest of the morning climbing on winding roads next to limestone creeks up to Georgetown where we had lunch.  As the afternoon wore on it started getting busier as we neared Cincinnati.  On a back road near Owensville, just as it started to rain a barn appeared with an open door and we coasted in and waited out the short squall. We had just what we needed at the right time.  It felt like this the entire trip.  We are so grateful!

We pulled into the Cincinnati suburb of Milford late in he afternoon and checked into the hotel and waited for Kristy to join us.  We had made it!

Before our drive back to St. Louis we spent a few hours at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in downtown Cincinnati.  It is a beautiful and extensive museum that capped off our adventure together.  Throughout the trip I was so impressed and thankful for the courteous drivers.  Most drivers when they could would move over to the opposite lane to pass us.  On many occasions during hilly or twisty sections cars patiently drove slowly behind us until we waved them through.  We felt safe the whole way.

Overall, this was a wonderful adventure.  Being able to share this with my son and to see him rise to the occasion day after day was a dream come true for me.  He said he would do it again and so would I!  Thanks for making it all the way to the end and see you on the road!

Random Photos