Kayak a Flooded Mine

In 2021 I spent five days in the Red River Gorge area of Kentucky. There are natural arches there. I had no idea there were arches in the east, I only knew of the ones in the west. The things you can learn when you're on Pinterest for a whole day during a snow storm! I stopped at the Visitor Center when I arrived in the area and I saw an advertisement for kayaking in a flooded mine and I thought - what a unique experience! I made a reservation for when I was heading out of the area after I hiked to a bunch of arches.

I arrived a little before my appointed time and hung out in the store browsing and listening to the staff talk to other guests. When the group was all gathered we headed out back and into a shipping container to choose our gear. Helmet, life jacket and paddles. From there we continued into the cave where we were assisted into a kayak.

The guides were very knowledgeable, the water was clear and the fish were BIG. The fish did not get in there naturally, they are stocked, a kind of trout that I can't remember the name of. We paddled around many corners and heard the story of how the mine came to be flooded. At one point all the lights were turned out and you couldn't even see your hand in front of your face. If you are petrified of the dark be aware this is coming! The guides are good about making sure everyone stays together. I would not want to get lost in the maze of flooded mine tunnels!

Here are a few more pictures:

Some of the fish

If you are not into kayaking they also offer the tour by boat and stand up paddle. After paddling around a while and seeing different cave/mine scenery and old mining equipment we ended up back where we started. We disembarked our kayaks, gave back the rest of the equipment and headed back out into the light! It was a fun thing to do. How many people do you know have kayaked through a mine?

For more information check out their website here!

What I was drinking that morning:

I stopped at the Daniel Boone Coffee Shop not far from the Gorge Underground. I picked up a delicious cup of coffee and a pastry for breakfast. I also bought some Kentucky Mountain Coffee to take home with me. If you are camping and okay with no frills camping you can stay behind the coffee shop for next to nothing.

For more information check out their website.

If you'd like to taste some Kentucky roasted coffee look into Kentucky Mountain Coffee Company. They have a large number of coffee types available. Click here!

If you appreciate reading a blog post without scrolling past ad after ad, or clicking off pop ups, please visit our About page, scroll down and make a donation - any size - to help me keep this site going. Thank you!