Adventures in Johnson County, KY! (Paintsville, KY) Episode 8!

Описание: Thank you for tuning in to this episode of Explore Appalachia!

We started the morning off at Paintsville Coffee House, where we got a little inside scoop on how they make their most popular drink with Lena. Here we caught up with Judy Daniel aka our Paintsville guru, who was our host and guide for the day.

Second on the agenda, Cassidy, Natalie, Kevin, and Sydney decided to break from the group to go tour the old Methodist church a few blocks down the street and get the inside scoop on the history of the building. They ran into Judge Executive Mark in town on the way! After an inside tour and even a trip up to the tower (if you were downtown that day and heard bells ringing…yes, that was us), Kevin and the gals headed back to the coffee shop to meet up with James, Josh, and Kaitlyn, who had continued chatting with the coffee shop crew.

Fueled by caffeine, it was time to start biking! We were able to borrow some bikes to use on the Dawkins Line Rail Trail, which is an old rail trail, originally used for moving lumber, that has been converted into a recreational trail used for walking, running, biking, and horseback riding. We rode for a few miles, the trail was beautiful. Well taken care of and surrounded by the KY landscape, biking on the Dawkins was a perfect fall adventure for us.

For lunch, we headed to Smokin’ Butts BBQ per Judy’s recommendation. The restaurant is on a golf course, so we got a stunning view overlooking the green and the mountains. We tried almost every entree on the menu, from pulled pork tacos to the brisket platter, and everything was fantastic, leaving us with full bellies for the rest of the afternoon. Time head out and explore by land and by sea (lake)!

Kevin, Kaitlyn, Natalie, and Sydney picking up some kayaks from Laura to paddle the lake, and Josh, Cassidy, and James went to check out the infamous Edible Trail.

The Edible Trail is a part of the Paintsville Lake Activity, Nature and Edible Trail (P.L.A.N.E.T.) - Outdoor Classroom. Once we arrived, we met Zac, Becky, and their golden retriever, Abraham Lincoln. They were excellent guides. The trail normally features a variety of edible fruit. We missed out on a lot of the fruit because of the time of year we visited, but there were still some persimmons and berries hangin' in there! Abraham Lincoln led us to the end of the peninsula where we stood atop an incredible lookout. We had a panoramic view of the water surrounded by cliffs. The Edible Trail definitely earns the Explore Appalachia stamp of approval.

Meanwhile, the other crew out at the lake split up into a canoe and two kayaks. The goal was to paddle out to this little island and see if we could catch any fish. The island was covered with lots of unique vegetation and rocks. Unfortunately, it was insanely windy, which made fishing very difficult. But, it’s like Kaitlyn always says, “it’s calling fishing, not catching.” After a little more exploring, we headed back to shore, with Sydney and Natalie winning the race home. After we dropped the canoe and kayaks back off, it was time to join back up with the whole team and head over to the Griffith Family Farm.

The farm is like an idyllic playground for both kids and adults alike. Kevin and Natalie explored the farm with Chester and got to hear all about the Griffith story. While they were out exploring, Sydney and Cassidy made it their mission to taste test the sparkling coffee and find some candy for the road. The sun started to set, so after watching it go down during some quality conversation and storytelling with Chester, we hit the road to head back to Paintsville. It was dinner time.

We headed to The Alley on Main, a swanky restaurant and bar venue downtown. The place was packed and the atmosphere was lively! We headed inside and sat up on the second floor, with a perfect overlook view of the stage. Snacking on some appetizers like fried mac ’n cheese, loaded nachos, and flatbreads started off the meal strong. However, the burgers and Nashville hot chicken sandwiches really took the cake. Everyone enjoyed watching Senora May’s performance, which was just about as laid back and fun as anyone could dream of!

After the show ended, it was time to head back to home base and call it a night. We said goodbye to hosts and drove off into the sunset- er, moonlight.


Follow along as we continue to explore this region!
Website: http://bit.ly/3u8WCpM
Facebook: http://bit.ly/2ZAdrvI
Instagram: https://bit.ly/2NJ5Nwk

HUGE thank you to our sponsors and partners for making this possible:
Ale8One - https://ale8one.com/
KODA - https://donatelifeky.org/
The Holler Creative - https://theholler.com/


Timestamps:

00:30 - Paintsville Coffee house
02:15 - Downtown chat with Judge
03:30 - Mayo Memorial Methodist Church
06:25 - Dawkins Line Rail Trail
07:20 - Lunch @ Smokin Butts BBQ
09:30 - Painstville Lake
11:40 - Nature & Edible Trail
14:10 - Griffith Family Farm and Trail Station
17:00 - The Alley on Main
18:10 - Outro