During the last couple of weeks, Tom and I have been doing Living History Training at Cumberland Gap National Historical Park. It was as if the rangers suddenly realized that we would be leaving soon and we were the only people who knew how to do things. Living History Training was inserted on the schedule …
From National Parks
85 Miles of Trails at Cumberland Gap
Cumberland Gap National Historical Park has 85 miles of trails. This makes it the park with the most trails of any that we have worked at except for Death Valley. Over our four months at Cumberland Gap, Tom and I have hiked on most of the trails. In fact, the only one we haven’t been …
Bison Hair and Stinging Nettles
The I have been conducting experimental archaeology with bison hair and stinging nettles in my textile lab at Cumberland Gap National Historical Park. I didn’t realize I was doing experimental archaeology until our park superintendent, Lisa Baldwin, took an interest in my experiment. I just thought I was doing living history. The experiment started with …
White Rocks and Sand Cave Trail
All summer Tom has wanted to hike up the White Rocks and Sand Cave trail. Cumberland Gap National Historical Park has over 85 miles of trails, including the 26-mile Ridge Trail which runs the length of the park. The only problem with most of these trails is their change in elevation. After all, we are …
Volunteer Robin Smith, Campground Host
When Tom and I changed sites at the end of June, we did it to make way for Volunteer Robin Smith who was coming in as a campground host. We had heard the name but weren’t sure what kind of person or campground host he would turn out to be. I am happy to report …
Folk Fest at Cumberland Gap
On Saturday, August 12, Tom and I participated in Folk Fest in the town of Cumberland Gap. We were there, along with most of the rangers, to represent the Cumberland Gap National Historical Park. The ironic thing about our representing the park was that no one remembered to bring a sign showing that we were …
Stones River National Battlefield
To finish off the National Park sites close to us, Tom and I stopped by Stones River National Battlefield on our way from Mammoth Cave back to Cumberland Gap. We had been to Stones River National Battlefield before, but we were there before the Passport program started in 1986, so I didn’t have the stamp. …
Mammoth Cave National Park
After our visit to Abraham Lincoln’s birthplace, Tom and I headed south to Mammoth Cave National Park. I had never been there, but Tom said he had been a couple of times. Nevertheless, I had to get the stamp, so I had to go there. We signed up for a Historic Cave Tour as soon …
Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park
Tom and I continued our exploration of Kentucky by heading to Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park. Whenever we are working at a National Park site, we try to see all the other National Park sites in the state. It doesn’t always work out, because some of the sites can be pretty far away. But …
Tri-State Outdoor Fest in Cumberland Gap
On July 15, Tom and I worked at the Tri-State Outdoor Fest in Cumberland Gap. I mentioned before that Cumberland Gap is a little town that is trying to be a tourist draw to the area. They host special events several times during the summer, including the Small Farmers Market that I wrote about last …