Date: April 27, 2012
Distance: 5.50 miles
Hiking with Impunity was once again lucky enough to visit another state! Actually, over the week of April 23rd, we technically visited 3 states: Kentucky, Indiana, and Tennessee. Knowing that we would be spending almost a week in Kentucky, we decided that we wanted to spend part of our time hiking! Since it was National Park Week, we were not going to pass up on the chance to see Mammoth Cave National Park (more on that later!). But, what we were most excited for was a chance to spend the day with Green Earth Outdoors (GEO)!
Green Earth Outdoors offers people various activities and adventures to get outside and enjoy what the Kentuckiana region has to offer! From hiking to canoeing, from day trips to overnights, Green Earth Outdoors can offer a different kind of adventure for no matter what you may be looking for! And, as they're name implies, Green Earth Outdoors lives its mission by not only getting you outside enjoying the area, but also engaging in eco-friendly practices by minimizing and offsetting its carbon footprint!
As soon as I knew we would be traveling to Kentucky, the first thing I did after booking our hotel was to look for an outdoor adventure company, much as we did last summer when we hooked up with the Jim Thorpe Experience! The owner of GEO, Douglas, asked us what we were looking for out of our day trip. As with Jim Thorpe, we asked him to show us the best of what the Kentuckiana area has to offer! While I understand that half of the fun and adventure of hiking is planning and navigating your hikes, I still stand by the fact that when you are traveling to an unfamiliar area and you have a short amount of time to spend there, it's best to find someone who knows the area to take you out and show you the best of what that area has to offer!
And, Douglas did just that! He planned our day trip to include a hike through Charleston State Park in Indiana as well a chance to spend a couple of hours on Rose Island, an area only recently opened to the general public. The rich history of this island was further described to us by a very nice park ranger, who not only gave us a tour of the island, but also had a file of photographs taken during the time that Rose Island was in its heyday!
We had a tremendous time on this day! I have intentionally not laid out our hike according to previous articles out of respect for the time and energy that Green Earth Outdoors had spent planning and hiking with us! It's important for us to support locally owned companies with such a fine mission as GEO. And, the fact of the matter is, that like The Jim Thorpe Experience, we would never have hiked or had the same kind of day if we had gone it alone!
Yes, we still love to plan, and navigate, and be the leaders in our hikes! But once in a while, it's nice to be led to some of the most remarkable sights, by some of the most remarkable people!
To see our full photo gallery from this hike, please visit our gallery by clicking here.
Please note: Hiking with Impunity received no compensation from Green Earth Outdoors for the writing of this article. As with all of the companies we discuss in our hiking articles, we do not seek compensation, and mention and support these companies because they deserve to be mentioned and supported!!
About the Author
”Hiking” Mike Magro is the primary contributor and editor of Hiking with Impunity. Always on the look-out for a good hike, Mike is hoping to get through the rest of the year having minimal to no injuries while on the trail.