Daniel Boone National Forest, Bald Rock Picnic Area: Sugar Tree Hollow Trail (Blog Hike #853)

Trail: Sugar Tree Hollow Trail (Daniel Boone National Forest Trail #407)

Hike Location: Daniel Boone National Forest, Bald Rock Picnic Area
Geographic Location: west of London, KY (37.03296, -84.22387)
Length: 1.5 miles
Difficulty: 4/10 (Moderate)
Date Hiked: June 2021
Overview: A short loop through steep ravines passing several small cascades and sandstone cliffs.
Trail Information: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/dbnf/recreation/recarea/?recid=39640
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=876079
Photo Highlight:

Hike Video: 

Directions to the trailhead: In southern Kentucky, take I-75 to SR 192 (exit 38).  Exit and go west on SR 192.  Drive SR 192 west 9.6 miles to the signed Bald Rock Picnic Area on your right.  Turn right to enter the picnic area, and park in the small gravel lot near the restrooms.

The hike: Often overlooked in favor of Daniel Boone National Forest's more famous nearby hiking destinations such as Natural Arch and Bee Rock, Bald Rock Picnic Area occupies the ridgetop site of the former Bald Rock Fire Tower.  The tower was staffed by trained fire watchers until the 1970's, at which time fire watching from aircraft began.  Today only some small pegs from the tower's foundation remain, and they are visible beside an interpretive sign in the middle of the picnic area road's small loop.

            For hikers, Bald Rock Picnic Area is the jumping off point for two trails.  The Cane Creek Trail leads several miles along its nearby namesake creek, and it offers both hiking and backpacking opportunities as well as backcountry fishing in Cane Creek.  The only route from the picnic area to the Cane Creek Trail is the Sugar Tree Hollow Trail, the short 1.5 mile loop described here.  The Sugar Tree Hollow Trail offers a sample of hiking through the rugged hollows of southern Kentucky without pegging the length or difficulty meters, and it makes a scenic but primitive after-picnic hike.

Picnic area trailhead

            From the gravel parking lot, walk downhill behind the restroom building and look for the signed start of the trail at the edge of the woods to your left.  Marked with white plastic diamonds, the narrow primitive trail heads steeply downhill over a rooty and eroded course.  At one point the small stream and trail seem to converge, and the footing is very tricky on this initial segment of trail.

Descending on eroded trail

            As you approach the bottom of the ravine, the footing improves as the trail assumes a hillside course a few vertical feet above the stream.  The forest in this ravine features some large tulip poplar and beech trees with some small hemlocks and many paw paw bushes.  A couple of small side streams need to be stepped across, and these small streams contain some equally small waterfalls.

Stepping across a creek

2 talus boulders

            The trail weaves around some large and interesting talus boulders before the connector trail that leads to the Cane Creek Trail exits right at 0.7 miles.  Angle left to continue the Sugar Tree Hollow Trail.  The climb back to the picnic area now begins as the trail heads up another tight side ravine.  The difference in elevation between the picnic area and the bottom of the ravine is only about 230 vertical feet, but the damp hollow and primitive trail make the going more challenging than you might expect.

Sandstone cliffs

            This ravine features some nice exposed sandstone cliffs above you and to the left, and decent numbers of ferns carpet the forest floor.  After exiting the top of the ravine, the trail curves left to exit the woods near Bald Rock Picnic Area's entrance.  Turn left and walk past some picnic tables to return to the parking area and complete the hike.