Dawkins Line Rail Trail: Royalton to Gun Creek Tunnel (Blog Hike #1122)

Trail: Dawkins Line Rail Trail
Hike Location: Dawkins Line Rail Trail
Geographic Location: southeast of Salyersville, KY (37.67641, -83.02194)
Length: 6.3 miles
Difficulty: 3/10 (Easy/Moderate)
Date Hiked: April 2026
Overview: An out-and-back to the old Gun Creek Railroad Tunnel.
Park Information: https://parks.ky.gov/explore/dawkins-line-rail-trail-7831
Hike Route Map:

On The Go Map

Photo Highlight:

Hike Video: (coming February 5, 2027)

Directions to the trailhead: From Salyersville, take SR 7 southeast 7 miles to the community of Royalton.  The gravel parking lot for the Dawkins Line Rail Trail's Royalton Trailhead is on the left behind the Royalton United Baptist Church.  Park here.

The hike: Stretching for 36 miles across eastern Kentucky's rural Johnson, Magoffin, and Breathitt Counties, the Dawkins Line Rail Trail is the longest rail trail in Kentucky.  The railroad was built in 1912 by the Dawkins Lumber Company, and it was known as the Big Sandy and Kentucky River Railroad.  For the next 92 years the rail line was used to extract timber from rural areas, and ownership of the railway changed hands a couple of times.  The railway eventually became the property of CSX.

            In 2002, the rail line was sold to the R. J. Corman Railroad Group, which abandoned it 2 years later.  The Commonwealth of Kentucky purchased the abandoned railway in 2011 and soon began converting it to a paved bike trail.  The trail opened in stages, and when I came here all but the Tip Top Tunnel west of Royalton was open.  The hike described here leads to the other old railroad tunnel on the Dawkins Line Rail Trail: the Gun Creek Tunnel.  While hikes on rail trails always lack in scenery, the tunnel makes for a nice destination, and several other interesting sites are passed on the way.

Royalton Trailhead, heading east

            From the Royalton Trailhead parking lot, walk up to the asphalt rail trail and head east with SR 7 at your back.  Initially the trail heads through the east part of Royalton, and my approach seemed to trigger 2 or 3 "dog alarms" at every house along the rail trail.  The dogs' barking frightened me a little, but they all stayed in their yards.  I had no trouble other than the irritating noise.

Asters and other flowers along the trail

            After you pass Gun Creek United Baptist Church, you exit the east side of Royalton, and the scenery becomes more pastoral.  Asters in bloom lined the trail on the warm late-April day that I hiked here, and I saw a lot of butterflies.  My bird viewing list included red-winged blackbirds, cardinals, and robins.

Gun Creek

            At 1.4 miles, the trail curves left to cross the wooden bridge over Gun Creek, which is a small steep-banked stream that can become a raging torrent after a heavy rain.  The first of several benches sits near the creek.  Next you cross Gun Creek Road to continue heading up the hollow, now with the creek and road downhill to your right.  A few houses are located near the trail, but they are fewer and further between compared to the area near the trailhead.

Mile marker D 16

            2.1 miles into the hike, you pass a concrete post engraved with "D 16," which is one of the mile markers from the old railroad.  The numbers decrease as you go east on the rail trail.  Although this trail is an old railroad bed, it has some grade: the tunnel is more than 150 feet higher in elevation than Royalton.  Nevertheless, the grade is gradual enough that you hardly notice you are climbing.  At 2.5 miles, you cross a high bridge over a deep ravine.  More benches are located in this area.

Gun Creek Tunnel

Wall of Gun Creek Tunnel

            Just after crossing the gravel access road for Fletcher Cemetery and passing mile marker D 15, you reach the Gun Creek Tunnel.  Unlike most old railroad tunnels, the walls of this tunnel are not bare rock: a thick wooden shell separates you from the rock.  The tunnel is 662 feet long, but its straightness allows light to come in from either end.  Thus, you don't need a flashlight to explore the tunnel.  The rail trail continues for 15 more miles, but the tunnel is a good place to turn around.  Retracing your steps back to the Royalton Trailhead completes the hike.