The back porch view from Sundancer Cabin in the Red River Gorge Cabin Rentals
A couple of months ago, I spent a long weekend in the Red River Gorge Wilderness Area in Kentucky. The wilderness area is actually a combination of the Daniel Boone National Forest and the Natural Bridge State Resort Park. The gorge itself is more in the Daniel Boone section, but they are right next to each other, so I kind of look at the two as one big outdoor recreation area.
I reached out to Red River Gorge Cabin Rentals on twitter, and I told them I was interested in coming down. They were happy to work with me, and I headed south. The trip was postponed twice, which turned out beneficial as my initial weekend it poured rain.
A beautiful Kentucky rainforest in the Natural Bridge State Resort Park
Evidence of the previous rain stood out as soon as we were in the hills of southeastern Kentucky after passing through Lexington. The woods were a vibrant dark green. We arrived early in the morning: hours before our scheduled check in time. We had to kill a few hours while they cleaned our cabin, so we hiked the Natural Bridge Trail. I felt like I was in a South American rainforest instead of the hills of Kentucky.
Beautiful Sundancer cabin
We checked in to our cabin, and we were given the Sundancer Cabin. I was immediately enthralled with the property. We had to drive about a mile down winding country roads to get there. The house was on a hill and the back porch overlooked a beautiful overlook. I could have spent all three days drinking beer on the deck.
The beautiful back porch view at the Sundancer Cabin
Enjoying a cold one on the back porch with a fantastic view
Inside the cabin was even more spectacular. It had a huge open room in the front that was the kitchen, living, and dining room. A beautiful wooden staircase ascended up to the bedrooms. The cabin looked like a piece of art. The wood paneling was beautiful and the light fixtures were amazing.
Beautiful chandelier over the dining table and the nice wood paneling
As much as I enjoyed the cabin, I did not spend three days there. I spent the first night in the cabin and then hiked the Red River Gorge the next day and spent a night camping in the woods. I then returned for another night the next day.
Enjoying the hot tub
They even had a fooseball table at the Sundancer
Although I love to rough it, having the cabin to come back to before my hike and after was great. They have a huge wraparound porch that covers half of the cabin. On the side of the cabin is hot tub. What a great way to enjoy a night after getting off the trail than soaking in hot jets to soothe those muscles strained from carrying a heavy back pack through the rugged wilderness.
Most of the times on vacation everything goes as planned, so you never know how a hotel or company is when things go bad. On this trip we did have some adversity. When I got off the trail in the Natural Bridge State Resort Park my mom was supposed to pick me up.
Not the kind of text you want to receive when you are waiting for a ride at a trailhead
Instead, I got a text that said “car dead.” Turned out my mom had left the lights on all night. She called the cabin rental office and Christy who manages the Cabin Rentals came personally to pick me up. I sat for a half hour worried about what to do. I was about to get up and head over to the campground to see if they could arrange a ride for me, but before I could Christy pulled up with a big beautiful smile. I was relieved to be taken care of.
The hospitality did not end there. Christy drove me back to the cabin. Her husband Tim is head of maintenance, and he had a big truck, which they used to jump me. Within twenty minutes my car was running again.
Manager Christy and husband Tim saving the day – Tim ended up pulling his truck in to jump me since it had more power
I tried to offer them money for their service, but Christy said “that is what friends do.” Staying with the Red River Gorge Cabin Rental felt like I was staying with family. I was impressed with the passion they had for making sure people who stayed with them had an awesome vacation. We certainly did in part thanks to their amazing hospitality.
The price for a night’s stay in one of these cabins is not cheap, but the cabins are huge. The Sun Dancer and the Big Sky Cabin can sleep 10-12 people comfortably, so the most economic way is to come visit with a group of hikers or couples and split the cost. The cost of the cabin per night runs from $150.00 – $300.00 depending on the day of the week and the season, but this is for the biggest cabins. They have smaller ones available as well for those who are coming by themselves or with smaller groups. Their list of cabins on their website show the price and amenities available for each unit.
Nearby Big Sky Cabin is another enormous unit with a gorgeous view
The incredible view from the Big Sky Cabin
The only negative aspect of my stay was I wish all the cabins had wi-fi. Some do and some don’t. Ours did not. There is wi-fi up at the office, and you can sit outside and use it, but it would be more convenient if all the cabins had them.
There is a ton of adventure travel activities that a Red River Gorge cabin can be your base for. Besides hiking and camping there is also great rock climbing, canoeing and kayaking the Red River, fishing, ziplining, and a beautiful scenic drive that circles the area. In fact, the zipline course is on the same property, and you can sign up where you check in for the cabins.
A beautiful deer not more than a half mile up the road from our cabin
I was really impressed with the area and the cabins and plan to return.
My three night’s stay was taken care of by the Red River Gorge Cabin Rentals, but this fact has not influenced my impression with the cabins and the surrounding beauty of the Red River Gorge.
TT
The goal of Traveling Ted is to inspire people to outdoor adventure travel and then provide tips on where and how to go. If you liked this post then enter your email in the box to get email notifications for each new entry. Daily travel photos are excluded from your email in order to not flood you with posts. There is no spam and email information will not be shared. Other e-follow options include Facebook (click on the like box to the right) or twitter (click on the pretty bird on the rainbow above).
On the right sidebar is a donate button. If you would like to donate in order to support the site, it would be appreciated. All donations would cover travel expenses and improvements to make the site better.
I bet this will surprise you, but I would love to spend a weekend in a cabin like this!!!
I am not surprised as I think everyone would enjoy a cabin like this. How could you not like a hot tub, a beautiful view, and a Foosball table. I like to rough it sometimes, but it is nice to sleep comfortably too.
The people of Kentucky (for the most part) are just this friendly.
This is very true Patty. Everyone we met in the Gorge area was extremely friendly.
That cabin is beautiful! I love the views. Price isn’t that bad either. Smaller cabin with some WiFi and I am set! I think the hospitality of Tim and Christy really made them stand out. Looks like a beautiful area.
I’m longing for some time at a cabin. I always go to Tahoe when I want to escape. Haven’t stayed in the cabin for a while though. This makes me miss it.
Jeremy Branham recently posted..The gargoyle of Notre Dame and a Paris sunset
I agree the price is not that bad considering the size and the number of people it could comfortably sleep. The friendly factor definitely helps too.
Looks like a really nice cabin – all the comforts of home there too. Shame about the car! 🙁
Fiona recently posted..The Irish in America at the Little Museum of Dublin
The car situation was a little bit of a hassle, but the proprietors of the cabin sure helped us out of a mess.
What a beautiful view! The cabin looks really nice and modern. Love that your mom is all up on texting although it sucks her car died!
Leslie Koch recently posted..PHOTOS: The hidden Kurt Cobain Memorial in his hometown of Aberdeen Washington
Those were the first texts I ever got from her. Trying to break her in slowly. Thanks to the cabin managers, we got the car up running quickly.
Have been thinking about a trip to Kentucky – this looks like a place I need to go to right about now! Will be looking it up if I get down there – looks like a great place for R&R!
Anita Mac recently posted..Urban Art: The Graffiti SubCulture in Toronto
I thoroughly enjoyed the area and will definitely be back soon. There is so much to do down there. I did not even have time to kayak the river.
sooo can we plan a group trip back? i think the next #rwtbex house needs a fooseball table and a hot tub, for sure. and many, many beers to be had on that deck! xo
thelazytravelers recently posted..jetsetters: @departureboard
It would be an outstanding RWTBEX house although wi-fi would be a problem. I am sure we could live without for a day or two or continuously go back and forth from the cabin to the office every time we wanted to tweet.
What a beautiful place to stay. I think I could handle that! I’ve been thinking about heading to Kentucky for a whiskey crawl. 🙂
Leah Travels recently posted..Driving Ireland’s Dingle Peninsula
I would recommend crawling up to the Red River Gorge to recuperate.
This is beautiful and I’m sure it was so nice to come home to at the end of the day. It really does look like South America rather than Kentucky! I may just have to take a trip down here myself. 🙂
Erin at The World Wanderer recently posted..Happy 4th of July from South America!
I would recommend it. It was so beautiful.
Pretty awesome spot to spend the weekend, without the whole “Car Dead” thing of course:)
D.J. – The World of Deej recently posted..Dinner at Little Italy – Just Not The One You Might Think
We managed to survive the dead car and now have a good story full of adventure and friendly people.
Looks like a peaceful place for relaxing, or a great place for a party!
lola dimarco recently posted..One Day Stay: New York, New York
I would say yes to all the above.