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The original site of Fort Boonesborough is one of many stops on the Boone's Trace Tours hosted by the Fort Boonesborough Foundation and Fort Boonesborough State Park. (Submitted / June 4, 2012) |
The Fort Boonesborough Foundation is hosting a series of tours that will follow Daniel Boone’s trip across the Cumberland Gap into Kentucky.
The one- and two-day Boone’s Trace tours will give individuals an opportunity to see different parts of Boone’s Trace, as well as learn more about Boone and his traveling companions through narrations by Scott New, who portrays Boone at the Fort.
“The trips are educational and suitable for anyone of any age who wants to learn more about Daniel Boone and his trek into Kentucky,” said foundation member Elizabeth Chalfant. “We will be traveling the backroads and stopping at historical places along the way and Scott will be doing narratives along the way.”
The one-day trip on Aug. 21 travels to Levi Jackson State Park and back to the fort through Madison County, with a stop at the original site of Fort Boonesborough. The trip begins with a short tour of the fort led by New at 10 a.m., followed by a short lunch before departure at 12:45 p.m.
The two-day trips on July 10-11 and Sept. 26-27 begin with a short tour of Fort Boonesborough and presentation by New at 10 a.m. before departing for Wilderness Road State Park in Virginia. After lunch at Wilderness Road, the trip continues on to Cumberland Gap National Park where visitors can take a short walk up to the gap to see the view Boone saw on his trip.
“The reason we started the trip in Virginia was so people could see the other side of the gap and see just what a daunting task those people saw ahead of them that they had to get through,” Chalfant said.¿
“When you see it from down there you get a visual concept of just how hard it was.”
The trip continues on to Pine Mountain State Park where visitors will spend the night. The second day of the trip takes visitors along backroads through Middlesboro and Rockcastle County, with several stops along the way, including Flat Lick Park monument, Mount Carmel Church, Roundstone Lick and Boone’s Gap, Otter Creek, Twitty’s Fort and part of Boone’s Trace on the Berea College property, before ending back at the original Fort Boonesborough site around 4:30 p.m.
Cost of the one-day tour is $50 for adults and $40 for children 12 years of age and under, and includes transportation, fort admission, box lunch, snacks and water along the way.
Cost of the two-day tours is $220 single occupancy, $360 double, $510 triple and $670 quad occupancy.
Cost includes fort admission, two days transportation, parks lodging, four meals per person, snacks and water.
A $50 per person non-refundable deposit is required to reserve space on the trips.
“We will be walking on the actual trail that Daniel Boone walked on in several places along the trip, so people can get a fell for what it was like back then, and they will get to hear Scott’s historical talks about Boone and his party,” Chalfant said. “This is not only for history buffs, but for anyone who wants to learn more about Daniel Boone and see and experience some of the actual route that he took.”
More information about the trips and Fort Boonesborough can be found on the Fort Boonesborough Foundation website at www.fortboonesboroughfoundation.org, or by emailing Chalfant at elizchalfant@aol.com.
Contact Bob Flynn at bflynn@winchestersun.com.
