Who opens their eyes at 6:30 in the morning and says “Let’s go hike three states!”? That’s exactly what I did! Cumberland Gap National Historical Park is unique because you can hike to the tri-state point and stand in Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia simultaneously! Jax and I jumped in the car and headed down the road, it was going to be a 2-hour drive so Jax settled in with his headset and I turned on my road trip playlist. As we were halfway to Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, I realized that we had nothing for lunch so we stopped at Dollar Tree and grabbed a few snacks. Dollar Tree and Dollar General have saved us many times! Now let’s explore Cumberland Gap National Historical Park!

Visitor Center

Stop by the visitor center to view the park video and grab a Jr Ranger book, by the way, adults can become a Jr Ranger too! Make sure to get your National Park passport stamped or pick up a passport and start collecting. We have also started collecting park tokens, postcards, and maps. The visitor center also has a small museum that you can walk through. There is also a cabin and a couple of canons outside the visitor center.

Tri-State Peak

To access Tri-State Peak you exit the visitor center and take the road to the right, park at the Thomas Walker Parking area, and start the trailhead, there are plenty of signs leading you to the peak. It is a beautiful hike! We stopped along the way just to inhale the scent of pine. It took us almost an hour to hike up the mountain to the tri-state peak, it was worth the hike! I might not take others as long as Jax is little and needed breaks plus my POTS had my heart rate spiking. The view is not extravagant however, it’s still amazing to stand in three states at the same time. Jax loved that he could be in one state and I was in another. There is another trail when you are leaving Tri-State Peak and heading back down the mountain that will take you over to an Iron Furnace. We however did not take the 0.7 mile hike, as we wanted to stay close to the car and there is parking next to the iron Furnance.

Pinnacle Overlook

As we exited the parking area I turned to the right, I could have looked at the map however, I decided we would be even more spontaneous and see where the road led. I will say the drive up wasn’t bad but I knew the drive back down would be a little on the edge…..literally! I’ll tell you about it soon. As we approached the end of the road we came to a parking lot that was pretty full, the most people we had seen all day. We parked and went down the trail, the view was unbelievable! You could see mountains for miles along with the lake.

The drive down required the car to be put in low gear as we were headed down a tight road with sharp curves and no guard rails. It was a little scary, Jax was very worried as all he could see out his window was clouds. We took our time and only went about 5 mph in some areas, I don’t think we ever went over 15 mph. Once we were at the bottom of the mountain and celebrating our survival we were treated with the sight of a whitetail doe. She was beautiful and grazing along the road.

Iron Furnace

I feel this is a must-stop area, however, you do have to drive into Virginia which is only like 8 minutes away from the park entrance. You do pass the Daniel Boone Visitor Center however, it was closed as the park ranger at the main visitor center advised. You can still stop in for a bathroom break. There is a little parking lot not far from the Iron Furnace and then steps that you take up to the furnace. You can look inside the furnace and head to the nearby creek. Of course, Jax wanted to play in the creek so we took some time to relax in the creek bed for a bit. He enjoyed playing in the water as I sat on a tree and took in the sound of the water falling over the rocks. It was so peaceful I had to force myself to leave.

The End

Thank you for coming with us to the Cumberland Gap National Historical Park! Fall is a great time to visit the park as the leaves are changing and falling. It paints a beautiful picture. There are several other trails and in the warmer months, they have cave tours. The park is free to visit, I did spend $4 on two park tokens, and $8 on park stickers. I forgot to get a postcard, however, they were giving out trading cards for “Surrounded!” and “Lieutenant Colonel George W. Monroe” which I stamped before we left. If you want to learn more about the park click here. So if you get the chance head to Cumberland Gap National Historical Park and take in the views! So where should we go next? I don’t know but it will be free or cheap! So ready? Set? Let’s go!