The Kentucky Muleskinners group started their 2nd annual 2 week wagon train ride from Harrodsburg, Kentucky to Barbourville, Kentucky on Monday September 24, 2017. The ride started from the farm of John and Connie Mink near Harrodsburg, Kentucky with 8 wagons this year. The plan was to arrive at their Lake Linville campsite near Renfro Valley by end of day on Thursday, September 28th, 2017. After 2 layover days around Renfro Valley, the group continued their ride on Sunday morning with the goal of reaching Barbourville by Wednesday, October 4th. The route wound thru the Civil War battlefields near Perryville, skirted Danville and passed thru Crab Orchard on the way to Renfro Valley over the first 4 days. The 2nd week of the trip saw the group reach London, Kentucky on Monday afternoon where they laid over for one day before completing the final leg into Barbourville on Wednesday afternoon. Thursday and Friday were then spent riding some of the back roads in the Barbourville area before packing up to come home on Saturday.
The weather for the entire two weeks was great with no rain and moderate temperatures after the first few warm days. This allowed the group to make great time as there was not a need to make as many stops to allow the horses and mules to cool down. Along the way, some wagons joined the group while others left after riding with the group for a day or two. There were between 6 and 9 wagons each day, although there were only 4 wagons who actually made the entire trip. We had a great time, made some new friends and identified some new places to camp along the way.
The links below will take you to over 600 of the photos I took during the trip. I rode with Danny Crawford as usual. We were the lead wagon for most of the trip, so there might not be as many individual photos as usual, but I think I got photos of everyone at some time during the trip. I hope you enjoy the photos I've posted.