Carrollton Pleasureville Bagdad - Kentucky

[Stichill]

Kentucky is an interesting US state for motorcyclists, especially if you are willing to go off the beaten path down lanes with no white side markers and in some cases no center lane markers. In most US states, 4-digit route numbers are rare, however Kentucky has route numbers into the 3600s. Yep, Kentucky has a lot of roads. Yet, most of them are rural and therefore make for excellent motorcycle riding if you relish the thought of winding, curving roads with little to no vehicular traffic and no sign whatsoever of a stoplight.

On April 18, 2015 I rode to Carrollton from my base in Northern Kentucky, intent on nothing except to ride through a town with the interesting name of Bagdad. No not Baghdad, but still...interesting.

Route, starting in the west, heading SE and ending heading NE:



I rode about an hour and a half to reach Carrollton, and when I arrived it was time to have lunch. When you ride in Kentucky, you can't expect haute cuisine but you can expect good home cooking. There were several cars in the parking lot of Cooper's Restaurant...always a good sign.



This is the white meat "snack" with fries, slaw, and a roll. Does it get more Kentucky than this? No.



Full stomach, time to get on with the program.

KY 389 south of Mill Creek, west of the Kentucky River. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/UzerQ]38°36' 57.190"N 85°6' 55.120"W.



KY 574 Maddox Ridge Road, south of Port Royal, west of the Kentucky River. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/HesxX]38°32' 5.040"N 85°5' 15.75"W.



KY 574 Maddox Ridge Road, west of the Kentucky River. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/uU51B]38°31' 22.49"N 85°2'49.88"W.



Troutman Hill Road between KY 574 Maddox Ridge Road and KY 202 Drennon Road. The most wonderful shortcut I ever took. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/ityQ8]38°31' 19.10"N 85°2'25.93"W.



Drennon Creek running high along KY 202 Drennon Road, as seen from the junction of Troutman Hill Road. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/ityQ8]38°30'54.8"N 85°02'45.7"W.



KY 1360 Franklinton Road at Bullitt Hill Road. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/Q4FDu]38°28'33.8"N 85°03'57.8"W.



Rest stop at Point Pleasant Christian Church, Disciples of Christ. Point Pleasant Road at KY 573 Property Road. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/tOhcy]38°24'31.4"N 85°06'17.6"W.


Eminence-Point Pleasant Road. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/y2rvb]38°24'25.7"N 85°06'27.6"W.



[url=http://goo.gl/maps/usnbf]Pleasureville: the America that used to be. The hardware store and pool hall are still going.



This must have been a railroad hotel at one time. There are no tracks in town anymore.



The original depot. It's great to see these nostalgic structures preserved.

 

[Pterodactyl_imp]

G'day Stichill. Good photos. The road surfaces look good to reasonable and with the corners pictured must be a pleasure to ride. Fine weather, good roads, good food and intriguing scenery. A day well spent. I like the buildings you have shown. That depot, as you call it, could very well be an old Australian railway station in somewhere like North Queensland.

If the road is not too challenging I like a little background music. Rhetorical question - If I ever have the pleasure, what should I choose for your ride? Maybe a little traditional bluegrass or go a little more aggressive with a slice of Gangstagrass? I'll give it some thought.

Cheers, and thanks.

 

[Stichill]

Hello Pterodactyl! I don't ride with music but I completely understand those who do. Rhetorical or not...here's my answer.

I would start off with Scruggs' classic when the pace is quick.

Then mellow down with some [url=https://youtu.be/dSkaWhXl34Y]Little Big Town.

Pick it back up with the [url=https://youtu.be/FVIaiADsyYo]Carolina Chocolate Drops.

When you roll through small towns and pass the pool hall, hit some [url=https://youtu.be/fzhuHMgP8ZE]Gene O'Quin and some [url=https://youtu.be/UzRgVFVlrXw]Little Walter.

And what ride in the South could be complete without a little [url=https://youtu.be/1COdcLCCdcY?t=13s]Cash?

When the sun starts to fade and you're getting close to home on a Saturday night, slide back in with [url=https://youtu.be/bmZ9xRO7M9M?t=15s]Florida Georgia Line.
American bison, one of the most magnificent animals on earth. Ranch along KY 12 Bagdad Road. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/d4ieM]38°15'59.83"N 85°07'26.95"W.



Rolling mill, [url=http://goo.gl/maps/Vplmu]Bagdad.



"Harrisons Rocket-Age Feed" logo showing two hogs, a cow, and a chicken going for a ride on a missile into outer space. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/Vplmu]Bagdad.



I love to stop in and buy a soda pop at these small-town [url=http://goo.gl/maps/Vplmu]stores.



Peoples Bank of [url=http://goo.gl/maps/Vplmu]Bagdad, 1888 - 1921. This building must have cost a small fortune in 1921 and shows how good the economy of Bagdad was back then. An old man at the store saw me taking pictures and asked - in all sincerity and with great hope - if I was going to buy the bank and reopen it. Another old man stopped his lawn mower and asked me - earnestly - if I had any plans to stay in Bagdad.



[url=http://goo.gl/maps/Vplmu]Bagdad has two stores within a stone's throw of each other. Amazing since both also sell gasoline. A railroad line still runs through town but of course no trains ever stop. Thank the federal interstate highway system for that.



I was too late for a tour but the old brick buildings of the still-active Kentucky Bourbon [url=http://goo.gl/maps/eIGdF]distillery in Frankfort are fabulous.



There are Kentucky limestone fences all along KY 1900 Peaks Mills Road. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/1M9nF]38°14'48.27"N 84°50'2.62"W.


Magnificent escarpment beside Elkhorn Creek along KY 1900 Peaks Mills Road. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/nU9YP]38°15'2.57"N 84°49'0.02"W.



KY 1900 Peaks Mills Road, east of Elkhorn Creek, west of the junction with KY 1262 Rocky Branch Road. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/SNmXs]38°16'48.83"N 84°47'51.80"W.



KY 368 Cedar Creek Road east of Cedar Creek. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/HrNiu]38°21'10.25"N 84°46'33.77"W.



More KY 368... [url=http://goo.gl/maps/xbpFU]38°21'43.84"N 84°47'11.75"W.



KY 368 reminds me of a road I've ridden in southern Germany between Stockach and Rottweil through Tuttlingen. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/HsYwU]38°21'35.19"N 84°47'8.87"W.



KY 607 Claxon Ridge Road south of Sawdridge Creek. This road has an awesome hairpin curve at the confluence of Sawdridge Creek and Elk Lick Creek. I'm a better man for having ridden this road when the redbuds were in full bloom. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/vTxx7]38°24'30.82"N 84°49'36.61"W.


Cedar harvest..what a fragrance! KY 607 along Elk Lick Creek. [url=http://goo.gl/maps/RgLbH]38°25'30.68"N 84°47'22.96"W.



I couldn't resist buying this honey at the store in Bagdad. It is fabulous; carries a strong taste of the waxy comb.

 

[Cormanus]

Fabulous photos, Stichill. That CBR is a good looking bike.

Interesting, I took Pterodactyl for a ride along a Cedar Pocket Road and I'm sure there's a Cedar Creek Road between here and Brisbane.

I'll now have to investigate your music, none of which I know.

How do you collect the GPS references for where you take your photographs? Is it a manual chore or does the camera do it for you?

 

[flynrider]

Great pics! Looks like Kentucky is a beautiful place to ride. Just wish it wasn't so far away from AZ.

We've got a Bagdad here in AZ too, but the only scenery you'll see around there are some rocks, sand and lizards

 

[Rocky_imp]

Great photos
I love seeing where others ride - especially those rural roads where you can relax and cruise at a leisurely pace.

 

[the Ferret]

Wonderful report Stichill, and unbelievably complete lol. Great pics and narration. Kentucky is indeed a fabulous state to ride in. We took our Mens Fall Trip there last year based out of Berea which shouldn't be far from you. Less than 2 hours from No Ky. There are some fabulous roads there if you haven't ridden down that way.

http://cb1100forum.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=4083&highlight=Berea

 

[emptysea]

I don't think that Kentucky pops into most people's minds when they are asked to list the best motorcycling states in the U.S., but it should. The beautiful pictures and descriptions in this report and in numerous reports by Ferret and others should be sending a strong message to us here -- Get on your bikes and get to Kentucky.

Thanks for the post, Stichill

 

[redbirds_imp]

Beautiful photos. Last time we vacationed in Kentucky was 1996. I had nearly forgotten how lovely it is. Thanks.

 

[Setchman_imp]

Wow, that looks beautiful now and the trees haven't even filled in. What a hidden treasure!

 

[Stichill]

Fabulous photos, Stichill. That CBR is a good looking bike.

Interesting, I took Pterodactyl for a ride along a Cedar Pocket Road and I'm sure there's a Cedar Creek Road between here and Brisbane.

I'll now have to investigate your music, none of which I know.

How do you collect the GPS references for where you take your photographs? Is it a manual chore or does the camera do it for you?

Thanks, Cormanus. The CBR is just a great motorcycle...I have a friend in Western Australia who club raced one and in his words, "It has no vices."

I wonder if you cedars and ours are the same species? I'd guess not...

I took these photos with an iPhone 5S set to write GPS coordinates into the metadata. I haven't figured out how to efficiently extract the figures so I manually copy them into Google Maps to get the degrees-minutes-seconds format and a short link to the location in Google Maps.

Great pics! Looks like Kentucky is a beautiful place to ride. Just wish it wasn't so far away from AZ.

We've got a Bagdad here in AZ too, but the only scenery you'll see around there are some rocks, sand and lizards

Glad you enjoy the "virtual ride" - maybe someday you'll have the chance to ride here!

Great photos
I love seeing where others ride - especially those rural roads where you can relax and cruise at a leisurely pace.

Thanks! You can ride whatever ride you're in the mood for. Sometimes I wick it up close to the boiling point and get into that fluid zone of smooth momentum conservation...love it.

Wonderful report Stichill, and unbelievably complete lol. Great pics and narration. Kentucky is indeed a fabulous state to ride in. We took our Mens Fall Trip there last year based out of Berea which shouldn't be far from you. Less than 2 hours from No Ky. There are some fabulous roads there if you haven't ridden down that way.

http://cb1100forum.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=4083&highlight=Berea

Lol. I fanatically document my best trips for my own future reference, so I just did some cut/paste to bring this ride you you guys. I plan to go farther south once I get my mitts on that GT! I think I have left no 2-lane pavement untouched within 120 radius of my house. I think I've covered everything north of a line from Louisville east to the Ohio River.

I don't think that Kentucky pops into most people's minds when they are asked to list the best motorcycling states in the U.S., but it should. The beautiful pictures and descriptions in this report and in numerous reports by Ferret and others should be sending a strong message to us here -- Get on your bikes and get to Kentucky.

Thanks for the post, Stichill

Sure thing, and so true. I didn't appreciate what we have here until I started riding in 2012. Then I was like a guy living in Hawaii who suddenly discovered a sport called surfing!

Beautiful photos. Last time we vacationed in Kentucky was 1996. I had nearly forgotten how lovely it is. Thanks.

Thank you. It's not all the land of milk and honey...unfortunately there is some deep poverty in some of these areas. It's a bummer but I've gotten kind of accustomed to it and it starts to become sort of invisible after a while.

 

[Pterodactyl_imp]

Thanks Stichill. You put some good music up. Having a good look at Earl Scruggs I found his OBS. It is good. Look at these four versions.

Earl Scruggs and Lester Flat:

I like the Hot Club of Cowtown:

Don't forget the late, great Johnny Cash:

And one of my favourites, The Hellecasters:

A set of Bose QC20i in-ears kills engine and wind noise and allows me to listen to all sorts of stuff on the long straight stretches. My taste in music is what might be called eclectic*. Classical to Right Now, including this bit from Harlan County.

I better leave this alone before Ferret reminds me this is a motorcycle forum

Cheers and thanks again.

* Eclectic. I have applied to the United States Patent and Trademark to register this name for a corn based motorcycle oil Dactyl Intergalactic is developing. I can see it now - Eclectic, the Oil for Oil Occasions.

 

[hondahoarder_imp]

Great ride Journal well done, you were right down in my neck of the woods, I'm in LaGrange.

 

[nhawk7504_imp]

Can't beat those roads. What a fantastic place to ride. In New England we have some nice roads too but we have to dodge the frost heaves. All those historical stops were great too. Small roads. That's all the motorcycle you need.

 

[Stichill]

Thanks, guys! I'm glad you enjoyed the pics, even though I'm not sportin' a CB1100!

 

[Stichill]

Wonderful report Stichill, and unbelievably complete lol. Great pics and narration. Kentucky is indeed a fabulous state to ride in. We took our Mens Fall Trip there last year based out of Berea which shouldn't be far from you. Less than 2 hours from No Ky. There are some fabulous roads there if you haven't ridden down that way.

http://cb1100forum.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=4083&highlight=Berea

Just checked it out, ferret. What a great trip! I like how close and accessible it is. More time riding for fun and less time pounding to the destination. :biker: