Announcing the Second Answers in Genesis Field Trip to Red River Gorge!

Last month I led the first Answers in Genesis field trip to Red River Gorge. That trip was so successful that we’ve scheduled the next field trip to Red River on June 22. As before, we’re planning four stops. Three of these will be the same as before: Rockbridge, Sky Bridge, and Chimney Top Rock/Princess Arch. However, instead of visiting Gray’s Arch, this time we will go to Star Gap Arch. The hike to Gray’s Arch and back was a bit difficult for some people, so we decided to swap Star Gap Arch for Gray’s Arch. The hiking distance is about the same, but the trail to Star Gap Arch is level (more than half is along a gravel road), so it shouldn’t be a difficult hike.

I call Star Gap Arch the best known of the little-known arches in Red River Gorge. There are about ten arches in the Gorge that have established trails and signs that lead directly to them. All the other hundreds of arches require knowledge of where they are to find them. While some of these other arches are located near established trails, others are along unofficial but good trails. Still other arches are completely off-trail, requiring cross-country travel to reach them. And many of these arches are small. While I like searching for these hard-to-reach arches, not everyone agrees. I certainly don’t take too many novices to them, and I certainly won’t do that on the Answers in Genesis field trips.

Star Gap Arch is the category of arches with no signage or marked trail leading to them. However, the well-traveled trail to it is a relatively short distance off an established trail. In fact, as late as the 1980s, people could drive nearly to Star Gap Arch. Its general location is marked on United States Geological Survey topographical maps. These two factors probably account for Star Gap Arch being so well known. Given its relative size, symmetry, and easy access, I include Star Gap Arch in the top half-dozen arches in Red River (the other five are Natural Bridge, Grays’ Arch, Sky Bridge, Rockbridge, and White’s Branch Arch). Below are three pictures of Star Gap Arch.