
Kentucky Overview
Kentucky is a fairly small American state in terms of area, but there is still a lot to see here. These include the thoroughbred horses and the Kentucky Derby, to which people from numerous countries travel to Kentucky, but the whiskey that is distilled in this area is also very well known.
According to ehotelat, Kentucky is also known for its diverse nature, which is home to many plants and animals, including deer, some of which can be easily observed in the forests.
Another thing that makes many people excited about the state is that Kentucky is, in the broadest sense, the home of country music. Country festivals are definitely not to be missed on a Kentucky vacation.
The waterfall Cumberland Falls is one of the most beautiful sights of the state. Also worth seeing is the Mammoth Cave National Park, where you can admire and partially walk through one of the largest known cave systems.
The legendary Fort Knox is, of course, one of Kentucky’s attractions. Various museums complete the cultural offering in Kentucky.
Most visitors come to Kentucky in the summer when there are many events taking place.
Kentucky Geography and Map
Kentucky – officially: The Commonwealth of Kentucky – is an American state that separates the Midwest from the Deep South of the country. The capital is Frankfort. The name Kentucky is said to be derived from an Iroquois word. The state is best known for the whiskey distilleries located there and for its thoroughbred horses. Because of its shimmering blue-green grass pastures, Kentucky is also known as Bluegrass State.
The bluegrass or meadow bluegrass is a common sweet grass used as a fodder plant. Because of the special nature of the soil in Kentucky, the leaves of the meadow bluegrass that grow there have a special blue-green color.
Kentucky covers an area of approximately 104,659 square kilometers. The national territory extends from north to south over a length of 225 kilometers and from east to west over a width of 610 kilometers. The average Kentucky area is 230 meters above sea level. The highest point in the state is Black Mountain at an altitude of 1,263 meters. The lowest point in Kentucky is on the Mississippi River at a height of 78 meters above sea level.
Kentucky borders Illinois to the northeast and Indiana and Ohio to the north. The Ohio River forms the natural boundary. Neighbor to the northeast is West Virginia and to the west Kentucky meets Virginia. To the south is Tennessee and to the west Kentucky shares a border with Missouri. There the Mississippi River determines the borderline.
KNOWLEDGE is the only US state that has a non-state exclave : the Kentucky Bend. The Kentucky Bend is a peninsula on the Mississippi River and covers an area of approximately 68 square kilometers. The area is surrounded on three sides by the Mississippi, borders Tennessee to the south and can only be reached by land via Tennessee. The Kentucky Bend is the westernmost point in the state.
Major rivers in Kentucky include its border rivers, the approximately 1,579-kilometer-long Ohio River and the 3,778-kilometer-long Mississippi River. They determine the landscape on the borders of Kentucky. Another important river is the Tennessee River. The 1,049 km long river is the longest tributary of the Ohio River in Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama. It arises from the confluence of several small source rivers in the Appalachian Mountains and finally flows into the Ohio.
Also of importance are the Cumberland River, the Rough River, the Big Sandy, the Licking and, last but not least, the 417 km long Kentucky River. The approximately 1,106 kilometer long Cumberland River rises in eastern Kentucky not far from the border with Virginia in the western foothills of the Appalachians and flows into the Ohio. About half of the river that flows through three large reservoirs is navigable. In southeast Kentucky, the river forms the Cumberland Falls. The falls are 21 feet high and 40 feet wide and form the focal point of Cumberland Falls State Park. Kentucky only has three major natural lakes, but it has a few large reservoirs.
Geographically, Kentucky can be divided into five main regions. In the north is the bluegrass region. From a geological point of view, it is one of the oldest parts of the state and, with its calcareous soils, offers an excellent basis for grain cultivation and grazing. To the south, separated by a narrow chain of hills – the Knobs – extends the Pennyroyal Plateau. Often referred to simply as Pennyrile in Kentucky, it is part of the Mississippi Plateau and home to Mammoth Cave National Park. The largest known cave system in the world is located there – with a mapped extent of around 590 kilometers: the Mammut Cave. It belongs to the world natural heritage.
In northwest Kentucky are the Western Coal Fields. In addition to coal mining, the region is known for its productive soils and is mainly used for agriculture. The region in the far west of Kentucky is called Jackson Purchase, named after President Andrew Jackson. The low-lying alluvial land is very fertile and is home to the most productive agricultural areas in the state.
The east of Kentucky is shaped by the Cumberland Plateau, the southern part of the Appalachian Plateau. In addition to Kentucky, it extends over parts of West Virginia, Tennessees, Alabama, and Georgia. It owes its name to the approximately 1,106-kilometer-long Cumberland River that flows through it. At the Pottsville Escarpment, a precipice that marks the transition from the Cumberland Plateau to the Bluegrass region, numerous spectacular cliffs, canyons, rock arches and roofs as well as waterfalls have formed.
In the southeast of Kentucky, the Cumberland Mountains join. This mountain range is also part of the Appalachian Mountains.