Red River Gorge is one of the most popular climbing destinations in the country. For that reason, the surrounding towns are prepped for climbers, campers and tourist. “COLD BEER” signs are posted outside of most establishments and gear/adventure shops make up the town. A couple that we met while climbing in Jackson Falls, recommended that we stay at a campsite called, “Lago Linda’s”. Since we hadn’t done much research about other options, we took their advice. The campground offered nice amenities; the luxury of taking a shower was a welcome change from river bathing. We spiralized zucchini for dinner and called it an early night to rest up before the following day’s climbing endeavors.
The next morning, we woke up as if we were college students. Tom guessed it was 8:36 and I countered with 8:24.....It was 10:00. We debated rushing off to “seize” the day, but decided instead to savor the leisurely pace that we have come to appreciate. The climbing here is unbelievably extensive, so it took us a while to find
our bearings. Once on the wall, we were both able to find ways to challenge our mental and physical abilities. The rock here averages 70’ of gritty sandstone with plenty of well-defined ledges. As we were walking to, what was going to be our final climb, Mogli found something of interest off the path. Immediately after pressing his nose deeper into the leaves, a snake struck, catching his snout. We weren’t able to identify the type of snake but both feared the worst. Quickly turning in the direction of the car, Tom started searching information on venomous snakes in Kentucky while I looked up prognoses and nearby veterinarians. The remainder of the night was spent reassurring each other that we weren’t bad dog parents for waiting to see if he developed any serious symptoms before bringing him in. Although his face was badly swollen, we were able to give him plenty of food and water before going to bed.
He was his normal peppy self this morning which offered us immediate relief. His face improved tremendously overnight making it easier for him to eat and drink. Although we were encouraged by his seemingly good health, we decided to leave him in the truck to rest while we climbed for a few hours. We had another awesome day on the wall and timed our departure perfectly with an unexpected rainfall. It’s been nice being back at camp early to take some time to catch up on texts, journaling and hang with the pup.
It’s hard to say how long we’ll be here, but we’ll definitely enjoy it until we leave.
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