It's really amazing how often people who live close to "tourist attractions" never go to see them or use them. That seems to be the case with Pickett State Park. It's only about 5 miles or so from the front gate of Rockhouse Ranch, Spruce Creek or any of the campgrounds in the area. From the intersection of Highway 154 and Highway 297, where you'd turn right toward Big South Fork, it's 3 miles straight ahead to the park office and the entrance.
The park lies within the 19,200-acre Pickett State Forest, adjacent to the massive 125,000-acre Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, and is known for its geological, botanical and scenic wonders. Visitors to the park can explore large rock houses, natural sandstone bridges, scenic bluffs, and wild mountain streams. The park memorializes and preserves the unique work of the Civilian Conservation Corps.
In 1933, the Stearns Coal and Lumber Company in nearby Stearns, Kentucky, donated nearly 12,000 acres of land to the State of Tennessee to be developed as a forest recreational area. Initial development of the area by the Civilian Conservation Corps , or CCC as it was known, occurred between 1934-1942 and consisted of five rustic cabins, a recreation lodge, a ranger station, hiking trails and a twelve-acre lake. Many of the original buildings were constructed of native sandstone that was quarried from the nearby forest. These beautifully-built buildings have stood the test of time and the park is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The place looks like a state park should...neatly cut grass, the striking stone cabins built by the CCC and a little lake bordered by a sheer rock bluff on one side and a lovely wooded picnic area on the other. There's a small swimming area with a sand beach and a boathouse with flat-bottomed boats and canoes for rent. And...for you anglers, the lake is stocked with TROUT (yes , TROUT...not Bass). You won't want to miss seeing Hazard Cave, the largest "Indian rockhouse" in the area and the Natural Stone Bridge.
Pickett State Park is truly an asset to the Big South Fork area.
For more information on horse properties and the Big South Fork real estate, go to www.trailridersrealestate.com
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