Yahoo Falls Road Improvement Project to Start June 20

Date: June 17, 2016
Contact: Johanna Wheeler, [phone]
Contact: Chris Derman, [phone]

Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area is pleased to announce that the Yahoo Falls road improvement project will begin on or about June 20, 2016. The National Park Service worked closely with McCreary County to apply for funding from the Federal Lands Access Program to pave Yahoo Falls Road.

Paving the road, which traverses both US Forest Service and National Park Service lands, that leads to the Yahoo Falls recreational area will be a great benefit to support increased visitation. The National Park Service is committed to supporting recreational use of this site and now offers weekly ranger programs in the area throughout the summer months.

The total length of the road to be paved is 1.7 miles. Approximately one mile is inside Big South Fork NRRA and the remainder is located in Daniel Boone National Forest. The road will be paved to a width of 17 feet. Access to the Yahoo Falls picnic area and trailhead will remain open throughout the project.  

The Yahoo Falls area, located in Kentucky, was first developed as an accessible scenic attraction in the 1960s. An unpaved road was built to the top of the gorge ending in a parking area. Trails were constructed, and a long flight of steel stairs leads visitors down into the gorge past cliffs and nearly vertical lush slopes. 

Yahoo Falls is located in the northern portion of Big South Fork NRRA and is Kentucky’s highest waterfall dropping 113 feet from the top edge to the pool below. The Yahoo Falls area also has ADA accessible comfort stations, picnic facilities, and scenic overlooks into the Big South Fork River gorge.