More weird and wacky places in KY!
1. The Louisville Mega Cavern- Louisville KY
A former limestone mine, the cave stretches under sections of the Watterson Expressway and the Louisville Zoo. Created by a massive limestone quarry, miners were blasting rock for over 42 years before being bought by private investors wanting to develop it into a high security commercial storage facility. Very exciting, I know.
Today however, the cave houses 12 businesses open to the public. Offering a jeep-drawn tour of the area, hosting the largest underground Christmas light show, “Lights Under Louisville” where tourists can drive through to view holiday decorations and a light show, There's even a Zip line and rope course!
The cave also used to offer over 45 different mountain bike trails; however, it has since been closed. Who knows maybe with enough interest one day it could open again?
Either way between a light show, one of the worlds largest ropes courses and guided zip line tours, this is a great place to bring the family!
For more information check out The Louisville Mega Cavern!
2. Waverly Hills Sanatorium- Louisville KY
Also located in Louisville is one of the spookiest places I've ever seen, offering ghost tours, overnight stays for paranormal investigation and boasting a dark history, Waverly Hills Sanatorium isn't for the feint of heart.
For a real in-depth look at the Sanatorium check out their website here! Where you can buy tickets and tours, though this ones definitely not for kids!
For this blog, well break down the basics of "the most haunted place on earth!"
Over the years this 20th century building with all the architecture to match, has faced threats of being torn down. Now, protected by the Waverly Hills Historical Society, they strive to promote the education of its history, treatment, architectural significance, and the impact it and tuberculosis had on the local community.
Purchased by Major Thomas H. Hays in 1883 it was originally created to be a school for his two daughters. Together Major Thomas and the hired school teacher named it Waverly School. The Board of Tuberculosis Hospital kept the name after purchasing the land and opening the Sanatorium.
"Waverly Hills was a self-contained community. A city in and of itself, complete with its own zip code. It had its own post office, water treatment facility, grew its own fruits and vegetables, raised it’s own meat for slaughter, and maintained many of the other necessities of everyday life. Everyone at Waverly – patients, nurses, doctors, and other employees had to say ‘goodbye’ to everything they knew on the outside world. Once you went to Waverly Hills, you became a permanent resident “on the hill.” Oddly enough, despite that fact, many patients received visits from loved ones on visiting day. When the visit was over, the visitors left Waverly and ventured back out into the community."
When converted to the Sanatorium it was only supposed to house 40-50 patients. Overtime with Tuberculosis becoming an epidemic the hospital ended up expanding to hold as many as 400+ patients. For many this was the last place they would ever see.
When a cure was found for the disease it was turned into a Nursing home, so sufficed to say, the place has seen a lot of death. Now sitting empty on its hill, the Sanatorium offers tours for people hoping to experience what may lie beyond death. With reports of apparitions, footsteps trailing behind you, cold chills, and phantom voices, if you're a fan of creepy, this place is for you!
3. The 1969 Caprice- Along the Mountain Parkway in Eastern KY
Stepping away from creepy into just plain funny, is the crushed 1969 Caprice.
It's a simple story, the owner having just purchased the brand new Chevy Caprice (though some sources say it was an Impala.) Parking the car near the garage and house, (now both have rotted away leaving no signs of either.) the owner turned in for the night, not realizing he would likely be making a call to the insurance company the next day. During the night there was heavy rainfall, loosing the boulder from the mountain, causing it to fall and crush the brand new car.
Left their for years the car and boulder still sit there today just off the highway. Sources vary and most of the details of this strange comical event are lost to legend.
I'm sure there's some deep meaning you could derive from this strange accident, but my take away is buy a Toyota.
4. Kentucky's Stonehenge- Munfordville KY
Beautiful scenery and an homage to the original Stone Hinge, this structure was created by a man named Chester Fryer. Park.
After searching over 1000 acres of local Hatcher Valley, Mr. Fryer hauled almost every large rock he could possibly find in order to create his pièce de résistance.
It's not only a recreation of Stone Hinge that exists here. Chester has also created pieces titled Earth Mysteries, The Garden of Gethsemane, Rock Gardens, and Rock.
A beautiful outdoor space, and for sure a great road side attraction!
5. The Place Where Meat Fell From the Sky- Olympia Springs KY
I've saved the best for last! Right here in Bath County we had one of the strangest experiences I've ever heard of. Though not a sight you'd be able to see now, since it's so close to home I feel like we have to talk about it.
The Kentucky meat shower was an incident occurring for a period of several minutes between 11 a.m. and 12 p.m. on March 3, 1876, where what appeared to be chunks of red meat began falling from the sky. At the time, a farmer’s wife Mrs. Crouch was making soap on her porch when she reported seeing the meat pieces fall from the sky. She said she was 40 steps from her house when the meat started to slap the ground. The meat looked gristly, according to Mrs. Crouch. She and her husband believed the event signified a sign from God. (Wikipedia)
So what was this strange meat like substance? Was it really meat? Well according to a reports in Scientific American, it was first thought to be beef, two, very brave, men tasted it and thought it may be lamb or dear. If you ask me I wouldn't be caught dead eating strange meat that suddenly fell from the sky. But hey, who am I to judge?
Unsatisfied with their at home tests the two men took the 2 inch by 2inch slabs of meat to the Newark Scientific Association where it was determined to be lung tissue from either a horse or a human infant. Now those are two wildly different species but apparently the structure of the organ in these two cases where almost identical. Fascinating isn't it?
So what was it really? No one knows. It remains a mystery even today.
Some scientists theorized it was a substance called as Nostoc, a type of cyanobacteria. Locals theorized it was the meat was vomited up by buzzards "who, as is their custom, seeing one of their companions disgorge himself, immediately followed suit."
One this is for sure this event is just plain weird!