After nearly a year of planning and months of hard work on renovations between Florida and Kentucky, we took the leap. Leaving Winchester, KY in our 1988 Scamp was something my head couldn't quite wrap around in the moment. Countless hours and long days of researching, planning and building, each with its own emotional rollercoaster had finally led to this moment. With our families, friends and hometowns distancing all at once, we began our journey West.
Within just 45 minutes of our first drive leaving the Winchester area, a sign caught my eye. "Woodford Reserve Bourbon Distillery" i couldn't help but wonder what the place was like. When i first started dating Andrea, i felt like i had to get into the bourbon scene to fit in amongst her Kentuckian family i would be around. While i was bartending in South Florida, this was one of the only bourbons i was truly able to bring myself to enjoy (Its definitely an acquired taste) but just like black coffee or a dark cigar, i eventually enjoyed it. When i saw the Woodford sign, it brought me back to my bar where during slow times i would daydream about this nomadic lifestyle and what it would be like. It clicked something in my head that said i had to go see the place. After all, thats what this chapter of my life was about right? To be able to experience new places, partake in different cultures, meet and connect with interesting people and to fill my head with knowledge was what i left home to do.
We made the last second turn onto Highway 60 and headed for the distillery. Along the way i started to think about what it would be like. I was curious about the process. How was it made? How long did it sit aging in a wooden barrel until its maker determined it perfect? We pulled onto the road that led us out to Woodford and i was instantly satisfied with my decision to make that turn. It was a curvy road through perfectly manicured horse farms that led us to the distillery and it was quite the peaceful drive. As we passed through the gates, the first building in sight was the barrelhouse, a place i imagined to be eerily quiet as bourbon barrels would just sit aging for years. It was a late victorian style brick building with its age showing through its rusty window frames and faded glass. Along the base of it ran a sort of railroad for bourbon barrels making their way in and out of their aging process.
We parked the camper alongside the barrelhouse and decided to take a walk around. On the opposite side of the building was a rather large creek (maybe a river, I'm from Florida so i don't really know the technicalities). A family of Geese and a group of turtles jumped into the water as they noticed me walking up to the bank. Naturally i had to grab my fishing rod and toss the line a few times just for the hell of it. I didn't catch anything, nor did i really expect to, but it was the meditation of the moment that mattered to me more.
After some time down at the creek/river, we made our way up to the visitors center where we read "Fun facts" about the bourbon making process along with the history of the company and its land. We walked out to an overlook where we could see the rest of the gorgeous old buildings that each had its own job and function in the machine of bourbon making at Woodford. Distracted by the beauty, we lost track of time and realized we had better get back on the road. We didn't get to stick around for a "proper" tour, but the unexpected details of the buildings and the land they laid on were more than enough to satisfy.
On the tail end of day 1 we reached into the Land Between the Lakes in the Southwest corner of Kentucky. We read online about a "service road" that led though the woods and out to a boat ramp where we could supposedly camp for free so we gave it a shot. At the end of the dirt road, sure enough we came to a boat ramp. The road was a dead end there and had a perfect cul-de-sac bordered by the woods on one side and the lake on the other. It was home for the night. I started a fire and Andrea boiled up a pot of water for a simple first night meal of Fettuccini Alfredo right there on the rocky lakeshore. After a long drive and a hot day, the crystal clear lake started looking just right for a swim. I stripped off my clothes and jumped in the water where i bathed and relaxed till the sun went down.
