Scenes from Rural Kentucky

As much as I’m a city girl, sometimes it’s nice to get out into nature. This was certainly the case during my trip to Kentucky back in November. Most of our visit was spent in the city of Lexington, but the final day brought us to the Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill in nearby Harrodsburg. The property, made up of over 3,000 acres, is where people of the Shaker faith lived simply over 100 years ago.

The community lived in common houses with responsibilities split between the men and women. They grew their own produce and raised animals. They lived off the land and had their own forms of medicine. They believed in celibacy and equality.

Today you can visit the buildings where they lived and the road that once ran straight through the village. The common houses have been restored to how they would have been when the Shakers lived there. You can even stay overnight, as we did. There are always activities to enjoy, like crafts and demonstrations, as well as horseback riding and hiking trails.

The leaves had fallen over the stone walls in the weeks before Thanksgiving. We were given the afternoon to explore, so I wandered the property before re-joining the group for happy hour by the fire pit. A bluegrass band strummed my favorite Nickel Creek songs as the flames flickered. They set out old fashioned games for the kids like hoops and sticks.

The Spirits Stroll is a regular event where guests are taken on a guided nighttime walk of the property. We learned more about the people that lived in the village. The tour ended at sunset next to the cemetery. Shaker Village has two strolls, one family-friendly and one more grown up.

On our final morning in the village, I woke up to a full southern breakfast and put on yoga pants. A bumpy drive down to the river prepared us for yoga on a riverboat followed by an instructional lesson on Shaker medicine. Despite feeling shaky in my poses as the boat moved through the water, my final hours in rural Kentucky calmed me, preparing me to return home.

Have you ever been to rural Kentucky? Which picture is your favorite?

My visit to Shaker Village at Pleasant Hill was hosted by Visit Lexington.