The Kentucky River Palisades are a series of steep, scenic gorges and limestone outcroppings that stretch for approximately 100 mi (160 km), along the

Kentucky River The Kentucky River is a tributary of the Ohio River, long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed June 13, 2011 in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. Commonwealth of Kentuc ...

in central Kentucky in the United States.

Geology

The Kentucky River Palisades is a cliff-lined entrenched meander. The meanders originally formed on the Lexington Peneplain. As sea-level lowered during the Quaternary Period, base level lowered and the meander-form river eroded downward into Ordovician-age limestones,

shale Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock formed from mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4) and tiny fragments (silt-sized particles) of other minerals, especial ...

s, and

dolomite Dolomite may refer to: *Dolomite (mineral), a carbonate mineral *Dolomite (rock), also known as dolostone, a sedimentary carbonate rock *Dolomite, Alabama, United States, an unincorporated community *Dolomite, California, United States, an unincor ...

s in the Central Bluegrass Region. The

Lexington Limestone The Lexington Limestone is a prominent geologic formation that constitutes a large part of the late Ordovician bedrock of the inner Bluegrass region in Kentucky. Named after the city of Lexington, the geologic formation has heavily influenced bot ...

, which covers most of this area, is composed of interbedded shales and thin limestones. Erosion of these

lithologies The lithology of a rock unit is a description of its physical characteristics visible at outcrop, in hand or core samples, or with low magnification microscopy. Physical characteristics include colour, texture, grain size, and composition. Lit ...

usually form gentle to moderate slopes. However, the Kentucky River Fault system, part of which runs along the Palisades, provides another controlling factor. Movement along the fault has been largely vertical. Strata on the north side of the fault were raised several hundred feet relative to those on the south side. The thick dolomites and limestones of the High Bridge Group (Tyrone, Oregon, and Camp Nelson formations) are resistant to erosion and tend to be cliff-forming. As downward erosion hit the Camp Nelson Group rocks, meander-shaped cliffs were formed. Daniel Boone's Fort Boonesborough was sited close to the fault and the eastern end of the Palisades.

Ecology

The Palisades are considered by environmentalists to form a unique ecosystem in the region. Its topography, soil, and tree composition are different from the surrounding rolling plains. The display of spring ephemeral wildflowers is especially extravagant due to the rich limestone soils. The deep cliffs provide a habitat for four species of endangered bats as well as several rare and endangered plant species. The steep cliffs surrounding the Kentucky River harbor the largest concentration of forest within the Inner Bluegrass, which is otherwise developed or cleared.

Blue ash ''Fraxinus quadrangulata'', the blue ash, is a species of ash native primarily to the Midwestern United States from Oklahoma to Michigan, as well as the Bluegrass region of Kentucky and the Nashville Basin region of Tennessee. Isolated populati ...

(Fraxinus quadrangulata),

chinquapin oak ''Quercus muehlenbergii'', the chinquapin (or chinkapin) oak, is a deciduous species of tree in the white oak group (''Quercus'' sect. ''Quercus''). The species was often called ''Quercus acuminata'' in older literature. ''Quercus muehlenbergii ...

(Quercus muehlenbergii) and sugar maple (Acer saccharum) are abundant on the steep limestone slopes, along with less common trees like

rock elm ''Ulmus thomasii'', the rock elm or cork elm (or orme liège in Québec), is a deciduous tree native primarily to the Midwestern United States. The tree ranges from southern Ontario and Quebec, south to Tennessee, west to northeastern Kansas, ...

(Ulmus thomasi), yellowwood (Cladrastis lutea) and

yellow buckeye ''Aesculus flava'', the yellow buckeye, common buckeye, or sweet buckeye, is a species of deciduous tree. It is native to the Ohio Valley and Appalachian Mountains of the Eastern United States. It grows in mesophytic forest or floodplains, genera ...

(Aesculus octandra). Sites on old sandy river terraces and bluff-top ridges have more acid or infertile soils and harbor

beech Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...

(Fagus) and tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera) trees more common in Appalachian Kentucky. Other uncommon woody species found in the Palisades include

Paxistima ''Paxistima'' is a small genus of shrubs in the family Celastraceae containing two North American species. *''Paxistima canbyi'' (Canby's mountain-lover) is an uncommon shrub native to the Appalachians and surrounding areas in the United State ...

Chokecherry ''Prunus virginiana'', commonly called bitter-berry, chokecherry, Virginia bird cherry, and western chokecherry (also black chokecherry for ''P. virginiana'' var. ''demissa''), is a species of bird cherry (''Prunus'' subgenus ''Padus'') nat ...

, and various types of

Viburnum ''Viburnum'' is a genus of about 150–175 species of flowering plants in the moschatel family Adoxaceae. Its current classification is based on molecular phylogeny. It was previously included in the honeysuckle family Caprifoliaceae. The membe ...

Nature Preserves

* Clyde E. Buckley Wildlife Sanctuary * Crutcher and Sally Brown * Floracliff (by guided hike only) * Jim Beam * Dupree * Lower Howard's Creek * Raven Run * Tom Dorman State Nature Preserve In 2007 the

Kentucky State Parks Maintained by the Kentucky Department of Parks, Kentucky's system of 49 state parks has been referred to as "the nation's finest" and experiences more repeat business annually than those of any other U.S. state. The state's diverse geography provid ...

announced the purchase of adjacent to Tom Dorman State Nature Preserve for the creation of the new Palisades State Park.

External links

Kentucky River Palisades: Hope or Illusion?
{{coord, 37.765, N, 84.627, W, type:landmark_region:US-KY, display=title Landforms of Kentucky Cliffs of the United States