Come See Our State on Route 68 (sung to the tune of Come Get Your Kicks on Route 66) - Part 1

U. S. 68 North

If there is one scenic highway that defines the beauty of the Bluegrass Region, it is U.S. 68.  Where once buffalo roamed, now Thoroughbreds frolic.  The rolling hills and lush farmland surrounding it have seen pioneers and pirates, settlers and Shakers, master distillers and masons who were responsible for the limestone fences that have become a symbol of the region.

And finally, visitors – plenty of them - who begin their stay in Lexington in Fayette County, and head north into Bourbon, Nicholas and Harrison Counties, or south from Lexington to Boyle and Mercer Counties. 

In this article, we’re heading north (we’ll go south in the next one), so grab those snacks and sodas, turn up the radio, and get ready to hit the road for an epic adventure on Route 68.

It’s a nostalgic road map marked by drive-in restaurants and drive-in movies, an urban “Field of Dreams,” a country store with a Golden Age of Radio history, a town where the Dead Walk every Halloween, a return of bourbon to a previously dry county, and a covered bridge you can actually drive through.

Traveling U.S. 68 North – Counties:  Fayette, Bourbon, Nicholas, Harrison

Getting Started in Fayette County:

U.S. Highway 68 cuts right through Lexington, where it’s also known as Harrodsburg Road, Broadway, and eventually Paris Pike.

If you’re making Lexington your base and are looking for a different kind of place to stay, you’ll find it at Lyndon House located on Broadway just north of downtown.   The gracious 1883 brick mansion with imposing yellow columns is today a 7-room bed-and-breakfast inn with a back porch overlooking a garden, a fully stocked bourbon bar and the usual bountiful breakfast.

But Lyndon House also offers something most B&Bs don’t – a full-service dinner restaurant, Chez Lyndon, serving a three-course menu.

The inn is a short drive to leafy Gratz Park, Lexington’s oldest neighborhood, which in turn, is just across from Transylvania University, the oldest college west of the Allegheny Mountains -  established in 1780 by the Virginia Assembly (as Kentucky was still part of Virginia).

Be sure to look for a small log cabin on the campus.  Built by Col. Robert Patterson for his wife in 1780, it’s thought to be the oldest surviving dwelling in Lexington.

On your way out of town, you’ll pass Legends Field, home of the Lexington Legends, the city’s minor league professional baseball team.  If you’re in town when there’s a game, what could be more fun than an evening at the ballpark cheering on the boys of summer?

Heading north, U.S. 68 changes from Broadway to Paris Pike, and it may be hard to keep your eyes on the road.

Thoroughbred farms line Paris Pike on both sides, and if you’re here in spring and early summer, you’re guaranteed to see mares with their foals cavorting behind picket fences.

Check ‘em out and jot ‘em down:

A large white building set back from the Pike, the Keeneland-affiliated Thoroughbred Center, offers tours where visitors have a chance to see horses during their morning workouts, observe trainers as they work with potential future champions, and tour barns and paddocks where the horses spend their “off-duty” hours.

A slight detour off of Paris Pike onto Iron Works Pike takes you past more fabled farms with names like Elmendorf and Spendthrift (allegedly named for the original owner’s wife’s penchant for shopping).   Reaching Russell Cave Road, the majestic horse farms give way to what appears to be a rustic country store. 

Don’t be fooled by its modest appearance.  The Jot ‘em Down Store has quite the history.  Opened in 1933, it’s a throwback to a time when the social life of a community centered on the general store – a place where the whole town could come to pick up dry goods and groceries, get a little free medical advice and a lot of free political advice – all washed down (if the storekeep was off the clock) with some homemade corn liquor.

Don’t expect the corn liquor today and they may be a little short on the free medical advice, but they’ll happily talk about how the Jot ‘em Down Store got its name and its connection to a 1930s radio program, “The Lum ‘n’ Abner Show.”

A more recent celeb connection was actress and University of Kentucky grad Ashley Judd who loved the Jot ‘em Down’s bologna and cheese sandwich.

A Burger, a Shake and a Drive-in Movie:

Get back on U.S. 68 headed toward Paris in Bourbon County to experience any serious road tripper’s dream.  Before you hit downtown, stop at what is believed to be the only remaining Jerry’s Drive-in restaurant in America.  They may not have the roller-skating carhops anymore, but you can still get a J-Boy and a shake.

Heading through downtown, don’t be surprised by the miniature replica of the Eiffel Tower (you know, the one in that other Paris), stop for a while in Secretariat Park to pay your respects to “Big Red,” still considered by many to be the greatest Thoroughbred in history.

Then head to Claiborne Farm, Secretariat’s home following his racing career.  You must book your tour directly through the farm.

You can’t leave Bourbon County without tasting some bourbon, can you?  Well, prior to 2024, you would have had to.

Following Prohibition, the 26 distilleries in the county were closed and remained so for more than a century, leaving visitors perplexed……Bourbon County without bourbon?

The opening of craft distillery Hartfield & Co. changed that.  Located in downtown Paris, it’s the perfect place to stop for a tour and tasting, and a chance to celebrate the return of bourbon to its namesake county.

Nostalgia buffs will find it worthwhile to make a brief detour to Hinkston Creek on the Bourbon/Harrison County line for a photo op at the Colville Covered Bridge.  Erected in 1877, it is one of 11 covered bridges left in Kentucky.

As you leave Bourbon County en route to Nicholas County, you’ll pass a true relic of the 1950s/60s - the Bourbon Drive-In Theater.

If you want to relive your own high school days or imagine those of your parents, come back for a double feature movie every weekend from spring to early fall. 

Know before you go: it’s cash only at the box office, cash and credit cards at the concession stand, and please don’t take the speaker with you when you leave.

U.S. 68’s Beautiful Rural Landscapes in Nicholas and Harrison Counties:

Nicholas and Harrison Counties offer some of the loveliest landscapes in the Bluegrass Region.  Acres of rolling farmland provide plenty of opportunity to relax and enjoy the scenery unfolding around you.  Scenery such as Lake Carnico in Nicholas County and the South Fork of the Licking River in Harrison County.  If your road trip requires having a watery component, you’ll love this part of the Bluegrass Region.

However, be sure to save time for the county seats, Carlisle in Nicholas County, and Cynthiana in Harrison County, both of which have small town charm on a large scale.

Carlisle is known as “the little town with the big heart,” and its downtown is worth seeing.  Of special interest is the ornate courthouse, a landmark since the late 1800s. 

You might also want to check out the one room Hildreth Schoolhouse, in operation from the 1880s until 1941, and used in the filming of a PBS series about Huckleberry Finn.

Away from downtown, you’ll definitely will want to check out Wendt’s Wildlife Adventure, the Bluegrass Region’s answer to an African game reserve.  Here, animal species - both exotic (emu, sloth, kangaroo, camels) and domestic (cattle and parakeets in their own encounter) - thrill visitors.

Wendt’s is located on land where Daniel Boone once lived.  His last home in Kentucky, a one-room cabin he built in 1795, can still be seen.

Harrison County has an equally charming town, Cynthiana, often described as “the small town escape for your soul.”

Walk Pike and Main Streets for one-of-a-kind boutiques and mom-and-pop shops.  Take a walking tour of the city’s more than 30 murals – fans of the TV show The Walking Dead come from all over the world to get a selfie in front of the world’s largest Walking Dead mural dedicated to the cult classic whose creators are Cynthiana natives.

Browse an independent bookstore (The Next Chapter); have a cold brew on a hot day at a local micro-brewery (Maiden City Brewing Co.) or a wine flight at the Pike Street Wine House; reserve your table at Biancke’s, a Cynthiana tradition since 1894 and still going strong.  The home-style southern cooking features catfish, Hot Browns, Smothered Fried Chicken and Beer Cheese Burgers.  We promise you won’t leave hungry. 

What we can’t promise is that you won’t leave haunted after a visit to Roh’s Opera House (you’ll know it by that mural of the Walking Dead painted on an exterior wall).

Named one of the most haunted buildings in Kentucky, the historic theater dates to 1871 when it was known as the Aeolian Hall Music Association, home to large scale operas and theatrical productions.

It now shows first-run movies, and on Friday and Saturday nights, hosts paranormal sessions attended by ghosthunters from around the world.

If you decide to attend, you may find yourself seated next to “the Lady in White,” a long-ago opera patron who seems to think her subscription entitles her to a life (and afterlife) of uninterrupted performances.

By now, you have reached the end of the Bluegrass Region’s portion of US 68 North, but there’s much more awaiting you on the Southern end.

So, gas up the car, replenish your travel snacks, and get ready for more summertime adventures on US Highway 68 South.

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