Day 7 - 5/14/07 (Lynchburg, TN, Mammoth Cave National Park, Bardstown, KY)

(Note: I know it's been a few days since I posted. Please be aware that I finally caught up and added something for each day below).


Wow…today was awesome. I discovered two new places I would be ok living if I ever had to leave LA to join the witness protection agency. The first would be Lynchburg, TN, the home of Jack Daniels Tennessee Whiskey. I took the tour, compete with taking notes, and it was great. Learned a lot about the process, and the different products the company offers. The whiskey originally ferments and produces 124 proof Jack that is later watered down. There was one point where we were invited to smell the 124 proof whiskey as it was being “mellowed” through ten feet of charcoal. We opened up the barrels and the smell of alcohol was so strong, I think it may have gotten me drunk for a few seconds….so I lifted it again and took a second breath…

As some of you may know, Lynchburg is actually a dry county, as it has been ever since prohibition. Actually, Jack Daniels (real name Jasper Daniels) had a bar in Lynchburg but closed it during prohibition and never opened it again, instead focusing on the distillery more intensively when prohibition was lifted…so something good came out of it. Now the only place in the whole county that alcohol over 7% can be purchased is at the distillery (and that has only been the case for the past 12 years).

After the tour, I ventured to the gift shops. Big mistake…I was like a kid in a candy store. They had everything Jack from bar stools to BBQs to pool tables and much much more. I bought a few things to decorate my bar and the backyard...ok, maybe more than a few things. Let’s just say if you come to my apartment there will be no question whether or not “Jack Lives Here” (as they say in their ads).

From there I drove up through Tennessee to Kentucky to hit up Bardstown, the home of Jim Beam and Makers Mark. On my way I ran across Mammoth Cave National Park. I had some extra time so I got off the interstate and drove through the park. It was striking how different this national park was from the ones in Utah. Both beautiful in their own way, but yet so completely different. I think this is where Kentucky-ians must go for vacation. The road leading up to the park must have had 30 different attractions; water parks, golf, a wax museum, a dinosaur museum, a haunted house, just to name a few.

The second place I would like to live is Bardstown, where I am right now. It’s so perfect seeming. A small little city, with small streets, big lots of land, and big houses…not to mention it is the home of 4 different bourbon distilleries, including Jim Beam and Makers Mark. I found a bed and breakfast that I wanted to stay in. It was about $40 more than I would have spent at a motel, but I decided after a week of motels I should go for it. It’s a beautiful house, complete with rocking chairs in the front, which I am utilizing right now as I write this and drink some bourbon (really, the rocking chairs on the front porch is what sealed the deal when deciding to spend the extra money on this place). Across the street from this bed and breakfast is the home of Stephen Foster, who wrote My Old Kentucky Home. This phrase and a picture of his home is the symbol of Kentucky on its official State Quarter released by the US Mint.

I ended my evening at a bar a few blocks away simply called “Bourbon Bar” which had all types of bourbon imaginable. I had a few dinks recommended to me by some bikers who were sitting at the stools next to me. It’s a great little city and I may have to buy some land. Tomorrow I check out the actual distilleries and try to restrain myself form buying as much as I did in Lynchburg.

Oh, and I got an offer for a summer internship at a Johnson & Johnson’s company, Advanced Sterilization Products. I haven’t officially accepted yet, but I will soon, so if any of you want to offer me bundles of money to come work for you, I suggest you do it soon.Fast Facts:

Today's Mileage: 244
Total Mileage: 3,027

Today's Gas Price: $2.79