Sheltowee Trace: Cumberland Falls to Bark Camp Creek

Sheltowee Trace Section 27, Cumberland Falls State Resort Park and Daniel Boone National Forest, London Ranger District (near Corbin)

North of Cumberland Falls, the Sheltowee Trace follows the Cumberland River downstream through the Daniel Boone National Forest, past side-creek waterfalls and sandstone bluffs. Hiking Project calls this stretch, Section 27, a 9.1-mile point-to-point with “hundreds of waterfalls during the wet season,” and rates it difficult.

The Sheltowee Trace runs about 343 miles through Kentucky and Tennessee, according to Wikipedia, which says the name honors Daniel Boone’s Shawnee name, “Big Turtle.”

The hike

Backpackcamp describes the start at the Cumberland Falls parking lot, following the concrete path past the visitor center and down to the riverbank, with views of the falls from below. It cites the falls as 125 feet wide and 68 feet tall, “sometimes called the ‘Niagara of the South.’”

Nathan Jones, writing on Steemit about a July 2016 overnight, describes about 11 miles from Cumberland Falls toward Laurel River Lake, with Dog Slaughter Falls at about the 3.5-mile mark, the pools of Bark Camp Creek, and “plenty of up and down” on stone steps he credits to the Civilian Conservation Corps. “This entire section of trail follows along the Cumberland river, and offers many nice views of the river,” he writes.

Hiking Project lists a Catfish Creek bridge and notes that the Dog Slaughter Creek bridge marks a change to rougher ground. It warns that there are few intersections and limited ways out, so hikers should “turn around before you’re exhausted.” Beyond Bark Camp Creek, Backpackcamp says, the trail follows the Laurel River and grows more rugged before reaching Laurel Lake Dam.

A 2014 trip on Alternative Pinnacles hiked the section the other way, from the Bark Camp Creek trailhead north to Cumberland Falls, about five miles to the first night’s camp at Star Creek. The writer describes Devil Creek and Star Creek, where the stream “spills down a steep cliff face before free-falling when the cliff face reaches the lip of a rockshelter,” then a side trip to Dog Slaughter Falls and Eagle Falls the next day. The trail seemed “infrequently used” compared with the Red River Gorge.

The Forest Service’s Dog Slaughter Falls Trail, a separate approach to the falls, has been closed between its two trailheads since storm damage in April 2024; the falls can still be reached from the lower trailhead, where the bridge has been removed and a creek crossing is required.

For a quieter Sheltowee section near the Gorge, see Swift Camp Creek, and for a longer Kentucky ridge walk, the Pine Mountain Trail.

Tips

Shuttle or out-and-back. Bark Camp Creek and Cumberland Falls make natural endpoints.
Go after rain for waterfalls, per Hiking Project, but watch creek crossings.
Treat river and creek water. Water is plentiful along the river, according to the 2016 report.
Respect the setbacks. No camping within 100 feet of cliff bases or rock shelters on the national forest.
Leave the falls area before camping. Developed camping is at Cumberland Falls State Resort Park; camp on national forest land beyond it.

Camping

Dispersed camping in the Daniel Boone National Forest needs no permit or fee outside the Red River Gorge, according to the Forest Service. Stays are limited to 14 days in 30, and gear can’t be left unattended more than 24 hours. Camping is prohibited within 100 feet of cliff bases or rock shelters, and within 300 feet of the water’s edge at Laurel River Lake except at designated sites. Pack out everything.

Inside Intel: Backpackcamp lists Bark Camp Creek, Star Creek, and Dog Slaughter Falls as camping areas on this section. Alternative Pinnacles camped at Star Creek for its waterfall and plunge pool for water, and Nathan Jones chose a sandy riverside spot for the river views at dinner. At Star Creek, pitch well away from the rock shelter to meet the 100-foot rule.

Trail facts

Distance: 9.1 miles (Hiking Project); about 11 to Laurel River Lake
Route type: Point-to-point, or out-and-back
Difficulty: Moderate to strenuous
Campsites: Dispersed; known spots at Bark Camp Creek, Star Creek, and Dog Slaughter Falls
Water: Cumberland River and side creeks; treat
Permits: None found for dispersed camping
Blazes: White turtle (Sheltowee Trace)
Trailheads: Cumberland Falls State Resort Park; Bark Camp Creek
Managing agency: London Ranger District, 606-864-4163
Last verified: October 17, 2026

The Lowdown

A sandbar bed on the Cumberland River:

Riverside camps below Cumberland Falls mean sand and lumpy ground. A good pad smooths it out. See the pads testers like.

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Where this comes from

This page draws on the sources below, along with other guides and trip reports. Links go to the original pages.

Before you go: This page is based on published trail guides, trip reports, and reviews, along with official park and agency information where we could find it. It’s meant to help backpackers discover new trails, not to replace current, official information. Conditions, closures, permits, campsites, and water sources change, and some details here may be out of date or wrong. Confirm everything with the managing agency and check current conditions before you head out, and don’t rely on this page alone for safety or navigation. Backcountry travel involves risk.