Things to Do in Middlesboro

In 2011, WBIR-TV reported that local racecar driver Trevor Bayne dropped by Oakes Farm to see his face carved into the corn. The farm had adopted Bayne as that year's maze theme, plotting its pathways to shape the corn into his portrait and an image of his racecar when viewed from above. On the ground, however, the maze was a tangle of curves and dead ends that often took guests up to 90 minutes to traverse on foot, or 10 minutes on the warpath.

This year, the corn maze has chosen to celebrate Extreme Makeover Home Edition. The farm updates its agricultural labyrinth annually to reflect a new motif but never fails to entertain explorers with its routes and their interactive games. Just as entertaining are the hayrides that ferry visitors to and from the pumpkin patch, the smell of autumnal sweets from the Cornfections stand, and the echoes of laughter from inside the Mine Shaft—a giant slide in the farm's Back 40 entertainment area. These attractions, alongside animal exhibits, pedal karts, and open zones for freeform play, draw families and reporters alike to the seasonal hotspot. In the days approaching Halloween, however, the farm endeavors to make patrons flee.

Sheltowee Trace Outfitters’ founder, Rick Egedi, has navigated Kentucky’s waters since 1981. At his adventure center, he and his staff lead guided trips on area rivers, such as the Big South Fork of the Cumberland River. Canoers, whitewater rafters, and tubers can float through placid, sun-dappled segments or conquer frothing rapids; alternatively, shorter trips ferry adventurers straight to the foot of the Cumberland Falls, where they can feel the waterfall’s spray and see that, despite conspiracy theories, it is not just water descending an escalator.

For landlubbers, the center’s activities range from trips up a climbing wall to geocaching excursions, on which visitors prowl through the surrounding greenery on a tech-savvy scavenger hunt using GPS tracking to turn up hidden caches of trinkets. During multiday outdoor trips, visitors can spend the night in nearby lodgings, such as quaint cabins and campgrounds, rather than sleeping atop nature’s waterbed—the puddle.

Stearns Coal & Lumber Company, which controlled more than 200 square miles of land in Kentucky and Tennessee, built the K&T Railway to navigate and export its vast mountain resources. Now owned by a nonprofit organization, the K&T Railway still chugs along the same scenic pathways, importing sightseers and history buffs to glimpse the area's coal, lumber, and railroading past. Trips down into the gorge of the Big South Fork River drop almost 600 feet of elevation in 5 miles, with the train's sturdy engine conquering the steep mountain descent and ascent. In addition to traditional trips, the railway also offers specialty excursions that include hiking trips, twilight Halloween-themed rides, and a Santa Express fueled by the burning presents of disobedient children.

Deep within the Appalachian Mountains, the forest's leaves flutter as a blurry figure speeds by. But the creature high above the treetops isn't a bird, a plane, or a sports mascot recently released back into the wild. It's a person strapped into one of Black Mountain Thunder Zipline’s 11 ziplines, which take customers some 400 feet above the ground and at speeds of up to 60 miles per hour. Spread over 1.5 miles, the ziplines wind through canopies and down mountain slopes on trips that last roughly two hours. Expert guides tag along on every tour to ensure safety and instruct adventurers on equipment.

Jon boats and pontoons putter across the calm waters of Wilgreen Lake Marina, while just beneath the surface, bass and bluegill flit past fishing lines. Founded by passionate bass angler Randy Nunley, the idle-speed marina strives to serve as a fisherman’s oasis. In addition to the rental fleet, a bait shop peddles live bait, tackle, and waterproof love notes for luring in fish. Nunley also fires up competitive spirits with annual bass tournaments.

Suspended up to 250 feet above the Kentucky wilderness and stretching up to 1,900 feet long, Red River Gorge's five ziplines web out across its namesake ravine and Daniel Boone National Forest. Harnessed visitors clamber up to platforms and across sky bridges for a pterodactyl's-eye view that greets them during two- or three-hour zipline canopy tours. The final two legs of the tour are dual racing lines, where riders zoom at up to 50 miles per hour. Explorers can also traverse the wild in the comfort of a U.S. Army hummer during off-road tours, which wind through the Kentucky mountains with seasoned guides behind the wheel.