Kentucky trails · Sheltowee Trace
Sheltowee Trace
A 214.5-mile point-to-point in Kentucky, with 839 ft of climbing. Reaches Balanced Rock and other arch/pass/summit/viewpoint destinations. Managed by the U.S. Forest Service.
Elevation profile
The climbing is spread fairly evenly along the route. It gives back about 19,920 ft along the way, so it rolls rather than climbing steadily.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Reaches
- Balanced Rock (arch)
- The Narrows (pass)
- Cloud Splitter (arch)
- Natural Bridge (arch)
- Adena Arch (arch)
- Henson Cave Arch (arch)
- Limestone Knob (summit)
- Half Moon Arch (arch)
- Indian Staircase (viewpoint)
- Whites Branch Arch (viewpoint)
Heads up
Getting there
SHELTOWEE TRACE NORTH TERMINUS TRAILHEAD — parking nearby, water. 38.38524, -83.41633 · directions
Daylight at the trailhead
On August 31, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 6:34 a.m., the sun rises at 7:01 a.m. and sets at 8:05 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 8:32 p.m. (EDT) — 13 h 03 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 214.5-mile route works out to roughly 79 h 52 min of walking — more than a single day of daylight here, so plan it as an overnight or hike it in sections.
Loop options
- Sheltowee Trace + Sheltowee Trace Trail #100 — 1.2 mi loop, 187 ft gain
- Sheltowee Trace + Limestone Bike Trail #109 — 2.2 mi loop, 111 ft gain
- Limestone Loop D + Sheltowee Trace — 4.8 mi loop, 233 ft gain
Nearby trails
- 4C'S — 15.1 mi
- Lakeview Ridge — 19.9 mi
- Buckskin — 22.3 mi
- Carpenter's Run — 28.4 mi