One of Kentucky's 22 scenic byways, Zilpo Road leads sightseers and campers into the back country, surrounded by a section of the Daniel Boone National Forest. Zilpo Road National Forest Byway cuts through the 7500 acre Pioneer Weapons Wildlife Management Area, leading to popular Cave Run Lake and campsite.
   Fresh into the 12 mile route, the byway leads through rural pastureland before it begins to climb into a thick Daniel Boone National Forest. Following Forest Service Road 129 from KY Rt 211, the first byway stop introduces travelers to Clear Creek Lake. An excellent stop for birding and fishing, Clear Creek Lake prohibits gasoline powered watercraft, preserving this quiet retreat. Stop 2 at a picnic area offers a look at a 19th century iron furnace. An Area that filled the need for all the necessary raw materials for iron making, a small village with a store, school, laundry service and church housed the iron workers and families at one time. Also found at this site is a connector path to the Sheltowee Trace National Recreation Trail, which leads southward into Tennessee.
   Stop 3 takes byway travelers back 12,000 years ago were humans mined chert for stone tools, A forest overlook at stop 4 is were some of the first forest renewal projects were taken on by the Civilian Conservation Corps. The Daniel Boone National Forest, once called the Cumberland National Forest, was established in 1937 during the Depression Era by President Roosevelt. Stop 5 commemorates the early explorers of Kentucky at the Sheltowee Trace National Recreation Trail, another access point for the 269 miles long trail. Sheltowee, which means Big Turtle, was a name given to Daniel Boone by Shawnee Chief Black Fish, who admired Boone's strength and courage and adopted him as a son. Stop 7 highlights the Tater Knob Fire Tower were forest service member scanned the sky for active forest fires. Now a job for aircraft, the fire tower fell into disrepair. Reconstructed in 1959, the wooden structure was once home for lookouts during the fire season. The tower included a wood stove, two cots, a cabinet, storage box, small table and an alidade, an instrument to calculate the the line of sight of distant objects. Stop 6, for a Spiritual Renewal, is wonderful short trail leading the aged and novice hikers into the woods for a session of forest bathing. Descending into the valley, Stop 8 is were the Licking River Valley Railroad and communities once followed the Licking River. Today outdoor enthusiasts will find campgrounds, boat ramps, picnic areas, marinas, and beaches at the 8000 acre Cave Run Lake and Zilpo Recreation Area.
   Although it's just 12 miles in length, the byway is full of surprising side-roads, twists and turns, splendid mountain scenery, picturesque farmland, and easy-going residents. It's not hard to quickly fall in step with the laid back atmosphere of the Zilpo Scenic Byway.

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