Camp Nelson, Kentucky: I came here for the birds, but look at all this history

If you get to play in the woods for a job, what do you do on days off? Play in the grasslands, of course. Accordingly this past week I hied myself to the wilds of Jessamine County, Kentucky to explore Camp Nelson Civil War Heritage Park. A solid thirty-minute drive south of Lexington, it took me even longer when my so-called smart phone got a little confused about what direction we should be going in.

Thanks Siri! I guess the sign did say "No Outlet."

After you find it, it's shockingly obvious. The giant sign and big iron gates help. The park itself is over 500 acres of hiking trails, but as you pull up you have the option of taking a tour of the old officer's quarters, or stopping by the visitor's center, a barnlike structure where you can go for all your brochure and fake Civil War hat needs. I went in and proceeded to get educated.

Originally founded in 1863 to supply Union efforts in Tennessee, parts of Kentucky and Virginia, Camp Nelson eventually became one of the biggest recruiting and training depots for African Americans escaping slavery to join the Union Army. It also housed African American refugees as well as the families of Union soldiers from east Tennessee trying to escape Confederate occupation. The site was originally chosen because, and I shall quote from Capt. T. E. Hall, Chief Quartermaster, as written in the informational brochure: "It is naturally fortified on three sides by the [Kentucky] river and [Hickman] creek, the cliffs of which average four hundred feet high and perpendicular...Every approach to the camp is commanded by mounted guns and...it is one of the most impregnable points in the country."

Not much is left and it's hard to imagine that it was once a giant encampment apparently encircled by some heavy artillery. In spite of the guns, however, Camp Nelson never saw any action. The closest it came was the summer of 1863 when General John Hunt Morgan passed through the area, sacking things as he went. Camp Nelson hunkered down for combat but General Morgan passed by on his way farther north, up to no good as usual.

There's a twenty-minute informational video that hits the high points of the park history, and the museum gives you an idea of what day-to-day life at Camp Nelson would have looked like. It's both informative and slightly creepy as you see.

Reproduction of quartermaster's depot

Soldiers

Hospital ward

Refugee shanty

I'm just not very comfortable with mannequins.

As soon as I walked out past the buildings, I saw the best thing I've seen in Kentucky in a long time.

LOOK AT ALL THIS GRASS!

It's not that I have anything against woods and hollers, but there's just something special about acres and acres of open land that hasn't been attacked by a lawn mower. Although it's mostly timothy and other man-introduced grasses, if you squint you can sort of imagine it looking like the oak savannas that occurred naturally across Kentucky hundreds of years ago. The first bird to greet me at the trail head was a singing Orchard Oriole, a first for this year. A few dozen yards in and meadowlarks started exploding out of the tall grass like popcorn. It's hard to imagine, standing in the middle of the field and going deaf from the meadowlarks, but according to a nearby marker this is the mass burial place of Camp Nelson refugees who succumbed to disease and poor conditions. Over 200 Union solders were also buried at "Graveyard One" but were later removed to the Camp Nelson National Cemetery down the road.

Once I got used to the clamor of meadowlarks, I picked up on the sound of some very irritated nesting Bobolinks as well as a Grasshopper Sparrow's thin buzz. Judging by the noise bobwhites were abundant, but none of them seemed inclined to show themselves. After soaking in the grassland birds for a while I made my way toward the far side of the park where, according to the map, old stone fortifications overlooked the valley of Hickman Creek. I should mention that up till that point the trails were very wide mowed paths, shorts and sandals friendly. As soon as I entered the wooden portion of the park I realized that such luxuries could no longer be expected (after all, trees are harder to mow over). But if there's one thing that I really took away from my college education it's that trails are for sissies.

See that trail? Neither do I.

Besides, up until that point all the important historical landmarks had been marked by big yellow flags, and how hard could those be to find? Parks are always covered in helpful signage to help the confused public understand how to navigate them. Presently I came upon this helpful sign:

This way to Union soldiers 

The woods were very dense but I could approximately orient myself by the sound of Hickman Creek coming from the valley to my left. Around three hundred mosquito bites later, when I was beginning to have the feeling of having taken a wrong turn, but was soon reassured by the presence of another informative sign:

Still haven't found those Union soldiers? Keep going.

After a few hundred miles with no Union soldiers or signs thereof, I was forced to assume that I'd missed a turn and walked straight off the map. I backtracked all the way back out to where I had entered the woods. In spite of the fact that I was doing some serious speedwalking, I was able to nab the usual woodland suspects--wood-pewee, a couple species of woodpecker, a pair of hen turkeys, Red and White-eyed Vireos, and a few more. A doe flushed out of the woods and there were plenty of coyote and raccoon tracks. 

There's a lot more to explore and I'm sure I'll be heading back out to Camp Nelson to tour the officer's house and find the Hickman Creek fortifications without getting lost in the wilderness of Jessamine County. Or I might just go sit in the middle of the timothy and listen to meadowlarks and pretend it's a prairie.

Then go home and pick off ticks for five hours.