To reach the Nada Tunnel, from Stanton, Kentucky, you would go East on State Route 15. When you come to the intersection of Route 77 and 15 you would turn left on Route 77. After a short distance you will come to the small town of Nada, KY. Of course, the name of Nada Tunnel was taken from this nearby town. After you go through the town of Nada it is about a mile and a half, on route 77, until you come to the tunnel. The coordinates, in longitude and latitude, for the Nada Tunnel are N37° 49.029' x W83° 40.855'. Also, there's a road that runs over and across the Nada Tunnel. The name of this road is Tunnel Ridge Road and it turns off Rt. 15 approximately ten miles from Campton. The coordinates for the Tunnel Ridge Road turnoff are N37° 47.835' x W83° 39.258'. Click here for a map of the Nada Tunnel and Tunnel Ridge Road.

My feeling, the first time I approached the Nada Tunnel, was one of apprehension. Since it is a one lane tunnel there were cars, in front of us, waiting their turn to go through the tunnel. As you can see from the picture there were people just sort of hanging out and helping to direct traffic. This was a big help because it's pretty hard to tell when someone is coming from the other direction. You just have to ease up to the entrance, look to see if there are headlights in the tunnel and then, either back out if you see headlights, or proceed on into the tunnel if the way is clear. Once you enter the tunnel, you immediately realize this tunnel was built by primitive methods. As you can see from the pictures, there is no concrete on the walls or the ceiling of this tunnel. The tunnel was carved through a solid rock cliff, as far as I could tell and it looked very much like there was a serious lack of machinery involved in the process. The day I was there, water was running down both walls and also dripping from the ceiling. There is no electricity and no lights of any kind inside the tunnel. The road going through the tunnel is paved with asphalt. That's the nearest and only thing that even comes close to being modern about this tunnel, at all.

According to published reports, the Nada Tunnel was built in 1911, as a logging railroad tunnel. It is 12 feet high, 13 feet wide and 900 feet long. According to what I have been told, by people presently living in that area, the trains that went through Nada Tunnel were also used for transportation, on special occasions, like large social events, dances and so forth.

Seeing and traveling through the Nada Tunnel is a very unique experience. I would advise anyone visiting the area of the Red River Gorge to take the time to check it out.....

The picture, above, is the West end of the tunnel, in full foliage.