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Bad Branch State Nature Preserve

Painted trillium
Painted trillium
© The Nature Conservancy

Why You Should Visit
Bad Branch State Nature Preserve is a naturalist's dream. With a spectacular 60-foot waterfall, Bad Branch cascades down the south face of Pine Mountain, part of the Cumberland Mountains, dropping by more than 1,000 feet in less than three miles. Bad Branch Gorge has numerous overhangs and rock shelters; its sandstone cliffs rise well above the surrounding forest.

The preserve hosts stream pools and riffles, boulder-strewn creek edges, wet rock faces, talus areas and pine barrens. This variety of distinct habitat types is the reason for its outstanding plant and animal diversity.

Location
A tributary to the Poor Fork of the Cumberland River, Branch State Nature Preserve is located in the heart of Pine Mountain, about 9 miles southeast of Whitesburg in Letcher County.

Size
2,343 acres

Conditions
A visit to this preserve in any season is rewarding. Bad Branch is open to the public, from sunrise to sunset, for all forms of passive recreation, such as hiking and nature study. The preserve's trails systems are well developed. Difficulty ranges from moderate (to the falls) to strenuous (in the upper watershed).

A 7.4-mile marked loop trail offers a scenic view from High Rock at the crest of Pine Mountain. This hike is strenuous and takes at least 6 hours. A more moderate hike of 2 miles to the falls is also offered. Preserve and trail maps are located at the trailhead.

How to Prepare for Your Visit
For more information on visiting this and other Nature Conservancy sites in Kentucky, see our Preserve Visitation Guidelines page.

Directions
North side of KY 932 (2.5 miles east of US 119)

What to See: Plants
The forest community is predominately a hemlock-mixed mesophytic forest. The dominant hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) grows in combination with:

  • tulip poplar (Liriodendren tulipifera)
  • sweet birch (Betula lenta)
  • yellow birch (Betula lutea)
  • basswood (Tilia americana)
  • buckeye (Aesculus flava)
  • American beech (Fagus grandifolia).

Understory trees include:

  •  umbrella magnolia (Magnolia tripetala)
  • sweet pepperbush (Clethra acuminata)
  • flowering dogwood (Cornus florida)
  • dense thickets of rosebay rhododendron (Rhododendron maximum).

Among the rare and endangered plants found here are several northern or higher elevation species, such as matricary grapefern (Botrychium matricariifolium), Fraser's sedge (Cymophyllus fraseriana) and American burnet (Sanguisorba canadensis). The diversity of forbs, commonly found in rich undisturbed forests, suggests minimum disturbance since logging occurred in the 1940's.

What to See: Animals
The preserve also harbors a diverse array of animal species. The endangered long-tailed shrew (Sorex dispar) was documented at this location for the first time in Kentucky. The state's only known pair of nesting ravens (Corvus corax) inhabits the stately cliffs. One state endemic fish species, the Arrow darter, finds a home in the fast flowing water below the spectacular 60-foot waterfall.

Why the Conservancy Selected This Site
Bad Branch is an exceptional example of Kentucky's natural beauty and biodiversity. Due to its outstanding water quality and ecological and scenic values, Bad Branch was added to the Kentucky State Wild River System in 1986. It is part of the Pine Mountain project area.

What the Conservancy Has Done/Is Doing
By protecting the watershed, The Nature Conservancy and Kentucky State Natural Preserves Commission (KSNPC) are working together to keep the area's ecological integrity intact. The Conservancy purchased the lower gorge area in the mid-1980s and sold 435 acres to KSNPC in 1985, beginning a very successful partnership.

In 1990, a $500,000 gift from the Mary and Barry Bingham Sr. Fund enabled the Conservancy to purchase an additional 1,031 acres in the upper watershed, and in 1997 KSNPC acquired and dedicated another 820 acres. Through registry and management agreements with adjacent landowners, another 900 acres are protected.