Great River Road - Kentucky
Great River Road - Kentucky is an All-American Road in Kentucky. Within Kentucky it covers roughly 65 miles. The map below shows its route. Use “Plan a drive” to open it in the Road Sorties route planner — already routing along Great River Road - Kentucky with scenic roads turned on, ready to add your own stops.
The Great River Road in Kentucky is a 60-mile All-American Road tracing the state's far-western edge along the Mississippi River. Part of a ten-state byway that runs the length of the Mississippi from Minnesota to the Gulf, Kentucky's short stretch passes rolling farmland planted in corn, soybeans, and wheat, with deer and wild turkeys common along the roadside. Columbus-Belmont State Park is the standout stop, perched on bluffs above the river with Civil War earthworks, a museum, and the massive chain and anchor once used to try to block Union gunboats from passing. Farther along, Wickliffe Mounds State Historic Site preserves ancient Native American earthworks with its own elevated river view, and the route offers access to Reelfoot National Wildlife Refuge near the Tennessee line. It's a quiet, lightly trafficked alternative for travelers following the Mississippi corridor south.
- ~60 miles along the Mississippi River
- part of the 10-state Great River Road network
- Columbus-Belmont State Park Civil War site
- Wickliffe Mounds archaeological site
- corn, soybean & wheat farmland
Designated for its natural and historic qualities
Plan a drive on Great River Road - Kentucky → Drive this route in Road SortiesTurn-by-turn on iPhone · App Store
Places to stop along Great River Road - Kentucky
Wickliffe Mounds State Historic Site
Mounds of a Mississippian village occupied about 1100-1350, with a museum on the people who lived above the Mississippi.
WebsiteFort Jefferson Memorial Cross
A 95-foot cross on a bluff overlooking the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi, with a short trail and picnic tables.
Columbus-Belmont State Park
Confederate earthworks high on a bluff, where a massive chain was stretched across the river in 1861 to block Union gunboats; part of it is on display.
WebsiteDorena-Hickman Ferry
The only ferry across the Mississippi between Kentucky and Missouri, a short, old-fashioned crossing near Hickman.
WebsiteCayce
The tiny town that gave railroad engineer John Luther Jones his nickname, Casey, before his famous 1900 wreck.
Where to Stay along Great River Road - Kentucky
No campgrounds are listed close to Great River Road - Kentucky yet, but there are rooms near the route.
Campsite, lodging, RV rental and membership links are affiliate links — booking through them may earn Road Sorties a small commission, at no extra cost to you. Recreation.gov links are not affiliate links.
What is an All-American Road?
All-American Roads are the top tier of America's National Scenic Byways. To earn the title a road has to be a destination in its own right — offering features so exceptional, across several intrinsic qualities (scenic, natural, historic, cultural, archaeological or recreational), that they can't be found anywhere else.