Bryan & Kelly · The Grand Adventure · Trip 2 of 21

Mammoth Cave & Lincoln's Birthplace

📍 Cave City & Hodgenville, Kentucky🚗 Day Trip · ~11 hrs · ~280 miles round trip

Mammoth Cave NP Lincoln Birthplace NHP

Sunday, June 28, 2026

👥Bryan MullinsKelly MullinsEliza MullinsBen IngramJoe Ingram

Historic Sites

3.9

Miles Hiking

54°

Cave Temp

Free

Park Entry

7:00aET

🍳

Wild Eggs · Palomar

3735 Palomar Centre Dr, Lexington · Breakfast · Be out the door by 8:00am
Order rec: Mad Platter or Corned Beef Hash Bennie · fresh-squeezed OJ

Reserve AheadOpens 7:00am

8:00aET

🚗

Depart Lexington

~2 hrs 15 min via Bluegrass Pkwy · 132 miles
Cave City is Central Time — you gain 1 hour on arrival

9:30aCT

🏛

Mammoth Cave Visitor Center

Pick up tickets · orientation exhibits · cave temp is 54°F year-round
Bring: light jacket, closed-toe shoes with grip, water bottle

World's Longest Cave SystemNo Entrance Fee

10:00aCT

🔦

Historic Tour

2 hours · 2 miles · 540 stairs · $25/adult
Fat Man's Misery · Bottomless Pit · massive chambers — the quintessential Mammoth Cave experience

Moderate

12:00pCT

☕

Lantern Cafe

Mammoth Cave area · Lunch break
Fueled up before hitting the trail

✓ Completed

12:45pCT

🌲

Green River Bluffs Trail

1.9 miles · ~1 hr · Easy–Moderate
Limestone bluffs above the Green River · scenic overlooks · forested karst terrain

Scenic OverlooksFree · No Reservation

2:30pCT

🚗

Depart for Hodgenville

~45 min north · arrived ~3:30pm ET
Transitions back to Eastern Time

4:00pET

🪵

Lincoln Birthplace NHP

2995 Lincoln Farm Rd, Hodgenville · Free · No Reservation
Memorial Building closes 4:30pm ET — grounds open until 7:30pm
The symbolic log cabin birthplace · 56 steps up to the Memorial · beautiful hilltop setting

Closes 4:30pm ETUNESCO · Free Entry

4:30pET

🚗

Departed Hodgenville · Head Home

Lincoln Jamboree was closed · skipped dinner · hit the road

~90 min home

6:00pET

🏠

Arrived Home · Lexington

Home by 6:00pm ET

Home ✓

📋 Things to Know Before You Go

🎟Book the Historic Tour on Recreation.gov now — June Sundays sell out weeks in advance

🧥Pack a light jacket — cave stays 54°F all year, feels cold after June heat outside

⏰Cave City is Central Time — you gain 1 hr going, lose it coming back through Hodgenville

💧Bring plenty of water for the trail — Green River Bluffs in June heat is no joke

🅿️Arrive at Visitor Center by 9:30am CT for a smooth 10:00am tour check-in

🏛Lincoln Memorial Building hard closes at 4:30pm ET — move with purpose off the trail

Trip Photos

Mammoth Cave & Lincoln's Birthplace trip photo

Bryan & Kelly · The Grand Adventure