Everyone's seen the signs for it on the freeway but decided to take a deeper look. It's a cool little spot to get out of the car and stretch your legs. Who knew it was (the first!) site of vertebrate paleontology in the US? Interestingly, there is also a short hike through a wooded area (5-10 min) that takes you to a mini-zoo-like viewing area for a herd of Bison kept there. They were pretty lethargic on this hot summer day but cute nonetheless. It's at least worth one short visit here -- a worthy investment of ~35 mins from downtown Cincinnati, anyway. read more

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Love it had a blast and really enjoy the scenery. Very cool place to camp at and take family read more

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Perfect half day trip from Cincinnati for our family with a four year old obsessed with Ice Age mammals. There are fossils in the small museum and a life sized diorama in the back outside. Take a short 0.2 mile walk through the woods to see a herd of bison. The trail is paved though from there the trails are more loose gravel. Can accommodate a wheelchair to the bison viewing. Friendly staff in the museum who can help guide you regarding trails. Good place to bird watch. Ample parking esp for trailers and big trucks. There is an outdoor playground and picnic tables too. read more

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In honor of Earth Month, I have to review one of my favorite spots to hike in NKY! Big Bone Lick is a must visit during nice weather - because how often can you actually see real buffalo wandering around in Kentucky? This is truly such a cool experience for families and adults alike ... and on our most recent visit, we even saw the cutest little baby buffalo! I must admit that I haven't been to the museum yet - but only because we always bring our dogs along when we want to hike. The buffalo viewing area does have a large fence surrounding it - and well-behaved dogs should do just fine on a leash. We typically start our visit by saying hi to the buffalo, and the continue on to the surrounding paths. The entire park is very well taken care of - and the trails themselves are easy to follow, with a few educational markers along the way. You can do the entire, 4.5 mile "Discovery Trail," - or break it up and do one of the shorter paths that make up that circuit. We reference the KY State Park website for maps, but they do have some posted around the park, as well. I always love a "choose-your-own adventure" hike, because not everyone's abilities always match up. I absolutely recommend adding Big Bone Lick to your list of places to visit this summer! read more

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Everything! This place is so amazing with actual real live cannons (they are so loud) and amazing food stands and homemade root beer stands and live music tents and so many other things like handmade things being sold by individual sellers at stands, it's just so lively. read more

Big Bine Lick state historic site is a small town Kentucky spot that is a campground, historical spot, playground and walking trail area. My family and I was coming back from Newport aquarium to Lousiville when we decided to make two quick pit stops on they way home to rabbit hash, Kentucky and here which has about ten Minutes between the two. It was a little later in the evening so the museum part was closed but we did get to drive through and check out the park, campground, the Dino sculptures behind the Museum and got to walk the small walking trail to see the bison up close. Seems like a really nice place to setup camp if your into that type of thing. They even had a little putt putt area for the campers. My kids and I enjoyed the small playground and walking the small trail to see the bison Overall a cool place that we enjoyed our quick trip too and I'm sure there is a whole days worth of activity you could do here if you carved out enough time. read more

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After a country morning drive to Rabbit Hash, we headed to Big Bone to check it out. We parked in the shelter lot and walked to the bridge. It was a fun walk exploring the area. read more

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Big bone Lick State Park was an amazing stopover for me and my dad while we had a free day to see the sites around Cincinnati. It was just a quick stop, but boy was it eye-opening with so many bits of history scattered around the site dating back from long before there was life on earth to the days of the mammoth to the pioneer days when the US was young and still exploring the wild West place to see hidden treasure read more

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Wifey and I visited this park after staying at General Butler State Park Lodge so many miles south from here. There are a few trails to walk, a museum, some live bison down a short trail, a campground and a pretty nice mini golf course. It has some history surrounding the location. I'm glad we checked it off our Kentucky State Park bucket list. read more

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Clean and quiet place to camp. I enjoyed the way the camp ground is set up. It is very easy to maneuver.

No bones (or should that be all bones???) about it, Big Bone Lick State Park is a place to disconnect from the screens, and take a journey into the past. For us it was discounted quite literally. I had absolutely no reception at the park. Signage does a good job directing hikers, as well as educating them. We learned tidbits about the time Lewis and Clark spent excavating here, as well as what they found. For more in depth information, stop by the visitor center. There you can find maps, restrooms, a gift shop and museum. Museum is small, but does a solid job of showcasing finds from the area, as well as the history. A must stop if visiting. The giant sloth fossil is really neat to see up close. The gift shop has a variety of logo merchandise, fossils, crystals, and craft kits for children. Drinks are also available for purchase. We ended up hiking the Bison Trace Trail. Trail is a gravel trail that takes hikers to the famous herd of American Bison. Bison were grazing surprisingly close to the fence. This allowed us to see them up close. The calves did stay a little further away. We only scratched the surface of all this park has to offer. Campgrounds, mini golf, tennis courts, a pool, basketball couts, playgrounds, and a lake (closed during our visit,) and more hiking trails are also available. read more

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What a great little park if somewhat lovingly neglected at points. Bring bug spray and good shoes for walking on uneven surfaces! read more

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Big Bone Lick was a great escape from quarantine and provided lots of greenery to get in some hiking and enjoy the great outdoors. The Bison viewing area was open, though, there were a lot of people crowded around and we didn't feel comfortable sticking around with COVID-19 still being an issue. If this is something you want to check out, I would try to schedule your Buffalo-viewing during non-peak hours. The trails however, weren't nearly as trafficked. There weren't too many trails, but a few of them were quite steep and the muddiness made them a little extra challenging. Definitely be careful if you visit after there has been rainfall. Also be sure to visit the nearby Rabbit Hash town if you stop by - it's very charming and iconic, even if you're only able to drive through. read more

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This was my first time visiting Big Bone Lick, but certainly not the last. The Lake was closed for flooding and we did not get to visit the museum as we had our dog with us, but the trails and bison viewing alone were well worth the trip. The trails were well maintained and well marked and the bison were amazing to witness. They were very close to the fence line, seemingly loving all of the attention. Looking forward to visiting again when the weather gets warmer! read more

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Nice park and very educational! Got to look through a large telescope at the eclipse. Saw buffalos up close! Beautiful scenery and nice exhibits! read more

Today Tony and I wanted to have a labor day cookout. So, after doing our laundry, we drove the 1 1/2hrs to Big Bone Lick Historic State Park. We took the back roads using Rt 55 and Rt 42 along the Ohio River. The park is FREE to enjoy, including the museum and the viewing the Live Bison Herd. The museum has some bones and a Lot of displays about the bones and teeth. Meriwether Lewis was here in 1807 to gather bones for President Thomas Jefferson. There was some information about Mary Draper Ingles also. There are some hiking trails that takes you down to the Salt Springs and the Live Bison Herd including baby bison. We went afterwards to a picnic area and grilled out some veggies and steak. We had a really nice time. Tony did a great job grilling out our food. read more

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nice campground located in the rolling hills of northern Kentucky. a little off the beaten track but very nice wide open spaces. no dumping but good electric and water. also no internet you can view buffalo and read the history of the area read more

My family came here during the pandemic for the first time and had a great time. This is a great place to go right now where you can maintain social distancing and stay safe without altering your activities too much. We walked on a few of the trails to see the salt lick and bison, both of which were very cool! Other than that, we spent most of our time at the campground in our RV. The campground is a nice, no-frills park. Our spot was nice and spacious and easy to hook up. We had some deer and bunnies come visit us! Only complaint would be terrible cell service and lack of internet/tv options, though I'm sure most people coming here won't care too much about that. read more

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My husband and I came here for the trails to hike/ run. We stopped first at the visitor's center to ask for a map. I was surprised and pleased that the place was open on a Sunday. The ladies were very helpful and friendly, even giving us tips on how to do the route to make it easier for us. Inside the center, it was set up to be a mini museum and souvenir shop. It was clean, well organized and the prices seemed reasonable. I bought an ornament that seemed to be hand carved for $6.99 + tax. We decided to do the long trail- Coralberry and cedar run. The trails seemed to be well maintained, but lacked signs. I have to rate the trails as 4/5 due to us going to a campgrounds instead of a trail due to no signs to follow. It will be helpful if the trails will be marked based on distance and difficulty. read more

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It's a small park in northern Kentucky about a half hour south of Cincinnati. If you have time to spare you can make a quick visit. There's a small museum in the visitors center with friendly staff and prehistoric bones and other artifacts to gaze at. A .2 of a mile walk will lead you to the buffalo viewing area. However, April and May is mating season and they were in seclusion. So that's not an ideal time to try to view them unfortunately. They do have a small campground if you enjoy camping. To be honest it was years before I ventured there out of curiosity. How can you resist a place with such an unusual name. Of course the salt licks attacked the prehistoric animals and later yielded salt to folks in the area. It was also known for its healing properties and people came there for their health. That's all in the past but still it's worth a peek if time allows. read more

Big Bone Lick State Historic Site - Bones of a prehistoric giant sloth found atBig Bone Lick Historic Site. - Parks Near Me - Union, Kentucky

Big Bone State Park is a great place for a young family to explore and visit. It is well worth the stop to see one of the places that The Lewis and Clark Expedition stopped to see. This is a great place for a picnic, walking and even see a Bison or two. My family camped here many years when I was a kid. I think you will like it. read more

Wonderful Kentucky State Park. Clean, friendly, large sites. Great host. Plenty of activities. Highly recommend. read more

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Nice park with 5 short hiking trail. Surprised that the museum is still open at winter. We took a bison trail, but we didn't saw a bison.. maybe too cold.. it's a scenic drive to the park. read more

Big Bone Lick State Historic Site - Parks Near Me - Union, Kentucky

Awesome place to visit! Walked the loop, saw the buffalo, and had a nice outting with my pup. The woman in the office/gift shop told me all about the salt lick festival and we decided to go...that also did not disappoint! So many things to see and so...small local businesses selling their goods, learning about Native American history and culture, and meeting people who teach you about the way of life before technology! A fun, informative, and one of a kind day! Very special place that everyone should check out if in the area...definitely find out when the annual salt lick festival is too!!! read more

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Really great park, with a playground and a river with a bridge is great!!! Love to hang out in the water and swim. Clean park, love it

If anyone wonders how I "got this way" maybe it has something to do with the fact that some of my earliest memories are of being taken to family reunions at Big Bone Lick State Park. Yes, that is the actual name of this park. Check the address too, then make your own joke from all the parts. This is a stupendous state park, and it is the birthplace of American Vertebrate Paleontology. The locals found a huge cache of dinosaur and mammoth bones there, hence the name. The "lick" park comes from the fact that the Native Americans knew this place as a salt lick where game animals would flock to enjoy the salts exposed in the hillsides. http://www.state.ky.us/agencies/parks/bigbone.htm Beyond that, it is a lovely big state park with plenty of places to frolic, picnic, and enjoy the beauty of Kentucky's countryside. C'mon--give Big Bone Lick a try. You know you want to! read more

This was a heck of a place to find. First, we were coming from Little Rock on a 2 week road trip across the country with our kids back in July. Time was tight, but with extra stops (Grand Ol' Opry?) we were running late and worried they would close their gates. Here in AZ some parks close the gates at 10pm and you're locked out. We called every number we could find, driving through pouring rain, and finally found someone who eased our minds that they would be open and there was no gate to close. *WHEW* Of course, then we had to find it. Driving in the dark, I admit we thought Google Maps had lost its mind a few times...it was dark, windy, hilly, up and down and we were really starting to doubt things while pulling a 6,000lb trailer. But we found it and pleased all the other campers by pulling in at 10:30pm to set up! The campground is nice. Not out of this world, but not slummy. Out of the 2 week trip, this site probably required the most ambitious leveling of our trailer...it was NOT a flat site. And the water connection was NOT close...we carry a 25' hose and it was literally stretched off the ground, and that's AFTER moving the trailer closer. So plan for that...bring 50' at least, and maybe an an extension for your electric, though in our case that fit ok. We ended up staying there 2 nights as we hit up the Creation Museum (surprisingly cool). The pool was a super nice thing to have at the end of the day. Also helped that it was only 15 minutes from Skyline Chili. I moved West about 15 years ago and was long overdue for my fix. I drove for take out while my wife took the kids swimming. Campground was nice to walk around, decent playground. Didn't use the showers so can't speak to them. I'd give it 3 1/2 stars by itself, but the pool and playground push this happy dad up to 4. read more

Big Bone Lick State Historic Site - Parks Near Me - Union, Kentucky

This is a beautiful, kid friendly park. We were very disappointed with the cleanliness of the camp site as well as the showers and restrooms. They have 3 campground hosts, 1 we saw come out of there RV 2x in 4 Days, one we never saw and a 3rd who was very helpful. The site still had trash & glass in it and the asphalt was not swept. The fire pit had trash in it and weeds were knee high. Gravel area was never raked, large holes all around the site. read more

Great history, nice park, kids love the bison! Many freinds like the campground. The museum staff are very educated on the history of the area and enjoy to share their knowledge. read more

My husband Roland and I with our grandson D spent 4 nights here recently and we enjoyed everything so much! It's a smaller campground area but a fairly large park grounds with some great trails and a cool museum/camp store! It also had a small playground for children. I consider this a quiet park but it was only about half full. We usually only camp during the week because weekends can be louder and noisier and we prefer quiet. Most of the state parks we have visited in Florida and Georgia have all had more privacy with the growth of bushes and trees between sites. This park does not offer that but since everyone was well behaved with quiet respect the site was quiet. As you can tell I highly prize my privacy and quiet. We aren't out making friends, often when we are camping. Because there was no sewage hookup and to conserve our grey water tank, we bathed some in their showers. They look like they need deep cleaning and perhaps a new coat of paint but there was plenty of hot water! The camp hosts are constantly going around taking care of things and are very visible and friendly! We used the campground as a jumping off point for all our adventures which included a trip to the Ark Encounter, the Cincinnati Zoo and visiting another state park in Indiana, Versailles State Park. So we would definitely recommend this park! read more

We wanted to camp in KY so this was our choice. I do not recommend following google maps if you have a camper with you. Very narrow, twisty, windy roads that I didn't think we were going go make it to the park. Do not get off of 275, keep going to 75! We booked about three months in advance and there were many sites already taken. It's not a very large campground. They do have water and electric hook up. We struggled leveling off here as even though the site is paved, it was very uneven. We went to the camp store to see if they had any wood we could use and she wasn't there. Upon her return, she said no, they didn't keep anything like that and to maybe check with the camp host. Fortunately, they had some extra wood and we were able to level off. The camp host came back over to check on us as well. We checked in on Thursday and it was very quite there. Hardly anyone at all, but come the weekend, it was very busy. We went on a hike and found the buffalo herd and also the museum, which was free to go in and had quite a bit of information about the area. Even with the appropriate shoes, the hike was slippery due to how rocky it is and it was covered with leaves as well, so make sure you are careful! My friend had an extra walking stick and it sure came in handy. Though, my husband must of thought it was the amazing race and he seemed to have no problems at all! read more

Great place to take the kids to romp & hike & explore on a warm day, The schools have field trips here every year i enjoy too as a room counselor , one of my Favs! as we always go during the Salt Festival The Bison/Buffalo are always a winner with the kids of any age & the name (only KY) brings a giggle or smile read more

This park is only about an hour from Lexington, and about 30 minutes from Cincinnati. This review is for the campground and not the actual park. The campground features 62 campsites. The water hook ups are shared by two sites and is a stretch to the water hookup to the site, so make sure that you have an extended hose if you plan to hookup the water. We last weekend and swimming pool was already emptied for the season. There was a small playground, across from the shower house. There was only one shower house, but it had three showers, and three rest rooms stalls and it was clean and stocked with hand soap and toilet paper during our entire stay. There was also washers and dryers available at a central service building/shower house. In addition to the campground store, there were also Coke machines, which was a nice welcomed feature that I'd not noticed at any of the other camp grounds I've been to. The miniature golf course is on top of a hill, with a magnificent view. The surfaces on the course were newly resurfaced and by that, I mean the outdoor turf carpeting is new. The cost to play miniature golf isn't included in the campground rate, but it was quite minimal. You pay at the entrance which dubs as the campground store. My favorite thing about this campground was the two mile loop hiking trail. The trail starts near the covered pavilion/common area and it leads to what is called the lake. I really wouldn't consider it a lake, I'd call it a big pond. But the signs call it a lake. You can fish in the lake/pond but there isn't any swimming allowed. There were three camp host sites onsite. I've come to realize that camp hosts are usually annoyingly too friendly or extremely rude. For example, the first night we were sitting at the campfire, one of the hosts drives his golf cart to us to introduce himself. Our site we the very last site, near the exit. On Sunday, the day that most people were checking out, there was a long line of people blocking our site, because they were all in line for the dump station. Which wasn't a big deal, we are never in a hurry to check out. Check out was at 1:00 and at 1:10 one of the camp hosts approached us extremely rudely. Some of her exact words were "you're making us work unnecessary overtime". Who knows what that means, but never has a late checkout ever been an issue, especially 15 minutes for a late checkout and on a Sunday when there aren't people scheduled to check in. Where does the state park people get these people?!? I'm about to give up on Kentucky State Parks, thanks to the people who they choose to allow to be camp hosts. They basically take ownership of the park, without considering that we paid money to camp there. Give these people a site and a golf cart and they act like they own the land. One last thing... the racoon featured in Yelp pictures isn't as cute as he is annoying. That little varmint got into our cooler and took our dinner and lunch for the next day. So, don't think he won't rob you too. read more

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Big Bone Lick State Park is an instance of the Internet leading us astray. Everyone said it was great. But it wasn't. I think people get distracted by the name of the place, somehow giving the park more credit than it's due. That's not to say it was horrible. It just wasn't as great as people said it was. Like people were ALL about this place. They LOVED it. They thought it was GREAT. Maybe the hype was too much but this place isn't all THAT great. Check out the rest of the review and photos: https://louiseandclaire.com/2014/09/06/big-bone-lick-state-park/ read more

Ok who hasn't driven down 75 and giggled when they saw the sign for Big Bone Lick State Park? No one? Yeah that's what i thought.... It was a nice spring day so me and the hubby decided to do something new. It's about a 30 minute drive from Cincinnati, so not too bad to get out of town for awhile. There is a campground also with a lake and putt putt golf and a pool, but its only open in the warm months. you can't get anywhere near it when it's not open. There is a small visitors center that has a gift shop, that any person working there will open up if it's locked... as in there's normally only a janitor or a guard during the slow periods. All sorts of goodies in the shop for old and young, it's kind of neat. There's also a small "museum" in the center. There's a huge mastodon head, and tons of bones on shelves with stories. And it gives you the history of the area. Outside are some clay plaster dinosaurs recreated, as to what might have gone down in the swamp. Kinda neat. Did you know a "Lick" is actually another word for a "Spring"? As in a hot spring. Big Bone Hot Springs just wasn't fitting as the area is no longer a swampy hot spring that it used to be. And it got its name Big Bone, because guess what? People found big bones here! Creative right? Not so dirty anymore once you know whats going on. But it is neat to learn some history, there are signs around telling you about whats going on. There are a few playgrounds and picnic shelters which are nice. There's also a bison farm! It's a .2 mile walk from the visitors center, so easily accessible. You can go back the same way or continue to take a trail. Grab a map from the visitor center. It'll be helpful. The trails aren't as well marked except for marking on the trees, so look for those. There are tons of trails to take from short to long. But it can get real muddy after it rains fyi. read more

The next time I am in this area, I will be staying at this campground instead of renting a room! Amazingly groomed park area with a charming museum and gift shop. The staff was SUPER friendly! I am sad that I was only able to stop by on a mission to pick up a tshirt. read more

What an amazing camping trip! If you have never been camping and are ready to give it a shot, you must go to Big Bone Lick. This is a very nice campground with lots to do. We went swimming, fishing, hiking and saw some amazing Bison. The museum was very interesting as well. We felt welcomed and safe at this campground. The staff was friendly and accommodating. One of the campground host have us some sunscreen since we forgot ours. I loved it and so did everyone else. The other campers were very friendly as well. So many came from out of state. Were met a group from California and North Carolina. We are definitely going back. Be sure o make reservations because they are easily booked and reservations make checking in a breeze,less than 2 minutes and we were at our site. What are you waiting for? Make a reservation! read more

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Sure, the name has been making folks chuckle for years (doesn't help that the town of Beaver Lick is nearby), but hey this place is really famous. Fossils found on the grounds of this park have traveled the globe, decorating Thomas Jefferson's Monticello and joining the King of France's oddity collection. The bones found at Big Bone belonged to wooly mammoths, mastodons, ground sloths, and buffalo--animals who perished when they stopped at the mineral springs for nourishment. The park houses a modest collection of pre-historic mammal bones, but unfortunately the most prized discoveries no longer reside in Kentucky. Nonetheless, the museum is worth checking out. Beyond the park's educational appeal, there's plenty of outdoorsy stuff to do. From mini-golf, fishing, hiking, playing sports (tennis, volleyball, softball, and horsehoes) to relaxing at the pool or picnicking, Big Bone has a something for the whole family to enjoy. Though I'm not a big fan of large RV parks/campgrounds, Big Bone's is really clean and well-maintained. read more

Another random great find via the Yelp app. I totally found the name hilarious... how could I not visit this place? (and seriously... Beaver Rd!?!) Anyways, juvenile thoughts aside, the park was easy to find and there are lots of things to explore. I had no idea about the historical significance of this park, did you? See: http://parks.ky.gov/parks/recreationparks/big-bone-lick/history.aspx I apparently missed the bison that they have on site, I'll have to catch them on some other day. I noticed they have all kinds of programs for the public, mostly wilderness survival and other nature based. This would be a great place to take your kids. I don't think it costs to enter the park, but I could be wrong. There are plenty of places to have a picnic or event. There is a campground and even a small grocery store on site. Check their official site for rates and schedules. read more

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With a name like that, who doesn't want to check this place out?! Besides the name, this place made it on my list for two reasons: bison and hiking. Overall, the park is small, a friend and I hiked what we figured to be the majority of the place in an afternoon (around 5 miles): http://parks.ky.gov/!userfiles/aParkBrochures/Maps/BigBoneLick.pdf Trails were well maintained with some decent hills; a good place to spend an unseasonably warm late-fall afternoon. The swinging foot bridge was closed which was highly disappointing. Lucky there animals to cheer me up. The bison were friendly and photogenic. I mean, seriously, there are bison just chilling in the park; that and a rather random fenced-in display of prehistoric fiberglass creatures (giant sloth!) do add something special to this place. (hint: the fence gate is broken and you can walk right in for awesome photo ops, but the creatures are fragile!) There is a museum which I regretfully did not check out; it gives me a reason to return! read more