Miss Lorettie’s Birthday Ride

There was once a little girl from a deep holler with a mighty voice.

She sang about Butcher Holler in Van Lear, Kentucky, and in doing so, she introduced our hills, our stories, and our people to the world. That little girl was Loretta Lynn, and every April we gather to celebrate the life, legacy, and mountain spirit she shared with generations.

Join us on Saturday, April 25 for Miss Lorettie’s Birthday Ride, a day of backwoods adventure, music, food, and hometown tradition in Van Lear.

All are welcome to ride the Butcher Holler Backwoods Trail, part of the First Frontier Appalachian Trails initiative and the growing Eastern Kentucky trail system. Bring whatever gets you through the hills — your side-by-side, four-wheeler, dirt bike, mountain bike, Jeep… heck, even your skateboard. Around here, everybody’s welcome.

We’ll head out around 11:00 AM and roll back into Van Lear around 4:00 PM, just in time for a hearty supper prepared by the wonderful folks of the Van Lear Historical Society and the Van Lear Coal Miners Museum.

Dinner includes all the good mountain staples:
soup beans, kraut and weenies, fried taters, desserts, and drinks
Cost: $8 per person

And don’t worry about the mud — this is coal country. We’ve seen our fair share of dirt.

After supper, settle in for an evening full of Appalachian fun with live picking, local music, our 2nd Annual Pie Baking Contest & Auction, and the 1st Annual Husband Calling Contest.

Bring your best holler, your appetite, and your love for these hills.

Come ride the mountains, fill your belly, laugh with neighbors, and listen to some good picking under the Kentucky sky.

It’s good for the soul.

Presented by the Johnson County Trail Towns Committee and the Van Lear Historical Society