Kentucky landscapes encompass a lot of geographic variety. In the east are the Appalachians, where people have managed to build and thrive in small coal communities nestled in valleys or perched on mountainsides. In central Kentucky, the rolling hills and green pastures are ideal for dairy and horse farms. In both northern and northwestern Kentucky, a resident will experience life by the Ohio River and its busy ports. Southwestern and far western Kentucky are flat cropland where sunsets are never obstructed by hills.
Kentucky's geographic variety provides a diverse list of recreational opportunities for residents. It is the only state bordered on three sides by rivers, and it has more than 90,000 miles of navigable waterways -- the most miles of any state in the nation except Alaska. These waterways not only promote commerce, but give rise to Lake Cumberland and Land Between the Lakes, large resort boating and fishing recreational areas. Mammoth Cave National Park in southwestern Kentucky is the longest cave system in the world. Hundreds of national and state historic sites, resort parks and recreation areas provide everything from skiing to spelunking to hiking in Kentucky.
As Kentucky is far enough inland, the state is not susceptible to hurricanes. Rainfall generated from these tropical storms sometimes reaches the state but usually in a weakened state, with less powerful winds. Kentucky is also not affected by tsunamis, which are tidal waves, and there are no active volcanoes. Earthquakes are not considered a serious problem, with some infrequent seismic activity around the New Madrid fault line in far western Kentucky.
Most locations in Kentucky are within 600 miles of major cities along the East Coast, in the South and in the Midwest, including St. Louis, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Cincinnati and Atlanta. The Louisville and the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky airports are both major international aviation hubs. Interstate 75 crosses through central Kentucky and is a major north-south road that extends from the northern Great Lakes to South Florida. Interstate 65, which is a north-south route that connects Chicago to Mobile, Alabama, is also a major road that passes through Kentucky.
