Johnny & Alex Trail Day 2024
June 22, 2024 @ 9:00AM — 11:00PM Eastern Time (US & Canada)
Lago Linda Hideaway: 950 Blacks Ridge Rd Beattyville, KY 41311 Get Directions
Give back to the Gorge at our awesome, annual trail day where you can join your friends for fun, food, festivities — and of course some hard work too!
Register by June 3rd to ensure you get an event t-shirt and lunch!
Event Details
Registration starts at Lago Linda's at 9AM where you'll receive your t-shirt, and your lunch from Miguel's! Be sure to bring your own drink and snacks if you want extra. You'll be divided into trail crews and tackle some of the larger problems on the 1100+ acres across RRGCC properties! Work begins after a short safety talk and usually lasts until about 3PM. Once your project is wrapped up, sneak in a few pitches or head straight back to Lago Linda's for select refreshments from Ale-8-One & West Sixth Brewing. Dinner from the Red River Rockhouse will follow, along with a raffle, and live music!
Every summer, we gather together to take care of the land that we own, creating and maintaining the trails that allow access to some of the best climbing in the world. Then, after the hard work is done we celebrate our work and the climbing community, partying well into the night. We call this day Johnny and Alex Trail Day, and it is a fantastic time. Do you know, though, the story of the two men after whom the event is named? They are pivotal to both the day itself, and the history of climbing in the Red River Gorge.
About Johnny & Alex
John Bronaugh was one of the first volunteers of the Red River Gorge Climbers Coalition, recognizing the need for an organization that would help ensure access to climbing in the Red River Gorge. He was also the driving force behind the PMRP purchase. He climbed and bolted extensively, spending countless hours developing walls and trails. Officially, he got the first ascent of 99 routes; there were dozens more that were never recorded. He also wrote 2 editions of the Red River Gorge Climbs guidebooks.
One of John's climbing partners was his son, Alex. Alex started climbing when he was two years old. In 1993, Johnny and Alex, along with Miguel and Dario Ventura, got the first ascent of the route "Father and Son."
Tragically, John died of a heart attack in August of 2004, and just months later Alex was killed in a car accident. They were an integral part of the Red River Gorge and the climbing community, and while the area and the people who frequent it are better off for them having been here, they are also poorer for their absence. That is why every summer we get together to work on the land they loved, the land we are now tasked with caring for. At Johnny and Alex Trail Day, we come together to honor two people who died too young and left behind an incredible impact on the community. It is a way for people to give back to the area they loved just like Johnny and Alex had done for years, doing so behind the scenes… never asking for recognition.
Cover Photo: Colbey Adair