Interstate 64 East - Louisville to Lexington

I-64 throughout Kentucky is known as the Purple Heart Trail, signs like this exist after every county line sign.

06/05/08

Large brown signs on each side of I-64 as it enters the county proclaim that it was the venue for the 2008 Ryder Cup.

06/05/08

After six miles, I-64 nears the town of Simpsonville.

06/05/08

Simpsonville only has about 1200 people and a large golf course. KY 1848 constitutes a 10.59 mile route from KY 55 (Taylorsville Road) at Finchville to U.S. 60 at Simpsonville and KY 362 (Aiken Road) near Todds Point.

06/05/08

The six lane portion of Interstate 64 ends just east of KY 1848 (Exit 28). Shelbyville lies eight miles to the east.

10/01/10

One mile west of the Exit 32 parclo interchange with KY 55 (Exits 32A/B) along Interstate 64 east.

10/01/10

KY 55 runs about 150 miles north/south through the state. Here it marks the first exit in the county seat of Shelbyville. The author is uncertain about the reasons for the small signs at this exit.

06/05/08

The northbound exit features a loop ramp to northbound KY 55. It meets US 60 in a few miles. In the meantime, it runs through Shelbyville's industrial park area.

06/05/08

KY 53 is the second exit in Shelbyville and is a relatively scant 3 miles distant. Kentucky generally abbreviates its state roads with the state name, rather than "SR" as many other states do.

06/05/08

KY 53 is also a parclo like the previous exit - the route eventually runs south to the Bluegrass Parkway.

06/05/08

Shelbyville is the largest town and county seat of Shelby County. The town was founded in 1792, and was home to Colonel Sanders for his last 20 years of life.

06/05/08

The landscape really opens up after Shelbyville. I-64 forms the bottom portion of the "Golden Triangle", whose other sides are I-71 and I-75. The triangle has over half of the state's population but contains less than a fourth of the land area.

06/05/08

As part of the triangle, I-64 is slowly being upgraded to six lanes.

06/05/08

KY 395, with a text sign instead of a shield, is a short north/south state highway. Waddy was named for W.L. Waddy, who provided land for the railroad that came through the area.

06/05/08

Many of the interstates through Kentucky have frequent deer warning signs.

06/05/08

Franklin County, named after Benjamin Franklin, is home to the state capital of Frankfort.

06/05/08

KY 151, which appropriately has many distilleries along its route, is the next exit and the first in Franklin County.

06/05/08

This is bourbon country, and most exits have a sign for a distillery or two.

06/05/08

Graefenburg was founded by German settlers in the early 19th Century. 151 provides a shortcut to US 127, which is an upcoming exit.

06/05/08

Frankfort is the only large town in the county, and only has two exits along the interstate. In fact it is the 5th smallest state capital in the country by population.

06/05/08

US 127 is the first of two exits here. The 758 mile US highway runs from Chattanooga Tennessee to Michigan.

06/05/08

Another advance sign for the first Frankfort exit. Lawrenceburg sits about six miles south of the interstate, and is the county seat of Anderson County.

06/05/08

The exit at US 127 is a parclo, with two ramps from eastbound I-64.

06/05/08

I-64 eastbound at US 127. The US highway follows the western urbanized boundary of Frankfort, and continues around the city to the north as a bypass.

06/05/08

I-64 dives into the Kentucky River valley with several dramatic rock cuts and views of forested bluffs to either side. The Kentucky River is the most important waterway totally within the state, and drains into the Ohio River from coal mining and farming regions near the Cumberland Gap. The 259 mile river used to be navigable for much of its length but today boats can only travel upstream to Frankfort.

06/05/08

US 60 and KY 1861 is the next Frankfort exit.

06/05/08

US 60 is likely Kentucky's most important east/west US highway, through this section of I-64 it largely follows the interstate.

06/05/08

At US 60, the interstate briefly sees the city of Frankfort through a Kohl's and other strip shopping, and several big-box hotels. Headed into town, the US highway is four lanes with a center turn lane and is dominated by sprawl. This exit also connects the interstate to Versailles, population 7500. The town was founded in 1792 on land owned by Hezekiah Briscoe, who was only seven years old at the time.

06/05/08

I-64 enters Woodford County soon after Frankfort. The county was founded in 1789 and is notably home to Woodford Reserve Bourbon - the oldest bourbon distillery in the state. The county was named for revolutionary war general William Woodford. William Shatner is the county's most famous current resident.

06/05/08

Westbound US 62 is the next exit, but is only reachable by US 421, which is not mentioned on this sign.

06/05/08

The only exit in Woodford County along the route is just north of the town of Midway, which was so named because it sat on the railroad halfway between Lexington and Frankfort. US 62 comes very close to the interstate here, but is connected to it at US 421. KY 341 is a short route that runs north to KY 1973.

06/05/08

The land east of Frankfort opens up into a beautiful vista of horse farms and groves of trees.

06/05/08

US 62 eastbound shows up at the next exit.

06/05/08

US 62 finally meets up with I-64 here at the Georgetown exit. Georgetown is the county seat of Scott County and has about 27,000 residents. The city's growth was ensured when Toyota built a plant in town, which manufactures the popular Camry model. The free tour of the Toyota factory is currently one of the most popular tourist attractions in the state.

06/05/08

I-64 enters Fayette County and Lexington soon after the Georgetown exit. The city and county merged to form a common government in 1974, thus the city limits of Lexington match the county lines.

06/05/08

The first interchange in the county is probably the most important, where I-75 enters and joins I-64 for a brief overlap.

06/05/08

Ashland shows up here as the next control point for I-64 eastbound.

06/05/08

The I-75 interchange here is a trumpet with a very tight loop ramp for northbound traffic.

06/05/08

I-75 was completed through Kentucky on December 5, 1969 with a stretch from London to Mount Vernon. The interstate is referred to, in Lexington at least, as "Kentucky's Main Street".

06/05/08

I-75 heads north to Cincinnati from here. That section of the interstate forms the eastern side of Kentucky's "Golden Triangle".

06/05/08