On the morning of 2 March 2012 a tornado tore straight through the middle of West Liberty, flattening much of the old downtown, the courthouse square and a good part of the town around it. Riding in today, you see the result of the rebuilding: newer brick, newer roofs and a town that pulled itself back together with help from all over the state. It is the seat of Morgan County, a place of a few thousand people set on the Licking River where the valley opens a little among the eastern Kentucky hills.
West Liberty is a practical stop on the highlands loop. There are gas stations, fast food, a couple of local diners and a grocery store, which is more than you will find for a long way in some directions. If you are coming down from Sandy Hook, this is where to refill before pushing on toward Paintsville. The town also hosts the Morgan County Sorghum Festival each autumn, a nod to the sweet, dark syrup pressed from sorghum cane that mountain families have made for generations, and which is excellent on a hot biscuit if you find it on a breakfast menu.
The riding around here is about rhythm rather than drama. Route 7 follows the creeks between rounded ridges, with the road tucked into the valley floor and the corners following every kink of the water. Elsewhere the state routes climb over low gaps and drop down again in short, steep sequences. Surfaces vary from fresh to deeply cracked, and gravel from farm driveways often ends up right on the apex. Logging and coal trucks are less common than they once were, but you still meet them.
The Licking River here is a modest stream, slow and brown after rain, lined with sycamores whose white bark shows up brightly in winter. Spring brings redbud and dogwood flowering along the forest edge in April, and autumn turns the hills into a patchwork of rust and gold by mid October. In summer, start early: by midafternoon the heat and humidity build, and thunderstorms can roll over the ridges quickly. A shaded bench by the river and a cold drink from the store make a fair reward.