Pilot Knob State Nature Preserve is a 742-acre area in Powell County. The original 308-acre area was acquired with the assistance of The Nature Conservancy and was dedicated on Sept. 26, 1985. The purchase of 340 acres, dedicated March 16, 1999, more than doubled the size of this preserve. An addition of 93 acres owned by the Powell County Fiscal Court was dedicated June 1, 2005.
A sandstone outcrop at the southeast end of the 730-foot-high knob is considered to be the prominence upon which Daniel Boone first stood and looked out over the Bluegrass region of Kentucky. It is known as "Boone's Overlook." The Pilot Knob trail is approximately 1.25 miles one-way to the top of the knob. Due to elevation gain it is considered very strenuous. The Sage Point Loop trail is approximately two miles and connects to the Pilot Knob Trail near the pinnacle. The Millstone Quarry trail is one mile round trip from the parking area.
Pilot Knob was highlighted in the Fall 2014 edition of
Land, Air & Water magazine.