Calvert City, Kentucky: Hillbilly Garden

Pretty awesome, out-of-the-ordinary place to visit. Friendly tour guide during our Sept 1 trip. Unique items, such as "The Holy Rollers." Definitely worth a visit.

Owner/Artist Keith Holt is a devotee of all things Roadside Attraction -- historic route 66, folk art, nostalgia and kitsch. In addition to a very interesting history of the old Gulf gas station cum general store cum lunch counter cum barber shop, you'll see folk art creations of a variety and scale that I've never witnessed before. And if that wasn't enough, the personal guided tour is capped off with a visit to Toyland -- a magical display of mechanized toys, trains and collectibles that brings out the child in everyone.

The attraction is closer to Hwy 24 than RA map indicates. Just keep your eyes peeled. It's on the right as you go south on 68. You can't miss it! Pull in the drive. It may looked closed but the minute we pulled in, Keith and his son, Ian, came out to give us a guided tour.

A sprawling eclectic art tribute to old bygone, tacky roadside attractions. A historical Gulf gas station/diner/store has been in the family since 1928 and is now a museum. Toyland is over 3,000 toys and six running trains in an operating, fantasy toy diorama.

A family has turned a historic store and their yard into a roadside attraction. I was given an informative, entertaining 1-hour tour by the owner's teenage son Ian. He first took us into the little store that belonged to his grandfather. It's filled with memorabilia and history of the old store and it owners collected over the years. This included various Gulf, Coke, Pepsi and Apple Valley products, plaques, signs and autographs and trinkets from random stars in his dad's history in several movies and shows!

The property is filled with creative junk art -- some of it inspired by other tourist attractions. This includes 7 lawnmowers half-buried, paying homage to the Cadillac Ranch, a "hillbilly" shower, and a whole lot more. My favorite part was the "ToyLAND," which is a shed filled with thousands of toys. There were animated vintage figures, miniature trains, and models. Very crazy and fascinating!