Fernweh, An Ache for Distant Places

THE BERNHEIM LEGACY
Bernheim Forest & Arboretum is a fairytale landscape in Clermont, Kentucky, about 25 miles south of Louisville and 15 miles north of Bardstown. 

This whimsical 16,000-acre forest has more than 40 miles of trails, gardens including the Edible Garden and Sensory Garden, art installations, picnic areas, lakes, and playgrounds. 

In 1928, a German Jewish immigrant named Isaac W. Bernheim purchased 12,000 acres of worn out, overly mined land that had been stripped of its trees.

He quickly partnered with a landscaping agency to rehabilitate the land and plant his arboretum.

Bernheim had previously made his fortune by founding the Bernheim Brothers Distilling Company with his brother and a friend over in Paducah, KY before pursuing this dream.

A year later, he founded the Bernheim forest as a living legacy of his philanthropy and visionary life; a place for “renewal and restoration of the bond between people and nature.”

FOREST GIANTS
In 2019, Bernheim Forest welcomed Danish artist, Thomas Dambo, and his Forest Giants in a Giant Forest installation to celebrate the forest’s 90th anniversary. These sculptures are made with recycled wood from the surrounding region. 

You can find more trolls in other cities around the world, but Bernheim has three of them all in one place. 

Below is Mama Loumari, the Mother giant.  

Her children Little Nis and Little Elina can be found elsewhere in the forest.

Below is Little Nis.

Dambo wrote this fairytale poem about the life and backstory of his giants called “While the Weather Got Better“:  

It was a cold winter, but the snow felt warm
He woke up with eyes closed and heard himself yawn
His name was Isak Heartstone, on mountain top of them all
A name they gave him as small, now he was 36 feet tall
Still a young giant, only 700,051 years
Already a father to two, full of eyes, full of tears
Full of love he was, but felt alone on the mountain
He walked down to the forest, in the forest he found them
His two beautiful children, little Elina and Nis
And their mama Loumari, a hug and a kiss
They spend the winter together while the weather got better
Elina looked at the sky, from the sky fell a feather
It was a sign of good luck, and a fertile forest
Where every being had a place from the smallest to tallest
They made a circle of life, they would soon have a brother
It’s good luck for a baby, when it sleeps in the mother
Some of wood, some of stone, some of sun, some of seeds
Some of quarts, some of leaves and what fell from the trees
A dragon skull he found 200,000 years ago
It was a symbol of strength, so the baby would grow
But now the ice was melted and Isak looked to the mountain
He knew he had to go back and put his big arms around them
A hug and a kiss, Nis, Elina, Loumari
I will be back again soon, he yelled, walking the prairie

I love this playground right behind Mama Loumari.

It is made of all natural materials like branches, carved stumps, stones, and other figures.

This is the perfect place for a fun photoshoot or a picnic. 

A MAGICKAL PICNIC
Speaking of picnics, I have the most magickal friends. Two of us had gone to Bernheim together a couple years ago and I was so excited to go back with more. 

We packed a bunch of fruit, veggies, various salads, pasta salads, shrimp, faux crab, cheese and crackers, sparkling cider, juice, and other treats. 

After stuffing ourselves, we stretched out on blankets and pillows in the shade while one of the gals entertained us with live music. 

L+A+N+D ART
Landscape + Art + Nature + Design is a collection of art installations that celebrate the natural world.

You can see most of the pieces along Ten Toms Loop and the Magruder Meadow and read more about each installation here. 

Below are some of our favourites:

Walk in the Fictional Woods by Merve Tiryaki

H2OH! by Studio Mayo Architects

Chrysalis by Nikki Pike

The Bernheim Burl by Stuart Frost

Sylvan Sycamore by Stuart Frost

Bios by Radix Lucis 

Other art

Other things to do at Bernheim include a visit to the fire tower when it is open, learn about the various plant species, research projects, and events going on in the forest, then stop by the gift shop and café. 

In the area for a while? Follow me to other great spots in Kentucky like Lexington, Louisville, Covington, Mammoth Cave, Somerset, or the Cumberland Falls Resort State Park!

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