The KHLCF has protected several natural areas in the knobs, a range of hills which begin at the Ohio River in Jefferson County in the west, curve southeast towards Richmond, and then northeast towards Vanceburg and back to the Ohio River. Lily Mountain is among the most scenic of these areas, with views of both the forests of the Cumberland Plateau and the farms of the Bluegrass region. The site is heavily forested, with several ridges and streams. Hikers will enjoy the rock outcrops along the ridge trail which overlook “Rocky’s Roost”, which is also a part of the Lily Mountain Nature Preserve. A non-profit group, the Friends of Lily Mountain, was established by local citizens to assist the Estill County Conservation District in site management, which includes developing hiking trails and providing environmental education opportunities. A preliminary biological inventory has indicated the site is used by the federally endangered gray bat and the state-listed Rafinesque big-eared bat. One state-listed plant, the smooth peavine, has also been identified. Diverse bird species may also be found on Lily Mountain, including black-and-white warblers, black-throated green warblers, hooded warblers, Kentucky warblers, ovenbirds, worm-eating warblers, and wood thrushes. The site has several ecological community types, including Acidic xeric forest, Calcareous xeric forest, Acidic sub-xeric forest, Calcareous sub-xeric forest, Appalachian pine-oak forest. Woody plants at Lily Mountain include maples, common serviceberry, pawpaw, eastern sweetshrub, hickory species, common hackberry, eastern redbud, flowering dogwood, eastern wahoo, Carolina buckthorn, black huckleberry, black walnut, northern spicebush, and multiple oak species.
Access: 
Hiking trails and environmental education facilities are under development on the site. From Richmond go South on US 25/Berea Road for 5 miles, then left onto US 421/Kingston Highway for 2 miles, then left onto KY 499/Crooksville Road for 10 miles, then right on Little Rock Road/Panola Road. The site is 2.5 miles on the left.