Kentucky Route 72 is a rural secondary highway with two segments in
Bell and
Harlan counties. The western segment extends from
Blackmont in eastern Bell to
Alva in western Harlan County. KY 72 begins at
US 119 at Blackmont. The highway crosses the
Cumberland River and
CSX's
CV Subdivision rail line then parallels a rail spur through the valley of Puckett Creek southeast through
Tuggleville and
Black Snake. After crossing the Bell–Harlan county line, KY 72 crosses Rocky Branch at
Insull and Jackson Mill Creek east of
Pathfork, where the route meets the north end of
KY 2005. The highway and rail spur terminate at a dead end at Alva at the headwaters of Puckett Creek. The eastern segment of KY 72 runs from south of
Bardo north via
Harlan to
Baxter. Like the western segment, the eastern portion begins at a dead end near a rail spur terminus, this time in the headwaters of Catron Creek. KY 72 parallels the rail spur north through the creek valley through Bardo,
Stanfill, and
Pansy, where the route meets the west end of the spur
KY 1216. The highway continues through
Mary Alice and meets the east end of the spur
KY 2425 at the south end of
Teetersville. KY 72 continues through
Elcomb to Catron Creek's confluence with
Martin's Fork, the rail spur's confluence with CSX's CV Subdivision, and the route's own confluence with
US 421. KY 72
runs concurrently with US 421 through
Dressen before the route splits northeast to parallel US 421 into the city of Harlan. The highway intersects
KY 38 and crosses over
Clover Fork at the south end of downtown Harlan. KY 72 splits into a
one-way pair: northbound follows Main Street and southbound follows Cumberland Avenue. Clover Street and Walnut Street serve to connect the southbound route with the northbound route on Main Street at the north and south ends, respectively. KY 72 follows the right bank of Martin's Fork around a riverbend, in the middle of which the highway meets the south end of
KY 3453 (Cold Iron Heights) and crosses a spillway from Clover Fork. The highway intersects US 421 and crosses
Poor Fork at the fork's confluence with Martin's Fork to form the Cumberland River proper. West of Poor Fork, KY 72 reaches its northern terminus at
KY 413 at Baxter. ==KY 83==