New Madrid, Missouri is directly across the river to the north, but it lacks connection to the bend by road or ferry.

The closest crossings of the Mississippi River are the Dorena–Hickman Ferry and the Caruthersville Bridge located in nearby Dyer County.

The peninsula is traversed by the southern line of latitude of the state of Kentucky, at the banks of the Mississippi River.

In 1812, this area of the river was highly disrupted and was reported to even flow backward because of the 1811–1812 New Madrid series of earthquakes, some of the most powerful ever felt in the United States.

Due to its highly productive soil in the river's floodplain, Kentucky Bend was developed as a major cotton-producing area.

Rainfall is fairly heavy throughout the year due to moist air from the Gulf of Mexico being advected on the western side of the Bermuda High, plus occasional remnant depressions from hurricanes passing up the Mississippi Valley.