Fall Creek Falls – M O D F R U G A L

Do Over

The family felt cheated after our washed out camping trip at Fall Creek Falls this summer, so we decided to go back over the school break for a “do over”. There were several trails we hadn’t gotten to explore, and we had unfinished business.

Instead of camping, we rented one of the lakeside cabins for a little trip insurance. The day we drove up, it was raining, and we were starting to think that things were not going to look good for the trip (again), but the skies cleared and we had postcard perfect weather every day. We were able to fish off the deck and enjoy the stillness of the lake. There are no motorized boats allowed on this lake, which makes it an amazingly peaceful waterfront. I loved watching the kayaks silently gliding through the mist in the early mornings. I wanted to be in one of them…next time!

A Copperhead came to visit at the waters edge of our cabin….

While in the park, we really wanted to hike the trail to the bottom of the falls (treacherous and totally worth it) and to explore the mountain bike trails. We went on the 7 mile loop trail near the stables and saw NO ONE. I think that may be the park’s best kept secret, as we had to get help at the information center to even find the trails. They are not mapped on any of the main park maps, but the link above takes you to a hand drawn PDF.

We stopped at Burgess Falls on the way to FCF, this part of the state is so full of natural beauty and waterfalls, it’s hard to see every one.Â FCF has 3 falls in the park (Fall Creek, Caney Fork and Piney Falls).

We went to Cummins Falls on our way back home, only to find the park closed for roadwork. It’s only an hour or so from Nashville, so we could do it in a day trip sometime down the line when it’s swimming weather. So many waterfalls, so little time….

Summer Recap

I know it has been ages since I’ve been here, but better late than never I say. I humbly submit a photo recap of our summer.

As always, I tend to be on Instagram when I’m too busy to be here, so a few of these were posted in real time. I will do a detailed post on camping, and a new DIY around here later this week.

The kitchen pantry has been untouched all summer, so don’t hold your breath for a reveal yet, but I will continue to push for that to get finished once and for all. When we got back from our last trip, I declared this fall to be the season of “tying up loose ends”. That would be nice, no? Gal’s gotta have goals.

We took two camping trips, one to Land Between the Lakes, and one to an old favorite of ours, Fall Creek Falls, which was cut short by excessive rain and a leaking tent. I KNOW. Brand new tent too! You’ll get a more in depth ranting on that little gem later.

We also spent some time in the mountains of NC (the CC and I went ziplining!) and are settling back into a routine since school started back August 1st. My volunteer work has not lessened, as I had hoped by resigning one position, but has only increased, and necessitated a LOT of work over the summer. It is more or less full time right now, (can you say SUCKER!?) but once the school year settles in, the workload should ease off and I hope I can get back to some sense of normalcy.

BEFORE the rains…

and AFTER….

Off the Grid

We just returned from a little family time off the grid, and it was just the ticket.Â We spent 4 days tent camping in Fall Creek Falls State Park, home to the one of the highest waterfalls East of the Rockies, along with a few other cool falls to boot.

If you look closely, you can see two tiny ant people at the bottom left of the falls.Â We hiked to the overlook via a winding, yet scenic trail overlooking the gorges and cascades.Â When we finally arrived at the overlook and the Minors saw people strolling up from the parking lot only 200 yards away..they were NOT impressed.Â I guess we kinda neglected to tell them that you didn’t HAVE to hike to see the falls.Â Oops.

There are suspension bridges scattered over many of the creeks in the park….loved by some more than others….I LOVE them.

Not the smoothest of terrain for hiking, but certainly spectacular.

There’s one way Thing One and Thing Two like for us to make nice after long hikes…..

The chocolate flavored graham crackers are preferred for s’mores by the Things.Â Then, all is well with the world, and most is forgiven, but NOT forgotten.