Fall Creek Falls State Park Sept 2017 (part 2)

In Fall Creek Falls part 1, I reviewed the campground and gave some general information about the park and directions.  Part 2 will be about some of the things to do at the park.

Fall Creek Falls State Park is known for the falls for which they are named.  Depending on the season you go and the amount of rainfall during the year, the amount of water you see at the falls can be vastly different.  For instance, here is a picture of how the falls looked this year: 

and here is a picture of the falls when we went in 2010:

There are miles of hiking trails at Fall Creek Falls.  You can get a trail map at the Nature Center or camper check-in.  We hiked many of them on our trip here in 2010.  Most are quite rocky and can contain some steep sections.  I was glad that I picked this up

at the general store in the campground before we did any hiking.  My knees and ankles don't work quite as good as they used to.







Here are a few pictures of the trail that leads to the bottom of the Fall Creek Falls:

In addition to the main Fall Creek Falls trail, there are trails to other waterfalls (both an overlook view and to the bottom) and cascades. 

Sally Mae wasn't too sure about going across the swinging bridge on one of the trails.

There are also miles of paved bike trails.  One morning, we biked the trail that goes from the hotel to the Fall Creek Falls overlook and back.  This is a very

easy trail with just one short piece of steep incline.  Most of the trail follows the bank of the lake.

You can rent boats (jon, paddle, kayaks, canoes) at the boat dock or bring your own.  This is a small lake and no gas motors allowed.  There is also an 18-hole golf course, lots of picnic spots, campgrounds, cabins, and a hotel.

Rick and I joked that the hotel facade looked more like a prison or compound on the outside, but it is nice inside with friendly staff and a restaurant.  We ate there the night before we left and it was very popular.  They had a surf and turf buffet but we ordered from the menu.  It was good and a lot of food.

We had a great time at Fall Creek Falls State Park and will probably return for a 4th time.

Fall Creek Falls State Park September 2017

After spending a couple of days at Cedars of Lebanon State Park near Nashville to see family, we moved on to Fall Creek Falls State Park in Spencer, TN.  




This post will be a review of the campground and directions to get there.  I will have another post on some of the things to see and do while there.

This was the 3rd time we have visited this park.  The first time was back in 1997 or 98 when we tent camped.  The second time was in 2010 when we stayed at Piney Creek Cabins (outside of the park).  This time, we were pulling our fifth wheel.  

From Cookeville, TN on I-40, take the Hwy 111 S exit towards Sparta.  There is a Walmart right off Hwy 111 in Sparta, so if you need to stop for groceries you might want to stop there.  Stay on Hwy 111 S when you get to the split for McMinville.  After the split, you will encounter 2 hills, one with a 9% grade and the other with an 8% grade.  You will be going up on the way to the park and down on the way back.  The first Fall Creek Falls sign is to turn left on Hwy 30.  If you are pulling a camper or are in a motorhome, you probably will want to stay on Hwy 111 like we did.   Take the 2nd Fall Creek Falls exit which is Hwy 284.  This is actually an exit and not a left turn like it used to be.  This road will dog-leg once but it is a decent road, even when towing.  When you get in the park, veer left at the fork.  This route will take you to the camper check-in.

There is room to pull over at the camper-check in.  From here, you will be pointed in the right direction to get to the campground loops.





There are 5 campground loops (A-E).  We were in Campground B, site #86.  Most sites in campground B are full hookup with elec, water and sewer.  The reservation system at the park website has detailed information about the amenities at each site, the length, width, level or incline, as well as a picture.

The campground B road is a little narrow with lots of trees but we saw a huge

motorhome maneuver the tight spots just fine.  We loved our spot and would definitely camp here again but would also consider sites #92, #94 or #120.  Each campsite has a trash can, picnic table, fire ring, grill and lamp hanger.  There was a bath house in each of the 3 loops of campground B.  I did not use it but Rick did and said it was ok.  

They ask that you only burn heat treated firewood here which they sell at the camper check-in and the general store.  Buy it at the camper check-in, if possible as it is .50 cheaper per bundle and the bundles look a little bigger.  The general store has food, camping supplies, cleaning supplies and some toys and some souvenir items.  There is also an "outfitter" store with clothing and souvenirs.  In addition, there is a laundry mat building, but it is hit or miss finding machines that work.

I had no cell service (voice, text, or data) at this park.  But, apparently some TN State Parks have started offering wifi.  When we checked in, they gave us a code for wifi which was good for 4 days (or 200 MB).  Rick used it to check emails and check Fbook a couple of times.  We could pick up the local PBS stations out of Cookeville, TN on our antenna.  

Fall Creek Falls State Park is a very popular park and the campground can be booked up way in advance.  I imagine we will come back because it has so much of the stuff we like to do when we go camping. 

Cedars of Lebanon State Park September 2017

I finally accumulated enough vacation time to take a week off.  Rick and I decided to stop near Nashville, TN for a couple of days to see family on our way to Fall Creek Falls State Park.  

When I made reservations 5 months ago, I first tried to get them for Seven Points COE campground near Nashville, but they would not let me reserve for a Saturday without reserving Friday, as well.  We didn't want to rush and try to get there Friday after work so I looked for another campground.  I found Cedars of Lebanon State Park.

We camped at site 43 in Campground 1.  All of the sites in Campground 1 are pull-throughs.  Some have 20/30 amp and some have 20/50 amp.  All sites have water.  

Most of the sites are very close together with little living area space.  

The sites along the outer edges have much more privacy with their living areas towards the woods.  Sites 1 & 2 in Campground 1 are occupied by camphosts.  The other outer sites are #3, 41, 42, 43, 44 and 45.  Our site (#43) had a large living area with plenty of area on both sides for our slideouts.  

There are two other campground areas in Cedars of Lebanon State Park.  Area 2 are back-in sites with 20/30 amp and water.  Most of these sites offer more privacy as they are further apart.  Area 3 has 20 amp service only with water and is suitable for some pop-ups or tent camping.  These sites are great with lots of room and privacy if you don't need 30 or 50 amp service.  

Each campground area has a bathhouse.  I used the one in our area and found it to be okay, not the cleanest but not the grossest either.  There is a laundry in Area 1 right behind the Camper Check-In.  None of the sites have sewer hookups and there is only 1 dump station for the entire campground which can make for a traffic jam at check-out time. 

This park has a lot to offer.  Lots of trails, disc golf, a seasonal swimming pool, seasonal horse stables, playground and lots of bike riding opportunities.  As this was just a stopping point on our way to another destination and to see family that lived in Nashville, we did not explore that much.  We would like to come back and spend more time here.

Since this campground is so close to Nashville, our over-the air antenna picked up lots of network TV stations.  My Sprint phone had good cell and data service.

Natchez Trace Parkway part 3- Mile Marker 444 to Tishomingo

Technically, we traveled the Trace "backwards".  We started at the north terminus (marker 444) and traveled south to the south terminus at Natchez.  

One of the first awesome items that you come across on the Trace is the Double Arch Bridge at Birdsong Hollow at mile marker 438. There is a pull off at the north end for a scenic view from above.  This bridge was completed in 1994 and received the Presidential Award for Design Excellence.  There is an exit at the south end of the bridge where you can go to the bottom and park for a view from the bottom looking up.

We stopped at mile marker 407 to see the historic Gordon House.
This house was built in 1817-1818.  It was the home of John and

Dorathea Gordon.  They operated a ferry at the nearby Duck River from 1801 until traffic on the Trace declined.  John died shortly after the home was completed but his wife lived there until her death in 1859 and carried on the ferry operation.

Our next stop was just a few miles down the road to take a short but steep walk to Jackson Falls.  This was a beautiful natural falls which was flowing very swiftly due to the recent heavy rains.

The walkway is paved and a fairly easy walk.  It is not near as difficult as Fall Creek Falls (as a comparison).  

The free Meriwether Lewis campground is at mile marker 386.  Even if you are not going to camp there, it is worth pulling into just to see a few of the items of historical significance.

This is the burial place of the famous explorer, Meriwether Lewis of Lewis & Clark fame.  It is hard to believe that he was only 35 years old when he died.  There is some controversy about his death.  There are reports that someone shot Mr. Lewis but the theory that he committed suicide is the more accepted story about his demise.  You can visit the log cabin exhibit which goes into great detail about his life and death.  Meriwether Lewis is a decent size park with 3 campground loops, bathrooms (no showers), trails, exhibits, and a creek.  We did see water spigots so you can fill your fresh water tank for camping in self-contained campers.

On an amusing sidenote, we visited this campground earlier in the year and did not realize it has 2 entrances - one on the Parkway and one on Hwy 20.  We entered from the Parkway and drove around, got out, looked at the exhibits and then left, we thought, the same way we came in.  Once we got back on the road, nothing looked familiar.  We turned around and went the other direction but still nothing looked familiar.  We had just about decided we had either completely lost or minds or entered some twilight zone parallel universe when we figured out there was more than one entrance/exit to the park.  

At mile marker 377, we stopped at the Jacks Branch picnic area for lunch.  A walk down the stone steps leads to a flat picnic area with tables and grills next to a flowing creek.  It was a tranquil place to stretch our legs and have a little bite to eat.

Our final stop of the day before we pulled into Tishomingo State Park was Rock Springs nature trail along Colbert Creek.  It started

to rain as we began our walk and by the time we reached the creek, Ms. Sally Mae was getting annoyed at being out in the rain.  She wanted nothing to do with the split concrete steps that crossed the creek so we turned around and headed back to the truck.

We began this day at mile post 444 and ended at Tishomingo State Park in northeast MS at mile post 305.  Next post is a review of Tishomingo State Park.

Montgomery Bell State Park TN (Part 2 of Natchez Trace Parkway Series)

To start our trek down the Natchez Trace Parkway, we first traveled up to Dickson, TN to camp overnight at Montgomery Bell State Park.  This TN State Park is a little west of Nashville. The park appears to be pretty large but the campground is a bit smaller than we imagined.  I think the narrow campground road has a lot to do with the cramped feel while driving through the campground.

Now, with that said, our campsite was fantastic.  Very spacious and long enough to park a large motorhome in.  Our fifth wheel and truck seem dwarfed by comparison.  This is site #108.  All sites are reservable through the new TN State Parks reservation system which can be accessed through their website:  http://www.tn.gov/environment/parks/    For some reason, TN tacks on a bunch of extra fees.  They charged an Occupancy Tax, a Local Tax, a State Tax and a $3.00 reservation fee.  We are not used to paying all this extra to camp, as MS state parks do not charge any of this.  When you reserve a site in MS, you pay exactly what the advertised campsite fee is and that is it.  This site was a full hookup site (water, elec, and sewer).  It was $25 per night (with the taxes and reservation fee it came to $31.69).  Some sites are water & elec only for about $3 less (I think-my memory is not what it used to be).


We would like to go back to this area when we have longer to stay. It looked like a great place to fish (they had a lake in another part of the park) and we saw someone catch a nice size bass from a bridge that goes across the lake.


If you like golf, they have a course at this park.  There is also an inn; however, we did not have a chance to drive around to see it.  

I preferred the campsites that backed up to the creek.  There had been a good amount of rain right before we got there and the creek was moving pretty swiftly.  I can see that flooding could be a problem with extended periods of rainfall. 


The bathhouse was old and somewhat dim but was clean.  We could only pick up a few TV stations but our Sprint internet service worked ok (slow but accessible).  

This campsite made a nice overnight rest stop to begin our journey down the Trace.  I would like to return to it when we have more time to stay.  We camped here Saturday, May 4, 2013.