Scenic Sunday #2 “Not as Planned”
When-
Sunday Afternoon Feb. 13th.
Place-
Sewanee, TN
Driving Distance from Our House-
37 Miles
The Adventure-
The plan was simple, 2 waterfalls and a picnic. The falls was only a short hike from the parking areas, with the parking areas less than 10 minutes from each other. After a few moments of studying the G.P.S. and Google earth, we were confident about our destination.
Once again we packed up our gear and went to worship the Lord. As Believers we realize that the nature we enjoy so much is created by the One True God. Notice I said is created instead of was. God is constantly proving His existence with creation of every season.
On this trip the “Heard Wagon” was stocked with a cooler of sandwiches, drinks and bags of chips. A meal fit for a small budget. Remember these trips are meant to be fun and affordable family adventures.
The G.P.S. led us to the first parking area where we had intended on taking the short hike with our lunch in tow. Unfortunately, when Marge (our Magellan) boasted “You have arrived,” we were in the middle of the road in a brand new residential neighborhood with only private driveways available to park. The water fall was no longer on public land and accessible to the community. Needless to say, we were disappointed and still hungry.
We remembered that a few miles down the road was the office of the South Cumberland State Park. This park covers a huge part of southern- middle Tennessee. The park office is well equipped with all the current information needed to enjoy this beautiful park. The park is the home of Savage Gulf, Stone Door and the Fiery Gizzard Trail.
We went to the Park Office and ate our lunch on one of the many picnic areas. Once our stomachs were filled and our frustration calmed down, we went in and asked for the information and watched a great little film about the area. The second falls we were looking for was on the area of the map that was available to the public. Also, on the same trail was a natural bridge. When we had a hand full of maps and brochures we hit the road again. This time we were much more successful, well sort of.
We had no trouble finding the well marked parking lot for the trails and the natural bridge. There were two trails at this location, one to the falls and the other to the bridge. The bridge was a short hike and did not leave a fat man like me out of breath. The trail to the bridge was less than a 100 yards slightly down hill.
Walking down the wide, even and well maintained trail brought you to the top of the bridge. According to the information we picked up at the park office a natural bridge is formed when layers of hard rock are separated by soft sandy rocks. The water slowly pushes and washes the sand out between the two hard layers, leaving a void. Above that void is the bridge. Are you still awake?
Whether one is interested in how it was formed, there is no doubt in how cool it looks standing on top of the bridge or under it. The bluffs that surrounded us were beautifully, naturally decorated with wonderful layers of colors and steps.
At the base was what I would call a cove deep enough for a couple of adult’s comfortable shelter from rain. It even had a place to start a fire. Other hikers and campers had made their marks on the cave walls with the charcoal from their fire pit.
There is so much more to experience, however we wanted to get that last trail in. I was tired and so were the kids, but we were wanting to see a water fall. Once again however, we hit a snag. The trail to the other falls was not as easily found. After a total nearly four hours of frustration, hiking and making circles, we were ready to throw in the towel.
In the end I wish I could have photographed some falling water that day, but things did not go as planned. We still had a great time at the bridge and we learned a lot at the state park office. Most importantly we did it together as a family. We can’t fuss about that.
So get out there and have your own Adventure!
Robert G. Heard
The Travel Log-
Family Fun Rating: *** out of 5
Explanation-
I cannot really blame anyone for this “OK” rating. We used a program on Google that is updated by other users like me. The software marks different locations of natural areas. Unfortunately, for us we visited a place that has not been updated, it happens. We ended up being too tired to put any more effort into finding that other trail. If it was marked better, I would have given it a 4 *.
Website @ http://state.tn.us/environment/parks/SouthCumberland/
Sewanee Natural Bridge
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