South Cumberland State Park

South Cumberland State Park has so much to offer for everyone, from avid backpackers to families with small children. I have been twice. The first time, a few years back, I had a miserable failure of a backpacking trip with my two small children following a heavy rain. Who even does that? Sometimes the loud boisterous thrill of adventure drowns out my brain's pesky attempts at logical thinking. I paid, dear friends. I paid.

This past week, I was way less ambitious and subsequently more practical and successful, and planned a one day trip (requiring only a backpack with some water and band-aids) and a picnic. The drive took almost two hours from my house on the west side of Nashville.

We (my family + friends, including five children ages 5-10) began our day at the Stone Door Ranger Station (1183 Stone Door Rd, Beersheba Springs, TN 37305).  We took off to the right on the Stone Door Trail. The first part of this trail is paved and has a beautiful over-look. This section would be great for people with strollers, wheel chairs, or small children. 

  

As we continued, the pavement ended into a well maintained path. We hiked one mile to the beautiful cliffs and a section where you can walk down a steep set of stairs between a crack in the cliffs. Going down is a fantastic exercise in testing the condition of your knees, and going up, your butt, thighs, and heart health. Let's say I might need some Flexamin and a new workout regimen. A new trail began at the bottom, but we turned around. We had all those steps to get the kiddos back up, a goal of 4 different sites, and lunch to be had! Breakfast had taken place hours ago, before we left home. We did enjoy hanging out on the cliff for a few minutes to take it all in. It really was spectacular. The littlest said, "You can see the whole world from up here." If you hike this with children, please keep in mind that you happen upon the cliffs just over a little wooden bridge, and there is no railing. Keep them close. Cliffs tend to have a way of sneaking up on you out here. Exhilarating.

We hiked the one mile back to the parking area, grabbed our lunches, and had a picnic at the pavilion. After a trip to the bathroom, we took off on the path to the left, which leads to Laurel Falls. This hike was only .3 miles total in and out, so super short. We went into the stream above the waterfall and the kids splashed in the freezing cold water. It was nice and relaxing up there, and we adults also crossed the stream to get a view of the waterfall from the other side.  

 

Our next stop was to the Greeter Falls parking area. I typed Greeter Falls into my GPS, and it took me there. Service can be spotty out here, so it may be wise to be familiar with the directions in advance, but we passed the sign for Greeter Falls on the way to the Stone Door anyway, so it was easy to find. From here, we hiked to the right first, which was the Blue Hole Trail. It led to a stunning swimming hole with a big easy-to-climb boulder to sit on. The hike to this spot was only 1/2 a mile. It's been a mild winter here, and the temperature was in the upper 70s, but it isn't exactly warm enough to swim. The kids did enjoy hopping from rock to rock through the stream and using sticks to gauge the depth of the deeper water. 

 

We relaxed here for a while and then hiked the 1/2 mile back to beginning and then took off the other direction to Greeter Falls. The hike to Greeter Falls was pretty short but extra strenuous compared to the other hikes of the day, but let me tell you; it was worth it! My phone had 3 % battery left, so I had one shot at a picture. And maybe I should've waited till there wasn't a tree blocking the view. But this was it. 

This one imperfectly executed photo does not do the spot justice at all. It's heavenly down there. The hike back up, however is the opposite of heavenly, especially if you have gotten lazy over the winter like I have. We didn't do the entire loop. Everyone was tired. We sat down here a while, and then hiked straight back out to our vehicles. You can do a loop, though and see Board Tree Falls, too. Next time. We will definitely be going back this summer when it's warm enough to swim. I have to say, though, it was nice being there at a time when it wasn't crowded. I imagine summer will be a little less serene. And you know with five kids, this trip was perfect serenity. 😂 LOL
http://tnstateparks.com/parks/about/south-cumberland