For my birthday I wanted a great hike with lots of wildlife and waterfalls. Virgin Falls Natural area in Sparta Tennessee fit the bill. Middle Tennessee is filled with waterfalls. Growing up in west Tennessee I never knew this but now that I live in middle TN I plan to hit as many as possible. Getting to Virgin Falls is a bit rough in itself. It is on a dirt road with lots of ruts that were hard on my little Mini Cooper. Once at the trailhead, there is an information cabin with a ranger. He ... Read More
Tennessee outside of Nashville
National Banana Pudding Festival
Yuck. That's how I felt about banana pudding for YEARS. growing up I thought it was gross. Come to find out, it was mainly the nilla wafer cookies I really didn't like. Now, as an adult, I've come to absolutely LOVE banana pudding. So when I found out that the NATIONAL banana pudding festival is held in Tennessee every year, I was IN! The pudding brings you in but all the other fun events keep you there for hours. The banana pudding festival is in Centerville TN every year the first weekend ... Read More
Discovery Park of America
Of course, I want free stuff! Smithsonian's free museum day just passed and I knew exactly where I wanted to go- Discovery Park of America in Union City, TN. I went to college about 15 miles from Union City. When I found out that there was an amazing museum there, I was excited to check it out. The Discovery Park of America opened in Northwest Tennessee in 2013. About 120 miles from Memphis and 170 miles from Nashville, the museum covers a wide range of historical periods. One of the best ... Read More
Cherokee National Forest waterfall hikes and camping
I grew up hearing all about the Smoky Mountains. Being in Tennessee, it makes sense. But I never heard of the Cherokee National forest. But it is AH-MAZING! And I only saw a tiny portion of this massive national forest. My three days exploring only 1 (of 11) areas of the forest was highlighted by 2 waterfalls and a campsite that is the DARKEST I've been to in ages. We were in the region near the Ocoee and Hiawassee rivers. The area is the Little Frog wilderness area. The camping within this ... Read More
