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January 25, 2007
The Cumberland Plateau:
A Trip to Fall Creek Falls State Park
Morning breaks over the frosty Cumberland Plateau
On Wednesday I drove up from Chattanooga to Fall Creek Falls State Park to give a presentation at the "Meeting of the Minds" conference - put on by the Tennessee Recreation and Parks Association.
I set out early at 6:30 AM (Eastern Time) and drove for the first hour in the dark. As I climbed (in my vehicle) up out of the Sequatchie Valley onto the Cumberland Plateau, the day's first light began to shine. The Cumberland Plateau is simply gorgeous, and reminds me of my former home in the Hudson Valley area in New York.
Mist rises off the lake at Fall Creek Falls State Park
I finally arrived at Fall Creek Falls State Park shortly 7 AM (Central Time) and found my host. After a quick breakfast I gave a one-hour presentation on Best Practices for Volunteer Program Management (PDF 1 MB). The presentation and the document it was based upon were developed by Mayes | Wilson Associates for American Hiking Society.
After the presentation I headed back to my office in Chattanooga. Along the way I saw a large fire tower off of HWY 111, so I followed some side roads until I found myself at the base of the tower.
I had to take great care climbing up the wooden steps, because I was wearing loafers, and the steps were still slick with the morning's first. Although the entrance to the tower was locked, I was afforded great views in all directions from the tower. What remains of the hardwood forests of the plateau harbor an astonishing array of biological diversity. Much of the original hardwood forests have been cut and replaced by pine plantations. Currently, the paper industry is divesting much of their lands on the plateau, so the future of this area is unknown. Thankfuly, the State of Tennessee is acquiring some of the land that has has been sold by one of the largest paper companies - Bowater. Some of this newly acquired land will become part of the Cumberland Trail State Park.
The view of the Cumberland Plateau from the fire tower off HWY 111
Heading home, I took my time and stopped to view a beautiful cascade alongside the highway. I also stopped to look at and photograph the beautiful Sequatchie Valley. On the home stretch, I passed where the Cumberland Trail crosses over HWY 111 at Jones Gap Road. This is right near the Soddy Mountain Hawk Watch that I've written about in the past in this blog.
The Sequatchie Valley with the Cumberland Plateau looming in the background
All in all it was a great day. I wish I had more time to hike while I was up near Fall Creek Falls. Just the same, it's nice to get out of the office from time to time.
I hope you enjoy the photos!
Great Places to Hike | By Jeffrey Hunter | 05:47 PM
