On Day Five of our Tennessee Loop, we adventured to Burgess Falls. This was just an hour drive to the north of Fall Creek Falls State Park where we were staying. After having seen the trickle at the Falls, I had very low expectations for this day. I was being a realist, which is not my norm; I am usually an optimist. But, I did not want to be sorely disappointed.
Burgess Falls
We arrived early. There is construction happening at this park and one entire parking lot is closed so parking is limited. We took a photo of the map and started off. Right there at the beginning were the Cascades, I could hear running water and this made me smile!!! If this was all I saw and heard today, I would be happy. But we ventured on anyway to see what else was in store.
Cascades at Burgess Falls
We walked along the Rivertrail and came to the Little Falls and then the Middle Falls, which were both lovely.
Little Falls at Burgess Falls
Middle Falls at Burgess Falls
But we kept going….is there really more I wondered? Eventually we came to the Burgess Falls look out. We were looking down and to the left at the falls.
Burgess Falls
A local commented that it was less than the normal flow, but it was not a trickle!!! I love waterfalls!!! There was an aggressive trail down to the top of the falls. A woman was waiting for her husband to look up so she could take his photo. “He’s 59,” she stated! So another adventurous old couple and Gary and I started out. I offered to let him stay at the top as I went down the steep descent, but he said he was game.
A few passersby declared it was worth the hike! So we pushed on. When we reached the bottom, we were at the top of the falls. I was able to walk out and look right over the edge as the water cascaded down in front of me.
The top of the falls at Burgess Falls
It was just so lovely. The high rocks, surrounding mountains, the occasional colorful tree, it was just so much beauty. We found a bench by Middle Falls and enjoyed our lunch. We then found an easier trail to take back to the parking lot. I was so glad we had come. I think we were there about two hours but we are not usually in a hurry to explore. We met a lovely couple, Joan and Chuck, from Florida and spent some time chatting with them. God has been so sweet to bring me lovely people this trip.
Sparta, Tennessee
Our next destination was the little town of Sparta. This town is so old timey they still have a drive in theater. The first place we wanted to explore was the White County Heritage Museum.
They were surprised we were from out of town…most of their visitors are locals wanting to visit old stuff from their past. The museum is free, they just recently qualified for another grant! The items in the museum are grouped by subject and everything is donated. The only item they paid for was an old pistol from the Civil War that the “Yankees” stole from their beloved General Dibrell and they bought it back for $24,000. The museum is full of local history. They are very proud of being Lester Flatt’s hometown. He is famous for his performance of the theme from Beverly Hillbillies. The docents are very helpful and love to share the stories of how they came by their treasures. This is a lovely stop and ….it's free.
From there we ventured to Sparta’s downtown area. There was an Italian cheese store, Formaggi, that makes their own gelato, has a little Italian grocery and wonderful cheeses. We sampled five year old gouda and purchased a cup of gelato - maple bacon for me and apple strudel for Gary.
We ventured into a second hand store, a boutique and an apothecary which was very lovely; I could have spent a lot of time and money in this store!!
Tennessee’s largest apothecary
There was also a lovely war memorial in town that honors fallen heroes from Sparta. We ended this afternoon with dinner at Brothers Tavern. I saw the Greek fries on the internet and was ready to dig in. I added the gyro meat and had more than a meal, even though this dish is on the appetizer menu. Gary had the Gyro Platter and enjoyed his meal as well.
Gyro Platter, Brothers Tavern, Sparta, TN
Parking was free in this sweet little town. The Burgess Falls State Park was also free. What I spent on this day was $3.70 on discounted tea, $17.00 on gelato and cheese samples and $52.31 for dinner.
All in all, a lovely day. You really need to explore Tennessee, it’s beautiful! Stay tuned for our next adventure on the Tennessee Loop!