Located in Tullahoma, Rutledge Falls is very easy to get to. Park along the side of the road on the wide gravel shoulder and a few hundred yards off the road is an extremely large waterfall. There is a bit of a rock scramble to get to the bottom, but the waterfall offers good views even from the top. There is a statue known as the Lady of the Falls up at the top too. I understand a lot of people swim in the falls during the summer. When I went there it had been raining so the water was pretty swelled and muddy. The falls is on private property so be conscientious about behavior.
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It's the last week of the Age of Armor exhibit at the Huntsville Museum of Art. The collection is one of the most extensive ones I've ever seen of armor from many time periods, but mostly from the 1500s. The Huntsville Museum of Art is a very nice, small museum that has well curated art exhibits. They're known for their collection of silver sculptures that are on permanent display. The Age of Armor is a travelling exhibit and is one of the most interesting the museum has hosted in a long time.
Look Rock Tower, on the Maryville side of the Smokies, is the calmer, less known cousin of Clingman's Dome. Across from a large parking area, the tower is used to test air quality. After a short but steep hike up a hill, you're presented with a ramp to a tower very similar to the one on Clingman's Dome. The views are very good, the crowds far fewer. The height might not be the same, but Look Rock Tower is worth visiting for a different view of the Smokies.
Laurel Falls is one of the most popular hikes in the Smokies and I have a fraught relationship with the trail. It's where I got the most injured on a hike mainly because the trail is paved. Sort of. The pavement is cracked and falling apart and some of it is completely gone, but when it gets wet it gets very slick. In fact the whole area around the waterfall is very slick. Add that to insane crowds most of the time, I generally don't like the trail or the experience. Fast forward to this Christmas, where the crowds in the Smokies are smaller and not as many of them interested in hiking. The trail will be closed down starting this year for some much needed work on widening the trail, building bigger observation areas and bridges, creating more parking and enforcing a shuttle system that will try to cut down on some of the insane traffic in the area. We decided to give the trail one last walk as it is since the crowds were down and it was worth it. Early in the morning we were able to get very close parking and had the falls almost to ourselves (also shout out to the nice retired couple who encouraged us to visit Oregon and Kearney, NE). Hopefully the improvements will make the falls a much better experience all around.
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AuthorA librarian doing the travel. Archives
May 2024
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