I've hiked a good bit in my career so I was completely unbothered when I came across a blog post claiming that Cummins Falls was rather scary for the mother of a young family going there. I was still unbothered by the fact that you have to watch a safety video before you go down to the falls. I was a little more bothered when I was halfway on a 6/10th of a mile walk up nothing but river bed while headed to the falls. Don't get me wrong, the falls is worth it, but the one blog I stumbled across that said it was "an easy hike" to the swimming hole at the bottom of the falls clearly has a very different definition of that than I do. Here's my advice, listen to all the park warnings and wear closed toe shoes with grip. The rocks are very slippery walking to the falls and you will have to wade. There's no choice there. Once you're at the bottom of the falls the rocks are huge and try to find something slightly comfortable to put your stuff on. The smartest thing we did was eat before we hiked down fairly early (around 10). It meant that the before lunch crowd was clearing out when we got there and the after lunch crowd was just coming as we were leaving. The swimming hole at the bottom of the falls is huge. There are deeper areas, but around the sides and under the falls is shallower. The park also provides life vests for children under 12, but it would be better to bring your own. Also think about getting a waterproof pouch for your phone. That all being said a day at Cummins is well worth it. The park seems like it's in the middle of nowhere, but it is relatively close to Cookeville and the visitor center is brand shiny new. I've never been able to swim as much as I did at any waterfall base and one of the most fun things was just sitting under the falls on one of the rock shelves. I sound like I think the place is dangerous, but I don't really. I do feel that people can go down there completely unprepared and either have a bad time because they scare themselves or get hurt because they don't take decent precautions. Definitely take a trip to Cummins if you are up for a mild adventure, but remember this place isn't a theme park and to be aware of your own safety.
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AuthorA librarian doing the travel. Archives
May 2024
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