Rock Island State Park (Round Two) - Rock Island, TN

Rock Island State Park was such an amazing place, we had to come back twice in one week.

On the first trip, the kids had started building a fort out of driftwood, but we got chased off the beach by a pretty strong storm. Today, we came back, and not only was the fort still there, but someone had actually built more to it!  It was pretty awesome! The kids added even more, and then Trillian constructed a door with found sticks and tied it together with some stray rope.

On this trip we had a chance to check out Spring Castle and the Great Falls Mill and Overlook.

We were also able to hike down to the Twin Falls Overlook and Trillian and Logan scaled down the rock wall and scrambled over the massive collection of rocks and boulders until they were standing in the mist of the massive falls. Trillian is in the photos of the falls below, but you'll have to look closely to find her!

I will probably add more later to this post, but I wanted to get some of the newer photos posted tonight!

If you are ever in or around Central Tennessee, you won't want to miss this place! A lot of people come to the area to visit Fall Creek Falls, and Rock Island is only about 30 minutes away!

Rock Climbing at Obed Wild and Scenic River - Wartburg, TN

Some days you just wake up and want to try something so far out of your comfort zone you later wonder what the heck you were thinking.  

We've scaled many a canyon wall out in the deserts of Utah, but this was our first foray into actual rock climbing with all of the equipment. 

Unfortunately, rock climbing is not a winter sport. Not for us any how...  It was just too cold to get a good grip on the rocks and we didn't last very long or get as high as we were hoping.

All in all, it was loads of fun, albeit just enough hard work to necessitate the whole "what was I thinking" exasperation during a few of the tough parts...  And I'm pretty sure there was some foul language shouted by the time we got back to the parking lot. But, hey, if there isn't any profanity involved, you haven't tried your hardest! 

Want to give it a shot? The Obed Wild and Scenic River offers amazing climbing, as well as world class rapids. People come from all corners of the planet to partake of each of these thrill sports. You can come with your own equipment and enjoy all mother nature has to offer here any time on your own.

Or, if you are a beginner like us, consider the Climbing with a Ranger Program offered the first Saturday of each month. All equipment, including shoes, harnesses, helmets, and ropes, as well as coffee and a Ranger Spotter, is provided to you, free of charge. Just wear comfortable clothing and meet at the Lilly Bridge at 11am Eastern Time. If you follow signs to the Climbing Area, you can drop in any time before 2pm. 

Ranger Matt and the team are AWESOME! They were great with encouraging the kids. Safety is a top priority for everyone involved, but as they say, the most dangerous part of climbing is the drive to get to the park. 

I will say, though, the hike up to the cliffs may be very short, but it's definitely not an "easy" hike. Negotiating backpacks, equipment, and a toddler proved to be a little strenuous for me. Ribby normally does most of her own hiking, but the drop offs are steep and the path unforgiving, so I did carry her for this one. Just be mindful of loose rocks and a tangle of tree roots, and you'll probably get there quicker than we did!

We had a great morning enjoying the massive sandstone bluffs, but the cold weather definitely hampered our progress. We WILL be back when it warms up! See ya there!    

Obed Wild and Scenic River - Wartburg, TN

Today we earned our Junior Ranger Badges at the Obed Wild and Scenic River in Wartburg, TN.

The Rangers were very nice, and hopefully we'll be back soon for some rock climbing!

In addition to our badgework, we did Fish Identifcation, looked at the museum exhibits, and went over some rock climbing information. We still need to finish our map study and do a few more hikes, but hopefully we can keep that on a front-burning bucket list and get back up there again.

(More pictures to be added shortly)

Junior Rangers!