It’s a Beautiful Day For Chasing Waterfalls

Get ready, this post is going to be photo-heavy. Today we took a somewhat impromptu drive out to a neat little place called Ozone Falls. It was awesome. Temperatures in the 60’s, bright sun, blue skies- perfect weather for hiking. I was so proud of how my kids did navigating the trails and carefully (for the most part) climbing up and down the rocky slopes. We all agreed we’ll be going there again in the future, armed with snacks and water bottles next time. Mom didn’t do much planning for this adventure.

Ozone Falls is one of the fun waterfall places out there- the kind where you can visit both the top and bottom of the falls. The top, I admit, was slightly terrifying with kids in tow. It’s a 110-foot drop, and since this is the free state of Tennessee, there aren’t any railings, warning signs, barricades or fencing keeping anyone away from the edge. You could walk right off if, accidentally or on purpose. (And in case my mother reads this: don’t worry, mom. I’ll never go here without my husband or someone else to help me keep track of the kids.)

Isn’t this absolutely magical? Fun tidbit I learned after doing more research on this area: much of the Disney version of “The Jungle Book” from 1994 was filmed here. This was also the part of the hike that made me realize how important physical fitness is.

I didn’t get all the way down to the base of the waterfall because I had the baby on my back. I was also wearing flip flops. Like I said, not much prep. Hopefully next time I can get some cooler pictures of the bottom half of the gorge.

Finding cool natural areas like this has been one of my favorite parts of being in Tennessee so far. My husband and I both love exploring and getting outside, and it makes me so happy that our children seem to love it just as much. Time to add hiking shoes for everyone to the shopping list, and maybe plan out a couple more adventures.