Reelfoot Lake
I moved to Tennessee in 1997 but it wasn’t until around 2003 that I began to seek out visits to our state parks. Nick and I bought 50 hikes within 50 miles of Nashville and began documenting our adventures in the book, along with a TN state parks passport we picked up at Tims Ford on our 5th anniversary! When Christian was born, we became a little more intentional about camping at the state parks! We even found out I was pregnant with Eva Mae the day after we came home from our camping trip at Davy Crockett State Park in 2011!
I love getting our passport stamped and writing down our
highlights after a visit. I’ve blogged about several that you can click here:
1. Cedars of Lebanon, Cumberland Mountain and Fall CreekFalls
2. Standing Stone, Big South Fork, Pickett and Cumberland Gap
3. Pickwick Landing, Big Hill Pond and Shiloh
4. Johnsonville State Park, Mousetail Landing, and Paris
This summer we enjoyed Reelfoot Lake State Park with
friends! There is no inn to rent a room at this park so you can either camp, or
rent one of their deluxe cabins. We found that it was reasonable to rent the
three bedroom cabin and split the cost 3 ways! It is around $300 a night so
that brought it down to only $100 per family per night.
The activities you can do at Reelfoot include kayaking, going on a ranger led pontoon cruise, and hiking their nature trails! My friend Stephanie said that the Blue Bank Resort near the cabins also had some beautiful trails that are free to walk!
There are several parks near the cabins. Our children loved going on the ninja course playground!
We also loved the campfire each night behind the cabins! The views of the sunset and fireflies was so magical!
If you want to go on the ranger led pontoon boat I do advise you to book your cruise as soon as possible because they do sell out quickly. The kayaks are also first come, first served but you can call ahead to check on availability! They rent kayaks and canoes for the whole day or by the hour.
We loved learning about the cypress trees and the forest that existed here before the Mississippi River flooded the basin and created the lake. The birds were out and showed off for us on our tour! We saw cormorants, egrets, herons, osprey, and the most majestic bald eagles! The eagles were diving for fish in front of our pontoon for part of the tour! It was amazing! The wildlife is impressive at Reelfoot and will not disappoint! My children were also excited to catch toads, see a raccoon, and lots of turtles as well!
Only 30 minutes away from Reelfoot Lake is Discovery Park ofAmerica. This park is a natural history treasure trove! They have an earthquake
experience where a movie is shown that dramatized the New Madrid earthquakes of1811-1812.
If you think you’ll visit the museum several times in a year I suggest getting a membership! There is so much to do at the park that you really need two full days to see it all! We went quickly through each level of the Discovery Center and the outdoor exhibits of the park.
My favorite was the pioneer village and all the stories you can read about in the cabins! Liberty Square is also very nice because you can sit in a theater and see short films that dramatize different periods of American history, including the Wilderness Road/Daniel Boone and other historical events from the 1700s and 1800s.
If you’re coming from Middle Tennessee there are several state parks and other attractions you can visit on your way! We enjoyed going to Dyersburg for lunch before finishing the last leg of the trip up to Reelfoot Lake. In Dyersburg there is a beautiful mural about the musical legacy of Noah Lewis. I loved watching this video about the mural! I have plans to do a listening lesson with the kids and comparing all the different recordings of the Minglewood Blues!
Natchez Trace State Park, Johnsonville State Park, Mousetail Landing State Park, Paris, TN, Casey Jones Railroad Museum, Loretta Lynn Dude Ranch, Tennessee Animal Safari Park, Tennessee River Freshwater Pearl Museum, Parkers Crossroads Civil War Battlefield, and other off the beaten path sites can be seen on your road trip!
Here’s my suggested 3 day itinerary:
Day 1 – leave Middle Tennessee at 9:30am and drive to
Dyersburg, TN. Walk around downtown and eat at the Bus Stop café for a
delicious deli sandwich and coffee. Drive to Newbern, TN and see the Amtrak
station (there are only two Amtrak stations in Tennessee!) Cross the covered
bridge in Trimble and drive through the small town of Troy, TN where Davy
Crockett killed 105 bears! Finish the trip at Reelfoot Lake and check into the
cabin and enjoy a relaxing campfire with smores!
Day 2 – Explore the nature of Reelfoot lake with a pontoon
tour, kayaking or canoeing, and nature hike! Eat dinner at the famous Boyette’s
Diner! (We ate frog legs!)
Day 3 – Check out at 9:30am and drive to Discovery Park of America for the day! After the park closing, drive home!
Tennessee Crossroads is one of my favorite shows. You can
view their episodes on Boyette’s, and Discovery Park! Here's another video about Reelfoot Lake and the New Madrid earthquake.
Comments
Post a Comment