My BHAG: To hike all the good trails!
Current Status: Over the last few years we’ve hiked a ton of epic hikes as we visit all those Tennessee State Parks. Starting to figure out what I want to do next.
Epic Ground Pounds
My favorite hikes…ever…in my life…
Hiking Related Posts
Hiking Big South Fork – Twin Arches, Needle Arch and Slave Falls
We loved hiking all around Big South Fork. We spent a day at Twin Arches. They were enormous! I can’t believe these are in Tennessee. I was arch-struck! So many ‘that’s what she said’ jokes! After Emily broke her toes on the first hike, she wanted to persevere and finish the day’s 2nd hike. We…
Awesome Hiking at Honey Creek Loop Trail and Overlook (in Big South Fork Nat’l River and Rec Area)
Best. Hike. Of. The. Year. Honey Creek Loop Trail (in Big South Fork) was only listed as 4.2 miles. Regardless, it took us almost 5 hours because 1) there was so much to see along the way, 2) the hiking was very hard/technical, 3) the trail was very hard to follow, and 4) a lot…
DISASTERS At Big South Fork – Emily Broke Her Toe(s) and I Almost Lost My Drone
Disasters! It was our BEST trip of the year and our WORST trip of the year. A tree root reached up and hooked Emily’s foot and she wound up with some broken toes. My drone decided to go on an unplanned trip and almost wound up in the Big South Fork River. It wasn’t all…
Great Hikes Around San Diego, CA
We explored some great places around San Diego (mainly the La Jolla area) on foot. We hiked around the Torrey Pines Gliderport area (but didn’t walk off the ledge like some crazy people there did). While there we hiked down to Black’s Beach (a nude optional beach where we did NOT fit in). We hiked…
Hiking Pickett CCC Memorial State Park
WOW! Pickett was superb! I think this was the best state park we’ve visited this year. Everything we did on this visit was excellent. The 5 trails we hiked were all excellent with very interesting things to see all along the way (natural bridges, caves, streams, plants, mushrooms, waterfalls, ladders, etc.). The food was excellent…
Kayaking and Hiking at Big Hill Pond State Park – Pocahontas, TN
We commuted into the far reaches of TN for a day of kayaking, hiking, and exploring a very nice Tennessee State Park. We barely saw anyone the entire day as we kayaked on the huge lake, explored the swampy Big Hill Pond, hiked a half-mile boardwalk into a swamp, and then up a tower overlooking…
Hiking and Kayaking Around Mousetail Landing State Park (Linden, TN)
School’s Out Blitz! When Emily’s school let out we hit the road. The first stop was Mousetail Landing State Park (near almost nothing but maybe Linden, TN). We are hikers and the hiking in this part of the state is not the best but we were surprised with Mousetail. The trails were better than expected,…
Hiking to Buggytop Cave & Sewanee Natural Bridge @ South Cumberland SP Lost Cove Area (Sewanee, TN)
While in the Sewanee, TN area I needed to check some final destinations off my South Cumberland State Park list. We had not made it to the Lost Cove Area on other trips. Buggytop Cave was the first destination so we hiked a few miles to get there. It was worth it! Much more impressive…
Pinson Mounds State Archaeological Park – Pinson, TN
I took Emily and Max on the equivalent of a school field trip to Pinson Mounds State Archaeological Park (in Pinson, TN). Pinson Mounds is the largest mound complex in Tennessee and is one of the largest Middle Woodland (A.D. 0 to A.D. 500) mound complexes in the United States. It was much more interesting…
Winter Camping at David Crockett State Park (Lawrenceburg, TN)
We headed down the Natchez Trace Parkway to Lawrenceburg, TN for some winter camping at David Crockett State Park. There was beautiful ice in the trees on the way down. The weather cooperated all weekend and we got our first trip of 2023 completed. This one had all the staples with hikes, waterfalls, a campfire,…
Epic Hike Fail! Our First Hiking Injury! Which One Makes It Back?
We had our first epic failed hike, so we biked instead. Always have a plan B! Numerous people have commented on Emily always hiking in sandals. I don’t advise it, but each to their own. On this day she came to the hike (at Denny Cove) with a sour attitude about the AllTrails app hike…
Johnsonville State Historic Park – New Johnsonville, TN
We drove across the lake (from staying at Nathan Bedford Forrest SP) to visit Johnsonville State Historic Park. Nathan Bedford Forrest was who attacked Johnsville during the Civil War. I guess that interconnects these two state parks in some way. We visited the interpretive center (which I highly recommend) for a quick movie. Then we…
Hiking and Kayaking Nathan Bedford Forrest SP – Eva, TN
We headed to the lake to visit two different (but related) Tennessee state parks for some kayaking and hiking. We stayed at Nathan Bedford Forrest SP in Eva, TN. We visit Johnsonville Historic Park across the river while we were there. Both parks have Civil War history galore. We loaded the kayaks on the truck…
Hiking Long Hunter State Park – Hermitage, TN
2 lakes, 3 hikes! With trails around a small lake (Couchville Lake) and a large lake (Percy Preist Lake), Long Hunter State Park has plenty to explore. The TN state park is just outside Nashville, TN (in Hermitage/Mt. Juliet). It doesn’t have any place to RV camp so we made a few day trips there…
Summer In Telluride, Colorado
We ended up our trip out west in Telluride, Colorado for some summer fun. We stayed up the mountain in Mountain Village. The gondola ride from there to town is pretty spectacular. It rained a lot while were there including on our hike up to Bridal Veil Falls (Colorado’s biggest waterfall). It never rained enough…
Summer In Vail, Colorado
After a ridiculous day of air travel, we made it to Vail Colorado. Getting there I was reminded why I travel in an RV the vast majority of the time. We took the gondola up Vail Mountain. After many selfies by the kids, they rode the mountain coaster. We hiked a little bit over to…
Savage Falls – Savage Gulf SNA
This was our last day in Savage Gulf. Today was a drive day (from Manchester to Reliance TN). On the way, we hiked to Savage Falls in Savage Gulf State Natural Area (part of South Cumberland State Park). This was our 6th waterfall in our four days of hiking in Savage Gulf. We didn’t get…
Suter Falls and Horsepound Falls – Collins West Trailhead – Savage Gulf SNA
We spent 4 days in Savage Gulf State Natural Area and my favorite day was when we hiked up to Suter Falls and Horespound Falls. We entered the trail at the Collins West Trailhead and headed towards Suter Falls. The area that Suter Falls is in is absolutely stunning (and massive). It didn’t feel like…
Greeter Falls at Savage Gulf State Natural Area
We spent a few days exploring Savage Gulf State Natual Area. This is part of South Cumberland State Park which has to be my favorite Tennessee State Park. Today’s hike was short and sweet. We hiked to Blue Hole, and to Greeter Falls (both upper and lower). We’d planned to go to Boardtree Falls and…
Hiking Old Stone Fort State Archaeological Park – Manchester, TN
Old Stone Fort State Archaeological Park, in Manchester, TN. was our home base for about a week as we hiked in the surrounding area of Tennessee. One afternoon when we got rained out of our plan we explored this state park’s 2000-year-old earthworks Native American fort, two rivers (Duck River and Little Duck River), and…
Stone Door + Laurel Falls + Ranger Falls at Savage Gulf State Natural Area in South Cumberland SP
This video is SAVAGE…Savage Gulf State Natural Area that is! We headed up to Beersheba Springs, TN for a few days of hiking in the Savage Gulf part of South Cumberland State Park. This state park is already way up my favorite Tennessee State Park list and this hike just solidified it further. We hiked…
Cloudland Canyon Georgia State Park
Emily and I finished out our Spring Break trip with some walk-in tent camping at Cloudland Canyon State Park in Georgia. We survived our first joint tent camping experience (cold). The next day we explored the park’s trail system and beautiful waterfalls. Many great views, a couple of waterfalls, and many steps made for a…
Stone Mountain Park (near Atlanta Georgia)…Climbing Stone Mountain!
We started our Spring Break with snow and freezing temperatures. We were supposed to tent camp at Stone Mountain Park (near Atlanta, Georgia) but we canceled that and opted for indoors (and heat). On the way there we stopped off in Chattanooga and picked up Molly for our week-long road trip. We didn’t let the…
Hiking The Fiery Gizzard Trail To Raven’s Point – South Cumberland State Park – Tracy City, TN
The Fiery Gizzard Trail up to Raven’s Point is one of Tennessee’s finest hikes. I also think it is one of the harder ones. The trail is part of the South Cumberland State Park, near Tracy City, TN. I have hiked part of this trail before with my friend back in 2015. I remembered, from…
Hiking Foster Falls (and Climber’s Loop) – South Cumberland State Park – Sequatchie, TN
We got into town for our hike on the Fiery Gizzard Trail (the next day). We drove up to the south end of that trail and visited Foster Falls (since we wouldn’t be making it to that point on our long hike). We hiked to the bottom of the falls (beautiful) and then took another…
Cumberland Trail State Park – Grassy Cove Segment – Black Mountain Section (Crossville, TN)
I had no idea this was a thing. It is kinda like a little mini Appalachian Trail (for front country hikers). Hey…that’s me?!?! The Justin P. Wilson Cumberland Trail State Park manages the Cumberland Trail (a State Scenic Trail). The Cumberland Trail follows a line of high ridges and deep gorges lying along Tennessee’s Cumberland…
Ozone Falls State Natural Area (Crab Orchard, TN)
This 110-foot tall waterfall has a pretty quick hike down to the bottom. For the more adventurous there is a 7-mile hike (as a part of Tennessee’s Cumberland Trail State Park) over to Black Mountain (where we hiked the next day). We opted for less adventure this afternoon but the waterfall was spectacular, regardless. If…
Percy Warner Park – My Favorite Park In Nashville, TN
Nashville is my favorite city in America because I believe it has one of the best park systems in the nation! Change my mind! Emily and I have hit all/most of these over the years. Our favorites are Percy Warner Park, Edwin Warner Park, Radnor Lake, and Beaman Park. If I had to pick an…
Carson National Forest (New Mexico)
The Carson National Forest covers 1.5 million acres in northern New Mexico. Part of it is near the family cabin that we visit often. We’ve visited the area many times over the years. On this day we had a picnic (at Flechado Canyon) and then hiked about 4 miles up the Indian Lake Trail No.…
Bandelier National Monument – Cliff Dwellings, Scary Ladders, Alcove House + Shopping in Santa Fe
We visited the cliff dwellings at Bandelier National Monument. This place is a pretty fascinating lost city of the past. We’d been here before a long time ago. We’ve never been up to Alcove House before, however. 4 very tall ladders (also very scary) later we reached the top (140 feet above the canyon floor).…
Valles Caldera National Preserve + Meow Wolf + Santa Fe, NM
Emily and I got up early one morning and drove up from Santa Fe, NM to Valles Caldera National Preserve. We took a quick hike and drove through this massive volcano valley. It wasn’t a long hike but it was a beautiful one. The sunrise combined with the valley being filled with fog made the…
Henry Horton State Park – Kayaking the Duck River (AKA The Dirty Duck) – Chapel Hill, TN
We visited Henry Horton State Park, near Chapel Hill, TN. Our main goal was to kayak on the Duck River (which runs right through the state park). We soon learned the locals call it the Dirty Duck…even though it isn’t dirty at all?!? Weird?!?. We also explored the Tennessee humidity on bikes (as well as…
Burgess Falls State Park – Sparta Tennessee
On our family vacation, the entire extended family headed out for an afternoon at Burgess Falls State Park. We were the last few cars to make it into the parking lot before they filled up. Part of the adventure on a very busy Memorial Day weekend was finding a parking space. Once we accomplished that…
Cummins Falls State Park – Cookeville TN
During our Memorial Day family vacation with my family, Emily and I ventured out to Cummins Falls State Park. We hiked up the river to the bottom of the spectacular waterfall. We’d gone with the kids years ago but we didn’t wade up the river to the bottom on that trip (only saw it from…
Warriors’ Path State Park – Kingsport, TN
We are adding kayaking when we can to our trips from now on. We visited Warriors’ Path State Park for hiking, biking, and kayaking. There are also several other activities that we didn’t even get to do (mountain biking trails, horseback riding, golf, etc.) There is a very pretty lake with some great views at…
Hiking Roan Mountain – Round Bald, Jane Bald, and Grassy Ridge Bald
We saved the best for last! This was my favorite hike of our trip to East Tennessee (and one of my favorite hikes ever!). It is 360 degrees of absolute gorgeousness at around 6,184 feet elevation. We hiked from Carvers Gap up to Round Bald, over to Jane Bald, and then onto Grassy Ridge Bald.…
Roan Mountain State Park
When we travel we usually have a schedule that keeps us moving. Midway through our trip to East TN, we slowed down a bit. Roan Mountain State Park was our home base for much of the trip. We planned a day there to see it…and it alone. The truck wheels barely spun this day. We…
Rocky Fork State Park + Erwin Linear Trail
We spent the day at Rocky Fork State Park. We started in the morning hiking up the Whitehouse Cliffs Trail. This is a pretty short trail but also a pretty steep one. On our lunch break, Emily picked up some ‘road treasure’. Joey would call it trash (each to his own!?!). Then we headed back…
Hiking Roan Mountain – Carver’s Gap to Roan High Knob to Cloudland Mountain to Roan High Bluff
We started our week in east Tennesse by hiking Roan Mountain (the sixth highest peak in Tennessee). From Carver’s Gap we hiked on the Appalachian Trail to the Roan High Knob shelter. The summit of Roan High Knob (6285 ft.) was the highest point of our week. Then we headed to Cloudland Mountain (where an…
Overnight Backpacking Alone (My First Time)
I went solo backpacking on a 13-mile hike and camped overnight alone in the Wildcat Shelter at Montgomery Bell State Park. It was my first time overnight camping in the woods. It was also my first time doing it all alone. I survived by drinking from streams, eating with a toilet trowel, producing fire from…
Montgomery Bell Park State Park
We went to Montgomery Bell State Park to hike and bike. The boys joined us. We biked on a few of the trails on the extensive mountain bike trail network. We hiked to all three of the lakes on the 3700-acre property. We also saw all the iron ore pits from when was mining was…
Hiking Fall Creek Falls State Park
We kicked off the 2021 RV season with a visit to spectacular Fall Creek Falls State Park. I was positive no Dean child would ever come with us on a trip but Max proved me wrong (on our 8th trip). He and Arden joined us over Spring Break. I planned a full day of hiking…
Backpacking Preparation – Getting and Testing My Gear In Nerd Fashion
I spent the winter months ‘nerding out’ learning about backpacking. I’ve always thought it would be interesting to head out man vs. trail. I’ve never done it, however. For me, part of the fun in most things is in the planning. Ultralight, backcountry, backpacking provides plenty of opportunity for that. Researching, making checklists, taking measurements,…
Hiking Harpeth River State Park
The Harpeth River State Park is pretty unique. It spans multiple locations over many miles. It is mainly for relaxing canoeing and kayaking with 9 put-ins / take-outs along 40 miles of the river. We plan to do that this year. There is also great hiking here. There are 3 places to hike that we…
Edwin Warner Park – My 2nd Favorite Park In Nashville, TN
I love the Warner Park system (Edwin and Percy). I have chosen my last two homes based on proximity to these parks. We recently moved to Bellevue and now live closer to Edwin Warner Park. We spend a ton of time in this park hiking and biking. Edwin Warner Park is my 2nd Favorite Park…
Hiking Radnor Lake State Park
Our goal is to visit all the state parks in Tennessee. We have been lucky to have a very nice one right near our house in Nashville for all our life. Radnor is a human-made lake, but it is still spectacular and amazing to be right in the middle of a large city (Nashville). We’ve…
Hiking Beaman Park in Nashville TN – 3 Hikes in 3 Days (Plus SQUIRREL!!!)
Beaman Park is a 1700-acre city park near Nashville, TN. When you are back in the hills and ridges you will not realize you are even near a city. It is my third favorite city park in Nashville. We had not been there in several years but we spent three days hiking around 3 trails…
Hiking Charlies Bunion on the Appalachian Trail (Great Smoky Mountains National Park – Day 8)
On the final day of our 25th anniversary trip to the Great Smoky Mountains, we hiked to Charlies Bunion mountaintop. I didn’t realize I had a touch of vertigo until I was sitting on the edge of this rock. The view was worth it! It was a great hike to end up our trip that…
Hiking Andrews Bald and Mingo Falls + Mingus Mill + Oconaluftee + Newfound Gap (GSMNP Day 7)
On day 7 of our trip to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, we set out to hike to Andrews Bald. We detoured up the Newfound Gap Parkway to see Mingo Falls too. We made several unplanned stops along the way that were also fun including Mingus Mill and the Oconaluftee Visitor Center. 8/7/2020
Edgar Evins State Park – Hiking Merritt Ridge and Millennium Trails
We spent Halloween at Edgar Evins State Park to hike the 7+-mile Merritt Ridge and Millennium Trails. This was a pretty hard hike and also one of the less-traveled trails we’ve ever been on. At times it felt like we were just wandering along in the open forest. The views of Center Hill Lake hiking…
Abrams Falls + Elijah Oliver Place + The Sinks + Tuckaleechee Caverns (Great Smoky Mtns. – Day 6)
The goal on our 6th day in the Great Smoky Mountains was to do the hike to Abrams Falls (our final waterfall hike of the trip). We hit the road early with Emily helping with filming (after some quick training). We made a quick pitstop at The Sinks. Then we got to the hike via…
Hiking Cades Cove – Full Time-lapse (Great Smoky Mountains – Day 5)
14 miles…hiking…not driving…not biking (although we tried). I time-lapsed this very peaceful hike (all 14 miles in 12 minutes). Every time I’ve ever been on the Cades Cove Loop (in the Great Smoky Mountains) it has been a bumper to bumper traffic jam. They close it to auto traffic on Wednesdays during some parts of…
Cedars of Lebanon State Park
We took our 5th RV trip to Cedars of Lebanon State Park in September. We hiked almost all the trails in this state park (6 trails in 2 days). There are so many things to see along the way. There are caves, sinkholes, rock formations, and more cedar trees growing in the thin, rocky soil…
Hiking To Rainbow Falls + Laurel Falls + Foothills Parkway (Great Smoky Mountains – Day 4)
We spent the 4th day of our Great Smoky Mountain National Park trip hiking to Rainbow Falls! I cannot say enough good things about this hike. We hiked six waterfalls on our 8 days in the park and this one was, by far, my favorite. Later in the afternoon, we hiked to Laurel Falls (which…
Hiking To Grotto Falls + Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail + Ogle Farm (Great Smoky Mountains – Day 3)
We waited out the rain on our third day in the Great Smoky Mountains to hike to Grotto Falls. Before going, we fueled up at Crockett’s 1875 Breakfast Camp (very good). Then we headed towards the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail. On the way, we stopped for a quick (and unexpected) hike at Ogle’s Farm.…
Hiking Chimney Tops Trail + Gatlinburg Trail and Cataract Falls (Great Smoky Mountains – Day 2)
After a big hike on day one of our trip (in the Great Smoky Mountains) we were looking for a shorter hike the next day. The Chimney Tops Trail is shorter (check). It is not an easy recovery hike by any means (not check). It is steep and has lots of steps (lots and lots…
Great Smoky Mountains National Park – Our 8 Day Hiking Adventure
8 days of hiking in the Great Smoky Mountains! We did 78 miles and 2 1/2 miles of elevation gain hiked over 8 days inside the Great Smoky Mountain National Park! We saw most of the big waterfalls and a couple of mountain tops. I couldn’t ask for a better way to spend our 25th…
Sunrise and Sunset While Hiking Clingmans Dome (in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park)
We’ve hiked the trail to Clingmans Dome (in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park) several times over the years. It is a quick, steep hike. We did it a few fairly spectacular times. One time in 2014 for a sunrise which was one of the prettiest I’ve ever seen in my life. This year after…
Hiking Mt. LeConte (Via Alum Cave Trail)
Mt. LeConte (Via Alum Cave Trail) @ Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee – 8/1/2020 – 13.98 miles, 2,937 feet elevation gain. We spent 8 days hiking in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park for our 25-year anniversary. We started off day one on the longest hike of our life. It is one of the…
Hiking Winding Stairs Trail (Red Oak, Milk Pail, Jacob’s Ladder, and Cascades) in Lafayette, TN
We drove up to Lafayette, TN (while up at Bledsoe Creek State Park) for what we thought would be a short, mile and a half long hike. Our target was Winding Stairs Trail. 5+ miles, a couple of thousand feet of elevation, and almost 3 hours later we finished a very enjoyable hike! There were…
Bryce Canyon National Park (Utah)
We spent a fun-filled, jam-packed, day in Bryce Canyon National Park in the Summer of 2019. This is my favorite National Park that I’ve visited so far. It is so beautiful! We drove down from Park City, Utah, and explored the park before heading on to Zion National Park. I might have cut it a…
Zion National Park – Our Two Day Adventure
Zion Canyon, The Narrows, Riverside Walk, Weeping Rock, Emerald Pools, Big Bend, Pa’rus Trail, South Entrance, Cable Mountain Lodge, Zion Canyon Shuttle, Swimming, Hiking. We saw all that but two days at Zion National Park wasn’t nearly enough to see everything! Phenomenal! If you have not been…GO! Zion National Park is currently duking it out…
Bledsoe Creek State Park (Gallatin, TN) Hiking Shoreline Trail and High Ridge Trail
Camping in the blazing hot Tennessee Summer without working AC?!? Not advised! In July we went to Bledsoe Creek State Park (in Gallatin, Tennessee). This was our first state park camping in our RV. It was extremely hot on the weekend we went. It was 98 degrees (the hottest weekend of 2020). We hiked the…
Hiking The Narrows (and the Riverside Walk Trail) in Zion National Park
The Narrows @ Zion National Park, Utah– 7/26/2019 – 6 miles, 335 feet elevation gain. We only had two days on our visit to Zion National Park and made sure to get The Narrows hike in. We went during the monsoon season which is not the best time to go hiking in the Narrows due…
Dunbar Cave State Park in Clarksville (Our Second RV Trip)
Back in the middle of June we traveled back to Clarksville (our second RV trip) and checked another Tennessee state park off our list, Dunbar Cave State Park! This was our second RV trip so we spent part of the weekend still getting set up and acquainted with our new RV. The rest of the…
Hiking Navajo Loop Trail in Bryce Canyon National Park
After spending a day in Bryce Canyon National Park, we found a trail that looked interesting. So, we hiked it. We are sure glad we did!!! The Navajo Loop Trail wound up being the highlight of our day in the park. It was a short hike and not terribly difficult. What made it rank so…
RV Trip #1 – Port Royal State Park
We took our very first RV trip once the COVID quarantine lifted back in mid May. We went to go see Port Royal State Park in Clarksville, TN. We hiked around and explored it fully. While we were in town, we also hit a few other places on our list (including Liberty Park). We hiked…
We Went Survival Camping!
Was Max’s Red Rider BB Gun able to keep us alive? One of my favorite television shows is Alone. It pits man against nature one on one. The Dean Men decided that we would test our abilities and go out into the wild to test our mettle! We prep our gear, shoot guns, ride bikes,…
My 8 Year Fitness Journey
Several years ago, as I was approaching the Big 4-0 I realized I needed to make some changes. All my fitness measures were as bad as they had ever been in my life and going in the wrong direction. So, my Fitness Journey began! After some fits and starts and 8 years later I am…
Exploring Austin, Texas Outside!
We went to Austin, TX for a Deadmau5 concert (that my wife didn’t want to go to at all). To make it up to her I tried to show her a good time exploring Austin outdoors. Austin, TX is a fun city and reminds me a little of Nashville (where we live). We like Nashville…
So Many Miles On The Harpeth River Greenway!
I have ridden so many miles on the Harpeth River Greenway. It is #7 on my favorite Nashville park list but it isn’t really a park at all; it’s a greenway. It is an awesome one too. It runs along the Harpeth River from Edwin Warner Park out to Bellevue. I ride my bike on…
Hiking Update (2019)
There are few places I’d rather be than tromping around in the woods somewhere. I like biking for sure but I like hiking equally (if not more). I’ve definitely ridden more miles (and spent more time riding) than I have spent hiking. Recently however I’ve reversed this. In 2019 I’ve spent a ton of time…
DeanoRolls (@deanoroll5) 