Residents and guests at iii spent Thanksgiving Day outdoors hiking, exploring several of our trails, and enjoying the beauty of the Tennessee wintertime. The many trails criss-cross the 1300-acre campus, leading up to bluffs and overlooks, waterfalls large and small, and all the way down into the valley where you can peek into a cave or dip your feet in the stream – if it's not too chilly! Whether you have 10 minutes, an hour, or all day to spend, there is a trail waiting for you.
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Tennessee is home to 54 state parks, and the Cumberland Plateau, where iii is located, offers many spectacular sites whether you are up for a picnic or some intense backpacking and camping. When you plan your trip to iii, you may want to add a few more stops!
Fall Creek Falls State Park is located about 40 minutes northeast of iii, a 20,000 acre park home to Fall Creek Falls which, at 256 feet, is the highest waterfall in the eastern United States. If you don't want to picnic, stop by the restaurant, which offers a southern-style buffet and is open daily. If you want to stay a night or two, the park has 228 campsites in three different areas, two group camps (one accommodating 100, the other accomodating 150), two group lodges, 30 cabins and villas and a 145-guest room Park Inn.
South Cumberland State Park is located just 30 minutes due south of iii, a 15,590-acre natural area where you can hike through the Stone Door – a 10' by 100' crack in the side of the cliff used as a passageway by Native Americans. The park also contains several trails (some just 1-2 miles and suitable for the whole family) as well as several beautiful waterfalls.
