Autumn in Middle Tennessee
Autumn in Tennessee finds many people headed to the Great Smokey Mountains for colorful scenic and photographic opportunities. One lesser known area, however, has maybe the best late fall color I’ve ever seen: McMinnville, Tennessee.
Located in middle Tennessee, McMinnville is home to several wonderful state parks that excel at opportunities for hikers and photographers of all stripes. There’s literally something for everyone here.
Fall Creek State Park is about 32 miles from McMinnville, Tennessee, and is home to the tallest waterfall in Tennessee, Fall Creek Falls. It has many other waterfalls as well, but the real star of the show for photographers might be the scenic drive through the park. You can check out the route here: https://tnstateparks.com/parks/fall-creek-falls
The drive features incredible and colorful forest canopies that delight in restraining the harsh sunlight allowing you to capture beautiful saturated colors in addition to the moody ambience that makes the resulting photographs seem so surreal. You can spend literally hours on this road.
Rock Island State Park is even closer at about 11 miles from McMinnville. You can view the information about the park here: https://tnstateparks.com/parks/rock-island
But the big attraction here is the incredible Twin Falls. It’s conveniently located at the end of Power House Road. There’s plenty of hiking opportunities here, but the falls had me climbing over boulders to get close enough to set up my tripod and spend time composing the tumultuous water flows surrounded by the incredible late October color. The last two weeks in October seem to be the best times to really catch the many varied colors and hues. I was not disappointed.
Regardless of which park provides the most interest for your needs, both can be visited during the same day. I found late afternoon the best light for photographing at Fall Creek. The best time to capture Twin Falls is at sunup. Start your day at Rock Island and you can finish at Fall Creek by sundown. And don’t hurry, because both parks have rental cabins to allow you quick access anytime. I stayed in McMinnville, where I found the hotel rates to be quite reasonable. Enjoy your time in middle Tennessee!
