I LOVE ROAD TRIPS!!! Not only can they be valuable family talk time (if you put down your devices), but spontaneous mini-adventures as well. You never know what you may find while traveling on an unfamiliar highway. You just have to pay attention to the signs.
THE SCENE
While traveling from Atlanta to Dallas via New Orleans & Houston, I noticed a sign that said "Dunn Falls - next exit". I quickly had the family google to get images and website info. Then called the number to see if they were open, if there was an admission charge and the length of the hike. I was about an hour ahead of our scheduled stop in New Orleans, so we had a little time to burn.
HERE'S THE THING about me. I plan all of our family vacations down to the second. I literally create a map on google to get a sense of travel times. I google things to do near every city we will pass through on our road trip to find points of interest. I then find reviews on Yelp and TripAdvisor to help me decide which to visit. If they are interesting enough, I will add them to my travel map and assign an allotted amount of time for the visit. I create a spreadsheet to manage time/distance and keep a list of alternatives at the bottom of the spreadsheet just in case. I do this simply to maximize the experience, but I'm not married to any of the locations. I purposely leave room in our travel schedule for the unexpected and if we find something more interesting than I had planned, we go with it! It's important to have a plan, but it is equally important to leave room to stop and smell the roses. Dunn Falls was indeed the wild rose on our Thanksgiving road trip to visit friends.
THE DETAILS
By the time I'd gathered enough information to decide if we would detour, we'd already missed the exit. But my trusty WAZE navigation app used the next exit to loop us down side roads. The parking area was much larger than I expected, and well marked enough not to miss. A small shack sits near the entrance along a concrete path leading to the waterfall and grist mill. Here you pay a small admission fee of $3.25 per person (12 years old and up) or $2.25 for kids (2-11 years old; under 2 years old free). The fee allows you to stay for the day where you can "splash, grill, play or chill" as their sign proudly proclaims.
Day use group rate (15 people or more) is $50.00; Primitive camping is $15.00 per night or cabin rental is $90.00 per night (2 night minimum). Other features include:
* One Cabin (no pets allowed in cabin)
* Primitive Area
* Fishing
* Picnicking
* Hiking
* Boat Rental
* Paddleboat Rental
* Fish Food: $1.25 per bag
* Fishing Permit: $2.00
THE EXPERIENCE
A deck overlooking the water wheel and spillway to the falls will be the first thing you encounter along the concrete walkway. Next is the historic grist mill, which is not original to this location. Built in 1857 it was moved from Cave Springs, Georgia in 1987. The mill has a large collection of artifacts inside, more than any other historic grist mill I've ever visited. It also has three floors. To the right of the mill are stairs leading to the base of the 65 foot waterfall, which spills into beautifully scenic Chunky River.
According to the information provided, Irish immigrant John Dunn created this waterfall by diverting a nearby stream and hand dug a holding pond. Today the pond is stocked with catfish, bass, bream and turtles. You can purchase a bag of food to feed the pond critters at the little admission shack, something I'm sure little ones would enjoy.
The waterfall itself is your typical plunge waterfall with a few ledges to break up the fall. The wall of stone has blackened, creating almost an ominous look from the lower viewing platform... but beautiful nonetheless. My only real criticism of this park are the rickety steps down to the falls and the weak wood floors in the mill. Also, there are several rusted tools in the mill that could potentially cut children, so parents pay attention to your smallest seedlings.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Fun little stop to stretch our legs and kill time on our way to New Orleans. Recommended for families and nature lovers alike!
2017/138 read more