In early July 2015, a large storm dumped a massive amount of rain in the Falling Water River watershed. With the ground saturated, several trees at or above the rim of the gorge fell into the gorge destroying the metal stairs that led from the top of Burgess Falls down to the talus field near its base. The storm also damaged or destroyed the Burgess Falls overlook as well as the Middle Falls overlook.
In early September 2018, I returned to Burgess Falls State Park and Natural Area to see how the area had recovered. Our previous visit had been on Father's Day 2012 and can be seen here. The park is located south of Cookeville, Tennessee with an address in Sparta. To visit the park from Nashville or Knoxville, the state recommends exiting Interstate-40 at exit 280 and turning south on TN-135. Drive 4 ¾ miles before turning left to remain on TN-135. Drive another 3.6 miles on TN-135. Immediately after crossing the Falling Water River, turn sharply right onto Burgess Falls Road. Continue about ¼ mile to the main parking area.
From the main parking area, I headed back to the nearer overflow parking lot to a fishing and viewing platform on Burgess Falls Lake. The lake was initially created in 1924 by an earthen dam used to divert water to a powerhouse located downstream of Burgess Falls. The original dam failed in 1928 and was quickly replaced by the current 40-foot-high dam. Electricity production ceased in 1944. In the intervening years, the lake has accumulated silt and sediment to nearly fill the reservoir and create a wetlands area upstream. The stop logs have been removed from the dam and the river now flows freely over the seven spillways. The dam was upgraded in the late 2000s with the addition of 34 rock bolts over 60 feet long to stabilize the dam and a curtain-wall of grout to reduce seepage through the dam.
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| ADA compliant walkway to the fishing pier |
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| Fishing pier |
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| Burgess Falls Dam from the fishing pier |
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| Burgess Falls Lake |
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| Warning sign at the parking lot trailhead |
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| The first few stairs |
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| Another warning sign |
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| More stairs |
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| Falling Water Cascades (10') |
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| One of several remaining foundations for the powerhouse penstock |
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| Roots and rocks |
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| Bridge abutment for the penstock to cross the river |
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| Hangers for the penstock to bridge the river still remain |
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| Little Falls (20') |
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| The remains of the penstock bridge dangle above Little Falls |
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| Tight squeeze |
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| New trail bridge |
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| Another new trail bridge |
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| The reason for the second bridge |
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| A third new trail bridge |
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| The reason for the third bridge |
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| Climbing stairs to head downstream seems counter-intuitive |
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| More stairs to climb |
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| Remains of the Middle Falls overlook |
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| More of the Middle Falls overlook |
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| Lots of damage |
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| Rangers had to resort to barbed-wire as chain-link fencing didn't stop some visitors |
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| Middle Falls (30') |
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| Benches at Middle Falls |
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| Stairs and chain-link fencing |
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| A very nice section of the trail |
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| Burgess Falls overlook |
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| Burgess Falls (135') |
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| The left trail leads down to the top of the falls |
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| Boarded-up staircase at top of falls |
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| The remains of the stairs down to the base of the falls |
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| The remains from the other side |
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| Top of the falls |
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| Plunging into the gorge |
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| Along the riverbank upstream of Burgess Falls |
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| Beginning the long climb back to the overlook |
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| Middle Falls on the way back |
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| More stairs |
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| Little Falls on the way back |
There is no entrance fee at Tennessee State Parks including Burgess Falls.
The Burgess Falls State Park website is https://tnstateparks.com/parks/burgess-falls.
