We had unseasonably warm weather this weekend with high of 70 on Saturday, so we knew we couldn't stay indoors. After breakfast, and a little fun with nerf guns, we headed to our neighborhood park so that Jack could test out his new siren/bull horn that he recently helped Daniel mount to his Gator. This mama is thankful that the siren is an outdoor toy because Jack testing it indoors was a bit much for me!
After an hour in the sunshine with friends, we headed back inside for lunch before making the quick drive across town to hike the Mabbit Springs trailhead.
One of the many reasons that we decided to live where we live has to due with easy access to trails – both kid-friendly and challenging. We have lived here for three years now and we are still visiting new places!
We have looked over the Mabbit Springs trail in the past because the Hiking Chattanooga website describes it as a short trail with a 2/5 for scenic value. I like great scenery, so I hadn't really given it a second thought.
However, we have done most of the kid-friendly hikes close to us and while I love scenery, I also love trying new places out. So I revisited the website and decided that we should try it out.
Isaac needed an afternoon nap and we had a smaller window than usual to hike, so a relatively flat trail in the woods was a good fit for our circumstances for the day.
The trail is actually 2.3 miles (one way) and ends close to the Falling Water waterfall overlook. It is supposedly a 15-foot scramble up to the Falling Water trail, but we didn't get that far. The trail follows the creek with several waterfalls as it winds its way down. It was actually a really pretty trail.
Once we reached the official spring, the trail leveled out and Daniel and I agreed that it would be a perfect place for trail running. Shortly after the spring we ran into some friends that we hadn't seen in awhile. We love to live in a community where we can so easily bump into people we know, even on the trails!
While the adults chatted, Jack and his friend tried to start a fire by rubbing sticks together (everything was way to damp to even be close to starting a fire), and Isaac tried desperately to climb up the hill to where the 5-year-olds were playing.
After saying our goodbyes, we continued down the trail as our friends headed back to their car. About this time, Isaac officially lost it and instead of it being an enjoyable hike, I had a screaming toddler inches away from my ear.
We came across a sign that explained why the trail existed before deciding to turn around. Shortly after crossing the waterfall Isaac fell asleep. At least our walk back to the car was a quiet one!
I am looking forward to coming back and exploring this trail some more. The creek and waterfall was tranquil and even though we saw several people on the trail (and the parking area was at capacity), it didn't feel crowded.
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