Upcoming Board Meetings
2012 Schedule
Nature Center Auditorium
(Sundays 2 pm)
August 12th
(MFF Planning)
November 4th
December 2nd
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Work Days
2012 Schedule
Meet at the Nature Center
(2nd Saturday Each Month 9 am)
May 12th
June 9th
July 14th
August 11th
September 7th - 9th
(Mountain Folk Festival)
October 13th
November 10th
December 1st & 2nd
(Christmas on the Mountain)
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VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR NEEDED!
NEWSPAPER EDITOR NEEDED!
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Annual Meeting
Governor's Conference Room
December 2nd - 2 pm
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The Friends of Fall Creek Falls State Park, Inc. |
Thanks to the many volunteers for their generous support who come out to help in the park for our work days!
NEXT WORK DAY - May 12th: Meet at the Nature Center 9 a.m. Please call 931.946.7955 or email Roland Creekmore if you plan to attend so he may get a better idea of the quantity of snacks to bring. Lunch and snacks are provided on scheduled volunteer days.
For those more on the "crafty-side" and not wanting to take part in the more "physical" volunteer activities, we are also looking for help with making various crafts and toys for Christmas on the Mountian...
So please come on and help us do crafts...for the children... ALL help is welcome!
Volunteerism is not limited to just our scheduled work days. Volunteers are always welcome. Please call the Nature Center to learn about ways you can help! Or check our volunteer page for more ideas.
Please pass this message along to anyone that may be interested in attending a work day at Fall Creek Falls.
Trails Maintenance - TBD: Fall Creek Falls State Park is in the process of organizing a volunteer trail crew to help maintain the park's approximately 60 miles of trails. The crew will be led by a Park Ranger and will meet one weekend per month for 7-9 months out of the year. Crew members will be clearing trails, performing maintenance and doing trail construction. Ray Cutcher and Nancy Shelein will be in charge of this event. If you need more info, click here, or call Ray Cutcher at the PARK.
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Friends of Fall Creek Falls is a non-profit volunteer organization dedicated to preserving the natural and cultural riches of Fall Creek Falls State Park.
Fall Creek Falls State Resort Park, situated on the Western Edge of the
Cumberland Plateau, contains over 25,000 acres of rugged beauty. Inside
the park are both first class recreational facilities, including an 18-hole golf course and untrammeled
pristine wilderness. Resource management staff is available year round
to assist park visitors. Fifty miles of trails, including twenty-five
miles of hiking trails, and twenty miles of biking trails, lead
the visitor away from the roads and into the wilderness at Fall
Creek.
Tennessee's Largest state park, with over 25,000 acres, Fall Creek Falls State Park offers some of the most
spectacular scenery in the South. Over half the park is designated a
natural area wilderness. Numerous spectacular water falls and streams grace the park.
A 345 acre lake
has yielded state record bluegill and channel catfish. Renowned Civil
War genre painter, Gilbert Gaul, worked from his homesite within the
present boundary of the park.
The purpose of the "Friends" organization is to foster conservation and educational efforts in support
of Fall Creek Falls State Park, and to assist the Park in its efforts
to better preserve and protect its existing land resources. This includes
but is not limited to the many natural, cultural and scenic features
and to assist in providing quality recreational and interpretive experiences.
We encourage you to join us in our efforts to assist Fall Creek Falls State Park by becoming a member of our organization. You will receive a quarterly
newsletter which will keep you up on scheduled Friends and park events,
a 20% discount on gift shop items, and an opportunity to serve in various
ways. We co-sponsor several park activities and a variety of projects
and activities.
The
support given through your membership and donations go toward these
many worthy causes. Your donations are an investment in our future.
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Background Information About Fall Creek Falls State Park
In 1935, the National Park Service proposed the creation of Fall Creek Falls State Park situated in both Van Buren and Bledsoe Counties. The original plans were to include the entire Cane Creek Gulf watershed, but only 15,777 acres of land were purchased from local farmers centering on the upper portion of the Cane Creek and Fall Creek watersheds. Workers from the Works Progress Administration began construction of the park in 1936, and by 1944 the management of the park was turned over to the fledgling Tennessee Department of Conservation. In the early stages of the park, development was kept to a minimum. The rustic park was a destination for hikers, hunters, swimmers, and other nature lovers. Camping was in an open field; groups could also stay in Youth Camp One, which was built around 1938.
An instrumental person in the development of Fall Creek Falls as a state park was James Taft, a teacher, Boy Scout leader, and preacher, who lived in the area. Taft quickly recognized the value of the area as a park and began his lobbying efforts to see it set aside for the public. Through his passionate insistence about the possibilities for this land, James Taft helped get the area set aside as a state park.
In 1968, an 8.1 million dollar bond project was approved for the development of Fall Creek Falls State Resort Park. Most of the park facilities you see today were built during that period: the Inn and Restaurant, the 18-hole golf course, the Nature Center, and the Village Green Complex. With the development of the resort park, visitation increased dramatically, especially during summer months.
Questions relating to the programs above should be
addressed to the Nature Center, Fall Creek Falls State Park, 10821 Park
Road, Pikeville, TN, 37367. Phone (423) 881-5708.
Cabins and
rooms can be reserved at Fall Creek Falls Inn by calling (423) 881-5241 or 1-800-250-8610.
"The Richest Values of Wilderness Lie Not in the Days of Daniel Boone Nor Even in the Present,
But Rather in the Future"- Leopold.
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