Hey Guys!
My hubby and I recently celebrated our 36 year wedding anniversary!
We always try to do something special for our anniversary and this year was no exception.
However, we made a very last minute decision to go somewhere because our anniversary is in Dec and, like so many others, we have a lot going on this time of year and we already had another trip planned for the week after Christmas.
We decided to spend one night at a dome. We had stayed in a dome for the first time last year for my birthday.
I reached out to the property to see if they would consider allowing us to stay one night because they had a 2 night minimum stay.
They agreed to allow us to stay the one night because the property had not yet been rented and probably wouldn’t be rented since I had contacted them one night prior to the time we wanted to use it.
We did have to pay a little more than the normal daily rate since we were only staying the one night.
We left our house on a Saturday morning and first headed to a waterfall that was approximately 1 hr 45 mins from our house called Machine Falls.
The falls is located in Short Springs State Natural Area.
There is a loop hike that you can do here that includes 3 waterfalls: Machine, Busby and Adams Falls.
You can also access the Laurel Bluff Loop and the Wildflower Loop from this same trailhead.
We decided to head to Machine Falls first. The hike to the falls is only 0.5 miles and the trailhead is across the road from the small parking lot.
The hike starts out fairly flat and you will be walking through the woods the entire way.
You will pass several signs along the trail pointing you to the different traiheads.
A few minutes after starting the trail, you will arrive to an overlook that gives you views of the falls below.
The waterfall was barely flowing as this area had dealt with drought like conditions for a few months.
It definitely wasn’t a good time to be chasing waterfalls.
We continued the trail to get a closer view of the falls and at this point the trail became very steep.
After finally getting to the bottom, we had to walk a very narrow trail to even be able to see the falls….use extreme caution here as the trail is also high above the creek floor and has a sheer drop off.
After finally arriving to the falls, we took a few pictures.
I was really disappointed as I had seen pictures of the falls with a much heavier flow and it’s really beautiful!
The falls has a drop of 60 ft.
It was surrounded by icicles.
After spending several minutes at the falls, we headed back to our car.
We decided not to continue the loop trail since this falls was barely running, we knew that meant the other falls wouldn’t be running either.
However, after getting back to our car, we decided to drive a couple of miles down the road and see another waterfall since it was a very short walk from the parking lot.
The next falls was called Rutledge Falls. 
This falls is located on private property but the owner allows the public access.
You will park across the street from the church and if the parking is full, you can also park at the church.
To access the falls, you will need to walk through a wooden gate. If it’s locked, please do not enter as the owners only allow access from dawn to dusk.
Rutledge Falls has a drop of around 30-40 ft.
Tip: This falls was featured in Hannah Montana: The Movie
Overlooking the falls was a statue of a woman….I had no idea why the statue was there as there was no information about it at the site.
However, after a little research, I discovered that this statue was once part of a set of three statues named Morning, Noon and Night that were ordered in 1859 for the Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville.
The owner of the property here was TN State Senator Lyndon “Pop” Jennings and he came across the statues and asked if he could have this one as it was the only statue that had no damage….he placed this now 166 yr old statue, here years ago and named it Lady of the Falls.
I decided to walk down the steep, rocky trail to the bottom of the falls.
This area is very popular during the summer months and lots of people will come here and swim.
When there’s been plenty of rain, this waterfall will flow across the entire width of the river.
Rutledge Falls is part of the Normandy Lake river system, meaning the water flowing over the falls originates from this lake and is considered part of its river flow.
Click here for more waterfalls in this area and Click here for more things to do in this area
This falls was definitely flowing more so than Machine Falls but only about half of the falls was flowing.
Read reviews for this falls here
After spending a few minutes at the falls, we decided to head back to our car and head to the dome which was an hour drive from the falls.
We arrived to the dome in Smithville, TN at approximately 2:45 pm.
I had booked Dome 4 called Twin Falls.
This dome overlooks the Center Hill Lake.
After getting parked, we headed inside to check it out.
It was really cool on the inside!
It had a kitchen that included a full size refrigerator, a microwave, coffee pot and a kettle…however, if you plan on cooking here, you will need to use the provided grill or the hot plate that can be found in the kitchen.
There was a living room that had a sofa, two chairs, a small table, an ottoman and a television.
The bedroom had a king size bed with two small nightstands on each side of the bed.
The bathroom was a nice size and included a shower that had a dispenser with shampoo, conditioner and bath wash.
The vanity was a nice size and included plenty of washcloths and towels.
They also provided two terry cloth robes which was a nice touch!
You had views of the lake from the living room.
After checking out the inside, we headed back outside to check out the outdoors area.
The property had really nice views of the lake below.
The dome sits on a very steep drop off so I wouldn’t recommend coming here with small children unless you keep a very close eye on them!
The outdoors area included a hot tub, fire pit with wood, chairs, small table and a grill.
After checking out the outdoors area, we headed back inside to relax and enjoy the views from the warmth of the dome.
Later, we decided to start a fire and sit outside and watch the sunset.
There is another dome that sits pretty close to dome 4…you have a privacy wall so you can’t see the other guests. Thankfully, we had quiet guests next to us!
We sat outside by the fire for about an hour….it was so peaceful.
For dinner, we decided to make a small charcuterie board of crackers, cheese, ham, pepperoni and fruit.
After we ate, we headed to the hot tub!
The dome is located in a great area for star gazing!
After our time in the hot tub, we headed back inside and watched TV for a while before calling it a night!
The next morning, I was up early to watch the sunrise!
Thankfully, you can see it from the inside of the dome!
Later, we enjoyed our coffee and relaxed for a while.
We then headed outside to take a few pictures of the views.
The views from the dome are beautiful but if the leaves are on the trees, you will only have a small view of the lake.
After eating our breakfast, we headed to the hot tub!
You also have views of the lake from the hot tub which was really cool!
After spending a few minutes in the hot tub, we headed back inside to pack up.
Once we were packed, we headed back outside to take a few more pictures before heading out.
We then checked out and headed to find something for lunch.
Tip: I would not recommend this dome as it sits between another dome and a house so you have no privacy. It also sits very close to a main road so you hear constant road noise. Click here to read about more domes in this area
Our first stop was a restaurant at a nearby marina but sadly, they were closed for the season.
So, we decided to head towards our home and find something along the way.
Later, we found ourselves driving through the small, historic town of Watertown.
The town was founded in the late 1780’s by Wilson Waters.
Today, it has a population of around 1600 people.
Tip: Click here to book a train excursion in Watertown
As we drove through, we spotted a restaurant called the Depot Junction Cafe so decided to stop and try it out.
After getting parked, we headed inside where we were seated right away.
The cafe is a family owned business and located in an old train depot….hence the name.
We took a few minutes to look over the extensive menu!
I decided on the 10 oz ribeye steak with mashed potatoes and turnip greens.
The hubby had the ribeye steak sandwich with fries.
The food was really good!
They also brought out their homemade yeast rolls and they were delicous!
After we were finished eating, we walked around the restaurant to check it out since it was housed in a historic building.
The restaurant was much bigger than it looked.
The specials of the day was located at the front door but we missed seeing it when we walked in.
The restaurant sold all kinds of local goods.
After leaving the restaurant, we headed home!
Thanks for reading!
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Stay tuned for our next adventure to Savannah and Charleston!