Rock Island State Park and the Most Magnificent Waterfall

Safe at Home has been the famous phrase we’ve heard for months, right? But for us it’s been more like, ‘safe at home AND in nature…’ When Asa first told me though that he had booked a campsite in Rock Island, TN, I’ll admit I was not super excited about the three hour drive there. But I WAS excited for some family time, and that my big brother and his wife were even able to join us. I have never camped with my brother before this and it meant so much to have him there! But anyway, back to the camp site. When we arrived, there was a torrential downpour. My sister in law Jana is the most badass woman I’ve literally ever met, and she and her three kids were practically done setting up their tent and site when we arrived. Soon, all of us were together, (my brother and his wife came later, after dark, and they had to set up their tent with minimal light but hey, it got done!) At first I was super grumpy about the sloppy grounds, dirty feet and the fact that my white English Cream Golden was filthy within minutes of our arrival… but I pretty soon got over it. The kids were having a blast, we all brought our dogs and Emma was in literal dog and camping Heaven, and it felt so good to just BE together. (Quarantine STINKS!!!!)

Some may tease me, but I have ZERO shame in always getting a site with electricity. I also have zero shame that we have the worlds largest tent and that my husband who is six foot four can stand UP in said tent. We sleep best with a fan, so we always bring one. All of that means I am way LESS ornery when I am woken up at five a.m. to the sound of birds and the blinding sunlight pouring through, because I sleep WELL, and we are never crowded.

Asa brings the best food camping (he brings and makes the best food in general….) but I really love our mornings on these trips. Did I mention we also bring an electric coffee maker because hello, it’s faster, and it brews a very large pot?! Those cups of coffee spent with family around a fire are so dang special.

Now on to some more fun stuff… Rock Island has a bunch of trails, most are pretty short. The longest trail (on the map) is 2.65 miles, most are even shorter. You can grab a trail map, water guide, and other important info from the welcome center near the camp grounds. VERY close to the campsite is the Historic Cotton Mill, and Old Mill Gorge Trail. Unfortunately when we were there, the trails were closed to do extreme flooding. However, there is a stunning lookout at the parking lot/trailhead that allows for gorgeous views into the gorge! From there, if you look into the distance, opposite side of Center Hill Lake, you should be able to see one of the swimming areas. The trail there is short, if it’s open, and will take you down into the gorge, and to one of the swimming locations.

There’s a trailhead called ‘Down Stream’ and that is where you will find Twin Falls, and perhaps THE most breathtaking waterfall you’ve ever seen—at least that we’ve ever seen :) We climbed our way onto the rocky bank and made it to the water to truly appreciate the beauty of the magnificent falls.

From Twin Falls, follow the trail upstream until you get to a staircase. These will take you to the Upstream Trailhead and the road you originally drove in on. Upstream is the trail that leads to where we spent MOST of our time swimming. The climb down into the gorge is doable for small kids, (we even met an older gentleman on a cane who made the climb down), but I would NOT recommend a stroller or wagon. The water was cold but very refreshing. Swimming above water falls and down in a gorge was both scary and magical—absolutely an adventure worth having!!

Hiking was so much fun, but as always, please use caution and good judgement when exploring the gorge, especially along the water. The current was quite strong and I am very grateful for LOTS of hands and adults to help watch and monitor our kids and all the kids. Emma had a BLAST swimming, but ultimately she wore herself out pretty significantly and I kinda wish I hadn’t let her swim as much as I did… but we lived and learned and really, this trip was magnificent. We did NOT swim at Twin Falls, and there were plenty of signs reminding us and cautioning us that lives have been lost there. Be safe, use your head, go with people, have fun and remember how big and vast our Creator is!! PS: the country side and drives there were one of my favorite parts…I even had to get out and photograph some adorable cows. There were rolling hills for days and my heart was so full as I took it all in.

And here is a video of the most magnificent waterfall video taken by my brother Sean Rogers, isn’t it beautiful?!

Our Top 5 (Louisville and Surrounding) Trails to Hike

Stores are shut down, restaurants, malls, heck even playgrounds and parks. The biggest way we are staying busy and HAPPY is honestly through a ton of outdoor time, and specifically hiking. Here are 5 of our favorite places that we frequently revisit and wander around with our sweet pup Emma:

1.) Garvin Brown Nature Preserve: a 46-acre nature preserve that is owned and preserved by River Fields.

Directions to Garvin Brown Preserve:
To access Garvin Brown Preserve, take River Road to Bass Road. Continue to Bass Road to Park Road. Park in the paved parking lot near Hays Kennedy Park's soccer field. Cross Hays Kennedy land for about 800 feet until you come to the small gate at the entrance of the preserve.

2.) Creasey Mahan Nature Preserve: Creasey Mahan Nature Preserve is a 170-acre non-profit nature preserve dedicated by Virginia Creasey Mahan and Howard Mahan to enrich the community through conservation, education, preservation, and community enjoyment.

Directions to Creasey Mahan: 12501 Harmony Landing Rd Goshen, Kentucky

3.) Tioga Falls: an interesting and scenic waterfall located near Louisville Kentucky. The hike to the falls is scenic and passes by some really awesome railroad trestles. The falls is best seen in the spring or after a good rain…when we went recently, the waterfall was absolutely beautiful! PS: this is where Asa asked me to his girlfriend a hundred or so years ago, so it’s pretty special to me!

Directions to Tioga Falls: West Point, Kentucky 40177 (Click here for their website)

4.) Wild Hyacinth Trail in the Parklands: Turkey Run Park inside the Parklands, has some of the most extensive collection of hiking trails. Just thirty minutes from downtown Louisville, you will not be disappointed when you land here for some outdoor time! Specifically the Wild Hyacinth Trail is right across the street from the Stout House, and as you walk, you surely will hear spring peepers, woodpeckers, and the sound of flowing water in the Turkey Run Creek. It’s about 1.5 miles and rated as moderate, and our kids and Emma traveled it without any issues at all. I can’t seem to find photos from this hike, so you’ll just have to trust me that it’s beautiful and worth it!

Directions to the Parklands: 1411 Beckley Creek Parkway (5.40 mi) Louisville, Kentucky 40245

5.) Elm Lick Trail at Bernheim Forest: this was a 5-mile hike that our family recently did with cousins and all our dogs! It is rated as difficult and it definitely had some challenging parts for us, going up and down some steep slopes, and taking around 2.5 hours to complete. You will come across the Elm Lick Watershed and see so many diverse landscapes. There are streams, grasslands, oak-hickory and beech-maple trees, and even an old homesite.

Directions to Bernheim Forest: 2075 Clermont Rd, Clermont, KY 40110

Overall the weather here in Louisville has been quite nice. A little on the chilly side, but nothing too cold. Some of the days we have bundled up in our fleeces or hoodies, but we always feel nice and warm once we get moving. It is SO easy to get bored and restless staying indoors…we can’t really hang out with friends or family indoors or host meals for people that we love. Honestly hiking has been a godsend for our family, and I will continue to share with you all on Instagram where we go! Definitely follow along in my stories there, weekly we are going outside and on family walks. I hope wherever you are you are staying well and ACTIVE!

Quarantined and Turning 32

All I hear is the sound of rain falling into the nearby creek. Oh, and Emma’s occasional snore as she switches positions on the hardwood floor. Why did I ever question coming here?

Quarantined in a cabin, and tomorrow when I post this, 32 will have woken me.

I could sit here and write the same thing that I have for the last decade, “Where did the time go? How did it all go SO fast?” but instead I will spare you of that. Time went because that’s what time does. It passes. Three hundred and sixty five days, year after year, and it doesn’t stop, until it does.

There are no street lights here. There are no cars, no construction, no people even within our view. We can’t see the stars because it has been so cloudy, rainy, and dark. Yet it is so beautiful. So quiet. So peaceful. So needed.

The world currently is experiencing things that I have never witnessed or been a part of. It is essentially, in many ways, shutting down, in ways that even my parents have never seen. What all of us are going through is textbook worthy—someday. People will write about this, our children will remember this, and we will probably be left wondering: how did I handle that?

Pandemics.

I don’t believe there is any way to predict them. And with this one, sickness does not discriminate…it does not pick and choose, it just barges in without notice, without permission, to whoever unfortunately is in its’ way. It does not care about your religion, your ethnicity, your stance on world issues, and by God it does not care what political party you represent. It just is and it just DOES.

So what are we doing? What am I doing? I’m here. In a cabin. In the woods. With my husband and our children, six and seven years old, and our one year old Golden, Emma.

It is an awfully strange time to be celebrating turning another year older, but just like I can’t control the Pandemic, I also can’t control aging. This year feels different. Not because I can’t celebrate with anyone besides my family or because I can’t go out to eat at my favorite restaurant—no…it feels different because this year FINALLY feels like the year I may have a lot more figured out than I ever have in any birthday prior.

I used to care SO drastically about SO MUCH. It’s not that I don’t anymore, it’s just that my priorities are shifting. I don’t have the energy or the time to sit and wonder and mope about failures. Wait. I don’t even want to say that. Were the things in my life that ended up being disappointments ‘FAILURES?’ I think I am realizing that the things in my past that have hurt me and that I thought at the time would wreck me tremendously…are actually things that stretched me into ME. I had a friend once who I absolutely adored. I think though if I am being honest, I had her on a very high pedestal. I wanted her approval, and for her to think that I was beautiful and wonderful and that she would look to me in the way that I looked to her; and what that ended up doing was push us apart. I had SO many damn expectations that should have never existed. I mourned the loss of that friendship, I grew bitter roots and had to tear them down time and time an time again. And then you know what happened? One day I woke and said out loud, “Dang I miss ____. I’m going to text her.” I literally felt the sun shine deep into my heart that day. Like the universe smiled and said, “Ashley, those things don’t matter anymore. Just tell her hello.”

It’s been the little things like that, especially over the last year, that have changed me. The past few months I wondered how in the world 32 would be ANY different than 31. I was scared I would dread it, want to ignore it, poo poo it, let it pass me by. Birthdays are weird for me, in my adult life they always have been. And then this dang Pandemic happened and my family and I were literally forced to STOP doing our ‘normal’ lifestyle, to stop physically socializing and STOP going IN to work every single day, and we were forced to just BE. It has made me think a WHOLE lot more and within that, check in on people I have maybe neglected to for too long… it’s made me see what MATTERS.

This is what matters.
My people. My dog. My family. My friends.
Letting go of bitterness, old regrets, shame, sadness, worries, and failures.
In the past I felt so sad about not having that ONE friend who you just did every single with: chick flicks, walks, Target runs, coffee dates, and whatever else comes with having a BFF. And then it dawned on me. Why would I crave anything else when what I DO have is literally right in front of me?

A husband that literally takes a riding lesson on your horse to prove to you that he loves you and wants to someday ride with you. Who binge watches ALL the shows, makes ALL the snacks, is the best shoulder to laugh OR cry on, who does all the Target runs, WOULD do all the chick flicks if I asked, and who loves me SO incredibly and tremendously well.

And it’s not like I don’t have friends outside of him. I’m just no longer incredibly STRESSED by the fact that they may ebb and flow and drift and wander and that all of that, is perfectly normal. By all means I don’t have it all figured out, Y’all. I’m still at heart, a natural feeler. ‘Big feelings’ is what I like to call my emotions. I still worry and do the what if game. I wonder what five years from now looks like. Control, success, BIG dreams are still very much things that I am drawn to. But my prayer is that this year, I can continue to knock down the things and hurts of the past so that even MORE sunshine pours in. Instead of dreading 32 or wishing that this was year 22…I really and truly am going to try my hardest to embrace it.

Here’s to another birthday. Another year around the sun. Another chance to be great, to work hard and to LOVE WELL.

* If there’s one thing I can suggest to you as you finish reading this? Go find a cabin. The one we are in has been absolutely wonderful. There’s a hot tub, a pond nearby, lots of trails, a cozy, cozy living space, and all the quiet in the world. Being in Kentucky, we are still practicing our social distancing by coming here, and what a needed retreat it has been. PS: you can even get 15% off from now until May 1st with the code GLASS15 so especially if you are a fellow, Kentuckian, I say do it!*

Social Distancing Ourselves to the Woods

“Kids don’t remember their best day of television…”

I recently saw that quote and wanted to share. Right now, our world is looking at a Global Pandemic. We have been faced with worry, anxiety, consuming thoughts, and all the what ifs. Something our family has always done, health pandemic or not, is go OUTSIDE when we are needing a reset. Being outdoors is one of our favorite weekend pastimes so this past Sunday wasn’t really that different for us… This is me encouraging you all, whoever and wherever you may be, to try this as soon as your time allows—and for us now, looking down the lens of potentially three or more weeks of school and work OFF, this is going to happen even more often.

Hiking.

Have you ever felt that bitter taste in your heart and soul? Like this feeling of YUCK when realizing the negativity and hateful comments/words that the universe just tosses around like NO big deal? I bet anything that you have and you may be feeling and tasing those things right now! There is almost constant news coverage going on about the COVID-19 (Corona Virus), and LOTS of people are obsessing, panicking, and even verbally attacking one another. It can be downright exhausting, and I refuse to let my mind get sucked in. Sometimes then, more than ever, adventure is a necessity. Let it cleanse your heart, let it rid the nasty negativity from your overwhelmed soul. Go be in nature. Listen to the trees. Go HIKE!

This is a place called Garvin Brown Nature Preserve. It is a 46-acre preserve super close to River Road, and it is open from dusk until dawn. We discovered this beautiful location not too long ago, and I will never forget Christmas Day 2019—when it was a freakishly warm Christmas and we all went here for a nice long stroll. Elsa pranced around, running through brush and all the water she could find.. I know without a doubt that trails and water were 100% her love language (and the same is now true for Emma, which is pretty dang sweet.) There is something just completely wonderful about Garvin Brown and if you are local reading this, I highly, highly encourage you to go and explore, especially while we are being told to practice extreme social distancing…take your kids, your pup(s), or just even yourself, and go breathe. You will never regret slowing down and enjoying the SIMPLE joys of life, I promise. And your kids will be better for it too!

PS: We had NO IDEA what this terrifying looking fish was (and pretty soon found out) but do you know?! Tell me in the comments below if you 100% know (WITHOUT GOOGLING) what kind it is!! I mean, OH MY WORD, can you imagine swimming with this thing?! (Not that you would swim in the Ohio River, but STILL.)