Trusting My Own Judgment at the Natural Bridge in Sewanee, Tennessee

I love visiting places like this, but for a somewhat different reason than one might expect.

Here in the States, there is little allotment for trust in the public to make sound decisions when it comes to things that could possibly lead to injury or death. We are inundated with caution signs. I realize that some signs are necessary and save lives, such as signs cautioning against swimming in areas where there's a riptide. A riptide is an invisible threat of which the public needs to be aware. But do we really need signs that caution us not to sit on a spear-topped wrought iron fence?

Then there are barriers and barricades which prevent us from driving off of cliffs or into oncoming traffic, which are also good things. I am grateful for many of the things that keep me and my family safe. It's the redundant warnings and cautions which make me feel like I live in a padded bubble sometimes. I think that is one reason why I find pleasure in going out in nature and encountering a risk that would otherwise be gated off at a city park. Assessing and facing the danger for myself is empowering.

This particular adventure begins only a tenth of a mile from the parking lot. The bridge is almost immediately visible from the trailhead. Within minutes of exiting our car, we were crossing over the bridge. According to AllTrails, the full length of this trail is two tenths of a mile and takes six minutes to complete. That said, we probably spent a good hour wandering around, rock scrambling, and taking photos at this location. Definitely not a hike, but a great place to explore.

I enjoyed scrambling a few rocks to get to the underbelly of this natural rock bridge. It wasn't hard to do. There were children just ahead of us and we actually followed their lead on getting down to the lower level of the bridge. The view is so much more spectacular looking up. I wish I had taken more photos of the bridge itself, but I did take a video! (Scroll down to the end of this post to see a 30 second video clip from this adventure.)

In the end, we all crossed the bridge twice. Once going in and once going out. It was interesting and exciting, and we instinctively walked across the center of the bridge and didn't die from lack of handrails.

Click here to take my Instagram quiz about the Sewanee Natural Bridge.

Check out this interesting and informative article from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation about the Natural Bridge.

Click here for directions via Google Maps.

Be safe out there, friends.

But not too safe ;)

Carpe Diem,

Melissa Anne

Here is a quick under and over video of the Sewanee Natural Bridge.