August 20, 2018. “Enjoy the journey and you get better every day”.   We had a full day today visiting three more springs. Falling Springs Mill was built in 1927 and stands in front of Falling Spring which  flows from the middle of the bluff.  It is a small waterfall but very picturesque. The mill was used to grind corn, saw shingles and generate electricity.  This site also has The Thomas Brown cabin which was built of square logs in 1851 and is, surprisingly,  in good shape.

Next we visited Greer Springs and Greer Crossing.  You will hear more about this our next post.  It has a 2 mile hike down into a ravine to the spring and the river.  We decided to wait for another day to do the hike.



Finally we drove to Turner’s Mill Spring.  This mill was once part of the town of Surprise, a thriving village on the Spring Branch of the Eleven Point River.  The Surprise School was preserved but the rest of the town is gone, including the Mill.  However, this mill had been powered by a gigantic steel wheel that was brought in pieces from Fremont Depot in 1915. It was powered by a spring that flowed out of a cave.  The wheel is still standing in the forest stream and a short hike takes you to the small falls and cave.  It was so beautiful and peaceful.  We waded across the stream and walked up to the falls.  We also met some of the forestry people that were working there and enjoyed hearing about the history of the place.

Another beautiful day!