When a serious freeze follows a solid rain, Stillhouse Hollow Falls can become a frozen wonderland. Photo courtesy Tennessee State Parks/Randy Hedgepath

SUMMERTOWN, Tenn. – A walk in the woods beats another session of doomscrolling on your phone, even on a cold winter day – and perhaps even especially on a cold winter day when nature puts on some eye-catching displays that exist only then.

A tiny parcel of state-owned property southwest of the urban cacophony of Nashville is a solid example, especially when the temperature drops enough to turn the site’s namesake attraction quite solid.

Stillhouse Hollow Falls can be a splashing trickle or a mini-Niagara depending on recent rainfall. Image by Tom Adkinson

The destination is Stillhouse Hollow Falls State Natural Area in Maury County. At just 90 acres, call it a pocket park, where the appeal is an out-and-back trail with a 75-foot waterfall at the turnaround point. It is one of Tennessee’s 88 state natural areas. Recreational activity in these areas varies because the first aim of the state natural area program is to protect Tennessee’s rare, threatened and endangered plant and animal life. Some are quite small and not available for public use, but many have enjoyable trails that often go overlooked.

Footbridges, staircases, and boardwalks at Stillhouse Hollow Falls State Natural Area ease the way on the 1.5-mile out-and-back walk. Image by Tom Adkinson

Stillhouse Hollow Falls definitely invites visitors, although only a single sign on U.S. 43 south of Columbia marks its location. The small gravel parking lot leads to a trailhead and an escape into the woods. Just a few minutes on the trail removes you from highway noises and the worries of the developed world.

The trail starts on the top of a ridge and then drops off fairly steeply as it descends to a creek, a necessary precursor of the namesake waterfall. Hikers with many miles under their belts, as well as families with young children, can negotiate the trail. Hiking sticks are useful if you have them, but they certainly aren’t necessary.

A Stillhouse Hollow Falls hiker takes a moment to bask in nature’s beauty beside the 75-foot-tall cascade. Image by Tom Adkinson

The route is made easier by a few metal and wooden staircases and a length of wooden boardwalk over an area that could be soggy.

The trees are thick, and even when they have shed their leaves for winter, it is easy to imagine next spring’s greenery. The canopy will then be green with sugar maples, sycamores, white oaks, beeches, and tulip poplars, which are Tennessee’s state tree.

Perhaps one reason the trail at Stillhouse Hollow Falls is largely free of litter is this admonishing sign near the trailhead. Image by Tom Adkinson

The round trip is about 1.5 miles, but you’ll walk a bit more if you go to the base of the waterfall and look for different perspectives on the hollow that the creek has carved out of the rocks over the eons. The waterfall can vary substantially in its volume. Regardless of whether it’s a tiny trickle or a roaring mini-Niagara, it is a beautiful sight, and it is a visual wonder when a cold spell turns it to ice.

Stillhouse Hollow Falls is a small state natural area, so there’s only one highway sign to say you’ve arrived. Image by Tom Adkinson