The
Cumberland Plateau is a deeply dissected plateau that uplifts more than 1000 feet above surrounding valley floors, and that stretches
northeastward through northern Alabama and extreme NW Georgia,
through Tennessee, and through much of eastern Kentucky. (See enclosed map showing the Cumberland Plateau in yellow).
The Cumberland region
consists of many spectacular cliffs, gorges (locals call them
“gulfs”), rock outcroppings, caves, and waterfalls. In
Tennessee, the Cumberland Plateau's western border is the Highland Rim east of the Nashville Basin, and its eastern edge is marked by Walden Ridge, which continues south into Alabama as Sand Mountain. Walden Ridge and Sand Mountain are
separated from the main portion of the Cumberland Plateau by the Sequatchie Valley, which extends into central Alabama
under other valley names. The Cumberland Plateau is one of the most bio-diverse areas of the United States. It contains some of the largest
stretches of contiguous forest in the eastern U.S. A great description of Tennessee's Cumberland Plateau can be found here.
We
were swept by the sheer beauty of the Cumberlands, and gained a
respect for the locals who have learned how to make a living in
the Cumberlands' harsh conditions. One person's description of the tenacity it took, less than a century ago, to live in the Cumberlands is found in a book from the
publishers of ORGANIC GARDENING magazine, called “Lasagna
Gardening,” written by Patricia Lanza, whose grandmother mentored
her in the Crossville, TN area.
In
the introduction section of her book, Patricia wrote the following:
“When I was a child, growing up in the Cumberland Mountains of
eastern Tennessee, I would watch my widowed grandmother get ready to
plant her garden. She would hitch the mule to an old plow and,
throwing the reins over her shoulders, guide the plow up and down,
making long straight rows. Grandmother was a small woman; the mule
was big and the plow heavy. The soil was one part dirt to two parts
rock. I can't imagine how hard it was to plow that garden, but
watching her do it, made a lasting impression on me. It was there
the seed was sown that would grow [me] into a gardener.”
Grant Miller is the founder of the intentional community in which we live,
called the Village on Sewanee Creek. He caught the vision of this
area about 10 years ago, purchased property, and began selling
parcels to those who shared his vision. His “SewaneeCreek” website lured us to check out the area, and ultimately to
purchase property here. We have never regretted the decision. In
future posts, I will describe the area in more detail and shed a
little more light on the Village that we live in, and how we interact
in a way that enriches our lives so abundantly. Below are just a
couple of photos taken by Grant within the boundaries of the Village.
![]() |
View from Village at Sewanee Creek |
No comments:
Post a Comment