You'll find a kaleidoscope of intriguing special events and charming small town attractions 'most any time you're in Middle Tennessee and the Upper Cumberland area..

Explore magnificent Cumberland Caverns, Tennessee's largest cave. It's a must-see for anyone traveling in this area. Located just outside of McMinnville, it is open daily to the public May 1 through October 31.

See Monty Wanamaker's Southern Museum and Gallery of Photography, History and Culture on Main Street in McMinnville.  Open from 10 to 4 Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, it's a treasure of local history.  Call Monty for details: 931-507-8102.

Hike, bicycle, or play golf at nearby Fall Creek Falls, the "crown jewel of Tennessee state parks."  Swim at Rock Island State Park's natural sandbar beach or fish in its famous "Blue Hole," only a few miles from McMinnville on the headwaters of Center Hill Lake. Find out why Olympic class kayakers love Rock Island's water.  If you prefer, hike the unspoiled Savage Gulf.  Golfers can enjoy mountain scenery just a few miles from town at the Collins River Golf Course.

Select trees and shrubs at one of the 435 nurseries here in Warren County, the "nursery capital of the world," or search for treasures at the antique shops which dot our area.

Don't forget "Jack Daniel's country" in Lynchburg, less than an hour's drive, and explore the quaint town of Bell Buckle and other Tennessee Backroads treasures as well.

Treat yourself to a first-class play at Cumberland County Playhouse, "Tennessee's Family Theater," just an hour away in Crossville.

Retrace troop movements in the Civil War battles for Tennessee. Some 15,000 Federal soldiers camped just down the road for a year, and the Union and Confederacy swapped control of this area seven times. Civil War buffs will want to visit Stone's River Battlefield about an hour northwest of McMinnville and the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Parks just a little further to the southeast.

Take in Nashville's Hermitage and Grand Ole Opry; or Chattanooga's Aquarium, Rock City; and Ruby Falls -- all just an hour and a half away. For more information, see sites for the Convention and Visitor's Bureaus in Chattanooga and Nashville.

Or drive less than three hours to the Smokies' Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg.

If you're heading west between Nashville and Memphis, plan a stop at the Tennessee River Freshwater Pearl Farm, the only freshwater pearl-culturing farm operation in the North American continent.

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