Head to Tennessee to Experience the Christmas Mountain Magic

By Caroline McKenzie
Robbie Caponetto

Mountain towns and Christmas make a perfect pair. That’s especially true of Tennessee’s Monteagle Mountain and its tiny towns of Monteagle, Sewanee, Tracy City, and Cowan. Each year, people flock to this spot on the Cumberland Plateau, home of The University of the South, aka Sewanee. Take this winter pilgrimage to relax and breathe in the season’s beauty.

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Celebrate Traditions

Robbie Caponetto

If you’re lucky enough to get tickets, take in the spectacular annual Festival of Lessons and Carols held at Sewanee’s gorgeous All Saints’ Chapel on December 2 at 5 and 8 p.m. and on December 3 at 5 p.m. The service is modeled after the one first sung at King’s College in Cambridge, England, in 1918.

Enjoy the Parade

Christmas on the mountain is all about community, and the parade through Monteagle represents small-town charm at its best. Admire homemade holiday floats of all sizes and themes.

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Go Shopping

Robbie Caponetto

Check out The Lemon Fair in Sewanee and Monteagle’s The Amish Hippie and Mooney’s Market & Emporium, with the Organic Crescent Juice Bar at Mooney’s located out back.

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Eat & Drink

Robbie Caponetto

Tracy City’s Henry Flury & Sons Grocery is a general store/thrift shop/lunch stand. Don’t miss Jim Oliver’s Smoke House Restaurant in Monteagle. For upscale fare, head to the iconic High Point Restaurant.

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Stay the Night

Robbie Caponetto

The 43 guest rooms at The Sewanee Inn feature comfy beds and spalike baths, while exterior architectural flourishes mimic those of The University of the South. For larger groups, many of the 152 homes on the grounds of the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly are available for rent during the off-season. This woodland reserve was founded in 1882.

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