Up The Mountain: Fall Color and a Fire on the Deck at the Cozy Spruce Cabin

Set your sights a little east and head Up The Mountain. In the first days of November, the hardwoods around the Cozy Spruce Cabin in Coalmont turned rust and red, close to the color of the cabin's own burgundy-stained siding. The last of the summer cosmos were still blooming in the bed out front. That's the week these photos were taken.

The Cozy Spruce Cabin in early November 2026, with the deck lights on and the hardwoods turning behind it. The Cozy Spruce is one of the places to stay at The Getaway on Ranger Creek, our 18 wooded acres on the South Cumberland Plateau. We built it from scratch for couples, and it might be at its best once the weather turns cold.

Inside the Cabin

At 255 square feet, the cabin is small on purpose. The walls are raw Nordic spruce, Edison string lights hang along the ceiling, and floor-to-ceiling windows look straight out into the woods. A queen bed with a new memory-foam mattress fills one end of the room. Two beanbag chairs face the windows, and a 5.5-foot chaise sleeps a third person, a child comfortably.

A large mini-split heats the cabin, so the coldest night on the plateau is something you watch through the glass. There's no extra blanket to pack.

Inside: the chaise with its Yellowstone throw up front, the queen bed at the far end, and the glass door out to the deck.

The kitchenette has a mini-fridge, a microwave, a toaster, and a Keurig with a good selection of pods. The bathroom has a 3-by-5-foot walk-in shower. One honest note: there's no sink or stove inside. For a real dinner, the propane grill is a few steps down from the deck, and we provide the propane.

The queen bed with its new memory-foam mattress, and the coffee corner beside it.

The Deck Is the Main Room

The covered deck is 205 square feet, nearly as big as the cabin, and it faces west. In the middle is a round propane fire table with glass rocks around the flame and a flat ledge for your drinks. An L-shaped outdoor couch faces the fire, and a dining table for two is set off to the side. Because the deck is covered, a cold drizzle won't cancel your evening by the fire.

The deck is shaded in the morning. Later in the day the sun comes through the trees in front of it, and it sets right across from you.

The deck lights come on early in November. The orange and pink flowers out front are the last of the summer cosmos.

Why Late Fall and Winter Work Up Here

The trails get quieter once the summer swimmers head home, and the waterfalls usually run fuller after the winter rains. Greeter Falls is about 12 minutes from the cabin. Savage Gulf and Foster Falls are each within half an hour, Sewanee is about 36 minutes away for dinner, and Fall Creek Falls is about an hour. Then you come back, turn on the fire table, and stay out on the deck as long as you like.

Nashville is about an hour and a half away, and Chattanooga is about an hour. Check-in is at 4 pm.

Book the Cozy Spruce

The Cozy Spruce Cabin is open all year. Use code SPRUCE10 for 10 percent off when you book directly at thegetawayon.com.

Must be booked through our website for the code to apply.