May 1, 2013 - Day 3: Tennessee Aquarium

You may remember that we visited Chattanooga last year when we were at Newport KOA. We loved the city and did most of the tourist things but didn't make it to the aquarium. So that's where we're headed today! We arrived at the aquarium about 10:30 and didn't leave until 2:30! There are two buildings: the River Journey and the Ocean Journey. Plus we added the IMax 3D, The Last Reef. Everything is very well done and the volunteers who man the various exhibits are friendly and knowledgeable! We took our time going thru the ocean. Then we took...

Apr 30, 2013 - Day 2: Chattanooga, TN

This morning after breakfast at Subway (located inside Walmart) we pulled out onto I-75, headed to Chattanooga. The traffic headed INTO Atlanta was bumper-to-bumper for almost 20 miles! Why would people want to live there???? Fortunately we were going the other way and traffic wasn't bad. I Googled campgrounds near the Tennessee Aquarium and found the Raccoon Mountain Campground, which advertises that its the closest campground to the aquarium. A phone call netted us a spot for 2 nights...all we needed, which is good since that's all that...

Mar 20, 2013 - Chattanooga, TN

Monday it rained on and off all day so we didn't venture out at all. We got some work done in the coach. Sometimes it's good to have a day with nothing planned. Tuesday we went up to Lookout Mountain. Part of the Civil War battles of Chicamauga/Chattanooga were fought on the mountain. There is an incline railway that goes up and down the mountain, Ruby Falls, a waterfall in an underground cave, an electric map of the battlefield and Point Park as well as a town and many homes up there. We opted to drive the car up rather than take the...

Jan 5, 2013 - "Choo, Choo" Stop in Chattanooga!!

We spent today touring the Chattanooga area ... what a beautiful setting. Mountains all around, including the famous Lookout Mountain, Tennessee River grand as it flows through the area. Lookout Mountain was a major battlefield/monitoring site during the American Civil War. I've heard about this place, but never seen it before ... it is very impressive ... as the photos will show. We also did the "tourist trap" tour of Ruby Falls, which is a 145' waterfall about a quarter of a mile under Lookout Mountain and about half a mile into the...

Sep 13, 2012 - Chattanooga, TN

Our two day visit to Chattanooga began with the Chattanooga Choo Choo. We checked in and took a quick walk around before boarding the shuttle to town. The public transportation is free, quick, and easy. When we reached the terminal downtown, the restaurant across the street caught Ralph's eye. Blue Water was the name of our Robolo (now living in Australia with a new owner) so we quickly decided that's where we'd have supper. Stopping at the Visitor Center, we were greeted by a gentleman who gave us great advice about what the do downtown....

Jul 11, 2012 - Down to Chattanooga, Tennessee

We were very impressed with Louisville and thoroughly enjoyed the hospitality of Tom and Pat. The trip down to Chattanooga went smoothly, but we did arrive into a rain storm. We spent time down town waiting for the sun to show before we drove up to Lookout Mountain National Battleground. At the registration desk of the Holiday Inn, our very friendly host told us about the stat of his city. It is slowly growing. A new VW plant located here last year. Lots of new buildings are replacing the old ones downtown. (I guess I should have added a...

Jun 24, 2012 - Back Home

After two days of fairly easy driving, we made it back to Chattanooga early Sunday afternoon, but it was not without incident. As we made it through Nashville, the RV started acting up - dying on us and not wanting to go into gear! We barely managed to make it back to town and park it. Here are some statistics about the trip: We: drove about 3,500 miles used just over 500 gallons of gas averaged just over 6 mpg our best gas mileage was 7.33 mpg our worst gas mileage was 4.6 (thanks to the Dakota winds) We also visited 10 states, collected...

Jun 10, 2012 - Chattanooga, TN

We spend 4 nights in Chattanooga a great city and lots to do. We went up the Incline Railroad, you sit looking down the mountain. It is so steep but a thrilling ride with an beautiful view. Then up at the top is Patriot Point one of the big battles of the War between the Conferates and the Union. Call the battle in the Clouds. We also visited Ruby Falls and underground waterfall, Taking and elevator 300 feet down, walking through tight passageways and arriving at the falls. Then we visit Rock City which is like a gardens with hugh rock...

May 31, 2012 - A Travel Day

Thursday morning, the 31st, we were ready in jiffy time. We went to the lot where the trailer was parked, hitched it to the motor home and then Clark proceeded to a place where we could be out of the way and get the car on the trailer. When my feet began to burn, I realized that he had parked next to fire ant city. There were so many on my feet, I couldn't brush them off and I'd forgotten the advice I had been given about not wearing sandals in the south. I raced into the coach, turned on the pump, and got my feet under water. How miserable...

May 11, 2012 - Preparing to leave...

A few days before we planned to leave for Florida, we took the camper to Chester Frost Park. We hadn't used it since last fall, and we needed to de-winterize it, clean it, and check to make sure everything was in working order. What a good thing we did! We found 2 leaks! Thanks to the great folks at Northgate RV and the ever helpful Kevin, we were able to get both issues resolved before we left. On our last night in Chattanooga, we enjoyed a campfire with friends and family, while looking over the lake.

May 5, 2012 - Lookout Mountain, TN

I decided to go to the top of Lookout Mountain via the Incline Railway. Quite the ride! The train goes up a 72.7% grade and the view of the city from the top of the moungain is amazing. A short three block walk from the Upper Incline Railway station is Point Park - a section of the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park. The park overlooks Chattanooga and the Tennessee River and is home to the New York Peace Memorial. This is believed to be the only memorial where both Confederate and Union soldiers are recognized. On top of...

Apr 20, 2012 - Chattanooga, Tennessee

This morning we left Red Bay, Alabama and headed northeast. 206 miles later we are in the Eastern Time Zone and camped at the Raccoon Mountain RV Park & Campground in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The weather was overcast the entire trip and there we a few very light sprinkles that were more annoying than anything else. The road was in pretty good condition the entire trip. The scenery was basically forest with a few small towns and farms along the way. The ground itself changed from a red surface soil into a very rocky soil and returning to a...