Chattanooga TN

November 6

Side Trip

READY, AIM ......


No, not a statement of "to much time on the boat together"!  Just a funny pic we took.

Time for a side trip!!! What the heck, Chattanooga is only 200 miles out of the way!  The Tennessee River is reputed to be the prettiest gorge east of the grand canyon.  Let's see!  Off we went.

Now 200 miles doesn't sound like a lot if you are a landlubber.  On a boat, it is a different story.  For most Loopers, it represents about 25 hours, or four/five days, of cruising PLUS 3 locks ... each way!  For the Shorebilly it represents 10 hours or about 3 days due to the lock delays.  Therefore, most Loopers do not do this side trip.  We, however, could not resist.


The extra 100+ miles is because we had some running room yesterday to make up some mileage and we did.

The Tennessee River

The river is beautiful with wide open spaces, long rock faces and hardwoods lining the banks.  Unfortunately, due to the dry year, the fall colors were not as vibrant as reputed.  Even with this loss, the trip was stunning.  




And again, the locks were massive ...


It is easy to forget we are in back woods Tennessee when cruising the river.  But there are reminders...  If you wake the locals (either fishermen or those living on a house boat), they will shoot at you.   Driving required you keep a very vigilant eye.  This is surprisingly hard to do because THEY FISH IN CAMO blending into the shore.  This houseboat is very reputed for shooting at fast boaters.


No bullets bounced off our hull so I guess we did ok!

Chattanooga
 
When in Chattanooga, BE A TOURIST!  And we did.  


Great town.  I couldn't quite get my finger on the pause of this place.  It had multiple very good restaurants, but they were spread out.  It had a banking center, but there was not the "full suit and tie" crowd buzzing about.  It had a waterfront, but most of the activity was located away from it.  Terri and I love to walk and overall it was a pleasant city to be in.  

We did the touristy things like, well ... the CHATTANOOGA CHOO CHOO! How could anyone resist. I mean, we all grew up with that romantic toon.  (And yes, this is the actual train.)



After climbing all over that, we had to do the next touristy thing and hit Ruby Falls.  Ruby Falls is pretty cool.  It is a cave that was accidentally discovered when digging for another known cave that was closed due to the diverted river.  Inside is a beautiful waterfall.  Incredibly picturesque.



As long as we are on a touristy roll,  how about the world's steepest train?!?!?!


As plagiarized from the internet:

As the Incline climbs historic Lookout Mountain, Chattanooga's surrounding mountains and valleys come alive as the trolley-style rail cars carry you cloud-high. The breathtaking 72.7 % grade of the track near the top gives the Incline the distinction of being the world's steepest passenger railway.
 
It was pretty cool.  The car is built into a slant so when going up the mountain you don't fall out of your seat.


And the blog wouldn't be complete without some pics from the top.  We overlooked the entire city.


Great View of the Tennessee River and Chattanooga!


Unexpectedly, also at the top was a famous Civil War battle ground.  It was only a 5 minute walk, well within a tourist walking limits, so step by step ....


Ulysses S Grant, Sherman and other Union generals fought or led the fight at this sight.  I tried to get my picture taken at some of the same places they did. (Hey, if you are going to be a tourist, go all the way.)


We wrapped up our Chattanooga trip by having dinner with royalty ... Gold Loopers (meaning they finished the loop).  We originally met Rusty and Darlene of Bama Breeze at Half Moon Bay NY on the Hudson river (~4000 miles ago).  They finished their loop in Chattanooga and seeing us on Nebo invited us to dinner with them.  Great people and great fun.


The trip down the river was fantastic and beautiful.  We could have done without the delays at the locks, but there were always Docktails waiting for us at the other end!! Yea!



So, with all that, I guess you are starting to feel the trip is getting a little redundant.  It is ... one wonderful time after another.  But, I want to leave you with a smile.  First, Yudee!  He is still rock'in it.


Second, to put the locks in perspective, the lock master actually took this picture and posted it online ... we swiped it!  :)


Third, our anchorage last night.  REALLY pretty.


Thanks for reading this far.  

With love and stay safe,

Terri and Aubrey


Comments

  1. AnonymousNovember 7, 2023 at 5:51 AM

    Looks like a spectacular side trip! The river photos are beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jim HNovember 7, 2023 at 5:51 AM

    The last comment was mine!

    ReplyDelete

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