Lookout Mountain - Chattanooga TN

Saturday - temps: High 79º, Low 38º

Moving day! Even though we are paid up until March 21 we decided to leave Barrington Hills a few days early. We want to get somewhere south of Atlanta to drive through there on Sunday morning figuring there would be less traffic. Not sure where we will end up after that but I am thinking Chattanooga.

Dennis is sad we are leaving Florida

We were in no hurry and by the time we got things packed up and said good bye to our new friends at Barrington Hills it was noon. Our GPS must have noted lots of backup and delays on I-75 and suggested we go north on HWY 19 to Hwy 121 so we heeded it's advise. We hit a bit of stop and go traffic in some of the small towns but I think it was the right decision. Once we got back on I-75 at Ocala it was moving nicly. The drive was pretty uneventful and it was the first test of our truck towing the camper over larger hills (mountains?) It preformed wonderfully and we were very happy with its towing power. We stayed in a Walmart parking lot near Locust Grove arriving around 8:30. Just about right. We are now officially Walmart boondockers!

Sunday - temps: High 70º, Low 54º

We were up early the next day and were on the road by 7:15. We took the 285 west by-pass and made it through without incident. There was a fair amount of traffic but it was not bad.

Earlier I had researched the Chattanooga area and found a county park just off of I-24. We arrived at Marion County Park before noon, selected a site and got set up. The park is not very busy and we were able to get a site right on the water. The park is very lovely and located on a bay off the Tennessee River. As I am writing this I am surrounded by mountains, water and lots of birds. Mostly Coots and Seagulls on the water and also spied a Buffle Head diving for food. The only downside is I-24 is just across the water and there is a lot traffic noise.

Where we are parked: Marion County Park, Jasper TN, Site 18, $20/night, water and 50 amp electric, no sewer but they have a dump station. The sites are gravel with many of them right on the water. It is a very nice and convenient place to stay however it could use just an extra bit of TLC and the noise from the highway is not very nice. I would not hesitate to stay here again.

Our rig on site 18

View out the back window

View out the side window

Sheila had asked us to stop at a Lodge store down here to see if we could purchase a Lodge 12” deep skillet, so that afternoon we went to the Lodge Store in South Pittsburg, TN. We looked around and found a 12” deep second but after talking to her decided she can purchase it for less at the local Fleet Farm. Go figure!

Dennis had noticed there was a winery nearby. It was only a few miles from our campground and we drove there to check it out. Look Out Winery is located off of Hwy 41 up a very steep driveway. Besides wine they have oven baked pizza. I did a wine tasting while Dennis visited with a couple enjoying a pizza. We ended up ordering a pizza as well. We enjoyed our pizza and the a view of the Tennessee River. It was fabulous!

Look Out Winery Pizza with a view

Monday - temps: High 76º, Low 56º

I fixed eggs, bacon and potatoes for breakfast then we headed out to explore Chattanooga. The most famous landmark here is Lookout Mountain. I decided to take the Incline Railway to the top. Dennis declined and drove to the top. The cost was $11.00 one way and it was a nice ride, part of which is at a 72% grade. Yowza! I met Dennis at the top then we walked a few blocks to Point Park. Point Park is part of the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Battlefield. We were able to get in with our Senoir Pass otherwise it costs $5.00 per person. This park has great views of Chattanooga and the surrounded valleys. There are plaques as well as two museums describing the struggle to occupy this very strategic city during the Civil War.

The Incline Railway. The white dot near the top is the other car going up.

Riding the Incline Railway

View from Point Park

Us!

As we were heading down the mountain I saw a sign for Cloudland Canyon State Park. Cloudland Canyon is a site listed in the book I received from my friend Tammi so we headed there to check it out. The drive from Point Park to Cloudland is along the west rim of Lookout Mountain and was very scenic. We stopped in the visitor center and since we were not planning on staying long asked the ranger to direct us to the park highlights. He pointed the two of the main overlooks for the canyon which are near the interpretive center. From the overlooks the view was awesome especially Hemlock Falls. We also checked out the two campgrounds at this park. Our rig would fit in many of the sites but it would be interesting getting it up and down the mountain!

Us again!

View from Cloudland Canyon overlook