Today was supposed to be an easy day, less than 300 miles following a route from the tour book we have used for years. The morning started with Harriet losing a backing from an earring which left her with a couple of open holes in her earlobes. Luckily she stepped on it just before we left and all was good. We loaded the car and off we went - about 150 feet before another car honked at us - oops Mike had forgotten to lower the hatchback - luckily nothing fell out. Since we don't believe in omens we decided to try to find a couple of scenic sites north of Chattanooga. First was Signal Mountain - turns out that Signal Mountain is the name of a bedroom community of Chattanooga located on a mountain - if there was a scenic view we never found it. However, we did locate a gas station which gave us a full tank for the day - stay tuned.
We then tried to find "The Grand Canyon of the Tennessee River. Turns out that the only way to it is by boat - oops, another 20 miles lost. Ah well, it would get better (or not). Did get a picture of the river:
Then we head south to famous Lookout Mountain (which is actually in three states - TN, GA, and AL). Turns out everything on the mountain has to be paid for. To get to the high point for a good look, you first have to pay $16.95 to ride down an elevator to a set of caverns and an underground waterfall - we passed and then wandered around various roads trying to find a park that also had an overlook - probably did, but to get to it - had to pay another $16.95 to go through a Civil War battle site - no chance. We did find a place to get a shot from the mountain:
By now we were officially lost, but by sheer grit and dumb luck fell onto the road we needed to continue south. Yay! (or not)
We then tried to find "The Grand Canyon of the Tennessee River. Turns out that the only way to it is by boat - oops, another 20 miles lost. Ah well, it would get better (or not). Did get a picture of the river:
Then we head south to famous Lookout Mountain (which is actually in three states - TN, GA, and AL). Turns out everything on the mountain has to be paid for. To get to the high point for a good look, you first have to pay $16.95 to ride down an elevator to a set of caverns and an underground waterfall - we passed and then wandered around various roads trying to find a park that also had an overlook - probably did, but to get to it - had to pay another $16.95 to go through a Civil War battle site - no chance. We did find a place to get a shot from the mountain:
By now we were officially lost, but by sheer grit and dumb luck fell onto the road we needed to continue south. Yay! (or not) 10/30 - by now it was time for lunch and a pit stop. Unfortunately there was nothing on these back roads so we paid $5.00 to get into a state park to take care of business. It was actually a pretty good spot for a picnic lunch.
Rather than bore you further with our trials and tribulations, suffice to say we found waterfalls with no water, waterfalls that you had to pay to see, waterfalls that required a 2 hour up and down (1200 steps) to see - guess what? we were not overjoyed (and wound up actually viewing the one waterfall which had less water falling than your average leaky faucet) especially since the signage in this part of the country is designed to ensure you have no idea which way to turn or where any 'attractions' are located.
By best estimate we drove an extra 85-100 miles to see nothing. Can't wait for tomorrow.
After this fine day, we have decided to cancel today's quiz.
Rather than bore you further with our trials and tribulations, suffice to say we found waterfalls with no water, waterfalls that you had to pay to see, waterfalls that required a 2 hour up and down (1200 steps) to see - guess what? we were not overjoyed (and wound up actually viewing the one waterfall which had less water falling than your average leaky faucet) especially since the signage in this part of the country is designed to ensure you have no idea which way to turn or where any 'attractions' are located.By best estimate we drove an extra 85-100 miles to see nothing. Can't wait for tomorrow.
After this fine day, we have decided to cancel today's quiz.
1 comment:
What a shame! That must have been so frustrating, not only disappointing but expensive too! Hope the rest of your tours get better!
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