CHATTANOOGA, TENNESSEE, ONE OF OUR FAVORITE CITIES

On a trip that has had many pleasant surprises, one of the nicest cities we have visited is Chattanooga. After leaving the Great Smokey Park we headed south along the Tennessee River to the Harrison Bay State Park just north of the city. We had visitors that evening. A pair of mallards who came right up to our feet during happy hour and begged for the peanuts we were nibbling on. They hung out around our motor home all night and were waiting for more in the morning. We also had some local resident stop to chat. They had been walking their dog in the park. They gave us lots of suggestions as to why we might want to spend a day in their city. We took them up on their suggestions and that evening after dinner we drove up to Point Park overlooking the city. The view from the top of the city lights was wonderful. The next morning we were down town on the waterfront taking in the sites. Here, I'm standing on a glass pedestrian bridge which connects the neighborhood where the aquarium is to the neighborhood where the art museum is located. The bridge crosses the expressway leading into downtown.

From the glass bridge we could see the old truss which has been turned into a pedestrian and bicycle bridge across the Tennessee River. This bridge connects the vibrant downtown to an older community on the west side.

The old bridge is about a half mile long. and makes a wonderful morning walk.

On the other side is a riverfront park where families and kids were enjoying the morning. There is a fountain here which is very similar to the waterfront fountain in Portland. It sprouts and sprays in a whimsical random pattern.

There's also an antique carousel featuring hand carved horses.

On the walk back to the downtown, we got a view of Lookout Mountain where we had been the night before.

We boarded a free shuttle near the aquarium which took us to the "Chattanooga Choo Choo" area. This area has been restored from being an abandoned train station to a convention center with adjoining hotel.

We had lunch in the old terminal building. The lunch was nothing special, but the setting was very pleasant.

Back on the shuttle and back to the business district brought us the surprise of some sidewalk art. This piece had a practical application.

We left Chattanooga that afternoon for a short drive to Scottsboro, Alabama. Lourie and Odel had allerted us to this place on their blog

http://laurieandodel.blogspot.com/ . We couldn't resist the possibility of finding a bargain. We picked up a couple of MP3 players to replace our 5 year old models and some clip on sunglasses along with a few more books to read. Prices were not as low as we had hoped so we passed on getting anything more. What we did get is a nice camp spot in their overflow parking lot. I always speculated that some night we might find a spot in a cemetery. This is about as close as we have come. This cemetery is directly behind the Unclaimed Baggage Center. It's very quiet at night.