As we researched and built a list of cities to explore in Tennessee, Chattanooga kept coming up, so of course we have to go take a look!
Chattanooga is a two hour drive and we hit the road around 8 am with plans to have a late breakfast somewhere along the drive. As I search for restaurants I keep coming up with chains - not what we want. Finally I find Dixie Lee Diner in the town of Monteagle and just five minutes off of I25. It’s a cute little diner with just one other patron. The menu is basic, but our omelettes and the biscuits are very good.
Our next stop is Ruby Falls which now requires online advanced sale tickets timed every 15 minutes. As we drive along I go online hoping to buy tickets for 11:15 or 11:30. I am surprised to see that the first tickets now available are for noon. I quickly buy them...only to then realize that Ruby Falls is in the Eastern, not Central time zone. Crud! We have 30 minutes until the start of the tour and Google Maps says we have a 24 minute drive through mountains to get there. With much luck we walk up to the ticket counter right at noon and the woman points us to our tour group which is just beginning to assemble.
Our next stop is Ruby Falls which now requires online advanced sale tickets timed every 15 minutes. As we drive along I go online hoping to buy tickets for 11:15 or 11:30. I am surprised to see that the first tickets now available are for noon. I quickly buy them...only to then realize that Ruby Falls is in the Eastern, not Central time zone. Crud! We have 30 minutes until the start of the tour and Google Maps says we have a 24 minute drive through mountains to get there. With much luck we walk up to the ticket counter right at noon and the woman points us to our tour group which is just beginning to assemble.
Ruby Falls is a 145 foot waterfall found within an underground cavern. Our tour starts with an elevator ride to the floor of the cavern. The guide takes us through almost a half mile of paths to reach the falls, telling the history of the cave and it’s owners along the way. Once at the falls we are given 10 minutes to look around and take photos. It is interesting, but 10 minutes is sufficient. Then we backtrack much of the same way to reach the elevator. I am intrigued, seeing some of the cave formations from the reverse angles makes them just as interesting (or more so) as the first time we walked the path. After the tour William and I agree that it was worth the $20 admission.
We drive through some of the neighborhoods of central Chattanooga, checking out the housing. One thing is certain - Chattanooga is a hilly city. Some of the roads and driveways feel like they are at 45 degree angles. The downtown itself, lying along the banks of the Tennessee River has 10-12 square blocks of relatively flat land. The town is nice, but our first impression isn’t one that says we need to spend a lot of time here.
We drive through some of the neighborhoods of central Chattanooga, checking out the housing. One thing is certain - Chattanooga is a hilly city. Some of the roads and driveways feel like they are at 45 degree angles. The downtown itself, lying along the banks of the Tennessee River has 10-12 square blocks of relatively flat land. The town is nice, but our first impression isn’t one that says we need to spend a lot of time here.
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