Chattanooga Chewing

Chattanooga Chewing

Our approach to Chattanooga included a few morning hours in the famous Tennessee River gorge. Although we enjoyed the fall colors and views of both Lookout and Signal mountains, we were plagued by low clouds left over from the night’s storm as well as early morning fog. We are hoping for better weather on our return trip. 

Historic Hales Bar Power Station - replaced by the Nickajack Dam in the 1960s

Graceful bridge with 730 span

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The highlight of our stop here was a visit from longtime friends, Rob, Usi and Rose Meinzen.  Rob and Steve built dune buggies and raced Hobbies during our early days in Aramco. It was a brief return to our youth to see them and reminisce about those crazy adventures in the desert. It was also wonderful to see Rose who is a beautiful young lady already and only in the 4^th grade.  She will be breaking a few hearts in the coming years. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our first days in Chattanooga coincided with the annual Head of the Hooch rowing regatta which took place a few feet from our dock at Ross’s Landing.  The rowing spectacle was entertaining but also a hassle for our visitors since streets were closed during the event. Parking came with a longish walk – we all got our exercise as a bonus.  In addition to running essential errands at the Home Depot and several local grocery stores, the Meinzens took us to the incline railroad up Lookout Mountain – an engineering marvel climbing the steepest incline in the world.  It began operating in 1895 with a coal fired engine but has since been upgraded to use electricity. The announcements on the way up informed us of all the safety features which were probably necessary since the final slope is at a 72 degree angle. The climb out of the car at the top is steeper than most home staircases. The view from the top, however, was worth the climb and any anxiety about the steep angle of the train. Reportedly, one can see seven states on a clear day.  It was not crystal clear for us, but we are pretty sure we saw at least TN, GA, AL, SC and NC – not so sure about VA, and KY.

 except for the oars and sculls, it wass remarkably like a swim meet -

 

 

Chattanooga is a city with many attractions plus exciting dining and shopping opportunities.  We took advantage of the free electric trolley to explore some of the neighborhoods near the marina and visit the Aquarium and art district areas. We also walked up to the famous Chattanooga Choo Choo - the hotel in the old central railroad station converted in 1974. Still a gracious space with original touches. 48 hotel rooms are in Victorian railway cars! Our reward was lunch at 212 Market – another restaurant that prides itself on using local sources for the food served. Many visits would be need to explore all the tempting menu choices.  We were forced to take our desserts home…..

 

 

 

 Working up an appetite in front of the restaurant.

 just another plus for Chattanooga - home to the Moon Pie - a big hit with Rose

 

The Bats of Guntersville

The Bats of Guntersville

74 mile long Lake Guntersville is reportedly home to more than 100,000 Gray Bats. One of the protected bat cave sanctuaries was a half mile from our anchorage. We dropped the dink and went in search of a bat sighting.  After floating for half an hour at dusk – we Googled the gray bat and discovered the females depart for winter quarters in early September while the males and young’uns follow mid-October.  Since our visit was very late October, we concluded that even the guys had already left their summer home in search of warmer temps – a lesson to do our Googling before setting out! Fortunately it was a pleasant evening for a dink ride even at dark.

 

The town of Guntersville generously supplies a free dock which even had a couple 50amp power hook ups although none of the water spigots were flowing. Nevertheless we enjoyed an afternoon in town just a block from the dock.  After lunch at the 336 café which boasted fresh and local food, Steve got a haircut and then returned for a nap and further work on the pesky depth sounder transducer.   Julia managed to visit almost every shop on the main street and found a few more vintage buttons for her stash. We also walked the lake front bike/walking path to the farmer’s market which is held Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.  Although few vendors were still open, we did get some crisp apples, homemade pear butter, and shelled pecans. While this is not the perfect stop since essentials like groceries, laundry or even restrooms are not convenient, this town was well worth a visit.  At least it provided a secure tie up for Steve’s installation of the spare transducer which magically has given us a functioning depth sounder in the pilot house.  Fortunately the last few days we have enjoyed mild temps and occasionally steering from the fly bridge has not been painful.   It is nice to see both the chart and numbers where they belong. Our spot on the Guntersville wall was at the foot of the 431 highway bridge connecting Guntersville with Huntsville.  The parking lot is used by commuters who car pool.  Also the harbor is a favorite of local birders.  As result we were visited by curious locals who wanted to know what we were doing or learn about our boat. Although there were plenty of people about and even some traffic noise, we never felt unsafe or even disturbed.  This is a very friendly as well as beautiful corner of Alabama.

view from Guntersville free dock

 

 

The lake here is lined with impressive homes, cute cottagey cabins and a million boat houses. Even though this is not a pristine wilderness area, the industrial development remained well hidden. The display of fall colors also did not hurt the eyes as we continue up the Tennessee River through Lake Guntersville and back into Tennessee.

Our last stop in Alabama was an anchorage in Jones Creek which is entered through a windy, shallow and weed infested channel.  It was nice for Steve to have all his tools operating since this spot was well worth the dodgy entry. Steve even climbed the peak behind the Boy Scout camp. As an Eagle Scout himself, he considered it a challenge he could not pass up.  Julia wisely had no problem watching from the boat! (check Steve’s war wounds!)