A New Year in the Smoky Mountains

For New Year's Eve we went up to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, to stay in a big cabin with our family. Paul's brother and sister-in-law found a cabin for all of us, way up at the top of a steep winding road - the cabin was even called "King of the Mountain"! We've been to Pigeon Forge several times, but it was fun to go with the nieces and nephews and take them to some of the kid-friendly stuff in the area.

A waterfall on the drive up from Atlanta at Tallulah Gorge

The road to Pigeon Forge goes straight through the National Park

It was very warm for late December. Normally the highest mountains would be covered with snow.

Fog rolling through the mountain valleys

We drove down through the fog on the other side of the mountains

It was kind of creepy!

We made it to the cabin

Way too much food...a common theme in our lives!

Paul's niece working on an adult coloring book

The view at night from the cabin. That's the glow of Pigeon Forge / Gatlinburg

This is pretty much how it looked the whole weekend. That blur is Paul's nephew running by.

We went on an adventure through some more cabins that were under construction. Very creepy at night. Walk the plank!

The view in the day

Can't beat waking up to that view from the bedroom window!

We went for a short hike on the river front Greenway in Pigeon Forge. It was cold.

We made a quick trip up to Ober Gatlinberg. It was really crowded, so we didn't stay long, but it was fun watching the zamboni and ice skaters.

Spinning tunnel at WonderWorks - an interactive play place/science center

Our nephew Gabe liked making huge bubbles

Of course, Paul had to try too :)

Just goofing around at Goats on the Roof! They had an alpine roller coaster too.

Nice domo hat, Gabe!

We played Risk. Paul was red. World domination: achieved.

We tried some moonshine. It was strong!

We also had some beer. Not bad.

On the way back to Atlanta we went for a hike in the National Park, at Alum Cave trail.

There was a lot of needle ice along the trail. It was really cool looking.

The giant overhang near the top of the trail.

Made it to the top!

Beautiful sunny (but cold) view of the mountains.

We had a great time hanging out with family, visiting the tourist stuff in Pigeon Forge, and enjoying nature. We'll be back soon, especially since Dollywood is building a new roller coaster.

We Choo-Choo-Choose Chattanooga!

This past weekend we spent a few days exploring the city of Chattanooga, less than a two hour drive north of Atlanta. We've both been there before, but hadn't really explored the city or visited very many of the big attractions. So we took advantage of the MLK holiday weekend, found a great deal on a historic hotel, and hit the road.

The core of Chattanooga is quite compact and surprisingly walkable. There were four distinct areas that we explored:

Despite being somewhat sanitized and corporate, Downtown Chattanooga is rather attractive, very pedestrian friendly, and has a couple of big attractions. While it is the kind of place where a family can park their car in the garage of the Hampton Inn, see an IMAX movie, and eat dinner at Chili's or Applebees, it also has recently developed apartments and a rejuvenated waterfront that contribute to a lively atmosphere. The hotel we stayed in, the Sheraton Read House, is a historic structure built in 1926.

Overview of Chattanooga

View of Downtown Chattanooga from our hotel room

Champy's Chicken, just east of downtown. Delicious!

The Tennessee Aquarium is really nice

Tennessee Aquarium

Atrium at the top of the Tennessee Aquarium

PIRANHA!

Bluff View Art District, immediately east of downtown, has a number of galleries and restaurants, plus the large Hunter Museum of Art. There's also a nice bluffside sculpture garden. This is a really compact district (just a few blocks), but it offers great views and is a nice place to take a stroll or purchase art from a gallery.

Walnut Street Pedestrian Bridge as seen from the Bluff View Art District

Driftwood horse

Hunter Museum of Art

Hunter Museum of Art on top of the bluff

The North Shore, just across the Tennessee River from downtown, is connected to the city center with a converted pedestrian-only bridge across the Tennessee River. It's a leafy, hilly residential neighborhood with a  number of quirky shops and new apartments.

Walnut Street Pedestrian Bridge

Breakfast at Milk and Honey 

Yummy Clumpies ice cream. This is Thai Peanut and Chai.

The Southside is probably the most interesting area we visited. It's definitely a transitioning neighborhood, full of industrial uses and empty lots. But it has a number of beautiful old brick buildings that have been converted into lofts and restaurants. It's Chattanooga's version of a hipster neighborhood. We spent a lot of time on the Southside because it has a lot of the city's most unique food and drink options. Unfortunately there's a giant chicken processing plant that can cause quite an odor. I guess that gives the neighborhood a legit industrial feel.

"Southside Pride" red ale from Terminal Brewhouse

Brunch at The Flying Squirrel.

Bike Share!

Historic Chattanooga Choo Choo

There was a delightfully tacky miniature train museum inside the Chattanooga Choo Choo

Breakfast at Niedlov's Breadworks

Excellent tacos at Taqueria Jalisco. Seriously.

We also visited Lookout Mountain, just Southeast of the city. It has a couple of touristy attractions, including an underground waterfall. There's also a national battlefield site and lots of hiking options.  Lookout Mountain is an 80 mile ridge that traverses three states (AL, GA and TN).  It starts/ends at the Tennessee River in Chattanooga.  The mountain is primarily made of limestone and therefore has numerous caves.  We explored one of the caves at Ruby Falls.

Billboards with this message line the highways for hundreds of miles

It was a little hazy; I think we saw three states

Nailed it

Rock City had lots of slot canyons (aka fat man's misery)

What could be in here?

That's right, Rock City has some awesomely old-school blacklit fairy tale scenes

Hansel and "Grethel"?

Couldn't resist!

Don't look down!

Ruby falls was really neat

And yes, it also has tacky color changing lights and music.  Reminded us of Hwanseongul Cave in Korea.

Chattanooga might not be a buzzing metropolis, but it's an interesting mid-size city with a wide variety of things to see and do, mostly within walking distance of downtown. We'll definitely be back!

Some of our favorites that you should check out:
Taqueria Jalisco
Flying Squirrel
Terminal Brewhouse
Champy's Chicken
Clumpies Ice Cream
Milk and Honey