Chattanooga Tennessee Trip – Day 2
I was excited for today, because I was going to see the view that made me want to come here in the first place. From the moment I saw Lover’s Leap on Pinterest I was sold. Today’s schedule included the incline railway, Ruby Falls, and Rock City, all a part of Lookout Mountain.
I slept in until 8, which is WAY later than my normal, and headed out to the incline railway. This thing intrigued me from the moment I learned of its existence. It is a custom made train car pulled by two cables up the side of Lookout Mountain at a 72.2% incline at its steepest point! It is the steepest incline railway in the nation, and takes you up the mountain in less than 10 minutes. Not only do you get amazing views from the top, but it is also the location of the Battle of Lookout Mountain during the Civil War, so my history loving heart loved learning more.
After the ride on the incline I headed to downtown Chattanooga for brunch at another highly recommend place called Ruby Sunshine. I was excited to luck into curbside parking, since it was the first time that had happened this trip. While their mimosas had been given rave reviews, I opted for coffee, since coffee is life, but did order the candied bacon appetizer that was also highly recommended. Can you ever go wrong with candied bacon? For my main dish it was biscuits and sausage gravy; if you know me, you know this is my favorite breakfast food. It was all divine, and filled me up for the day’s activities. If you’re in Chattanooga I highly recommend it!
After brunch I headed to Ruby Falls to do a walking cave tour. I have loved caves since I was a little girl thanks to Carter Caves in Kentucky, and I was not going to pass on the opportunity to see not only caves, but a cave with a waterfall inside. I failed to mention that Ruby Falls is located 1,120 feet below Lookout Mountain. Ruby Falls is also home to the deepest and tallest underground waterfall in the US that is open to the public. I’ve been to plenty of caves in my life, but Ruby Falls is a must see.
I saved Rock City for last, since Lover’s Leap had been my inspiration for this trip. As I traveled up Lookout Mountain, and into Georgia to my surprise, I enjoyed the beautiful views as I made it to Rock City. Rock City is located on the top of Lookout Mountain, and boasts massive ancient rock formations, gardens with over 400 native plant species, and breathtaking views. As “basic” as it is, I was overjoyed to see a Starbucks at the top of the mountain. More coffee was necessary before starting the second guided tour. I was not as enthusiastic however about the large crowds. There was a plethora of people there to tour Rock City, and after my secluded hikes yesterday, I wasn’t quite prepared to be in a place so populated. I hoped that the view of Lover’s Leap would make up for it though. I wasn’t disappointed; while there were plenty of unique, quirky, beautiful things to view during the walk through Rock City Gardens, Lover’s Leap took the cake for me. It was all that I had built it up to be from the moment it inspired this trip.
Lover’s Leap
The final stop for the day was for dinner at HiFi Clyde’s, another recommended downtown Chattanooga eatery. Clyde’s is a collegial honky-tonk with a retro vibe & BBQ bites, plus ping pong/shuffleboard tables & live music. My waiter Brian was so flirty, but must have just wanted a good tip, because he asked to see my ID when I ordered the famous “hunch punch jungle juice”. This was almost laughable since this momma of four looks well over 21, and every bit of my 35 years. I ordered the smoked Cubano sandwich, that included their pulled pork, with sweet potato fries. It was perfection! The sweet potato fries had a salty and sweet seasoning on them that really made them amazing.
I made my way back to the hotel to pack up my things for my early flight, and I couldn’t help but smile as I heard “Give Heaven Some Hell” come on the radio for probably the 20th time in the past two days. This is one of the songs I played at Chris’s service, and I can’t help but feel like he’s with me when it comes on. It has literally came on the radio every time I got in the car from the start of this trip with the drive to the airport.
As I soaked in the bathtub at the hotel, a rare occurrence for me, I thought about what my take aways are from this trip, other than the beautiful views and memories. The first is that I learned a new word today that might just be my new favorite self descriptor. A friend of mine called me solivagant today when commenting on my travels. Solivagant is a word used to describe “someone who wanders or travels the world alone; a solitary adventurer”. Isn’t that a cool word and a perfect descriptor? The second is that I am beyond capable of continuing to chase adventures on my own. I know full well that I’m independent, able bodied, and stubborn, all of which have been super beneficial to me, but it takes more than that to travel alone. It takes a certain mindset that I honestly wasn’t sure I had at this juncture. It took booking this trip, having faith, and traversing the country despite my fears to realize that, as usual, they were unfounded. I didn’t need to fear traveling alone, all I need to fear is missing an opportunity. Missing an opportunity to say yes to adventure, missing an opportunity to see God’s power in beautiful new places, and missing the opportunity to find myself through new situations.
Fear is a Liar 
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