Tag Archives: United States

Oh, Atlanta

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view of downtown Atlanta skyline from Piedmont Park

And so the 2018 Fall Family and Friends Road Trip draws to an end. We said goodbye to Chattanooga, and my nephew and his wife, and headed for home. Atlanta, Georgia, just happened to be directly in our path, so we thought we’d stop for a few days to see what the city has to offer. It’s been almost 40 years since we last visited.

I was immediately struck by how beautiful the city is—pleasantly hilly and beautifully wooded. I read somewhere that Atlanta is the most wooded metropolitan area in the US. The trees really make you feel more like you’re in the suburbs, rather than a sprawling city. Every section we drove through felt like a cozy neighborhood I could live in. I love the architecture of the homes. Most have a traditional, but modern, feel—lots of stately brick and stone. The more contemporary homes look stunning with all that wood and glass surrounded by trees. There’s new home construction everywhere.

potting shed in Piedmont Park–not your typical Atlanta architecture!

To see the city, we rented a tandem bike and rode the marvelous Eastside Beltline, a rails-to-trails convert. First stop was Jimmy Carter’s presidential library and museum. After visiting FDR’s library last spring in Hyde Park, I’m making a point of visiting every presidential library I come across. It’s fascinating to look back on the particular challenges each president faced while in office, especially given the perspective of time. To follow the issues while they are developing is completely different, I find, than seeing how they stand up in the context of American history.

Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum

We continued north up the Beltline to the fabulous Ponce City Market where we stopped to have lunch at an amiable little Cuban restaurant. Then on to Piedmont Park, the crown jewel of Atlanta. Lots of greenery to take in and great views of the downtown skyline.

Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site

On our return to the bike rental shop, we stopped at the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site. A touching tribute to a man who devoted his life to bringing about change on such an emotionally charged issue through non-violent means. That his life was ended prematurely by the violence he worked so hard to avoid is a genuine tragedy. 

tomb of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King

Oh, Atlanta, we have enjoyed our time with you, but home beckons and we must go.

The Smoke at Dawn

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Chattanooga’s manhole covers

My first thought regarding Chattanooga, when I started planning this trip, was the Civil War battle that occurred there that some would argue was the death knell for the Confederacy. A year or so ago I read a biography of Ulysses Grant (a distant ancestor, I’ve since learned), and the Civil War battles in the western theater became more than just names of remote places. I began to understand the significance of Grant’s victories, not just in terms of land acquisition and enemy soldiers killed and captured, but also of gaining strategic control of the Mississippi River, closing off supply lines to the Confederacy, etc. It was an eye-opener.

Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park

To better understand the battle in Chattanooga, and read it from a different author’s perspective, I chose Jeff Shaara’s The Smoke at Dawn. You may have heard of The Killer Angels, an historical fiction about the Battle of Gettysburg written by his father, Michael Shaara. It was made into a movie, Gettysburg, in 1993. It’s safe to say that that movie forever changed how I viewed the study of history. It transformed vague names in a textbook into people who once lived and breathed, loved and hated, and felt so compelled to preserve the way of life they valued that they went to war for it, sometimes against their own dearest friends and family members. It made history personal for me.

Chickamauga

After Michael Shaara’s death, his son Jeff wrote over a dozen novels about the Civil War. The books are based on extensive research into the politics of the times, the battles, and the men who orchestrated and fought them. For additional readability, Shaara added undocumented–but credible–dialog; hence his books are considered historical fiction.

Civil War memorial on Lookout Mountain, Chattanooga

So, back to Chattanooga…as we approached the city I started scanning the horizon for Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge, key geographical features in the evolution of the battle. When we went downtown for dinner that night, I looked again and was horribly confused. I kept looking for the mountain and the ridge across the Tennessee River from the city, but they were behind me. And then my nephew explained that after the war, they moved the city from the north side of the river to the south. I had so closely studied Shaara’s maps that I struggled with the orientation of the “new” Chattanooga the whole time we were there.

amazing views of Chattanooga and the Tennessee River from Lookout Mountain

When exploring the Battle of Chattanooga in situ, it’s best to start at Chickamauga, Georgia, just ten miles away. The Battle of Chickamauga happened just prior to that at Chattanooga, and the National Park Service has created one park to commemorate both battles. There wasn’t much to see about Chattanooga at the park, aside from an excellent movie in the visitor center that linked the two battles. After touring the park, we drove up Lookout Mountain. Point Park, on the mountaintop overlooking the city, is little more than a scenic overlook with very little information on the battle. I would have loved to see some informational plaques pointing out strategic landmarks of the battle. Ah, well, I’ve got vivid images in my head, thanks to the gift of a wonderful writer.

Chattanooga

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the riverfront, with Lookout Mountain in the clouds

Absolutely love this city! It’s the perfect size–large enough to offer great museums, shops, and restaurants, but small enough that you can conquer it in a day. And then the rest of your stay is getting to know your favorite areas in more detail.

the Hunter Museum of American Art on a bluff overlooking the river

Our favorite area is the Bluff View Arts District. It’s not large, but it is jam-packed full of beautiful art and architecture perched high on a bluff over the Tennessee River. Our favorite part of the District was the Sculpture Garden.

These guys welcome you into the garden.

 

my favorite sculpture

 

cool–an angular Death Star?

And did I mention the food? Fortunately we have family living here who helped us hone in on the some of the best places.

amazing bakery across from the Sculpture Garden–love the architecture!

GSMNP

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Smoky Mountains

Great Smoky Mountain National Park is the most visited national park in the United States. What? More so than Yellowstone or Yosemite? This surprised me until I considered its proximity to the population-dense East Coast. Its 800 square miles straddle the North Carolina/Tennessee state line, and the popular Blue Ridge Parkway connects it to the Shenandoah National Park. The park is extremely popular during peak foliage season, which is now–except that this is a dud year for foliage in this part of the US. Ah, well, there certainly are no guarantees.

absolutely perfect creek on the Alum Cave Trail

But not so, according to the woman from Pennsylvania whom I talked to in the park. She was quite upset that there wasn’t much color to capture in her camera. “My friends in Pennsylvania assured me this is peak season for foliage in the Smoky Mountains,” she lamented. “And there’s really nothing to see.” She regretted making the nine-hour drive when it was obviously not Peak Week. “But this is peak foliage week,” I told her. “It’s just not a peak foliage year.” She looked at me dubiously, and I wondered how she could live in Pennsylvania and not understand the relationship between a year’s weather and its fall foliage color. It’s not like the leaves don’t turn in PA.

below the arch

Despite the lack of color, we enjoyed seeing the Smokies–our first time. According to Wikipedia, the mountain range gets its name from organic compounds that are released from the conifers in the dense forests that cover 95% of the park. These chemicals have a high vapor pressure and naturally create smoky-looking vapors when released into the air.

through the eye and out the top of the arch

We hiked part of the Alum Cave Trail in the park. The first milestone was the arch naturally carved from the rock by wind and water. It’s 1.4 miles off Newfound Gap Road (US 441), the main thoroughfare that crosses the park from Cherokee, NC, to Gatlinburg, TN.

chubby little bird

Another mile along the trail was the Alum Cave Bluffs, with inspiring views of the mountains below us. There actually is no Alum Cave; the trail gets its name from the protective ledges that project from the bluff walls. The trail continues to Mount Le Conte, the second highest peak in the park. We opted out of the remaining 3.2 miles of strenuous, uphill scrambling and returned to the trailhead. Wise choice, as the sun was already starting to set.

victory cairns created by hikers who successfully return to the beginning of the trail

On our way out of the park, we were rewarded by an appearance of a park resident we were beginning to think was purely myth. Elk were reintroduced to the park in 2001, but despite our best efforts, we couldn’t find the herd. Three elk were grazing nonchalantly in a meadow next to the Visitor Center. They even performed a little rutting pas de deux for us. A planned performance for the tourists? I wonder….

 

“They’re paying me $1.50 an hour for this gig. What are you getting?”

Deep Creek

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Tom Branch Falls

The Deep Creek loop, just inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park near Bryson City, North Carolina, is a great hike that takes you past three small waterfalls. Each fall is not remarkable in terms of height, but is pretty in its own way.

hellbender salamander

These hellbender salamanders, known locally as “snot otters,” are found throughout western North Carolina. This one is approximately 15 inches in length, but they can grow to about 30 inches. They have a frilly skin that ruffles as they move through the water, earning them the additional nickname “lasagna lizards.”

Indian Creek Falls

 

undercut

Love these undercut banks along the trail! There’s a lot going on here, a veritable forest in microcosm. Looks like the perfect home for woods fairies!

Juney Whank Falls–you gotta love the name!

 

fill ‘er up!

 

The rain held off (barely) while we hiked, but started up when we sat down for a picnic lunch afterward. Fortunately Marcus brought a tent with him. Roughing it in the Smoky Mountains!

A walk in the clouds

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the AT

Had to hike a (wee) bit of the Appalachian Trail, just to say I did. It was a captivating weather day as the clouds drifted in and out around us at 5500+ feet above sea level on the North Carolina/Tennessee line.

clouds drifting in

 

the view, in a clear moment

 

with our friend, host, guide, driver, and all-around nice guy, Marc

 

the Parkway

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Banner day on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Perfect weather after days of rain from the fringes of Hurricane Michael.

Construction of the Blue Ridge Parkway was started in 1935 in Franklin D. Roosevelt’s administration as a project of the Public Works Administration. The majority of it was completed by 1966, but the final piece–the viaduct around Grandfather Mountain in western North Carolina–was not opened to traffic until 1987. Part of our National Park system, it is America’s longest linear park and connects Shenandoah National Park in Virginia on the north end to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina on the south end–469 miles along the backbone of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

You know how I love my superlatives! We summited Mount Mitchell–a grueling 5-minute hike from the parking lot. ;o) Gorgeous views from the top.

blue ridges

 

Mid-October and the leaves are just starting to turn–quite late here. Word is that this fall won’t be very colorful. The temps have been in the 80s until recently, and now it’s too late for most of the leaves to turn. Green leaves are starting to fall.

Crabtree Falls–a rewarding two-hour hike from the parking lot

Southernese

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courtesy of Spreadshirt

As antiquated as I once considered it, I now have to admit that it’s refreshing to hear people address us by “Sir” and “Ma’am.” In this day and age, when there is far too little respect and far too few kind words shared between people, it’s heartwarming to hear someone say those two little words.

I find respect contagious. I “Sir” and “Ma’am” them right back–and mean it. We could use more civility in our lives.

Assateague Island National Seashore

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We left Bethany Beach and drove down the Delmarva peninsula toward our next stop: Cape Charles, Virginia, on the eastern shore. Just south of Ocean City, Maryland, I saw a sign for Assateague Island National Seashore. I’ve always wanted to see the wild horses on the barrier islands of Assateague and Chincoteague since reading Misty of Chincoteague in fifth grade, but I had heard that the horses are only on the islands seasonally. So we stopped by Tourist Information to get the scoop. Turns out the horses are present on both islands year round. 

The woman at TI explained the difference between the horse habitats. Assateague Island is owned by the government and is maintained by the National Park Service. The horses there are wild; the only human intervention is birth control. Scientists discovered that if the horse population grew to over 100, the plant life on the island suffered, which affected the biological balance of the whole island–flora and fauna. So to strike a healthy balance, they allow each mare to foal only once. After the first foal, the mares are inoculated to prevent conception. This year’s census was in the low 80s, and the island is thriving.

On Chincoteague Island, the horses run wild but are technically owned by the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company. They control their horse population by rounding up some of the younger horses each summer to sell at auction to raise funds for the fire department.

We opted to visit Assateague, since Tourist Information was so close to the National Seashore entrance. It was a perfect-weather day for exploring the park. We saw probably 20 horses, some up close and others farther away, and we had a picnic lunch under the cedar trees on a bayside beach.

The horses are magnificent, and I commend our National Park Service for preserving their habitat so they can continue to run wild. The island is a beautiful place to visit. We especially loved the boardwalk through the salt marsh where we saw lots of wildlife.

On the Delaware shore

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observation tower at Cape Henlopen, Delaware

After Rockville, Maryland, we continued on our FFF (Family and Friends Fall) Road Trip to Bethany Beach, Delaware, where my brother and his wife have recently purchased a home. 

We love these concrete observation towers along the Delaware coast. Built from 1939 to 1942 to guard the entrance to Delaware Bay after world war broke out in Europe, there are eleven on the Delaware coast and two across the bay in New Jersey. They were built to last only 20 years, but are still standing after almost 80. (And, yes, I did go up in one, despite the rusty old stairs.) 

view of Delaware Bay from the top

German ships were a real threat to American shipping even before we were directly involved in the war. When the Luftwaffe was unsuccessful in defeating the Royal Air Force with its eleven-month campaign of daily air attacks against the UK (the Battle of Britain), Hitler shifted gears and imposed a naval blockade in the Atlantic, hoping to starve the British into surrender. German U-boats and destroyers patrolled off the US Atlantic coast looking for American ships headed to Britain that may contain relief supplies.

bunker with Howitzer guarding the bay

These towers are a poignant reminder, especially now that our Greatest Generation is almost gone, of the sacrifices Americans were asked to make to defend their homeland. I hope they last another eighty years. Thank you, Delaware, for honoring the memory of those who served.