Day 3
Thursday October 19, 2023
Sunrise from the Huddle House parking lot.
If you drive around the upper midwest, it doesn't take long to come across one of those Wall Drug signs. Here in the deep south, it used to be that way with "See Rock City" painted on the rooves of barns. Clark Byers was hired to paint them as a means to bring in tourists to Rock City. He spent three decades painting barns until he retired in 1969. I didn't see any on the drive today. But still, I chose to see Rock City Gardens for myself.
By the entrance...
You can even buy birdhouses in the shape the old barns.
In the 1830s, two missionaries visited the site and described it as a "citadel of rocks." They also described the natural layout of the rocks as having "streets and lanes" between them.
By the time of the Civil War thirty years later, the area was already being called Rock City. Soldiers on both sides wrote of the place in their journals and claimed they could see seven states from the outcrop.
Garnet and Freida Carter bought the land surrounding Rock City with the idea of building a neighborhood they intended to call Fairyland on top of the rocks. Instead, Fairlyland became an attached resort and the stones were turned into a giant rock garden. Rock City opened to the public in 1932.
Just inside the entrance is the Big Rock Grill. They weren't open for the day yet and I only mention it for the big rock in the middle of the dining area.
When you check in, they give you a map of the park. There are two main paths, as well as one that's shorter and wheelchair accessible. There are also cutoff paths to avoid some of the more narrow sections.
Heading in...
The first of two tight squeezes. I had to shuffle sideways through some of this.
As you approach the overlook, the walkway splits. To the right is a rock bridge. To the left, a bouncy swing bridge. You know which one I was taking.
A word of advice. If you plan to visit Rock City, try and avoid going first thing in the morning. Thus the JJ Abrams worthy lens flare. Some of you will get the reference.
This the aptly named Lookout Mountain. That specific outcrop is named Lovers Leap and comes with the same backstory every other "Lovers Leap" seems to have.
Just out of frame to the right is High Falls, an artificial waterfall.
The view from the overlook, not directly into the morning sun. That smaller platform is part of the second loop.
On a clear day, they swear you can still see these seven states from here...
Starting the second loop...
Down the stairs and into the second tight squeeze...
This required the sideways shuffle, while leaning backwards...
Then out to that smaller, lower viewing platform...
You can also bypass Fairyland Canyon and Mother Goose Village. But, you shouldn't.
Freida Carter started importing small German figurines in the early 1930's. In 1946, Fairyland Caverns and Mother Goose Village opened to the public. Note the gnome in the swing.
Gnomes in the walls...
Mother Goose Village is a big display surrounded by figures depicting Freida's favorite nursery rhymes.
Tucked into alcoves inside the cavern are plenty more depictions of her favorite children's stories.
Definitely a fun place and worth a visit. And since it was a day to do touristy stuff, I decided to hit Ruby Falls as well. Just imagine a waterfall deep inside a cave. After Carlsbad Cavern in New Mexico and Mammoth Cave in Kentucky, Ruby Falls is the third most visited cavern in the country. Tours run constantly throughout the day and last a little under an hour and a half.
Ruby Losey moved to the area with her parents after graduating high school. Her fiancé Leo Lambert naturally followed.
Ten years earlier, the Southern Railway had sealed an entrance to a large cavern inside Lookout Mountain while building a tunnel. When Lambert heard about it, he started looking for another way in. He bought the land above the cave and formed the Lookout Mountain Cave Company.
In 1928, they started drilling down four hundred feet to make an elevator shaft down to the cave. Midway down, his crew encountered a small gap in the rock wall with a breeze blowing out. Intrigued, they widened the hole and discovered a horizontal shaft eighteen inches high.
With nothing more than lanterns, they crawled inside. Over two hundred feet later, they were able to stand up. They kept going. You can imagine their surprise when they encountered a large chamber and a 145 foot waterfall. He named it after his wife Ruby.
Two years after its discovery, two mine tours were opened to the public. The lower tour ended in a large open chamber four hundred feet down. The upper tour went to the waterfall. To take the tour, you still go down that same elevator shaft.
In many places, the ceiling is still a little low and yes I did bump my head twice.
The highlight of the trail is Foster Falls. When you see blog posts like this one from Backcountry Post, you can see the appeal. From the parking lot, it's a short walk to a platform overlooking the falls. Unfortunately, with the lack of rain it was barely a trickle.
There's a trail down to the base of the falls, complete with another swing bridge out over the water. The "pool toys prohibited" was something new though.
The trail down is .3 miles and mostly stone stairs to the bridge...
The base of the falls...
While working my way back to Chattanooga for the night, I passed the Castle Rock Baptist Church in Sequatchie. Some church signs are so worth going back for.
My home for the night was the District 3 Hotel. Nice enough place.
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