Chattanooga has a
grandiose welcome for us entering Tennessee. This is a fun town with a
lot of things to see and do. You've been seeing billboards and barns
advertising Lookout Mountain
for miles. This is a special place and, if you haven't seen it yet, you
really shouldn't pass it by. advertising. Here is "America's
deepest cave, largest underground waterfall accessible to the public
and the world's steepest passenger railway. You also have a view of
seven states!
Chattanooga has the exciting
Tennessee Aquarium (yes,
aquariums can be exciting), the
Creative Discovery Museum, a wonderland for kids, and the
Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum
which is a whole lot more than a museum, We recommend the Hiwassee River
Rail Adventure which runs from Memorial Day clear through November. Take
a day off from driving and really enjoy some spectacular scenery from
aboard a beautifully restored train. Or, if you're on a tight schedule,
take their Missionary Ridge Local (only an hour) which also includes a
guided tour through their restoration shop.
In Chattanooga, Interstate 75 does a
right-angle turn to head northeasterly toward Knoxville. At Cleveland TN
(exit 20) it touches US-64/74, the back door into North Carolina. Both
are beautiful drives, US-74 to Asheville and east, US-64 to
Hendersonville and east. At milepost 35½ I-75
crosses over the famous Hiwassee River on its way to join the Tennessee
River (which I-75 crosses just north of milepost 74. There are many
natural attractions in this part of Tennessee. We recommend sending for
the (free) Tennessee vacation guide available from the
Tennessee Department of
Tourist Development.(continued
in column 2) |
|
(continued
from column 1)
At exit 84, I-75 joins I-40 and takes on I-40s milepost numbering until
it reaches I-640 just west of downtown Knoxville. It skirts around
downtown and, 3.6 miles later strikes off on its own again for Jellico
and entry into Kentucky.
One of the striking features about I-75 in Tennessee is its
routing. This part of the United States is very mountainous. While
creeks and rivers have cut passes in many directions, generally these
mountains run southwest to northeast. From about 900 feet elevation in
Knoxville, I-75 heads northwest, doing a roller coaster ride across a
series of minor mountain ranges, to a point near Hackle Knob near
Pioneer where, at nearly 2300 feet elevation it does another right-angle
turn to follow the ridge almost all the way to Jellico and Kentucky. For
most of the way your passengers can look down at the valley floor, 1,000
feet below, and see the coal trails creeping along the Norfolk Southern
railroad track. Near the twin peaks of Long Mountain (near Newcomb) I-75
starts its descent to the valley floor. It tries to stay in the valley
floors the rest of the way north.
In Jellico (exit 160) we
say good bye to Tennessee but Tennessee has one last, lovely campground
for us:
Indian Mountain State Park. Sited at the base of Indian Mountain
just northwest of Jellico, the park features to small lakes, two easy
walking trails (one paved and one unpaved), a swimming pool (with
lifeguards) and a 49 site (paved pads) with water, 30 Amp power plus a
dump station. There are also pedal boats available for rent if you wish
to give your legs a workout.
contributed by Bob
Masters |
