The Rock City lights were beautiful.
When traveling, we either shoot from the hip or sometimes we use an itinerary.
OK, let’s explain it another way. Quite often we only start out with a highway or a particular direction in mind. Other times, we just start out and keep turning right (or left) until we arrive somewhere interesting. However, we have discovered that if we are going some place in particular, it works best if we have an itinerary.
That little piece of paper keeps us focused so that we don’t get too sidetracked.
On our recent weekend trip to Chattanooga, that itinerary let us do lots of things downtown without wandering willy-nilly.
When we arrived on Friday, our plan called for us to visit internationally famous Rock City so we could see the Enchanted Garden of Lights, a holiday display that features nearly a million lights.
That turned out to be quite an adventure when the overcast skies began to sprinkle.
Both of us had visited Rock City, on top of Lookout Mountain, before but Betty Lou had forgotten about the twisting road up the mountainside. “Oh my,” she exclaimed. “This is where we took the girls in two vans and we could smell my brother’s brakes behind us.”
“Wasn’t that in the Smokies?”
Maybe? Or maybe South Fork? Pike’s Peak?
Well, anyway. We made it up the mountain without incident and the sprinkling stopped ... for a few moments.
Despite being in January, the temperature was warm, but the footing was a bit treacherous as we headed down into the limestone grottoes.
“Didn’t I tell you about my fear of caves?” Betty Lou asked. Her face was about as white as H-haid had ever seen it.
“It’s not a cave, we’re just walking between limestone outcroppings. We’re in the open air.” I laughed and egged her on.
But all bets were off when we reached the narrow “Fat Man’s Squeeze.” We both understand why we need to diet this year!
Not soon enough, we were back on high ground viewing the beautiful lights, reminding us of the displays at the Opryland Hotel.
“Isn’t this beautiful? It looks like Opryland.”
“They don’t have caves at Opryland,” she responded. “Where are we now?”
While Betty Lou is a tad claustrophobic, the ol Hammerhaid doesn't cope with heights. What a pair we make!
It was then he realized that they were near the edge of Lover’s Leap. Swinging bridge fear then cut in. Rock City’s famous swing-a-long bridge is nearly 200 feet long! Don’t think either of us could have gone in that direction!
It was time for a quick retreat and a mug of hot chocolate in front of a crackling fire, thus ending that adventure. Betty Lou's driving skills were in high gear, or should I say "low gear" she was white-knuckling it all the way down that winding, steep dark road. None of my jokes made her laugh, in fact I think she was ready to push me off the next cliff. When we finally got back to our nice comfy room she laughed and was "so happy we did that! (of course we won’t take that road at night again!)
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