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Tennessee

The Best of Chattanooga: Trains, Waterfalls and Battlefields

Program No. 19022RJ
Discover the Southern gem of Chattanooga as you learn about rock formations, waterfalls, Civil War battlefields and historic trains, Appalachian music and more!
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Regional StudiesNature & EnvironmentSmall Group
Length
6 days
Rating (4.96)
Activity Level
Starts at
1,899

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Itinerary
While we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of our published materials, programs are typically advertised more than a year prior to their start date. Read More.
While we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of our published materials, programs are typically advertised more than a year prior to their start date. As a result, some program activities, schedules, accommodations, personnel, and other logistics occasionally change due to local conditions or circumstances. Should a major change occur, we will make every effort to alert you. For less significant changes, we will update you during orientation. Thank you for your understanding.
Duration
6 days
5 nights
What's Included
12 meals ( 5B, 3L, 4D )
5 expert-led lectures
11 expert-led field trips
An experienced Group Leader
5 nights of accommodations
Taxes and customary gratuity
Road Scholar Assurance Plan
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Activity Note
Hotel check-in from 4:00 p.m.
Afternoon:
Program Registration. After you check in and have your room assignment, join us at the Road Scholar table in the main lobby to register with the program staff, get any updated information, and confirm the time and location of the Orientation session. If you arrive late, please locate your Group Leader and let them know you have arrived.
Dinner:
At the hotel.
Evening:
Orientation: 5:00 p.m. The Group Leader will greet everyone and lead introductions. We will review the up-to-date program schedule, discuss roles and responsibilities, logistics, safety guidelines, emergency procedures, and answer questions. Educational leadership will be provided throughout the program by a series of local experts. Travel and transfers will be via private motorcoach unless noted otherwise. Periods in the daily schedule designated as “Free time” and “At leisure” offer opportunities to do what you like and make your experience even more meaningful and memorable according to your personal preferences. The Group Leader will be happy to offer suggestions. Program activities, schedules, personnel, and indicated distances or times may change due to local circumstances/conditions. In the event of changes, we will alert you as quickly as possible. Thank you for your understanding. Next, we will have an elective walk with our Group Leader to the riverfront with those who would like to begin becoming familiar with the area. Continue getting to know your fellow Road Scholars, settle in, and get a good night’s rest for the day ahead.
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving about 35 miles, approximately 1.5 hours riding time. Walking about 3/4 mile, up to 2 hours.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
We’ll be joined by a local expert for a presentation on the history of Chattanooga. We’ll then ride to the nearby city of Soddy-Daisy for a special and unusual field trip to meet and learn from Master Carver Larry Ridge, owner of the hand-carving school, the only one of its kind. The former owner, Bud Ellis, is notable for restoring the 1894 Dentzel carousel in Chattanooga’s Coolidge Park with its 52 hand-carved figures of camels, fish, giraffes, horses, ostriches, pigs, and rabbits. At the school, we’ll see first-hand examples of students’ carving abilities and also learn about the history of the carousel. We will ride back to the hotel after our field trip.
Lunch:
At the hotel.
Afternoon:
We’ll board the motorcoach again with our Group Leader for a field trip to the Hunter Museum of American Art, situated on an 80-foot bluff on the edge of the Tennessee River. We will explore the exceptional collection — recognized as one of the country’s finest — with a museum expert. The Hunter has a particular focus on American art from the Colonial period to the present day. The collection includes contemporary studio glass, furniture, mixed media, paintings, photography, sculpture, and works on paper covering a range of styles and periods. The artists include Ansel Adams, John James Audubon, Thomas Hart Benton, Albert Bierstad, Mary Cassatt, Alexander Calder, Marc Chagall, Dale Chihuly, Currier & Ives, Salvador Dali, Willem de Kooning, Winslow Homer, Edward Hopper, Fitz Henry Lane, Louise Nevelson, Frederick Remington, John Singer Sargent, and Andrew Wyeth, to name a very few. We’ll also be able to enjoy splendid views of the river and surrounding mountains.
Dinner:
At the hotel.
Evening:
We will gather with a local expert who will set the stage for tomorrow’s field trip to explore the geological wonders of Lookout Mountain, Rock City, and Ruby Falls.
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving about 15 miles, less than 1 hour riding time. At Rock City, walking 100-foot trail; 35 stairs in sets of 4-5 stairs with handrails; uneven, some inclines. Ruby Falls building entrance handicapped accessible; cave not wheelchair accessible. Elevator down to starting point of cave walk, approximately 4/5 of a mile each way; hard packed dirt, uneven paths. Should be able to comfortably be on their feet for up to 90 minutes.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
To begin a full day of exploration, discovery, and wonder, we’ll board the motorcoach with our Group Leader and take a short ride to Lookout Mountain. The mountain was the setting for two historic battles. The so-called “last battle of the Cherokee” took place in August of 1794. The 1863 Battle of Lookout Mountain —also known as the Battle Above the Clouds — sounded the death knell of the Confederacy when Union troops prevailed. As we ponder its history, we can marvel at the panoramic view of seven states. More than 200 million years of weathering have produced the massive, unusually shaped sandstone boulders in what is now known as Rock City, situated at 1,700 feet above sea level atop Lookout Mountain. During this self-directed exploration — each at our own pace — we will have an opportunity to traverse a walking trail more than 4,000 feet long that features not only these ancient rock formations but caves and gardens with more than 400 species of native plants. There are places along the trail to sit as well as easy access back to the starting point. Our Group Leader will be available to answer any questions about the site.
Lunch:
At a restaurant on Lookout Mountain.
Afternoon:
We’ll hop back aboard the motorcoach for a short ride on the mountain top to Ruby Falls. With a Ruby Falls expert, we will discover the mysterious and beautiful underground hidden cave at Lookout Mountain. We’ll learn how this extraordinary geological wonder was discovered in 1928 by a team of excavators who came across it 1,120 feet beneath the surface. The waterfall is 145 feet high, falling through a cavern created by the same geological forces as Rock City and Lookout Mountain itself. When they say don’t drink the water, they mean it! The water in Ruby Falls contains high concentrations of magnesium.
Dinner:
At the hotel.
Evening:
We’ll be joined by a local expert who has been fascinated by trains his entire life. He authored the only book dedicated to the Terminal Station in Chattanooga and has been interviewed for the railroad documentary “Tracing the Tracks.” In his presentation, we’ll learn all about Track 29 and the Terminal Station. We’ll then take a short walk to see trains and the grounds of the Choo Choo Hotel, returning to the hotel via trolley.
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving about 10 miles, approximately 1/2 hour riding time. Walking at Missionary Ridge; uneven, unpaved terrain.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
We’ll then set out on a field trip that will take us through Missionary Ridge by train. We’ll ride to Grand Junction Station for a train trip that will take us along one of the original railroad lines in Chattanooga, crossing four bridges and passing through pre-Civil War Missionary Ridge Tunnel, completed in 1858. It played an important part in the Civil War as we will hear from our local expert. The train stops at East Chattanooga, where we can see the locomotive rotating on a turntable. We’ll have time to look into the railroad restoration shop before re-boarding for the return trip. Back at Grand Junction Station, we’ll return to the hotel by motorcoach. After a short break, we'll gather in the conference room for "Fiddlin Thru The Tennessee Valley". Sit back and relax to the fiddling skills of this expert musician.
Lunch:
On your own.
Afternoon:
Next, we will set out on a walking field trip to the Tennessee Aquarium. The Aquarium opened May 1, 1992, as the first major freshwater life center in the world dedicated to the understanding, conservation, and enjoyment of rivers. Exhibits will take us (figuratively) on a journey from the Tennessee River’s source in the Appalachian Mountains, through its midstream, to the Mississippi Delta, and on to the great rivers of the world in Africa, South America, Siberia, and Asia. We will see and learn about living environments that accurately re-create the habitats of over 7,000 fish, birds, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and insects that rely on the river for survival. We’ll leave the Tennessee Aquarium with a new appreciation of the world around us and the flora and fauna that inhabit our own backyards. Returning to the hotel, the remainder of the afternoon is free. The Group Leader will be happy to offer suggestions. The free trolley is available and can be boarded half a block from the hotel.
Dinner:
This meal has been excluded from the program cost and is on your own to enjoy what you like. The Group Leader will be happy to offer suggestions. The hotel is within walking distance of some of the finest local restaurants.
Evening:
At leisure. You might like to attend a performance or other event, explore independently, or relax at the hotel with new Road Scholar friends. The Group Leader will be happy to offer suggestions.
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving about 25 miles, approximately 3/4 hour total riding time. Walnut Street Bridge is a walk of 2,376 feet — a little less than 1/2 mile — depending on personal preference. Walking about 1 mile; uneven battlefield terrain.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
Next, we’ll board our motorcoach and ride to the Walnut Street Bridge. If you’d like to walk, it’s just over half a mile from the hotel. The bridge was erected in 1891 and at 2,376 feet (0.45 mile) is the world’s longest pedestrian bridge. It connects downtown Chattanooga to the north shore. We’ll then walk over the bridge to the 1894 Dentzel carousel in historic Coolidge Park at the other end. (The motorcoach will take anyone who does not want to walk.) This is the antique carousel we learned about on Day 2 that was restored by master wood carver Bud Ellis and a devoted team of craftspeople and volunteers. The owner of the carousel carving school will meet us at the carousel and talk about his work on the 52 whimsical hand carved animals, the calliope band organ, and ornate, gold leafed benches. We’ll also get to ride the carousel! We’ll then ride back to the hotel.
Lunch:
At the hotel.
Afternoon:
During the Civil War, Chattanooga was a key rail center and gateway to the heart of the Confederacy. The Battle of Chickamauga was fought for this prize and is essential to understanding Chattanooga’s history. Only the Battle of Gettysburg was more lethal but, unlike that notorious conflict, Chickamauga was a huge Union defeat. An expert historian will lead our field trip to Chickamauga Battlefield where we’ll learn what happened September 19-20, 1863, and how it impacted the war.
Dinner:
At a local restaurant. Share favorite experiences with new Road Scholar friends during our farewell dinner.
Evening:
At leisure. Prepare for check-out and departure after our closing session in the morning.
Activity Note
Hotel check-out 11:00 am.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
We’ll be joined by a guest speaker from the Challenger STEM Learning Center who will tell us about its work and educational mission of introducing students to real-world applications. The space shuttle “Challenger” exploded after take-off from the Kennedy Space Center on January 28, 1986. Challenger Learning Centers were developed as a memorial to the seven astronauts who died and to the goal of educating students in STEM: science, technology, engineering, and math. There are now 45 around the world. The first integrated into a university was on the campus of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. We’ll also have time for Q&A. The lecture session will end at approximately 9:15 a.m. This concludes our program. If you are returning home, safe travels. If you are staying on independently, have a wonderful time. If you are transferring to another Road Scholar program, detailed instructions are included in your Information Packet for that program. We hope you enjoy Road Scholar learning adventures and look forward to having you on rewarding programs in the future. Don’t forget to join our Facebook page and follow us on Instagram. Best wishes for all your journeys!
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