Rock City and Rock Walls

Rock City, Georgia and Stone Fort, Tennessee

As we leave our nephew in Georgia, they tell us about Rock City on Lookout Mountain, just outside Chattanooga, Tennessee that their family often visits. I’m  It is an amazing rock formation that the owners made into pathways, bridges and even has gnomes and a fairy tale section included.  It started as a tourist attraction in the 1930’s and it is still going strong almost a century later.  They even had a marketing campaign of painting barns several hundred miles away to encourage travelers to visit.

It does give views of seven states, on a clear day, and is a good break from the flat lands of Louisiana.  We enjoy the walk through gardens that have blooming rhododendrons and other plants that would be at home in the northwest.  I think that this would make a great hide and seek game.

It is a good travelling day from my nephew to Siri’s cousin in Nashville, with time enough to stop a few places.  We always would like a bit more time – there is so much to see in this large country.

Our last stop before Nashville is a 2,000 year old native American mound complex which no one is quite clear of its purpose  Early European explorers thought the five to fifteen foot high rock walls must have been for defense and they called it the “stone fort.” Later archeologists realized it most likely was a ceremonial gathering place with an open field of several acres inside the walls and an entrance lined up with the equinox.

It reminds us of Mima Mounds in Washington, a structure of rock earth mounds, that early settlers thought were made by large gophers or was a grave site. The stone fort was no different in that settlers attributed it to a lost Amazon tribe or even aliens.

It is fun to realize how many other travelers like us have taken these similar paths, on foot, by horseback, model T on dirt roads, or elementary students in a school bus.  I enjoy being part of these shared experiences which help connect us.