We'd originally planned to stick around Atlanta for two days, not only touring Disney's Christmas Carol Train and eating at The Varsity, but I'd also hoped to visit The High Museum of Art once more to see the new Leonardo da Vinci exhibit. Surprisingly, I was not the only person in the family looking forward to the exhibit, but I knew we'd have to place this attraction on the back burner after my computer crashed last week. I could see da Vinci or get a new computer. Hmmm... what would you choose?
With a bit more time on our hands, we decided to head back to Huntsville in hopes that our camper would be ready to pick up from the repair shop and we'd be able to spend the night in our home and not in another hotel room. Along the way we decided to stop at Lookout Mountain and tour Point Park. My GPS must have taken us the most scenic route so it seemed like we drove up and up and around, over and over again. When we finally arrived at the top the fog was so dense, it was as though I’d driven directly into a cloud and I nearly ran through a stop sign.
Lookout Mountain Battlefield and Point Park is part of the Chickamauga and Chattanooga Battlefield. The impressive castle-like entrance gate was built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and is now the world's largest replica of the Corps insignia. The park contains walking trails, artillery batteries and the New York Peace Memorial. A granite and marble structure, the top of the monument shows a Union and Confederate soldier shaking hands under the flag signifying peace.
The trails are beautiful even for those who are not history lovers. You'll be amazed at the rock formations and stunning views of the city below that are visible along the trail. I really wish we had planned to make this trip; I would have been better prepared and dressed for the outing. At the very least, I certainly would have replaced my chunky sandals with more practical tennis shoes.
The Visitors Center across the street from the entrance will familiarize you with the battle that was fought here and contains a small museum, gift shop and offer visitors an opportunity to view a short film. There are also Ranger led walks throughout the year. Cost to enter Point Park is $3 per adult and children 15 and under are permitted free of charge.
© 2009 Tonya Prater/Live the Adventure
• 1 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link
Last Saturday started out so wonderful! My husband actually had a Saturday off work to spend with us and I'd planned to visit Murfreesboro, TN to see the artillery and cannon demonstrations at Stones River National Battlefield. Not only was I looking forward to a fun day with the family, I also thought it would be a great supplement to our Civil War study. We'd read about the Battle of Stones River while we were reading Across Five Aprils and I thought that they all wanted to go. Well, here's what I heard on the LESS THAN TWO HOUR drive....
Where are we going?
How long do we have to be in the car?
Are we almost there yet?
We've been driving forever!
I'm carsick!
Why are we even going to River Stone or Stones River anyway?
Don't touch me!
Don't look at me!
Are you kidding me? Have I written enough for you to begin to understand what was happening in our vehicle? Somewhere after passing over the Alabama/Tennessee state line, my children had reverted back to four year olds, or rather two of them had. With each passing comment, I could just feel myself getting more and more frustrated. But yet, I was so happy to have my hubby along on the excursion that I wasn't going to let the 'voices' still my joy....yet....
We arrived at the park just in time for the cannon firing which was incredible! A reenactor spoke briefly about the battle and the cannon fired with a bang so loud that it literally shook your body! After the demonstration we needed to wait an hour for the artillery demonstration so we made our way through the museum exhibit in the Visitor's Center, my son and I watched the film that was showing and we wandered through the gift shop where I made mental lists of the books that I want to use for our continuing Civil War study. Somewhere between the gift shop and the few feet it took to exit the front doors, an attitude gripped two of my children once more. And this time, it frustrated me as well. Our fun family day was on the verge of being ruined. I tried unsuccessfully to lighten the mood, only to have things go from bad to worse. By this point, I was beginning to think that we should just get in the car and drive home. After a couple more, why do we have to be here remarks, I was nearly in tears and my husband had had enough. He set my children straight and two of them sat through the artillery demonstration in the car. By the time the gunfire was over, the children were repentant and had decided to enjoy the day instead of sulking. We strolled through the cemetery, drove along the driving route, learning about the battle that had waged and saw Hazen Monument, the oldest, intact Civil War monument in the nation.
And though we took a longer, scenic route home through the mountains, we didn't hear one complaint from the backseat. We even stopped for ice cream and sandwiches and if you'd seen us then, you'd have thought we'd had a perfect day.
© 2009 Tonya Prater/Live the Adventure
• 1 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link
Well, here we go again, back to Atlanta for another week or two. We're a bit tired of all the driving we've been doing so to give ourselves a break, we decided to drive just over halfway and stop for the evening in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The kids were disappointed that we'd be making this trek without our motor home, but I wasn't able to find a campsite close to Atlanta that had room for us that wouldn't also leave my husband with a terrible commute for work each day. So, I guess another week or two of staying in a hotel won't kill us, right? On the bright side, the hotel does have baths with lots of hot water and free internet.
After driving past the Chickamauga-Chattanooga National Military Park on several occasions, we allowed ourselves plenty of time to stop and explore on this drive. This battlefield in Northern Georgia was the first to become a national military park and was used as a model for those that would follow- Gettysburg, Shiloh and Vicksburg. You'll begin your tour at the Visitor's Center where you'll find museum like exhibits and an impressive collection of firearms from a private collection. You won't want to miss watching the free 23-minute film, "The Battle of Chickamauga" that is shown every hour on the hour. The seven-mile driving tour will allow you to see the major points of interest in the park. You can enhance your tour by purchasing an audio tour from the bookstore, or you can also access the Dial and Discover service on your cell phone free, depending on your usage terms. For some reason, we weren't able to access any information after the 7th stop, but that could have just been a glitch the day we visited. Along the tour, not only will you hear about the events that took place leading to a short lived victory for the South, you'll also see over 600 monuments recognizing all the regiments that participated in the battle. Although the South won the battle, the Union managed to gain control of Chattanooga, the gateway to the Deep South, as they'd hoped. Today as you visit, it's hard to believe that such a beautiful, serene setting was once the site of one of the bloodiest battles in the Civil War.
While we spent several hours exploring only the Chickamauga Battlefield before the impending rain clouds chased us away. If you're in the area and you're interested, you may also choose to visit Lookout Mountain Battlefield, Point Park, Missionary Ridge and the Chattanooga National Cemetery.
© 2009 Tonya Prater/Homeschooling…Live the Adventure
• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link
We finally had a beautiful day with no rain in the forecast and decided that we’d head outside and take an educational field trip and save the book work for the rainy days that we’ll have next week. We chose to visit Russell Cave National Monument and learn about prehistoric peoples. This cave is unique because it offers one of the longest and most complete archeological records in the eastern United States. The cave was first excavated by the Tennessee Archeological Society and later by the Smithsonian Institute with financing by the National Geographic Society. The site was discovered to have been used much like a nomadic hotel by Native Americans, who mainly occupied the cave during the cold winter months and moved on in the warm weather to hunt and farm in other locations. Russell Cave was established as a national park by President John F. Kennedy in 1961, after the land was donated by the National Geographic Society to the American people.
Our visit began in the Visitor’s Center which also has a small museum exhibit telling the story of Russell Cave and displays some of the artifacts uncovered in the excavation. We also watched a short 8 minute movie that told mainly about the excavation process and the formation of the cave. The cave itself is a short, easy walk from the Visitor’s Center. Of course the kids beat me to the cave opening as I had to stop along the way and enjoy the beautiful scenery. The entrance to the cave was shrouded in mist and looked very enchanting. My son commented that the area could have been used in a Lord of the Rings movie. Although the entire cave is 7-10 miles in length, only the mouth of the cave is assessable to visitors. My children didn’t mind this since they were aware of that fact prior to our arrival. Had they found out once we were there that they wouldn’t be exploring the recesses of the cave, they would have been very disappointed.
After viewing the cave, I decided that we should go on the nature trail. My daughter was not a happy camper. She thought it was too hot to hike and yes, it was a rather warm 80 degrees or so, but the trail was wooded and there was a slight breeze. We soon discovered that the trail pretty much goes up, up and up. Every time we thought we’d made it to the top, we turned another corner and there was more trail to climb. My daughter was so upset, that we finally decided to turn around and head back down, although that was not an easy feat. It seems that heading down was tricky because the trail is paved and moss covered, making for a slippery combination along the shaded part of the walkway. Chelsea fell first with Joshua also slipping when our overzealous puppy yanked a bit too hard on his leash. Then, Chelsea fell a second time and since Nickolaus was walking closely behind her, he actually stepped on her as she went down! Now my poor daughter is really unhappy and feels tortured since she didn’t want to go on this walk in the first place. The walk wasn’t a total waste, along the way we saw lizards, butterflies, and even a sinkhole. Thankfully, we concluded our hike with no further mishaps and arrived back at our vehicle drenched in sweat. We couldn’t wait to make a trip to the bathhouse once we made it back to our camper!
On the hour drive back to home base, we discussed our day. On a scale of 1 to 10, they gave our trip a 9 for most tortured experience due to the hike. On a scale of 1 to 10, they gave the outing a 6 for fun, though they agree it could have been higher, but they had to factor in the torturous hike. On a scale of 1 to 10 for educational value they rated it a rather low 5. They may want to visit again with my husband, but would not drive an hour to see it again. So, there you have the official take of the day from the Traveling Prater kids!
On a side note, while we were there we met a really nice man from Seoul, Korea. He told me that he and his wife are touring the U.S. and will be stopping at each state. They have gone to many of the National Park sites. They have 20 states and 3 months to go. I told him that they are experiencing our dream, we also hope to one day see all 50 states.
Interesting tidbit: Russell Caves is located near Bridgeport where Spanish explorer Hernando DeSoto and his crew chose to enter into what is now Alabama in June 1540.
You’ll also see a photo of me and my husband at the cave. Today, as we were driving back to Atlanta, we decided to stop by the cave so he could experience this national park with us. After taking a peak at the nature trail, he decided that he’d forgo that hike, which absolutely thrilled the kids! This time they rated the cave much higher on the fun scale!
© 2009 Tonya Prater/Homeschooling…Live the Adventure
• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link
We packed up our camp near Washington D.C. and headed towards Assateague Island National Seashore in Maryland. Within hours we had reached the Barrier Island Visitors Center at our destination. We enjoyed the exhibits and the kids loved the touch tank. We purchased the Jr. Ranger booklets for the kids so they could begin to complete them right away and headed toward the campground. We were excited that as soon as we reached the top of the Verrazzano Bridge leading to the island, we saw the Wild Horses that we'd come to see! We selected our campsite and as soon as our tent was up, we walked over the dune and onto the beach with buckets and shovels in hand. Feeling the balmy sea air on my face, I commented that I could stay there for the remainder of our trip. My husband told me not to be too hasty- how wise he was!
Our peaceful evening ended sometime during the night when we were awakened by an unknown object slamming into our tent. In my slumber-fog state, I thought it was a horse! It was only when our hearts stopped pounding in our ears that we could hear the muffled screams of our children in the other room of the tent! The kids were young, and we'd always told them to call us if they needed anything, not to leave the tent. My husband quickly leaped to his feet and out the door as we discovered that the wind was blowing the tent over on the kids! We decided it would be best if we moved to the vehicle, but in the pitch darkness, we were all terrified as we slowly walked the 20 feet to our van! We were as comfortable as we could be, but the temperature had dropped and we hadn't taken all of the blankets from the tent. My hero ventured back to the tent to grab them and while he was gone, my oldest child pressed his face against the glass and said eerily..."They're out there, mommy. I can see them." Sound like a line from a bad horror story??? Try as we might, we were unable to see anything in the pitch blackness, so we turned on our lights and were startled to see that the horses were indeed, right outside our van!
In the morning, we realized the warm springlike weather had vanished overnight and was replaced with damp, frigid temperatures. Still, being so close to the ocean, we couldn't resist a quick walk on the beach in search of that one perfect, elusive sea shell. I was so thankful that I'd thought to pack our winter coats! Unable to get a fire going in the wind with our damp firewood, we packed up and headed to Assateague Island National Seashore in Virginia, which is not a quick drive by the way.
• 0 Comments • Post A Comment! • Permanent Link