Chasing Cars: Bristol (and the South)

[Editor's Note: Craig is back from his 2007 Summer Adventure and has created a great index you can use for planning your own trip to the south here.]

You can read his field reports, listed in a day-by-day linear fashion here.

Here are the places Craig visited on this trip:
Manchester - Atlanta - Dawsonville
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Baileyton
Bristol Motor Speedway
Corbin - Mammoth Cave National Park
Bowling Green
Nashville
Lynchburg - Chattanooga
Stockbridge
Warner Robins - Atlanta
Manchester
************************************************** *****

Okay, as some of you may know, I've been taking an increasing interest in Nascar in the past couple of years and, well, I've been unable to control myself a little... I've been and gone and booked a couple of tickets to the Sharpie 500 Nextel Cup race at Bristol Motor Speedway in August... yeah, I know, naughy Craig!

At the moment I've yet to book any flights or make any definte plans for the rest of the trip but I have some ideas and would welcome any suggestions from you good folks on here. The usual stuff, really, must see/do places, amusing places to visit, photo opportunities, etc. There is some overlap with one of my previous Nascar trips but I think there's enough out there to keep us amused! I'd particularly welcome any suggestions relating to Nashville (is it worth the drive out or should we simply cut that out and chill a bit?) and the JD place (anyone been - is it worth it?)

The dates below (with the obvious exception of the race) are fluid at the moment. But I can only really spare 6 days of my holiday entitlement (ie 5 weekdays and a recovery day when I get back to London) and my thoughts are something along the lines of:

Weds 22nd August fly Gatwick to Atlanta and drive north to North Georgia Premium Outlet Center at Dawsonville GA to stock up on cheap clothes. Stop overnight in motel/hotel.
Thurs 23rd August Drive to Great Smoky Mountains National Park and take tour in car followed by short hike. Set up camp inside the park before heading back out to watch sunset.
Fri 24th August Continue exploring Great Smoky Mountains National Park, take longer hike, then drive to the Motel 6 in Newport TN.
Sat 25th August drive to the Bristol Motor Speedway for Nextel Cup race. Return to Motel 6 in Newport for the night.
Sun 26th August drive to Nashville TN. Find local campground or motel.
Mon 27th August head onwards to Lynchburg TN and visit the Jack Daniels Distillery. Find local campground or motel.
Tues 28th August Head back to Atlanta GA and take overnight flight back to London.

Has anyone travelled the Cherohala Skyway or the Tail of the Dragons at Deals Gap? They look kinda fun and we could potentially make a detour on the way from Dawsonville to the Smoky Mountains if they're worth the visit??

Thanks!

Just another thought. I've camped in the Great Smoky Mountains NP before, but that was in April, will the period that I am planning to be there be ridiculously busy? Will I have trouble getting a place on one of the park's campgrounds?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by UKCraig

Has anyone travelled the Cherohala Skyway or the Tail of the Dragons at Deals Gap?

---

I haven't driven either of these roads, yet, but they are classic curvy roads and some of our motorcycle members really love them.

mark

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by UKCraig

Will I have trouble getting a place on one of the park's campgrounds?

---

Those campgrounds that are easily accessible to the main road will be booked up, but I seem to recall that there are one or two places on the NE section of the park that might not be as busy.

Mark

Thanks for the imput, Mark.

Having looked again at the distances involved, I suspect that we're gonna give the skyway and the dragon a miss this time. We might make it over there but I think that we'd probably be better off spending a few more hours in the NP than in the car, given our limited time in the country.

I've had a look online and there are a number of options still available with regard to camping. I can even book online for a number of campgrounds within the park itself. However I'm a little unsure that I actually [i[want to[/i]! *stamps feet* :) I guess I really should, it'll be far nicer to spend an extra hour exploring the place than desperately looking for a place to stay before sunset.

Anyone got any tips or suggestions when it comes to Nashville? Is it actually worth the drive out? Or are there other, more interesting, places to visit instead?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by UKCraig

Anyone got any tips or suggestions when it comes to Nashville? Is it actually worth the drive out?

---

Craig, one of our friends, wrote this article and I think it will provide a couple of things for you to consider on your drive in the area!

Mark

Fantastic, I'll check it out. There really is so much more to this site than you realise - top work!

Edit: Having read that, it'll come in very handy for my other planned trip this year - thanks for the link.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by ukCraig

Fantastic, I'll check it out. There really is so much more to this site than you realise - top work!

---

Craig, I don't think you had planned to drive as far as Memphis & Clarksdale -- it is an area you will have to come back and check out though. Nashville is pretty cool -- the Grand Ole Opry is certainly worth checking out and here is a current calendar of events in the area.

Here is another thread to get you started in your latest quest:
Boston Wrangler's visit to the Nashville area

Mark

Thanks for that link also.

It's now got me thinking about whether we can add a day or so to the trip and maybe do Mammoth Cave NP as well. hmm... I wonder! Maybe something like this would work:

Weds 22nd August fly Gatwick to Atlanta and drive north to North Georgia Premium Outlet Center at Dawsonville GA (61 miles) to stock up on cheap clothes. Stop overnight in motel/hotel.
Thurs 23rd August Drive to Great Smoky Mountains National Park (155 miles) and take tour in car followed by short hike. Set up camp inside the park before heading back out to watch sunset.
Fri 24th August Continue exploring Great Smoky Mountains National Park, take longer hike, then drive to the Motel 6 in Newport TN (34 miles)
Sat 25th August drive to the Bristol Motor Speedway (85 miles) for Nextel Cup race. Return to Motel 6 in Newport (85 miles) for the night.
Sun 26th August drive to Mammoth Cave NP KY (280 miles) Camp inside the park.
Mon 27th August explore Mammoth Cave NP before driving to Nashville TN (97 miles) and finding a hotel or motel.
Tues 28th August explore Nashville then head south towards Lynchburg TN (97 miles) Find campground en route.
Weds 29th August visit the Jack Daniels Distillery before heading back towards Atlanta GA (225 miles) and finding campground or motel.
Thurs 30th August Finish driving back to Atlanta GA and take overnight flight back to London.

I don't have anything to add since my travels in that part of the country are limited. Just wanted to announce my severe jealousy.

However, I did purchase tickets for the Lone Star Grand Prix and the US Grand Prix, so I'm kind of broke right now.

We should try to meet up at Houston and at least put a face to the screen name.

Laura

Sounds like a great idea, Laura, I can buy you a beer (or Pepsi or water or whatever!) to thank you for your help organising the Houston trip!

Kind of broke? hmm... after booking this I kinda know what you mean. I am hoping I can resist the temptation of the final Nascar race of the season at Homestead... was talking to a friend who now lives in Sarasota and there was talk of visiting, once again, in November... I hope that I can resist. I really hope!!

Oh, and I'm jealous of YOU! Indy? How cool! I have decided that the day they announce common sense has finally prevailed and the IRL and Champcar become Indycar once more, should that ever happen, I am booking my flight for the follow May that very day. Indy is a place I really really wanna visit.

Just looking through some old posts and saw one where you mentioned visiting the National Corvette Museum at Bowling Green KY. Might have to squeeze that one in there too if it's any good... what were your thoughts on that place?

Me again!

I spent yesterday afternoon looking for info on the net and ended up booking a few campgrounds for the trip using www.recreation.gov and www.reserveamerica.com Has anyone else used these sites before? I'd never come across either of them previously but they were perfect for my needs.

My itinerary now looks something like this:

Weds 22nd August fly Gatwick to Atlanta and drive north to North Georgia Premium Outlet Center at Dawsonville GA (61 miles) to stock up on cheap clothes. Stop overnight in motel/hotel.
Thurs 23rd August Drive to Tallulah Gorge State Park and stop for hike (55 miles) Then head to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (100 miles) via the Cherokee entrance. Stop at Clingmans Dome before driving to Cades Cove and set up camp before heading back out to watch sunset. Campground booked.
Fri 24th August Continue exploring Great Smoky Mountains National Park, take longer hike, then drive to the Natural Tunnel State Park VA (144 miles). Campground booked.
Sat 25th August explore Natural Tunnel State Park VA before driving to the Bristol Motor Speedway (50 miles) for Nextel Cup race. Return to Natural Tunnel State Park VA (50 miles) for the night. Campground booked.
Sun 26th August drive to Mammoth Cave NP KY (254 miles) and setup camp. Campground booked.
Mon 27th August take guided tour at Mammoth Cave NP before driving to the National Corvette Museum at Bowling Green KY (32 miles) and then on to Nashville TN (67 miles) and find a nice hotel for the night.
Tues 28th August explore Nashville on foot and then head south towards Lynchburg TN (97 miles) Find campground en route.
Weds 29th August visit the Jack Daniels Distillery before heading back towards Atlanta GA (225 miles) and finding campground or motel.
Thurs 30th August Finish driving back to Atlanta GA and take overnight flight back to London.

It is starting to look a little too, erm, organised for my liking! But I'm sure we'll chop and change when we're on the ground. Any thoughts on the ideas though? Am I trying to squeeze too much in, or am I reasonably okay?

I read this thread with interest earlier and was particularly taken with the idea of visiting a couple of the Waterfalls in North Georgia on day two of my trip. I hope that kitsune will find a moment to pop by this thread with some suggestions. I am thinking that maybe they could suggest a couple of falls in the Tallulah Gorge area which are reasonably accessible by car and which won't be dried up in August?

Thanks again guys

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by UKCraig

I read this thread with interest earlier and was particularly taken with the idea of visiting a couple of the Waterfalls in North Georgia on day two of my trip. I hope that kitsune will find a moment to pop by this thread with some suggestions. I am thinking that maybe they could suggest a couple of falls in the Tallulah Gorge area which are reasonably accessible by car and which won't be dried up in August?

---

You should be just fine with most of the waterfalls in the area. Tallulah is controlled by the local power company and hasn't run full strength in decades, but it is still a sight to behold. The gorge, alone, is worth stopping for.

The mountain highways up there should not be underestimated -- getting from one dot on the map to the next often takes a lot more time than one would expect thanks to the curves and ascents/descents. The sun also sets a lot earlier thanks to the mountains and ridge lines, so have a add in some extra time if you're not sure.

Love cheesy tourist traps? Helen, GA. Hate cheesy tourist traps? Avoid that city like the plague.

You all are getting back into my favorite escape grounds up there. Wow, do I miss getting lost on those highways! (Thankfully, I'm returning for a trip come June. I'm really looking forward to it!)

Thanks, Kitsune, for the tips. I will have a look at the site which you recommended and see if there's any that particularly take our fancy. I might enquire locally as well, see if the locals have any tips. I will probably stop at the Tallulah Point Overlook on the way and I'm sure the folks there will point me in the right direction!

And, per your comments in the other thread, I think the danger of sustaining 'reasonable injury up to and including death' is quite fun too! lol

Helen looks hilarious... like you say, cheese city! Actually, depending on the time my flight gets in, I could be persuaded to stop there the first night!! Thanks for that tip, I'd never have found it on my own, fantastic!

Having terrible trouble finding a sensibly priced flight right now. They had been overpriced right from the get go and I was waiting for a sensible price to come along. But they've now gone through the roof and demand you fly via such hell holes as Schipol urgh.

I may have to reconsider how I'm going to do this trip. Does anyone have any thoughts on airports that are close(ish) to Bristol that I should check out? I don't mind amending the tripas long as I'm in Bristol on the Saturday night and we get a week or so of interesting places to visit!

I hope you get things figured out soon. I don't really know a lot about that part of the country.

Laura

I normally pay in the £300 region - even for the longer flight to LA - but prices were never less than £400 at any time. Now there's very few options less than £500 and the direct flights with Delta are like £800 ($1600!!) :o

I am considering flying into Washington or New York (whichever's cheapest) and looking for a cheap internal flight to either Atlanta or Charlotte but am concerned about the amount of luggage that you're allowed on internal flights. Has anyone any experience in this area? Many of the 'proper' airlines allow you to take 2 x 32kg bags when travelling on transatlantic routes. In the UK the budget airlines (Easyjet, Ryanair, etc.) charge you extra for baggage in the hold and then limit it to a maximum of 15kg or something. Is this the same in the US?

I found a FAQ page from Delta airlines about their luggage requirements. I would think the other domestic airlines would say much the same.

Laura

Delta could work nicely, given their based in Atlanta, or at least have a major hub there. I will look at the possibilities, thanks!

I have spent the past three hours online seeking out flights, all my work has been rewarded! For £415GBP (approx $830) we get a direct flight from Manchester (three hour drive from here) into Atlanta with Delta. So we're basically getting two for the price of one in return for a 200 mile drive this end!

I also managed to extend the trip by a couple of days at the end without incurring any extra costs! So, now I'm looking for any further suggestions from you good people on this here site :) Come on folks, you must be able to think of some cool places for us to visit!!

Yay - I'm so happy for you that not only has your problem been fixed, but now you've got a few more days to goof around with.

Are you just looking to do something extra after the distillery or are you thinking about adding stuff in between? I'd be real tempted to take a side trip to Florida and check out some beaches or some of the old roadside attractions that are still down there. I've never been, but have heard tales of giant seashell museums, live mermaid shows, etc.

Laura

I'm not really sure. I will maybe add a little time in Nashville, maybe stay a second night, so I'm thinking that the extra time will be available to us between Jack Daniels and Atlanta. Maybe we should spend the time in Atlanta itself, maybe even visiting Road Atlanta or something??

Looks like there's a Superbike Event going on at Road Atlanta from August 31st to September 2nd. That could be kind of cool.

Laura

If I'd known that I would have booked the return flights for the Monday!! Oh well! It is certainly something to keep in the back of the mind in case we get way ahead of schedule, but I'm reluctant to pay to get in to a qualifyng day. I wanna see racing! Or, if no racing, I just wanna have a quick (free) nose around the venue!

This has potential also. Though it's hardly top fuel dragsters! Mind you, I guess we could always enter the rental car! Having said all that, I think I know what we should do on the Friday night... Braves are playing the Mets at Turner Field :)

Has anyone ever been to the Museum of Aviation near Robins Air Force Base in Warner Robins, GA? It has some interesting looking exhibits, it has free entry, and could potentially fit nicely in between Jack Daniels and Turner Field. Any thoughts?

To fill the time in Atlanta itself I am thinking perhaps dinner at The Varsity, maybe the touristy destinations of the CNN tour, World of Coca Cola or perhaps the Aquarium. Depending on whether or not we're sick of camping we could stop over at Stone Mountain like I did last year.

Also, I'm looking at the map and Chattanooga is kinda on the route I guess we'll be taking. Is it worth stopping and spending time there? I'm thinking about Ruby Falls, the terrifying looking Incline Railway, Rock City
and, for something a little different, the flying saucer house! Any other suggestions?

One other thing... any photo opportunities at Dollywood? I certainly don't intend to pay to go in, but it might make an amusing happy snap if there's a dirty great sign at the front of the property!! :)

Just tried to book a Mustang convertible for this trip (had one on my last trip and it was a good car) but the price has gone up a lot since I looked the other day. I presume maybe they've taken a load of bookings??

Anyway, was wondering what kind of weather we could expect during my trip (22/8 - 1/9) as maybe a convertible isn't the ideal car anyway? I can get a Chrysler 300C or a Dodge Charger for just over half the price of the pony car! Much as I'd like a convertible, that's enough to sell the idea to me, unless the weather is guaranteed to be perfect convertible weather? :)

You're driving through the south in the middle of summer. I'm not even crazy enough to drive with the top down. Get something with a roof and an air conditioner. I don't know about the Chrysler, but Kurt Busch seems to really enjoy his Charger. :) Go #2!

Laura

But we're English, we're renowned for enjoying the sun when other people scoff and sit indoors with their aircon pumping out full blast! In this case, though, I'm kinda coming round to the idea of having a roof above my head again. It's more practical and secure seeing there'll be two of us and our kit. The last thing we need is to wake up and find someone's slashed the roof on the car so they could nick our bags off the back seat.

I'm off out racing or the weekend in a bit, and will be seeing the guy I'm travelling with there, I'll see what he thinks. Actually he'll probably suggest we hire a comedy car such as a Corvette or Hummer... so maybe I'll just tell him we're hiring a car with a roof and choose which one myself!

Kurt's not the only one to drive a Charger. JPM does too. And, now I've booked my car, so will I :) 450 bucks all-in, unlimited miles, including two drivers, LDW/CDW/SCDW and a tank of gas. Not bad!

Weds 22nd August fly Manchester to Atlanta and drive north to North Georgia Premium Outlet Center at Dawsonville GA (61 miles) to stock up on cheap clothes. hotel booked
Thurs 23rd August Drive to Tallulah Gorge State Park and stop for hike (55 miles) Then head to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (100 miles) via the Cherokee entrance. Stop at Clingmans Dome before driving to Cades Cove and set up camp before heading back out to watch sunset. Campground booked.
Fri 24th August Continue exploring Great Smoky Mountains National Park, take longer hike, then drive to the Natural Tunnel State Park VA (144 miles). Campground booked.
Sat 25th August explore Natural Tunnel State Park VA before driving to Bristol TN and having a brief look around and finally on to the Bristol Motor Speedway (50 miles) for the Nextel Cup race in the evening. (Gates open 1pm, race at 8pm) Return to Natural Tunnel State Park VA (50 miles) for the night. Campground and race tickets booked.
Sun 26th August drive to Corbin KY and have lunch at the original KFC (106 miles) before driving on to Mammoth Cave NP KY (151 miles) and setting up camp. Campground booked.
Mon 27th August take Historic Tour at Mammoth Cave NP before driving to Bowling Green KY (32 miles) and taking the 1.30pm GM Factory Tour. After the tour, head across the street to look around the National Corvette Museum. Cave tour, factory tour and hotel booked
Tues 28th August head south to Nashville (67 miles) and explore downtown on foot. Then head out to Opryland and visit Opry Mills Outlet Center before checking in to the Gaylord Opryland Hotel (nice name. NOT!) Finally visit the Grand Ole Opry at 7pm. Hotel and tickets booked
Weds 29th August head south to Lynchburg TN (97 miles) and visit the Jack Daniels Distillery. Afterwards drive to Chattanooga (102 miles) and explore downtown on foot. Find accomodation locally.
Thurs 30th August head to Lookout Mountain and visit Ruby Falls, Incline Railway and Rock City before heading back towards Atlanta GA (216 miles) Find accomodation locally.
Fri 31st August drive south to the Museum of Aviation near Robins Air Force Base in Warner Robins, GA. Afterwards return to Atlanta, eat at The Varsity then head to Turner Field for Braves vs Mets at 7.35pm hotel booked
Sat 1st September start the day with a track tour of Atlanta Motor Speedway before returning to Atlanta to visit World Of Coca Cola, take CNN tour and visit Martin Luther King Jr Historic Site before returning to airport for return flight at 8.25pm

All in all I'm pretty happy with that... I shall be looking forward it for the next couple of months! As usual, if anyone has any other tips or suggestions, I'd be delighted to hear them!

I am really looking forward to this trip now. It's rained non-stop (and rained hard) for three weeks here and I need some sun! Working outdoors, as I do, is no fun when the weather is like this. Thankfully my race tickets arrived with me the other day which cheered me up no end :)

Thanks to mousseau76 mentioning the GM Factory Tour I am looking forward to that - it will really put the icing on the cake of the latest installment of the 'Chasing Cars' series! :)

When I went through to Indianapolis that part of the Southeast was experiencing a drought. Great for my trip, but crappy for them.

Shreveport, on the other hand is catching the outer edge of all that rain that's flooding Texas. It's rained everyday here for about 3 weeks. In fact it's raining now and it appears that I'm going to be driving straight into it for the next few days.

Just heard on the radio... today is the 66th consecutive day that it has rained on London :o I am really looking forward to this trip!

Just discovered that you can now book tours of Mammoth Caves online. I was planning on chatting with someone at the visitor center before booking but at least booking now means we can get a tour in first thing in the morning and then hit the road to get down to Bowling Green in time for the factory tour.

What I don't know is what tour to do! Can anyone who has been previously offer some input? I was thinking of doing the 'Historic' or 'New Entrance' tour but I am slightly asthmatic (and pretty out of shape!) so the promise of 440-500 steps, together with the warnings on the tour description page, concerns me slightly. I'd hate to be the one delaying the rest of the group - how embarassing that would be - but the 'Frozen Niagara' tour sounds petty uninspiring! Help!

Have just booked a couple of places on the 'Historic' tour at 9am on the 27th. If I don't come back to this site after that... I've probably had a heart attack!

I'm off to the Great Smoky Mountains NP in a couple of weeks and the guy I'm going with has starting going on and on about the number of bears living there. He's convinced we're gonna get eaten to the death!

My suggestion was to take an air horn which he didn't seem to think was such a great idea. Maybe I should be having the last laugh now, and not just at his description of what he almost 'subccumbed to' :)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by UKCraig

I'm off to the Great Smoky Mountains NP in a couple of weeks and the guy I'm going with has starting going on and on about the number of bears living there.

---

One of the very cool things about the Great Smokey National Park is, indeed, the number of black bears who live there -- I have read some estimates at ~1600. That being said, it is still unusual to see them.

Quote:

---

My suggestion was to take an air horn

---

It is a good way to ensure that you won't be re-joining us on this Forum, because you probably won't survive the attack. If I was the bear that you "blasted" in such a way, I would maul you just on general principles. Singing and carrying a whistle is appropriate -- scaring a bear is just plain stoopid.

Mark

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Editor

If I was the bear that you "blasted" in such a way, I would maul you just on general principles. Singing and carrying a whistle is appropriate -- scaring a bear is just plain stoopid.

---

I think we can all appreciate that Mark is on our side, and not a bear!

-Brad "Bear" McGarr
/And yes, that is my real nickname.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by UKCraig

Sat 1st September start the day with a track tour of Atlanta Motor Speedway before returning to Atlanta to visit World Of Coca Cola, take CNN tour and visit Martin Luther King Jr Historic Site before returning to airport for return flight at 8.25pm

---

Might as well dig Atlanta a little further. My favourite part of Atlanta is the funky area known as Little 5 Points (not to be confused with 5 Points). It is very artsy, has a lot of art galleries, second-hand clothing stores, bookstores, curio shops. Also, check out the Druid Hills with its huge colonial manors and Piedmont Park in Midland. Centennial Olympic Park is quite nice with its fountains and flower displays. Decatur also has a lot to offer in terms of architecture, restaurants and nightlife. For happy hour, try out Feist restaurant, for dinner the Watershed Restaurant (owned by one of te Indigo Girls) and for live entertainment (blues/rock), head to Eddie's Attic. If you want to see some cool modern and often provocative art exhibitions, go to City Gallery East on Ponce de Leon. I doubt you'll have time for all of this but I just wanted to give you more options:o).

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Editor

It is a good way to ensure that you won't be re-joining us on this Forum, because you probably won't survive the attack. If I was the bear that you "blasted" in such a way, I would maul you just on general principles. Singing and carrying a whistle is appropriate -- scaring a bear is just plain stoopid.

---

In my experience, the bears are usually more scared and eager to run away from humans. Each time I encountered bears on my camping or road trips, they were the ones running away first, even though I was petrified and scared to death. Even so, I always carry a whistle, peppers spray and a knife just in case. These probably wouldn't help much in case of a bear attack, but I don't carry them only for bears. Like Mark pointed, I wouldn't use an air horn because they are extremely loud and since most animals have very sensitive ears it might make them upset... My guess would be that a whistle will do the job, i.e. just by making a point of saying hey I'm here and I know you're there.

More and more national parks have bear-proof containers where you can put your food, toothpaste, shampoo and other stuff that might attract bears. If not, you can leave your stuff locked in the car. If you don't have your car with you (ex. : canoe-camping trips), put bungee cords around your cooler or bags and put it as far away from your tent as possible : in the canoe or in a tree, although, in my experience, the tree thing doesn't work that well for backpacks, since squirrels and other small creatures will get to it...and eat all of your precious chocolate treats (%$!#). Also, some bigger animals might be able to make things fall off the tree. In the morning, your stuff will be all over the campsite and possibly running down the river (been there done that too)...

Have a nice trip!
Gen

Thanks for the tips, Gen! I will definately print these out and take them with me. Everything is pretty tightly planned (which I don't actually like to do, believe it or not) with the exception of the Atlanta part. I didn't really know what to do there so these tips could come in very handy.

I'm sat at my computer, right now, printing off all the various bits and bobs that I've booked for this trip. I'm now officially looking forward to the trip! :) I must chase my travel insurance though, I don't seem to have got that through the post and, with those bears, and those steep trails, I might need it!!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by UKCraig

The Varsity . . . World of Coca Cola or perhaps the Aquarium . . . Ruby Falls. . . Dollywood

---

The Varsity is really a cool place to eat -- it's worth going out of your way a bit. World of Coca Cola is more fun than you'd expect. Ditto for the aquarium. Ruby Falls is definiately worth a stop. I'm pretty sure Dollywood's been torn down and replaced by a shopping center -- not a big loss; it was a mediocre theme park.