Ever get that deja vu feeling? My return to the road this time has me feeling that sort of way. I've decided to retrace my original travelling steps by returning to Atlanta for a bit, then driving to see my friend Jenna in Knoxville. A short-term job opportunity sort of persuaded me in a northerly direction. I mean....how cold could Tennessee possibly get, right??? Stay tuned for that answer....
So, before Knoxville, I spent an amazing time with my best friend Jesse and awesome wife Crystal watching my Falcons lose in the playoffs, drinking boxes of wine, watching "broomball", exploring haunted plantations at night, and mostly just laughing like 12 year olds.
Battlefield Detour!
Well, on the way to Knoxville, I decided to make a bit of a detour. That's just sort of the way I roll. That pit stop took Onyx and I to Lookout Mountain, near Chattanooga, Tennessee. We decided to drive up a mountain to do some hiking. We ended up on a Civil War battlefield with spectacular views of 4 different states! I love reading and actually experiencing historical places. The battle that happened here was known as the "Battle Above the Clouds". It happened in early winter, 1863. Here I am in a thick winter coat, comfy gloves, synthetic wool-blend socks, and still freezing my nips off. I can't even imagine experiencing this in woven wolf pants, raccoon hats, eagle feather socks, wooden shoes, or whatever the fuck they wore in 1863.
Knoxville
So, this is actually my 5th trip to Knoxville, and I've learned this time I knew NOTHING about it. Previously, I had been twice for Gator games, and twice just passing through to see my friend. But, this time would be 10(ish) days. Clearly, not long enough to truly learn this historic town, but certainly long enough to try.
So, I arrived in town on a Sunday afternoon, and had to prepare to be at work at 5am the next day. I'm CLEARLY not used to waking up at 3:30am. Anyway, the week-long job that I'm at allowed me to get off around 1:30ish each day, and do some exploring. So, exploring, I did!
The first day, I drove to downtown Knoxville, and just walked around. I usually live my life fueled by coffee, so I stopped into Coolato Gelato for a Red Eye. No b.s., that was the best coffee I've ever had in my life. I wish I could remember the name.....something about a dragon, or a monster, or breath. Whatever. It was amazing.
Downtown Knoxville is much smaller than I expected. A few blocks walking around on Gay Street and the Market Square area covered a lot of ground. But, there's just something about seeing old brick buildings. The history in some of these building is just simply palpable. It's like you can just feel the ghosts of racists past...
Walking a bit further, you can't help but notice this giant, golden circle in the sky. No...not the sun. With the help of Google, I would learn that this thing was built for the 1983 World's Fair. Which then made me wonder what a World's Fair is. But, that's a story for another day.
I happen to be here on a random Monday afternoon, so there's hardly anyone around. Which rules. Walking up to this 266 foot tall giant, I discovered an elevator. Wait....you mean I can go up inside this thing??? Yes...yes, you can. The SunSphere has a free "observation area" on the 4th floor, which was pretty awesome. What's even more awesome is that the 6th - 8th floors are offices. Can you imagine that as your office view every day??
Here comes the cold
Wednesday, I would learn many things. A cold front had come through the previous day. And, by cold, I mean serious Arctic Farts of frigid air. Painful, I-can't-feel-my-hands kind of penis-hiding cold. Walking Onyx that morning (SIX degrees!), I learned that my beard freezes if there's any bit of shower-water residue remaining. I learned that fresh dog shit actually steams up. I learned that dog pee freezes in about 20 seconds, making little golden stalactites hanging from the bushes. I would also learn that radiators can freeze. You see, in Florida, we call that stuff "coolant". The rest of the world calls it "antifreeze". I get it now. An attempt to drive into work that morning resulted in an overheated Vandalf the Grey. Yes, a frozen radiator makes a vehicle overheat in 6 degree weather.
Cheers to the weekend!
Well, it's time to check out the Knoxville nightlife. A few people had told me to go to Suttree's High Gravity Tavern for ramen. So, we did. And, holy shit! Literally best ramen ever. I'm so happy to see ramen making it to culinary relevance. It's not just those cheap noodles we all ate as college students anymore. It's complex broths, fresh ingredients, and pure joy on a cold night. Oh, and Suttree's is a beer nerd's paradise, also. My first Yee-Haw Brewery Dunkel would certainly not be my last. I had to continually try this awesome beer throughout the evening...you know, for science.
After a full belly, it was time to explore a bit more. After spying on a few "too-busy" places, we ended up listening to some awesome tunes and slaying some Jameson at the Preservation Pub, a smaller music venue in Market Square with a big personality. Then, I blinked and it was 2am. "Just one more round" is a lie, and we all know it.
The Hikes
Like you didn't know there were going to be hiking pictures.... So, Saturday turned into an all day hiking session with Onyx. We discovered this place called Ijams (apparently, the "J" is silent....dumb). It was simply amazing hiking trails with lots of elevation changes (over 300 feet in an eight mile stretch at one point!), beautiful scenery, and boardwalks over a lake built into a rock wall. It was so incredible, we actually went back another day to make sure we covered all of the trails. Overall, we did about 11 miles, and Onyx just couldn't get enough. I swear that dog is part mountain goat.
We hiked down into an old quarry.
It was still pretty cold!
Dream house on a hill
This boardwalk goes for about an eighth mile, built into the side of the rock. It was very cool to see all the little bugs, and tiny caves in the rock. We even saw a salamander!
This is Mead's Quarry Lake. That cliff is about a 320 foot elevation hike. Also, there are freshwater jellyfish in this lake. I didn't know that was a thing!
You never know whoooooooooooo you'll see in the woods!
We found this family graveyard off the beaten path. Almost all of the deaths occurred within a few months in 1923. Conspiracy Theories??
Beautiful views from hundreds of feet above.
More from inside the quarry. It was fun to imagine the history here.
Well, that about sums it up. I've certainly enjoyed my time in "Scruffy Land". Knoxville is certainly filled with some hidden gems, and is in a great location within an hour's drive of many destination locations, including the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. But, it's time for us to head southwest. It's cold here!!!
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