The Choo-choo, AA Baseball and Lookout Mountain

The actual passenger train known as the “Chattanooga Choo-choo” made its final run in 1970, but the station is still there. It’s now a tourist attraction and a hotel, including some historic train cars that have been turned into accommodation. It was rainy and gloomy, but I dodged the wet and got some pictures of the replicated engine and the incredible old station.

There are nods to the “choo-choo” all throughout the town.

Right near my hostel was the Bessie Smith Cultural Center, unfortunately closed when I was there.

Born in Chattanooga, Bessie Smith was a jazz and blues singer in the 1920s and ‘30s who broke barriers of color, sexuality and musical style. Long before Cardi B shocked our puritanical ears with “WAP”, Bessie Smith was singing songs with lyrics like this:

I need a little sugar in my bowl
I need a little hot dog between my rolls
You gettin’ different, I’ve been told
Move your finger, drop something in my bowl

Chattanooga has a AA Baseball Team called the “Lookouts”, named for the mountain. I love minor-league ball; it’s fun to watch the up-and-coming players and the games are usually much more laid-back than major league (not to mention cheaper!)

I met Wanda, who has been “selling” programs for 25¢ for more than 30 years. Nowadays, the programs are free (and digital) but she still sits in her spot and cheerfully calls out to the patrons, a sign with the QR code in each hand. She was delightful.

The game was great fun. They had lots of “characters” coming on to the field, plenty of activities for the kids in between innings, decent beer and friendly players and staff.

And fireworks after the game! Turned out this was the last game of the season, as the scheduled game the next day was rained out!

The next day, I took the incline railroad up Lookout Mountain. This has been in existence since 1895. Originally powered by steam, it’s now operated by two HUGE electric engines. It’s one of the steepest incline trains in the world, with an angle of 72° at its steepest point. (Straight up would be 90° so it was pretty crazy!) It’s impossible for a picture to really show how steep it was. But it was steep! The view from the mountain top was pretty spectacular.

I was feeling a bit peckish after that train ride, and stopped off at a little brunch place right nearby. I had the gumbo (an odd choice for brunch, I know, but I was in the mood…) which was pretty decent. There was a fascinating statue outside the restaurant, depicting the human history of the town. There were little statues of people all around the wheel, showing the timeline of the folks who came through.

https://deepfriedkudzu.com/2016/08/st-elmo-a-history-in-steel-sculpture-in-chattanooga.html/

Then I was off to Atlanta, for the Braves Game and to catch up with a couple of old friends.

When you hear the whistle blowin’ eight to the bar
Then you know that Tennessee is not very far
Shovel all the coal in
Gotta keep it rollin’
Woo, woo, Chattanooga there you are