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Chalk up another state . . .
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We wonder who pays for these machines . . .
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The Incline Railway is one of Chattanooga's big three attractions
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It goes up almost 2,000 ft, at angles up to 72 degrees
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Like any tramway, the two cars balance each other and minimize the power needed
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Quite a view from near the top
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Atop Lookout Mountain there are many very nice homes, including this one being restored
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The entrance to Point Park is reportedly the largest masonry reproduction of the Army Corp of Engineers Emblem
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The New York Peace Monument is the only known Civil War monument with both a Union and a Confederate soldier
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The point of Lookout Mountains offers a great view of Moccasin Bend and the Tennessee River, with Chattanooga on the right
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The buildings of the Tennessee Aquarium are striking . . .
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There are two buildings, each with distinct exhibits
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We managed to get in just ahead of 1100 school kids
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These South American rays are beautiful
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So are these great blue Macaws
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Not sure how a butterfly habitat fits into an aquarium, but we liked it
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Some butterflies love fruit
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This one was an even more awesome red than this picture
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Some of the school kids caught up with us . . .
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The penguin on the left is standing in her nest. They're hoping for babies
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Chuck & Jan Wolfe came back from Hawaii with pictures a lot like this one
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Don't think we'd ever seen a cuttlefish this close before
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Jellyfish are always fascinating
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These jellyfish live upside down, and depend on the algae that forms on them for food
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It's amazingly complex for a creature with no brain
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A wonderful side exhibit of jellyfish-inspired glass art by Dale Chihuly
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Glass art is so impressive. We never get enough
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The shapes of some fish are interesting
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Ooohhh - a creature from the deep!
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A sea turtle that obviously lost some bits to a shark . . .
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Some of us will never get to see scenes like this in the wild
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We'd never seen professional waterfall cleaners at work before . . .
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It's hard to get a decent picture of a seahorse. Can you spot the other one?
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The head of the Leafy Sea Dragon is at the bottom. What great camoflauge!
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Underwater forest
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Great smile on a youngish gator
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Five turtles, one duck . . .
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That is one ugly catfish.
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Some fish look so inquisitive
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Some fish look kind of dense
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That's the River Gorge Explorer, a jet-drive catamaran operated by the aquarium
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It takes you into the Tennessee River Gorge, where this osprey lives
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There are many homes with great views along the gorge
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Looks like these folks have their own private sidewheeler
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The naturalist called this a "lunar event"
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No matter where you see a Bald Eagle, it's special
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Not all homes on the river are mansions. This one once housed a moonshine still
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One of the best RV park speed signs we've seen
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Once upon a time, there were barns painted like this all over the south
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Today's marketing is more sophisticated, but the rocks are still the same
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Some passages are built for weight-loss motivation
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Hands down one of the best swinging chairs we've ever seen
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Swinging chairs are fun. Swinging bridges, a little scary
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Great sculpture overlooking the valley below
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Lovers Leap offers neat views
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The original builders must have had fun with some of these paths
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This may be the only way to see 7 states from Rock City
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Al will go where Judy fears to tread
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Yep . . . there it is
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Great waterfall, even if it isn't natural
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Got to have a little kitsch for the tourists
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And a fake cave or two
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All in all, fascinating and fun
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The third of Chattanooga's big three tourist attractions is a waterfall within a cave
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We've found that most cave passages were laid out by short people
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Most places, they say don't touch the formations. Here, touching is allowed
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The formations in the cave aren't all that great as caves go
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But they're still interesting
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Mostly they build up anticipation for the big deal at the end of the cave
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They say this is the northern end of a southbound beast . . . .
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Water into limestone makes some neat formations
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That's pretty special
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More flowstone and drapery
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It does kind of look like that . . .
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Are we there yet?
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YES! The waterfall drops 145 ft, starting 1120 feet below the top of the mountain
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And then we walk half a mile back out of the cave
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Sometimes colored lights make thing look neat
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But mostly we prefer natural light . . .
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Takes thousands of years to form columns like these
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We were impressed by the Lookout Mountain Presbyterian Church building . . . .
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Just to prove (a) there is one in Chattanooga and (b) that we were there
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The excellent visitor center at the Chickamauga Battlefield
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There are over 700 monuments and memorials scattered around the battlefield. This one's Florida's
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The acorn was the symbol of the Ohio Infantry
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Some show a more artistic bent . .
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Many have more traditional sculptures
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The Georgia Monument is the tallest on the battlefield
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Monuments like this mark where officers fell; the bigger the pile of cannon balls, the higher the rank
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In some areas, there are many monuments
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The Wilder Tower marks where Col John Wilder and his 17th Indiana Infantry tried but couldn't stop approaching Southern veterans
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This proves we both climbed those 85 steps to the top
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We'll end on the Snodgrass House, used as a hospital during the battle. It's one of the few original buildings left