Alabama to Georgia

Sel in front of  the "Pathfinder" shuttle stack

Our next stop was indeed Hunstville, Alabama and we visited the Space and Rocket museum which has the only complete space shuttle stack on display in the world. The shuttle is named "Pathfinder", and was originally a full scale mode used for handling tests such as checking roadway clearances and crane capabilities. Although not an actual flying shuttle it is an accurate and full scale replica, the orange external tank is real and was actually used in propulsion testing, and the two solid rocket booster are also real having been built after the Challenger disaster but never used. The museum showcases plenty of other rockets, many of them with military origins, plus numerous authentic rocket engines, and lots of interactive displays, exhibits and a myriad of information. The centrepiece is an actual Saturn V rocket, as used in the Apollo space program. It was the last one built and was never fired, and there is no mock up here - its the real deal. Also on display is the Apollo 16 command module named Casper, the last one to land on the moon, which is pretty special to see.

The visitors centre
at Jack Daniels 

Briefly returning into the state of Tennessee we stopped at Lynchburg for a free tour of the Jack Daniels Distillery. Even if none of the Bourbon names were familiar to you, Jack Daniels is a truly global brand and can be found in nearly every bar anywhere in the world. Now we want to set the records straight here - Jack Daniels is not a bourbon...but it could be. It is made in exactly the same way, with the same ingredients and to the same strict rules as bourbon is, with the addition that it is mellowed through charcoal before being aged. So, they could call it bourbon but they choose to set themselves apart as a Tennessee whisky, and are very proud to be different. Anyway, we thoroughly enjoyed the tour, seeing everything from the charcoal being made, the spring water which began it all, Mr Jack's original offices, through to the mash vats, the four giant stills and the charcoal vats. Its a surprisingly small operation really although the barreling, and most of the ageing and bottling is now done off site. Moore County where they are located is - rather ironically - a dry county, although the distillery do now have an exemption and offer tastings for an extra fee, as well as a bottle shop selling some of the more unusual and hard to find special editions. We spent some time in the quaint and nearby village of Lynchburg where we had a spot of lunch and visited the historic jail where legendary Jesse James was allegedly once incarcerated, as well as browsing the huge amount of branded merchandising that Jack Daniels has also become famous for.

Ruby Falls

Next stop was the city of Chattanooga, internationally known for the 1941 record "Chattanooga Choo Choo" by Glen Miller, inspired by the fact that the city was a major railroad hub. It still plays on that today, but also boasts the attraction of the spectacular Ruby Falls, a 145 foot tall underground waterfall located within Lookout Mountain, and only discovered in 1928. Our photo just doesn't convey what an amazing sight the falls are.

On top of Lookout Mountain is Rock City, located just over the border in Georgia. From this elevated viewpoint it is possible to see across seven states, and the attraction is well known in the USA for
its many barn advertisements with the slogan "See Rock City" that can be seen painted on barn sides and roofs across the county. Aside from the great views the attraction boasts extensive gardens running through a variety of unique and bizarre natural rock formations, and also rock caves that are now home to many spectacular black-lighted exhibits based on well known fairy-tales.

Dolly's statue in Sevierville

After here we headed up to Pigeon Forge, a mountain city resort in the heart of the Smoky Mountains. Primarily a tourist destination, it's biggest attraction is Dollywood, a theme-park owned by Dolly Parton, and although it was closed when we visited we did see Dolly's statue in her nearby hometown of Sevierville. We did get collared by a timeshare sales presentation there but we escaped without buying anything and were even given a prepaid debit card by way of a Thank You for attending, so it was well worth the time spent there !

On the flight deck of USS Yorktown

After using our free gift to fill the tank of our rental car, we drove to Charleston, SC, on the Atlantic coast. This historic city has a vibrant waterfront from where we could see Fort Sumter, where the first shots of the civil war were fired. Charleston is a natural harbour, and just to the east at the mouth of the Cooper river is Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum. It is home to many exhibits but by far the most imposing is the USS Yorktown (CV10), a decommissioned US Navy aircraft carrier. Now open to the public as a museum, there is full access to most areas of the ship - the bridges, flight deck, hangar, crew quarters and engine room. There are many aircraft on display too, and in hindsight we could easily have spent the entire day here.

Driving the Holiday Festival of Lights

Whilst in Charleston we also stopped by at the Angel Oak, a huge and impressive ancient oak tree which our photos just don't do justice too, and in the evening we drove the Holiday Festival of Lights, a three mile drive-able circuit through James Island County Park comprising over 700 light exhibits which was quite unique.

The Plantation House at Hofwyl-Broadfield

Crossing into the state of Georgia, we stopped in the border town of Savannah - a former British colonial capital and host city for the sailing events in the 1996 summer Olympics in nearby Atlanta - before moving further down the coast to Brunswick. Here we visited the Hofwyl-Broadfield plantation historic site, which represents the history and culture of the rice industry on Georgia's coast. When the rice industry collapsed the plantation became a diary using Jersey and Guernsey cows so we felt a special connection to the place, and we were very lucky to have a private tour guided tour of the plantation house and outbuildings.

The remains of the fort, and the Spanish Moss in the trees

The Georgian coastline is a network of small islands interspersed with marshlands and tidal estuaries, and we visited St Simons Island, connected by a road bridge and home to Fort Frederica. It is now a national monument but was once a thriving fort and village built in the mid 1700's to protect the southern boundary of the British colony of Georgia from the Spanish who raided from their territory in Florida. Basking in the sunshine on a stunning and warm December afternoon we were privileged to see dolphins swimming and playing close to shore in the river estuary, and the drapes of spanish moss (which isnt spanish, or even moss...) glistening in the trees was truly stunning.

No photos this time on Facebook but we'll include them in our next post which will be coming up very soon.