The first time I went through Chatanooga last week, I thought it would be a neat place to visit, little did I know I would soon be spending a week...
Well, this morning I find myself still in bed with the covers pulled over my head wondering if we are ever going to get back on the road. I have to say, at least I have a comfy bed and have showered twice a day -just 'cuz.
I know, you're wondering what's the scoop... well it's not ice cream! More like . . . chinese food -smelly but good.
Saturday morning, we were 300 miles out from our Wisconsin to Georgia run, going through the beautiful foothills of the Chatahoochee National Forest with the sun peaking over the mountain tops and the river running right beside the road all sparkling blue, this was going to be a great day! We would finish the run by noon, then have the rest of the day and Sunday to recharge before our Monday run. Ahh.
Bump, silence, Michael's voice "Here we go again..."
"Great, we've lost power again and we're in the mountains with an additionl 4,000 pounds." I thought, as I wiped the sleep from my eyes. Hard breaking followed with a rumble as we crossed the rumble strip and landed our truck on the shoulder of I-24.
See, our truck had been doing this thing where out of the blue sky it would lose throttle power, so we would have to pull over to the shoulder of the road, turn the truck off, then turn it on and Hirby (see last blog) would be ready to roll again. All along, we've taken it to the shop, everyone thinking it was the fuel filters. So, three replacements later, here we go again, with one kick -this time, the engine lost power,too! All while we were in the fast lane passing a vehicle with someone else on our bailout side. Michael did a great job safely landing our ailing truck.
So, we limped Hirby to the rest area that God so graciously put not even 200 feet in front of us, called a tow truck, who thought the fuel pump was out on the rig, so he helps us limp up to the next exit, but wanted to have us pay $600 to get towed less than 10 miles to the Freightliner dealership/repair shop. Heck no! So we called another tow truck that only charged $285. Well, this time we tried to start the truck and the transmission seized and wouldn't change from 1st gear. Lovely. So we were towed to Frieghtliner.
That was Saturday at 1:30. We waited until they closed at 5 to only find out that Monday the "specialist" woud be in and he would have to look at it, but the mechanic thought that it was a transmission issue. We get a motel at the Hampton Inn, and walk the two roads over with our basics in our duffel bags. Lovely motel, close to where we needed to be, but no restaurants that would deliver -they were only one exit up on the Interstate, but we couldn't walk the Interstate, and didn't want to pay the $35 to have a taxi come take us that short of distance. So, Dominoe's pizza in the tv light it was.
Well, Sunday passed -a lazy day watching movies and eating more pizza.
Monday, Freightliner takes apart the engine, thinking that it's something with the air compressor and engine -nope. So, Tuesday (today) they are taking out the transmission to see if it is the transmission -yikes!
Well, at least we're in Chatanooga. All kinds of stuff close to us -Wendy's, Wal-Mart, Kangaroo Gas Station . . . ok, I'll stop being sarcastic.
There is a lot to do -we are at the base of Lookout Mountain and also in walking distance of the Incline Railway to the top of Lookout Mountain. We may go do that later.
There is also a Chatanooga Nature Center and Botanical Gardens with miles of hiking and biking trails just one exit down. The Tennessee Valley railroad is also close. After riding the Leadville Mining railroad in Colorado this summer, I love the rail tours -a great way to explore an area and find out the history.
Rock City is also in Chatanooga, more gardens, hiking trails, and spectacular views.
Oh, and the famous Moon Pies were created and are still made here in good ole' Chatanooga! One of my childhood favorites was sitting on the swing listening to the country count-down on Sunday, drinking RC Cola and eating Moon Pies!
Other adventures include: the Tennessee Aquarium, IMAX theatre, River Gorge Cruise, Art Districts and Museums, Classic Tennessee BBQ. . .
Home prices are affordable -downtown is around $200,000 for a 3 br 2 ba home, but other 3 br 2 ba homes in the surrounding areas are around $150,000.
I really like this area, and in April/May, I would love to come back and explore Chatanooga and also delve into the Smokey Mountain Areas of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge.
