2024 Saturday, September 7, Train Trip from Chattanooga to Chickamauga, Ga

Train 5000 from Chattanooga, TN, to Chickamauga, Ga

Saturday, we had to be in Scottsboro by 7AM, about a 2-hour drive. We loaded onto the bus. I think there were 30 of us, including the driver. We rode to Chattanooga to ride the train to the Civil War battle town of Chickamauga, GA. We visited the Gordon-Lee Mansion and walked among the Jeep Festival.

Wilder Brigade Monument 

We stopped at the Wilder Brigade Tower in the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park.

There are 136 spiral stairs to the top if you dare.

Lunch was served as if we were fine dining.

It was a beautiful day traveling and making new friends.

It was around 8 PM when we arrived home Saturday night.

Lunch on the train

bowl of fruit cocktail, potato salad, cole slaw, tomato, lettuce, baked turkey, and Swiss cheese on a croissant. For dessert, we had chocolate cake or red velvet Cake.

Chocolate Cake 

Red Velvet Cake 

Train we rode and the Visitor Center/Depot in Chickamauga 

We stopped at Chick-fil-A in Athens for dinner.

I ordered a kid's chicken nugget meal with waffle fries and Ice cream, and my hubby ordered a Number 1.

2023 May 6, The Moulton and Cullman Strawberry Festivals

 

Artist paintings at Cullman Strawberry Festival 

Farmers Market in Cullman 

a gallon of Sweet Strawberries

Saturday, we rode to Cullman to the Strawberry Festival and arrived around 9AM at the Warehouse District, where the Farmers Market is located. There were already lots of people, and more pouring in. We walked to the Farmers Market, where we bought a gallon of Strawberries. 

We had been at the Farmers Market a few weeks before, and they had sold out of Strawberries.

We bought a gallon of strawberries first thing, and Hubby took the strawberries to the car. 

After that, we walked around looking at what the vendors had to offer. We listened to several bands. There were vendors selling clothing, food, household items, handmade items, etc. (Burger Boys, Funnel Cakes, Icee, burgers, Lemonade, Kettle Corn, etc.

There was a small train ride and several children's rides. (berry-go-round, Ferries wheel, etc.)

We bought a cup of chocolate-covered strawberries in one of the shops in the Warehouse district. (Sweets by T Chocolate Shop).

Miss Piggy was walking around advertising Barbecue. 

A petting zoo with a sign that said Feed me

Tractor Show 

Car Show 

We then rode to the Strawberry Festival in Moulton. They had a tractor show, a car show, rides for the kids, and a Petting Zoo. 

There were several food vendors. They even brought in a Chick-fil-A. There were different vendors with items to win from a spinning wheel. We bought a bird feeder from a school group that they had made. The day started out cool, but by the time we left Moulton, it was up to 80. 

Grilled Chicken Fingers with baked sweet potato, toast, and dipping sauce at OH!Bryan's 

We rode to Hartselle to eat lunch at Oh! Bryan's. It is one of our favorite places to eat when we are in the area. It was getting late, but we did stop at Wheeler Dam, where we saw lots of Great Blue Herons, a few snake birds, and several Great White Pelicans (most of them were on the islands far away). We had a great day but were worn out from all our adventures. 

Great Blue Heron with his catch a fish 

2017 June 17, Saturday, RC Moon Pie Festival Bell Buckle, Tenessee🌝🍰

Cooked waffles for breakfast topped with walnuts and cool whip.
Loaded the van, programmed the GPS, and began our trip.
We traveled north on hwy 43, turning right onto hwy 64 East, traveling through Giles County Pulaski, TN, crossing I-65
to 244 northeast, traveling through Lincoln and Marshall counties Petersburg, & Bedford County Shelbyville.

Town of Petersburg Library

Town of Petersburg in Lincoln and Marshall Counties with a population of 580.

Our next stop was Bedford County, Shelbyville, TN, home to the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration.

Walking Horse National Celebration (Horse farms)
The historic Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration Grounds in Shelbyville, TN, is home to the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration, which takes place each year in late summer for 11 days, ending on the Saturday night before Labor Day.

Veterans Memorial Plaza in front of Bedford County Courthouse

Shelbyville is the county seat of Bedford County "Courthouse"

Arrived at Bell Buckle around 10:00AM.
We found a close park, walked up to the stage, and found seats on bales of hay. Where we sat and listened to music and watched a group of young girls and women clogging.

Cloggers (stepping high)

Milking Machine

Railroad Town (several trains came through while we were in Bell Buckle)

We walked around checking out the vendors, where we saw giant corn dogs, funnel cakes, deep-fried Oreos, snickers, and Twinkles.
We visited Everybody's Antiques and More, Bluebirds Antiques, and Ice Cream Parlor.
We visited the Livery Stable, now an Antique shop with many rooms of antiques.

Livery Stable is now an Antique Shop. 

We saw boxes of strawberry, banana, chocolate, mint, & salted caramel moon pies.
There were moon pies and RC colas for sale everywhere we looked, and prices varied.

Ice Cold RC Colas 

Boxes of Fresh Moon Pies

Uncle Sam greeting the crowd at the  Parade.

We met a couple from North Carolina who had been to softball tournaments in Birmingham.
We met an older couple that had visited the festival many times.
There were people from everywhere who were still coming when we left.

We ate lunch at Bell Buckle Cafe, where we both ordered a barbecue sandwich and a glass of iced tea.
It was almost time for the parade, so we gobbled down our lunch.
It was the only cafe in the whole area, so it was a long wait just to eat lunch.

Standing in front of the Mural of Moon Pies and RC Colas 

We came outside to watch the parade, and after the parade, we started home.

Moon Pie Girl in the parade

We took a different route home, we rode through Tullahoma, Lynchburg, & Pulaski.
We stopped in Lawrenceburg for gas and to-go meals from Long John Silvers.
We stopped at the fruit stand in Lawrenceburg for vegetables, and we were home by 5:00PM.
We were home about an hour when hubby got a call out from work, so we loaded into the van and headed to Huntsville.
As we were entering the gate, we were in a Jurassic Park jeep with a dinosaur in the back.

When the Jeep moved, so did the dinosaur
Jurassic is relating to or denotes the second period of the Mesozoic era, between the Triassic and Cretaceous periods.

The sun was setting as we traveled home. (around 8:30PM)