Chattanooga, TN
By Melissa Gaskill & Susan Hayse
Worthwhile destinations for those with time, money, or energy to spare.
Early spring turns Chattanooga into a southern playground where locals float the dogwood-lined Tennessee River, hang gliders grace the skies, and miles of singletrack turn the Cumberland Mountains into a roller-coaster riding zone.
Photo credit: Chattanooga Area Convention & Visitors Bureau
If you’ve got…
Money: $149/12-20 mins
Don’t settle for views from Lookout Mountain. Take to the sky for a peek into the heart of the Scenic City. A plane tows your hang-glider to above 2,000 feet where you’ll soar on thermal updrafts, circling above the Lookout Valley for up to 20 thrilling minutes. Go on your own or in tandem with an instructor from Lookout Mountain Flight Park, the country’s largest hang gliding school. hanglide.com
Time: 3 days
Paddle 45 miles of the gently flowing Tennessee River between the Chicamauga and Nickajack Dams. Plan to cruise between 2,300-foot bluffs in the River Canyon Gorge, pit stop at the Williams Island State Archaeological Park, and overnight at Lookout Creek Camp Treehouse at the Chattanooga Nature Center. Keep an eye out for river otter, too. Bring your own boat or hop on a multi-day guided trip with Outdoor Chattanooga. outdoorchattanooga.com
Energy: 5,940 calories*
Three huff-and-puff climbs, more than 103 miles, and long river-side stretches make the 3-State 3-Mountain Challenge one of the best century rides in the South. Two-thousand riders start a counterclockwise loop downtown and head north on gentle climbs up Suck Creek and Signal Mountains. Switchbacking descents and tree-lined country roads criss-cross state lines, but the crux comes near mile 85 where 18-20 percent grades climb Lookout Mountain. May 7. chattbike.com
DREAM adventure:$395/day
Cast your fly on one of the best dry-fly rivers in the eastern U.S. and you could land one of the Hiwassee River’s trophy trout. southeasternanglers.com
*To calculate the energy estimates for this story we used healthstatus.com’s calorie calculator and factored time and intensity estimates for each of the activities (7.5 hours of cycling in Chattanooga, 5 hours of hiking in Yellowstone, and 7 hours of cycling in Haleakala) with the weight of the average American woman (165 lbs).
Explore
Wander 300-plus vendor booths at the weekly Chattanooga Market for one-of-a-kind crafts, artisan snacks, and music from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. 1829 Carter St.; chattanoogamarket.com
Eat
Skip the sauce, and pair Sugar’s Ribs red-oak smoked ribs with a side of vinegar slaw and wood-grilled okra. 2450 15th Ave.; (423) 826-1199; sugarsribs.com
Drink
Refresh under the Terminal Brewhouse’s hops trellis with the fruity, wheat-y Belgian-style White Shadow brewed on site. No. 614th St.; terminalbrewhouse.com
Play
Sate a singletrack craving with big climbs and rock garden rolls on a 21.5-mile loop, or an easy 8-miler overlooking the city. Raccoon Mountain; sorbachattanooga.org
Repeat
Come back to see autumn colors along the Tennesee River which peak during the U.S.’s 2nd largest row-fest, Head of the Hooch. Nov. 5 & 6; headofthehooch.org
Yellowstone National Park, MT
Spring in the crowd-free kickoff in this untrammeled corner of wild America. Go guided with the Yellowstone Association’s hands-on programs or take to this bison and bear country on your own terms.
Money: $495/day
Yearning to spot a grizzly? Circumnavigate the 2.2-million acre park? Snap close-ups of spouting geysers? A Yellowstone Association private tour includes experienced naturalists guides, in-park transportation, spotting scopes and a 100-percent you-pick-it itinerary. yellowstoneassociation.org
Time: 21 days
You could spend a lifetime bagging all 300-plus geysers around the caldera, but with good weather, good boots, and about three weeks of backpacking and base-camping, you could criss-cross the hot-spots to see 114 spouting fountains in Upper Geyser, 87 in Lower Geyser, 36 in Norris, and 21 in West Thumb. geyserstudy.org
Energy: 2,228 calories*
Trace Lamar Valley’s southern edge on the Specimen Ridge Trail. Panoramic park vistas and wildlife sightings are common, so keep a lookout along all 12 miles of this out-and-back that also cruises the world’s highest concentration of petrified trees-some five feet tall. Starting 1.25 miles east of Roosevelt Lodge. nps.gov/yell
Drink
Choose from 46 beers on tap-or stick with the Bozeman Brewing Company’s Plumb Street Porter-at Montana Ale Works in historic downtown Bozeman. 611 E. Main St., Bozeman; montanaaleworks.com
Eat
Hire gourmet Zac’s Montana Kitchen to fire-up your rental cabin’s kitchen and grill grass-fed Montana beef while you chill. (406) 222-4892; cookingontherange.com
Repeat
Snowdrifts transform the park-and capture wolf and lynx prints. Learn the art of tracking with a Yellowstone Association winter field seminar. Nov. – Mar. $100-$500; yellowstoneassociation.org
Haleakala National Park, HI
Remote, stunning, and laced with legends, the 10,023-foot peak erupting from Maui’s center plays host to horse trails, wilderness cabins, and one of the world’s most difficult road-bike climbs.
Money: $182/4 hours
Horses make easy work of the 2,500-foot descent (and return-trip climb) from Haleakala’s summit ridge into the heart of its cinder-cone-dotted crater. A guided picnic-lunch day trip on horseback is a relaxing 7.5 mile out-and-back. ponyexpresstours.com
Time: 4 days, 3 nights
Traverse Pele’s Playground-the central crater itself-for rainforested cliffs and hundred-mile Pacific views from its east side. Start a three-night loop with a 5.6-mile trek to the cabin at Kapalaoa. Spend the next two days trekking 10.5 miles to Paliku and Holua cabins before the stiff 3.7-mile climb out of the crater on day four. nps.gov/hale
Energy: 4,436 calories*
Pace yourself for the thigh-burning 36-mile ride from Maui’s north shore town of Paia to the top of Haleakala. You’ll cruise a kaleidoscope of changing landscapes on the paved road-with an average 5.5-percent grade and more than 30 switchbacks. On a standard road bike, plan for four to five hours for the climb-and another two for photo ops and the hair-raising descent. bikemaui.com
Explore
Hike deep into a cloud forest wao akua (a “realm of the gods”) in the 5,230-acre Waikamoi Preserve. Seventy-six rare or endangered species live here. (808) 572-4459; nps.gov/hale
Eat
Catch sunset-and a sparkling Maui view-while enjoying a wood-fired pizza at the Kula Lodge, 45 minutes down-mountain from the park.15200 Haleakala Hwy; kulalodge.com
Repeat
A lunar-eclipse December 10th will make your pre-holiday Haleakala stargazing trip even better-you’ll catch 45 minutes of totality. Dec. 10, 2011; 4:10 a.m.bishopmuseum.org
