Lookout Mountain Parkway (page 2 of 3)

Points 3-6

3. DeSoto State Park
Although the Spaniard Hernando De Soto found no gold when he explored this region in 1540, modern seekers of nature's treasures will find prizes aplenty: 20 miles of trails lined with uncountable riches. Famed for its springtime display of flowering shrubs, this wooded preserve is equally stunning in autumn, when hardwoods put on a show of foliage as colorful as a painter's palette. Be sure to catch each season in all its glory from the overlook at nearby 120-foot DeSoto Falls, the highest cascade in the area. The reservoir above the falls makes for a lovely picnic spot -- and a tempting find for anglers.

4. Sequoyah Caverns
The drive detours again, heading west to Rte. 11, where signs will direct you to the underground world of Sequoyah Caverns, with caves and passageways that honeycomb the rock. Thousands of fossils are forever frozen in time on the walls and ceilings, while underground lakes -- silent, clear, and still -- double every image like natural funhouse mirrors. Above ground the park has a small collection of animals -- including fallow deer, goats, ducks, and peacocks.

5. Cloudland Canyon State Park
Back on Lookout Mountain Parkway, you'll traverse the spine of Lookout Mountain along Rte. 117, which zigzags eastward through woodlands on the way to Georgia. Beyond the town of Cloudland, the parkway continues to press northward along Rte. 157, then turns onto Rte. 136 for a short jaunt to Cloudland Canyon State Park. One of the region's finest preserves, its 2,200 or so acres embrace a cluster of ravines and waterfalls. With elevations that range from 800 to 1,900 feet, this is rugged terrain but well worth exploring. Exhilarating panoramas of the hills and hollows will prepare sightseers for the grandeur that awaits at Cloudland Canyon itself, a deep cleft slashed into shale and sandstone by Sitton Gulch Creek. For a front-row seat, stop at the park's main picnic area.

6. Point Park
The parkway heads northward along Rte. 189, which returns you to Rte. 157 a few miles south of the Tennessee border. Once across the state line, the drive follows Rte. 210 to the scenic loop that passes Point Park -- a fitting climax to this journey along the length of Lookout Mountain. The ridge reaches its highest point here, cresting at 2,126 feet, and boasts a view to match, with vistas of the Tennessee River gliding slowly past the city of Chattanooga. On clear days you can also see portions of six other states: Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, and even Virginia. For a glimpse of the mountain's interior, visit Ruby Falls, a watery plume that splashes down through a cave located more than 1,000 feet underground. The hidden realm -- an elevator will whisk you there -- also claims among its charms several subterranean chambers that are bejeweled with onyx as well as with dripstone; when illuminated, the cave's walls shimmer with rainbow-like colors.

• • Road Trips

• James River Plantations
• Some of time's finest treasures can be found along this drive, which starts in the modern city of Richmond, passes centuries-old plantations, then ends in one of the places where America began.
• 
• North Georgia Highroads
• Just a short hop from the gleaming glass towers of Atlanta lies a mountainous getaway little touched by any but nature's hand.
• 
• Blue Ridge Parkway
• Soaring to the crests of the ancient Appalachians, America's longest scenic drive entices travelers with views of misty mountains and verdant valleys that have scarcely changed since the days of Daniel Boone.
• 
• Skyline Drive
• Weaving through Shenandoah National Park, the Skyline Drive is one of the loveliest roads in America.
• 
• Bluegrass to Pennyroyal
• This richly endowed landscape in the heart of rural Kentucky is famed worldwide for its champion racehorses, velvet-smooth bourbon, and colossal caverns.
• 
• More Great Road Trips!
•