Confronting my ghosts in Chattanooga.

We are having a grand time in Chattanooga.  Chattanooga was one of the most polluted cities in the US, and the Tennessee River also was foul due to the heavy manufacturing presence along the river.  After the establishment of the EPA the city fathers embraced cleaning up the environment and now the riverfront is a success story beyond belief.  The city maintains several docks along the waterfront for boaters, and boasts the largest freshwater aquarium in the US.  There are restaurants, art galleries, a symphony hall (we go to a performance Saturday night) and a contemporary arts museum all within walking distance from our dock.  Better yet, they offer discounts to Loopers!  The “official” Loop map has the route turning south at the Tenn-Tom waterway, so Chattanooga is considered a side trip.  The city knows that and actively courts Loopers by attending the fall rendezvous and advertising in our magazine, etc.  The Enterprise car rental people also offer Looper discounts, so we rented a car and did the tourist things like Rock City, Missionary Ridge and Lookout Mountain’s Point Park (which offers an in depth look at the civil war battles that took place here).  There is also a Publix here (Alexis’ favorite grocery chain) so we stocked up. 

The real story for me, however, is more complex.  I attended the 10^th and 11^th grade at Baylor Military Academy located on the Tennessee River in Chattanooga.  To say I did not fully reach my potential there would be an understatement.   In my defense, I was 15 and my world view was Houma, Louisiana (at the time a metropolis of around 10,000 now a parish (county for non-Louisianians) of 120,000).  I was terribly homesick, and pleaded with my parents to let me return home.  They relented and I finished high school in Houma.  The good news is when I went home I met Alexis, my high school sweetheart, married her and we celebrate our 40^th wedding anniversary this December.  Anyway, I took Alexis to Baylor and went to my old dorm (fittingly now the counselor’s office).  I have not been back to Chattanooga since high school, so I confronted some ghosts from my past a little before Halloween.  Baylor is now nonmilitary and co-ed.  The annual tuition is in excess of 40k, and the student body reflects a multi-national multi- ethnic population.   It has certainly changed over the years!  I doubt I could pass the entrance exam…..

We stay here to Monday, and then will head back down (with the current) the river to the Tenn-Tom, which will eventually lead us to Mobile, and then home.  But, there are more stops along the way, so stay tuned! 

We hit this fog bank on the way to Chattanooga.  Thanks goodness for our new HD radar.  

Hitting this rock was simply not an option.  

Mature Bald Eagles on the river.  

The scenery remained gorgeous the entire trek.  

Maybe granddaughter Cameron can tell me what type of horses these are.  

Signal Mountain.  My sister lived on this mountain years ago.  

Baylor from the river.  I certainly never guessed I would be passing on my own boat while I attended school here.  

We use to assemble for drill in this square.  Now there are girls in the quad.  Maybe I would like it better now....

My old room top left.  

Missionary Ridge.  

Many believe the decisive battles that broke the Confederates' back occurred here.  

The waterfront.  

Another spotty chapter of American history.  I did not know the trail started here.  

Rock City.  

The Tennessee River and Chattanooga.  

High school rowing teams practice each day along the waterfront.  When I was here the river was not safe for recreation.  A true environmental success story.  

Fellow Loopers.