VEHICLES, CAMPERS, and BOATS > Everything Trailer, Camper, or RV related

Places to visit & things to do while there: Tennessee

(1/2) > >>

cudakidd53:
After we explored Kentucky, we continued our Bourbon & Bullets Tour heading to Tennessee, with three stops while there:


* Jack Daniels Distillery in Lynchburg, Tennessee.  Great Tour and tasting with the great little town of Lynchburg to explore while you wait for your tour.  This was one of the more restricted tours we experienced - bus took you around to many places as it's a spread-out place.  Didn't get inside any of the Rickhouses and couldn't take photos there, at the Stillhouse or at the Mellowing Tanks.  It did save on walking though! We pulled a travel trailer behind us to Lynchburg- word to the wise, DON'T pull into the first "apparent" entrance to the place that has a guard shack.  The kid inside had to put on safety gear, stop traffic and watch us back out!  Go into the second entrance which has LIMITED space for vehicles with trailers, but it's there if you know how to drive and it's not already filled-up.  Town is a life support system/tourist bazaar around Jack Daniels- DO GET BBQ!  Went to the Barrelhouse BBQ and bought a bottle of sauce on our way out- GET THE GALLON JUG!  We ran out and longed for more!
* Shiloh National Battlefield in Shiloh, TN - we stayed at Green Acres RV Park in nearby Savannah, TN.  Nice park with a salt water pool.  All their spots are full hook-up spots and nicely maintained - they have multiple full-timers staying there, but they do take reservations and they provide a little booklet that describes local establishments etc. as a nice resource if you stay there.  The National Park has a very nice visitors center with lectures and a well done Documentary that lasts 45mins. and is worth the time before you set out to see the Battlefield.  There is a well laid-out driving tour that takes you through the entire battle with multitudes of interpretive signs and markers.  There are many beautiful monuments and you can spend as much time as you like on foot, walking between markers across the battlefield.  The driving tour took about 3 hours, you could easily spend the day if it's not too hot and you have a mind too delve deep into the movements of the battle.
* Bird Dog Foundation in Grand Junction, TN - The National Bird Dog Hall of Fame.  If you dabble in Bird Dogs, especially Field Trials, this is a stop you'll want to make.  Admission is by donation, and they're closed on Mondays and don't open until 9am.  They are fully funded by donations, so bear that in mind and open your wallet as you pass the donation box.  The ladies there couldn't make you feel more at home and welcome.  We again, dragged the travel trailer behind us - tough parking lot, luckily there wasn't anyone else visiting that day, until after we pulled in!  Dragged tail getting in and going out, so probably want to make certain you position yourself for an easy exit prior to going in; or find alternate parking somewhere nearby! This is very close to the famous Ames Plantation where THE National Championship has been held for a LONG time - Pointers and Setters running across pristine habitat in pursuit of WILD quail to determine who the best dog is - it's an endurance event that requires a dog with a keen nose and stamina!  When Don described his Hide Site as being in "Hillbilly and Banjo Country", when we got off the beaten track heading South out of Grand Junction, trying to "get" towards Memphis, it made Don's place look like suburbia.......with that uneasy, "Deliverance" feel!

cudakidd53:
Jack Daniels photos:

cudakidd53:
Shiloh Battlefield photos:

cj7ox:
Shiloh is a great battlefield. I wish I would have known, I would have sent y'all the US Army Center for Military History Staff Ride book for Shiloh. It has a lot of info that isn't necessarily in the tour. It makes one hell of a supplement on the battle that could have (and almost did) end the war. There were so many losses, that the Union came close to capitulating. Also, this battle is a good example of tactics not evolving to match technology. More artillery was lost in this battle than any other of the war, because their tactics didn't take in to account the increased rage afforded to the infantryman by the Minie ball.

cudakidd53:
Sean, if it's still possible, forward that on- would love to look it over.  My buddy Ray is a big Civil War buff and we'd both enjoy looking it over.  I couldn't fathom STANDING up firing in rank, while cannons firing canister and volleys of Minie balls tore up everything around you!  With the terrain of Shiloh, I'd be on my belly or crouching behind a tree whenever I wasn't RUNNING to the next place to do the same.  How you could hear a drum cadence to indicate ordered movement over the din of battle through woods is beyond me; explains the surrender of a large group from Illinois and Iowa surrounded and trapped when Grant pulled the lines back at the end of the first day.

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page