My wife and I recently relocated to the beautiful city of Chattanooga, Tennessee which offers a plethora of hiking opportunities within a one hour drive of our new home. We will update this page with our hiking adventures. All hiking photos will be added to this Shutterfly Album.
Cloudland Canyon State Park, March 2022
This is a beautiful spot 1 hour from home in Georgia. It is one reason we fell in love with the Chattanooga area and decided to move here.
Hawkins Ridge Footpath, March 2023
We found this path in the woods while walking the neighborhoods around our Airbnb in St. Elmo.
Tennessee Riverwalk, April 2025
I parked just west of the Boathouse Restaurant and east of Chattanooga Rowing (19 minutes from home) and ran west a couple miles to the Hunter Museum of American Art.
South Chickamauga Creek Greenway, May 2025
We parked at the Sterchi Farm Trailhead (18 minutes from home) and walked west and north along the creek. Very shady with lots of boardwalks and a couple of bridges crossing the creek. If you go a bit further than we did, it connects to the Tennessee Riverwalk.
North Chickamauga Creek Gorge State Park, May 2025
Another beautiful state park only 17 minutes from home! There isn't much parking. We went right after lots of heavy rain so the creek was more like a roaring rapids. The blue hole is a popular swimming spot which was closed that day. We hiked up a challenging steep trail past a couple of waterfalls. If you keep going, you can connect to the Cumberland Trail. We will be back!
Greenway Farms, May 2025
A nice spot with a dog park and trails along the North Chickamauga Creek only 7 minutes from home. We would like to go back and try the Boy Scout Trail up Big Ridge.
Lula Lake Land Trust, May 2025
This is a limited access park about 45 minutes from home on Lookout Mountain in Georgia. We went to the Hike Bike Brew Beer Festival so we had beer samples as we hiked the trails and saw the waterfalls. A beautiful scenic view with cold beers at the top!
Stringers Ridge Park, June 2025
A hidden gem 25 minutes from home and even closer to downtown Chattanooga. Nice lookout with a view of downtown Chattanooga and the Tennessee River.
Big Soddy Creek Gulf, July 2025
Lots of parking and a flat, wide, shady trail only 19 minutes from home. Lots of places to get in the creek. We went 1.58 miles (left at the fork) then turned around. We will come back and go right at the fork which connects to the Cumberland Trail.
Rainbow Lake Wilderness Area, July 2025
Plenty of parking on Signal Mountain about 30 minutes from home. A challenging, rocky, yet shady trail took us about 1 mile to the Rainbow Creek Dam. My wife walked across the scary Middle Creek Bridge. We continued on the Cumberland Trail about 1 mile stopping to take in the beautiful views of the mountains and Tennessee River from the Julia Falls Overlook then on to Signal Point. We then walked about 1/2 mile down the road back to our car. We stopped at Civil Provisions for brunch before heading down the mountain back home. We will definitely come back!
Boy Scount Trail, August 2025
This trail is in Greenway Farms accessible from the parking lot nearest to the Gann Store Rd entrance to the park. It is pretty steep in parts however mostly paved and wide. There is a trail down to the quarry pond with dramatic views of the rock cliffs above. We want to go back and do the Big Ridge Trail which is a 1.3 mile loop within the Big Ridge TVA Small Wild Area (SWA) and connects directly to the Boy Scout Trail.
Tennessee Riverwalk (Naval Reserve to Dam), August 2025
We parked near the US Naval Reserve building, TVA boat ramp, Shelter 4, and playground in Tennessee Riverpark. It is a flat, shaded, wide, paved trail that runs along the Tennessee River. We went east under the Robinson Bridge to the Chickamauga Dam and back. On the return I ran past the car along the Riverwalk which goes out to Amnicola Highway and is less shaded and loud with car traffic. We would definitely return since it is only 15 minutes from home.
Snooper's Rock, August 2025
We parked on Game Reserve Road and walked down the "driveway" about a quarter mile to Snooper's Rock. It is a remarkable panoramic view of the Tennessee River from Snooper's Rock as it winds through the hills. We hiked about 1 mile north on Mullen's Cove Loop and back. The trail is narrow and was quite overgrown this time of year. We only saw a few other hikers. This is almost 1 hour from home and the last 6 miles are on a gravel/dirt/rocky road. Lots of motorcycles and ATVs in the area. Somewhat remote and beautiful spot in Prentice Cooper State Forest, TN!
HIKING JOURNAL