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Tennessee

The Best of Chattanooga: Trains, Waterfalls and Battlefields

Program No. 19022RJ

Discover the Southern gem of Chattanooga as you learn about rock formations, waterfalls, Civil War battlefields and historic trains, Appalachian music and more!

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6 days

5 nights

12 meals

5B 3L 4D

Check-In, Registration, Welcome Dinner, Orientation

Chattanooga, TN

Chattanooga History, Master Carver, Hunter Museum of Art

Chattanooga, TN

Lookout Mountain, Rock City, Ruby Falls, Train History

Chattanooga, TN

Terminal Station, Train Missionary Ridge, Music, Aquarium,

Chattanooga, TN

Walnut St. Bridge, Dentzel Carousel, Chickamauga Battlefield

Chattanooga, TN

About the Challenger STEM Learning Center, Program Concludes

Chattanooga, TN

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At a Glance

Chattanooga is a Tennessee gem — where Southern charm and grand Victorian mansions meet a thoroughly modern metropolis. Embark on unique field trips to places like a wood carving school, a river aquarium and an antique carousel. Discover Cherokee and Civil War battlefields and walk across the world’s longest pedestrian bridge. Stand in the shade of the sandstone boulders of Rock City as you learn about their geological history. Feel the cool spray of America’s deepest waterfall. And soak in the sounds of Appalachian music and the charming chug of a historic Chattanooga choo choo. From high up on Lookout Mountain to the underground Ruby Falls cascade, explore Chattanooga from top to bottom.

Activity Level

On Your Feet

Walking up to one mile. Some stairs. Standing in museums for docent talk.

Best of all, you’ll…

Ride one of the city’s original rail lines through rolling vistas and the Missionary Ridge horseshoe tunnel, and learn about train engineering at the repair shop.
Explore Lookout Mountain and Ruby Falls, the nation's largest and deepest underground waterfall.
Journey to Chickamauga Battlefield to learn what happened there in 1863 and how it impacted the Civil War.

General Notes

Select dates are designated for small groups and are limited to 24 participants or less.

Featured Expert

All trip experts

Jonathan Mies

Dr. Jonathan Mies routinely teachs courses in physical geology, structural geology, tectonics, hydrology, X-ray diffraction, field methods, and geology field experience (Basin and Range, Colorado Plateau, and Central America). During the summer, he also teaches at the University of Missouri's Geology Field Camp (Branson Field Laboratory) and in the Wind River Mountains of Wyoming. His current research interests are focused on the origin of joints in folded sedimentary rocks of foreland fold and thrust belts.

Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.

Justin Strickland View biography

Justin Strickland has been fascinated by trains his entire life. His first "railroad" job was with the Blue Ridge Scenic Railway at the age of 15, where he eventually became a conductor. Justin has also worked with the Southeastern Railway Museum, Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History, and the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum. He authored the only book dedicated to the Terminal Station in Chattanooga and has been interviewed for the railroad documentary "Tracing the Tracks."

Maury Nicely View biography

Maury Nicely is a lawyer and historian in Chattanooga, Tenn., and author of the “Chattanooga Walking Tour & Historic Guide” and the “East Tennessee Walking Tour & Historic Guide.” Maury has served on the boards of Chattanooga History Center and Cornerstones, Inc., Chattanooga's historic preservation organization.

Carol Burton View biography

Carol Burton attended Dalton State College, where she began her 16 years as a Road Scholar coordinator with its Center for Educational Adventure. Married to her childhood sweetheart, she grew up in Hampton, Va., and moved to Georgia in 1970. Carol said she was born with a love for animals and volunteers with her local humane society.

Jonathan Mies View biography

Tom Morley View biography

Tom Morley’s musical career spans thirty years and a host of genres. He's played Celtic, bluegrass, classical, swing, Americana and country honky tonk, earning a gold album for his work with “new traditionalist” country artist John Anderson. Classically trained with a degree in music education, Tom's followed his passion for Irish traditional music for the past two decades. Tom teaches privately and at fiddle workshops and string camps around the U.S., including Boston's Fiddle Hell Gathering and the John C. Campbell Folk School.

Anthony Hodges View biography

Dr. Anthony Hodges attended the University of Alabama, graduated from University of Tennessee/Chattanooga and the University of Tennessee Center for the Health Sciences in Memphis with a D.D.S. (Doctor of Dental Surgery) degree in 1981. He recently retired from dentistry after 35 years. He became interested in early American and Civil War history as a child thanks to family oral history and began collecting Civil War artifacts as a boy. He served as a National Park Service living history interpreter for more than 30 years.

Suggested Reading List (5 books)

Visit the Road Scholar Bookshop

You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.

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The Best of Chattanooga: Trains, Waterfalls and Battlefields

Program Number: 19022

Silver Linings: My Life Before and After Challenger

by June Scobee Rodgers

Twenty-five years after the very public tragedy of the space shuttle Challenger, June Scobee Rodgers has written her private story—her winding path through childhood poverty, homelessness, and family dysfunction to her teenage marriage and twenty-six years of love and life with Dick Scobee. This is the story, too, of that heartbreaking day in January 1986 when Commander Scobee and his six crewmates “slipped the surly bonds of Earth.” That day, June’s life took a new direction that ultimately led to the creation of the Challenger Center for Space Science Education and to new love and new life with Don Rodgers. Her story of faith and triumph over adversity will inspire readers of every age. June Scobee Rodgers, originally from Alabama, is the widow of Dick Scobee, commander of the space shuttle Challenger. June serves as the Founding Chairman of the Board and as a Founding Director for Challenger Center for Space Science Education. Holding a Ph.D. from Texas A&M University and a Master’s degree from Chapman College, both in Curriculum and Instruction, she is proud of the fact that she has taught in every grade-level classroom from kindergarten through college. June is married to retired Army Lieutenant General Don Rodgers. They live in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and have three grown children and nine grandchildren.

Hidden History of Chattanooga

by Alexandra Walker Clark

The enigmatic hills and woodlands of the Chattanooga area are a sanctuary of history, and the hometown of author Alexandra Walker Clark. Clark has chronicled the history of her hometown for the Chattanooga Times and the Chattanooga History Journal, and in this collection she combines some of her favorite stories to take readers behind the scenes for a fascinating look into the unique history and culture of the region. Absorb the city's rich ethnic diversity, travel down to the hallowed battlefields of Chickamauga and Fort Oglethorpe and grasp the compelling legacy of the Cherokee. This and so much more lies ahead in Hidden History of Chattanooga.

Truth, Lies, and O-Rings: Inside the Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster

by Allan J McDonald and James R. Hansen

What they didn't want you to know "We all watched in shock and disbelief when Challenger was lost. Probably no one felt more disappointment and regret than Allan McDonald, who had warned us not to launch that day. His story tells of loss, grief, and the eventual rebuilding and recovery."--Robert "Hoot" Gibson, former Space Shuttle pilot and commander "A major contribution to a difficult episode in the history of human spaceflight."--Roger D. Launius, Division of Space History, Smithsonian Institution

Chattanooga's Terminal Station (TN)

by Justin W. Strickland

Long before Glenn Miller made the world-famous "Chattanooga Choo Choo" an American icon, Chattanooga was already a bustling railroad community. By the beginning of the 20th century, passenger trains overwhelmed Chattanooga's two railroad depots and a larger station was needed. The solution was Terminal Station, which rivaled most Southern depots in size, expense, and aesthetic beauty. Providing transportation to cities throughout the country, the terminal made its mark as the gateway for rail from the agricultural south to the industrial north. Following its closure, the terminal was reopened as a renowned hotel and entertainment complex in 1973, becoming one of Chattanooga's many exciting attractions. Images of Rail: Chattanooga's Terminal Station follows the history of this depot in both stories and photographs.

Chattanooga Landmarks (TN): Exploring the History of the Scenic City (The History Press) [Paperback]

by Jennifer Crutchfield

Chattanooga's history and heritage are embodied in the historical sites, structures and groundbreaking feats of engineering that have defined the city from its beginning. Many of the Scenic City's most important landmarks are still preserved. Yet with so many fascinating historic sites and storied destinations, seeing them all is no easy task. Fortunately, Chattanooga Landmarks offers a helpful survey of the most historically significant sites in the city and the surrounding area. Join Chattanooga local Jennifer Crutchfield as she guides you through the city's historic wonders, both natural and man-made. From the top of Lookout Mountain down to the banks of the Tennessee River and through downtown, Chattanooga Landmarks covers the breadth of the historic sites that make this Tennessee city a landmark all its own.

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The Best of Chattanooga: Trains, Waterfalls and Battlefields

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At a Glance

Best of all, you’ll…

General Notes

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