We headed to Chattanooga this weekend to visit Lula Lake Land Trust on Look Out Mountain. We stopped in Chattanooga for lunch before the hike. The iconic Chattanooga Choo Choo was next door to where we ate, so I had to take a quick photo.
We headed up to Lula Lake Land Trust. It is up on Lookout Mountain near Rock City. We had never been to Lula Lake, so we didn’t know what to expect. I normally research everything before hand, but all I knew about Lula Lake was there was hiking and a waterfall. I didn’t know how long the trails were or what difficulty they were…
The main route from the parking area to the trails is a gravel road. It is mostly flat, but are a few inclines. It’s about a two mile hike to get to the large waterfall.
To get down to the water fall was pretty difficult and steep…but there were some wooden steps, if you could call them that. The falls were very beautiful. There were quite a few people there. We sat on the rocks with our feet in the water to cool off a little and relax.
There is also a smaller waterfall before the large one…we decided to check it out on the way out. The hike down was not as tough as the one at the bigger waterfall. It was very pretty and the water is a crystal emerald color. Only two other people were at this one though.
At Lula Lake Land Trust, you have to make reservations and pay before you go. They are only open to the public on certain days…so be sure to pre plan.
After hiking almost 5 miles, we were pooped and wanted a shower, so we headed to the hotel to check in.
We stayed at The Edwin Hotel. It was a tastefully decorated room. There was quite a bit of art and photographs around the entire hotel. Every piece had the artist information with it. That was a very tasteful touch making sure the artist was recognized.
For dinner, we had reservations at Whitebird. Whitebird is located in the Edwin Hotel. Our dinner choices and drinks were phenomenal, but our starter was just good…dessert, we had carrot cake, but it was very dense and we didn’t really care for it. The staff were very attentive and service was top notch. I would recommend Whitebird if you’re in the Chattanooga area.
The Edwin Hotel is located right at the foot of the Walnut Street Pedestrian Bridge. This bridge is one of my favorite spots to photograph in Chattanooga.
Last night was not like normal nights in Chattanooga for me. I had my camera and tripod in the room, but after all the hiking and full bellies from dinner, we just took a quick walk and I got a cell phone capture of the bridge.
We decided to stay in for the rest of the night…guess I just needed a night of relaxation.
Sunday morning, valet brought our car up and parked it in a spot that gave me a perfect opportunity to photograph LePetit with the bridge in the background. Then we hit to road to head home.
It was a nice getaway! Just what I needed. Until next time…
XOXO
-S