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Rock City celebrates its 75th anniversary
in 2007 |
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LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN,
GEORGIA —
SEE ROCK CITY. Big. Bold. Easy to read, even
for a four-year-old. Ever since I deciphered the command while
driving by old barns on family road trips, I've been determined
to obey. "It's just a tourist trap," my dad would
say, but that never convinced me I shouldn't make a pilgrimage
someday.
Someday was a long time in coming. As an adult,
I've driven near Chattanooga, Tennessee any number of times,
but I never seemed to have the time to follow the arrows pointing
the way up Lookout Mountain. Last week, opportunity beckoned.
I was headed to the Smokies to drive the Newfound Gap road
the next day, and sunset wasn't for another few hours. This
was my chance! After all these years, I was finally going
to SEE ROCK CITY.
There is no shortage of signs with arrows directing
tourists to the "attractions" on Lookout Mountain.
In addition to Rock City, there's an incline railroad and
a place called Ruby
Falls. I'd seen billboards for Ruby Falls as I drove up
from Birmingham, but they hadn't revealed its proximity to
Rock City. I wondered if the falls were ruby colored, but
not enough to consider a visit. I was, after all, on ancient
orders to SEE ROCK CITY, and I wasn't going to let some other
"attraction" seduce me.
The road up Lookout Mountain is narrow and winding,
and I took it slowly. Traffic was heavy, I hadn't looked closely
at a map, and I had no idea how much altitude I'd have to
gain before reaching Rock City. Thank goodness for all the
signs, I thought. Very thoughtful.
I rounded a bend. On the right side of the road,
a young man in shorts and T-shirt was pointing authoritatively
to the left with both arms. Is this it? I wondered, and I
almost pulled into the parking area he was indicating. But
then I saw it. Right behind him in big gold letters. RUBY
FALLS. Whoa! I had come within ten feet of being ensnared
by the wrong attraction! No doubt remained that I was in serious
tourist trap territory, and if I were going to obey the mandate
to SEE ROCK CITY, I'd better be on my guard.
