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It’s a Pie in the Sky!

Pie in the Sky: A Drive for Adventure

The First Stop

My husband and I are most definitely a little crazy. I mean why else would we see a little brown sign with an arrow and just follow it? I mean sure it looked official, but we could have been heading anywhere and been happy. It was adventure day in our household, something we’ve had to implement because I’m a *tad* wanderlust crazy and would spend so much money on gas alone that we’d be bankrupt in a week. We didn’t really have a goal when we left the house that morning with driving cookies, but after I saw that sign serendipity decided it be the beginning of a fantastic series of adventures.

We didn’t start the Pie in the Sky trail like most people do; in downtown Chattanooga near the aquarium. This starting point makes more sense since it is around like 4 points of interest (with the world famous aquarium being one of them) and would allow you to spider web out to the different places, but listen we had no idea it existed! So we started in Dunlap, TN, a stop that resides somewhere in the middle of the official Pie in the Sky destination list.

The Dunlap Coke Ovens. The name alone made us do a double take. I mean honestly, what were we supposed to think?! We have never been, nor will we ever be, creators of drugs, but we were pretty sure that you didn’t make cocaine in an oven so we soldiered on to our destination.

When we finally reached the park itself, I couldn’t help but think just how peaceful the area was. Relics and ruins littered the right hand side of the park, behemoths of metal and stone covered in moss. To the left hand side birches and a few oaks swayed slightly in the early autumn breeze, sheltering picnic tables and an individually unique bathroom shed. As a self proclaimed history nerd I was enamored with the scene before me. A solitary railcar peeked out from a trail on the right hand side and the entrance to the museum was framed by two humongous objects that looked like a backhoe bucket on steroids. As it so happens, the Dunlap coke ovens are actually what is left of a massive industrial complex where they would mine and refine coal. Coke oven refers to the beehive shaped ovens that were used to convert bituminous coal into industrial coke, a cleaner burning fuels source for smelting! That was one mystery solved. I so wish the museum itself had been opened the day we went so I could have seen what the area looked like in its prime, but c’est la vie.

Jon and I decided to take one of the hiking trails that the park provided which allowed us to pass by what was left of the coke ovens and actually coincided with the trail of tears for quite a while. It’s a strange experience to walk in the footsteps of a people who underwent such a terrible piece of history. I don’t know what I really expected the trail to look like? Perhaps I imagined a scorched earth path, a testament to the terribleness that was done, but that isn’t what we encountered at all. The trail was gorgeous and peaceful, almost reverent in it’s quiet. The occasional birdsong filtered through the foliage of the trees above us. Squirrels and chipmunks skittered through the fallen leaves and the occasional creepy crawly slunk across our path. I realize that this path is probably different from what it was all those years ago and my trek for fun down a couple miles of trail is very different from what what the natives had to endure yet, I found this trail a strangely peaceful reminder that life goes on.

All of us have experienced tragedy to some degree. Personally, the morning after the worst day of my life I remember being angry that the world itself had the audacity to move on. My world had ended, my life was upside down and the sky had the nerve to be so cheerfully blue?! How had the world not stopped? How was I supposed to keep going? And yet, the sun kept rising. Days, weeks, months, years passed by and I couldn’t understand it. There were days where I considered not being here the next sunrise. There were nights where I cried myself to sleep hoping to not wake up ever again. And just like this trail so beautifully illustrates, life went on. I went on. And here I am, my trauma not nearly as beautifully overcome as this forest’s, but I am still here. A fact I am proud of most days.

But I digress, as I stated before the trail was absolutely gorgeous and I probably looked like a crazy person climbing all over everything trying to get properly capture the beauty and history that this site boasted. As it turns out, the second trail that we didn’t take actually led up the nearby mountainside to the original coal mine! How cool is that?! We would have looped back around to do it but in all of my off trail picture taking I rolled my ankle like a dunce and we had to go home. 😦

If you have the time and are looking for something to do in southeastern Tennessee, the Dunlap coke ovens are a beautiful and interesting piece of industrial history well worth the rather scenic drive to get to. We WILL be returning to take the second trail at some point and I will once more be the crazy lady with a camera rolling around in the dirt to make sure that the beauty of history and nature is properly documented for posterity. Oh, and for you lovely people.

Until our next adventure!

Mini Update

SO. Hello there! It has been a bit since I’ve had time to post and it looks like until January, I will need to cut down to one post a week. ‘Tis the season I guess! It’s seemed like one thing after the other (including but not limited to weather not cooperating) and I waited until last minute to enroll in college which has turned out to be a process I definitely should’ve started earlier. My bad. Anyway I’m looking at publishing a post on Tuesdays OR Wednesdays depending on the holiday schedules that keep popping up. Talk to you soon!

Until our next adventure!

An Apology and a Letter

First of all let me apologize for being literal garbage at realizing what day of the week it is. I completely missed this Thursday’s post. Oops. Thank you for coming back though!

Since I’m still trying to figure out what to write about and what kind of stuff I’d like to do besides my adventure day’s of course, I found inspiration for this little blurb of writing via Facebook. It won’t be long…. probably. I have a tendency to be long winded in things like this, but here we go!

Dear Me (from 2010),

Greetings from the future! It’s nearly 2020 and with 10 years of hindsight in my pocket, I wanted to write you a little letter about what we’ve endured.

First off, all the good things that happened. We were accepted to our dream high school after years of hard work, you got to go to Mexico, you found several friends in unlikely places, and reconnect for stronger bonds with someone that’s in your life right now. Percy Jackson the series does end (technically), but Rick Riordan is a saint and continues writing with different mythologies and viewpoints which is a huge bonus and something to look forward to. You discover so many new anime’s and there is a show called Bob’s Burgers that will bring you so much joy. You get a dog, a dog that loves you so much and she is the light of your life. You go into college for a field you actually want to do, not historian like we said in 7th grade, but in the same vein and much cooler. You bond with your family and you’re on a road to forgive them for the things they’ve done to us.

You fall in love, a couple of times actually, and we get married to one of them. He’s amazing and supportive and will make you smile even when you feel your worst. You are now a self proclaimed polymath, with interests in painting, writing, photography, music, history, biology, and mechanics. You can play the ukulele now! Not at well as some, but it’s pink and brings you joy. We go hiking and play video games with our human and we’re working towards the goal to live on the road and see the world. All of these things are facts. They have happened and I am grateful.

But we have to talk about the bad things that happen. Your mental health fractures. That school you were so excited to get into? It breaks your spirit and your mind. You’re put in a mental hospital multiple times to avoid hurting yourself, something you began doing long before this school. Your bullies will not get justice. They will go on and actually become friends with people you were once close to. There is a car crash that will destroy you for a little while. You are abandoned and your heart gets broken, and you get really close one night to successfully ending your life. Like really close, you still have an ugly scar. You go to college the first time to avoid your problems and end up flunking out because your problems follow you. Your refusal to deal with your mental health bites you in the butt in a cycle that you will refuse to acknowledge. You will lose family members and friends one by one and become so paranoid you can’t leave the house some days. You will have so many financial problems. Girl, like so many. And control issues that make you sick. There is an entire month out of the year that becomes a blackness that you couldn’t seem to find your way out of until recently. There are so many days that I wish I could take away from you, to make those times that seem unbearable a little better. But they are my past and your future and there’s nothing we can do about them.

I know reading that is hard. At 14, we don’t really want to think about all the bad that will come in life. We are already well aware how hard life can be and I remember feeling trapped at that age. In a small town with hardly any friends because everyone seems to hate you for some reason and a not great homelife (your mom does get better, I promise), we already had begun hurting ourselves to feel something besides the pain inside. I remember all of this, but I have to tell you something.

Life goes on and good things do happen. I know there’s not a perfect future ahead of you, but it’s yours and it’s special. It makes us who we are today. Someone who we are beginning to be proud of is taking shape. And to tide you over until then just know that I love you. I love all the horse shirts you own and your enthusiasm. I love your gullibleness and your inability to eat something green on tacos. I love your stupid poetry and all the of the Bleach memorabilia you own. I’ve learned to love you for who I was, someone just trying to figure it out. So be strong and I’ll see you later!

Love,

Brooke

If you made it this far thank you so much! I’m not going to lie this was an emotional piece and I hope by sharing it, I can help someone else who needs to hear these words. If you have any ideas on how to help my writing or want to share something you’d pass on to your younger self, please do so in the comments!

Until our next adventure!

Walking Through a Winter Wonderland

Stop 3 on Pie in the Sky: A Drive for Adventure

I love snow. Which is ironic since I’ve lived in a state for the past 8 years that had ice instead of the soft fluffy precipitation that I adore. So, with this cold front coming through south eastern Tennessee I have eagerly been looking out my windows looking for snowflakes. Unfortunately, besides a few random spurts my wishes have been unmet….at least not near my apartment. When we set out yesterday morning to mark another outdoor stop off the list for Pie in the Sky, I had no idea that we’d be walking into a winter wonderland.

So a little bit about Savage Gulg Natural Area. Located in Palmer, TN it’s actually a part of the much larger South Cumberland State Park. The entrance is a bit hard to see so once you see the sign that states the park is ahead, do not be thrown off by mailbox. Just turn. The front of the park consists of the parking lot and a small rangers station near the trailhead. There are several trails that begin at the point including Savage Falls Overlook and Campground, Rattlesnake Point, Savage Gulf Day Route, and the South Rim Loop. We took the trail to Savage Falls which was 1.5 miles of trail criss crossing through the forests surrounding Savage Falls. While it was only 1.5 miles, the 37 degree weather made this hike a fun challenge to bring in the holiday season.

The trail has a multitude of bridges that lead you over a few mini marshes and several creeks that feed into the falls itself. The fact that the bridges over the creeks are suspension bridges is the best part of the trail. Seriously, they were the one of the highlights of the hike because a) covered in snow they were beautiful b) I’ve never walked across a suspension bridge before and c) who doesn’t want to be Indiana Jones? Now the snow did make them a little slick especially towards the steeper parts, but come on. Just look at them!

Due to the cold weather there wasn’t a lot of animal activity along the trail besides the occasional Robins hopping along the ground, but there were signs that warned us of bears in the area. Keeping that in mind the occasional creaking of the trees would probably have been a tad creepy if I hadn’t been in bliss. The snow coated the still green leaves like a christmas card and the trail itself was very well kept, I felt like I was in the missing Indiana Jones movies where he goes to uncover a nordic treasure. I had so much fun. I giggled like a child on Christmas, waltzing through the trees and marveling in the natural beauty. Since it was so cold we had the trail all to ourselves, a blessing for the most part but the cold became a little less bearable when I sat in a puddle by the falls. But OMG were they worth it. I had to sit down and admire them.

We spent total of 3.5 hours out on the trail going out to the falls and then back. The bulk of that time was on the way there, again I was legitimately frolicking through the trees and ogling at every small bit of nature, and the trip back was much colder and hungrier than the way there. Note to self: bring snacks on adventure days and don’t sit in puddles. Who could’ve guessed right? Well for the rest of the review of this park I’m just going to let the pictures speak for themselves. I do plan on going and exploring the South Cumberland Park as a whole so stay tuned for that!

If you’ve made it this far thank you so much! I appreciate you following along with my adventure. If you are looking for something to do in east Tennessee then I recommend this nature area for a fun family outing or a slightly challenging, but scenic hike. If you enjoyed reading my blog I hope you’ll stick around and give this article a like.

Until our next adventure!

Giving Thanks for a Thanksgiving Not to Plan

Hello my friends and I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Personally, I am still full from turkey and sweet potatoes and there are still left overs… I get full just by looking at them lol. This is going to be a shorter article because I need to return to my food coma, but I felt I needed to share this little story.

Thanksgiving has long been one of my favorite holidays, I mean what’s not to love? Lots of food, the Thanksgiving Parade, and family coming over to share our cooking. Plus the Bob’s Burgers Thanksgiving specials are my favorite things ever. Besides the obvious reasons to love Thanksgiving, the holiday has been one of the few times out of the year that I have gotten to see my parents and siblings since we’ve lived so far a part. Thirteen hours to be exact and the drive from Oklahoma to Tennessee is a brutal one. So this year being our first year in Tennessee and so close to my family, I was prepared and excited to go all out. I had recipes on standby, an outfit picked out, and an unshakeable optimism that despite the fact that this move has been so hard on us, this first big holiday here would be perfect. Don’t get me wrong I tempered my expectation of perfect into the realm of possibility, maybe a little rose colored but still. I wasn’t thinking or expecting a lot. All I wanted was to go to my parents, have good food, and enjoy my family, something that had been so hard to get together and do for so long. Doable right?

Wrong.

Two days before the holiday I get a text from my mom, one of my little sisters has tested positive for the flu and is going to be contagious through Thanksgiving. She doesn’t want us getting sick to so can we reschedule? I’m not going to lie, my initial reaction was ugly. I got angry, cried, and then yelled about how unfair it was and everything revolves around my sister. Not a flattering portrait to paint of myself, but it’s the truth.

Moving states is hard for anyone. We left our friends and familiarity behind to be closer to my family and be in a state that doesn’t have evil grass stickers. But in a matter of months, six to be exact, Jon was fired from our primary income, I left one for another and then my health and mental health took a turn for the worst making me unable to work. I realized I hated working in healthcare, like really hated it, and that I wanted to follow my dream of being an archeologist and working in history a passion I’ve had since I was in seventh grade. Regardless of the fact that it isn’t something you pursue for the money. Some days it still seems like our lives are falling down around us and making rent has become a herculean effort that is scrimped and saved for the entirety of the month. So while my reaction to being told we wouldn’t be having Thanksgiving was irrational, personally I felt I was at least a little justified with everything else that I had on my plate.

I cried for two days. Stupid I know, but not only was I not going to be seeing my family, I wasn’t going to be able to have a Thanksgiving at all. I threw a pity party for myself and refused to do anything.

Well apparently this didn’t sit right with my dear husband and I guess I must have looked pretty down because he bought a turkey, some ingredients for sides, and brought in some can do attitude so that we could have our own Thanksgiving for just us. After being a human lump for two days, I decided he was right and I worked all day so we could have our own dinner. And when we finally sat down together, I felt the weight of having the perfect thanksgiving leave me. I was happy that even if it wasn’t what I imagined, we had made the best of the situation and I made some pretty good turkey if I do say so myself. We wore stretchy pants and watched christmas movies. We talked about all the things that we remembered from Oklahoma that we were going to miss as Christmas was on its way and all the people we wish we could have invited for a friendsgiving. We played video games for a little while and we just enjoyed ourselves and our time together.

I felt as though I deflated a little bit as I realized that all I needed to be thankful for resided in this tiny one bedroom apartment. A partner that loved me and supported me, my two dogs that loved me unconditionally and tried to steal a turkey wing all day, and myself. Despite how hard life has been on me, I’m still here to see little moments like when we sit down together and enjoy our food, when the dogs cuddle together at the foot of our bed, and when all of us are curled up on the couch content to just be. It’s these little moments that I should have focused on instead of throwing a tantrum that I wouldn’t get my big holiday. I should have been grateful that despite everything we are making the best of a bad situation everyday.

I hope you all had a great turkey day, and I hope you can learn from my mistake. Be grateful for the big things, sure, but focus on the little everyday things that make life ok. Drop a comment below on something small that you’re grateful for, maybe something that you forgot on Thanksgiving or something that you take for granted most days.

Thank you so much for reading this far! I appreciate each and everyone of you that are here and I’m thankful for your support in this holiday season. Feel free to drop a comment or share this piece with your loved ones!

Until our next adventure!

It’s a Pie in the Sky: A Drive for Adventure

The Second Stop and an Unexpected Gem!

This starts out similar to our previous adventure, with two people driving in a car and looking for adventure. And boy did we find it! Starting off the day, we left our little apartment with a clear objective: The Lodge Cast Iron Factory in South Pittsburg, TN. I had gone before with my mother, but Jon had a vested interest in seeing the place due to our wish to be “perma-campers”. So, we set out that morning with a bag of Doritos and to adventure we went!

Our first try at getting to the factory did not…. go to plan. In my *infinite wisdom (read as stubborn ego) I had confidently stated that I could direct us to the factory WITHOUT the use of Google Maps, to save phone battery of course. Definitely not to show off my marvelous sense of direction…. Well as you can guess we ended up shooting right past the exit and the next off ramp was an extra twenty minutes down the road due to traffic. Great job Brooke. So with traffic backed up both ways, instead of getting off the interstate to get right back on we took an old state highway which was roughly headed in the same direction as we wanted to go.

This little detour was like going back in time. Before the interstate had been put in, this little highway was most likely one of the most direct paths to Chattanooga, which was a railroad mecca in its prime. All along our path were little towns and older buildings long since abandoned since the people stopped using this road in favor of the faster and more direct interstate. All in the name of progress I guess, but this little road was a gem of beautiful sites that I made multiple pit stops to get pictures of.

I don’t know if you can tell but the church was my favorite one to take pictures of. I plan on doing some digging to see if I can find any historical significance of this place but it was so neat to stop and look at. My poor husband puts up with photography shenanigans like a saint, even though I asked him to stop about every five minutes to look around he endured it with a smile. Love him.

Anyways, luck was on our side and this random highway ended up taking us right to where we wanted to be! Onward to the Lodge we went! As far as pitstops go, the lodge factory is a bit underwhelming. It’s been modernized to keep up with the times and you can’t really do anything with the factory itself, BUT the factory store is the absolute best place to acquire cast iron cookware at awesome prices. Unless you are absolutely set on a piece of cast iron from the the bulk of the store, bypass it all and head straight to the right hand side. All the way to the back is the seconds aisle. This is where they sell the pans that didn’t quite make the quality check at great prices. It’s the best part of the store. Alas, we are poor millennials and couldn’t buy anything so we got bored rather quickly. Since it was only noon, we decided to drive around looking for more adventure and to take in the quaint little town.

Besides the copious advertising for the Cornbread Festival that the town holds every year, the little town of South Pittsburg is somewhat lacking in things to do so we decided to follow yet another random brown sign that we had seen on the way into town. Taking us to Russel Cave National Monument.

Anybody who knows me knows that I have a deep passion for history and archeology, something I hope to dedicate my life to after I finish school. Alongside adventures of course. Little did I know as we putted along some Alabama back roads, that my love for the subject would once more be ignited from our destination.

Location wise, Russel cave is probably the strangest place to have a national monument. Driving through rural Alabama is beautiful, but sticking out like a sore thumb in the countryside a big sign greets you “Russel Cave National Monument and Archeological Park” OMG. My breath stopped. We had followed a random sign to probably one of the coolest things EVER. After watching a short presentation in the main building and perusing the artifacts in a mini museum the park kept, we set out along the boardwalk.

Birds sang in the trees and the air smelled of decaying leaves as we trekked our way directly towards the cave. And then, there it was. Tucked away in a gorgeous mountain side, the mouth of a cavern looms above you like an ancient beast; greenery sprouting anywhere it could find purchase. Coming to a dead end of the path there is a few infographics telling you of the native americans that would use this cave during the fall and winter seasons. Russel Cave has one of the most complete records of prehistoric culture from 10,000 BC to 1650 AD and when it was first excavated in the 60’s they pulled over two tons of artifacts from the cave. Now the only evidence of the archeological digging is a little pit in the cave marked off with wooden stakes.

Jon and I sat for a good half hour or so just soaking in the scene, listening to the stream flow into a cave hundreds of generations of hunter/gatherers had sought shelter in for over 10,000 years. You could almost see the crowd of native americans near the pool, gathering water and washing utensils preparing for the winter months. Kids would have still been kids, running along the edges of the cave and climbing over boulders until a sharp word from an elder spoiled their fun. The bounty of the North American wild would have provided plenty for these people living their lives, traveling from place to place following the game and seasons. This place was a treasure trove for just a glimpse into the day to day lives of the original Americans. A physical diary left by these people for years.

Giddy with a rekindled love for archeology and of adventure days, we set off home. Back to our lives that may someday be studied by archeologist looking for glimpses into the past. My hairbrush, the unsettling amount of pictures I took of my dogs, even the wear and tear on my favorite skillet, all could be studied looking for answers to who we are and how we lived. Documenting the mundane parts of our lives we never thought were glamourous, and I find this strangely comforting. Even if I don’t find myself interesting there may be an archeologist hundreds of years from now that finds me fascinating. A comfort to my existential dread at least.

So moral of the story, that’s one more stop on the Pie in the Sky trail finished! And if you’re looking for something to do in north eastern Alabama I cannot recommend the Russel Cave National Monument highly enough! Especially for artists or those just looking for a place to meditate. Thank you so much for tuning into my adventure for this week and I hope to that you’ll subscribe!

Until our next adventure!

Tentative Posting Schedule

Hello my friends! So I just wanted to give you all an idea of what I’m looking at being my posting schedule. As of right now I will be posting three time a week on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. I will attempt to keep you all in the loop if this changes last minute or anything, but I hope to start my blogging journey in earnest with this schedule which will allow me to both write and edit without being too much in a rush. Thank you all so much for your support thus far and I’ll see you tomorrow!

Until our next adventure!

An Adventure of Self Love

When it comes to self love, I’m not a great role model. My self image has oscillated between being minorly ok to downright terrible for most of my life, something I’m sure a lot of people can relate to. We all have the ideal version of yourself that we aspire to become. My idealized self would be 60 lbs lighter with long hair blowing in the wind and body proportions straight out of a Victorian corset ad. Unfortunately, God sought to give me double hips, broad shoulders, a penchant for chopping my hair off at two in the morning, and a deep seductive love of all things bread and sugared. Oh how cruel fate can be.

Yet, I know that somewhere out there is a small boned willowy person who sees themself as too skinny That they are too fragile, whereas I am built like a five foot ten inch dump truck and could probably single handedly fight off a bear if the situation arose. For every flaw I see in myself there is someone who is yearning to have those exact traits. Well most of them. The unfortunate and very real truth we try to positive think away is that we aren’t all around perfect. No one wants a massive nose or an awkwardly long torso. Big ears don’t help you hear better and acne scars are wished away by all who bear them. There are things about each of us that aren’t beautiful or desirable. Things that no one wants to have but you’ve been given them anyways and that can be disheartening. I understand that. I’ve been where you are and mostly likely I’ll be there again, wishing for something I’ll never have like delicate collarbones and knowing that I can never get that because I am not a Kardashian.

But do you know what I do have? A loving husband who admonishes me when I say I’m fat, but doesn’t try to lie about how I look. What that means is he knows my body isn’t classically feminine, but he thinks I’m beautiful. Actually he tells me I’m built like a viking princess lol. And looking at my physique, yea he’s right! I’m sturdy, built to take a hit and survive the elements while wielding a mighty sword against my foes. And honestly that is so much cooler than delicate collarbones. I still struggle with not feeling very feminine but I have him to remind me everyday of the things that I do like about myself, but that I’ve never taken the time think about.

I can cook, pretty well I might add, I can sing, I’m a generally nice person, I think my eyes are pretty, I can play ukulele, I’m pretty funny, and my knowledge of pop culture and history is wide and ever growing. There are things that I don’t necessarily like, but that are just facts about me like that I’m loud, borderline boisterous and my presence alone is a health risk for those with peanut allergies. That last bit is mostly a joke, but still I want you to take a minute and think of all those little things that you’ve skimmed over for years while looking at your flaws. Maybe you’re list is short, mine is no manifesto either, but it’s a step in the right direction towards loving yourself.

So take a moment today to start your journey to accepting the person you are, we could all use improvement but be gentle on yourself. The things you can’t change are what make you unique and special. I’ve accepted that I am a viking princess, but I want you to take the time today to ask “what am I?”.

Thank you so much for reading! If you liked reading my writing or have any notes on anything please drop a comment and subscribe to get notifications when I post. Thanks again.

Until our next adventure!

A Southern Nomad

Hello! My name is Brooke and I am the southern nomad. I am currently a student in Anthropology based out of Chattanooga, TN. I hope to one day become an Archeologist, but I’m going to enjoy my journey until I get there! I began this blog looking for fellow travel enthusiasts as well as a way to document my adventures, for both my body and mind. If you’re looking to follow along in a journey of self discovery while running around the history steeped countryside then this is the blog for you. I hope you’ll stick around to go along with me through this adventure and let me know anywhere you recommend I go!