Georgia > Northwest Region > Walker County > Lookout Mountain

Adventures along Lookout Mountain await explorers along this 93-mile driving tour through three states. The spectacular Little River Canyon, DeSoto State Park in Alabama, Sequoyah Caverns, and the rugged hiking trails of Cloudland Canyon State Park in Georgia are among the many natural pleasures included on the tour, which includes an INTERACTIVE MAP.

This 93-mile driving tour follows Lookout Mountain from south to north through three states, Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee. Depending on how frequently you stop and how many of the appealing activities along the way you engage in, it can be done in one day, or pleasurably extended over a weekend, or even a long weekend. It is filled with experiences in the region’s remarkable natural environment, hiking, cave exploring, and thrilling photographable views of rivers and waterfalls. There are plenty of dining and lodging accommodations choices along the way to appeal to every taste and budget. Look especially at Mentone, Alabama, and the state parks, including Desoto State Park in Alabama and Cloudland Canyon State Park in Georgia. Chattanooga, the Tennessee city that you have a spectacular view of from Point Park, the northern most point on the tour, has a wide range of hotels and motels.

This tour (and variations of it) has received regional and national exposure in Southern Living (October, 2004 issue), and National Geographic Traveler (April, 2008 issue); it was chosen by Readers Digest as one of the top scenic driving tours of America.

See the accompanying INTERACTIVE TOUR MAP for the driving route. Links to tour points are on the map, as well as in the descriptions below.

Noccalula Falls Park
Alabama’s natural beauty shares the stage with Indian lore at this 250-acre park north of Gadsden. Once called Black Creek Falls, the 90-foot waterfall here now bears the name of the Cherokee princess Noccalula, who is said to have hurled herself to a watery death rather than marry a man she didn’t love. A bronze statue of the lovelorn maiden, poised to leap into the thundering cascade, looks out endlessly on the falls. Nearby, a stairway descends into Black Creek Gorge, a snaking chasm carved into the rocks just downstream from the falls. A one-and-a-half-mile trail shadows the waterway as it races between towering sandstone bluffs. Another pathway, Lookout Mountain Hiking Trail, which planners would like to lead all the way to Chattanooga one day, can be sampled at Noccalula Falls Park. Map.

Little River Canyon National Preserve
The green signs along Tabor Road, Route 89, the first leg of the Lookout Mountain Parkway, will guide you north to State Route 68, where the parkway becomes Route 176 with Leesburg to the left and Collonsville to the right. Farther along, at a community called Dogtown, the drive makes a brief, beautiful detour from the parkway itself, taking Route 176A northeast along the western rim of Little River Canyon.

The roadway parallels the steep-walled canyon, one of the deepest to be found east of the Mississippi River. Turnouts are sprinkled along the route; stand at the canyon’s edge, if you dare, and listen for the distant music of the Little River, rushing along some 700 feet below. You can even follow one of several trails that lead down the sandstone cliffs to the cloistered canyon floor and reward yourself with a refreshing dip (weather permitting) in one of the Little River’s sheltered swimming holes. After you enjoy this side trip, return to the parkway by following Route 35 westward to Route 89.

Little River flows for most of its length atop Lookout Mountain in northeast Alabama. The river and canyon systems are spectacular Appalachian Plateau landscapes any season of the year. Forested uplands, waterfalls, canyon rims and bluffs, stream riffles and pools, boulders, and sandstone cliffs offer settings for a variety of recreational activities. Natural resources and cultural heritage come together to tell the story of the Preserve, a special place in the Southern Appalachians. Map.

DeSoto State Park
Although the Spaniard Hernando De Soto found no gold when he explored this region in 1540, modern seekers of nature’s treasures will find prizes aplenty: 20 miles of trails lined with a wide variety of natural treasures. Famed for its springtime display of flowering shrubs, this wooded preserve is equally stunning in autumn, when hardwoods put on a show of foliage as colorful as a painter’s palette. Be sure to catch each season in all its glory from the overlook at nearby 120-foot DeSoto Falls, the highest cascade in the area. The reservoir above the falls makes for a lovely picnic spot - and a tempting find for anglers.

DeSoto State Park encompasses some 5,000 acres along Little River. Accented by waterfalls, scenic vistas and sheer rock cliffs, fragrant wildflowers and hiking trails, the park includes a unique restaurant, resort, camping and cabin rentals. Among the many waterfalls found throughout the park is DeSoto Falls, a 104-ft drop into the rugged canyon carved by Little River. Map.

The Town of Mentone
People have been flocking to this popular health resort since the late 1800’s where mineral springs were believed to have healing powers. The mineral springs are no more, but the town still has the same charm and healing powers as it restores peace and tranquility. Bed & Breakfast Inns, cabins and restaurants add to the rustic atmosphere. This is the perfect place to rest for the night before completing your journey across the Lookout Mountain Parkway. Map.

Sequoyah Caverns
The drive detours again, heading west to Route 11, where signs will direct you to the underground world of Sequoyah Caverns, with caves and passageways that honeycomb the rock. Thousands of fossils are frozen in time on the walls and ceilings, while underground lakes - silent, clear, and still - double every image like natural funhouse mirrors. Above ground the park has a small collection of animals - including fallow deer, goats, ducks, and peacocks. Map.

Cloudland Canyon State Park
Back on Lookout Mountain Parkway, you’ll traverse the spine of Lookout Mountain along Route 117, which zigzags eastward through woodlands on the way to Georgia. Beyond the town of Cloudland, the parkway continues to extend northward along Route 157, then turns onto Route 136 for a short jaunt to Cloudland Canyon State Park. One of the region’s finest preserves, its 2,200 or so acres embrace a cluster of ravines and waterfalls. With elevations that range from 800 to 1,900 feet, this is rugged terrain but well worth exploring. Exhilarating panoramas of the hills and hollows will prepare sightseers for the grandeur that awaits at Cloudland Canyon itself, a deep cleft slashed into shale and sandstone by Sitton Gulch Creek. For a front-row seat, stop at the park’s main picnic area. Map.

Lookout Mountain Hang Gliding Center
This is the world’s largest hang gliding resort and training center. Five times more certified mountain hang glider pilots are trained here than the next largest school in the U.S.  They cater to the flying needs of folks from one flight with an instructor at your side, to multi-day lessons to have you fully trained up to expert skills. Watching the daredevil hang gliders sail out into space is thrill enough for most. Map.

Point Park
The parkway heads northward along Route 189, which returns you to Route 157 a few miles south of the Tennessee border. Once across the state line, the drive follows Route 210 to the scenic loop that passes Point Park - a fitting climax to this journey along the length of Lookout Mountain. The ridge reaches its highest point here, cresting at 2,126 feet, and boasts a view to match, with vistas of the Tennessee River gliding slowly past the city of Chattanooga. For a glimpse of the mountain’s interior, visit Ruby Falls, a watery plume that splashes down through a cave located more than 1,000 feet underground. The hidden realm - an elevator will whisk you there - also claims among its charms several subterranean chambers that are bejeweled with onyx as well as with dripstone; when illuminated, the cave’s walls shimmer with rainbow-like colors. Map.

More Links:

Read more about the Cumberland Plateau in Georgia.