Catoosa County

County #3

Catoosa County

August 7, 2011

The name Catoosa is derived from the Cherokee "Gatusi," meaning a prominent hill or point on a mountain, which is quite appropriate for its hilly landscape.

We visited the Chickamauga Battlefield, part of the oldest and largest military park in the United States, the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park. The park commemorates the Battle of Chickamauga, one of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War fought in 1863.  We walked up to the 85-foot Wilder Brigade Monument, which honors Col. John T. Wilder and his brigade of mounted infantry, who fought against the Confederates before withdrawing. We got to the base of the Monument and had planned to climb the stairs to the top but it was just too hot and humid that day.

Walker County

County #2

Walker County

August 7, 2011

Walker County, formed in 1833, was named after Major Freeman Walker of Augusta, a lawyer and U.S. Senator, and has a population of 61,053.

We visited historic downtown Chickamaugaand walked around the Crawfish Springs Amphitheater, which was once the site of the main water supply for the early settlements and has been converted into a park.

We also explored the outside of the Gordon-Lee Mansion, completed in 1847. The mansion is the only structure that survived the Civil War Battle of Chickamauga. We thought the amphitheater would be a nice place for a picnic with the bubbling spring in the pond nearby.

Dade County

County #1

Dade County

August 7, 2011

Dade County, located in the far northwest corner of Georgia, was established in 1837, and was only reachable via automobile by driving through Alabama or Tennesseeuntil 1948, when a highway was created over Lookout Mountain. For this reason, the county was known as "The Independent State of Dade."

While in Dade County, we visited beautiful Cloudland Canyon State Park, located on the western edge of LookoutMountain. The park spans a deep gorge in the mountain with elevations varying between 800 and 1,900 feet. We hiked out on the West Rim Trail and enjoyed an apple on a scenic rock overlook.  

It was hot but we really wanted to stay longer and enjoy the views and peacefulness. On our walk back to the car, we missed a turn and got a little lost before we retraced our steps and found our way out of the wilderness.

The Challenge

We are two sisters who have decided to visit every county in the great state of Georgia. We are naming our little adventure "The 159 County Challenge." There are 159 counties in Georgia, second only behind the big state of Texas. We are giving ourselves 5 years to complete the challenge because we plan to visit some point of interest in each county, rather than just driving through. We are going to take lots of pictures along the way so we hope you follow us during our journey!!