Farm Supply Store 
Trying Out Tractors 
TelliCafe Reuben Sandwich 
TelliCafe Fried Chicken Dinner
About an hour north of Chattanooga, Tennessee is a little town called Sweetwater. It’s a small town with lots of farm land. The beautiful Cherokee National Forest with sweeping mountain views are the backdrop for the rolling hills of Sweetwater. My Papa pastored a church in this little town for a few years. When I first stayed with them in Sweetwater, the train blaring in the middle of the night was almost too much to bear! Papa loved to go for a drive in the country here, showing me the sawmills and beautiful places in the area.
Since we are still waiting to close on the property purchase, we decided to go for a drive today. Jamey wanted to go to this farm supply store someone had recommended. So early Saturday morning we headed 1 hour north to Sweetwater, Tennessee where the closest Rural King is located. It was amazing! They have everything you need for your farm, garden, orchard- even baby chicks, ducks, and rabbits! We looked at everything! Jamey and Noah had fun trying out the tractors. Of course I loved ALL the baby animals!
Thankfully Jamey and Noah know I’m spontaneous! As we headed out of the parking lot I remembered a little local spot we could go for lunch. The TelliCafe is located in Tellico, Tennessee. This little town is 30 minutes from Sweetwater. Here is the link if you want to check it out: https://www.tellicafe.com. We’ve enjoyed everything we’ve tried at this little country restaurant! We enjoyed a Rueben sandwich and fried chicken, served with French fries or sweet potato fries. Delicious!
While you’re in the area take a drive up the Cherohala Skyway! https://www.tellico-plains.com This is definitely one of my favorite day trips to take from Chattanooga. My dad would bring us here to camp and fish for trout when I was a child. The road winds it’s way into the Cherokee National Forest, along the pristine Tellico River. There are parking areas all along the road. Along the way you may see cascades meandering down the Rocky Mountain face. Watch for adventurous kayaks riding the rapids- we even watched some go over the falls at Baby Falls. It’s a sight to behold! I love stopping at the Bald River Falls and Baby Falls parking areas to explore the rivers edge. The water is so beautifully clear. There is nothing quite like the sound of a river rushing over rocks in a lovely forest on a sunny day! Try your hand at skipping rocks!
Tellico River 
Bald River Falls 
Beautiful River Rocks 
Baby Falls Parking/ Picnic Area 
Cherohala Skyway
There is a great little campground close to Tellico River called Indian Boundary Indian Boundary Recreation Area Map and a dry camping area which means no water or electricity available. There are out houses available at the dry camp areas.
Cherokee National Forest – Tellico River Area – Forest Servicewww.fs.usda.gov › recarea › cherokee › recarea
It was quite an adventure when my family camped here growing up! They didn’t have bear proof dumpsters and the bears would come raid the dumpsters for food. One time an inexperienced camper actually cooked dinner inside their camper, which is a dangerous thing to do. It wasn’t long before bears were trying to get into their camper! I’m not sure how my dad watched out for bears and snakes while we were fishing along the river, but we never encountered any close calls and we always had fish to eat! I’m so thankful my parents took us to this awesome place! Go make some memories ya’ll!
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We have a Rural King that opened in Morganton, NC, about an hour from us. Great store. Our local Tractor Supply will price match their prices on stuff, which is nice.