Athens: Mayfield Dairy

Dairy Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday (the last tour begins at 4 p.m.)

9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday (the last tour begins at 1 p.m.); closed Sundays.

Distance/fuel cost: Mayfield Dairy is in Athens, Tenn., near Interstate 75. From Chattanooga travel I-75 north, take exit 52 toward Athens. Drive 4.3 miles and turn left on Mayfield Lane. The visitor center is on the right. The 57-mile drive takes about one hour, with an estimated round-trip fuel cost of $23.

Why it’s worth the trip: Visitors tour a dairy in operation since the 1950s, said Donna Ballew, assistant coordinator at the visitor center. Mayfield was the first dairy in the United States to use opaque yellow jugs to preserve freshness. Company president C. Scott Mayfield is the fourth-generation of Mayfield management. The family founded the company in 1910 and today it is the largest dairy in the southeastern United States. Tours start every half hour and take about 45 minutes. The tour ends in a gift shop that sells T-shirts, novelty items, ice cream and milk. There is no ice cream production on Saturdays and no milk production on Wednesdays. The plant produces and ships about 789,000 gallons of milk and juice and 250,000 gallons of ice cream each week.

Admission: Free. Visitors must wear a hair net, which is provided by the dairy.

Things to do: Picnic in the courtyard or along the creek that runs through the dairy property. Athens Regional Park is nearby with a duck pond, walking trails and playground equipment. The visitors center also has brochures for other nearby attractions.

Cost-saving tip: Carpool if possible, take a picnic lunch to enjoy on the grounds.

For more information: Visit www.mayfielddairy.com or call 1-800-MAYFIELD.