Chickamauga Battlefield bike tours teach of past to the public where the history happened

A heightened understanding of history, an appreciation for land preservation — and exercise — are some of the benefits resulting from the bicycle history tour program at Chickamauga Battlefield, officials said.

“It seems to be a winning formula on all fronts,” said Sam Weddle, spokesman for the National Park Service.

The last of this year’s six educational bike tours is scheduled for Oct. 18, and many said cycling provides the best opportunity to take in the historic and environmental resources at the nation’s first and largest military park.

“The thing I like about it is it causes you to slow down,” said Ruthie Thompson, of Outdoor Chattanooga, who has been on three of the five rides this year.

“If you’d done the battlefield by car, it is well worth it to get on a bicycle,” she said. “From the seat of a bike you don’t just see things — you hear them, you smell them, you feel them. Your senses are more finely tuned and you slow down and notice the details.”

Since the Tour de Georgia came through Northwest Georgia in 2006 and 2007, officials in the region said they have seen an increased interest in cycling, and in 2006 Chattanooga was recognized as one of the nations top 21 cycling cities by Bicycling Magazine.

The American Planning Association also praised the Chattanooga-area’s bicycle-friendly status, awarding the city in 2007 for its comprehensive biking plan. Lying just south of Chattanooga, the Chickamauga Battlefield has long been a popular cycling area, officials said.

cycling through history

The 5,200-acre Chickamauga Battlefield was established in 1890 by Civil War veterans of the battle who wanted to preserve the land where some 4,000 men died in the two-days the Battle of Chickamauga.

The 1863 battle saw some of the hardest fighting of the Civil War and the casualties of dead, wounded and mission from the Union and Confederate forces numbered 34,000, according to historians. The armies were vying for Chattanooga, a key rail center and gateway to the Confederacy, according to the battlefield’s Web site.

Park rangers leading the bike tours aim to bring to the cycling public some of the more obscure aspects of battlefield history.

“I try to go through and take some parts of the battlefield that normally people don’t travel through, like the Brock Field area,” Park Service Ranger Lee White said.

Confederate and Union soldiers clashed at Brock Field on the first day of the battle, Mr. White said.

The bike tours are a chance for the ranger to relate accounts of the ethnic regiments, such as German, Irish and other immigrant troops who fought, he said.

“We try to come up with something original, something that is different,” Mr. White said. “We tell some different stories so people learn new aspects that they haven’t thought of or heard before. We are here to provoke thought.”

The partnership between the Chickamauga Battlefield and Outdoor Chattanooga to conduct the rides has been more successful than expected, bringing out more than 50 cyclists for one tour. Officials said they plan to resume the bike tours next spring.

exercise and environment

The length of rides vary from four and eight miles and usually last about two hours, Mr. White said. Beginning cyclists are welcome and Ms. Thompson said the ride was “low-key,” but still good for exercise.

The area is mostly flat, although officials said getting up Snodgrass Hill can be a challenge, and walking the bike up the hill is always an option.

Outdoor Chattanooga officials noted biking for two hours burns hundreds of calories, builds muscle and is an effective form of aerobic exercise.

“Obviously the benefits come from so many different directions,” Ms. Thompson said. “It benefits your health and it benefits the environment because you are not spewing carbon monoxide into the air.”

Officials said both recreational biking and cycling to commute are increasingly popular in the Chattanooga and Northwest Georgia areas. While cutting pollution, riding can bring visitors closer to nature, said Kay Parish, with the park’s friends group.

“It is a great opportunity to enjoy the peaceful ambiance,” Ms. Parish said of the bike tours. “That space is there to encourage people to remember and reflect and think about what it means to be an American.”