If one man's trash is another man's treasure, expect to see a lot of treasure hunters out this weekend in search of bargains at the annual Antique Alley & Yard Sale, which begins today, May 18, and continues through Sunday, May 21.
Antique Alley follows U.S. Highway 11 for 502 miles from Meridian, Miss., to Bristol, Va. It's a festive roadside sale where drivers can just pull over to buy some junk for their trunks.
When created by tourism and Chamber of Commerce directors, it was hoped the event might bring 10,000 visitors into the areas along the U.S. 11 corridor. Instead, more than 30,000 travelers turned out. With such success, the sale expanded to four days in 2002.
In Chattanooga, the route goes through Lookout Valley, St. Elmo, Chattanooga and Ooltewah. In Bradley County, it passes through McDonald, Cleveland, Charleston and Fairview, before traveling through Niota, Athens and Riceville in McMinn County.
In Dade County, the towns of Wildwood, Trenton and Rising Fawn, Ga., are on the route. Valley Head and Fort Payne, Ala., are two of seven DeKalb County, Ala., towns through which Antique Alley passes.
Anyone planning to make a weekend trip out of their junkin' journey should go to the website us11antiquealley.com, where there is a breakdown of the route by city. Click the cities in which you are interested and a list of places to eat and sleep will pop up.
U.S. 11 Antique Alley Yard Sale