visitors

Let's cut to the chase: Chattanooga and Asheville, N.C., might have been recognized more as outdoor towns, but Knoxville is just as cool.

Just look at a map. Knoxville lies in the Tennessee Valley, a physiographic region sandwiched between the Cumberland Plateau to the west and the Appalachian Mountains to the east.

Super-sized, multicolored quilt blocks with names like “Jubilee Star” and “Cherokee Sunburst” decorate East Tennessee barns, country stores, even a winery and railroad depot.

The 200 designs painted on plywood by area artists or schoolchildren depict heritage quilt patterns. They make up the Appalachian Quilt Trail, a set of 14 rural driving routes over 17 counties and 300 Tennessee miles from the Virginia border to McMinn County.

Don’t look for the wildest roller-coaster ride in a new book about Tennessee tourist attractions.

“Free Tennessee” won’t have that. This book is more for thrifty people who enjoy vacation more when their money goes for gasoline, food and souvenirs rather than ticket prices. Those folks can turn “Free Tennessee” into a travel guide.

The book by Kentucky resident James Bilodeau lists Tennessee attractions from automobile factories to county historical museums to outdoor nature centers.