January 16, 2014  U.S. 17 South from Myrtle Beach N.C.  to Charleston, S.C.    Easy ride, straight and flat.  The scenery in many areas made me sad. The poverty was obvious. People live in Shanty’s. There were many, many roadside stands with people selling handmade sweet grass baskets.

*****We arrive at The Campground at James Island County Park in Charleston, site #91.  They provide a shuttle service to downtown and Folly Beach Fishing Pier ($10).  we didn’t need it, because we have Half Pint, but I thought it was a nice feature.

We are here to pick Richie up at the Airport and spend the weekend with him.  Richie is a marathon runner with a goal of running a marathon in every state.  This will be Richie’s 15th State completed. For almost three days we have fun with Richie.  The marathon is very involved from the packet pick up to the finish line celebration.  We all try Shrimp and Grits … I say “YUCK”.  Richie says “Different”. David says O.K.  until he hears I paid $7 for a small bowl, then he says “not so good”.

***** We took a boat ride to  Fort Sumter and toured the Fort ($18) and walked around  the museum (free).

***** We took a Palmetto Carriage Tour ($22)of Historic Downtown. Charleston, is known as the Holy City for it’s abundance of Churches. It has survived hurricane’s fires, earthquakes and two fires. Lots and lots of history here.

***** Richie treated us to dinner at Tommy Condon’s Irish Pub in downtown Charleston.  We shared an appetizer of Fried Green Tomatoes. I’m hooked … on Fried Green Tomatoes and Charleston.

Richie finished the 26.2 miles in an impressive 3 hours and 27 minutes.  I love watching him run.  We were able to catch him at several spots along the route.  He always gives this awesome smile  when he spots us.  This was the first time, in I don’t  know when, that I had Richie all to my self (away from his wife and children).  This was a special time.

The only thing that wasn’t perfect about the weekend was the weather. It was cold and windy.  I had expected it to be warmer this far south, but it is January.

After we take Richie to the airport we are on the road again. Destination Jekyll Island, Georgia

January 13, 2014

We leave Connecticut at 7:00 a.m., Travel 9 hours and 430 miles (8 hours driving, 1 hour pit stops).  It’s too cold to stay in the RV so we Stay at the Sleep Inn in Winchester, VA.  Tired and hungry we had dinner at the Golden Corral next door.  This is our first venture in the RV towing a car, so our options are limited, unless we want to unhook and hook her back up.   When I refer to “her”  it’s Half Pint our 1964 Volvo PV544.   The Golden Corral was actually clean and the food was good.  They had a white chocolate fountain and lots of fresh fruit for dipping.  To me, not a chocolate, chocolate lover was the creme de la creme. I could have passed up the rest of the meal and ulled my chair up to the fountain.

January 14, 2014

On the road again at 7:45 a.m.  and stop at The Lakewood Camping Resort ($31) in Myrtle Beach S.C.  We’ve stayed at Lakewood before, site 5202, close to the indoor pool and hot tub, water view (if no one is in site 5201). Staying in Site 5202 is much less expensive and this time of year the chance of anyone taking site 5201 is next to nil.  The hot tub temperature is 104 degrees, great place to be on a rainy day.  It’s beautiful here. but very commercial.  Having Half Pint with us gives us a lot more freedom to venture out and explore.

*****Huntington Beach State Park in the next town over Murrells Inlet, S.C. is awesome.  We pick our site for next time we head south (site # 31).  We hiked the Sandpiper Pond Nature Trail,  2 miles out, then we walked the beach back.  We visited the Nature Center and walked the boardwalk. There is a beautiful off road bike trail that we put on our list of to do’s next time.

January 16, 2014 On the road again 8:45 a.m. Fill up the gas tank for $2.99 a gallon less than 1/4 mile from The Lakewood.   Next Stop, The Campground at James Island, Charleston, S.C.

Sept 16, 2011 After a little housekeeping we head into “town”. Jackson Hole is an old western town, aka tourist “wanna, wanna, spend some $$$”.  We had lunch at the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar.  It is the coolest bar I’ve ever been to.  The seats at the bar are saddles.  We check out a few shops and I found a very cool country western shirt for Megan.

Headed back on the road again we stop for the night at Phillips RV Park along the Bear River in Evanston, Wyoming ($29).

Sept 17, 2011  We had planned on biking the Bear River Greenway, less than 1/4 mile from the campground, in the morning, but it was raining.  On to Park City, Utah

Sept 14-15,  2011  We were able to make it down into Grand Teton National Forest and get settled into the Signal Mountain Campground ($10.25 senior), dry camping, before dark.  We have a view of Jackson Lake to the right and the Grand Tetons to the left.  You’re not going to have this view from a hotel room.  David has seen the Tetons many times before, but this was a first for him. Coming in from the Northeast the Tetons were very majestic, but not as breathtaking as I had expected, but look where I had just come from.  I had just seen the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone from the Top and hiked all the way to the bottom, talk about views.

I have to mention that David is doing a great time driving. He has had to do some pretty tricky manuevering and very stressful handling.  He’s finessed Old Bessie very well.  Coming over some of the mountains I found the need to pack a “bail out bag” and keep it near my feet.  If I felt in dire danger, I was jumping ship!

Sept 15, 2011 We wake up at dawn to go wildlife viewing.  We spot a male elk and his harem.  He is bugeling!  This is something you only see on the nature channel.  A site and sound I’ll never forget.  It is amazing.  This is at Willow Flats Overlook.   We do a driving tour of the Grand Teton National Forest.  We saw a herd of Bison and another of antelope.  We pass through the town of Jackson Hole and head u to Teton Village.  We ride the aerial tram to the “Top of the World” of residence mountain, elevation 10,464. We are “almost” looking Grand Teton eye to eye.  The view is beyond believable.  Back down to “earth” we bike the Centennial Bike Path from Teton Village to Rt 22 and back 6.4 miles.  I can’t believe what a fabulous fairly level paved path, in the Tetons.  It was yet another superb day.

We send the night at the Fireside Resort at Jackson Hole Campground, Wilson, Wyoming.

October 11, 2011

The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Trail (National Historic Park) goes 153 miles from Washington D.C to Cumberland, Maryland.  A few years back I biked approx 100 miles of the trail from Antietam, Md to Cumberland, MD.  This is a fabulous trail. Even though David and I are trip tired and ready to go home, this is an opportunity neither one of us want to miss. We only biked about 15 miles of the trail.  We saw a white tail deer crossing the path and met a man that was backpacking the entire trail.  He told us about a 60 mile rail trail in Pennsylvania that goes from Jersey Shore to Williamsboro,  add it to the list.  It was a very, very nice wind down to the trip.

Next destination HOME!!!   This has been a fantastic, unforgettable adventure.  It was filled with amazing places, the most beautiful scenery, charismatic animals (no bear) and nice people.     But…. There’s No Place Like Home!

Oct 9, 2011  Headed East we’re formulating a plan and we’re all over the place. Home sounds good, but there is so much to see.  We really want to go to  the Great Smoky Mountains National Park  so we call for reservations.  None available but, there are some first come, first serve available.  We head that way and end up in a traffic jam.  Not thinking, it’s Foliage Time in the Smokies.  The traffic was so bad you’d think you were in New York City.

Our travel intuition, otherwise known as tiredness, says skip it and wait until June 2012.  We already have plans and reservations to do a drag racing mini circuit Bristol, TN – Chicago, IL – Norwalk, OH.  We haven’t finished this rip and we’re ready for the next.

This adventure is not over yet, We need a place to stop for the night and rest our travel weary bones.  We end up in what appears to be a campground that is closed for the season, in Dandridge, TN. I call it the God Bless America campground.  On the side of a building is painted a HUGE American Flag, above it is painted God Bless America.  When David called for reservations, The owner told him to call when we got to the gate. When we got to the gate the owner gave us the code to the  lock and told us to put the fee in the lock box.  We share this Smoky Mountain Gem with one other couple, Lamar and Glenda from Alabama, nice, nice people.  Of course we talk for awhile and now have added Alabama to our list of places to visit.  It’s never ending.

Oct 10, 2011  The name of the game now is mileage.  No more stops planned.  After 40 days on the road, we’re going home. We stop for the night at The Falling Waters Campground in West Virginia, just outside Maryland ($33).  It’s 5 miles from a trail head of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Trail.  A few years back I biked the trail from Antietam to Cumberland, Maryland.  I’m not going to let this opportunity without sharing a least a part of the experience with David.

Next stop Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Trail.

Oct 8 – 9, 2011  On to Arkansas … Drove through Fort Smith and put it on our list of places to stop “next time”.  It looks like a cool western town.  We are on a mission to get to the Hot Springs National Park.  It is what we expected and not what we expected.  The best way I can describe it is odd, but enjoyable.  It’s a National Park that zig zags through a town.  Only one “Hot Spring” to touch.  Lots of bath houses and spas to “rejuvenate” and relax your wallets.  We thoroughly enjoyed the hiking trails. One led up a mountain to a great lookout.  For $$ you can ride an elevator to the top or you could walk the stairs for free.  We took the elevator.  There was a very small but  informative museum.  One of the hiking trails took us through the back door of a hotel, down a hallway to a staircase leading to the lobby and out the front door.  That was very odd, but interesting.

Of all the things I’ve learned about traveling on this trip, I think the most helpful is,  learn a little about the place your going before you go.  All National Parks have a museum or visitors center with information.  Go there first.  Another helpful thing is talking to people that have already been there.  Some of the tips, suggestions and recommendations we’ve gotten have been invaluable.

Honorable mention goes to the owner of the Lakeside Campground in Salislaw, Arkansas where we stayed. She was just the friendliest lady.

If you’re a history buff,  Hot Springs, Arkansas is full of it.  Visiting was fun, different, eclectic!   Next Stop Rocky Mountain National Park in Tennessee.

Oct 5, 2011  Driving along the road leading into the Petrified Forest I don’t see any trees, only desert.  Hmmmm!  Good thing we stop at the Museum first and watch the 20 minute movie.  Wow!  I’m loving  all this! A forest of fossil trees! It’s America’s very real Triassic Park.  I’m going to tell the Grands to pay attention in school.  I know I must have learned a lot of this when I went to school, but I must not have paid attention.  The brochure said allow 2 hours for both the Forest and Desert.  We were there all day.  It’s a “wonder” how nature brings out the natural color and beauty of everything here.  It’s Mother Natures grand magic show.   There was one hike that we didn’t do. It was listed as 1 1/2 to 2 hours.  The views and history of the area are amazing.  You can’t just drive through, you have to get out and walk.  National Parks and Historic Places let you get right up and close to so much.

We still have to find a place to stay for the night.  Our plan is to be in Albuquerque, New Mexico early tomorrow for The Hot Hair Balloon Fiesta.

Oct 5 – 8, 2011  At 7:30 p.m. we finally stop in Grants,  New Mexico at The Lavaland RV Park ($19), about an hour outside of Albuquerque.  We have to be up at 4:30 a.m. to make the 5:30 a.m. start.  The Festivities are all day, but the balloons need cool air. Balloon times are 5:30 – 8:30 a.m. and 5:30 – 8:30 p.m.   We need to catch the morning activities because we are now heading east and there is some funky weather coming in behind us.  Albuquerque is still high in elevation, 7,000 +.  When we left the North Rim they were preparing to close the campground in anticipation of the first snow fall.  Yellowstone campgrounds were  already closed.

Oct 6, 2011  The early bird catches the worm.  It’s cool, but unfortunately it’s too windy for the balloons to go up. They have to stay tethered.  It was Specialty Balloon Day. There were over 100 balloons. Some balloons were from far away countries, like Brazil and France. David  had never been to a balloon festival. I had been to Balloons over Bristol.  No comparison.  This was over the top!  There was a Darth Vader balloon and the crew were all dressed as Star Wars characters.  Noah’s Ark was pretty cool. There were just all fun. The atmosphere  was VERY festive and upbeat.  Who knew people could look good and have fun that early in the morning!

We had to leave at 8:30 a.m.  The wind was picking up.  The plan was for me to drive some on  I 40  through NM, TX, OK .  Straight, Straight, Straight … it was time to head home and we thought we were pressing our luck with the weather.  We were in a wind storm beyond belief.  I told David to call me Dorothy.  Needless to say, poor David was stuck driving until he was exhausted.   We finally stopped in Texas at a 5 star campground with an indoor heated pool and hot tub.  The Amarillo Ranch RV Park in guess which town?  We rock and rolled in the camper all night . It felt like I was a baby being rocked in a cradle.  Unfortunately, it was not comforting.

Oct 7, 2011 More wind.  We’re on the road early, and see the sunrise  as we cross into Oklahoma.  It’s funny how the Texas pan handle is so barren, but when you cross over to Oklahoma you get color and some trees.  Still you can see for miles.  Today we’re headed for Camping World.  We have a broken toilet seat, shower hose, leaky skylight and we’ve lost our poop hose cover, again.  Mr Fix it’s list never ends even on the road. Maybe Old Bessie is telling us she’s ready to go home.  We didn’t do anything in Oklahoma except drive and stop at an unmemorable campground.  Next Stop Hot Springs, Arkansas.  We will take a break here.

Oct 5, 2011  In route from the North Rim to the Petrified forest on Hwy 89A we are treated AGAIN to a view filled “by way”.  On the side of the road we spot huge balancing stones and an ancient stone house.  Of course we have to stop.  This is not a tourist trap.  There isn’t anyone collecting fees. You just walk through the house and around the balancing stone, take as many photos as you want.  There is a family of Navajo Indians selling a few handmade trinkets.  They have a van and a table. They are wonderful  to talk to and “barter” with. I “negotiate” the purchase of five beautiful handmade dream catchers for the grands.  I was very excited because I had almost purchased “made in Taiwan” dream catchers at a gift shop. These are beautifully crafted and “authentic”.   The price was all the cash I had in my pocket.  I wished I had more to give.  These were such nice people and from some of the poverty ridden areas that we had traveled through I appreciated their friendliness and their skills.

I  write about all the beautiful places and sites, but there are some that are not so nice and very sad.  In such a wealthy Country,  it’s hard to believe people and animals have to live in such hardship.

We stop for the night in Holbrook, Arizona just a few miles from the Petrified Forest and Painted Desert.  We pay too much for the OK RV Park (this is the real name of it) $27.53.  There is nothing here, but it’s close to the Hwy.   The up side is the take out Mexican restaurant across the street.  The building looks like a McDonalds that went out of business.  We’re tired and hungry, so David walked across the street and came back with DELICIOUS homemade Mexican dinners. The two meals were enough for 4.  We’re glad we stayed here. Next Stop Petrified Forest.