Pierce's RV Park and North Carolina to Virginia

Virginia Beach, VA.

48 deg. clear, NW wind @ 4 mph.
Forecast = Sunny. High 69F. Winds NNW at 10 to 20 mph.

I finally quit raining Sunday afternoon, so Jim went out and took a few photos of the Pierce's RV Park in Williamston. As you can see, the park is very well maintained, but if you're looking for any kind of activities, or even a bath house, you'd be out of luck at this park.

But, for just $22.00 a night for a pull-through site with full hook-ups, it's not too bad of a deal. :-)

Yesterday morning, we left Pierce's a little before 10:00 and headed back to US 17. There was a gas station right at 17 that had a lot of room, so Jim pulled Big RED in and bought him a drink of that Good old #2 diesel fuel.

Then, it was NNE on 17 all the way up here to the Virginia Beach area, where we turned off on I-64. Then we took it around to I-264 and then we followed 264 East into Virginia Beach. Once in VB, we took local roads here to Joe and Nancy's house, where Jim backed Nora into the driveway.

It was 12:30 when we arrived, so it took us about 2 hours and 35 minutes to buy Big RED his drink and travel the 121 miles over here.

We'll be here for about 10 days before heading to Apex, NC to see Mike and his family.

Did you know that Virginia Beach  is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as having the longest pleasure beach in the world?

Woof!!!

Excitement At The Apache CG and Leaving Early On Saturday

Williamston, NC.

49 deg. overcast, no wind.
Forecast = Cloudy with occasional rain...mainly in the morning. High 56F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.

Friday was another beautiful day at Myrtle Beach, (All of the days we spent there were very nice, but cool,)  Being that it was our last day there, it was decided that we'd just hang out and enjoy the ocean view and sounds.

Well, all of that went according to plan until mid afternoon when all of a sudden there was a loud "woomp" sound outside and then a "crack" and "bang"!!!!!

Jim looked outside just in time to see the big fancy 5th wheel across the street from us being hit by the rear end of a large travel trailer, that was trying to make a swing to get into position to back into a site.

It's the  "Elite Sweets" 5th wheel in the photo above which is one site down and across the street from Nora.

Well, in a few minutes many people were over there and it soon became apparent that more than likely the 5th wheel had sustained some major damage. Besides the front cap of the trailer being broken and pushed in, the hitch being hit with the lip bent up, the whole trailer was knocked off of the approximately 6 inch high blocks that were under it's front hydraulic jacks/stands.

This trailer has a 6 point leveling/stabilizing system, so that when the front jacks were knocked off of the blocks, all the weight of the front of the trailer was  transferred to the jacks under the middle of the trailer. Because the trailer was pushed sideways, these jacks were bent off to the side and hopefully just the jack brackets were bent and not the main trailer frame that they attach to.

There was also a crack in the fiberglass on the far side of the trailer where the overhang of the front of the trailer attaches to the main part.

The people who own the trailer were out on the beach at the time, so no one was inside and no one got hurt. I guess that was the most important thing, but I strongly expect that the 5th wheel trailer has some major damage, possibly to it's frame, which just might total it out!!! :-(

Some men came later in the day and got the trailer re-leveled and stabilized. I don't know if the people who own the trailer stayed in it Friday night or not.  Insurance companies were called and now it's up to what they find. I really feel bad for the owners of this beautiful trailer. :-(

The other trailer was damaged quite a bit too, but I couldn't see the extent because soon after the accident, they moved it farther down the street and into it's site to get it out of the roadway so others could pass.

The original plan was to leave Myrtle Beach around 10:00 or so on Saturday morning and head up to North Topsail Beach, North Carolina and spend a few days up there. Well, because of the weather forecast of rain most of this weekend, Jim got out that big eraser of his again and plans were changed. ;-)

Both he and Linda decided that instead of stopping at North Topsail, they'd just go ahead and skip that stop and drive all the way up here to Williamston instead. Now, this would mean a fairly long day for us, but Jim knew the road and decided that it wouldn't be too much over the 3 to 4 hours that we normally travel.

So, being that rain was forecasted to start mid to late morning, they got up early and started packing things up and by 7:45, we were pulling out of the Apache Family CG in a light drizzle.

Once back on US 17 we followed it up through North Myrtle Beach, into North Carolina and up here to Williston NC and to the Pierce Mobile Home and Travel Trailer Park. It was 236 miles from Myrtle Beach up to here and it too us about 4 hours and 45 minutes to make the trip. (including one "pit stop" along the way. :-)

This was a long travel day for us, but we did run out of the light rain about an hour North of Myrtle Beach. The rest of the trip was under overcast skies on a fairly good road and not a whole lot of traffic being that it was a Saturday morning.

OH, just one more thing. about 45 minutes after we were in our site and set up, the skies opened up and it rained for most of the rest of the afternoon and evening.

I'm sure glad we left as early as we did, or it would have been pretty miserable setting up in the rain.

We're staying here for 2 nights and that will put us at Joe and Nancy's house on Monday instead of Tuesday, but Linda called them and they said that they were happy that we'd be getting there earlier than planned.

I know that this post has gotten quite long, so I'll quit for now. It's only about a 100 miles from here to Virginia Beach and the weather is forecasted to be nice for tomorrow, so it should be an easy trip. ;-)

Did you know that Williamston was the focus of activity in the civil rights movement? Beginning in June 1963, civil rights activists protested at City Hall for 29 consecutive days.

Woof!!!

They're Making All Of Us Dogs Look Bad

Myrtle Beach, SC.

63 deg. clear, SW wind @ 6 mph.
Forecast = Sunny, High 76F. Winds WNW at 10 to 15 mph.


OK!!! I can't keep from writing about this any longer, they're making all of us dogs look bad!!!

We have a beautiful site here at the Apache Family Campground. Our site is right next to the ocean, the beach is great, you can hear the waves on the shore, and the view from our site is wonderful.

This is the view from the window over the dinette inside of Nora

View of the Beach

So,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  What's the problem, you ask????

Well, right across the road from us, in another ocean front site there are 2 small dogs that can't seem to stop barking!!!! If anything walks by on the street, or heaven forbid another dog, these 2 go crazy with their barking, disturbing everyone within hearing distance!!!

I really don't see what their problem is. They live in a nice big, fancy 5th wheel trailer, their owners have set up a large pen for them to be in which covers most of the available space on the awning side of the trailer,  I'm sure they have plenty to eat and drink and they're well groomed so their owners are taking very good care of them.

But, they bark and bark and bark at anything and everything that passes near them. After they've barked for awhile, the owners come out and tell them to be quiet, but then as soon as the owners go back inside, they start all over again, barking and barking and barking!!! Even when their owners are outside, sitting in their fancy lawn chairs with drinks in their hand, listening to loud music, the dogs bark a lot, but the owners don't seem to mind very much.

So far this has gone on all day and into the evening, until the owners finally take them inside for the night. Then, it starts all over again, when their owners let them back outside about 7:30 or 8:00 in the morning.

I just can't understand what their problem is!! They've got everything they need.    Right????

Did you know that the City of Myrtle Beach is in the center of the Grand Strand, a 60-mile crescent of beach on the South Carolina coast?

Woof!!!

Continuing North And Then East To The Coast

Myrtle Beach, SC.

56 deg. clear, W wind @ 4 mph.

Forecast = Abundant sunshine. High 78F. Winds WSW at 10 to 20 mph.


We left the Parkwood RV Park in Statesboro, Monday morning about 10:05 and continued Northeast on US 301. 301 took us up to the South Carolina state line and then to Allendale, where we turned SE on US 278. We followed 278 for about 15 miles to Hampton, SC where we turned East on Rt. 63. 63 brought us to Walterboro, SC and the New Green Acres RV Park. It was only about 101 miles over there so it only took us 2 hours and 15 minutes, arriving at about 12:20.

A nice short travel day. ;-)

Linda likes the big tall pine trees in this park, so we stop by here whenever we travel through the area.

The sites are very long and most of them are quite wide, so you have lots of room.

There's nothing fancy about this park, but the sites are quite level and easy to get into. The folks in the office have always been pleasant anytime we've been here and especially if you're traveling on I-95, it's very convenient as it's right off of the expressway.

We only stayed Monday night at the New Green Acres RV park so Yesterday morning, we left there about 9:45 and continued into Walterboro on Rt. 63. Jim and Linda knew of a gas station in town, so we pulled in there and bought Big RED a drink of that good old #2 diesel fuel.

In Walterboro, we picked up ALT US 17 and took that East out of town. Following ALT 17 brought us all the was over to Georgetown where ALT 17 joined up with US 17. 17 then brought us up here to Myrtle Beach and the Apache Family Campground.

Now, I have to say that ALT US 17 might not have been the best choice of roads. I'm guessing that about 1/4th of the the road was quite rough and as the road passed through Summerdale, there was a lot of traffic with many, many stop lights.

It was 1:20 when we pulled up to the office at the Apache Family CG, so it took us right at 3 hours and 20 minutes to travel the 152 miles over here.

Even though we didn't know for sure when we'd be able to leave Florida and head North for the summer, Jim took a chance and made a reservation for a waterfront site here at the Apache CG way back in March. It was good that he did, because all the other waterfront sites are taken.

If you remember, we stayed here last fall on our way down to Florida. We have a different site this time, (the one last fall was a pull-through and this one is a back-in), but we're still on one of the sites right next to the ocean. Jim hasn't taken any photos here yet, but I'm betting he'll do that today.

Did you know that  Myrtle Beach has been called the "Golf Capital of the World" because of the roughly 100 golf courses located there?

Woof!!!

Photos of Kelly's And Parkwood RV Parks

Statesboro, GA.

60 deg. some fog, no wind

Forecast = Partly cloudy with afternoon showers or thunderstorms. A few storms may be severe. High 82F. Winds SW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 40%.


Being that it was raining here in Statesboro yesterday and the race was delayed on TV, Jim went out between showers and took some photos of the park here in Statesboro. I also decided to go back and find a few photos of Kelly's Countryside Park, so you could see what it's like there.

The photo above is of the sign you see when driving down US 301 and one below is of the office at Kelly's. It's small, but it serves the purpose. :-)

This is of the road going into the park and as you can see, many of the sites are shaded, but they also have open sites along the South side, some of which are pull-through.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The sign along the road of the Parkland RV Park.

The view when you turn into the park at the above sign.

When you come to the stop sign where you stop to register, this is the view to the right.

The view of our site. 

As you can see, Jim didn't unhook Nora from Big RED as neither he or Linda could think of anywhere they wanted/needed to go during our stay here.

It rained quite hard here in Statesboro yesterday, with some pretty strong winds at time. Nothing severe though and I haven't heard of any damage right in this area. It looks like the weather will hold today for our travels further North and East. 

Hope all of you that are traveling have a great day today. 

Did you know that Historic Saint Marys Georgia is the second oldest city in the nation?

Woof!!!

Callahan FL to Statesboro GA

Statesboro, GA.

69 deg. light rain, S. wind @ 6 mph.
Forecast = Thunderstorms likely. A few storms may be severe. High around 80F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%.


Friday evening, a little after 6:00, Ashley called and said that she and Anna were on their way and they thought it would take them about 45 minutes to get to the Cedar River Seafood Restaurant in Callahan. So, about 20 minutes later, Jim and Linda hopped into Big RED and headed into town.

They knew that they had plenty time, so the headed to the BP station and bought Big RED a nice drink of that good old #2 diesel fuel. :-) From there, they headed to the restaurant where they got a booth and waited for Ashley and Anna to arrive.

In a little while, they arrived and everyone enjoyed a nice meal and really great conversation.

It was almost 8:00 by the time Big RED brought them back to the CG. The rest of the evening was spent watching TV and reading.

Yesterday morning, we left Kelly's Countryside RV Park about 10 minutes after 10:00 and turned North on US 301. In just a few miles, we crossed the state line into Georgia. We stayed on US 301 the whole way, passing through Folkston, Nahunta, Jesup, Glenville, and a few other small town before arriving here at the Parkwood RV Park & Cottages on the South edge of Statesboro, GA.

It was 12:50 when we pulled int the park, so it took us about 2 hours and 40 minutes to travel the 141 miles up here.

301 is a good road with very little traffic  and we made excellent time. This section is mostly 2 lane with probably 25% of it being 4 lane. We had some light rain on the way, but nothing serious. By the time we arrived in Statesboro, the sun was shining though, so Jim didn't get wet setting the trailer up when we got here. ;-)   We'll be staying here for 2 nights, and it's probably for the best since it's supposed to rain most of today.

This is a very well maintained park with fairly wide, long, pull-through sites. The last time we were here was way back in 2006, but it hasn't changed much. The people in the office are friendly and there's free cable and wi-fi, both which seem to work quite well. I wish Jim would have taken some photos yesterday so I could have posted them here, but if you're interested, there are some photos on the parks web site that are quite accurate.

I don't expect much to happen today, with the forecasted weather. This afternoon, Jim will probably watch the NASCAR race on TV. Hopefully by tomorrow, this weather will have passed and we'll have good conditions to continue on.

Did you know that Statesboro is best known as the home of Georgia Southern University, a Carnegie Doctoral-Research University?

Woof!!!

Finally Back On The Road and Deltona To Callahan

Callahan, FL.

63 deg. some fog, no wind.

Forecast = Patchy fog this morning; mostly cloudy with a shower or thunderstorm around from late morning on.


We'll, we're finally back on the road. Tuesday and Wednesday were spent bring things out to the trailer and getting the house ready to sit idle for the summer. By a little after noon on Wednesday, Jim returned from the house with the last few items and told Linda that the house was ready.

After he returned, he took a couple photos of our site, #25.

This is the view to the rear of Nora, which is also the view from inside of Nora.

Then,  ,  ,  ,  , Yesterday morning, Jim backed Big RED up to the front of Nora, and hooked her up to Big RED's hitch. After double and triple checking everything inside and outside, we pulled out of the Paradise Lakes Park and headed North.

It was right at 9:45 when we pulled out and headed to US-17. Once on 17 we followed it up to DeLand where we took 15A around the city and then continued on 17 all the way up to the South side of Jacksonville where we turned West on I-295. 295 took us to the North side of Jacksonville where we turned North on US 1. Following 1, brought us to Callahan where it joined up with US 301. 1/301 then brought us up here to Kelly's Countryside RV Park about 6.5 miles North of Callahan.

It was about 1:10 when we pulled up in front of the little office, so it took us about 3 hours and 25 minutes to travel the 153 miles up here, a nice leisurely drive, almost completely on 2 lane roads.

We've been stopping by "Kelly's" for many, many years. One year, we even stayed a Month at this park. Patty is the manager and always recognizes and welcomes us when we arrive. I really think that we would have stayed here more, during the winters when we were full-timing, but it gets pretty cold up here at times.

We'll be staying here for 2 nights. Linda called Ashley and Anna, who live in Jacksonville and plans have been made to get together with them this evening for dinner.

Did you know that on this date in 1964 - The Ford Motor Company unveiled its new Mustang model?

Woof!!!

More Good News!!! and Plans For The Summer

Deltona, FL.

70 deg. rain, N. wind @ 5 mph.
Forecast tonight = Thunderstorms, some heavy this evening, then skies turning partly cloudy after midnight. Low 68F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%.


Linda was up earlier than planned this morning, probably because she was dreading the doctor's visit at the retinologist. But, again, worrying works, after all the pre-test and pictures of her retinas, the doctor told her that no treatment was needed as of this time, and she should check with her doctor up in Illinois when we arrived up there!!  :-)

So,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  we're "good to go"!!!!! 

Ye-Haw!!!!!!  No injections!!!!!!

Sunday, Jim and Linda brought me and a bunch of stuff over here to the trailer. I stayed here to guard the trailer and the stuff and today, after returning from the doctors office, they again loaded stuff into Big RED and brought it over here to the trailer. In fact, now, they've brought so many of their things over here, that from now on, until we leave for our trip up North, they'll be staying here at Paradise Lakes RV Park.

They still need to go back to the house to clean it and there's a few more things that need to be brought out here, but unless I'm missing something, I'm thinking that we'll be leaving here before the 17th when the lot rent comes due. :-)

In case you're curious, I'll let you in on what Jim and Linda have planned when we leave here.

The first stop will be in Callahan, Fl., which is up by Jacksonville. The plan is to try to meet up with Ashley and Anna, (granddaughters, who live in Jacksonville), From there we'll head up into Georgia and South Carolina on 2 lane roads, and then over to Myrtle Beach, where Jim has made a reservations at the Apache Family Campground, where we will have an ocean-front site.

After staying there for 4 nights, we'll head up to Virginia Beach to see Joe, (their son), and his family. The plan is to stay there for 8 to 10 days, before heading to Apex, NC (close to Raleigh), to see Mike, (another son), and his family.

From there, we'll head to Forest City, NC to visit Jim and Linda's very good friends, Roland and Louise. We'll stay at their place, which is out in the country for 3 or 4 nights before heading up to the RV-Dream Family Reunion Rally in Marion, NC. This should be a really fun rally and Jim and Linda are looking forward to meeting up with old friends and making new friends.

The rally last for 8 days, but we'll probably get there a day early and possibly stay a day after the rally is over. Then, the plan is to head up to Ohio and visit an Amish area up there before turning West and heading for Illinois, with a stop in the Indianapolis area to see Linda's cousin, Mike and his wife Sandy.

In Illinois, we'll go to the Prairie Pines Campground, where we'll spend most of the summer.

Now, I again feel that it's necessary to remind you that all of these plans, (except the stay at Myrtle Beach and the Rally), are written in pencil, and Jim did bring along that big eraser of his. ;-) I really don't expect any major changes, but you never really know!

A Point to Ponder : If Fed Ex and UPS were to merge, would they call it Fed UP?

Woof!!!

Thank You, Moving "Stuff" To The Trailer and One More Appointment

DeBary, FL.

69 deg. partly cloudy, E. wind @ 5 mph.

Forecast = Partly cloudy early. Thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 86F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 90%.

First of all, Linda wants to thank all of you that commented, called or contacted her since I posted about the results of her PET Scan. It really does mean a lot to her to know that so many of you were thinking and/or praying for her.

Thank You!!!!

Friday, the follow-up exam at the surgeon's office at the Halifax Medical Center went off without a hitch. It takes around 45 minutes to get over there, so the drive took longer than the exam did, By noon, Big RED was backing into the carport. :-)

After grabbing a bite to eat, Linda and Jim started gathering things up to take over to the trailer. Then, yesterday morning, they took a lot of food, clothes and supplies over there and stashed them away. Then, on the way back here to the house, they stopped by Walgreen's and picked up their prescriptions that Linda had called in the day before.

There's still quite a bit of "stuff" to take over there and other "stuff" to pack into the back of Big RED and there are plans to take more of it this morning. From what I can gather from Jim and Linda's conversations, it sounds like they're planning on moving out to the RV Park and staying in Nora, for a night or two before we actually leave the area. During those couple days, they can determine if they've forgotten to take anything and will be coming back here to get the house ready for the time we're away.

Monday morning (tomorrow), Linda has that appointment with her retinologist. She's hoping that she doesn't need another injection, but if she does, there'll be time for her to recover before we leave. (Most of the time, she gets a pretty severe aching sensation in her eye after the injection that lasts for a day or two).

So, hopefully by Wednesday or Thursday we'll be able to leave. My paws are really starting to itch, so it's time we get going!!! .-)

Did you know that on this date in 1877 - A catcher's mask was used in a baseball game for the first time by James Alexander Tyng?

Woof!!!

P.E.T Scan Results

DeBary, FL.

75 deg. clear, SW wind @ 8 mph.
Forecast= Tonight, Mostly clear. Low 66F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph.
                 Tomorrow, Partly cloudy skies. A stray afternoon thunderstorm is possible. High 92F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph.


Last Saturday and Sunday, Linda was questioning if she wanted to have the PET scan done on Monday or not. She's wasn't sure that she wanted to know what was happening inside of her and thought, at times, that it may be better, just not knowing!

But, Monday morning, about 7:20, she and Jim took Big RED and headed over to the hospital to have the scan preformed.

Her appointment was at 7:45, but it was close to 8:30 by the time the lady came and took her to the PET Scan area. The lady told Jim that the whole procedure would take about 2 1/2 hours so Jim went to Wally World to buy a few items and then headed back here to the house for about an hour.

When he got back to the hospital, Linda was just coming back to the waiting room, so after talking about how the test went and discussing about what they wanted to do, they headed over to Gram's Kitchen to have breakfast. Linda was pretty hungry since she hadn't been allowed to eat anything since the day before, so she really enjoyed her meal. :-)

Then, it was time to start waiting and waiting and waiting.

The last few days have been pretty hard for both Linda and Jim. (Especially for Linda). It hasn't been easy waiting for 2 1/2 days to learn the results of the scan. Emotions were high and I don't think Linda got a whole lot of sleep.  :-(

This morning, Linda was up fairly early. She and Jim watched the news for awhile and then, a little after 10:00 she and Jim again took Big RED and headed over to the radiation doctor's office at the Florida Hospital. Being that it's only a few miles over there, they arrived plenty early, but Linda said that it was worse just sitting around home that being over there and waiting.

Around 10:30, they were led to an examination room where they sat and waited. for what seemed like an eternity to Linda, before the doctor came in.

Finally, after some conversation with the doctor, he told Linda that the test had come back "NEGATIVE" !!!!!!! :-)    :-) !!!!!

YES!!!!!!  YES!!!!!!  YES!!!!!!

In an instant, a huge load was lifted off of Linda, (and Jim)! Later, Linda said that she felt like crying, but didn't, because the doctor was there.

On the way back home, they stopped at the 4 B's Restaurant and had breakfast for lunch. ;-)

So,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  Tomorrow morning, Jim and Linda will head over to Daytona to see the surgeon who preformed Linda's surgery. He'll do an exam just to make sure everything's OK, but there is no reason to think that there are any problems.

Plans are already being made to start hauling food and clothes and other things over to the trailer this weekend. Then, Monday morning, Linda has an appointment with her retinologist, which will be the last Dr. appointment before we leave for our summer travels.

There will still be things that need to be done at the house to make it ready for the time we'll be gone, but most of those shouldn't take real long.

Hopefully, we'll be leaving DeBary on the 15th or 16th.

I know I shared this "Do You Know" with you before, but I think it's really appropriate today, so I'm going to use it again.

Did you know that worrying works?   90% of the things you worry about, never happen.

Woof!!!!

This Waiting Is Hard!!!

DeBary, FL.

62 deg. clear, NW wind @ 4 mph.
Forecast = Abundant sunshine. High near 90F. Winds W at 10 to 15 mph.

This past week has been hard on Linda. She's really worried about the PET scan that she'll be having on Monday. I can't say I blame her but I really don't think that there's anything to worry about. There's always that little voice in the back of your mind that keeps you in doubt though.

Both Jim and Linda have been going over to the RV Park to get the travel trailer, (Nora), ready to travel. There's quite a bit of supplies and even some food over there, but they're having to figure out what more needs to be taken over there for our summer travels. There's also a lot of cleaning that needs to be done inside and as soon as possible after getting her out from under those trees, cleaning of the outside.

And, of course there's the normal pre-travel stuff to check like tires and the hitch.

Because Linda is having that PET scan early Monday, she's been severely restricted on what she can eat the day before. Well, the day before is Easter Sunday, so a big Easter dinner is pretty much out of the question. :-(  I don't know yet what they'll be having, but I'm sure they won't starve. ;-)

So, Monday is the scan and then there'll be 2 days of waiting before, on Thursday, Linda sees the radiation Doctor in the morning and the Chemo doctor in the afternoon to find out the results. Then, on Friday, she has an appointment with the surgeon who is at Halifax Hospital over in Daytona Beach for an exam.

This waiting is really hard and Linda's not looking forward to all these doctor appointments either!!!!!

But, once the appointments are over, we'll be able to get on with travel plans and if all goes well, we'll be back out on the road by the 15th, 16th or 17th of the month.

I can't wait!!!! We've been here way too long already!!!

Hope all of you have a great Easter!!!!

Woof!!!