Myrtle Beach, SC to Walterboro, SC and Hurricane Matthew Storm Damage.

Walterboro, SC

68 deg. clear, no wind.

Forecast tomorrow - Abundant sunshine. Record high temperatures expected. High 86F. Winds light and variable.

As promised, here's a few more photos that Jim took at Apache Family CG in Myrtle Beach, SC

 Jim took this photo, standing in Nora's doorway.

View of beach from the top of the small dune

Looking back towards our site from dune.

Road between our site and dune.

The Apache CG is nice and the view is great if you can get a water-front site, but they do pack the RVs in here and you don't have much room on either side.

Because we had a 2:00 pm check in time at our next stop, we didn't leave the Apache CG until about 10:35 this morning. We returned to US 17, following it South down to Charleston where we took I-526 around the North side of the City, connecting with 17 again on the West side of the city. We then followed 17 to Jacksonboro, SC where we turned NE on SC 64, 64 took us up to Walterboro and to the New Green Acres RV Park. It was 2:20 when we pulled into the park, so it took us about 3 hours and 45 minutes to travel the 167 miles down here and stop to fill Big RED's fuel tank in Walterboro.

Not too bad when you consider the very heavy traffic in Myrtle Beach and Charleston.

Oh, and while I'm thinking about it, we haven't seen much damage from hurricane Matthew, all the way down the coast from Virginia Beach to the Apache CG which is on the Northern edge of Myrtle Beach. Today, however was another story. We saw many, many trees down along side of US 17 in the center part of Myrtle Beach, down to Murrells Inlet and a lot of trees down all the way to Charleston. We also saw some areas that were evidently flooded as the people had moved furniture and other belongings to the curb for pick-up. There were also a few homes that had tarps over their roofs, so I'm surmising that they have roof damage.

I feel so sorry for some of those people. They have lost everything.

We're only staying here at New Green Acres for one night. Tomorrow, we'll be heading further South.


Did you know that Halloween candy sales average about 2 billion dollars annually in the United States?

Woof!!!

NC To GA On A Nearly Perfect Travel Day

Statesboro, GA.

51 deg. clear, no wind.

Forecast = Sunshine and a few afternoon clouds. High 79F. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 mph.


By 9:00 AM, the fog had lifted yesterday, and the day turned out to be just about perfect for travel with temperatures in the low 70's, no wind and beautiful clear blue skies. It was right at 10:00 when we pulled out of the Columbia / Camden RV Park and it was just a short drive to US 601 where we turned South and followed it all the way down to Orangeburg, SC. where we picked up US 301.

On the East side of Orangeburg, we stopped at Henry's Travel Plaza where Jim filled Big RED's tank up with that good old #2 diesel fuel. Following 301 then brought us down into Georgia and to Statesboro. We took the by-pass around to the East and then turned South on 301 again for about a mile, where we turned into the Parkwood RV Park.

If you remember, we stayed at Parkwood on our way North this spring. It's a little on the expensive side, but it's a nice clean and well maintained park with level, fairly large, full hook-up sites and the folks in the office are always friendly and helpful.

It was 1:25 when we pulled into the park so, including the fuel stop, we traveled 164 miles in 3 hours and 25 minutes yesterday.

US 601 and US 301 were both very good roads. There were a few rough sections on both highways, but they were very short sections and didn't cause any problems at all. Most of both routes were 2 lane with a  few 4 lane sections. There was a lot of traffic in Orangeburg, but it moved along nicely and really didn't cause much of a delay.

Today, the plan is to head down into Florida  where we'll stop North of Jacksonville so Jim and Linda can meet Ashley, Anna, (Granddaughters, who live in Jacksonville), and possibly Ashley's friend Chris, for dinner.


Did you know that November is "National Georgia Pecan Month"?

Woof!!!

From KY, Through VA, A Little Of WV And Into Ohio

Piketon, OH.

60 deg., Fog, no wind.

Forecast = Sun and clouds mixed. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 83F. Winds light and variable.

We really enjoyed our stay that the Woodsmoke CG, but Tuesday morning, about 9:45, we left and continued heading North on US 23
.
Now, again, let me remind you that parts of US 23 has been upgraded to an Interstate highway (I-26), but for most of our trip, we’ll be on US 23, so that’s the road designation that I’ll use.

23 took us up through Johnson City, across I-81 and up into Virginia. The road in VA was not the Interstate type, but remained 4 lane all the way through the state. There were also some pretty steep grades with the steepest ones being 8% while most were in the 5 or 6% range.

Once through Virginia and into Kentucky, the road leveled out somewhat and from the VA state line up to Prestonburg. The road was, however very twisty with smaller hills all the way.

A little past Prestonburg, we turned off of 23 onto KY 3 and took it East to KY 3051 which brought us to the Jenny Wiley State Resort Park.   Jenny Wiley S.P. is a nice park. They have an area with full hook-ups, another area with pull-through sites with water and electric, back-ins with water and electric and even some primitive sites for tents and everything seems to be quite well maintained.
What this CG is missing is any AT&T cell service, any wireless Internet, or any over-the-air TV signals!!  Now, I don’t know about Verizon or any of the other providers, but there is absolutely NO AT&T!!!

So, if you’re wanting to call someone or get in the Internet, you’d better do it before turning off of US 23.

Here's a few photos of the "A" section that we were in.

It was just 1:00 when we pulled up to the registration building, so it took us about 3 hours and 15 minutes to travel the 166 mile up there.

Yesterday morning, (Wednesday), we left the Jenny Wiley SP about 10:10 and took Rts. 3051 and 3 back to US 23 where we again turned North. Following 23 brought us up to Louisa, where we pulled into a gas station and bought Big RED a nice drink of that good old #2 diesel fuel. Then, it was back on 23 and up to I-64 where we turned East into West Virginia for about 7 miles. Once to Exit 6, we turned North on US 52, and crossed the Ohio River and into Ohio. Then, it was just a matter of following 52 up to Portsmouth where we again turned North on US-23.

52 up along the Ohio River was a very good road and the traffic moved quickly along the mostly 4 lane divided road. The only slow spot was just before we got to 23 in Portsmouth where there were many stop lights and lots of traffic.

Once back on 23 it was a short drive up to Piketon, OH and the Rockwater Campground.

Now, if you look at their web site, it appears that they have quite a few spaces to rent. NOT SO!!!! They have completely filled the CG with permanent RVs and when we first found someone to talk to, they said that the CG was completely full and they had no sites for overnighters!! :-(

But, after talking to the man for a little, he said that one of the permanent RVs had just left the day before, and he could rent the site to us, being that we only wanted to stay for 2 nights. He said that he'd have to clean the lot off though because there were some wooden steps sitting on it and the site  needed to be leveled out a little, both of which he could do with his Bob-Cat.

He hauled the steps away and in a short time he had the site leveled and looking nice, so Jim backed Nora and Big RED into site #37. :-)

It was again, right at 1:00 when we pulled up to the office, (About 1:45 by the time we were into the site), so it took us right at 2 hours and 50 minutes to travel the 136 miles up here and buy Big RED his drink.

If you're traveling up this way I don't recommend that you plan on stopping at the Rockwater Campground. It's now all permanent sites and it was just pure luck that one of the sites was open for us.

Did you know that Ohio is the leading producer of greenhouse and nursery plants?

Woof!!!

Happy Mother's Day and Virginia Beach, VA To Williamston, NC To Moncure, NC

Moncure, NC.

68 deg. Overcast, light rain at times, no wind.
Forecast = Showers and thunderstorms. High 79F. Winds ENE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 100%.

Happy Mother's Day to all you Moms out there, I sure wish I could call my mom and wish her a great day. :-(

I miss you, Mom!!!!

After lots of hugs, we left Virginia Beach Thursday morning at about 10:10 and retraced our route back to Pierce's RV Park in Williamston, It was 12:40 when we pulled into the park, but we did stop in town to buy Big RED a nice drink of that good old #2 diesel fuel before we arrived there. We traveled 121 miles.

The trip was un-eventful, the weather was good and we made fairly good time.

As soon as we pulled into our site and had the electric hooked up, the stabilizer jacks down and the slide out, Jim dumped the tanks that were very, very full. After putting away the sewer hose and connections, Jim came in, got cleaned up and took a nap. ;-)

For dinner, Jim cooked a couple burgers on the grill while Linda put together some salads. After eating the rest of the evening was spent watching TV.

Friday morning, the weather was still nice, (even though the weather guessers had been forecasting rain), so we got an early start on our travel day. It was only 9:15 when we pulled out of the CG in Williamston and started heading West on US 64. We crossed I-95 at Rocky Mount and then continued over to the Raleigh area where we took I-440 around the South side of the city and then turned SW in US 1. Following US 1 brought us down past Apex, (where Mike and Gina live) and to Moncure, NC where Goodwin's RV Campground is located.

It was just 11:35 when we pulled into the park so it took us about 2 hours and 20 minutes to travel the 136 miles over here. Not too bad considering the Raleigh traffic and construction on I-440.

Oh, and it never did rain on Friday as foretasted!!!!

We really like Goodwin's RV Campground. It's a small park and I'm not saying that you couldn't get a 40 foot MH or a large trailer in here, but It'd be pretty tight and you'd have to be a pretty good driver. Once you get into a site, they're quite large, but the trick would be getting to and into the site.

Marc Goodwin is a really friendly guy and usually helps everyone get into the sites, but when we arrived, Jim called him and he was busy elsewhere, so he asked Jim if he thought he could get into the site that we were in last time? Jim told him that he could, so he backed Nora into the site and after a little while Marc came by, welcomed us back to the park, talked with Jim for awhile and collected the rent for the 10 days that we'll be here.

Jim has already taken some photos of the park. Here's a couple of them. This first one is of the road coming into the park.

Our site viewed from out near the road

Looking across the road from the front of Big RED

Looking out from under the awning towards the front of the site.

As you can see by the photos, it's very hilly in this park. The first time you come into the park down the road shown in the 1st photo, (the photo only shows about 1/2 of the hill), you think, "What am I getting into here?", but there is some room to maneuver once you get a little farther in. Although it's very hilly, the sites are quite level and Jim only had to put one board under Nora's left side tires.

Oh, and you see those woods behind our site in the 2nd photo? We've already seen a fox back there and I know from the last time we were here, there's deer back there too!!!

Wildlife!!!!!  I like Wildlife!!!!! ;-)

Woof!!! Woof!!! Woof!!!!

Did you know that Anna Jarvis of Philadelphia who started Mother's Day celebrations also filed a lawsuit in an effort to stop the over- commercialisation of Mother's Day? She lost her fight.

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!!!

A Great Visit and Forest City, NC To Moncure, NC

Moncure, NC.

47 deg. Mostly cloudy, no wind.
Forecast = Sunny. High 74F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph.

We didn't leave Roland and Louise's house on Wednesday as planned because of the heavy rain storms that were moving through the area. Tuesday night, we had around 2 inches of rain and very gusty winds and if we would have left in the morning, we would have driven right back into them. :-(

So, we enjoyed another day of visiting and helping Roland and Louise get ready for their trip down to Florida for the winter. :-)

Oh, Jim took some photos of Roland and Louise's place. (You can click on the photos to enlarge them.)  Jim and other friends and family helped Roland build this house back in 2007 and just this year they've had a very nice addition added to the rear of the home, making it even more livable as a permanent residence for them some day.

Property viewed from out by the road.

The other side of the house. You can see "Big Herb" in his spot in the MH port.

The "boardwalk" leading to the rear of the house.

And finally, Roland and Louise in their newly enlarged home.

Jim and Linda have really enjoyed spending some time with Roland and Louise, and they're hoping that they can get together down in Florida a few times this winter.

Thanks for everything!!!!!

Yesterday morning after H and H, we left Roland and Louise's house near Forest City about 9:45 and took some secondary roads to US 64, where we turned NE and followed it up to I-40. Turning East on 40, brought us through  the Hickory, Statesville, Winston-Salem areas and to I-73, heading around the South side of Greensboro. 73 brought us to US 421 which took us SE to Sanford where we turned NE on US 1. US 1 then brought us up to Moncure and to the Dickens RV Park.

Over all, the roads were pretty decent. there were some rough areas, but they were fairly short. As expected, we had fairly heavy traffic around the larger cities, but it all moved along nicely, even through the few short construction areas we encountered.

When we pulled in, it was 1:50, so we had traveled 222 miles in 4 hours and 5 minutes. A fairly long travel day for us.

Jim and Linda have paid for 10 days here at the Dickens RV Park and Marty, (the CG manager) said that there wouldn't be a problem if we wanted to stay longer than that.

Did you know that the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill is the oldest State University in the United States?

Woof!!!

A Little Break and Big RED Goes To The Big City

Rantoul, IL.

deg.
Forecast =

Yeah, I know, I haven't posted for awhile, but there hasn't been much to post about. Besides that, my little paws get tired, trying to find the right keys to press, so I needed a little break! ;-)

We've had a lot of wind here lately, so Jim didn't go out much. Linda wasn't feeling real well Sunday and Monday, so she didn't feel like doing too much. Monday Jim took Big RED to the gas station and bought him a drink of that good old #2 diesel fuel and then headed down to the Farm & Fleet store on this side of Urbana.

Jim didn't have anything special that he wanted to buy, but it's a neat store and he just wanted to go. Well, he did end up buy a few things. One of the main things he found was a Coleman Deck Chair, that was in the seasonal close-out section at quite a reduced price! :-) He has one of these chairs and really likes it, but it's getting pretty old, so he's been looking for a new one.

Big RED said that Jim spent close to an hour, just wandering around in the store.

Later Monday evening, Jim cooked a ham steak out on the grill and Linda cooked some of the last of the sweetcorn-on-the-cob inside.

Yesterday, Big RED took Jim and Linda up to Naperville, IL to see Linda's sister, Nancy. Big RED said that it was a long drive up there, (about 135 miles), with lots of traffic the closer he got to the Chicago metro area,

 but Nancy and Linda and had a great time visiting and catching up on the past year's happenings. :-)

About noon, Nancy took Linda and Jim out to lunch at a family restaurant and then they returned to Nancy's apartment and talked some more. About 3:00, Big RED started the trip back down here and was surprised at how much more traffic there was on the way back. (Probably people getting off work by that time.)  They also had 2 construction areas, so that added to the traffic problem.

But, by 6:00 Big RED was pulling into his parking spot here at Prairie Pines where he rested after his trip to the big city.

Linda said that it was really good to see Nancy again. A lot has happened in the last year, and it was good to finally catch up. ;-)

Jim and Linda still haven't done the laundry. They'll have to go pretty soon, or they won't have anything to wear!!!! :-O

Did you know that The population of the Chicago CSA (Combined Statistical Area) is over 9.9 million people?

Woof!!!

Alabama To Tennessee and Plans

Clarksville, TN. (Clarksville RV Park and Campground)

64 deg. clear, no wind.
Forecast = Partly cloudy. Highs around 91°F. Heat index around 101°F. Light wind.


Again, we got an early start and were leaving the Cullman Campground by 10 minutes after 9:00. It was just a couple miles to I-65, where we turned North and headed up to Nashville, TN. Traffic was fairly light until we were close to Nashville, and then, for a Sunday morning, I thought it was pretty heavy.

We zipped right through the city though and soon we were North of Nashville and looking for the I-24 turnoff. Just before we came to I-24 we ran into a construction area and traffic slowed down somewhat, but the traffic kept moving and soon we were on 24 heading NW towards Clarksville.

24 was good all the way and even though the traffic was quite heavy at times, we kept right on moving at our desired speed of about 62 to 64 MPH.

When we got off of the Interstate at Exit 1, Jim pulled Big RED into another Shell station and filled him up with #2 Diesel. From there it was only about a mile to the Clarksville RV Park and Campground.

It was 12:45 when we pulled up to the office so it took us about 3 hours and 35 minutes to travel 197 miles and stop for fuel.

The Clarksville RV Park and Campground is more expensive than the parks that we usually stay at, ($35 per night), but there really isn't much choice in this area. (We've stayed here before).  Oh, it's a nice park with a swimming pool and lots of other stuff, but I think $35 is really too much for a site with only water and electric.

Site #7

We'll only be staying here one night.

Jim and Linda couldn't decide what to have for dinner, so they started looking through the CG brochure that they received at check-in. In it was an advertisement for Michael's Pizza and it said that they'd deliver to the site. So, Linda gave them a call, ordered a pizza and in about 20 minutes they had a quite good pizza sitting on the table. :-) After eating about 1/2 of it, they put the rest in the freezer and then kicked back and watched TV for the rest of the evening.  :-)

While they watched TV, they were talking and I overheard them discussing travel plans for the next few days. Linda said that she though that if they didn't travel too far tomorrow, she'd like to try to get to Rantoul on Tuesday. Jim said that that wouldn't be a problem as he was already thinking of staying at the CG in Southern Illinois that we stayed at on our way to FL. last August.

That would mean that we'd travel about 135 miles tomorrow and a little over 200 miles on Tuesday.

We can do that!!! :-)

Did you know that the name "Tennessee" originated from the old Yuchi Indian word, "Tana-see," meaning "The Meeting Place?"

Woof!!!

Troy AL To Cullman AL and Rough Road And Traffic In Birmingham

Cullman, AL.

69 deg. overcast, no wind.
Forecast = Mostly cloudy with scattered storms. Highs around 82°F. Heat index around 87°F. South southeast wind 5 to 10 MPH. Chance of rain, 70%.

Linda woke up earlier than usual yesterday morning, so we left the Deer Run RV park about an hour sooner than we normally would have. In fact it was just 8:50 when we pulled back onto US 231 and continued heading NW.

Just before we came to Montgomery, Jim pulled Big RED into a Marathon station and bought him a nice drink of  #2 diesel fuel. Big RED wasn't too thirsty, but being that the rest of the trip would be on Interstate Highways and the skies were starting to look threatening, he though it was a good opportunity to stop.

Come to find out, that was a good decision because once we had taken Taylor Rd. to I-85, taken 85 West for a few miles, turned North on I-65 and had traveled just north of Montgomery, it started to sprinkle or rain off and on for the rest of the trip.

I-65 had a lot of traffic which moved along nicely, but it sure wasn't a road that a driver could relax on. Then, when we got up to Birmingham, the traffic got really heavy and the road surface deteriorated badly. :-(  There was very little construction this time, (We had construction the whole way through the city when we came down here last August), but the road was very rough!! I know that those of you that have large motor homes might not think so, but I just about fell off of the seat a few times!! :-O

I don't know if there's another route we could take to by-pass Birmingham, but you can bet that Jim will be looking into it before we head down through this area again. Our experiences with traffic and roads through there throughout the years has not been good!!

Once North of Birmingham, I-65 smoothed out again and except for the heavy traffic and some fairly heavy rain at times the rest of the trip up here to Cullman went well.

It was right at 12:20 when we pulled up to the office of the Cullman Campground, so today it took us right at 3 1/2 hours to travel 193 miles and stop for fuel.  Not too shabby!!!!

This Campground doesn't get very good reviews on RV Park Reviews but we've been coming here for a long time and have always had a good experience. (Jim didn't take any photos because it was raining.)  Yes, it's not a destination park and the road coming from the main Hwy to the park leaves something to be desired, but if you take it slow, even though it's narrow and hilly, it's very do'able. We were at this park with both Myrddin and Emrys, (40' and 45' Motorhomes, both pulling a toad), and had no problems at all. The owner is supper friendly and escorts you to your site and we've never had a problem leveling. In fact, the site we're in right now, (#34), is almost perfectly level and no blocks or anything were  needed.

I'm not sure if we'll be leaving here today or not. Right now, it's still raining up in Nashville, so we may stay another night. Jim's watching the radar though, and if it clears up, we'll probably head out.

Did you know that today is "National Hot Dog Day"?

Woof!!!

A Nice Visit With Nancy And David (Fred) But A Long Day

Rantoul, IL.

61 deg. light fog, no wind.
Forecast = Partly cloudy. High of 88F. Winds from the SSW at 5 to 10 mph.

Jim and Linda took CLT (Cute Little Truck), and headed to Naperville, about 8:30 yesterday morning. If you read my last post, you already know that they were heading up there to see Linda's sister, Nancy and her son, David.

CLT said that the traffic wasn't too bad and they actually made pretty good time, but being that it was right at 120 miles up there it took them almost exactly 3 hours to get up there. That meant that it was about 10:30 when they arrived.

After visiting for awhile and eating a very nice lunch, they all headed over to Nancy's son's house to pick up some dishes and a few large pictures that Linda had left with Nancy way back in 2001 when we went full-timing. There were also some paperback books, but Aaron, (Nancy's other son), couldn't locate them up in the attic, so if they're still up there, they'll be picked up next year.

After loading up the dishes and pictures in the back of CLT, they headed back over to Nancy's for desert and to visit some more.

Nancy actually lives in an apartment now. (She used to live in the house where Aaron is living now). From the photos that Jim brought back, it seems really nice and both Jim and Linda said that Nancy seems happy with it.

Nancy's living room area.

Looking back from the living room into the kitchen. (Linda on left, Nancy on the right).

Linda said that she had a great time visiting with Nancy. It had been a whole year since she's seen her and they had a lot to catch up on. But, because of the long drive back here to Rantoul, they left Nancy's at about 3:45 and headed back down here.

CLT said that they had a lot more traffic returning than they did in the morning. (getting into rush-hour traffic), and it took them even longer to return. When they got down to Gibson City, (a town about 25 miles from Rantoul), they stopped and bought CLT a drink of 87 octane and then stopped at a restaurant to get a sandwich for them.

It was after 7:00 by the time they pulled up in front of Bobbie T, so it ended up being a pretty long day.

While they were gone, many, many RVs came into the park. Many of the sites already have 2 RVs on them, there's a whole bunch of RVs dry camping on the street behind of us and today, there'll be a lot more RVs coming into the park because the show starts tomorrow.

This morning, Linda has that doctor's appointment, so they'll be leaving here around 8:30 so that they can get over to Fisher, IL, by 9:00. After the appointment, they'll stop at a restaurant in Fisher to get some breakfast and then come back here and watch all the RVs come into the park.

There should be some great "campground entertainment" this afternoon. ;-)

A Point to Ponder : One should keep his words both soft and tender, because tomorrow he may have to eat them.

Woof!!!

Heading North ON 131

Williamsburg, MI.

56 deg. clear, no wind.
Forecast = Sunny. High of 88F. Winds less than 5 mph.

We left the CG in Dorr yesterday morning at 10:10, and headed back to US 131 where we again turned North. 131 took us up through Grand Rapids, where there was quite a bit of traffic considering that it was a Saturday morning. All went smoothly though and soon we were through the city and the traffic started to thin out some as we continued North.

US 131 is a pretty decent road. For the most part, it's really good, but there are some stretches where the road could use some work. But, considering what many of the US highways are like these days, this one's not too bad.

Once North of Grad Rapids, we started seeing more forest.

The farther North we went, the heavier the forest, especially after the highway dropped down to 2 lanes North of Cadillac.

There was still a fair amount of traffic up there, but they have passing lanes every so often, so there really wasn't a problem just taking our time and running the speed limit.

When we got up to Kalkaska, we turned West on Rt. 72 and followed over to Williamsburg and here to the Everflowing Waters Campground, which is just a little NW of the town.

It was 1:30 when we pulled up to the house where the office is, so we traveled 172 miles in 3 hours and 20 minutes. Not bad, considering that we did make a "pit stop" at a rest area, down South of Cadillac.

Everflowing Waters is a nice little park. the owner is very friendly and tries hard to please. They're having a horse show somewhere in the area right now, so the park is completely full, but from talking to a guy that's staying in a little cabin here, it's normally not that way.

This is a Passport America Park, but during the month of July, they don't give the discount. (which Jim knew before we got here).  That's OK though, it's still a nice park.

We'll be here for one more night before continuing our adventure up into the U.P of Michigan.

Did you know that Grand Rapids is home to the 24-foot Leonardo da Vinci horse, called Il Gavallo? It is the largest equestrian bronze sculpture in the Western Hemisphere.

Woof!!!

North Carolina To Tennessee and The TVA Melton Hill Dam Recreation Area

Lenoir City, TN.

59 deg. light fog, no wind.
Forecast = Today: Mostly cloudy with scattered showers. Highs around 75°F. South southwest wind 4 to 18 MPH, gusting to 28 MPH. Chance of precipitation near 70%.
Tonight: Mostly cloudy with thunderstorms likely. Lows around 63°F. Southwest wind 7 to 15 MPH, gusting to 23 MPH.

After a nice one night stay at the Miles Motors RV Park. we left Swannanoa at 9:45 and continued West on I-40. A little past Asheville, the road swung towards the NW, up into the Smokys and then into Tennessee where it turned West again.  Just after turning West, we pulled into a Pilot gas station and filled up Bobbie T's tank with 87 octane gas.

This time there were no credit card issues and except for having to wait for a pump to open up, everything went smoothly. ; )

Once back on I-40 and heading West, the question came up as weather to continue on I-40 right through Knoxville or to go around to the North on I-640. Well, Jim decided to right through the center of the city on 40, so when we came to the split, we stayed on 40.

40 through Knoxville, was OK, but boy, was it ever crowded!! For most of the way, we were running bumper to bumper at 55 to 60 mph!!! Way too fast and too close for me!!! : O

We made it through without any problems though and soon we were West of the city and turning off on exit 364 and heading North on Route 321. In just a short way, we were turning off at the signs that pointed the way here to the TVA Melton Hill Dam Recreation Area Camp Ground.

It was 1:10 when we pulled up in front of the registration kiosk so we traveled for 3 hours and 25 minutes,  got gas for Bobbie T and traveled  150 miles.

This is a nice park. It reminds me a lot of some of the COE parks that we've stayed at through the years. There's lots of trees, so if you have satellite, you just may be out of luck. Most of the sites seem to be fairly level and medium in size, but the as we found when we drove back into the CG, the roads were narrow with some very sharp curves and corners. They have a few sites that are full hook-up but the site we're in only has water and electric. (30 / 50 amp),

I do, however, have a great view from out under Bobbie T's awning. ; )

This is the view looking more toward the rear of our site.

And, this is the view looking from the road back up to our site.

The site is well equipped with a  large cement picnic table, fire ring, grill and a post to hang a lantern on.

Jim and Linda like this park and the site we're in, so they signed up for 3 nights.

Oh!!! And the best part?  They honored Jim's Golden Age Passport, so we're staying here for $11 per night!!!  ; )

Did you know that today is "National Doodle Day"?

Moncure To Swannanoa

Swannanoa, NC

54 deg. foggy, no wind.
Forecast = Today: Partly cloudy with patchy fog. Highs around 77°F. West northwest wind to 8 MPH.
Tonight: Partly cloudy with isolated storms. Lows around 52°F. West northwest wind 1 to 6 MPH. Chance of precipitation near 25%.

We left Moncure about 10:30 yesterday morning and headed up to Pittsboro on hilly winding 2 lane roads. Once in Pittsboro, we stopped at a gas station to get Bobbie T a drink of 87 octane.

I don't know what happened, but there was some kind of mix-up with Jim and Linda's credit card because they ended up calling the bank from the gas station before they could get it to work!! : (  By the time we left the gas station, it was already a little past 10:30.

From Pittsboro, we headed West on US 64 until we came to Siler City, where we turned NW on US 421. 421 then took us up to Greensboro where we turned West on I-40. Following 40 brought us past Winston-Salem, Hickory and Morganton and here to Swannanoa where we pulled into the Miles Motors RV Center and Campground,  which is just a few blocks off of the Interstate.

We had been to this CG before, but not for quite awhile. In fact, I'm pretty sure that we still had Myrddin the last time we were here. It's a decent CG. They have a handful of pull-through sites which is nice if you don't want to unhook, the sites are quite level and there's shade if you want it. There's full hook-ups with 50 amp electric, free cable TV and free wi-fi that doesn't seem to be working right now, all for $27.00 a night.

It was 2:25 when we pulled up in front of  the office, and we had traveled 215 miles. The roads were pretty good, we had lots of traffic around the biggest cities and we would have made pretty good time if it hadn't been for that Credit Card fiasco. : (

Today, the plan is to take I-40 up into Tennessee and then follow it West for a ways. Jim has a couple parks spotted just past Knoxville, so we'll probably stay there. One of the parks is a TVA (Tennessee Valley Authority), park on a lake that sounds pretty interesting.

But, we'll have to see what Jim and Linda feel like when we get up there.

Did you know that the longest time spent standing on one foot is 76 hours and 40 minutes?

North Carolina to Virginia

Virginia Beach, VA.

61 deg. clear, no wind.
Forecast = Today: Partly cloudy. Highs around 66°F. Southeast wind to 16 MPH.
Tonight: Partly cloudy. Lows around 59°F. South southeast wind to 16 MPH.

We left Williamston NC right at 10:00, eager to get on the road. This day would mark the end to the first leg of our journey with Bobbie T, and put us in Virginia Beach at Joe and Nancy's house.

Again, Bobbie T performed very well as we headed, first NE towards Elizabeth City and then North into Virginia on US 17. On this whole leg of our journey, "from Florida all the way up into Virginia", US 17 has been a very good road. Oh, there were a few small construction areas and a few rough spots, but I know for a fact, that the Interstate roads from FL to NC are nothing to write home about. ; o

As we neared Virginia Beach on 17 we had to go through a construction area, (about 2 miles long), where they are widening 17 into a 4 lane road. That slowed us down some, but not too bad. When we got onto I-64, the traffic really got heavy and it was bumper to bumper, at 65 MPH, all the way to I-264, where the traffic thinned out just a little. 264 took us into Virginia Beach where we finally turned off of the Interstate, onto local road and to Joe and Nancy's house.

Just after we turned off of the Interstate, Jim pulled Bobbie T into a gas station and filled her up with 87 octane. It had been about 350 miles since her last fill-up and she was getting pretty thirsty.

It was 12:45 when we pulled up in front of Joe and Nancy's, so it took us 2 hours and 45 minutes to drive 111 miles and get Bobbie T her drink.

After h and h, (Joe and Sami were home), Jim unhooked CLT and pulled Bobbie T into the driveway. She's now hooked up to water and very limited electric, so Jim and Linda will have to be careful of how many electrical things they use at one time and also very careful with waste water, as there's no sewer connection.

Did you know that Virginia Beach is the most populous city in Virginia?

Woof!!!

Yemassee, SC to Myrtle Beach, With A Little Glitch

Myrtle Beach, SC.

59 deg. fog, no wind.
Forecast = Today: Partly cloudy with isolated showers. Highs around 73°F. Windy, with a south wind 9 to 22 MPH, gusting to 28 MPH. Chance of precipitation near 20%.
Tonight: Mostly cloudy with isolated showers. Lows around 66°F. Windy, with a south wind to 20 MPH, gusting to 26 MPH. Chance of precipitation near 70%.

Don't really know what happened yesterday. I wrote the blog in the morning, just like usual, and thought I posted it, but when Jim went to read it to Linda last night, It wasn't there!!!! : O

After going back to the main Blogger page, and checking, it was determined that it was there and ready to be posted, but for some reason when I hit the "publish" button, it didn't post!! Now, maybe I hit the wrong button, but I don't think so.

Anyway, the morning bog got posted yesterday evening. : )

So,  ,  ,  ,  ,  now for today's post.

We left "The Oaks" campground about 5 minutes after 10:00 and headed East towards Charleston on US 17. As we neared the city, the traffic really started picking up, and by the time we got within 10 miles or so, it was really heavy. In fact, even when we went around the Charleston area on I-526, it was busy almost all the way. Once we joined back up with 17 again, on the North side of the city, it started thinning out though.

Oh, there was a little glitch when we went to get back on US 17. The signs weren't very clear and as we come off of the belt route, we ended up on a wrong road. It really wasn't a big deal as Rosie, (the lady that lives inside of the GPS), re-routed us and got us back on the correct road.

Now, I say it wasn't a big deal, but I can't help wondering what we would have done if we still had Emrys? With Bobbie T, it was easy to make the turns in the residential area, but I'm not so sure we could have made them with a 45' MH.

Anyway, once back on 17, we continued Northeast all the way up here to Myrtle Beach. Again, the traffic got real heavy in the Myrtle Beach area and stayed that way all the way up to the Northeast side of the city on Bypass 17. On the Northeast side of Myrtle beach, we turned off of 17 onto Lake Arrowhead Road and followed SE to the Apache Family Campground.

It was 1:50 when we pulled up to the office, so even with the very heavy traffic and the little glitch, it only took us 3 hours and 45 minutes to travel 125 miles.

When Jim called the CG to make a reservation, he asked for a site with a view of the ocean if possible. The lady told him that there were small sand dunes between the sites and the ocean, but she would see what she could do. Well, she did pretty well!! : ) This is the view out of my dinette window. You definitely can see the water and of course you can easily hear the waves. Our site's not right on the water, but I don't think any of them in Myrtle Beach are!!

Linda's a Happy Camper!!!!! ; )

When you walk up on the little walkway shown in the above photo, this is the view you have.

Pretty nice, I'd say!!!!

Jim took some more photos, but I'll post them in a day or so. We'll be here for a total of 4 nights so I should have plenty time.

Did you know that there are over 250 golf courses in and around Myrtle Beach?

A Great Easter Dinner

DeBary, FL.

63 deg. clear, S. wind @ 5 mph.
Forecast = Today: Partly cloudy with isolated showers. Highs around 81°F. Southwest wind 11 to 17 MPH, gusting to 24 MPH. Chance of precipitation near 45%.
Tonight: Partly cloudy with scattered showers. Lows around 63°F. West wind 6 to 16 MPH, gusting to 23 MPH. Chance of precipitation near 45%.

It was about 11:30 when CLT took Jim and Linda over to Marv and Inez's yesterday morning. He said that the traffic was particularly heavy and it seemed like everyone was in a hurry.

By about 1:00 everyone had arrived and they all sat down to enjoy a great meal of ham, green beans, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, gravy and some great strawberry shortcake and brownies for desert.

After eating, everyone gathered outside on the deck where they all enjoyed  the "Chamber of Commerce" weather, (temperatures in the high 70's and low 80's with a nice breeze), that we were having. ; )

After talking for awhile and catching up on what everyone has been doing, some of the people started getting ready to leave. Jim and Linda were getting tired, so they said their Goodbyes, with H and H, (Hugs and Handshakes), and headed back here.

Again it was really nice for Marv and Inez to include Jim and Linda in their family gathering. They always have a house full of  family but always make room for Jim and Linda.

Thanks so much, Marv and Inez!!!

On the way back here to Highbanks, Jim and Linda stopped by the house and dropped off the items that they had bought at the stores and yard sales the other day and to check the mailbox for mail. They didn't stay long and by about 3:45 CLT was pulling into his spot here at the park.

After relaxing for a little while, both Jim and Linda took naps.

This afternoon, Linda and Laura are planning on going shopping. Linda needs some new jeans so they'll probably go over to the mall in Sanford. Jim was planning on installing the vent covers, that he had bought about a week ago, on Bobbie T's vents, but the weather is looking kind of "iffy", so that project may have to wait until tomorrow.

Did you know that  In Mexico and Spain, April Fool's Day is on December 28 (called Day of the Holy Innocents)? According to their custom, it is very foolish to lend someone anything (especially money) on that because it doesn't have to be returned.  Instead, the borrower sends the lender a box of candies with a note that he's been fooled.  In Germany and Norway,  April Fool's day is celebrated twice:
 On April 1 and on April 30.

Panic Time and All Plans Changed

DeBary, FL.

43 deg. Clear, SW Wind @ 5 mph.

Forecast = Today: Sunny. Highs around 79°F. Southwest wind to 9 MPH.
Tonight: Clear. Lows around 52°F. West southwest wind 2 to 8 MPH.

All plans were changed yesterday. The origina plan was to go over to the house, do a couple loads of laundry, gather a few things that have been taken over there and bring them back here, go to ACE Hardware to buy a few things that they currently have on sale and continue re-organizing the storage areas of Bobbie T.

But, that didn't happen!!!!

Now, I'll bet you're wondering why?  Well, about 10:30, Linda asked Jim to hand her the phone so that she could call her sister, (Nancy), up in Illinois and wish her a Happy Birthday. Jim looked on the table, where thy usually put the phone at night, and it wasn't there!! Then he and Linda both started looking everywhere inside of Bobbie T that they could think of.

No Phone!!! : (

Now, what to do? All of the phone numbers of all their contacts were on that phone. Many of them not written down anywhere else. And, they only have that 1 phone, so there was no way to even call anyone!!!

Panic Time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OK, time to sit back and try to figure out where the phone might be, and how to go about finding it. The day before, Jim knew he had it in the morning because when Roland and Louise were coming, they called for directions. But, after that, the phone wasn't used all day!!

Jim had an idea. He'd go over to Birdie's, (a lady who lives in a class C near us, who Jim had done a favor for awhile back), and ask her to call the phone while Linda stayed home and listened for it to ring,. (Maybe it had slid down behind a dinette seat, or something and Linda could find it.) Well, she called 3 times but Linda didn't answer so it was presumed that it wasn't inside of Bobbie T. : (

Then, he asked Birdie to call Roland's number (which he had looked up on the computer before he went over there), because he thought the phone just might have come off of his belt while he was in the back seat of his car when they were going over to see the house.

Well, Birdie called Roland for Jim, he went out to the car and looked, and sure enough, the phone was in the back seat of their car!!! : )

OK!!! Found the phone!!! The only problem was that Roland and Louise's house is about 90 mile away in Frostproof, FL. And, it's on the other side of Orlando, which is notoriously very busy, especially on a Friday!! Jim and Linda really did need the phone though, so there really was only one option, and that was to go to Frostproof to retrieve it. : (

So, about noon they left, filled CLT up with 87 octane and headed West on I-4, (through Orlando which was already starting to have serious traffic back-ups), and South on US 27 to Frostproof. It took them about 2 hours to get down there.

Once at Roland and Louise's, they picked up their phone, and then Roland and Louise fixed them a great lunch consisting of steak and a salad!!! And, both Jim and Linda said the steak was excellent!!  What a treat!!!!

OK, I know that this is getting pretty long, and I'm probably boring many of you to death, but we're getting to the end. ; )

After eating, Jim and Linda hopped back into CLT and headed back this way. Being that I-4 was now backed up for miles and miles, Jim decided to take US 27 all the way up to Leesburg, and then take routes 441 and 46 back here to DeBary. It was further but they didn't have to sit in traffic back-ups.

Anyway, by the time they got back here, it was close to 7:00 PM!! Jim was very tired, so he laid down on the bed and just crashed for about an hour while Linda dozed in her chair.

Not at all what they had planned for the day, but both said that it was nice to see Roland and Louise again so soon. And, they had to drive a long way to have a great lunch, but both said that it was worth it!!!! ; )

Thanks so much, Birdie, and Roland and Louise!!! You're great friends!!! And, because of all of you, the day ended as well as possible. : )

Did you know that the first e-mail was sent in 1972?

Oh, and Linda did get to call her sister and wish her a Happy Birthday!!!! ; )