26, Back to Florida

Monday morning, November 25th, drove 150 miles South on I-95 from Jekyll Island, Georgia, to Gamble Rogers Memorial State Recreation Area, near Flagler Beach, Florida.  Checked into their campground which was right on the ocean. Rode my bicycle 3 miles into the town of Flagler Beach where nothing was going on, so rode back, did a short hike, then walked 1/2 mile to a nice bar/restaurant where I watched football, had a beer and surfed the net.

Campground by very rough ocean

Next morning, Tuesday, November 26th, I drove 100 miles South and arrived back in Melbourne, Florida, having left there on March 7th.. Checked into Wickham Park campground where I stayed for 5 nights. Spent the first 5 days having Thanksgiving, visiting friends and relatives, and going to a college football game.

UCF vs. USF - cold and windy night game, we left at halftime.

Moved into a small house I rented from a friend of mine. I then spent the next 3 days cleaning the RV inside and out, to get it ready to put on Craigslist and EBay, to see if I can sell it.

25. Georgia

Thursday morning, November 21st, drove 2 hours from Charleston, South Carolina to Savannah, Georgia. Parked my RV in the downtown Visitor Center's parking lot, and paid $7 for an overnight pass. Drove my scooter 15 miles East to Fort Pulaski National Monument.  This Fort was started after the War of 1812 and finished just before the Civil War. The Confederates occupied it, but the Union bombed it and took it over. The exhibits were really nice, including a musket firing demonstration.

 Bomb Damage from the Union assault

That evening walked around Savannah and had an ice cream at Leopold's, my Staten Island cousins' favorite ice cream place.

Next day drove 1 hour South to the Brunswick area.  First stop was Fort King George Historic State Park.
The fort was built in 1721 along the Altamaha River and served as the southernmost outpost of the British Empire in the Americas until 1727. It was abandoned a few years later. All building are reconstructions.

Stayed for about an hour then drove 15 minutes to Hofwyl-Broadfield Plantation.  This was an old rice plantation which was started in the early 1800's and was in the same family until 1973. Walked the grounds and took the tour of the house which was horrible as the guide was a fat, old, smelly state park employee who really didn't care.

Plantation House

After that disappointment, drove 30 minutes East to St. Simons Island, one of the many barrier islands in the area. Visited Fort Frederica National Monument, which was another pre-Revolutionary War fort and small town of about 900 people. None of the buildings have survived and only a couple have been partly reconstructed, but the excavations of the ruins are explained nicely.  Forgot to take pics.

Later on, walked around downtown Brunswick which wasn't very exciting. Stayed in a cheap but nice RV park 7 miles inland from Brunswick.

Next day, drove back to the coast and went to Jekyll Island, another barrier island and tourist spot. Paid the $10 island entrance fee, then parked in the historic district and had a great walk for an hour.  The Jekyll Island Club was a getaway place for the Northeast super rich at the turn of the century.  Some really nice mansions and grounds are preserved in a non touristy way.

After the walk, checked into the park's campground for 2 nights which is in a beautiful wooded location. Used my scooter to drive around the rest of the island.  It is about 7 miles long by 1.5 miles wide. Real nice place and not very touristy as I had expected.

Next day, used my bicycle and rode around the island for 3 hours. Very nice bike trails and a great ride, even though it was really cold.  Spent the rest of the day in the RV watching Sunday afternoon football.

Really rough Atlantic ocean

Next morning, Monday, November 25th, said goodbye to Jekyll Island and to Georgia, got onto I-95 South and drove into Florida.

24. South Carolina

Saturday morning, November 16, drove from Cherokee, NC to Seneca, South Carolina and stopped at the World of Energy, an exhibit put on by Duke Energy, the large utility company serving the Carolinas.  The exhibit was boring but the location was great as it was right next to Oconee Nuclear Power Plant. Had no idea they let people so close to reactor buildings.

Three Reactors - about 100 yards away

Drove 30 minutes to the town of Clemson, home of Clemson University.  Walked around the campus for an hour which was nice but nothing fantastic.

Drove another half hour to just outside the town of Anderson, and pulled into Sadlers Creek State Park, were I spent the night in their campground.  Lots of lakes in this part of South Carolina and the campsite was on a nice one.

Next morning, got up early and drove 2 hours Southeast to the town of Edgefield.  My friend Dan who I stayed with for a month in Jackson, NJ, had driven down the day before (12 hour drive) with his girlfriend Michelle.  Michelle's Dad lives there, so they came for a week-long visit. It was great to see them; her Dad restores old cars, so he gave us a fascinating tour of the cars he had in the garage at the time.  They had lots of land and a shetland pony.

Dan, Michelle, Richard, and Diana (I forget the dog's name).

Sunday afternoon, Michelle spent some "quality time" with Dad and his wife, so Dan and I drove to the nearby town of Aiken, where we found a sports bar and spent "quality time" watching football, drinking beer and eating wings all afternoon.

Stayed in Aiken that night, next morning drove two hours North to Congaree National Park, a swamp forest a little East of the state capital of Columbia. As it was Monday, the visitor center was closed, but they had a long boardwalk and hikes, so spent 3 hours hiking. It was OK, but no wildlife so a bit boring.

Finished the hikes sooner than I had expected, so called up and made a 3 day reservation at James Island County Park, 7 miles outside of Charleston.  Arrived late in the day to find that the famous Festival of Lights was going on in the park.  This is a huge Christmas light show with hundreds of animated figures.

Spent the next two very cold days touring Charleston on my scooter whose battery died on the first day. Bought a trickle charger, and left it on overnight which seemed to do the trick.

Charleston's famous bridge

 College of Charleston President's Mansion

Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor -  Civil War started here

Thursday morning, November 21st, drove 110 miles South to Savannah, Georgia.

23. North Carolina

Arrived late afternoon, Saturday, November 9th at Mayberry Campground in Mount Airy, NC, about 20 miles Southeast of the Blue Ridge Parkway.  Next morning, drove the RV into town and went on a walking tour of Any Griffith's hometown and the basis for Mayberry, the town in the Andy Griffith show.  Only a couple of tourist souvenir shops were open as it was Sunday morning.  The town was very boring with not much to see, so stayed less than an hour.

Main Street - tourist shops and overpriced bakeries and restaurants

 Andy and Opie statue outside of City Hall

Made my way back to the Blue Ridge Parkway and stopped at the Blue Ridge Music Center which was closed but was able to park the RV in the parking lot. Went on a 2 hour hike on the grounds which was nice.

Rock path over creek to the music center

Spent the night in an illegal RV park in the town of Laurel Springs. Was supposed to stay at a state park but this place was real close to the Parkway and was cheap.  Only had 20 amp service; the heater worked but not very well, so was a bit cold.

Next morning drove on the Parkway to Moses H. Cone Memorial Park, a textile magnate who donated his mansion to the park. The building is now a crafts center, and the grounds have 25 miles of carriage trails. Went on a 2 hour hike on some of them which was very pretty - lots of rhododendrons.

That afternoon, drove 15 miles more, left the Parkway and drove up Grandfather Mountain. This is a privately run mountain with a windy 2 mile road to the top. They have attractions along the way, including a small zoo and nature center, and a suspension bridge across a gorge at the top parking lot. They also have some hiking trails, so did a short 1 miler.

The zoo is known for its bears

View from the top

Spent the night at a nearby campground. Realized the next two days would be 10 degrees below freezing, so wimped out and booked a cheapie hotel in Asheville for the next two nights.  Next day, was cold, foggy and windy. Did not do any hikes but slowly drove the Parkway 100 miles into Asheville. Hotel was next to a Texas Roadhouse Grill, so had two nights of nicely cooked meals.  Toured the Biltmore estate which was super nice and super expensive - $49 with the AAA discount, not including any guided tours.

Did not have time to see anymore of Asheville, so will have to revisit sometime in the future.  Got back on the Blue Ridge Parkway and drove its remaining 79 miles. The Parkway starts at the end of Shenandoah National Park and ends 469 miles later at the beginning of Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Stopped at the nearby visitor center, got the map, then drove the 32 miles 4,000 feet up to the highest point in the park, Clingmans Dome, at 6,643 feet. Did the 1 mile hike to the Observation tower, then another 2 mile hike.  There was a little bit of snow on the ground.

View from top of the observation tower - not much better than views from the Blue Ridge Parkway

Snow on hiking trail

Spent two nights in an RV park in the nearby town of Cherokee, a real tourist trap. Did not do any of the Indian tourist attractions as most were closed for the season and the others seemed cheesy. They had a casino there, but it wasn't all that nice.  Second day there was cold and foggy and it rained almost the entire day. Toured an old reconstructed farm and flour mill, and spent a couple of hours in the casino not losing a lot of money.

Morning of Saturday, November 16th, said goodbye to North Carolina, and drove 2 hours Southeast on a hilly, windy road through the mountains, and down into Seneca, South Carolina.

22. Virginia

Spent Sunday night, November 3rd, in the town of Front Royal.  Next morning, cold and overcast, drove to the Northern entrance of Shenandoah National Park.  The 105 mile Skyline Drive runs the entire length of the park. I was planning on taking my time, do a bunch of hikes, and drive it in two days, but due to the bad weather, I only did one hike and finished it in one day.  It was a nice drive with great autumn colors and some wildlife.

Spent the night in Charlottesville.  Next day, drove my scooter to the University of Virginia, which was founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819. Very nice campus with the old buildings surrounding a big lawn, headed up by the rotunda.

Drove downtown, walked around the pedestrian mall which was nothing special, then drove 15 minutes to Monticello, home of Thomas Jefferson. Saw the movie, toured the house, visited the grave and did the short hike.  It was OK, but nothing special.

Next day, drove 30 miles West, then started on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  It begins where the Shenandoah National Park ends, goes 469 miles through Virginia and North Carolina and ends at Great Smoky Mountains National Park on the North Carolina/Tennessee border.

Very nice drive, most of the visitor centers were closed for the season, but the road was empty so it was relaxing.

Old farm restored by the National Park Service

Nice views all around

 Typical views of the parkway - 45 mph speed limit

Left the parkway at milepost 50, and spent two nights in the town of Buena Vista at their county park's campground. Used the scooter to visit nearby Lexington, home of Washington and Lee University, the Virginia Military Institute and Robert E. Lee visitor center.  The Confederate general lived here after the Civil War, was the University president, died and is buried here.

Washington and Lee University

 Lee's tomb in the university chapel

 Virginia Military Institute

Drove 1.5 hours East past the Parkway to the National Historic Park of Appomattox Court House, sight of Lee's surrender to Grant. Toured the visitor center and houses, spent an hour walking all around the place, then spent the night at a nearby campground.

McLean House where Lee surrendered to Grant

 Nice reconstructed house in the village

Next morning, drove 70 miles West, rejoined the Blue Ridge Parkway, then drove down it for 100 miles, stopping at a few places to take short hikes.

Old cabin on hike at Smart View picnic ground

Mabry Mill historic site at milepost 175

Late that afternoon, Saturday, November 9th, left the parkway at milepost 200, drove 15 miles Southeast to Mount Airy, North Carolina, home of Andy Griffith.  Stayed the night at Mayberry Campground.

21. Pennsylvania, Maryland and West Virginia

Cold, wet morning of Wednesday, October 30th, left my friend Dan's house in Jackson, NJ, and drove 2 hours West back into Pennsylvania. Stopped at Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site, an old iron forge and company village from the late 1700's.  It was rainy and cold so walked around for only a little bit.

Got back on the PA turnpike and drove another 1 1/2 hours Southwest to Gettysburg. Stayed there two nights and had a good time touring the battlefield and the town on my scooter, even though it was cold and windy.

Outside the visitor center

 PA memorial on the battlefield grounds

Sculpture in the town

Left Gettysburg late Friday afternoon, drove through Maryland and into West Virginia where I stayed at a reasonably priced campground (all others were super high priced-due to weekend traffic?).  Next morning, drove back into Northwest Maryland and toured the Antietam civil war battlefield. Did three enjoyable hikes there on the really nice grounds. Enjoyed this place better than Gettysburg.

That evening, drove back into West Virginia to the town of Charles Town, where I stayed (for free) in the parking lot at the Hollywood Race Track and Casino. Did not gamble but was able to watch some football games and eat and drink. It was cold that night so didn't really enjoy the RV. Think this will be the last freebie for awhile as I need electricity to run the heater at night.

Next morning, drove 15 minutes to Harper's Ferry National Historic Park, where I spent 4 hours touring the town and doing a hike.  The town has a lot of history including an arms manufacturing plant,  the John Brown abolitionist rebellion, and the largest surrender of troops during the Civil War.

John Brown Fort - where he was captured

 View of town from overlook - at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers

 Some old village buildings

That afternoon, Sunday, November 3rd, drove 1 hour South into Virginia.