In November 2011, we wagonmastered (with Margie & Buddy and Karen & Art) the FH RV Club trip to Ocean Lakes Family Campground in Myrtle Beach.  We were joined by 18 other rigs and we had a great time and there's always a lot of things to do there. 

Two down and One more to go...

We returned home to New Bern on July 31st to meet up with Gary and Carol; they had been staying in our house (where they found a lot of problems after a lightning strike hit before their arrival).

September 8th (Wednesday) we headed down to Goose Creek RV Resort (Newport, NC) for a long weekend with 14 other rigs from the FH RV Club.  We enjoyed the company over daily happy hours, a pot luck, a group dinner out and relaxing time in the pool.  We returned home on Sunday, 9/11.
Link to the photos:  https://picasaweb.google.com/fhrvclub/September2011GooseCreek?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCKP_yv_1x7nwJw&feat=directlink 

The October trip with 10 rigs from the FH RV Club was to Williamsburg, VA where we stayed in the Colonial Williamsburg KOA from Sunday, 10/2 to Saturday, 10/8.  Weather cooperated and plenty to do in addition to our daily happy hours, a pot luck, a wienie roast, donuts for breakfast one morning, and dinner out at The Food For Thought Restaurant, and a night out for dessert and Friendly's (we eat a lot on trips!).
Link to the photos:  https://picasaweb.google.com/fhrvclub/October2011WilliamsburgVA?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCMajz__fqZ_z8QE&feat=directlink

Mt. Airy, NC - also known as Mayberry from the Andy Griffith Show

 After a VERY rough, bumpy ride down Rt 77 through West Virginia (instead of paying at the toll booths, they should pay US for riding on those roads!!!), we arrived at Mt. Airy, NC on Friday afternoon.  We checked into Mayberry Campground which is still a work in progress but definitely a nice place to stay with cable and great wi-fi.  Upon arrival, the lady in the office mentioned that there was going to be a picnic and we were welcome to attend.  It turns out that it was the start of the Bunker family reunion which is celebrating the 200th anniversary of Siamese twins Eng and Chang Bunker.  We learned a lot of family history about the conjoined twins from their descendants...they married sisters and had 21 children between the two of them (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chang_and_Eng_Bunker) and the family reunion is every year and it's a BIG one.

Hence, Mt. Airy is not only known as being the location of the world's largest open-faced granite quarry, home to Eng and Chang, birthplace of Donna Fargo (country singer) and Andy Griffith, but it was also the town that Andy Griffith based his TV show on known as Mayberry (Floyd's Barbershop, Blue Bird Diner, Snappy Lunch).  Today we rode around in one of the old Ford squad cars that are replicas that they used in the Andy Griffith Show and walked up and down Main Street and checked out some stores. 

We are heading home tomorrow (Sunday, 7/31) and have already been warned by Carol and Gary how hot it's been, is, and will be in New Bern.   We look forward to spending some time before they pack up and head out west to relocate to Arizona.

Heading back....

We spent a week in Traverse City hanging out with Jan (Ed's oldest sis) and her hubby, Jerry and having a good time.  The weather was great, the campground was really nice and the lakes were crystal clear.  We did some fun stuff around the area and the girls (Mandy and Molly) really liked the fenced in back yard at Jan's and Jerry's house.

Last night we stayed at the RV Permit Parking on the Ohio Turnpike and for $20 we had a 50-amp hookup that ran the a/c which was important to keep cool.  When we left there this morning we stopped in Cleveland and parked the RV at the Port Authority and walked over to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and spent a few hours there.  Ed then toured the freighter while I went back to the RV and got the dogs and walked them.  To avoid traffic, we were advised to plan on getting out of town by 3pm or wait until after 5pm. 

NOTE:  When we got back home we found out that Jimmy was at the R&R Hall of Fame the SAME time we were with Bill and Greg!!!

We decided to leave before 3pm and we checked into the Spring Valley Campground in Cambridge, OH.

I guess the closer to NC we get, the hotter the temperatures are going to be.  We've had a good time on this trip doing "touristy" stuff but it will still be good to get home and see Gary and Carol before they head to AZ to relocate and our other friends.

I'm Back....

 

Well, it's been a while since I last blogged but we really didn't do anything "touristy" but we did see a lot of family.  We had arrived in Ionia on 7/13 at the Alice Springs RV Park and Resort.  The park is 4 years old and it's really nice...especially during the week...the weekend crowd arrives on Friday and leaves on Sunday and Monday and it's somewhat "zoo-ish" at that time.  During the week a few times Ed and I had the beautiful pool and spa all to ourselves. 


Eddy & Joanne and US

 

On Sunday, we went to the Ionia State Rec Area where Pat had reserved a pavillion for a Wiers Family Gathering.  Ed's Mom and three sisters were there with their families in addition to some cousins he had not seen in many years. 

Tuesday, we met Joanne (my partner in crime growing up on Maple Street) and her husband, Eddy who talked about the old days with Ed...they were both stationed with the 57th MP Company at West Point.





Molly & Mandy "on the wagon"

 

The Cascades in Jackson, MI

We pulled into The Hideaway RV Park in Grass Lakes outside Jackson, MI on Wednesday and drove to Holt to have dinner with Ed's Mom.  Today we drove to Jackson to meet up with Pat and Michael and we went to Sparks County Park, a 465-acre park where the illuminated Cascades, a giant waterfall and six fountains over which water tumbles in continually changing patterns while music plays is located.

Ed with sister, Pat.

link to some more pictures:  https://picasaweb.google.com/Pawpurrs/TheCascadesInJacksonMI?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCIWr1tL_qIKPew&feat=directlink

Greenfield Village (Henry Ford)

We arrived at Harbortown RV Resort yesterday (Wednesday) in Monroe, Michigan and it's starting to fill up quickly for the 4th of July Weekend.  Today we headed towards Dearborn to check out Greenfield Village.  This is a huge "complex" with a Museum, IMAX, Factory Tour and the Village which is what we opted to explore.  The village had working farms and the houses belonging to the Wright brothers, Robert Frost, Thomas Edison and others that were transported to the Village by Henry Ford in addition to many more structures (including a windmill and a building that was a jewelry store in England).  We bought a pass for $10 and it was good for any of the transportation that included a ride in a Model T, a carousel (yup, Ed and I took a ride on it), a horse drawn Omnibus Shuttle, and a train ride that encircled the Village.

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Here's a link to some more pictures:
https://picasaweb.google.com/Pawpurrs/GreenfieldVillageHenryFordDearbornMI?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCKO_4JOqt5fMUQ&feat=directlink

Shipshewana - Amish Country

We had said our "good-byes and see you in August" to Karen and Art when we left Cave Country RV Resort in Kentucky on Monday.  We checked into Shipshewana South Campground on Monday and got up bright and early on Tuesday to head to the Shipshewana Flea Market which is HUGE!!!  We arrived there a little after 8am and the parking lot was already filling up.  We walked up and down the rows of booths and there were hundreds (maybe a thousand!) of them.  By 11:30 we were both limping around after all the walking and we had found some neat things to buy...you know "we just had to have it" type stuff.  We came back to the RV and got the dogs and then headed out on the Heritage Trail to check out the different quilt gardens that took us through Middlebury, Bristol, Elkhart...where my camera battery started flashing.  Unfortunately, I had never put my battery back in the bag after the Mammoth Cave tours (you can NOT carry any type of bag on the tour...not even a phone case!!!) but it was 4:30 and we were hungry and getting tired so we headed back to the RV.  Tomorrow morning we plan on checking out some more quilt gardens and some shops before we hook up the car and head to Monroe, Michigan...our next stop.

Here's a link to some more pictures: 

https://picasaweb.google.com/Pawpurrs/ShipsewanaQuiltGardens?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCKX3roqFtf7etwE&feat=directlink

Mammoth Caves in Kentucky

Wow!  We went on the Historic Tour at the Mammoth Caves and it was quite an experience. 

This was an awesome tour, 2 hrs. and 2 miles led and narrated by a park ranger. Throughout the tour you learn the history of the caves, from 4,000 years ago when the first woodland Indians explored the caves to when slaves mined for gunpowder during the War of 1812.  At the beginning of this tour we passed through great big rooms, but then once you make a tour at the "devil's coffin" rock it begins to get smaller! We squeezed through Fat man's misery and then Tall man's misery.  Total stairs: 440, including 155 at Mammoth Dome. Elevation change: 300’.   More pictures:  https://picasaweb.google.com/Pawpurrs/MammothCaves?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCOrtoer5oJ-zEw&feat=directlink

A Night at the Grand Ol' Opry

Friday we went to the Grand Ol' Opry and it was great.  A few of the performers were the old timers that we've never heard of ... there was blue grass and country.  Little Jimmy Dickens, Bucky Covington from American Idol, and Crystal Gayle were the ones we were familiar with.  Some more pictures:  https://picasaweb.google.com/Pawpurrs/GrandOlOpryNashville?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCI7jkqnWjrqROA&feat=directlink

Elvis Sighting!

Today we did the trial run to the Grand Ol' Opry; good thing because it was at the mall that got flooded last year when the river rose and all the big stores are under major renovation and the parking lot is one big construction zone.  We then found a great restaurant for lunch and stopped at Camping World before heading back to the KOA. 

Ed and I went to see Elvis and it was quite a good show.  Ed still thinks it was the real Elvis and wanted his picture taken with him.  I think "Elvis" was a little surprised when we asked to get a picture with him and Ed went to stand next to him while I took the picture.

Around Nashville

Yesterday the four of us headed to downtown Nashville and it started raining minutes after we hit the streets.  After buying a couple of umbrellas and rain ponchos to carry around for the next downpour, we had a good time browsing in the windows of the stores and restaurants and ended up eating at Joe's Crab Shack.  We made it to the car and headed back to the campground right before another downpour hit.  Why can't New Bern get some of this rain?! 
Pictures of downtown Nashville:
https://picasaweb.google.com/Pawpurrs/DowntownNashville?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCPCCvIuQ3_3ybA&feat=directlink

For dinner we went to the Cock of the Walk Restaurant right next to the KOA and the guys had their catfish dinners on tin plates.  The big rocker there was a great photo op.

Tonight we went to Nashville Night Life Dinner Theater and enjoyed some good country music and comedy.

Nashville

Well, we arrived at the Nashville KOA at 1:30 pm and Karen & Art arrived around 4pm.  It's hot and all the rain that I've been asking for in New Bern looks like it's going to show up here in Nashville this week.  We went to ANOTHER Bass Pro Shop here and if one more shows up along the way I'm sure the novelty will wear off, for ME.  We did realize that we were an hour ahead since somewhere along the way we went through a time zone change.

Nashville Bound

We left New Bern on Saturday (6/18) after packing the car with stuff we will need for a month on the road. We picked up our RV that we left in storage in Kodak, TN and checked into Dumplin Valley Farm & RV Park (full hook-up and wi-fi and beautiful farmland). We went to Bass Pro Shop, the flea market, and the Knife Shop in Sevierville before hitting the grocery store to stock up on supplies for the RV and then sat and relaxed in the pavilion at the campground. Another camper finally showed up so we were no longer the only ones there...Todd, a physical education teacher from Leland, NC (Wilmington area). He was heading to the Grand Canyon on his motorcycle and very chatty. Before dark, two other rigs pulled in so we no longer had the "farm" to ourselves. I figured out why TN was so lush and green...it rains (with pretty loud thunder) a LOT.

We'll be meeting Karen and Art in Nashville today - Monday, 6/20.