December 26-28, 2016 Savannah, GA

We came to Savannah primarily to see family.  Peggy’s sister and family live here but when we arrived they were sick.  With each passing day they seemed to progressively get worse.  We stayed away and checked on them daily.  It’s a very bad “thing” they have that leaves a nasty, scary sounding cough behind that lingers.

OLD TOWN TROLLEY TOUR of Savannah

Our last full day in Savannah we decided to tour Savannah using the Old Town Trolley Tour. It’s a tour with 15 stops where you can hop on and off as you please throughout the day.  Skidaway Island State Park has a contract with them to provide roundtrip shuttle service from the campground to downtown Savannah where the tour begins.  One hitch…we had to be up and ready to go by 9 am…which we managed to do.

Our shuttle driver told us if we only had one day to make sure we saw the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, visit the river walk and go through one of Savannah’s many squares which are small parks that were planned throughout the city.  We did all that AND we managed to find Leopold’s Ice Cream Parlor, famous since 1919 for delicious and creative flavors of ice cream.

SPANISH MOSS

The South is known for the Spanish Moss that hangs down from the live oak trees throughout the South but what we found out is...DON'T TOUCH THAT STUFF!!!  Red bugs (aka chiggers) live in the Spanish Moss.  The old saying "Sleep tight and don't let the bed bugs bite."  comes from the fact that mattresses used to be stuffed with Spanish Moss.  Yuck!  Also, Henry Ford used Spanish Moss to stuff the seats of his cars.  Our tour guide said it lead to the first Ford recall!  Not sure if that's true but it made us laugh.

Camping:  Skidaway Island State Park
Electricity, water, showers, laundry, dump station, Verizon 2 LTE, Old Town Trolley Tour shuttle

Stop #6 on the trolley tour - the Catheral of St. John the Baptist.  It reminded us of the new Basilica of St. Louis in a way. 

Stop #10 the River Walk with the cobblestone streets made from the stones used as ballist for ships.  Terry in front of one of the huge live oak trees that are all over Savannah, usually draped with Spanish Moss.  Terry about to SHARE his 2 scoops of Leopold's Ice Cream. 

November 10, 2016 (Thu) Oglesby, IL

We cancelled a tour of a John Deere factory and opted to sleep in and head towards a park in Illinois that sounds interesting.  Again, we took US highways instead of the interstate and really enjoyed the ride.  Going across Illinois west-to-east, we’re seeing large farms, USA flags flying everywhere and huge farm equipment coming down the roads.

Traffic on US Hwy 6 in Illinois.

Terry at the Starved Rock overlook on the Illinois River.

STARVED ROCK STATE PARK, Oglesby, IL
Starved Rock State Park is why we have our electric bikes!  The campground is 2.5 miles from the visitor’s center and trailheads.  This park has 18 canyons with waterfalls at the head of each canyon during spring and after rains.  Bald eagles winter along the Illinois River and it appears American White Pelicans do, too.  We explored the park on bikes until it got dark. Tomorrow we’ll hike into the canyons.

Camping:  Starved Rock State Park, Oglesby, IL
Electricity, showers, dump station, water in campground, Verizon cell

November 9, 2016 (Wed) Cedar Falls, Iowa to Rock Island, IL

We started heading southeast today towards Florida for Thanksgiving.  Temperatures are dropping into the low 30’s F at night.  We’ve been surrounded by farmland for days.  As we crossed the Mississippi River at Davenport, Iowa into Rock Island/Moline, IL we found ourselves suddenly in an industrial area with factories, brick buildings and narrow roads.

JOHN DEERE PAVILION, Moline, IL
Moline is known as the “Farm Implement Capital of America” and is the world headquarters of John Deere Corporation.  Nearby, they have a visitor’s center, the John Deere Pavilion, that tells their story, has equipment, a video and hands-on exhibits.  We enjoyed climbing into the 2-seater combine, a giant bulldozer and the “Wheeled Feller Buncher” i.e.  a tree remover.  The coolest exhibits were the hands-on video simulators for an excavator, bulldozer and a backhoe!  Peggy wants to go back to improve her skills.

Peggy and Terry on the big machines.  Terry on the simulator (lower left).

Camping:  Rock Island KOA, Rock Island, IL
Laundry, showers, electricity, water, WiFi, Verizon cell

October 24-26, 2016 (Mon-Wed) Nashville, TN

Monday we returned our rental car and then drove the RV to Nashville to spend 3 days exploring the Nashville area in a rental van with Terry’s family (Debbie, Ralph, Keith, Paula and Kevin).

JACK DANIELS DISTILLERY TOUR, Lynchburg, TN

We drove a couple of hours south of Nashville to the tiny town of Lynchburg to go on a tour of the Jack Daniels Distillery.  It was very interesting as we had no idea what the process is for making whiskey.  We learned that the barrels stored in the top floors of the barrel houses for maturing (aging) are the “premium” whiskey. Because the barrel houses are not air conditioned, the upper floors have more radical temperature swings causing the whiskey in the barrel to expand and contract more, picking up more character from the oak barrel.  And that the black fungus that grows on the trees around a distillery are a giveaway for moonshine stills – definitely not a moonshiner’s best friend.

The Jack Daniel's Distillery.  Left column-the Barrel House and how location of the barrel produces different qualities of whiskey.  Right column-our group with "Jack Daniel", the black whiskey fungus found near distilleries and our 5-whiskey tasting session.

GRAND OLE OPRY SHOW

The Grand Ole Opry is the longest running radio broadcast in US history.  The format is strange at first if you are not familiar with it.  The show is one hour and it’s like a variety show with different stars performing 2-3 songs.  In between each performer, the radio announcer does commercials.  It’s live radio!  Sometimes, surprise guests show up like the night we were there.  Chris Young was performing and then Cassidy Pope walked on the stage to sing their hit duet.  Cassidy Pope was scheduled to be the headliner on the show tomorrow night so probably he’ll walk on and help her out.  It’s a surprise to the audience.  I don’t think it’s a surprise the stars performing.

One neat thing about the Opry is that you are allowed to get out of your seat, walk up to the stage and kneel down (so you don’t block the people in the first row) and take pictures.  There are no security guards, etc.  It also ends as scheduled because this is a radio show.  It’s really very refreshing. 

Exploring Nashville.  Top-a night at the Grand Ole Opry.  Bottom left-Ryman Auditorium, the original home of the Grand Ole Opry.  Bottom right-Wild Horse Saloon (closed both times!).

FOOD TOUR IN GERMANTOWN AREA OF NASHVILLE

Paula arranged this food tour of the Germantown area of Nashville through the Local Tastes of Nashville.  We met our guide, Christi, at the Nashville Farmer’s Market area and then strolled/ate our way through Germantown for about 1.5-2 hours.  We also got a little bit of history and local culture.

Stop 1 – BBQ which means pulled pork with coleslaw on a bun because that’s how they serve it!

Stop 2 – Bicentennial Capitol Mall State Park, granite globe, plaza with 50 columns, a 95-bell carillon, and stones with the names of musical contributors from Tennessee.

Stop 3 – The Mad Platter, 1239 6th Ave. North for the best rueben sandwiches!

Stop 4 – The Cupcake Collection, 1213 6th Ave. North for cupcakes (strawberry, chocolate, wedding cake, red velvet, sweet lemonade, sweet potato and carrot cake)

Stop 5 – Germantown Market, 1120 4th Ave. North for adult mac and cheese.  Yum!

Stop 6 – Christie Cookies, 1205 3rd Ave. North for cookies.

Stop 7 – Tempered Café & Chocolate, 1201 5th Ave. North for chocolates

Other Nashville Germantown food stops recommended by our tour guide:

-Monell’s, 1235 6th Ave. North for breakfast and comfort food

-Steadfast Coffee, 603 Taylor St. for the best coffee in town

PREPARING TO LEAVE NASHVILLE

Before everybody left us to go to the airport they all tried our electric bikes.  Each one came back with a smile on their face.  Then we said our goodbyes and we prepared to leave Nashville.  That means laundry, a quick cleaning, showers, putting stuff away in preparation for our departure the next morning.

The Griffin family trying out our electric bikes before heading to the airport. 

People in the southwest Virginia,  Asheville, NC area, Kentucky and Tennessee are very friendly.  It is not unusual to strike up a conversation with complete strangers while in line, eating at a restaurant or walking around.  An example, while we were at dinner one night a couple sat down at the next table.  We’d finished dinner so they asked what we had and whether we’d recommend it.  The conversation continued through their dinner and ended with them inviting us to visit them in KY for dinner!

Camping:  Two Rivers Campground
​Electric, water, sewer, showers, Verizon cell/WiFI, laundry

October 23, 2016 (Sun) Returning Wedding Dress to Apartment

Gwynne texted us last night and asked if we could take her wedding dress back to their apartment.  No problem!  We were taking Peggy's sister to the Nashville airport anyway, so we got the dress from her and took it to town.  The front door was our first clue to the surprise to come, courtesy of several members of the wedding party.

October 22, 2016 (Sat) Cumberland Mountain State Park, Crossville, TN

WEDDING DAY!

Family, friends and the wedding party arrived at the Recreation Lodge early to help clean and decorate the place for the reception and prepare the patio for the wedding.  We all worked until early afternoon when we have to rush back to get cleaned up and return for the wedding.  It was a wonderful way to meet and get to know people while we all worked together to make this day special for Gwynne and Peter.

Family and friends from both sides showed up to help clean windows, iron tablecloths, assemble table center pieces, clean chairs and do whatever was needed to make the day special.  Sorry we don't have more pictures but there were a lot more people helping!   

The wedding was held on the patio of the Cumberland Mountain State Park Restaurant overlooking the lake with the fall colors in the background and the temperature perfect for an outside wedding, in the high 60’s.  Both Gwynne and Peter seemed comfortable and ready for their life together.

The ceremony. 

The wedding party. 

The families. 

The newlyweds. 

The reception was held at the Recreation Lodge in the park, via a short walk through the woods or a short drive.  The wedding party, after the formal wedding pictures were taken, walked through the woods to the reception.  It was a very relaxed and fun evening for everyone.

The reception...We have never seen Peter so happy.  Ansel and Mave entertain us all with their speeches and Gwynne and her bridesmaids "Rick-rolled" the first dance which surprised everyone, especially Peter! 

Top:  Stepping out of the RV ready for the wedding. 
Middle:  Family
Bottom:  Sisters and a picture of us with the beautiful background (Thank you Louise!)

October 21, 2016 (Fri) Cumberland Mountain State Park, Crossville, TN

REHEARSAL EVENING!

The rehearsal was fun and so relaxed.  The wedding party all seemed to be ready for the big day then we all went to Romo’s Mexican Restaurant for dinner.

The Cumberland Mountain State Park Restaurant patio was the setting for the ceremony.   The music was provided by Gwynne's cousins.

It was a bit cold the day before the wedding but everyone was excited. 

October 16-20, 2016 (Sun-Thu) Asheville, NC to Crossville, TN

We made it!  As planned, we made it to Cumberland State Park in Tennessee in preparation for Peter and Gwynne's wedding next Saturday.

The park is beautiful with the Fall colors already looking gorgeous.  They should be near-peak by the day of the wedding.

We sent this picture to Peter and Gwynne and asked them "Where are we?"  They both knew exactly where we were - at Cumberland Mountain State Park, by the lake!

Soon after arriving at the park, we hopped on our bikes to explore the park and find the locations of the wedding, the reception and the trail across the bridge between the two locations. 

The colors were spectacular throughout the park.  We found the bridge at the Boat House that linked the restaurant patio (wedding location) to the Recreation Lodge (reception location). 

October 14-15, 2016 (Fri-Sat) Dublin, VA to Asheville, NC

We drove I-81 to I-26 into the Asheville, NC area.  It’s a pretty drive and the leaves are really starting to change here.  We had trouble finding a place to camp for the weekend because this is the high tourist season for the Asheville area due to the “leaf peepers”.  We were lucky to get a site at all!

We connected with one of Terry’s work colleagues from Houston Tymshare days .  He was kind enough to drive to the campground and pick us up for dinner and a stroll in Weaverville.

On Saturday, he came back and picked us up, gave us a guided walking tour of downtown Asheville.  After lunch, he drove us up the Blue Ridge Parkway to Craggy Pinnacle and we hiked about ¾ mile up to an overlook.  Fall colors are spectacular in the mountains here.  We also thoroughly enjoyed a performance of the musical Sweeny Todd performed in the Asheville Community Theater before heading back to the campsite.

Camping:  French Broad River Campground
Electric, water, sewer, showers, Verizon cell/data, WiFi (broken the first night)

October 13, 2016 (Thu) Warrenton, VA to Dublin, VA

We drove Hwy 29 most of the way from Warrenton, VA to Roanoke then we caught Hwy 460 over to I-81.  I-81 is very busy with 18-wheelers and other traffic.  We’ve found that a smaller highway is much more enjoyable than taking the interstate.  As you go through the small towns, you get a feel for what kinds of stores, etc. are popular.  It also allows us opportunities to pullover and switch drivers.  Many of the interstate highways in the east have not had lots of rest areas where we can switch drivers.

We were glad we had reservations!  They are full and since the sites were not assigned until arrival, it was good we arrived before dark.  We got our bikes out and road around the campground to see the lake.  We wish we could stay here a few more days.

Camping:  Claytor Lake State Park, VA
Electric, water, dump station, showers, Verizon cell/data