We found Autumn

Currently In:  Four Oaks, NC (outside of Raleigh)
Next Up: Outer Banks and Fayetteville, NC; Charleston, SC; Savannah, GA

While we were in Morganton we went up into the mountains - a full 15 degrees colder than at our campground.  We went to the Linville Gorge, known as the Carolina Grand Canyon.
First we were able to see the Linville Falls.  Given all the rain from the previous day, the Falls were roaring!

Snapped these photos.  The most Fall color we have seen so far.

We hiked the Linville Gorge, but truth be told, we only got about half way down before the path was covered in water from the rain, so we turned back.  The path was pretty steep.

Morganton has a really cool Greenway path along the Catawba River.  It connects all the parks in the city. We took a quick walk, very pretty.

How the other Half Lives

Currently in: Four Oaks, NC (outside Raleigh)
Next Up: Outer Banks and Fayetteville, NC; Charleston, SC; Savannah, GA
Heading to Florida in early December

While in western North Carolina, Johnny and I visited the Biltmore Estate, built in 1895 by George Vanderbilt, grandson of railroad tycoon Cornelius Vanderbilt.  Cornelius donated money to what eventually became Vanderbilt University in Nashville.

To call this house a mansion is an understatement.

Side view of Biltmore House

The views off of the loggia are fantastic.  All planned by Mr.  Vanderbilt and his landscaper, Fredrick Olmsted.  There are also lovely gardens and a conservatory on the 8,000 acre property.

My favorite room in the house is the library.  The staff has started to decorate for Christmas already.  It's a big job in this 250 room house.

This was the first home in America to house a bowling alley and swimming pool.  Photo included here for our bowling friends!

I also interested in the workings of the household which were essentially housed in the basement.
For those of you that like to cook, there were several kitchens that the servants used to keep the family fed - pastry kitchen, roasting kitchen and this, the main kitchen.

If you know my affinity for laundry, you know I was intimidated by the amount of laundry generated by the family and its guests.  There were heated drying racks for the sheets, a new technology at the time. (I didn't get a good photo - this one is from the internet)

As a side note, the Vanderbilt fortune is essentially gone.   It is generally accepted that Cornelius' descendants had lavish spending habits.  The Biltmore Estate is a testament to that.

Off the Grid

Currently in:  Raleigh, NC
Next Up: Outer Banks and Fayetteville, NC; Charleston, SC; Savannah, GA

We pulled into the Rose Creek campground in Morganton, NC last Thursday.  Uh-oh.  Small campground, small sites.  No cell service, no internet, no TV.  We are in the mountains, y'all.

I saw a sign before we even got to the office that clearly states: no alcohol, no drugs, quiet hours from 10pm to 8am.  We drive to our site and pass this pavilion on the way. Hmmmm.

The first nite we returned to the campground from town where we watched the Irish overwhelm USC (couldn't happen to nicer guys).  There was a boozy PAR-TEE going on well past quiet hours.  In fairness, all of the neighbors we met were so nice, and invited us to join them at the pavilion earlier in the day.  I couldn't stop laughing at the irony of the "rules "sign (never saw at any other campground) and the late fun that was being had (never saw at any other campground).

So, what does an old married couple do without electronics?  Play backgammon, of course!  I won the first couple of games, but Johnny has come roaring back and is ahead by one game.

One last note: a terrible storm came through  Morganton that washed out the entrance to our campground.  We were told to park along the fence and walk through the brush at the back part of the property to get to our RV.  While driving back to the fence, we met Rick and Mary Anne on the road who offered that we stay at their home if our rig was under water.   Our neighbors Dave and Mary checked on us to make sure everything was ok on our site.  Southern hospitality is the best!  Dave warned us to be careful of snakes as they tend to crawl out of the creek when it gets swollen.  Water moccasins, copperheads and rattlers - should we have known this before we walked through the brush   to get to our rig?????

If I could whistle...

Currently In: Mt. Airy, NC heading to Morganton, NC
Up next : Raleigh and the Outer Banks, Charleston SC, Savannah, GA

...I would whistle the opening of the Andy Griffith show.

We did not look at nature, visit with friends or family or learn more about our American History.  We toured Andy Griffith's real hometown of Mt Airy, the town the show was based on.  There are lots of sites (courthouse, barber shop, Wally's garage and more) based on the show.  It was really cute and fun.  And Johnny is a huge fan of the reruns!

Is this Otis Campbell?

We took a look at a museum that details Andy Griffith's life and entire career.  Thelma Lou (Barney Fife's girlfriend) was signing autographs there! She's 91.
This statue is outside the museum.  Can't you hear the whistling?

The heroes of our show...

Oh Shenandoah

Currently in: Greenwood, VA
Next Stops: Mt. Airy, Morganton, Raleigh, Outer Banks and Fayetteville - all North Carolina

We've spent the past week in two locations in Virginia - Front Royal and Greenwood.  It seems like every town in Virginia is preceded by "historic".  Given this state's  involvement in colonial times and the Civil War, it's probably true!
We checked out a bunch of stuff.

We stumbled into this museum when we were exploring Historic Front Royal.  Then we stumbled out.
It is complete with a bar where you "rented" the glass for $7 and they gave you free beer.  A way for the owners to get away with not serving food.  We had some interesting conversations with the bar flies.

We have tons of photos from the Skyline drive in the Shenandoah National Park, but this one with the clouds in the mountains is one of my favorites.

We did a simple hike in the Park, part of which was on the Appalachian Trail. Saw several "thru- hikers"- they looked really tired.

We toured the Skyline Caverns as well.  They are millions of years old.  There are lots of caves in Virginia - some big and open to touring, some small.

We took a bike ride along the south fork of the Shenandoah River on a beautiful morning.

Once we headed south, we took a tour of Montecello home (this is the back) and gardens of Thomas Jefferson. He was a genius, complete with human flaws and shortcomings.  I found the home, grounds and the life of this man so fascinating.

Along the Blue Ridge Parkway, we toured this 1800s log cabin and farm that reminded me of Little House on the Prairie.  The fireplace was the stove, and the loft was for sleeping as well as storing apples, potatoes and the like.  Then the Park Ranger told us that people lived in these types of cabins in the mountains until the 1970s!  By the way, a shout out to the National Park Service Rangers.  They are the best!

Back to the Appalachian Trail which is part of  the Blue Ridge Parkway as well as the Shenandoah National Park.  The white markings on trees are called "blazes" and let us know that we are on the Appalachian Trail.

Another beautiful view of the mountains surrounding Virginia.  I can't seem to get enough of this!

Enjoying a Vir GIN ia and tonic at the end of a hiking day.

Campground Living

Currently In: Front Royal, VA
Next Stop: Greenwood, VA
Also Booked: Several locations in North Carolina

By special request (Cate), I have been asked to write a post about our lifestyle at the campgrounds.  We were greeted by the following at Front Royal RV Park:

We drive through a farm each time we go back and forth to this campground!  It's kind of fun.
When we first get to each campground, we stop by the office to register and possibly buy firewood or ice.  They also have bathrooms/showers (for folks who stay in tents) and coin-op laundry.  Most of the offices look similar to the one at Front Royal.

After we check in we drive to our assigned spot and unhitch our Jeep.

Here is a view of our area in Front Royal.  The back end of our rig is in the top row, second from the left.

Here is our campsite up close.  We usually get a picnic table and a fire pit.













We spend the day trying to enjoy the local area, but of course we have daily living chores as well.  Plus, always something on the rig that needs attention - this week Johnny needed to replace a headlight bulb on the RV.  While we eat breakfast at the RV, I have packed several picnic lunches.  For dinner we have cooked, grilled, eaten with friends and sampled the local cuisine.  If we get back to the campground in enough time (and weather permitting), we try to enjoy a fire - just like home with the neighbors! Minus s'mores.  Also, I love seeing all the stars at night.  We couldn't get that at home since the city lights were so close.

Finally, at the Keefe campsite we attend Mass on the weekends.  So far, I have been able to find churches fairly close to where we are staying.  I really love worshiping in community and feeling a connection with my fellow Catholics.
While Mass is the same, each parish has its own character.  Yesterday we went to St. John the Baptist in Front Royal.   On a Saturday night, many of the men were in suits and many women wore skirts. There were 8 altar boys (no girls) in the black and white robes I remember from the 60's.  They used the communion rail and the altar boys held the patten as we all received the Eucharist by mouth. Many people knelt to receive - Johnny commented that he might not be able to stand up again, so we stood to receive.  This parish also has a Latin Mass on Sunday.  A bit different from the parishes we have attended so far, but quite interesting.
Another cool thing is that each parish has had some sort of Fatima Centennial Celebration.   I'm sorry that I missed ours at St. Joe's, but prayed the Rosary for you all!

Friends and Family

Currently in Front Royal, Virginia
Next stop: Greenwood, VA heading to North Carolina

A note about the surrounding area where our campground is located.  We are in Lancaster county which is very hilly.  There is one giant hill with a switchback coming out of our campground where the speed limit is 10 mph!  In addition, we are among many Amish farms with horse drawn buggies that frequently use the same roads we use.  The people are very friendly and most wave at us as we drive by.  Finally, there are really cool stone houses everywhere in Lancaster county.  I didn't take this photo, but they look like this:

Ok, so we stopped at the home of our good friends Don and Patty Vanover while we were in PA.  We used to live in the same neighborhood when our children were small and may have enjoyed a Dove Bar or two back then.
Here are Patty and Don's oldest and youngest children - Mary and Geoff.  Geoff made a great dinner for us that evening and Mary is full of fun!

Prior to dinner Johnny and I were able to enjoy the Longwood Gardens that used to be part of the du Pont estate.  The property has a very interesting history which includes plant conservation.  Johnny enjoyed the garden train.

While I loved all the color!

This fountain area is similar to something you would see in Italy.  We stayed for the spectacular musical fountain show.

Finally, before we left the Philadelphia area, we were able to spend the day with Cate in Wilmington, DE.  We enjoyed the River Walk where we saw the bridge rise for this cool ship.

And we toured a local winery.  Maybe we purchased a couple of bottles???

Cheers!

"We are met on a great battlefield..." (Lincoln)

Currently in PA
Leaving for Virginia tomorrow
Headed to North Carolina on October 19

One of the reasons we chose a campground in Holtwood, PA was to be close to Gettysburg National Park.

Although I had been there with Cate and Michael 20 years ago, so much has changed it was a new experience for me too.  The museum was wonderful!
Johnny recalled a school project he did on Gettysburg and appreciated being able to get a better understanding of the landscape.  We both particularly enjoyed the auto tour since you can see the actual site of the 3 day battle as well as all of the memorials.  This is a view from Little Round Top looking into the Valley of Death - right in the heart of all the action.

If you haven't had the opportunity to visit and you like history, I think it is one of the best National Parks in the system.

My husband is a rock star!

Currently in: Holtwood, PA
Next up:  Front Royal and Greenwood, VA on our way to North Carolina

I know most of you know this already, but there is more proof.
Through a series of unfortunate events, we ended up in Massachusetts one extra day.  That meant we had to drive from Wales, MA to southern Pennsylvania in one day - a long drive in a 38' motorhome. And we had to take the most direct route possible.    Pretty soon we saw this.

Yes that's right.  The rookies took their house across the George Washington Bridge in New York City.  Here's a view from the bridge - kinda cool.

We made it to PA in 7.5 hours.
Pilot and co-pilot signing off now.

Urban Hike

Currently in: Wales, MA
Next Stops: Holtwood, PA; Front Royal and Madison, VA

Little did I know that Columbus Day weekend was popular at campgrounds!
I had trouble finding a place so we ended up at a cute little campground 2 hours west of Boston.  Since neither of us had ever toured Boston before, we decided to go for it and spend the day there.  We drove to a Park and Ride in the suburbs and took the T into the city.  I'm actually kind of proud we figured that out and amazed that it worked!
We decided that the Freedom Trail was the top priority.  It starts at the Boston Common.

Of the 16 places outlined on the walking tour,  my favorite stop was the old North Church.  I fell in love with the North End as it reminded me of the streets in Italy.  We had lunch at Jim and Jacqueline Rosing's (my nephew and wife) favorite restaurant and of course the requisite stop at Mike's Pastry for a cannoli.

Johnny's favorite tour stop was (no surprise) - the USS Constitution.  We both also learned a lot about our history walking through a couple of the graveyards.

Given that most of the buildings in Chicago burned down in the Great Fire, we're not used to being among structures that are over 300 years old.  And to Bostonians, it's part of daily life! Pretty cool.

I guess I'm a sucker for interesting streetscapes as well.   I took this in Charlestown at dusk when the street lights had just come on.  I loved how the different neighborhoods in Boston each have their own character.