Thanksgiving With MAE and Then We're Westward Ho!!

     Oh yea....I remember now why we chose this nomadic lifestyle.  I'm pretty sure the main reason was to stay away from this!!!  But the plan is to make sure we're with one of the kids on the important holiday, and for now Thanksgiving is with MaryAnne in Plattsburgh.  Actually, it probably worked out pretty well for me.  It was a good reminder for Debbie on how nice it is to be chasing 70 degree weather around the country.
    But we've had a fantastic time wandering around the South, and enjoying the sights and sounds that we've been lucky enough to encounter.  Seems like there's a new adventure around each corner.  A little tidbit I just picked up on Mayberry, the site of our recent visit.  Do you know the reason everyone was so happy in Mayberry?  It was because they were all single!! Andy, Aunt B, Barney, Goober, Thelma Lou, Floyd, Howard, Ernest T Bass, the Darlin Family, Clara.....everyone!  In fact, the only one married was Otis, and he was the town drunk!!!  But I digress....
     We arrived in Plattsburgh without any incidents, after driving 2 days in a mild snowstorm.  Just below Albany, we broke out of the nasty weather, and sailed north on I-87.  Of course we were pretty anxious to get together with MAE, since we didn't get to really say goodbye when we left in such a hurry to get out of town.

     We had a great time meeting her new beau, Tony and his son Gage.  We probably should have borrowed a 6 year old for MaryAnne years ago....they seemed to get along splendidly, and she now has someone to play with while Tony makes dinner and does the dishes!!  Kinda reminds us of Bernice!!!

     During our visit, Debbie and I drove up to the lake and checked camp, and swapped a few things out that we wouldn't need the rest of our trip.  We had a nice visit with the neighbors, picked up MAE's Christmas tree, and took a few last looks at the lake before heading back.  It sure looked cold!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

                   

We certainly are fortunate being able to travel as we do.  It will look much more inviting in about 6-7 months.  Back down through Chazy, we picked up a few quarts of maple syrup from Angela and David Swan who run the business Homestead Maple.  They weren't around during our visit, as they have an "honesty bucket" in their sugar house, and trust all their customers.  I would much rather deal with Angela than with Dave, when they're figuring out the bill!.                                                                                   

     Tony treated us to some homemade spaghetti sauce, which we enjoyed tonight as I was writing this blog in Tennessee.  As a payback, I showed him how to fry a turkey.  MAE picked up a nice 12 lb Butterball, and when Tony got in from work, it was just about ready to go.  I injected it with some Cajun Butter to give it some pop, and just a little seasoning for color, and it was ready.  

        From the table, and into the fryer, and then the technical stuff goes on which guarantees a perfect turkey.  That amounts to grabbing a cold beverage, and monitoring the temperature of the oil.  Pretty technical stuff.  

     In the end, a wonderful Thanksgiving meal was enjoyed by all, and MAE put together quite a day.

Mimosa to start the festivities, and to get us through the parade, and a delicious pumpkin pie to finish us off.  

      On Saturday we said goodbye to Plattsburgh, and headed back to Staunton, VA, where we had left Big Red.  We had been forced to winterize the RV because of a cold front passing through, and we wondered if we had done everything correctly.  Upon arrival, we gave Big Red a quick check and everything looked fine.  Today we drove over into Tennessee, putting about 300 miles behind us.  Two days of holiday traffic, sharing the road with a bunch of NASCAR drivers, can certainly wear you out.  The rest of the trip should be a cakewalk.
     We have a little over 2200 miles to go before arriving in Santee, CA, and seeing Liam and Jamo......and Joanne and Ben.  Looks like we've got a pretty good weather window in front of us, so we shouldn't have any weather problems.  I know Debbie is getting pretty excited!    

Visiting Mayberry, and a Little Bluegrass in VA

     What a great visit we had with Kathie and Brian, Brian's mom Elaine, and brother Kevin.  Plus we scored a terrific spaghetti dinner, as Brian introduced us to Bucatini, a thicker hollow spaghetti.  Brian simmered his sauce all day, the wine flowed freely, and conversation around the table was quite tame.  We were all on our best behavior since we had an adult at the table.  We caught up on all the gossip from home, then headed back to the park knowing we had to get ready for our big day tomorrow.
     The next morning, we headed for historic Mount Airy, NC, more affectionately known to my generation as "Mayberry".  Of course Mayberry, home to Sheriff Andy, Barney, Opie, Aunt Bee, and a host of other characters, was only make believe, and grew out of the memories of Andy Griffith and his boyhood days in Mount Airy.

     The show, filmed entirely in California, used local Mount Airy landmarks to create the illusion of Mayberry for TV.  Andy could be seen reading the Mount Airy newspaper, common street names were used in the show, and of course Andy and Barney made frequent visits to Mt. Pilot, aka: Pilot Mountain.   Of course we had to visit the Sheriffs Office and the jail cell made famous by the town drunk Otis.  Otis is actually from Massena, NY and we found his classic suit and hat in the nearby Andy Griffith Museum. 

     We found Floyd's Barber Shop, and Guber's filling station. We had hoped to tour around the entire community in Barney's patrol car, but it was down for some maintenance.  Maybe we'll get to do that next time.  But as the song goes: "If you don't know where you're going, every road will take you there."  So we'll continue to visit these unique locations, and enjoy our Going to See America.
     Our next move pushed us northward, and we settled in at the KOA at Staunton, VA.

It is a nice campground, and the office staff was very pleasant and even saved us $50 by reminding us of our KOA points.  As you can see, we do tend to rough it when we're wandering around.  My GMG grill is smoking away in the background with some chicken getting ready to go.  Life is tough.
     The reason we are here is to attend the First Inaugural All American Indoor Music Festival in Fisherville, Va.  The festival, which started on Thursday, included 3 days of bluegrass and country music, and featured various artists from the local area to professional TV performers.

     One of our favorite bluegrass bands, Nothin Fancy, were scheduled to perform 2 shows, and we were looking forward to that.  I've talked about them in previous blogs, but they always put on a great show and you never know what they are going to do.  They really seem to enjoy themselves, and I'm sure we'll travel a few extra miles if we're close to any of their venues.  After the show, I hustled over to their table and purchased their newest CD and later on, I grabbed one of their t-shirts.  Debbie just rolls here eyes every time I come home with a new shirt.

     Rhonda Vincent and the Rage closed out the show on Thursday night, but last night we were treated to a 90 minute show by Dailey and Vincent as the closer.

They put on a high power show, and never faltered for over 90 minutes.  And they really seemed to be enjoying themselves, and that fact was reflected in the response of the audience.  Their 4 part harmonies were pitch perfect, and every member of the show had something to contribute.
     We've got one more music venue scheduled during this adventure, but I would bet that a few more may pop up.    

       As we came out of the show last night, we immediately noticed a drastic change in the weather. Yesterday morning, the weather was a pleasant 67 degrees, but now were were looking at right around 36!  Actually, we knew the weather was going to turn nasty on us, and we had made plans to deal with it.
     We had always planned on leaving Big Red somewhere here down south, and drive the Jeep back to MAE's for Thanksgiving.  But now we were looking at a massive cold front sweeping across the country.  Temperatures were predicted to be in the 20's (yikes!) for the next few days, and we didn't dare leave Big Red parked without doing some winterization work first.  We had hoped that we wouldn't have to, but there was no way to escape this cold.  So yesterday morning, as Debbie made all the preparations for going north, I went shopping for some little gizmos to get the water out of the rig.
      After searching through Staunton for over an hour through Lowes and Aubuchon's, I finally located an RV dealer with a parts store that had everything I needed.  I had decided to use Big Red's built in compressor to blow the air out of all the lines instead of adding RV antifreeze to the system.  The video I watched looked pretty easy.  After finding the connector to screw into the water inlet, Debbie and I spent about the next hour getting all the water out of Big Red.  We also drained the water heater, and replaced the anode.  No problem at all.  Now we can safely leave Big Red without worrying about water lines freezing and bursting and causing big problems.  This morning we headed north from Virginia,...destination Plattsburgh, NY.  And this is what we ran into as we crossed through the mountains of Pennsylvania and arrived in Binghamton, NY.

 This storm even forced a few motorcycles off of the highway.

      So tonight we're hunkered down in a very comfortable Fairfield Inn, The storm is scheduled to wind down tonight, and we'll be up in Plattsburgh tomorrow without any problems, 1 day earlier than we had originally planned.
     Happy Thanksgiving everyone.  And let me suggest that when your family starts arriving for Thanksgiving dinner, you leave a basket near the front door, and have all your guest leave their cell-phones in the basket.  It may lead to some lively conversations around the table!!!
                                                                                         

Our week at Cross Hill, then up to Mayberry

     Today, 11/15/16, we said goodbye to the Lake Greenwood Motorcoach Resort, knowing that we will definitely be returning.  We came down here with the intention of just relaxing for a few days, and we certainly enjoyed our time here.  The weather cooperated with us, and except for the smokey conditions from the fires up in North Carolina, we have had a pretty nice week.  On Saturday we drove over to the Twin Rivers Landing & Rentals, and rented a pontoon boat for 4 hours, to give us a better perspective of the lake.  The smoke was a little thick on the lake, but other than that, it was a very nice day.  Weather was nice and warm, and the lake was calm.  It was a little interesting getting under a couple of bridges though.  Up north, we tend to pass under bridges in the middle.  Down here they seem to have raised just a section of two of the bridge, sometimes right up against the shore, and that's where you cross under.

We were given a good briefing at the dock, but it was a little disconcerting as we approached the first bridge.  All your instincts said to stay out in the channel, but the instructions were to hug the shoreline.  "Don't worry, they dredged the channel" we were told, as we started out in a boat with a nice new prop.  Four hours later we were back with about 5 minutes to spare, and the prop looked just like new.  We also had a visit from 2 of these guys, and they made Veterans Day just a little more special.

     Sunday we received a nice long rain, which the area desperately needed.  It was too bad the rain did not stretch up far enough to help with the fire fighting up in NC, but they needed it here also. Interestingly, I found a great book down in the library in the clubhouse, and I was able to finish it off in 2 days.  I haven't done that in years.  

     Monday we went out for a ride, making a stop at the local Post Office to mail out a package.  Inside the Post Office, we found this waiting for us.  

It has been quite some time since we've seen these types of PO boxes.  The good old fashioned kind.....with a combination instead of a key.  The Post Mistress thought I was nuts when I asked if I could grab a picture.  Reminded Debbie and I of a simpler time in our lives.  

     Outside the PO, I spotted a monument dedicated to the Confederacy.  If you travel around down here in the South, you get a better appreciation for their feelings toward the "Northern Aggression".  

      This monument was erected in 1902 by the United Daughters of the Confederacy.  The UDC, which still exists today, are the continuation of the Daughters of the Confederacy from Missouri, and the Ladies Auxiliary of the Confederate Soldiers Home in Tennessee.  These organizations date back to the 1890's.  I think it's important for this organization to continue telling the story and keep the Southern heritage alive. 

      

     This afternoon we arrived at the Mayberry Campground in Mt. Airy, NC.  and got our spot on Opie Taylor Ave.  For those of you who aren't grasping the significance of this particular location, let me explain.  Mayberry RFD was a TV show from the 50's and 60's, still in syndication today, starring Andy Griffith as Sheriff Taylor, his son Opie, and a host of other characters living in small town America.  We learned every lesson in life necessary to make it in this world, along with Opie, as we grew up. So now we are here visiting the town we all grew up in, on TV.  I'll let you know how it all turns out, but I think it's gonna be a blast.

      And as a bonus, our friends from Mooers, Kathie and Brian are here visiting Brian's mother.  So we'll get to have a little visit with them tomorrow over in Mayberry.                                

Lake Greenwood, SC

     On Tuesday 11/8, which was Election Day, we departed Crossville, TN, where we had made a visit to The Gardens RV Community.  The Gardens are located up on the Cumberland Plateau, and is a housing community that specializes in building RV garages with their homes. There are about 170 homes in the community, each one with an RV garage, and there were numerous others in the construction phase.  The residents were extremely friendly and we were given 2 nights free camping, which we always enjoy.  We picked up some great ideas and perhaps there may be a new RV garage going up on Chateaugay Lake.
    We arrived at our new home over on Lake Greenwood near Cross Hill, SC at a motor coach resort called Lake Greenwood Motorcoach Resort.

This resort has privately owned lots to buy or rent, and overlooks Lake Greenwood which boast over 200 miles of shoreline.  All sites are paved, and vary in costs depending on the view of the lake.  Peak season here in SC is summer, so we had no trouble getting in, and the hosts say we can stay all winter if we'd like.  We've had temps in the high 70's the last few days, and it would be tempting.  But I would bet that Debbie would insist on going west to San Diego.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    This is how we like to spend the evening watching the sun go down across the lake.  We've been on the road about 2 weeks now, and this has been our first opportunity to stop and enjoy this wonderful weather.  We're located a little off of the beaten path, but it was definitely worth the journey over here.  We're not sure if we should keep this place a secret, or let our friends know of this place.

      It does have the restriction of only allowing Class A RV's here, and that may sound a little snooty, but the people here are extremely friendly, and love to stop and visit.  It really is comforting knowing the "rif-raf" won't be your neighbor tomorrow.   This place has all the amenities:  clubhouse, heated pool, jacuzzi and outdoor cooking area.  We really could get spoiled here.  We found a place up the lake to rent a boat, so tomorrow we're going to rent a pontoon boat and see what this lake has to offer.
   

     Today we ventured over to the Ninety-Six National Historic Site, which was the scene of several battles from the Revolutionary War.  Actually this site was more of a civil war type confrontation instead of a Revolutionary War site.  This area of South Carolina was deemed important since it guarded access to the west from the Charleston area.  British Loyalists and Colonial Patriots fought several battles prior to any formal army ever arriving in this area.

      For our friends who travel I-87 in NY, you will recognize the name Thaddeus Kosciuszko.  A bridge spanning the Hudson River is named after him.  We were surprised to read about his role in the siege of the Loyalist's Star Fort, built near the town of Ninety Six. Col. Kosciuszko was a Polish native, and had been trained in Europe in the classic siege type warfare.  A siege typically involves surrounding the enemy's position and slowly cutting it off.

Under the directions of Col. Kosciuszko, the patriots started digging parallel trenches from a distance of about 200 yards, toward the fort.  Eventually, according to plan, the trenches would allow the patriots to get close enough, with cover, to eventually storm the fort.  Unfortunately, reinforcements for the British garrison were due to arrive, and the attack occurred before the Patriots were ready.  A force of 50 Patriots attempted to storm the fort, but were unsuccessful in their attempt.  The Patriots had to abandon their siege on the fort with the pending arrival of 2000 British soldiers from Charleston.      Clearly visible today are the star shaped mounds which were the original outer walls of the Star Fort, along with the trenches used to approach the fort. Eventually the fort was abandoned and the town of Ninety Six was burned as the British fled back to Charleston.
     I forgot to mention the results of the election. Probably doesn't mean much today, but it will be interesting reading about this in about 20 years. Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in a hotly contested presidential election.  Two days later, the country is still in an uproar!  The Democrats are pretty pissed off, accusing the Republicans of a "whitelash", and being a bunch of racists.  Lots of friends aren't talking to each other right now, but I'm confident there will be a smooth transition of power on January 20, 2017.  And that's all I'm gonna say about that,
      We'll be here in SC through next Tuesday, when we move back north into Virginia. We have plans to attend the All American Bluegrass Festival, and that is really going to be fun.  Then we'll be heading up to Plattsburgh for Thanksgiving with MAE.  Boat ride on Lake Greenwood tomorrow.  Should be a great day!
                                                       

Touring Charlottesville, VA

    Today is Day 11 of our Going to See America 2017 escapade, and we're sitting comfortably in the KOA Charlottesville, VA.  We've been on the run nearly everyday, so today we've decided to rest and catch up with ourselves.  More importantly it gives me the opportunity to update our adventures.  As I mentioned previously, Virginia is full of touring opportunities and Charlottesville is no exemption.  So on Sunday we departed Mount Jackson but stopped to revisit the New Market Battlefield, and the Virginia Museum of the Civil War.

The museum has some terrific artifacts and a wonderful display of the weaponry used during the war.  The Museum also has a 45 minute movie that demonstrates the role of the VMI Cadets in the Battle of New Market.

      We safely arrived at our campsite at the KOA, and within a few minutes I was meeting the neighbors and planning out the night's Happy Hour.  Our neighbors to the left were new to the RV lifestyle, and had just recently purchased the Tiffin Vanleigh 5th Wheel. They were also retired LEO's and I knew we were going to get along just fine!

     On Monday, Debbie and I returned to Skyline Drive in Shenandoah NP, and toured the bottom portion of the park.  We found the colors a little more vibrant, and the addition of numerous evergreens to the forest, made the drive extremely pleasant.  We also had a nice visit with Liam from CA, who was in quite the talkative mood.  And when Ben mentioned that Liam had rubbed his eyes and it was time for a nap, we both swore Liam replied, "but I'm not tired yet!"
     The traffic was minimal, even though the RV parks seemed to be full of  "leaf peepers", and we had a nice picnic at one of the numerous overlooks highlighting the Shenandoah Valley below.

      As we sat there enjoying the afternoon sunlight streaming into the Jeep, we couldn't help but think back 155 years, when massive armies, some with over 100,000 men and equipment, moved north and south through the valleys below.  And all the devastation and destruction that was left in their wake.  We drove slowly north on the Skyline Drive hoping to glance a black bear or a deer crossing the road, but we didn't get that lucky.  Debbie seems to have a sharp eye for wildlife, but she didn't come through for us this time.  We left the park about 1/3 of the way up from the southern entrance, and worked our way back to the KOA.  Monday had been a success, and we looked forward to our next adventure.
      On Tuesday we eased into the day, enjoying a nice breakfast at our campsite.  Debbie did some laundry and I worked on planning our next week in VA.  We decided to take a late lunch at Michie Tavern, which is located a short distance from Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson.

The menu included southern fried chicken, pork barbecue,  stewed tomatoes, (to die for) and buttermilk biscuits!  The staff were all dressed in period garb, and again, minimal crowd made for a very enjoyable lunch.  Debbie even met a celebrity on the steps leaving the tavern.  In the picture above, Debbie is in the pink shirt and the gentleman to the left is Joe Kendra, AKA: Homicide Hunter, on the Discovery Channel.  Fortunately, he wasn't investigating a homicide at the tavern!  After lunch, we played tourist in the gift shop, before returning to the campground and prepared a nice evening fire.  Then we had to get ready to tune in the World Series and root for the Chicago Cubs, who haven't won a World Series in 104 years!  (Spoiler Alert: they won Game 7, in Cleveland; in extra innings!)
 



     On Wednesday we jumped in the Jeep, and headed over to the Manassas National Battlefield Park in Manassas, VA.  This battle is also known more commonly

as the Battle of Bull Run.  Actually 2 major battles occurred here a Bull Run, and the Confederates were victorious in both instances.  The 1st Battle of Manassas, was the 1st major battle of the war since the attack at Fort Sumter which occurred in April 1861.   In July 1861, the Union Army of nearly 35,000 unseasoned troops departed Washington to seize the railroad junction in Manassas, VA.  This was a vital railroad link, which the Union believed would lead to the capture of Richmond and put a quick end to the war.  A Confederate Army of 22,000 troops also moved north to secure the railroad at Manassas.  Additionally, an additional Confederate force of 10,000 men, was moving north from the Shenandoah Valley to assist.

     Accompanying the Union Army south from Washington, were spectators, who anticipated a quick battle and end to the Civil War.  The battle last only 1 day, and in the end, the Union forces limped back to Washington in full retreat.  And the legend "Stonewall Jackson" was created.  A monument to Jackson is featured prominently out on the battlefield, placed there by the State of Virginia.  Union and Confederate casualties exceeded 4700 men, and the war would drag on for 4 more years.
   

      Yesterday, we jumped ahead 4 years, and toured the Appomattox Courthouse National Park, which was the site of the surrender of Lee's Army to Grant in April 1865, and the beginning of the end of the Civil War.  Lee's Army had fled south from Richmond and Petersburg, with the Union Armies led by Grant, in close pursuit.  For 9 days, the armies battled until all escape routes were blocked near Appomattox.  On April 9, 1865, Lee had no choice but to surrender or face annihilation.

At the McLean residence, the 2 generals met for 90 minutes to work out the terms of the surrender. Three days later, April 12, 1865,the Army of Northern Virginia stacked their weapons, and began their journeys home.  Tragically, on April 15, 1865, Lincoln was assassinated, just 1 day after receiving a report on the details of Lee's surrender, by his son Robert.

   After completing our tour around Appomattox, we continued into the village of Appomattox, and visited The Museum of the Confederacy Appomattox.  Inside the museum we found extensive exhibits of photos, letters, and uniforms.  General Lee's sword, worn at Appomattox, is on display, along with his uniform jacket.  There are multiple displays and photographs showing the devastation of the campaigns against the southern cities.

      The State of Virginia has done a remarkable job of preserving the numerous Civil War sites around the state.  After touring the multiple Museums, we have a better understanding of the emotions still surfacing in the South over the issue of the Confederacy.
      Tomorrow we are heading into Tennessee for a few days and then down into South Carolina where we are going to rest and relax along the shores of Lake Greenwood.  I apologize for the length of this page, but as you can see, we've been pretty busy visiting these historic sites.  And that seemed to be one of the reasons we're making this journey.