August, 2024, To Virginia and Back

Destination reached, time to turn around and go home

Wednesday, August 14th, Dixie Caverns RV Park, Salem, VA

After a very restful and relaxing week at Mayberry Campground the time finally came when we had to get the wheels rolling again.

Just a short hop this time to a so-called RV park in Virginia called

This is a sort of RV park that has nothing much to offer accept a reasonably level pull through site that is nice for an overnight stay but no longer. And that is exactly how long we stayed, just one night.

The next day we were back on the road headed toward Luray Caverns. My grandson lives just 10 minutes from the Caverns, and we were going to pick him up and take him with us to our final destination.

Little did I know what was in store for me but I quickly found out. Leaving Rt81 you take Rt211 to the Caverns. In essence it is a two lane road, 7% grade, all hairpin and switchback turns. Both up and back down. Up is about 6 miles and back down is the same distance. It was 3rd gear up and down keeping the speed to just about 40 mph and no more. This was a once in life time trip for me. I’ll leave this road to the motorcycle junkies among us. It is perfect road for them.

August 15th to August 19th, Candy Hill Campground, Winchester, VA

This was our final destination for this trip. This would be home base for family time and the baby shower for my granddaughter.

About the name of the RV Park, this is how it came about, according to the park’s owner. And I quote:

The Candy Hill name comes from an interesting past. No, it is not what most guess, we are not candy givers nor are we a Christmas themed park. The truth behind the story is that years ago there was a farm house where our campground now stands and as a story book would say, there was a little girl who lived there. She had a dog who passed away and was buried on the hill behind the farm house and luck have it, the dogs name was Candy. From then on the hill was referred to as Candy’s Hill, hence our name, Candy Hill Campground. And now you know the true story!

Unfortunately, Ms Barbara forgot to take pictures at the Baby Shower but I understand it was a smashing success. Also a bit wet at times due to rain showers throughout the day. But they failed to put a damper on the party and everyone had a wonderful time.

We also spent some wonderful family time with my son Adam and his family. The young man with the black tee shirt is our grandson, Jarret. He is the one we went to Luray to pick up.

We had an opportunity to get reacquainted with our youngest grandson, Jaxon. That tongue is out no matter what he does!

We were able to also spend some time with my sister, Cindy and her husband, Charlie – that’s his knee I just got in the picture.

So, bottom line the trip was a huge success. Time with family is so precious. We’ll be going home with many wonderful memories.

Now, it is time to start rolling back toward Florida. We’ll be back on August 30th. Back to the heat and humidity. The last couple of days at the RV park we’ve been at, the morning temperatures have been in the 40’s and 50’s. Ah, so nice.

Time to roll.

August, 2024, To Virginia and Back

Baby Shower! Our granddaughter. You knew this wasn’t something we were going to miss.

OK, so that’s the reason for the trip. However, we had to get from our house in Polk City, Florida up to West Virginia where the gala event would be held.

Now the sensible course of action would have been to hop in the car, scoot on up a couple of days before the grand occasion, spend a couple of nights in a hotel and then turn around and come back home. And not so expensive, I might add.

But sometimes I can be anything but sensible. And forget the cost. No car for us, we’re going to take Elvira out for a run. Let’s see they’ll be campground costs, the cost of diesel fuel, oh just forget it and let’s go!

The trip to date.

Thursday, August 1st, to Friday, August 2nd, Kiki RV Park, Georgia

We left on Thursday, August 1st heading up out of Florida to a sort of RV park we know real well. It was an easy 4 hour drive – my way – forget the GPS. I refuse to take Route 4 and then Route 95 north, rather I make my way up Route 75, then over to Route 301 out of Ocala. Great road, a few speed traps you have to watch out for, but I know by now where they’re going to be.

This was our first stop. It’s not really an RV park but rather some RV pads the Econo Lodge put in adjacent to the motel to make a few extra bucks. But the price is reasonable, and it easy to get to from Route 95.

The pads are concrete, level, and just long enough for the rig and the car. And did I mention that there is a Waffle House within 100 feet of the park. Oh, they make a great Hash Brown Bowl for breakfast.

Friday, August 2nd, to Monday, August 5th, New Green Acres RV Park, SC

Friday morning we finished our breakfast from Waffle House, pulled in the two back slides and we were on the road in no time. We were off to our next destination in Walterboro, SC. We had stayed at the state park here once before and vowed we would never ever go there again.

So where to stay for the weekend?

We settled on an RV park called New Green Acres in South Carolina. This is one of those hidden gems. It offers easy access to the highway. It has enormous pull through sites. The sites as you can see are really no more than a dirt path but they are level as can be. The utilities are right off the wet bay.

And shade, lots of shade. It was so nice for a change to be under some trees. It was cool and comfortable. What better place to spend the weekend.

While here on Saturday we began to see pictures of our development back home and hear reports from some of our neighbors. Our development had flooded streets, the canals were up and over their banks, some docks were under water, and our house had water all around it. However, we don’t believe we had any water in the house, not even in the crawl space under. It was close, but I believe we survived. We’ll know more when we get home.

Monday, August 5th to Wednesday, August 7th, Camping World Racing Resort, NC

On Monday it was time to get on the road again. We were heading Northwest this time toward Concord, North Carolina. I had original decided to stay at a small, family campground that offered bargain basement prices. Only one problem, well really three. They had only back-in sites, they were dirt, and the sites were extremely tight. And rain was on the way. Meaning, I really didn’t want to take a chance at getting caught in the mud and possibly having to get towed out. Time to find another place to stay for two days.

Then I found this.

Oh yea! The RV park is between two major race tracks; Charlotte Motor Speedway and ZMAX Dragway. Fans of either NASCA or NHRA will know these tracks well. Thankfully, there were no events at either track this week or weekend so there was plenty of empty sites in the RV park.

We scored a pull through site with an excellent gravel base. The site was level, and the utilities were right where they needed to be. Really, so far our luck with sites has been great.

Tuesday morning we had to go into Charlotte for some lab work for Ms. Barbara and we figured while were there we might as well go to Einstein Bagels for breakfast. While here we were also starting to keep a close on Tropical Storm Debbie. It was headed our way. Yea, go figure we escape it by leaving Florida only to have it probably catch up to us here in North Carolina. Well, it didn’t hit us here but we were not spared. It got us, next stop.

Wednesday, August 7th to Tuesday, Aug 15, Mayberry Campground, Mt Airy, NC

Come Wednesday morning it was time to get the wheels rolling again. We were headed to a place we new well, had stayed out before and absolutely loved.

This is one of those places – if I had my way – I would love to spend the summer months. We’ve been here before and it didn’t disappoint then, and it didn’t now.

This is our current home. Once again a pull through site, good gravel base and level. It is not as spacious as the first site we had when we were here but it will do for the week.

And it is here that Tropical Storm Debbie caught up with us. It began to rain on Thursday night and didn’t stop until Saturday morning. I mean it rained and then some. There would be an occasional break when it backed off to a drizzle – at which time Proton and myself quickly went for a walk – but it never really let up until Saturday morning. Thankfully, the drainage all around the rig was good so we never really ended up with large puddles of water.

Today as I sit to write this blog the sun is out and the temperature is a pleasant 85 degrees, which sure beats the 96 plus temperatures back in Polk City.

We’ll be here a few more days. here We’re just chilling. Watching the Olympics, reading some books we brought with us, going out for an occasional meal, doing some preventative maintenance, and taking walks around the campground.

Life is good, and we give thanks every day for the blessings we have and the wonderful life that is ours.

More to come. Have a great weekend.

Part Eight: Hubbard Glacier

Our cruise was almost over but there was one more significant attraction on the list of things to see. That would be the Hubbard Glacier. We were scheduled to swing by it for a first hand view.

There are, as I mentioned in an earlier post, an estimated 27,000 unnamed glaciers in Alaska and some 600 that are named. This is, of course, one of the later.

The Hubbard Glacier is 200 miles northwest of Juneau, Alaska. My research tells me that the glacier is reported to be the largest tidewater glacier in North America. It is 76 miles long and an estimated 6 miles wide.

The Hubbard Glacier is said to be 600 feet at its terminal face, – 350 feet above the waterline and 250 feet below the waterline.

As our ship moved into the bay where the glacier was located I was up on the bow with a whole group of people. I remember thinking that I had been transported to another world. One that was so quiet, So other worldly. So magnificent. The glacier appeared so untouched. So cold. Yet, so fragile.

Our captain brought our ship I believe within about 2 miles of the glacier. He kept maneuvering the ship so that both sides of the ship were able to see some spectacular views of the glacier.

There was a group of people from our ship who went on a special excursion and were able to get an even closer glimpse of the glacier. I’m sure this was one of those if you need to ask the price than you can’t afford it excursions. But I can dream maybe the next time.

That little black dot in the center of the this picture is their excursion boat. They are way in, among the bergs that have broken off previously from the glacier. I kept wondering how big were the size of some of those bergs. No doubt you are just seeing the tip of the iceberg!

No matter where you looked the scenery was over the top. What an amazing and beautiful place to visit. I’m so thankful I had the opportunity to do. The beauty and the grandeur of the mountains and the glacier just take your breath away.

All too soon we were on our way out of the bay heading toward Seward where we would depart the ship. However, our time in Alaska was not done yet.

Part Seven: Icy Strait Point

Another new port and more new adventures. But what kind of adventures? Not as many exciting ones as we had first imagined. Or maybe we were getting tired of scooting off the ship, running around like silly tourists and then hurrying back to get on the ship before it sailed. Speaking of which, did you hear of the family of nine who were late coming back from an excursion because their bus never came to pick them up? By the time it was all said and done it cost them $9,000 to get back home. Forget catching up with their ship, they just wanted to go home. True story. The cruise line is now working with them to refund them some of the money they had to lay out.

OK, like always I’ve gotten off track. Let’s get back to this port of call. Icy Strait Point I discovered was originally built to house a salmon cannery and at one point in time was the largest salmon Packhouse in Alaska, producing a whopping 152,505 cases in one year. It is located in Alaska’s largest Native Tlingit village, the village of Hoonah. It is owned and operated by the Honnah Totem Corporation and all profits from the restaurants, tours, shops, etc. directly support the local community. Moreover, it is considered a cruise destination and so only open when a ship is in port.

This is the Green Gondola– called the Transporter – that we came to and it is free. This will take you up to the Adventure Center. Here you will find gift shops, a restaurant and rest rooms and

the second gondola called the The Sky Glider. Tickets cost $50 per person and that allows you to ride it as many times as you want in one day. In my opinion, stick to the green gondola.

This is a view from the base center looking up the mountain along the path of the Sky Glider.

This is a view from almost the top looking back down the mountain. The ride starts out fairly flat, then becomes very steep very quickly.

We rode to the top with our good friends Dan and Betty.

The Sky Glider ride is about 7 minutes in length and up at the top the view is really impressive. The whole time we were in Alaska and I never tired of looking at the mountain ranges that surrounded us. They continued to impress wherever we went.

We, however, had come to the top because we had tickets for the Forest Excursion.

This is the tram that carried us into and back out of the forest. I later learned that this tram and a couple of others like it were once used to bring tourists to the top of the mountain. However, once the Sky Rider Gondola was installed the question became: What to do with it. Well, somewhere along the way someone came up with the idea to repurpose it and use it for a so-called Forest Excursion. And so another excursion was added to the mix which became another source of revenue.

I found this sign sort of interesting in that in Florida the signs warn you about alligators. But here in Alaska it is all about the bears.

About the Forest Excursion ride,, honestly, I was not impressed. It was about an hour in length and the day was beautiful so the ride was pleasant.

After all how many trees can one really look at. After awhile they all begin to look the same.

As for wild life, this was it.

So that was it for gondola’s and excursions. But we weren’t done, not by a long shot, we had more exploring to do.

The rumor was that if one took a walk along the beach front you could possible spot a whale or two in the waters offshore. So off we went.

Sadly, this was the only whale we spotted on our walk.

But then I spotted it and my eyes lit up. It being

the Icy Strait Museum! Now this was my kind of place. What did I find inside? Here’s a glimpse.

The Alaska State Flag and how it came to be. Designed by 13 year old John Bell Benson aka Benny. He designed it while a seventh grader living in an orphanage in Seward, Alaska. For his design he won a gold watch and $1000.00 – the money he used toward tuition in diesel mechanic school after he graduated High School.

About the flag itself . . .

the field of blue is for the Alaska sky and the Forget Me Not, Alaska’s state flower

the North Star in the upper right is for the future of the State of Alaska, the most northerly in the Union

the eight gold stars form the the consolation Great Bear symbolizing strength

the flag was flown for the first time on July 9, 1927

I discovered that there are five common types of fishing trawlers used in Alaska but this was the type that was used by the fisherman of Icy Strait Point.

I learned about the fire that destroyed the village of Hoonah.

While the village went about the rebuilding process, the villagers lived in the salmon cannery.

Speaking of the Salmon Cannery,

There was also a reproduction of the Salmon cannery processing line with detailed and informative information on each step in the process.

Suffice to say, as in the past when I’ve visited museums all over this great land, I was like a kid in a candy store. The day had been salvaged. If you ever do take a cruise and find yourself in Icy Strait Point do take the time to visit the museum. You will not be disappointed.

So back to our ship we wearily trudged. It had been a full day and for us a lot more walking than we typically do. But it had been a wonderful day. The weather was picture perfect. We had discovered many new things. However, I don’t believe I have any great desire to visit Icy Strait Point again. It felt like, and indeed it was, simply built to attract tourists. However, when two ships are in port it really doesn’t have the resources to handle the huge amount of people that flood ashore.

So, back on board little did we know that the best was yet to come. Take a look

A wonderful rainbow

An unnamed glacier – it is estimated there are 27,000 glaciers in Alaska and of that number 600 are named.

And much later that night a spectacular sunset. Ah, how grand is the cruising life. I’ll probably never see the three together again. But I did this time and I’m still smiling.

Time to get some sleep as our ship slips silently through the night waters to our next destination.