Camp Lake Jasper, Hardeeville, SC

As promised, we are back at Camp Lake Jasper in Hardeeville, SC. We stopped in here last Wednesday on our way to the Asheville area. This park is only three years old and they have done a wonderful job on their infrastructure. The laundry and bathhouse are both very nice, as is the pool. There is a nice deck area looking over Lake Jasper, and they offer rental kayaks. All of the roads are nicely paved, which is great.

 

There is a small camp store and free morning coffee.

Site 15 was pretty level and offered lots of space.

The laundry and bath house flank the very nice pool.

Nice deck overlooking Lake Jasper.

Disney, take note. This is how you ask folks not to swim in your lake.

Nice community fire pit.

It is not without problems, though. Our only complaint is the surface of the individual sites. Rather than crushed rock they used course sand that washes away in heavy rain. This leaves a substantial crown to at least the pull-through sites where we were. Enough sand washed away after the strong rain when we arrived last week that Barbara twisted her ankle when she stepped out of the coach. It is also tricky to get level since the sites drop off a good bit on the ends. We have seen coaches with the front wheels well off the ground. We are a shorter coach and managed to just barely get level on site seventeen. A previous visitor had sunk into the sand and left a large rut for us to navigate. We asked for a different site for our return today and are happy with site fifteen. The deep rut is still there on seventeen.

I talked to the very nice woman at the counter and she says there is new management. Revamping the sites with crushed stone is planned for this year. They have purchased a tractor to perform site maintenance. This is all good news, and we will plan to return in November. If you are reading this for ideas of where to stay in the Hardeeville area keep this place in mind. It is a very nice place if you don’t mind messing with leveling issues. It is an easy stop over when traveling I-95.

We have also stayed at the Hardeeville RV Park on Okatie Highway. It is $15 per night cheaper, not near I-95, and has no amenities at all. It is very convenient to Savannah, though. We will likely stay there again at some point since it is closer to friends that we like to visit as we come through here.

Postscript: 
After writing the above we took Bella out for a post-dinner walk. We found a nice trail that goes back in to property belonging to Jasper County Park. Along the way we disturbed a good sized gator. So, if you come with a small dog be vigilant.

Chimney Rock and Lake Lure, NC. And others.

We had a free day today and used it to goof off and see a little more of the area. Last night we drove to Black Mountain to join some of Barbara’s dog training friends for dinner at the home of Dr. and Mrs. Rechtine. Glenn and Joann recently completed their new home, and it was a pleasure to share their gorgeous view of the mountains.

 

View from Glenn & Joann's deck. Town of Black Mountain in background

We were not out that late, but did enjoy sleeping in this morning anyway. We took Bella out for a nice long walk, and then loaded her up for a drive in the country. We enjoy the back roads in this area. They travel through forest and apple orchards, and wind and twist their way through the mountains. We drove through the attractive community of Chimney Rock and stopped at Lake Lure to enjoy the lake views and let Bella take to the water. She was having fun in the water, but the local ducks were not too pleased. She wanted to get closer to the ducks and in her enthusiasm pulled Barbara in to the lake. Luckily she kept her balance and only ended up with an unintended wade in the muck and was only wet up to her knees. Bella on the other hand was soaked and happy as can be.

 

The Lake Lure beach was popular.

Before the ladies got wet.

We worked our way back towards Flat Rock by way of Columbus, Saluda and Tryon. It was scenic two lane roads all the way. It was a pleasant outing. If you happen through this area, and find yourself in Tyron, stop at the Huckleberry Restaurant for ice cream.

 

Bella watching as Barbara orders at Huckleberry's.

We start back towards home tomorrow by way of Hardeeville, SC. We will not be stopping at our normal campground since they were full through August second. We stopped at Camp Lake Jasper on the way up, and will do so on the way home as well. More on Camp Lake Jasper later.

East Flat Rock, NC. Yet again.

We are back in North Carolina for a reunion of the participants of last year’s dog training course. We had the day together before Barbara went off to a dinner with her friends, so we started with a fantastic Greek omelet at Kosta’s Restaurant in Fletcher, NC. We followed that up with a visit to the Sierra Nevada Brewery adjacent to the Asheville Airport.

The Brewery tours are evidently pretty popular, at least in the summer, because it turned out you needed reservations and they are booked about six weeks out. Bummer. We did the self-guided tour and had a good time anyway. They have a very large taproom and restaurant, but as nice as a beer sounded, it was still a little early for us to start drinking. We will save that for next time.

The Sierra Nevada Brewery story is one that I like. A couple guys start home brewing beer in their garage back in 1989 and after getting a couple of recipes right they thought that they might try to do it on a larger scale. They bought a storefront in Chico, CA and put together a ten-barrel operation. That grew and a taproom was added. Soon they were importing a salvaged 100-barrel brewing system from Germany. That facility was eventually doubled, and when demand continued to outstrip production, they built this beautiful new 200-barrel brewery here in North Carolina.

In this age where so many are looking for government handouts, or blaming everyone else for their financial situation, it is nice to read a story of a couple guys who went out there and made something happen. Thanks to them, not only were hundreds of jobs created, but also we all have some damned good beer to drink. God bless ‘em.