Savannah, GA

We took an extra day on the way home from North Carolina this trip to visit Savannah, GA. We stop at a no-frills campground in Hardeeville, SC on our way to and from North Carolina and it just a twenty-minute drive down Highway 17 to downtown Savannah.

I lived in Savannah for two years while stationed at Hunter Army Airfield in the late sixties. It was fun to drop by the areas I remembered from that time. There are many changes of course, for example the row house my apartment was in has now been combined with several others to be an inn. It is called The Savannah Bed & Breakfast Inn on West Gordon. We got a chance to walk through it and plan to return sometime and stay there. It is just around the corner from Forsyth Park. We parked on the square and walked the area. It is amazing how beautiful the area is, though it was largely lost on me as a 22 year-old Vietnam returnee.

119 West Gordon. Fond memories from the 60s.

The lobby of the inn that now incorporates my old apartment.

Mrs. Wilkes’ Boarding House was a mainstay eatery for me then, and it was nice to see that it was still operating under the ownership of Mrs. Wilkes’ granddaughter. We found no waiting (unusual most times of the year) so we went in and were seated with seven others at a large table. We were a mix of visitors and locals. Three were from England, two from Atlanta, two owners of a men’s wear shop on Broughton, and the two of us from Florida. The family style setting is conducive to mingling and having a nice conversation, and it all starts with “pass the peas”. The fried chicken was every bit as good as I remembered, but there was also beef stew and pork. There were more sides than I could recall as I write this. There were twenty some odd bowls on the table. When done you clear your own plates and take them to the kitchen. What a great time it was. If in Savannah, and the line is not down the block, give it a try. Just remember it is cash only.

So much food; so little time.

When we were here a few years ago the campground at Hunter Army Airfield had just opened. We found it to be a mud hole that time, so we thought we would drive through and see if things had been improved. Turns out they have not. If you have a large RV and are not into “rustic” camping I would pass on Lott Island Campground at Hunter AAF. There is one site, #16, which seems high enough and was dry. The remainder did not seem suitable for our needs and were muddy despite two clear and warm days since the last rain.

Black Mountain, NC

Today was our free day to go see the countryside. We hoped to see fall colors along the drive to Black Mountain. We awoke to the sounds of a light rain falling on the roof of the RV.  It was forecast to rain all day so we were concerned that the rain would spoil the day.

Nothing could dampen the beauty of the drive up highways 74 and 9 from Flat Rock to Black Mountain. The narrow and winding road took us through tunnels and canyons of color; such vibrant reds, oranges and yellows.

There are two nice acoustic instrument shops in Black Mountain. Acoustic Corner favors violins, guitars and the like. The even had a gorgeous stand-up bass. The other is Song of the Wood, and they feature Appalachian instruments like Hammer Dulcimers, Mountain Dulcimers, and Psalterys. They also had an assortment of harps. Our reason for visiting was to see if the Mountain Dulcimer would be of interest to Barbara. Our interest was peaked by the dulcimer players at Lakewood. Sure enough, Barbara was intrigued and we left with a beautiful piece of wood working art and a set of accessories a beginner would need.

Song of the Wood

 

 To celebrate we had lunch at The Veranda. If you visit Black Mountain this is a must stop for lunch. The Hungarian Mushroom soup was dynamite and really hit the spot on a chilly, rainy day. We have been good for a few weeks, but fell off the ice cream wagon hard with a visit to Kilwin’s.

It was another beautiful drive as we retraced out steps to Lakewood RV Resort to let Bella out for a walk. No sooner were we back to the RV than Barbara was hard at practicing with her new instrument.

Terrific day. You have to love North Carolina in any season.

Lakewood RV Resort, Flat Rock, NC

This blog was initially prepared so that family and friends could see what Barbara and I were up to while we were on the road. It now has a bit wider audience and includes people traveling by RV interested in finding information about what to see and where to stay. So for those folks I thought I would expound a bit on the Lakewood RV Resort here in East Flat Rock, NC.

Lakewood is a family owned 55+ community. The owners, and their children’s families, live in homes on the property. The park is divided into a section of park models and a campground. The park models are arranged on the ridge bordering the campground, and the entire area is very well maintained. The central structure houses the office, laundry, shower facilities, as well as a recreation hall, dining area and kitchen. For the long-term residents there is a small mailroom. The lower level has three apartments. The spacious deck of the upper level overlooks the large pool and shuffleboard court.

Three apartments, rather than cabins.

 

During the summer season there are many organized activities, but now the summer regulars have moved on and the pool is closed. I was lucky to be invited to sit in on the practice session of the four remaining dulcimer players that form the nucleus of a group of over a dozen players that provide concerts on the porch through the summer months.

This is our fifth visit this year, and while the seasons have changed, the friendliness of the residents and cooperative nature of the staff have not. This has been a wonderful place to stay, relax, and feel welcome. We look forward to our next visit in December.

East Flat Rock, NC

As planned, we travelled the back roads rather than the interstates today from Statesboro, through Augusta, to East Flat Rock, NC. It was a gorgeous drive. There were a couple of smaller towns where we had to go through narrow main streets, but that was the exception, and they were very charming communities. Mostly it was wide-open farm country and very scenic. The one drawback is that for the most part there is no shoulder to pull off on if a mechanical problem came up. We are very happy we took this route on such a perfectly clear day.

We arrived at Lakewood RV Resort around four o’clock and set up in our spot. As we climbed the grade and crossed the Eastern Continental Divide we were a bit disappointed that the fall colors were muted. Too early, we thought. Well, we were rewarded in the campground. The trees lining the RV site roads were a sight to behold.

We have now sampled all four seasons in East Flat Rock.

Same spot in February. Much better.

Barbara has classes starting in the morning and at some point Bella is going to attend with her. We want her to look her best for school, so we took her to a nearby DIY dog wash. It is a nice set up and beats trying to wash her in the small on-board shower, but Bella is never keen on showers or baths. Strange. At home or at the dog park you can’t keep her out of the pool.

Not a happy camper.

Once setup chores and dog grooming were done we had time for sundowner wine and cheese for two, and a new bone for one.

Statesboro, GA

Yes, I am late getting back to the blog. To be honest we have been doing the same ol’ thing each month, at least as far as travel goes. Our monthly trips to Hendersonville, NC for Barbara’s dog training course have continued and I can only say so many nice things about Lakewood RV Resort in East Flat Rock. It is very nice, but it would be repetitive.

With the severe rainfalls in South Carolina earlier in the month we thought we would try a different path to avoid transiting Columbia. They were badly affected by flooding and there were many road closures making traffic there miserable. Until just a few days ago I-95 between Florence and the I-16 turnoff was closed. The closure lasted about a week and routed north-south traffic up I-20 to Columbia and then down I-26 back to I-95. That was about a 120-mile detour and added greatly to Columbia’s traffic woes.

We elected to take friend Jerry Crawford’s advice and take I-16 up to Statesboro and continue cross-country to intercept I-26 north of Columbia. So far that has been a great plan. We are stopping in Statesboro, GA for the night at the Parkwood RV Park. Reviews were good, but the Google Earth satellite view was a bit sketchy. It has turned out to be a great little campground. The original property was a fifties vintage motel, and it is still in operation and looks cute. At some point the neighboring field was converted to an RV park. The grounds are all grassed with small hedgerows growing between them. From the road it does not appear to be much due to the storage of RVs on the first row along the highway. Once you turn in you find it is actually a little gem of a park. They have a pool, laundry facilities and sell propane. There is a restaurant nearby, The Boiling Shrimp, which the staff says has gotten good comments from visitors. We will not be trying it tonight, but will keep it in mind for future visits. There will likely be another visit because it is on the logical route to visit the aforementioned Jerry Crawford.

Office. Watch for it. It comes up quick after the Ford dealer heading north.

Motel portion. They have newer cabins, too.

Six overnight pull-thrus adjacent to owners home.

Longer term sites.

Storage area detracts from the "curb appeal", but look beyond it.

Very happy with our site.

Wish we were staying a little longer to see the area.

Oh, and the staff here are real nice. This place will go on our repeat visit list!

Fort DeSoto Park, Day Four

This was another day on the water. We took another route, and this time I remembered to bring the SPOT satellite messenger to track our progress. We got on the water earlier today, which was nice since it was a bit cooler. We found a small island rookery where pelicans and anhinga were nesting their young. There was a steady stream of birds bringing food to the nests, and a steady chatter of noisy baby birds calling for more. We were also treated to a mother dolphin and her very young calf. It looked like the mother was teaching the youngster to fish, but as small as the fin was on the baby she might have just been catching fish for it.

We started packing up the camp gear, for we leave for home in the morning.

Fort DeSoto Park, Day Three

We got out on the water today and had a great time. It has been a few years since we were on the kayaks, so it took a little while to get the paddling rhythm back. We were out for a few hours and enjoyed seeing the park from waterside.

Good fishing here in front of the camp store.

Back to our forested camp site. You can hardly see the motorhome.

Beating the Florida summer heat.

The vet called and said that Bella was doing very well and could come home early. Barbara picked her up and brought her back to the RV. She gets along reasonably well, but the steps up and down while getting into and out of the RV are a little hard on her. She looks like one very sad dog with her system full of painkillers and her left hindquarter shaved. She has the benefit this time of having the other hip repaired and strong. For the first surgery that was not the case, so recovery was hard. She will be out running at the dog park again, but I imagine that it will still be a month away. We will see.

While Barbara was at the vet I set up my HAM radio rig on the picnic table. It took a little while to get the antenna up. It might be the denseness of the trees here, but I could not get the antenna tuned well. It was so hot and humid I finally packed it all back up. The Tarheel antenna I am installing on the back of the RV will hopefully allow me to do some radio work in the comfort of the RV instead of out in the elements.

Fort DeSoto Park, Day Two

Today was the day for Bella to go to Tampa Bay Veterinary Specialists for her second hip surgery. She and Barbara left early this morning for the ride to the vet and I was concerned that she would remember this place from last time and be upset. Barbara said far from it, she walked right off with the technician looking as happy as can be. Do you suppose she remembers this as the place she gained the ability to finally run with the other dogs and swim? Hope so, for that would mean she understands that the discomfort following this surgery will be rewarded with less constant pain and even more mobility.

We took her to the dog beach yesterday and she had a ball running with the other dogs and swimming out to see the kids and adults in the water. A cell phone camera was not enough to capture her antics, so the few shots I got were when she finally plopped down in the water to take a break.

Bella making new friends

Today is Barbara’s birthday. We had friends over for dinner last night to celebrate, and it turned out that one of the guests has his birthday this week also, so we had even more reason to celebrate.

All the sites are this private. You can hear, but not see your neighbors.

We got a nice walk on the beach before the rain started and chased us back to the RV. Tomorrow we hope to get the kayaks in the water. This is a great place to paddle and we can launch right here at our campsite.

Fort DeSoto Park, FL

Our foster Golden Retriever, Bella, is scheduled for her second hip surgery this week. Since the surgery center that is performing these surgeries is in Largo, FL  we elected to make arrangements to stay at one of our favorite parks, Fort DeSoto Park. It is a wonderful Pinellas County park near the northern end of the Skyway Bridge. It is a large park with about six miles of beautiful gulf beach, a large campground, and a large boat ramp that provides quick access to Tampa Bay and the Gulf.

Campsites vary in size, and are heavily treed. Lots of shade, but avoiding the trees getting in and out can be sporty. As with docking boats at the marina, backing into these sites becomes a spectator sport and we gathered a small crowd of neighbors. While it took several minutes to get in Site 142, we did manage it without damage to paint or trees. Yea! That has not always been the case here for use.

Tight squeeze

Room in back for kayaks, though, and easy water access

I had hoped to do some final tuning to the Tarheel antenna, but it and the ladder are buried in Palmetto fronds. That also blocks access to the ladder for doing A/C maintenance, which was another item on the list.

The ladder and antenna are in there somewhere, honest

A big reason for bringing Bella here is the Dog Beach and Dog Park. We want to give her a chance to go wild a bit before being laid up from the surgery.

Field Day in North Carolina

The last weekend of June each year is the Amateur Radio Relay League’s annual Field Day. Field Day brings amateur radio operators (HAMs) out into the field to operate for a continuous 24-hour period under conditions similar to what they would encounter if they were called upon in an emergency. Power must be from a source other than the normal electrical grid, so generators and solar are brought into play. The goal is to reach as many other radio operators on as many different frequency bands as possible, and using as many different modes as possible, such as voice, digital, and morse code. For HAMs it is a time to get outside and have fun. I would normally join my club in Orlando, but since I am in North Carolina this weekend I am helping the Blue Ridge Amateur Radio Club operate out of Jackson Park in Hendersonville.

We spent the morning setting up antennas, tents, and power to be ready for the official start at 2:00. It rained like crazy around 1:00 but stopped just in time to get back on the air by 2:00.

Assembling the Hex Beam antenna (Home Made).

Six meter antenna (Home Made). First contact was in Mexico!

High Frequency Vertical Antenna (Made by Hustler).

Home made loop antenna that worked remarkably well.

Two Field Day constants: food and rain.