Cherokee Foothills Scenic Highway, SC

Six-thirty came pretty early this morning. It was in the low forties overnight here in the hills of northern South Carolina, and we did not turn the heat on before going to bed. The coffee maker started grinding away right on time to have us up and ready for the service technician’s arrival, but we were snug under the comforter and it took a while for me to muster up the courage to get up and bring two cups of java back to bed. But hey, a guy has to do what a guy has to do. (I also turned on the heat)

Wayne, great guy and he knows his stuff.

Wayne showed up a little after eight to take the coach into the service bay, so we headed off to Mr. Waffle! I don’t know about you, but we think there is nothing quite like breakfast at a country diner.

After breakfast we decided to explore the Cherokee Foothills Scenic Highway. This is SC Hwy 11 and it winds its way up to Gaffney from the Georgia border. We did not have the time to travel the whole 115 miles each way, but we saw that there were some interesting old bridges within a reasonable drive. I wish I could say we had a nice day for the drive, but it was drizzling with low clouds that obscured any scenic views. It was nice countryside for a ride, though, and the bridges we found were cool. Two of the four we saw were not really accessible; you had to admire them from arms length. The other two, on the other hand have been incorporated into small park settings and were quite nice.

Campbell’s Bridge, built in 1909, is the last covered bridge in South Carolina.

Can't keep the girls out of the water.

The Poinsett Bridge was built in 1820 on what was then the state road from Greenville to Ashville. Today it is preserved, but not restored, miles away from the interstate that now connects those two cities.

The coach service was complete when we returned, so we bundled up inside to spend a grey afternoon with a good book. Tomorrow we will head back to Florida with a planned stop once again in Hardeeville, SC.

Gaffney, SC

It is February, so this must be Gaffney, SC.

Yep; we come to the Freightliner Service Center each year for our annual chassis service. Who knows this chassis better? They built it! We do it in February to take a shakedown run before our spring trip, which is usually started towards the end of March.

The last two years I showed pictures of the parking area we stay in overnight when we get here. I wised up and will show you some of the people that make it happen here. Here is Pat who handles appointments and acts as cashier, so she gets you here and then gets your money. She is a great person to talk to when you are trying to figure out what you are going to need to have done. She is very knowledgeable, and VERY nice.

Pat keeps everything sorted out!

Yesterday we drove to Hardeeville, SC and got set up before the rain started. We headed over to the home of Nina and Archie Sellew for dinner as the rain started. It got pretty nasty eventually, but wow, was dinner worth it. It is always a treat to visit Nina and Archie.

We got back to the RV to find that the bedroom slide seal is allowing water intrusion. This started in early December while I was at Ft. DeSoto, but I thought it was a function of the high winds that accompanied the rain. Now I know it is just a damned leak, and one that needs to be addressed or it will cause damage to the interior. We pulled the slide in to stop the leaking, but in the process scraped all the water off the side of the slide on the way in and dumped even more water on the carpet. Yuck, when it rains it pours, right? It rained all night and early morning. It sounded great on the roof, but kept me wondering where the water would be coming in next.

We had a good drive up to Gaffney. Most of it was under dry skies, but it is raining once again and expected to continue through the night. Yes, the slide is in.

St. John's River, FL

We got a little fishing done! Curt Anderson invited us out for an afternoon on the St. John’s River. 

Captain Curt

The shad were running and he thought it would be fun for us. He is out fishing several times a week, so he let us catch the fish today. Barbara and I tied at five shad apiece, but she says she got the biggest one. It was hard to argue since it did not quite get all the way into the boat to tell. Should we count those? 

I also caught two sunfish and a speck, so I am declaring myself King of the River for the trip.

Use both hands, Curt. I think I have a whale!

Oh, another shad. It FELT like a whale!

We loved the chance to get out on the water. Thanks Curt!

Mercedes Ready to Tow

Well, we finally got the towing equipment installed on Mercedes, our 2005 Wrangler Unlimited. On New Years Eve we had Camping Connection in Kissimmee, FL remove the Air Force One (AFO) auxiliary braking system from our Honda Pilot along with the Blue Ox baseplate that the towbar connected to. We elected to do this rather than buy a new Air Force One system that would have allowed us to pull either vehicle. These systems are quite expensive, so we decided to reuse the one from the Honda.

We returned on January 7^th to have Camping Connection install the Blue Ox adapters and the Air Force One. Blue Ox produces these adapters for those who wish to fabricate their own baseplates or modify existing third party bumpers to use with the Blue Ox towbars. We chose to do the latter after discussions with Blue Ox technical support. The adapters were mounted inboard of the shackle mounts of the Bestop HighRock bumper on the jeep when we purchased it. It is a solid 3/16 steel frame mounted bumper built to support winch operations. It is plenty tough enough to act as a towing platform. At this time we had the electrical and air fittings mounted to the lower edge of the bumper. Enough slack was left in all lines to allow these items to be relocated to the top of the bumper once a winch is installed and suitable mounting locations could be determined. For now they are in a more exposed location, but our off-roading will be limited until other modifications such as a suspension lift and winch are installed.

Below the adapters are the breakaway switch, air fitting and light hookup.

AFO Operating Unit under hood.

AFO Brake Actuator attached to brake pedal.

Completed hookup.

Ready to Roll!

The thirty-mile test tow back to storage proved everything works as well as with the Honda. Next month will provide another checkout as we take the coach to Gaffney, SC for annual maintenance service.

New Addition to Our Travel Family

After several months of searching I finally found and purchased a 2005 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon to tow behind the motorhome and explore western state trails. The 2005 and 2006 versions of this vehicle were recommended to us by seasoned off-roaders  for its wheel base length and engine and transmission combination. The Unlimited version has ten inches longer wheel base and a bit more leg room in the backseat. Unlike the 2007 and later versions, this Unlimited is a two door and has a straight six engine rather than the newer Jeeps V6. The Rubicon model signifies that it has upgraded off-road capabilities over the standard Wrangler.

It turns out that this particular vehicle is a Sahara model, as well. This Unlimited Rubicon Sahara trim package was built to publicize the Universal Motion Pictures film Sahara. One thousand numbered versions were built, and this is number 486. That does not make it run any harder or perform any better off-road. It just makes her another pretty face.

We call her Mercedes. We have friends who have purchased incredible Mercedes sports cars at this stage of life. This is all the better we could do to keep up. But hey, the top goes down and we can enjoy the open road just like them.

OK, their tops go down by themselves at the push of a button, and they do get twice the fuel economy. I will give them that.

Mercedes

Fort DeSoto, FL Day Five

The weather today had a hard time making up its mind as to what it really wanted to do, but in the end it turned out to be pretty good. There was enough sun to dry things out so I took the opportunity to put most of our carpets and other camp accessories away while they were still dry. Storms were forecast and I dread putting wet gear in the storage bays since there is not much airflow and I did not want to get that musty smell that never goes away. Now if it rains tonight there is only the BBQ stuff and some chairs to worry about, and they can go in the Honda to be dried out at home. Oh, wait, the dog. Well I need to have room for Nia so I will enlist Curt help to take some of the damp items home for me.

Curt got a couple of trips out on the kayak chasing fish today, and for the most art it was sunny. I got out for a little exercise on the kayak too. As usual I did not start the mapping app when I left so this only shows the return trip. It was about four miles round trip, so it felt like exercise with the bonus of being a great time.

As the clouds started to roll in late in the afternoon Curt and I took a moment, and a beer, to consider dinner. 

Steaks won! They were terrific!

Heading home tomorrow.

Fort DeSoto, FL Day Four

A great thing about last night’s campfire was leftovers. Today we had a reprise of last night’s pizza and it was every bit as good as it was last night.

The weather changed on us today. The sun never really came out, and by noon the wind was blowing pretty strong. We went over to the two fishing piers and Curt got a line in the water, but had no luck. We also tried the deep water beneath the access bridge, but again not even a strike. The flag in the background of this shot of Curt is a very large “Garrison”. It takes a good bit of wind to get this flag going, but as you can see it looks starched. The wind must have been 18-20 knots.

Barbara continues to enjoy her river cruise, and according to this Life360 App screen shot she is in Austria.

This evening we drove over to Ted and Linda Seefeldt’s home for a nice lasagna dinner. Once there the weather really got nasty. Luckily we were eating under the cover of their pack patio. The lightening put on quite a floorshow, but we did not get wet at all.

Tomorrow and the next day are forecast for more storms, so we will see how much we will have to write about.