Saturday, August 28, 2010
weekend trip to Asheville
It has been quite a while since my last entry, and it has been a long hot summer. We decided to take a quick trip in the RV to the beautiful NC mountains. We spent the weekend in the Asheville area staying at Mama Gerties Hideaway Campground in Swannanoa.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Charlotte RV Show
We decided to check out the Charlotte RV show last Saturday. It turned out to be a beautiful day to get out and we really enjoyed the afternoon poking around the various types of RVs, accessories, and other vendor at the show. LOTS of people were there, most with smaller children. Or so it seemed to us.
We arrived about 1:30 PM, and were lucky to find a parking spot close by. Tickets this year were $10. I don't know, maybe its just me, but it seems a little excessive for a show that I'm sure charges a fortune to the RV dealers and vendors, then wants you to buy stuff as soon as you enter the door.
Having been to most of the Charlotte RV shows for the past 10 years or so, it was apparent that there were many less motorhomes on display than in past years. Some of the bigger dealers were there with a few coaches. But the Convention Center was primarily filled with travel trailers, fivers, and pop ups.
It is really amazing what can be done in the confines of a 21 foot travel trailer. It is obvious that they are able to focus on specific customer segments. For example, very small travel trailers that were great for a traveling couple. Or one that had multiple bunk beds for the travelers with smaller children.
Speaking of travelers with small children, the motorhome manufacturers are on the verge of turning their back on their bread and butter business; traveling couples. The floor plans of the few motorhomes we did see seemed to have lost all sensibility in trying to do "new and innovative" things in the small space and loosing sight of common sense.
Most of those we saw with full wall slideout rooms, tend to block off the rear of the coach while underway with the slide in. This means that the designers have to accommodate the owners while underway with a half bath that can be accessed with the slide in. What a waste of space for anyone that would like more kitchen counter or storage.
But it was a lot of fun to watch people, browse through the RVs, and run into a few old friends along the way. Comming home with a renewed appreciation of our 2005 Bounder may have just been worth the $20 price of admission.
We arrived about 1:30 PM, and were lucky to find a parking spot close by. Tickets this year were $10. I don't know, maybe its just me, but it seems a little excessive for a show that I'm sure charges a fortune to the RV dealers and vendors, then wants you to buy stuff as soon as you enter the door.
Having been to most of the Charlotte RV shows for the past 10 years or so, it was apparent that there were many less motorhomes on display than in past years. Some of the bigger dealers were there with a few coaches. But the Convention Center was primarily filled with travel trailers, fivers, and pop ups.
It is really amazing what can be done in the confines of a 21 foot travel trailer. It is obvious that they are able to focus on specific customer segments. For example, very small travel trailers that were great for a traveling couple. Or one that had multiple bunk beds for the travelers with smaller children.
Speaking of travelers with small children, the motorhome manufacturers are on the verge of turning their back on their bread and butter business; traveling couples. The floor plans of the few motorhomes we did see seemed to have lost all sensibility in trying to do "new and innovative" things in the small space and loosing sight of common sense.
Most of those we saw with full wall slideout rooms, tend to block off the rear of the coach while underway with the slide in. This means that the designers have to accommodate the owners while underway with a half bath that can be accessed with the slide in. What a waste of space for anyone that would like more kitchen counter or storage.
But it was a lot of fun to watch people, browse through the RVs, and run into a few old friends along the way. Comming home with a renewed appreciation of our 2005 Bounder may have just been worth the $20 price of admission.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Spring (trip) is just around the corner!!??
It was a cold day in Lake Wobegon. Oh, wait. That is from Garrison Keillor.
It's been a cold month in Monroe. This has been one of the colder winters in recent memory anyway. I can't wait for it to warm up some, soon. We were planning a trip to south Florida and the Keys for mid February, but that just didn't work out; too much going on at work and too much going on at home.
The recent passing of a close Aunt of mine after a long illness put another damper on this winter. While she will be missed, we have come to realize what a strange and debilitating disease Alzheimer's is.
On top of that, the Lutherans are having their share of problems as well. And, no that is not a quote from Garrison Keillor. Well, it really is, but I'm saying it too. The recent decisions and actions of the 2009 ELCA Church Wide Assembly has caused our congregation to think twice about remaining a member congregation of the ELCA. The real problem is that there is no other good organization for us to join at this time.
But unlike Garrison Keillor's Minnesota Lutherans in Lake Wobegon, I am really, really ready for a vacation in a more southerly clime. Someplace warm. Someplace quiet. Someplace relatively devoid of Lutherans for a couple of weeks. (Pastor Fink if you happen to read this, please take it as intended.) I think Key West pretty much fits that bill.
We currently have reservations at Blue Water Key RV Resort, MM 14 Highway 1 for the last week of April.
I really do not want to wish time away. Time comes and goes much too fast anyway. It seems not that long ago that a bunch of us boys were playing in our yards. Playing in the woods. Playing. Not playing video games, or personal music devices, or Twittering, or DVRing something to play later, but just playing. We would play in the sandpile and in piles of leaves. It seems like we always had a good time. Parents scheduling "play dates" for kids was not something anyone had even thought of at that time. I don't think we even had much in the way of so called organized athletics. Maybe the boys in Monroe had Little League or something, but not us; that was for city kids. A Pee Wee Football team was eventually organized at our elementary school, but that was after I was already gone from there. Yet, without all that "parenting" (if that is even really a word) we did manage to develop social skills, and friends, and learned how to behave, and got our exercise, and came in for supper, and in the summertime went back out again after supper to play until way past dark.
And last Monday, standing in the sunny chill of a February afternoon, most of those that I had played with were nearby, their sons standing next to me in the pallbearer line at my Aunt's funeral. So I really do not want to wish time away. But I sure wish it was warm and we were with the cat in the RV on the way to Key West.
It's been a cold month in Monroe. This has been one of the colder winters in recent memory anyway. I can't wait for it to warm up some, soon. We were planning a trip to south Florida and the Keys for mid February, but that just didn't work out; too much going on at work and too much going on at home.
The recent passing of a close Aunt of mine after a long illness put another damper on this winter. While she will be missed, we have come to realize what a strange and debilitating disease Alzheimer's is.
On top of that, the Lutherans are having their share of problems as well. And, no that is not a quote from Garrison Keillor. Well, it really is, but I'm saying it too. The recent decisions and actions of the 2009 ELCA Church Wide Assembly has caused our congregation to think twice about remaining a member congregation of the ELCA. The real problem is that there is no other good organization for us to join at this time.
But unlike Garrison Keillor's Minnesota Lutherans in Lake Wobegon, I am really, really ready for a vacation in a more southerly clime. Someplace warm. Someplace quiet. Someplace relatively devoid of Lutherans for a couple of weeks. (Pastor Fink if you happen to read this, please take it as intended.) I think Key West pretty much fits that bill.
We currently have reservations at Blue Water Key RV Resort, MM 14 Highway 1 for the last week of April.
I really do not want to wish time away. Time comes and goes much too fast anyway. It seems not that long ago that a bunch of us boys were playing in our yards. Playing in the woods. Playing. Not playing video games, or personal music devices, or Twittering, or DVRing something to play later, but just playing. We would play in the sandpile and in piles of leaves. It seems like we always had a good time. Parents scheduling "play dates" for kids was not something anyone had even thought of at that time. I don't think we even had much in the way of so called organized athletics. Maybe the boys in Monroe had Little League or something, but not us; that was for city kids. A Pee Wee Football team was eventually organized at our elementary school, but that was after I was already gone from there. Yet, without all that "parenting" (if that is even really a word) we did manage to develop social skills, and friends, and learned how to behave, and got our exercise, and came in for supper, and in the summertime went back out again after supper to play until way past dark.
And last Monday, standing in the sunny chill of a February afternoon, most of those that I had played with were nearby, their sons standing next to me in the pallbearer line at my Aunt's funeral. So I really do not want to wish time away. But I sure wish it was warm and we were with the cat in the RV on the way to Key West.
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
Texas and Louisiana
We just returned from a 16 day trip from NC to Texas - Austin & Corpus Christi, then along the coast of LA to Southern Lousiania (Acadiana.) So many folks on this forum helped with suggestions and info, I wanted to give a brief trip report.
We drove pretty hard over 2 1/2 days to get from NC to near Austin. We left home in NC Friday night after work, and on Sunday afternoon we pulled into Cottonwood Creek RV Park in Dripping Springs TX. This is a nice little park in the edge of hill country between Austin, Blanco, and Fredricksburg. The owners are on site and will do everything possible to make your stay perfect. It is a quiet place with a good laundry facility, nature trails, and each site is hard packed gravel and well maintained and beautifully landscaped. It was the perfect place to call home while we visited the area. By the way, the WiFi worked flawlessly the entire week providing an excellent high speed internet connection.
On the following Friday, we took a big loop drive through the Guadelupe River valley to Lost Maples State Park. This was very scenic drive that included a stop in Fredricksburg for lunch at a German bakery. We also made a stop in Luckenbach, just to see what it looked like. (We did not see Willy, Waylon, and the boys, but did see a motorcycle rally taking place.)
Saturday we made a day trip to San Antonio to take in the Riverwalk area and El Mercado. The Riverwalk is fun but rather expensive if you are going to try to have lunch there or shop. They have continued to expand it and you can easily spend a half day there just walking through the area.
El Mercado is another story. We walked from the south end of the Riverwalk area across the Old Town Plaza down a few blocks to where we heard the music. Several live stages, lots of import merchandise, and plenty of local street food vendors make for a very festive atmosphere. Next trip, we may just go there and spend a half day watching the activities, listening to the music, and sampling local cusine.
On Monday we left Cottonwood Creek after a full week there and drove all day through the pouring rain to the Corpus Christi area. Our next stop was Mustang Island State Park in Port Aransas. The beaches there are beautiful despite the recent Red Tide. Most of the beaches were clean. The most interesting thing about the area is the hard packed sand beach which is used just like a road. Mustand Island SP is a large paved parking lot on the island between the dunes and the road, but was good for us for a couple of days. Pioneer and Gulf Waters are in the same area and may be more suitable if you are looking for more aminities. Both looked nice from our ride by.
We also took the time to drive south to the North entrance to Padre Island National Seashore. What a beautiful and pristine Gulf Island that is. We stopped at the Malaquite Beach camping area overlooking the beach, and the nice visitors center. We continued to drive several miles down the beach after the road stopped. Even though this is a beautiful spot, we were disturbed by all the trash that had washed up on the beaches. I'm not sure if this is a seasonal thing due to the recent storms, or if it is always like that. But it was dissappointing, and worrisome to think that that much trash is floating around in our oceans.
After our stay at Mustang Island, we continued driving north, taking the Port Aransas free ferry, on through Fulton and Rockport, all the way to Bay City, and from there back to the beach town of Surfside Beach, Texas. The beach road from Surfside Beach to High Island through Galveston was quite an experience. The roads are in good shape along the beach and the 2 ferry was quick and easy and no problem for the motorhome and toad. We were not even the largest rig on the ferry with large 18 wheelers using the ferries too. The devastation left by Hurricane Ike 2 years ago is unbelievable!
There is a toll bridge going into the Galveston area on Hwy 87. It costs $2. What was a little wierd, was that it has a toll collection box like one of drawers you find on a bank drive through, that the toll taker pushes out for you to put your money in. From the drivers window of the motorhome it was about 5 feet down. With the wind blowing at about 20 knots, those 2 $1 bills would have still been going! Yet when the toll taker came out to get the 2 bucks from me, he fussed at me saying he was not supposed to come out and take the money. I'm still not sure what I was supposed to do other than park the MH in the lane blocking traffic, get out and go pay.
From several miles south of Galveston, and on the entire route north out of Galveston, the devastation from the recent hurricanes is still very evident, and pervasive. We stopped over in Port Arthur for the night before getting underway the next morning.
We took Highway 82 from Port Arthur all the way along the Lousiaina coast to Abbeville LA. Before getting on Hwy 82 in Port Arthur heading East along the beach, be sure you have enough fuel to get you to Abbeville LA. Again it was a very isloated coast road, and whatever business were there before Ike are now only clean cement pads and driveways. Entire subdivisions, stores, businesses have been blown or washed competely away. We saw many many mobile homes and RV type trailers that have been brought in, many of them sitting on the spot where a house was before the hurricane.
Finally in Acadiaina, we stayed at the Cypress Bayou Casino in Charenton LA. It was an outstanding bargin at $10 per night, and they give you $10 each credit for the casino. The park is very well maintained, paved sites with patios, picnic tables and a shuttle to the casino. We actually took the $10 credit (it is on a casino card that can only be used in the electronic gaming machines) into the Casino and walked out with $40! So the place was a real bargin!
On our day off, we toured around southern LA, driving all the way down to Cocodrie at the very end of Hwy 57 out of Houma LA. Down the bayous and lakes the road goes until it simply stops at the waters edge. So different from the east coast. It is truly a "working" coast with shrimp and fishing boats everywhere, oil riggers, barges, fabricators, and water everywhere.
Back at the casion we were ready to pack up and head back to NC. The only problem we had all week in any of the RV parks we stayed in was at the Cypress Bayou RV park. There was a group of construction workers staying there. Saturday morning at 2:00 AM the ruckus started. Fighting, drunken cursing, and profanity for about 2 hours before they passed out and got quiet...then started again at 9:00 AM Saturday morning. Security guards didn't do anything about it. When we left Sat morning we called the RV park office to let them know. We were promised a call back by the manager but they never called. Had it not been for that it was a nice place and I would consider it again betting that our experience was an isolated event.
In summary, Texas Hill country is awesome, can't wait to go back and really spend some time there. The Texas coast is a great place to visit, however it is different from Florida or the Atlantic beaches in SC. Cajun country is very interesting and a place you definitely want to see and sample the cusine, but the LA roads are bone jarring and have to be among the worst in the country.
We drove pretty hard over 2 1/2 days to get from NC to near Austin. We left home in NC Friday night after work, and on Sunday afternoon we pulled into Cottonwood Creek RV Park in Dripping Springs TX. This is a nice little park in the edge of hill country between Austin, Blanco, and Fredricksburg. The owners are on site and will do everything possible to make your stay perfect. It is a quiet place with a good laundry facility, nature trails, and each site is hard packed gravel and well maintained and beautifully landscaped. It was the perfect place to call home while we visited the area. By the way, the WiFi worked flawlessly the entire week providing an excellent high speed internet connection.
On the following Friday, we took a big loop drive through the Guadelupe River valley to Lost Maples State Park. This was very scenic drive that included a stop in Fredricksburg for lunch at a German bakery. We also made a stop in Luckenbach, just to see what it looked like. (We did not see Willy, Waylon, and the boys, but did see a motorcycle rally taking place.)
Saturday we made a day trip to San Antonio to take in the Riverwalk area and El Mercado. The Riverwalk is fun but rather expensive if you are going to try to have lunch there or shop. They have continued to expand it and you can easily spend a half day there just walking through the area.
El Mercado is another story. We walked from the south end of the Riverwalk area across the Old Town Plaza down a few blocks to where we heard the music. Several live stages, lots of import merchandise, and plenty of local street food vendors make for a very festive atmosphere. Next trip, we may just go there and spend a half day watching the activities, listening to the music, and sampling local cusine.
On Monday we left Cottonwood Creek after a full week there and drove all day through the pouring rain to the Corpus Christi area. Our next stop was Mustang Island State Park in Port Aransas. The beaches there are beautiful despite the recent Red Tide. Most of the beaches were clean. The most interesting thing about the area is the hard packed sand beach which is used just like a road. Mustand Island SP is a large paved parking lot on the island between the dunes and the road, but was good for us for a couple of days. Pioneer and Gulf Waters are in the same area and may be more suitable if you are looking for more aminities. Both looked nice from our ride by.
We also took the time to drive south to the North entrance to Padre Island National Seashore. What a beautiful and pristine Gulf Island that is. We stopped at the Malaquite Beach camping area overlooking the beach, and the nice visitors center. We continued to drive several miles down the beach after the road stopped. Even though this is a beautiful spot, we were disturbed by all the trash that had washed up on the beaches. I'm not sure if this is a seasonal thing due to the recent storms, or if it is always like that. But it was dissappointing, and worrisome to think that that much trash is floating around in our oceans.
After our stay at Mustang Island, we continued driving north, taking the Port Aransas free ferry, on through Fulton and Rockport, all the way to Bay City, and from there back to the beach town of Surfside Beach, Texas. The beach road from Surfside Beach to High Island through Galveston was quite an experience. The roads are in good shape along the beach and the 2 ferry was quick and easy and no problem for the motorhome and toad. We were not even the largest rig on the ferry with large 18 wheelers using the ferries too. The devastation left by Hurricane Ike 2 years ago is unbelievable!
There is a toll bridge going into the Galveston area on Hwy 87. It costs $2. What was a little wierd, was that it has a toll collection box like one of drawers you find on a bank drive through, that the toll taker pushes out for you to put your money in. From the drivers window of the motorhome it was about 5 feet down. With the wind blowing at about 20 knots, those 2 $1 bills would have still been going! Yet when the toll taker came out to get the 2 bucks from me, he fussed at me saying he was not supposed to come out and take the money. I'm still not sure what I was supposed to do other than park the MH in the lane blocking traffic, get out and go pay.
From several miles south of Galveston, and on the entire route north out of Galveston, the devastation from the recent hurricanes is still very evident, and pervasive. We stopped over in Port Arthur for the night before getting underway the next morning.
We took Highway 82 from Port Arthur all the way along the Lousiaina coast to Abbeville LA. Before getting on Hwy 82 in Port Arthur heading East along the beach, be sure you have enough fuel to get you to Abbeville LA. Again it was a very isloated coast road, and whatever business were there before Ike are now only clean cement pads and driveways. Entire subdivisions, stores, businesses have been blown or washed competely away. We saw many many mobile homes and RV type trailers that have been brought in, many of them sitting on the spot where a house was before the hurricane.
Finally in Acadiaina, we stayed at the Cypress Bayou Casino in Charenton LA. It was an outstanding bargin at $10 per night, and they give you $10 each credit for the casino. The park is very well maintained, paved sites with patios, picnic tables and a shuttle to the casino. We actually took the $10 credit (it is on a casino card that can only be used in the electronic gaming machines) into the Casino and walked out with $40! So the place was a real bargin!
On our day off, we toured around southern LA, driving all the way down to Cocodrie at the very end of Hwy 57 out of Houma LA. Down the bayous and lakes the road goes until it simply stops at the waters edge. So different from the east coast. It is truly a "working" coast with shrimp and fishing boats everywhere, oil riggers, barges, fabricators, and water everywhere.
Back at the casion we were ready to pack up and head back to NC. The only problem we had all week in any of the RV parks we stayed in was at the Cypress Bayou RV park. There was a group of construction workers staying there. Saturday morning at 2:00 AM the ruckus started. Fighting, drunken cursing, and profanity for about 2 hours before they passed out and got quiet...then started again at 9:00 AM Saturday morning. Security guards didn't do anything about it. When we left Sat morning we called the RV park office to let them know. We were promised a call back by the manager but they never called. Had it not been for that it was a nice place and I would consider it again betting that our experience was an isolated event.
In summary, Texas Hill country is awesome, can't wait to go back and really spend some time there. The Texas coast is a great place to visit, however it is different from Florida or the Atlantic beaches in SC. Cajun country is very interesting and a place you definitely want to see and sample the cusine, but the LA roads are bone jarring and have to be among the worst in the country.
St. Joseph Peninsula State Park - Cape San Blas, Florida
It has been quite a year from many perspectives. I have not been a good blogger. We have made several trips since our Fall 2008 trip to Chattanooga. They include:
- Two trips - March 2009 birthday trip and September 2009 - to Huntington Beach State Park SC; and,
- A quickly planned trip back to our favorite; Bluewater Key RV Resort at MM14 just this side of Key West the first week of August.
However, one of the highlights of the year has to be our spring trip to St. Joseph Peninsula State Park on Cape San Blas Florida. This is near Port St. Joe and Applachacola. Here are some pictures of that trip.
We were there the last week of April through the first weekend in May, 2009. Driving through central Georgia provided the means to begin to relax, and a week on this pristine beach completed the presctiption! It doesn't get much better than that.
We only ate out at a couple of restaurants during our trip. One reason is that we just didn't want to leave our beautiful island setting; and another being that it is pretty far to drive to get to a restaurant.
There are plenty of trails and areas on the island for bike riding, and plenty of beach for watching the sun go down. It will be nice to return there someday soon.
This was one of the most beautiful beaches we have ever seen in what has to be one of the most isolated spots in all of Florida. We stayed a week on site #40 in the beach front campground at the state park. I do hope we can return sometime.
- Two trips - March 2009 birthday trip and September 2009 - to Huntington Beach State Park SC; and,
- A quickly planned trip back to our favorite; Bluewater Key RV Resort at MM14 just this side of Key West the first week of August.
However, one of the highlights of the year has to be our spring trip to St. Joseph Peninsula State Park on Cape San Blas Florida. This is near Port St. Joe and Applachacola. Here are some pictures of that trip.
We were there the last week of April through the first weekend in May, 2009. Driving through central Georgia provided the means to begin to relax, and a week on this pristine beach completed the presctiption! It doesn't get much better than that.
We only ate out at a couple of restaurants during our trip. One reason is that we just didn't want to leave our beautiful island setting; and another being that it is pretty far to drive to get to a restaurant.
There are plenty of trails and areas on the island for bike riding, and plenty of beach for watching the sun go down. It will be nice to return there someday soon.
This was one of the most beautiful beaches we have ever seen in what has to be one of the most isolated spots in all of Florida. We stayed a week on site #40 in the beach front campground at the state park. I do hope we can return sometime.
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