Headed south to warmer? weather

Just realized we haven't been updating our location--oops!

Well, we got to Wakarusa late Weds. afternoon and Thor got our RV into the repair bay bright and early Weds. morning.  They found the problem with the slide, ordered the part that they said was bad, and are replacing it, hip hip hooray!!  Most of Wednesday was spent on errands in Goshen.  Liemon wasn't ready to come back to us Weds. afternoon, but he will be ready Thursday morning. 

The roads all lead to Wakarusa, or so it seems!

New River Gorge where we should be staying tonight and Tuesday!

I'm bummed!  Lieman has a slide issue so we had to by-pass West VA today  to head towards the Thor Service Center in Wakarusa, IN.  Fortunately they can look at it Weds. morning. Appreciate Lowes in Chillicothe, Ohio letting us spend the night in their lot.

Thanks to the fog and a little tree color we saw some pretty scenery as we crossed the Blue Ridge Mountains.  See pictures below.  Some long climbs led to some slow going in the RV.

Historic Jamestowne

The remnants of the Amber plantation house built in the 1750's in Historic Jamestowne.  The house was burned in 2 wars, and after a 3rd fire in 1895 it was abandoned.

Historic Jamestowne was where the first English Colony was established in 1607.  Not to be confused with Jamestown Settlement, located 1 1/2 miles away, where for $25 you can see a re-creation of the settlement and ships.  I thought Historic Jamestown was run by the National Park system, and according to a website, free with a lifetime senior pass.  Not sure if this is a new development or not, but it's co-operated with a VA volunteer group and the fee is now $12.50.  We did come to see it on Saturday so I  coughed up the dough.

Our last day on the Outer Banks!  We went as far south as we could go on the OXB to Hatteras.  To go further we would have had to take a ferry to Ocracoke Island.  We received a warning on our phones regarding a 12:30 p.m. detonation of a WWII era bomb on the Seashore near the Cape Hatteras lighthouse today, and to avoid that area. 

"Let's go fly a kite, Up to the highest height!"

What a grand morning!  Sometimes it's the simplest or smallest things that bring the most joy, and in this case, also memories.  We went back to Jockey's Ridge State Park this morning, and yes, flew a kite.  We watched several hang gliders.  It looked like they each might have had an instructor that held on to a tether to keep them from flying away, so they didn't go far off the ground.  Several other people were flying kites and, like us, just walking around the dunes. The weather was perfect, upper 60's, sunny, and breezy.  We finished the day with the best smoothies at "The Spot."

"You don't spit into the wind." Anyone know the song this came from or who sang it?

Tuesday started out as a "task" day.  We love Krikkit but she sure makes everything stink.  Time to clean!  I thought I'd start on the outside of the car getting the bugs and tar off.  Like most RV parks, washing vehicles is a no-no, so then we headed out for a car wash.  By the time we were done at the car wash the morning fog had lifted, so we headed down south in the Outer Banks.  Not a lot of housing, both because it's narrower in parts and a lot is protected land.

Jockey's Ridge State Park

sand dunes at Jockey's Ridge State Park, NC

The Wright Brothers National Monument in Kill Devil Hills, is about 3 miles east of our campground.  Four miles south of there is Jockey's Ridge State Park.  We visited both on Monday.

Beeeeep...

Krikkit's tether

Beeeeeep!  Heard it momentarily when Pat was getting gas, and then again when we started driving.  As with all sounds that are unusual, it's short and then silent when I get up to look for it.  

Surfside City had some good waves coming in.  It was our first stop on Weds. and not nearly as many people here as other beaches had on the previous days.

We have toured so many beaches this week, maybe 16?  Monday we went from Sunset Beach, NC down to Myrtle Beach, SC.  Tuesday found us starting at Holden Beach, NC and going up to Wrightsville Beach, NC.  Weds. we started at Topsail Beach, NC and ended the day at Emerald Isle.

I won't get one (just the lots are over $200,000 ) but I love the colorful beach houses.

I love the colorful beach houses.

 On Tuesday we went up the coast checking out several beaches.  Next week we will be staying at a campground in northern North Carolina.  Monday we traveled south from our campground and we began checking out some beaches in northern South Carolina, as well as the lower to middle beaches in North Carolina.  Why are we spending so much time on these beaches?

 

Over the weekend our 9 year-old granddaughter took an unconventional route out of their treehouse.  Found out today her arm is broken.  It doesn't require a cast but she will be in a splint brace for 6 weeks.  She's a little monkey so it will be a hard 6 weeks for her.  According to her, the worst part is she can't participate in P.E. class.  Fortunately it's her left arm and she's right-handed.

 At the end of this month we will finally go to Topeka, IN and they will install our theater seating.  My back can't wait!  At the same time, our RV seems much more spacious without anything in that spot, particularly when we are traveling and have the slide opposite of it retracted.  The new seating will actually stick out 2-4" more into the hallway than the original couch, which will make walking through the coach with the slide in tighter.  With the foot rest out all of the way it will be tight walking through the hallway even when the slide is out. We feel comfortable recliners will make it worth it!

The sign at the visitor center before we went on our walk.  I'm thinking it should have been at 6!

Thursday we arrived at the Santee Koa in Santee, SC.  We are staying here for 2 nights, specifically to go to Congaree National Park.  To be honest, I wasn't very excited about visiting this national park.  First, the only camping is walk-in so we are staying about an hour away.  It's a relatively new national park, getting that distinction in 2003.  It protects the largest tract of old growth bottomland hardwood forest left in the United States.  I wasn't sure if it would be very interesting actually.  I had read that almost 80% of the park lies within the flood plain for the Congaree River.  Would there be anything to see?

Drifting on up...

 

Driftwood Beach

Wednesday we moved on up to Georgia, another state I can add to my map.  Jekyll Island campground is our home for the night, and within walking distance to Driftwood Beach.  The driftwood has formed over years of erosion.  On the island you will also find Georgia's only sea turtle educational and rehabilitation facility, and lots of shops and restaurants (due to Covid and time we skipped these).  The island is mostly tourist resorts and attractions.

Good grief, we went from "Mount Rushmore" to an "orange" on our license plate!

We were able to stay at Harvest Hosts through Alabama.  Thanks to Corbin Farms Winery, in Calera, AL, for letting us spend Saturday night.  We appreciated their hospitality and wine!  They were also right off the interstate, making it easy to get there.

S'mores anyone?

We enjoyed having Zia, Cyrus and Samira spend time with us in CT.

 

Thank you to our Harvest Host, Goodwater Vineyards, Mosheim, TN for allowing us to spend Fri. night.  They have tasting rooms in Mosheim and Gatlinburg.  The hosts were super nice.  Coming in on I81 was very narrow.  We would recommend coming in on 321 (Parrotsville), the way we left.  It was secluded at the vineyard and a quiet night.  We woke to a beautiful view.

🎶Blue ridge mountains, Shenandoah River...🎶

Looking down from where we parked for the night is the lavender garden with the mountains in the background.  The store is on the left

Only we're in Virginia tonight, not West Virginia!  Anyone know who sang this song???