Back on the farm

So how do I begin to describe tonight's campground? Let me start with it's beginning.... about 35+ years ago, a farmer and his wife decided to make part of their farm into a campground along a fishing stream that runs through their acreage. As the years went by, they added more campsites, and a couple of bathhouses to expand the operation. They sold their cows and turned their old barn into a "rec center" while renting out the rest of their property. Now they still have a few horses, a couple of llamas and goats, and some peacocks.

Since then, little has been done to change the campground. On the newer portion, they built a mini-golf course & playground (which look like they're at least 20 years old) and a picnic shelter. The bathhouses are pretty much the same as when they were built. The "rec center" looks like an incredibly bad youth room, with very old leftover couches and chairs lining both sides (where the stalls used to be) and a bunch of old tables in the middle. There are no games in this rec center, but several dilapidated antique sleighs and buggies. I believe they may still do hay rides with some of them occasionally.

I came upon this campground by what I thought would be convenience. We'd been on the road for about 6 hours today, traveling from Wytheville, VA (where we stayed at a very nice campground in the middle of a gorgeous western portion of Virginia)and it was darn hot! I wanted to get as close to Harrisburg, PA as possible today so we have less driving tomorrow to get to the town where my writing class begins on Monday. As soon as we crossed the PA border though, I knew I was hitting my wall. So out came the good ol' Woodall's directory of camps. This one was close and cheap, so it appeared to be a good place to stay for the night.

It was 6 miles off the interstate - not too bad until I realized that it was almost all driving through the town of Chambersburg. Then when I got to the campground, I realized I would need them to take a check - no way was this place going to have credit card capability. A very nice old lady greeted me at the door to her "office" - the old farmhouse where she lived. She showed me where my campsite was on her nice hand-drawn chart of the campground that was covered with old plastic to make it last. All around the camp there were hand-written signs.

So off I went around the barns to cross the road to find my campsite - which was taken. I wound my way through the campground to get back to the farmhouse so I could ask for a new site. She pointed across the field to where my next one was, and said if I crossed either of the one lane bridges, I missed it. Well, I couldn't find a campsite there to save my life. Thankfully a golf cart came driving by, with what I thought was this woman's husband. Turns out he's another retired farmer who works there. I told him my dilemma, and he said that someone was in this campsite too. OK - 2 strikes... 3 and I was going to get back on the road and head on up to Carlisle. When he called the owner on his cell phone (yes he had one!) she said they were supposed to be gone. I'm thinking there are way too many people taking advantage of this 84-year-old lady who isn't going to be driving around the campgrounds to see who actually leaves when they're supposed to. Her 86-year-old stone deaf husband isn't going to either. I wonder how many people pay for 1 night and stay for 3? Or more?

Anyway, golf-cart-man found a site for me, and helped me back in, only to find the hook-ups were on the other side and no way was my cord going to reach. So I had to pull out yet again, turn the Beast around, and pull in nose-first. With all this time, I could have driven another 30 miles and been set up in a site in Carlisle.

BUT now that I'm settled, it is quiet (the tractors hauling hay have stopped for the night) and it's a cheap place to stay for the night, and I'm helping to support an old farm couple. Plus it's a lot more interesting to talk about than just another KOA campground.

I was so tempted to pick up a couple of souvenirs here too. They have some kittens to give away for free. I saw 4 or maybe 5 of them - adorable 8-10 week old fluffballs that are your typical barn cats. They all need to have a boric acid eye wash like we used to do for our kittens when they got pink pussy eyes, and I'm sure they all need de-worming and de-fleaing. But they were pretty tame and very playful and just so darn cute. All of them were black & white Holstein kitties except one that looked like her light grey tiger-striped mama. Lucky for my boys I resisted temptation! I don't think they'd know what to do with a kitten or two. Besides it would have been too darn crowded in the Pink Beast.

Miles of scenery

Today it's all about the pictures. I have a ton o'them. The train ride was nice, but a little long. We had some time for a layover at the Nantahala Outdoor Center - which is a place for any and all people who want to do rafting, canoeing, or kayaking. I did a little research there for potential future youth trips....it's not exactly wilderness area any more, but still a beautiful place with plenty of adventure. I could come back here again.

On top of Old Smoky....

I get it now. I really understand why these are called the Great Smoky Mountains. The mountains have a look of blue smoke or fog about them all day long, but especially in the mornings and evenings. Of course, the many campfires at our campground probably adds to that look. :-)

This is an absolutely beautiful area of the country, and I'm so glad I added it to my travel itinerary. Unfortunately, I couldn't get in at the campground in town that is having a bluegrass festival this weekend. They're booked solid all week. So I've had to settle for listening to my "O Brother Where Art Thou" CD. Maybe when I'm working my way through Appalachia toward Pennsylvania this weekend I can find a bluegrass fix somewhere.

However, I'm very happy with the KOA campground where I've planted for 3 nights. They are actually in the national park, and have shuttles to take us just about anywhere we want to go. Which is a good thing, since everyone around here has discouraged me from riding my scooter along these mountain roads. The only bummer with being in the mountains is internet access. My Sprint connection is useless out here, and this evening I purchased a day's worth of WI-FI access so I could update my blog, do some route planning, and check my email (17 messages accumulated just since yesterday morning - good thing I asked people not to send me all their usual forwards to fill up my box when I have no access. I still get some, but not as many thankfully.) I don't know what kind of access I'll have all weekend, or next week when I'm in the Poconos for that matter. So my blog entries may be a bit sporadic for a while.

There is so much to see and learn and do in this region. Today I focused on the Native American culture with a visit to an authentic Cherokee village. There I learnd about beading, pottery making, weaving (both baskets and belts,) canoe making, weaponry, shelter & cooking, tribal hierarchy & clans, and lots of things about the spiritual aspect like dancing and music. The picture I've included today is from inside the tribal council building representing where representatives of the 7 clans of the Eastern Cherokee tribe met regularly. These are the ceremonial headdresses for the Peace Chief and the War Chief, and some of the garb they wore. Most often the Peace Chief would be in charge, but in times of war he would hand over the leadership to the War Chief. As our guide described their roles, it seemed to be very much like a spiritual role vs. a government role. Church & state, both working together, but very much separately.

I was also impressed with the role of women in their culture. It was very much a matriarchal society, with women & children included in not only leadership roles, but also the ceremonial dances. In fact, the dances were usually led by the "Beloved Woman" - a role most often filled by the widow of a late chief. There was so much I learned about the deeply spiritual aspect of the tribal culture, that I cannot possibly write it all here. But I will gladly share it later.

Tomorrow I am taking a railway excursion through the mountains. I can't wait! If I can get photos ready in time to post before my WI-FI access expires, I'm sure I'll have some good ones on my blog tomorrow.

Good move

Tonight the Beast & I are just outside of Spartanburg, SC on our way to the Great Smoky Mountains tomorrow. From the sounds of it, it's a good thing I left the coast. Tropical Storm Alberto is supposed to dump a ton o'rain on the area, including Charleston.

I would definitely return to Charleston again, but I think it needs to be done with a car rather than an RV or a scooter. It wasn't terribly friendly to either one of those (other than the streets of Mt. Pleasant with my scooter.)

The campground I'm at tonight is a bit on the rustic side, but nice. I had a welcoming committee here too - a little boy from a neighboring site. Before I could even open my door, he was out in front of my Beast asking "Do you have kids?" Nope. "Do you have a dawg?" Nope. "Are you by yourself?" Yep, just me and my two cats. "Can we play with your cats?" Sorry, they don't go outside at all.

About 2 minutes later he had moved to the back of my RV. "Can we ride your scooter?" Sorry, I'm not going to be unloading it while I'm here. "Oh, ok." I'm such a disappointment to him!

The best thing about this place is, there's a plantation about a mile from here. I didn't get to visit Boone Hall Plantation in the Charleston area because it was NOT RV friendly (like most of that area.) As I turned in to the entrance, I had to stop cold at the old stone gate. No way was I going to be trying to get the beast through that narrow entrance. Unfortunately, I couldn't back out onto the road either, because there was too much traffic. So I did a lot of back up, pull forward, back up, pull forward - inching my way to turn around so I could pull out onto the road again. There were a few cars who got stuck waiting to get out of the plantation while I maneuvered my big Beast around, but so be it.

All in the name of adventure!

Westward Ho!

As much as I'm loving the coast, it's time for a change of scenery. Today I plan to make a stop at a plantation on my way out of town to learn more about the Gullah culture, and then move toward the Smokey Mountains. This week I'll get a brief experience with the Appalachian culture as I journey northward to Pennsylvania for next week's writing class.

Charleston and its surrounding area are beautiful, but it sure has been hot this weekend. Most of the residents have been saying this is July or August weather, not June. All I know is, it was so hot yesterday I passed on the beach. You know it's bad when I pass up the beach! I did still do the tour of Fort Sumter in the afternoon, but then came back to hang out in the a/c and get some things done here.

Just to let you know you're never too old to learn... I learned yesterday that I can't run both my a/c and my microwave at the same time. As I was heating my leftover ribs from Saturday's dinner at Sticky Fingers, it was too much for the circuit board and suddenly all went quiet. In the short time that I was without a/c while trying to figure out if I had actually blown a fuse or not, the temp in the RV went up to 85. So you know it was a scorcher outside.

I've also learned that Moses really does not tolerate heat well, while Max seeks out the sun even when it's already hot. You would think it would be the other way around, since Max has plenty of padding to already keep him warm. I myself am somewhere in between.