Edisto Beach State Park SC

http://picasaweb.google.com/kyotesue/Dec14EdistoBeachStateParkAndTheACERiverBasin#

This day was planned to be a short one driving to Edisto Island, another part of the Low Country and not far from Charleston. Took our time packing up and wandering down the back roads to our new digs at the Beach State Park. This place turned out to be our most favorite of the trip, at least thus far. The campground is right on the beach, with our campsite just over the dunes and within ear shot of the waves.

Stopped at the grocery store to get groceries for a spaghetti and salad dinner and decided to eat the salad for lunch and the spaghetti for dinner later. Perfect plan and easy to manage in our small kitchen space. The temperatures were still warm and balmy so we set up the chairs and table outside and relaxed a bit to the sounds of the sea. Perfect. After some relaxing time we took off walking the beach hunting for shells and letting Abby swim. I even relaxed enough to read my book and enjoy a quiet supper and a little local tv.
Friday December 14
This morning I got up early enough to watch the sunrise over the beach and see the flocks of pelicans and pods of dolphins swimming south along the shore as if they were going to town to work. We skipped breakfast and went to town to talk to the local kayak shop about local kayaking areas. I can’t believe that I never thought about the tide part of estuary kayaking, but I am sure glad that someone mentioned it. We found out the tides were just right for what we wanted to do if we left quickly, so we headed for the Live Oak dock on Big Oak Creek and turned uptide towards the refuge areas. At first the ride seemed a bit boring, without much variety in the views, but as we continued, things started to become more interesting. It’s as though it takes a bit of time to settle into a new area, and feel what it has to offer. There were a lot of birds, egrets, herons of several kinds, terns, and others that I didn’t recognize. Along the waterways are big southern low country houses with boathouses as big as cabins and big sailboats moored. I bought a waterways map so had a bit of an idea of which way to go and found a place called “the Neck” which turned out to be a very exclusive neighborhood off huge homes along the waterfront. It was fun wandering around in there for a time before the tide turned and it was time to head back down. For once, the kayaking was downhill both ways instead of the usual uphill hill where we are either fighting current or wind. This time there was a bit of wind, but the tide was stronger and the paddling was fast and smooth. Both of us were getting a bit tired, though, and ready to be home when suddenly a dolphin surfaced in front of me. Talk about highlight, kayaking with dolphins is really something. They are so graceful and beautiful and very fast. Of course, there’s a bit of apprehension that accompanies the excitement because who knows if they will bump your boat or something!! One particular dolphin stayed with us a long way, surfacing and diving sometimes within 20 feet of us, but most of the time he was a few hundred feet on the right.

It was the final delight in a lovely day that was marred a few moments later by a nasty fall as Mo tried to get out of her kayak at the landing and slipped and fell on the cemented oyster shells along the rocks. She was cut in several places and bruised or broke a rib, blood falling everywhere into the water and that sick sick feeling when you don’t know how bad it is and if you need a doctor or not. We had laundry in the car so tore up a towel for bandages and managed to stop the bleeding but it was scary for a time thinking she might need some stitches. I did the classic thing that my daughters will remember clearly. Someone gets injured I get sick, really sick, to the point of throwing up. Now that’s really helpful! We managed to get to the park headquarters only to find out that the nearest emergency care was 50 miles away in Charleston. Maybe there was a doctor on the island, but who knows if we could have found her if necessary. After lots of soaking in salt water and a drive back to the campground, we found the first aid kit, cleaned it all up, and decided that butterfly bandages for the cut would be all the doctor would do anyway, and a broken rib is one of those things that you just deal with as well, so we nixed the need for a doctor.

Mo is so incredibly stoic in these kinds of situations, and just plodded along dealing with it. After I got over being sick, I did ok as well, and all turned out ok in the end, except Mo is pretty sore from the fall and banged up a bit here and there. Her finger seems to be closing up just fine, however, and I’m grateful for that.

Ended another day with a long walk on the beach after eggs and potatoes for an early supper. All in all, a good day, in spite of the moment of scariness. It did make me think of how scary it can be to deal with that kind of thing sometimes, especially if it’s really bad. I’m so glad it wasn’t.

Charleston SC

I was really glad that we decided to take it easy and camp two nights at the county park on Saint James Island because it gave us time to relax and enjoy ourselves some more without having to move. Finally got a chance to have the awning up and park long enough to put up the party lights I bought for the MoHo with the tricolored chili pepper lights as well. Very festive, but not nearly as festive as some of the big motorhomes in the park were. It was fun, and I finally got my cute lights, although I did refrain from buying flamingo lights.

Wednesday morning we left around 9 so we wouldn’t get caught in too much traffic going into Charleston. It’s actually not that big a city, with maybe 80,000 population in the city itself with some communities around on the other islands that run in the 30’s. There are lots of bridges and water and Charleston was every big as magical as I thought it would be. We went first to the Visitor Center where they even had garage parking especially for RV’s, which worked out great since the boats were too high to fit under the poles in the regular garage parking. The visitor center was another digital wonder of the state of South Carolina and helped us a lot in understanding what to see and do on foot in Charleston.

Spent half the day walking the city following a city walking map with the history and story of many of the homes and buildings. The port of Charleston was the only place that wasn’t blockaded completely during the Civil War where the southerners were able to bring in supplies. Fort Sumter is a tiny island out in the harbor, and the history of the Civil War is a big part of Charleston. What I didn’t realize, however, is that Charleston history goes back to pre-revolutionary days and that many of the homes and buildings were from the early 1700’s long before the Revolutionary War. Of course, SC was one of the original 13 states and it shows in the city of Charleston. We saw several homes of signers of the Declaration of Independence,

Thanks to a SC magazine we got at on of the centers, we knew about Justine’s Kitchen, so when we passed it on our walk we recognized the name.

http://www.roadfood.com/Reviews/Overview.aspx?RefID=346

Justine was the daughter of a slave who worked for a woman in Charleston and took care of her children. Justine lived to be 112 years old and her cooking was legendary. One of the daughters opened the restaurant and it has been written up in Southern Living, the New York Times, Conde Nast, and many other publications as one of the best southern restaurants that exist.

Lunch at Justine’s was a highlight. Actually sitting next to us was a reporter from some food show on Sirius radio who was recording his gastronomic experience and talking to the owner while we ate. The best part is that it was so comfortable, homey, and warm. I had an awful time choosing from a menu of southern wonders, and finally settled on a pork chop, baked macaroni and cheese, and fried okra, with pecan pie for desert, and of course a big glass of sweet tea. It was a meal made in heaven for my inner southern soul and the addition of some kind of sweetened vinegar fresh cucumbers and the hush puppies we had given to us on the street made it all the more magical.

After exploring as much as our feet would allow, we went back to our park to give Abby time to swim in the great dog park and play with all the other dogs. She is finally beginning to understand that she is a dog but still isn’t quite into all the friendly puppy play and keeps looking back at her mom for approval. But she does love to swim and loves to play ball. Lots of other dogs there playing ball and swimming, and even a dog washing area as you leave the park to get all the sand and mud off the doggie paws.

After our little respite, we drove back into Charleston to explore the Pleasure Island part of town east of the river and to drive over the Ravenel Bridge, the longest span in this part of the world, white, dramatic, and gorgeous. Checked out the beaches at Mt Pleasant, then found our way back home through the light show to settle in for the evening and rest our weary feet.

St James Island SC

After our lovely stay in Asheville we got up this morning and headed south on I-26 into South Carolina. The trip was uneventful, except for the drop in elevation from the North Carolina landscape into the low flat world of South Carolina. One really nice thing about SC are the Visitor Centers. The first one we encountered as we entered the state had impressive digital displays and really kind helpful people who made phone calls to be sure that our RV park had a place for us and gave us a ton of free maps and information.

Through the midsection of the state, I was unimpressed, except for the warm temperatures, things seemed fairly boring. There was a lot of pollution around Columbia, but we still enjoyed stopping for lunch at a rest area and eating outside in the warm sunshine.

We had a free camping night given to us by Mo’s family friend, Millie, so drove into Savannah looking for the Saint James Island County Park. After some circling around the bridges and rivers we finally found it. It was currently hosting one of the major attractions in the area, the Holiday Christmas Show. It was early enough in the afternoon that after we set up we drove down to Folly Beach and walked the Atlantic Ocean for the first time on the trip. There were a lot of vacation rentals on Folly beach, but we found a place to park with a parking meter for a buck and took the dog out to the water.

http://www.charlestoninsidersguide.com/festival-lights.php

When we drove back home, the Holiday Light Festival had begun so we got in free because we were camped there and drove slowly through the display with all the other locals. It was “magical” as Mo kept saying, lots of creativity and color and animation. The only bad part was the number of people driving diesel pickups very very slowly. Yuk, what a nasty smell.

The dog park was already closed because of the show so we planned that one for the next day. Dinner was something simple at home that I don’t remember now, as we usually eat cheese and crackers or something like that if we have a good lunch.

Asheville and the Blue Ridge Parkway

I’m a bit late getting started on week two of our travels, been having too much fun, I guess. Last I wrote, we were in Nashville in the fog. At the moment I am sitting at the Bad Fork Valley Overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway south of Asheville. Lots of “villes” around Tennessee and North Carolina. It was foggy this morning but right now the skiews are soft and shapely, with fluffy misty clouds and the classic faded blues and grays of the Smoky Mountains. Layer upon layer of shape and soft color that almost isn’t color at all unless you look closely stretch out to the southwest toward the late afternoon sun. Looking up close are thick piles of brown leaves on the forest floor and more layers of bare trees thickly blanketing the mountains. The rhododendrons beneath the trees are thick and glossy green covered with fat buds waiting for spring, and they look as though they have been pruned carefully by some crazy obsessive mountain gardener.

I have the chance to write at this moment because we are waiting for two wreckers to clear the parkway of a Hummer that went over the cliff yesterday. I took photos of the Hummer, and the amazing thing is that both passengers walked away, or up as it may be, up a very long and very steep mountainside. Everyone here is standing around watching and waiting for the road to open up again.

But I digress. Where was I?

This morning we woke to still more fog. After three days of fog and gray skies we were rather tired of it, but we started up the generator and heard the good news that the fog was supposed to lift and today was to be a record high day. We were a bit worried about the baby car so decided to take it to a AAA recommended repair shop across town and set off in the fog with the GPS leading the way. Found the station and left the car there, headed for a great southern spot for biscuits and gravy, and watched the fog lift.

The Biltmore is the big thing that everyone says you should do in Asheville, but after looking at the 55 per person price of admission we thought better of it. Some other trip we can do that. We decided to check out down town Asheville and then drive the Blue Ridge Parkway.
At breakfast we found one of those great city maps with the easy streets and pictures of all the things to do and found a walking tour of Asheville that was perfect.

What an amazing, beautiful, fascinating, lovely city. Superlatives don’t come close to describing how I felt about Asheville. It’s just so artistic and full of energy and creativity without being all snobby and full of itself. As one of the websites said about the city, it never succumbed to urban renewal and so has an incredible array of architectural styles throughout the city that are unique and representative of the period. We walked through what they called the Frontier Period, the Gilded Age, the Thomas Wolfe Period, and the Era of Civic Pride. The most amazing thing was that there were so many streets and blocks that were vibrant and alive and full of restaurants and shops and churches and businesses and every on of them seemed like “Main Street”.

I think the most magnificent was the old Federal Building with its huge skylighted windows and Christmas decorations. There was even a fresh market inside that building for the people who lived there. There were other really tall old buildings that were all new and clean looking in spite of their age that were converted to apartments for people over 62 with the rent based on their income. It was amazing to see lots of older folks downtown hanging out in their mobo chairs with their little dogs. One lady told us about the apartments and said she loved living there. It is a truly vibrant city full of art and energy and fun.

After walking downtown for a few hours we headed up the Blue Ridge Parkway. The road is actually 469 miles long but we only got in on the last part here in North Carolina. The Parkway is a great idea that is actually a National Park that is a roadway made just for touring and gentle beautiful travel. A book I bought is called the “Guide to America’s Most Scenic Drive” and I think maybe they may be right. Almost. Mo and I both still agree that Highway 1 along the California coast is the most scenic drive we have been on, but the difference is that this one is a National Park and is made just for cars and tourists, no trucks, and no commercial traffic is allowed. What a great idea that would be for Hwy 1, except there are towns on that road and I suppose that might be a problem.

We ended the day back here in the Wal Mart parking lot with toasted cheese sandwiches and a glass of chardonnay sitting in our lawn chairs in our ready made patio in view of the Wal Mart sign as we watched the sunset. We even have a lovely park right behind the parking lot that has a greenway paved path all along the river here. Free parking with a patio and a park. Sure can’t beat that one!

Asheville, North Carolina

Sunday Morning December 9 we woke up early ready to roll. It was supposed to be a short day but the fog and dreariness made it seem longer than the 300 miles we had planned to arrive in Asheville. We decided to get off the freeway, I-40, and travel a Tennessee Scenic Byway, 70. We laughed a lot about how 70N goes east and west, and 70S has nothing to do with south. In face we were on a couple of roads that say for instance 70 east and 441 south, and they are the same road. No wonder I get all mixed up east of the Mississippi. The drive was lovely though, in spite of the gray skies, and every once in awhile some thought of light tried to emerge. Later in the afternoon we went through Pigeon Forge, an historic town on the north side of the Great Smoky Mountains and couldn’t believe all the attractions that lined the highway on both sides for miles. It was in the vicinity of Dollywood and looked as though it was Disneyland on a highway with lots of traffic, even in the winter. I can’t imagine what a mess that place would be during the tourist seasons in June and October.

Onward via HWY 441 towards the park and came to another gateway town, although this one was a bit smaller, but still filled with shops and hotels and restaurants and tourists. Lots of really big resorts and a gondola with a view of the Smokies. Our first views of the Smokies were a surprise as well, because they are a lot bigger and steeper than I imagined them to be. We started to head for Asheville and then backtracked and decided to go over the mountains through the park. It was a truly gorgeous drive, even in the fog, but a bit hard to get pictures.

Finally arrived in Asheville and tried to find the Wal Mart that was our destination. I had directions from Google, but Asheville is really a mountain city with lots of roads that go in circles. It didn’t help that it was thick foggy weather, either. We got off the freeway a couple of times and finally gave up and called the wal mart for directions. Even then it was hard to find but when we finally did we went inside and thanked the two ladies that talked us in. Lots of laughter on that one, and thank goodness it was a walmart that allows parking overnight for travelers.