SATURDAY, October 26, 2013
Smithfield,
VA to Lewisville, NC
Home
of Rob and Karen Rembold
268
miles
View today's pictures HERE
Another
beautiful day in the South, although frost is on the windshield of the truck
and it was a COOOOL night! (I
accidentally turned the heater to fan again before we went to bed, so it was 38
degrees when we got up to go to the bathroom!)
A BRISK MORNING!!
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| Betty, Tom, and Rick |
I got
up around 7:15 to head inside and work on journal and pictures, although no
internet, so no posting. Rick up around
7:45, and Betty came out to greet us at 8am, very apologetic about sleeping
in!!! No apologies necessary!!! We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast, packed up
and were on our way shortly before 11.
Again,
we are traveling on the side roads, with only a 30 miles stretch of Interstate
freeway entering Greensboro, NC. The
notable fact for today? WE ARE HEADING
WEST MOST OF THE DAY!!! First time since
we left that the majority of our travels are taking us westward. Our route is across southern Virginia on four
lane US 58 – a beautiful highway with business routes into most of the small
towns, so we don’t even encounter many stop lights. We pass cotton field upon cotton field,
bursting open with balls of fluff.
Looked to be ready to harvest soon.
We also passed one obvious peanut field, with the plants upended and the
peanuts on top drying in the sun. We are
starting to think that the stick plants might be peanuts.
 |
| Check out the gas price!!! |
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| Cotton fields! |
It is
along US 58, but NOT at an interstate junction, we see gas for $2.99 for the
first time. One area had several
stations, so we stop at a Sheetz where we also get a 3 cent discount. Gas for 2.96!!! Wow!
Too bad we only needed a half tank.
We
stopped at a small town Wendy’s to grab a lunch and I drove for about 85 miles
until the Sheetz. Rick took us on in to
North Carolina, Greensboro, and then I-40 through Winston-Salem to
Lewisville.
Rob
and Karen have located in a small residential community about 6 miles west of
Winston-Salem. Pretty setting with
winding roads, beautiful homes and landscaping and wrapped in trees. The trailer we sneak through the gates into
the back yard and set it up so we have access all week. We are sleeping in a downstairs guest room.
 |
| The 'THRONE'! |
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| Rob and Karen's new home |
Whew! We are glad to be in one spot for a little
relaxation for a few days. Told Rob and
Karen we didn’t want to do ANYTHING on Sunday (I don’t think they have
establish a church home yet.) I hope to
catch up on some of my devotion materials.
At 7pm
we head out to a restaurant for dinner.
We are hungry by then! Good meal
with an entertaining crowd!
Late
evening, but the bed sure feels good and it is MUCH warmer sleeping tonight!
A Day of Rest
Sunday, October 27, 2013
 |
| Just chillin' on the back patio |
Lazy
day finally!!! We are up and coffee, I
work on posting and picturing and journaling, etc. Karen and I take a walk – fast pace for me
and 2.5 miles – I am sweating by the time we get done. This should help the weight of the last 1o
days! Rick and Rob take off with the dog
in another direction.
Other
accomplishments today? We do a load of
laundry. Karen and I go to the grocery
store. Karen makes a pot roast for
dinner which we all enjoy, along with some really good bread I found at the
store.
Our
cell phone gets lousy coverage here in Lewisville. Well, Rick’s phone works if you stand in the
middle of the road. Not the best
scenario. But I did manage a conversation with Mom Mac later in the evening! I spent much of the day
catching up on computer work, devotions, etc.
Whew.
We
visit the new Visitor Center, just built in 1996. The park is bigger than I expected,
considering the access. But I don’t
think we came by the normal route!!
There are vacation cabins, campgrounds, a man-made lake, and numerous
trails. But the ‘main attractions’ are
huge rock outcroppings, the remains from centuries of erosion, of volcanic
rock, the largest of which is called Hanging Rock.
Monday,
October 28, 2013
Mount
Airy, NC (Mayberry)
Hanging
Rock State Park
A little adventure today, but saving most of
it for tomorrow! We have a leisurely
morning, all walking the dog Sadie together in the morning, and I get caught up
on a little correspondence. The weather today is forecast for clouds and
perhaps a little rain.
Around noon we take off, circling around
Lewisville countryside a little, then into Winston-Salem, and north 35 miles to
the town of Mount Airy, home of Andy Griffith.
Mount Airy was the model for the town of Mayberry in the Andy Griffith
show. We parked and walked around the
downtown section. Found Opie’s Candy
store, Floyd’s Barber Shop, Aunt Bea’s Restaurant, etc. Much of the downtown caters to the Mayberry
trade. An old police cruiser, ala Barney
Fife, gives rides down Main Street. It
was fun and we topped it off with lunch at one of the diner’s. Good meal.
 |
| Mount Pilot |
 |
| Mayberry Barber Shop! |
On the
way up to Mount Airy, we passed Mount Pilot, which was often mentioned in the
TV show. It is a rounded knob jutting
into the horizon, about 2400’ in elevation.
Robin
had read in a newspaper supplement a couple months ago about trails at Hanging
Rock State Park which lies southeast of Mt Airy, so we went there on our
return. There are so many country roads
here that wind in and around and everywhere!
Hard to figure it out, and Rob and Karen had their GPS going to help us
find the park! I
was totally twisted
around! It started raining again as we
drove, harder this time, and we wondered what kind of hike we would be able to
make.
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| Colors at Hanging Rock parking |
 |
| Group on top of rock |
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| From top of rock |
Once
we arrived, the rain
stopped! We were
left with a stunning, 1.3 mile trail, through a largely oak mixed forest in an
array of autumn colors. The trees are so
tall there is an openness to the forest.
The reds are present at this elevation.
(Hanging Rock is 2150’) Our view
from the top wasn’t quite the dazzling vista Rob had hoped for due to the
cloudy skies, but it was pretty good! We
could just make out the outline of the front ridges of the Appalachian Mts and
the Blue Ridge Parkway.
 |
| Rick on another portion of summit |
Back
to the car by 5:15 and the drive home to Lewisville via more back roads! Dinner of salad, wine, cheese, and
chips! Yum!
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| Sunset enroute home! |
Tuesday,
October 29, 2013
The 'High Country' and
The 'High Country' and
Blue
Ridge Parkway
View today's pictures HERE
Our
first STOP is Linnville Falls around milepost 316. I get a NP passbook stamp at the small
visitor center, and we take the short hike down to all three viewpoints for the
multi-tiered falls. There is
considerably more water coming down than I expected this late in the season and
with the apparent waterflow in the river above!
Lots of steps in the trail; two busloads of school children on a field
trip (we don’t miss it!); and an area absolutely covered with
rhododendrons. In fact, I think the
rhodies were probably the most amazing ‘find’ of the day. Hillsides are carpeted with huge plants. They are EVERYWHERE! It must be gorgeous in the late spring/early
summer.
View today's pictures HERE
Rob is going
to get tired of serving as a tour bus driver!
Today was a long day of driving, but beautiful. The skies had cleared a little from yesterday’s
light storm, and while there was still cloudiness over the
mountains, patches
of blue sky reigned as well! Warmer
temps forecast also!
 |
| Today's travels - about 220 miles |
After
Sadie is walked and tended and a rather leisurely start to the day, we left
shortly after 10 to head west toward the ‘High Country’ of NW North Carolina –
the Blueridge Parkway and some of the small towns in the mountains.
 |
| View from section of parkway |
Our
first stop is the Blueridge Parkway….closed!!!
A 5 mile section of road was in trouble, the very location we wanted to
enter! Change of plans and 10 miles on
in to the town of Boone. At 18,000 AND
the home of Appalachia State University, Boone is NOT very small. We drove through some of the brick-building
campus and admired the huge stadium tucked into the hill. Hwy 221 winds in and around the parkway so we
followed it until we were able to rejoin the parkway.
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| My best steeple find of the day ...near Boone, NC |
Rob
and Karen had tourist materials from the NPS on the Blueridge, so I was able to
follow along and read information as we drove.
And take pictures out the windows!
We missed the peak color season by a week or so….many of the bright reds
have fallen. But that always allows you
to see THROUGH the trees much better
to vistas that are normally hidden! The
road is not fast with a maximum speed limit of 45. The last section to be finished is a viaduct
along the side of Grandfather Mountain – a compromise to complete the parkway
but not damage the hillside ecology.
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| Group shot at Linnville Falls |
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| Upper Linnville Falls |
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| Color reflection in Linn River above falls |
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| Starting across the Suspension Bridge |
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| Rick gazing over the mountains from top of Grandfather |
Up to
Grandfather Mountain. I had read about
this spot in Guideposts and then Mom R mentioned it when she returned from her
visit with Rob and Karen last spring. You drive up to the top of the mountain (which
is actually a series of several ‘peaks’) where a suspension bridge was built
back in 1952 between two of the smaller summits of rock. The vistas to the south, east, and north are
spectacular. We didn’t have the clearest
of days, but you could see far enough!
Linnville itself sat just below, with its high-end hotels, resorts, and
golf courses. The bridge used to be
called the Swinging Bridge because of the extreme SWING!
But it was rebuilt in 1999 and now is just a SINGING Bridge….the new
platforms whistle slightly in the wind!
It is exactly a mile high in elevation.
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| Bridge and other peaks from tip of Grandfather Mt. |
We
stop on the way down to check out the nature center – excellent displays and I
found the oak red earrings I was hoping to get to match the necklace! However, our stomachs are rumbling wildly at
the lack of food and it is nearing 4pm!!
So we leave in search of something more than the small Milldred’s Grill
at the center!
 |
| The Gardner Statue tends the flowers of the town park along Main St of Blowing Rock, NC |
About
20 miles to the town of Blowing Rock, a village of 1500 in the winter that
swells to 8000 in the summer heat! This
was where Jan Karon lived while writing the Mitford series of books. It has a wonderful downtown with quaint shops
and buildings. Rob remembered the Six
Pence Pub and we went there directly to catch a dinner! (Portebello Sandwich – yum!!) The stores were
closing as we left the restaurant, which probably was GOOD for the budget, but
we did sneak into one shop and purchase a small windflag for the front of the
house at Christmas.
By then….the
skies were darkening and it was time to call it a day! Quiet drive home, arriving around 7:40 to a
very excited Sadie dog!! Early to
bed!
What a
BEAUTIFUL ride!!! A few steep grade
sections, but overall fairly level as the path winds right around the shoreline
of Salem Lake. The trees were incredible
in shades of purple-dark red, orange red, oranges, golds, and greens. The path was lined with dead leaves,
splattered with an occasional leaf of color.
I saw some magnolia leaves that had to be at least 18” in length! The sun was shining through the trees and
casting gorgeous shadows and bright patches of color.
Back
to Lewisville, dinner was BBQ turkey burgers and hot dogs, and then an evening
of TV and conversation. Tomorrow we will
do a final load of laundry and have the trailer all packed up and ready to
go!
A day of rest before we take off in the morning for Great Smoky Mountains and points west! I am excited to get going, but also have appreciated the somewhat relaxing days here with Rob and Karen. We all tend to such things today as laundry, packing, and preparations to leave. Rob and Karen are heading east in the morning to visit with college friends in Virginia Beach. They will stop and see Tom and Betty's new place in Smithfield enroute home on Monday.
We pack up the trailer in the early afternoon before any chance of the forecast rain begins to fall. It is a mild day. I wore just a t-shirt when Karen and I took our walk. Rick went with Rob to walk Sadie dog.
I spent a VERY lazy afternoon out on the screen porch finishing my book! That felt very indulgent!
I got a picture of Sadie in her shark Halloween costume (compliments of Megan!). We went to the Blue Moon Oyster Bar for dinner - oysters but other seafood as well. Rob and Karen had shrimp dishes, I ordered Blue Moon Cannonelli (angel hair pasta, shrimp, ham, artichokes, and sundried tomatoes) which was very good. Rick had salmon. An interesting place with no actual tables, just bar style seating. Fun to see many customers in costume come in before heading out to Halloween parties.
Just 5 Trick or Treaters came to our door. The road isn't walking friendly and most kids go to the housing developments on either side. More Snickers for Rob this way!!
Thus ends our North Carolina adventure. Tomorrow we start anew!!!
WEDNESDAY, October 30, 2013
Salem Lake Greenbelt Bike Ride
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| 7 mile Bike Ride around Salem Lake |
Ah,
another day of rest and relaxation! I
can get used to these leisurely mornings, daytime TV, unlimited coffee, and a
morning walk with the dog!! But I also
spent some time looking ahead on the computer, and making sure I was ready for
the END of iGoogle in two days!!
 |
| Colors! |
Around
11:30, Rick and I head out for Winston-Salem to visit Weight Watchers and then
take a bike ride. Rob and Karen opted
not to go, so it was a good opportunity for us to ‘get out of their hair!’ We found the WW locale easily and were
delighted to see a Super-Cuts next door.
Just what I needed! So….after a
successful weigh-in (3 lbs plus!) I went and got my hair trimmed! Nice gal and I enjoyed listening to her
accent!
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| Turtles! |
Then
it was on to a lake that sits in between Winston-Salem and Greensboro….Salem
Lake and the greenbelt. There is also
about 6 miles of paved trails that connect the lake system to downtown Old
Salem. We parked and unloaded the bikes.
 |
| A pause for a picture |
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| Heron |
We saw
a couple of herons, LOTS of turtles from little tiny baby ones to a giant one,
and mallards. The path was busy with
joggers, cyclists, moms pushing strollers, and walkers of all ages. While it was mostly unpaved, it was well
graded and packed. A fun time!!!
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| Gorgeous trees! |
G’night!!
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| Saw this scene over and over today! |
THURSDAY, October 31, 2013
Happy Halloween!
Reorganization Day!
Happy Halloween!
Reorganization Day!
A day of rest before we take off in the morning for Great Smoky Mountains and points west! I am excited to get going, but also have appreciated the somewhat relaxing days here with Rob and Karen. We all tend to such things today as laundry, packing, and preparations to leave. Rob and Karen are heading east in the morning to visit with college friends in Virginia Beach. They will stop and see Tom and Betty's new place in Smithfield enroute home on Monday.
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| Sadie dog in her shark costume |
I spent a VERY lazy afternoon out on the screen porch finishing my book! That felt very indulgent!
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| Pumpkin in front of Blue Moon Oyster Bar |
Just 5 Trick or Treaters came to our door. The road isn't walking friendly and most kids go to the housing developments on either side. More Snickers for Rob this way!!
Thus ends our North Carolina adventure. Tomorrow we start anew!!!
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