"SUNSHINE" Stories: September 2017

Wednesday, September 27, 2017

2017 Fall Camping - Week 2: The Blue Ridge Parkway and Pisgah National Forest

Thursday, September 21, 2017 The Last Day of Summer!

Oh boy, we are up and at 'em at 0800! We passed on fly fishing, hitched up and were under way at 0850. Our destination is Rocky Knob CG on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Along the way, we stopped at the Virginia Explorer Visitor Center. It was just a brief visit and we were back on the road in about ten minutes.

We stopped at a few overlooks too. We took some interesting photos at the Purgatory Mountain overlook and the Smart View picnic area. The mountain tops were peeking above the clouds/fog making them look like islands in the sky.

We arrived at Rocky Knob, after 86 miles of Parkway driving, at right around noon, once the Scamp was detached, leveled and secured, we drove nine miles further south to Mabry Mills for lunch and to walk around the mill and other buildings. There weren’t any interpreters on duty, so it was a quick walk and back to the car for the drive back to the CG.

Friday, September 22, 2017 Mt. Airy, NC; Galax, VA; and Doughton Park Campground on the Blue Ridge Parkway!

We broke camp and we're underway at about 0950. We are once again southbound on the BRP. Along the way, we took a detour to visit Mt. Airy (aka Mayberry from the Andy Griffith Show). It was crowded. We later discovered that the “Mayberry Days” celebration was in full swing. We had a basket of fries and a couple malteds at Mts. Walkers. Snappy’s, apparently the preferred dining spot, had a long line that went out the door and down the block. We choose to pass on that establishment.

After our snack, we strolled the town before returning to the van and Scamp.

In about twenty minutes we were back on the BRP. The Blue Ridge Music Center (mm 215) promised live music today so we stopped. The music was a jam session much like Pickin on the Porch at the Tuckerton Seaport. The talent seemed similar to that found at Albert Hall.

We listened for a spell, checked out the museum and headed out. We learned that Galax was having a music festival so we that we’d check it out. It didn’t look like our cup o tea, so I made an executive decision the get back on the BRP and make camp in the Doughton Park CG. This one is in much better shape than last night’s stay at Rocky Knob.

Saturday, September 23, 2017 A Two Mile Long One Mile Hike and Fly Fishing at Julian Price Lake!

After a lousy night's sleep for both of us, we awoke at 0930. We donned our hiking boots and set out on the Bluff Mountain Trail for Brinegar Cabin. A sign says the cabin is 1.0 mile from the campground. The elevation change is reported to be one hundred feet, the height of a ten story building. We didn’t think anything about it as we set out.

The trail led through woodlands and meadows and was very nice and scenic. As time went on, and we climbed that ten story building after first descending it. The trail seemed much longer than 1.0 mile. Eventually we ran into a sign that told us the campground was 2.5 miles in the opposite direction. The sign also pointed the way to the cabin. After another uphill walk of a half mile, we finally came to the cabin!

The cabin was open and we exchanged pleasantries with the Ranger who was spinning wool into yarn.

We elected to walk back along the BRP, hoping that it would be a quicker route. As it happened, the walk back was only eight/tenths of a mile!

We packed up and hitched the Scamp to the van, and we're off by 1230, only one-half hour after check-out time.

In two hours we were set up in the Julian Price CG. We took a quick run to the town of Blowing Rock where we ate a late lunch at the Mellow Mushroom. After enjoying our repast, we walked around town a bit before heading back.

We stopped at Price Lake so I could tie on a fly and wet a line. As luck would have it, I had three bites, no catches, in the half hour I was fishing.

Back at camp, we made a fire and I played the Uke until it was time to go into the camper.

Sunday, September 24, 2017 Julian Price CG Again, and a Short Drive to Boone, NC!

Yikes, it’s 1130 and we’re just getting up after a cold night’s sleep! We had left over pizza (from the Mellow Mushroom) which was really good and then decided to drive into town, Boone, that is, on the other (west) side of the Blue Ridge. Boone is a college town; home to the Appalachian Mountaineers. It must have been a hopping place yesterday as they had a home football game.

We did some shopping at Walmart and had a snack at Burger King before heading back to camp. Later in the evening, I made Portobello Parmigiana. AM made the spaghetti. It was very good, and I have a few ideas to make it even better!

Monday, September 25, 2017 43 Miles to Crabtree Falls CG, Little Switzerland 🇨🇭 and Mt. Mitchell!

We too a short drive to Little Switzerland for an enjoyable lunch. Then we drove to Mt. Mitchell so we could test our stamina by walking from the parking lot to the peak, a 100 foot elevation gain in 285 yards. We passed the test with flying colors!

We returned to camp at the Crabtree Falls CG after stopping at the Mt. Mitchell Restaurant for Peach Cobbler.

Crabtree Falls CG is small. Many (most?) of the sites are not level. It is apparent that budget cuts have had a deleterious effect on maintenance at this and most of the other campgrounds on along the parkway.

Tuesday, September 26, 2017 Asheville, NC

We’re getting off the BRP today and headed for the Great Bear CG in Asheville, near the Biltmore Estate. We need to do laundry, fill the Scamp’s propane bottle and hopefully tour Biltmore.

Our first task, after setting up, was to remove the propane tank. It wasn’t easy, but we managed to complete the task. A larger Phillips screwdriver and the proper sized wrench 3/8?) or better yet, a socket and driver would have helped! Of course, we didn't bring those tools. Then it was off to sample the local cuisine. We had a nice lunch at a local pub, before getting the tank filled at a nearby tractor supply. We paid $11.00 for 4.3 gallons of propane.

Back at the camper, we reinstalled the propane tank and Anna Marie tended to the laundry. We became less interested in the Biltmore tour when we found out the fee was $55.00 per person (and that’s with the senior discount!).

In the evening we went to the Isis Music House for a Bluegrass Concert and dinner. AM had a veggie Chimichanga and I had a Zoodle Bowl. Tasty!

Wednesday, September 27, 2017 Pisgah National Forest - the Peak of the Parkway!

Today’s Drive was all of 20 miles. Unbeknownst to us, the Pisgah NF CG has laundry and shower facilities. We didn't have to get off the parkway to do the laundry after all. The laundry room at Pisgah is pretty nice to boot! We lunched at the Pisgah Lodge and Restaurant, perhaps the last privately run Mom and Pop facility on the BRP! The Oyster PO Boy we shared was top notch! We dined while enjoying the killer view.

All the trails around here are strenuous so we settled for walking several loops of the CG. Along the way, I took some snaps of three interesting small trailers. The were at least three A frames folding trailers too.

Lunch at the Pisgah Inn was so good, we went back for dinner. The charbroiled Mountain trout, filleted at the table, asparagus and shaved Brussel sprouts were superb! Even the baked potato was exquisite! For desert we shared an outstanding strawberry cobbler. AM raved about her crab cakes and baked sweet potato. It’s probably the first time on this trip that we may have over eaten.

Camping at the Rocky Knob CG on the Blue Ridge Parkway

The view from the Purgatory Mountain Overlook

Panoramic view from the Purgatory Mountain Overlook

Bringer Cabin

Mabry Mill

Malteds at Mrs. Walker's in Mt. Airy (Mayberry), NC

Sherd's Police car

Picking' at the Blue Ridge Music Center.
Her Martin Guitar has impressive inlay work.

Campsite at Doughton Park on the Blue Ridge Parkway

The trail to Bringer Cabin

Campfire at Julian Price Lake CG

Julian Price Lake

Portobello Parmigiano

Highway 226A - the Snake Highway - in Little Switzerland

Mt.Mitchell's namesake

Wednesday, September 20, 2017

2017 Fall Camping - Week 1: Shenandoah NP and the Blue Ridge Parkway

Week 1

Thursday, September 14, 2017 We’re Off!

After completing our final chores, we left from the Woods at about 1030 hours. We arrived at the northern entrance to Shenandoah National Park and the famous Skyline Drive at about 1430 hours. At about 1630 hours, we pulled into site 9 at the Lewis Mountain Campground at MM 57. We quickly unhitched and leveled the Scamp 13 (aka Lucky 13).

In about 1/2 hour we were back on the drive headed north. We decided to have dinner at the Skylands Lodge at MM 42. The day became overcast causing the spectacular views from the myriad overlooks to be somewhat muted.

There were plenty of White Tail Deer on the side of the roadway and frequently, cars would stop to take pictures. We even took a shot of two young bucks banging their antlers together.

Dinner was nice, but my toothache prevented me from enjoying it to the max. I was a bit chilly too. Sadly, we forgot to pack our sweaters. We thought about purchasing a couple of sweatshirts from the gift shop, but the prices are sky high.

Friday, September 15, 2017 Toothache, Big Meadows Lodge and Rapidan!

My toothache caused a change of plans. We went to a nearby (within 30 miles) Rite Aid in Elkton, VA, to get a prescription for Penicillin that my dentist faxed to them. After an initial dose of 1000 mg, I thought it was working. The pain was gone, replaced with a lethargy that made me feel tired. The trip to Rite Aid knocked out our planned Meadows hike. Too bad, that would have been nice, but frankly, I was in no condition to enjoy it. We were able to lunch at Big Meadows Lodge and had more food than we could eat! The vegetarian chili was delicious.

At 1400 hours, we boarded a minibus for a ranger led trip to Rapidan, the “little White House” used by Herbert Hoover. I was still very lethargic and couldn’t really enjoy the trip. I got some pics, but I was glad when the trip was over. I think we returned to the Boyd Visitor’s Center at about 1730 hours.

Saturday, September 16, 2017 Loft Mountain and the Mother of All Toothaches!

We left the small but quiet Lewis Mountain Campground this morning and after a short 23 mile drive, we entered the Loft Mountain Campground, the largest CG in Shenandoah NP. The Ranger expected the CG would fill up today.

My tooth really started to bother me. In fact I rated the pain to be a 9.2 on the Richter Scale. We abandoned our plan to visit Monticello in favor of finding a pharmacy and a dentist. The folks at Rite Aid in Waynesboro sold us all kinds of stuff and suggested we go to the local hospital because they provided dental care. That turned out to be false, but the combination of Ambesol and Quick Relief Tylenol knocked the pain down to a reasonable 1 or 2 on the pain scale. After a stop at Panera Bread for a bite to eat. We headed back to Loft Mountain so I could lick my wounds.

We’ll try to get dental care on Monday.

Sunday, September 17, 2017 Monticello or Hang Out at Loft Mountain? Neither… Read On!

We’re up at 0200, then again at 0400 and 0700 and finally stayed up at 0900. We had oatmeal for breakfast and my toothache seemed to weather the onslaught of food particles. I rinsed with Listerene and applied some Ambesol and felt pretty good! We decided to explore the area, but as we were putting our hiking shoes on, it clouded over and started to rain. Hey, maybe it’s just a passing shower!

Well, the showers stayed with us into the early afternoon, so we decided to head back down the mountain to check some things out for tomorrow’s attempt to find a dentist who could do a root canal rather quickly. I’m not feeling good about this, but I can’t go on with the pain and, even though home is only six hours away, my dentist there can’t see me until the end of the month. I'm hoping to find a really good dentist so I can get a root canal as a trip souvenir! Along the way, we unsuccessfully tried to transmit some medical information.

We made it back to the campsite and I lit a fire from a nice stack of wood I found earlier this morning. It was very nice of those campers to leave it for me, don’t you think? As I was lighting the fire, the neighbors adjacent to us introduced themselves. After exchanging pleasantries, they went back to their site. About ten minutes later, I got the Uke out and started playing some tunes. Our neighbor Mary happened to walk past in search of water, and upon hearing the Uke, got a big smile on her face. She offered that she had her travel Uke with her. A few minutes later, she returned with her Mahala tenor Uke and some song sheets. We had great fun strumming and singing a few songs.

After forty minutes or so, she retreated to her site for dinner. We enjoyed Anna Marie's fabulous bean salad, sat around the campfire until the embers were all that was left. Once in the Scamp, we played a few games until bedtime.

Monday, September 18, 2017 Finding a Dentist!

We left Loft Mountain with the purpose of finding a dentist in Waynesboro who had time to “squeeze” in a root canal. We found Crowder and Crowder, DDS, who said we could come in at 1500. We lunched at Panera Bread and set up camp in the Staunton KOA, about 15 miles from the dentist. We arranged for Ocean Family Dental to email the x rays of the tooth.

We arrived at about 1440, welcomed by a friendly receptionist. I completed the required paperwork and was escorted to the examination room by PA Christel. She was very pleasant and professional. Shortly after taking notes about my situation, Paige Crowder, the dentist came into the room. She introduced herself and and some discussion, we agreed the she would to a root canal and a temporary cap, leaving the permanent cap to be done when I get back home. She also mentioned the the decay might have compromised the tooth, but we won’t know that for sure until she “digs in.” “If it is too deep, we might have to extract the tooth. I didn’t like that option at all!

Much to my chagrin, it was necessary for her to pull the tooth. I was dejected! I went back to the camper with a mouth full of gauze and a prescription for Tylenol 3. Anna Marie filled that promptly for me. Once back in Lucky 13, I just relaxed and rested for the rest of the evening. I was in too much pain. I was sad to have lost that tooth!

Tuesday, September 19, 2017 Not a Lot of Fun on the Blue Ridge!

We left the KOA at a little after 1000 hours. At about 1030, we stopped at a McDonald’s for breakfast. I need soft food, so I thought scrambled eggs might do since syrup on pancakes didn’t seem like a good idea. The scramble egg was a circular fried egg that they use on breakfast sandwiches. That’s what passes for scrambled eggs after 1000 hours!

Afton, VA, is the southern end of the Skyline Drive and the northern beginning of the Blue Ridge Parkway. We are going end-to-end yet again (Note: They have a club and Facebook page for “End to Enders.”) Humpback Rocks is the first southbound Visitors Center. We stopped for information and to walk around the old farm, typical of life on the Blue Ridge back in the day.

We drove to Otter Creek CG (mm 61) on the Blue Ridge Parkway. I needed food, and wanted to make scrambled eggs. Since we don’t usually eat eggs, we needed to buy a few. Before heading to the Peaks of Otter CG (mm 86) (they have a camp store), we stopped at the James River Visitors Center. The Ranger told us where to get a fishing license, where to fish and where to buy eggs. That info allowed us to stay at the Otter Creek CG.

I whipped up the eggs and they were delicious! After our late lunch, we lit a campfire and enjoyed the fine day. I was a bit wobbly while setting up the trailer. This lightheadedness is becoming a concern.

My lightheadedness seemed to get worse as the day went on. In the evening, I expressed to AM that we might be heading home tomorrow. After analyzing the situation, I concluded that the Codeine in the Tylenol 3 might be the culprit. I stopped taking it and about eight hours after the 1300 dose, I began to feel a difference.

Wednesday, September 20, 2017 Peaks of Otter and Dr. Paige Crowder Follow-Up!

I’m feeling a little better this morning so we’re continuing on our journey. We decided to vacate our nice, quiet campsite at Otter Creek. Even though I bought a fishing license, we thought it better to move down the road to Peaks of Otter CH, a distance of 27 miles.

On the way, we stopped for a short hike along the James River to the lock.

Dr. Crowder called (how cool is that?) as we were getting back into the car. She asked how I was feeling. I told her I was feeling fine and that there was still some swelling. She said the swelling should begin to go down today and that it might take a few days to vanish completely. She directed me to call her if there were to be any change in my symptoms.

We had nice lunch at the Peaks of Otter Lodge and visited the local stores. Later in the afternoon we returned to the Lodge grounds to walk around Abbott Lake.