Went There, Did That, Came Home

This is a very late report on my trip in May. I had been drafting a log as I went along, and finished it up when I got home. As I was trying to publish it, suddenly my screen went blank. All lost in the vacuous void of the internet. You’ll just have to take my word that it was comprehensive, educational, and brilliantly composed. Ah well, here goes my new version that I'm sure suffers from my memory insufficiencies.

I left home on May 7th and drove to my friend Gayle’s house in Atlanta
(1-1/2 days, 1200 miles) and when I arrived, I didn’t want to touch the steering wheel again for a couple days! I ended up staying three days and had a great visit with Gayle and her son Sean.

I then headed for Savannah, GA, camping on Tybee Island that night. I tried to find a place to walk the dogs on the beach the next morning, but the parking places were all too short for the MUTT. I ended up parking at a nice park in town, taking up two parking places, but I didn’t figure that was a problem, as there were only a couple other cars parked there. As I got back to the parking lot, there was a police car driving through the lot and I willed him to keep driving. Instead, he slowed and stopped by the MUTT. I hurried up, hoping to be able to sweet talk him with my charming Minnesota accent, but turns out he was there because someone who apparently lived in her car was sleeping close to my rig.

Next on the route was Hilton Head Island in South Carolina. I had read much about it and was familiar with its reputation as a golfing mecca. I had heard people talking about golfing Hilton Head and expected one golf course. Wow! I saw course after course as I drove the length of the island. In between were very upscale, chic-looking shopping areas. No big billboards or signs of any kind; even the Target store was only marked by a small Target logo set in a stone pillar…very discreet. Some interesting history of the island: During the Civil War, the island was the site of several major battles, eventually captured by the Union Army. The slaves on the island were freed and became the first black troops to serve for the union. After the war, the island was granted to the freed slaves, who farmed and fished it until the northerners rediscovered it and purchased it from the inhabitants. In the 1950s, it was developed as the planned resort community it is today.

I continued up the South Carolina coast, staying at a campground in Hollywood before going through Charleston. That was one of the disappointments of my trip, that I wasn’t able to see more of the city and its historical sites. It was too hot to leave the dogs in the RV, so other than a walk around a park, I just drove through. It’s hard to see anything that way, the narrow streets and lots of traffic demanding my full attention. Next time I’m out that way, I’ll leave the MUTT at a campground plugged into A/C to keep the dogs comfortable, and rent a car to explore.

As I continued up the coast, I intended to visit Myrtle Beach, but that was the weekend of a Very Large motorcycle rally, and I found the MUTT being used as a pylon for the bikes pouring into town. What I did see seemed very touristy and commercial, and that impression was confirmed by people I talked to later. As I drove north, there were hundreds more bikes on their way to the rally, so I’m glad I made the decision to give it a pass.

The drive from the coast to the RV rally near Glendale Springs, North Carolina was relaxing and uneventful. After arriving at the campground, which is just a stone’s throw from the Blue Ridge Parkway, I spent four great days renewing friendships and making new ones. That’s the greatest thing about the rallies and RVing in general…almost everyone I meet becomes an instant friend.

After leaving the rally, I got caught up in a major traffic tie-up: two hours to go 12 miles! They were blasting a tunnel through the mountain, and had narrowed six lanes down to two. One of the joys of traveling! I stayed in Frankfort, Kentucky that night, but as I had been warned not to go through Louisville during rush hour, I got up at 3:00 a.m. to avoid it. Worked great, but I soon needed to pull over and catch a quick nap. That was the story of my trip home; drive a few hours, nap an hour or two, then back to driving.

I reached the Minnesota/Wisconsin border on I-90 just before sunrise the next day, and pulled into the rest area just into Minnesota. After washing up, brushing my teeth, feeding and walking the dog, I watched the sun rise over the Mississippi river. Absolutely breathtaking! I thought to myself that of all the beautiful scenery I had seen on this trip, this was the most beautiful. For readers who haven’t been to Minnesota, if you visit, be sure to enter the state via I-90 if possible. The river with its many islands and the river bluffs make southeastern MN a paradise, in my opinion. I love Minnesota: The northern part of the state has the North Shore of Lake Superior, the Boundary Waters Canoe Area, Voyageurs National Park, and of course we have over 15,000 lakes throughout the state, (Forget that “Land of 10,000 Lakes” slogan. We’re just a very modest people here. As Garrison Keillor once said: “If Minnesotans had named Lake Superior, it would have been Lake Pretty Good.”)

But as much as I enjoy traveling in Minnesota, I’ll keep sampling the flavors of the rest of the country and sharing them here. C’mon along!