We began by making overnight stops in Victoria, Texas and in Iowa, Louisiana before landing at the Boomtown Casino RV Park in Biloxi, Mississippi for a night. There we enjoyed a night out for some dinner and a little gambling. After dinner I decided to spend a few dollars gambling and lo and behold, I came out a winner once again by hitting for over $200 on my last machine of the night. I still don’t understand the luck I have in casinos but I’m not complaining.
The following day we headed out and took a beautiful drive along the Florida panhandle with the last 180 miles driven on mostly two lane divided roads through many of the beach towns along the gulf coast. It was slow but steady driving with lots of interesting things to see along the way. Our stop that night was in Carrabelle Beach, Florida where we stayed for 3 days. It’s a beautiful beach area with little to no activities close by but we enjoyed the quiet. We spent time at the beach on a beautiful warm sunny day, both with Stella and by ourselves. Stella loved swimming in the ocean since there were hardly any waves. We also took a drive out to nearby St. George Island where we enjoyed a great lunch and cocktails at the Blue Parrot, a cute café right on the beach. We followed that up with a trip down the road for an ice cream. After the ice cream we decided to climb up a historic lighthouse for some exercise. I think that was Claudia’s idea. The view from the top was definitely breathtaking.
Our next stop took us to a resort in White Springs, Florida for another three night stay for more rest and relaxation. This time it was in a beautiful wooded setting and a very nice swimming pool. After two gorgeous pool days in White Springs we once again headed out for more adventures.
Next it was on to the Oak Plantation Campground in Charleston, South Carolina. There was certainly a lot more to see and do than we were able to accomplish in this city that’s so rich with history. We did enjoy a trip out to Fort Sumter and we visited two separate plantations as well as taking a city bus tour. All were great visits except for the traffic. It’s been a while since we’ve sat in bumper to bumper traffic. I guess we didn’t realize how spoiled we’ve become.
Following Charleston we stopped in a small town named Mt. Airy, North Carolina, also known as Mayberry, for a two night stay. We had a very nice visit in the hometown of Andy Griffith and the town after which Mayberry was modeled. We saw the Sheriffs car cruising down the main street, enjoyed visits to many of the shops downtown, walked past Floyd’s barbershop and made visits to Wally’s Service Station and the Mayberry Courthouse. We ate at the Snappy Lunch, Andy’s favorite lunch stop. Last but not least we enjoyed a tour of the Andy Griffith Museum. It was a lot of fun just walking around and listening to everyone talk about the cast of the Andy Griffith Show as old friends.
Our final multi night stop was in Front Royal, Virginia. There we celebrated Claudia’s birthday with a nice dinner out. The next morning we took a ride down Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park looking for a nice hike. The day was picture perfect both for viewing the scenery and for a hike. After traveling about 30 miles along the Drive we decided on a hike up to Mary’s Rock. This was a 3.7 mile round trip hike with a 1,210 foot elevation gain so it was quite an ambitious hike for our first of the season but it was everything we hoped it would be. Very nice trails, lots of scenery and what a great view from the top. Stella enjoyed it too.
Our final night was spent in Lake Ariel, Pennsylvania before driving the last leg of our 18 days on the road to Uxbridge, Massachusetts. Uxbridge is the home of my sister and our camping spot for the next six weeks. This is the fourth year we’ve spent more than a few weeks here at “Camp Sawash” and we’re excited to be back. Now it’s time to settle in, visit family and get some necessary errands taken care of. We may not own a home here anymore but it sure feels like being home to us.