Marion, NC to Asheville, NC

Monday, November 12 - Mom and Dad managed to get the Jeep hitched up between rain showers and we moved on to Asheville, North Carolina.  We had a 1:00 appointment for the motor home to have an oil change.  We left the motor home at Piedmont Truck and Tire.  They have several locations around the Carolinas and Dad recommends them for basic service, reasonable rates and easy appointments.  Mom, Dad, and I went to the Asheville Outlet Mall.  Mom always runs out of clean jeans before Dad does, so she thinks she should have another pair.  I find shopping to be stressful, so I stayed in the Jeep and took a nap.

Once Mom and Dad were done shopping, we hopped on the Blue Ridge Parkway at about Milepost 395 and went north to Milepost 382.  We stopped at the Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Center.  This is the main Visitor Center for the entire 465 mile parkway and the only one that has been open during our trip.  Mom and Dad went in to watch the movie and came back with a list of places around Asheville that have free music in the evening and also a great discount for the Biltmore Estate.  Score!

We also stopped at the Folk Art Center on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  This is a place that showcases local Arts and Crafts.  Mom and Dad had a good time.  I stayed in the Jeep and listened to the rain pound on the roof.  Not like rain at home.

While Mom and Dad were in the Folk Art Center, Dad got a call that the motor home is done, so we went to pick it up and then settled into our campsite in Asheville.  We are staying at Wilson's Riverfront RV Park.  It has the advantage that it's in town and has a beautiful setting along a river.  It has the disadvantage that it's between two freeways.  We are at the base of a hill that ends in a curve on one of the freeways, so we listen to "jake brakes" on trucks all night long. BAMBAMBAM!

Tuesday, November 13 - It's supposed to be overcast and rainy all week, but little chance of rain today, until mid-afternoon.  Since today looks like the "best" weather all week, Mom and Dad decided to head to the Biltmore Estate.  They heard that it is decorated for Christmas.

The Biltmore Estate with their Christmas tree out front

Spiral stairway from the outside

Inside - light fixture in the spiral stairway

Christmas Trees in front of the Triple Fireplace in the Dining Room.

Light Switches.  Pretty amazing for a house built in the 1890's.

The library

A Gingerbread House in the Kitchen

Another view of the kitchen with a "modern" coal fired stove circa 1890

Another view of the Dining Room.  It's 7 stories tall.  The table seats more than 30 people.

Even the Lion statutes out front were decked out for Christmas.

Wednesday - November 13 - It's another rainy day.   Mom worked on some tax estimates for clients and caught up on some other work.  Dad took their clothes to the laundromat.   In the evening, they went to a place called the Isis Theater and saw five Italians singing Bluegrass Music.  Yeah, I know, sounds like the start of a really bad joke.  They got to sit in the front row next to the stage.

The Isis Theater is a 1930's movie theater that is now a restaurant and music venue.  Even though it's called ISIS, it has nothing to do with the Islamic State.  Tonight's Band is called La Terza Classe, which is Italian for The Third Class.  They sang a variety of music, including Bluegrass.  I wasn't allowed in the theater, but Mom played some of their music from You Tube for me.  I liked it, maybe you will, too.  Click Here to hear La Terza Classe  I hope that works for you 😓

Thursday, November 14 - Today Mom and Dad went out to explore Asheville.  They started in downtown and then went to the River Arts District.  They said they had fun looking in all the Art Galleries.

In the evening they went to an Irish Bar called Jack in the Wood.  It's the home of Greenman Brewing and they had a Blue Grass Jam Session.

Even though it hasn't been very good to be outside, we are finding lots to do in Asheville.  We originally planned to stay four nights, but extended our stay a couple days.  I'll tell you more about Asheville next time.

Love, 

Doolin

Mt. Airy, North Carolina to Marion, North Carolina

Thursday, November 8 - Today Mom and Dad went to Pilot Mountain State Park.   They talked about hiking to the top.  I saw this picture of Pilot Mountain on the Internet and I'd read that there is a road and you can drive to the base of the knob (almost the top).  From the parking lot, it's an easy hike around the knob.  But, most of you know my parents.  They didn't listen.  They ignored the perfectly good road, parked at the bottom, and hiked up.

View from 1/2 way up.

Dad's picture of the knob on the day they were there.

Hiking around the base of the knob.

  

Mom coming down the Ledge Spring Trail.

When they got back, they told me that from the parking lot to the top is an elevation gain of 1,000 feet and that the trail went up and down quite a few times as it wound it's way up the mountain, so they had more elevation change than that.  They also told me that they hiked a total of 7.5 miles and it started to sprinkle about 45 minutes before they got back to the car.   I think they wanted me to feel sorry for them.  Nope, no sympathy from me.  I just told them that they should have taken the Jeep.

Friday, November 9 - Today we drove to Oak Ridge, North Carolina (near Greensboro or about an hour from our campground in Mt Airy).  Our friends Lorraine and Mike live there now.  They used to live in our town.  They made lunch for Mom and Dad and they all had a nice visit in the afternoon.  It was good to see them again.  We should have taken photos.

Saturday, November 10 - Today we said goodbye to Mt. Airy and continued on to Marion, North Carolina.  We got in early, so we took a drive to Linville Falls.  It's a 1.6 mile round trip hike to see the falls.  

Upper Linville Falls.

The entire falls is 90 feet high.

Sunday, November 11 - Today Mom and Dad joined the Blue Ridge Parkway at Milepost 345 and went north to Milepost 295 and the town of Blowing Rock.  They started the day with a hike at Crabtree Falls.

Crabtree Falls

It was cold last night and there were interesting ice formations along the trail.

An area known as Little Switzerland

Dad trying to get the perfect photo of icicles along the road

One of Dad's photos of icicles

More Scenery along the drive

Mom and Dad looked around the shops in Blowing Rock, then had dinner at a brewery in Boone before coming back to me.

Current Location - We are at Sesquicentennial State Park in Columbia, South Carolina.  We will be here through Friday.  I'll tell you about it in a future post.

Love,

Doolin

Roanoke, Virginia to Mt. Airy, North Carolina

Sunday, November 4 - The Blue Ridge Parkway isn't exactly built for motor homes our size.  We've decided to stay near Parkway access points and then Mom and Dad can take drives in the Jeep north and south from those points.  That way, they will see most of the Parkway.  

Today they went North from Roanoke and saw the stretch from Milepost 60 -115.  This included the area called the Peaks of Otter.  It was a beautiful day with lots of fantastic views.

Cool pedestrian bridge over the James River.  It's under the roadway bridge.

Monday, November 5 - Today Mom and Dad went south of Roanoke and saw the Parkway from Milepost 120-165.

Fall color just keeps getting better and better.

Tuesday, November 6 - Today we moved the coach from Roanoke, Virginia to Mt. Airy, North Carolina.  Dad decided to try driving the motor home down the Blue Ridge Parkway, so I got to see Milepost 120-200.  Overall the Parkway is fine for the motor home.  The side roads to get on and off the parkway are steeper and sharper curves than the parkway it self.  

Mabry Mill on the Blue Ridge Parkway

We got in early, so we decided to check out Mt. Airy.  You may have heard of Mt. Airy, North Carolina before.  Andy Griffith was born here and it was the inspiration for Mayberry.  

We went by to see Andy and Opey.

Stopped by Wally's Service Station.  Barney's car was in for service.

Then we went by the Courthouse.

Wednesday, November 7 - Today Mom and Dad took the Jeep and drove south on the Blue Ridge Parkway from Milepost 200-250 and then circled back through Galax, Virginia.

I decided to ride along and see some of the sites.

Galax is a fun town.

Downtown Galax, Virginia

Mom and Dad stopped for lunch and beers at the local brewery.

Next time, more on our stay in Mt Airy.

Love, 

Doolin

Greenbelt, Maryland to Roanoke, VA

Tuesday, October 30 - Today we left Greenbelt National Park and drove to Waynesboro, Virginia.   We settled into a beautiful spot at the Waynesboro Elks Lodge.  Some of you who read my blog regularly know that Dad is a member of the Elks and we've stayed at quite a few Elks Lodges.  This is one of the best we've stayed at.   It's nice and quiet and we are on a hill with a view of the Blue Ridge and a pasture with cows.  Here are pictures of our campsite.

After we got settled into our campsite, Mom and Dad decided they needed to go to the human groomers for haircuts for them.  Then they went to the grocery store.  After that, we all just hung out at the motor home and enjoyed our new view.

Wednesday, October 31 - Waynesboro is between Shenandoah National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway.   Today is Mom's birthday and Mom and Dad went north on the Skyline Drive through Shenandoah National Park.  They did a 3.4 mile hike to Chimney Rock.  It was a challenging hike because it had 830 feet of elevation gain, but nice views and nice fall color.

After the hike, they continued to drive and they saw THREE real live bears.  Mom took pictures of this one.  The camera has a zoom lens, but she wasn't using it.  There was a lane of traffic between her and the bear.  I'm glad that she stayed in the Jeep and just rolled down the window.  

On the way home, they saw nice fall color and a beautiful sunset.

Thursday, November 1 - Today Mom and Dad ventured South from Waynesboro on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  The first big stop was a place called Humpback Rocks.  This trail was recommended to them by a nice elderly gentleman at the Elks Lodge.  The sign said that it was 8/10ths of a mile each way and would take about 40 minutes, so Mom and Dad didn't take food or water.  Oh boy, was that a mistake.  While it was a short hike, it had an elevation gain of 700 feet.  That's kind of like climbing the stairs of a 70 story building!!  I'm glad I stayed home and took a nap.

It looks like they had nice views from the top.

After their hike, they continued down the Blue Ridge Parkway.  It was a pretty drive.

At about Milepost 45, they left the Parkway and circled back to Waynesboro.

Friday, November 2 - Today Mom and Dad went to Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's home.  It was a rainy day, so they didn't take a lot of pictures, but they enjoyed seeing the house and learning more about Jefferson's plantation.

Saturday, November 3 - Today we left Waynesboro and drove to Roanoke, Virginia.  After settling in to our spot at the Roanoke Elks, Mom and Dad went for a drive around the area.  I'm not sure what happened, but Mom and Dad didn't take any pictures today.  😬

Current Location - We are currently in Asheville, North Carolina.  

Love, 

Doolin