Oxford NC

19^th – 30th Nov – Oxford, NC, Part 2

The weather got colder and colder and we were glad to be staying in the house as we watched parts of northern USA (Buffalo, near the Canadian border) receive 70 inches of snow!  The temperature inside the RV got below freezing a couple of times and we checked it each day to ensure everything was alright.  We were nice and cosy in the house.

Clarence took Paul fishing several times and they caught some nice sized Blue Gill and Catfish which provided a tasty dinner on a couple of nights.

Alison was kept occupied taking Tazer, the big German Shepard dog, for walks.

We had some maintenance work done on the RV.  Paul did some tasks around the garden such as leave blowing and building a fire pit around an old tree stump which burned and smouldered for a week.

Eventually the visa extension we applied for

back in July, came through – literally on the last day that our current visa ran out!  That allows us to stay until the end of April 2015.  
30^th November is the official end of the hurricane season so we prepared for our trip down to Florida for the winter. 

We say our goodbyes to Louise and Clarence in the morning and get on the road again.

North Carolina

30^th Oct – Oxford, NC

We set off for the 240 mile drive east to Oxford NC just north of Durham, to stay with eldest daughter Louise for the next few weeks.  We drove the RV up the drive with just enough room to turn it around.  We then spent the next half hour trying to get it out of the mud as the gravel didn’t support the RVs full 12 tons.

The path.

For the first week or so we had some lovely warm sunny weather and Paul and Clarence were out doing odd jobs in the garden including laying paving bricks for a new garden path to the front door.

1^st Nov – Halloween Party

Scary

 

 

We were invited to a Halloween Party.  We had no costumes to wear so we improvised with some face paint……..

14^th Nov – THE Party

Tears of Joy

A proud Dad

It was Louise’s big Four Zero on the 13^th so we went out for a meal to celebrate.  However a surprise party had been in the planning for a couple of months for the following evening.  So on the pre-text of a girl’s night out, her friend Trudi took Louise and Alison to the local bar and restaurant, ‘Georges’, to meet a few friends for the evening. 

Unbeknown to Louise, Paul and Clarence had spent the afternoon at the airport collecting Fiona, a childhood friend she’d not seen for 9 years, and Rachel, Louise’s sister who had flown in from UK that day. 

Rachel, Louise, Fiona

An emotional reaction from Louise as the two of them walked into the bar totally unexpected. The party continued with many other friends in attendance until one in the morning with dancing and karaoke.

15^th Nov – The day after the Party

Empty Beer Tube in centre

Redneck bar

With the house prepared for the extra visitors for the night we spent the night in the RV.  Unfortunately a cold front had come in for the weekend and it was not the most cosy of nights for us. The day was spent inside the house chatting and catching up with news.  In the evening we went 10-pin bowling were they served beer in a "Tube".  On the way home we stopped at a Redneck Bar called ‘Munching Marvin’s’ (something along the lines of a local village pub in UK).  The entertainment not only included the singer with his guitar but also one of the locals chatting up Fiona(!).

16^th – 18^th Nov - Farewells

Fiona flew back to Colorado on 16^th and Rachel stayed for another two days before returning to UK on 18^th.  This was the first visit to North Carolina for Rachel and it was great to spend time with both the girls together.

 

Red Neck Country

15^th – 18th October – Davy Crockett Birthplace SP

We travelled north, up the I-75, passed Knoxville and then the I-81 to Baileyton, eastern Tennessee. We spent a few days here and visited the Birthplace of Davy Crockett which is now a State Park. 

The old cabin was there by the river and a small museum explained some facts about this legendary figure. He gained a reputation as a hunter and one year he was credited with killing over 100 bears.  He married twice and had 8 children. His grand-parents were killed by Indians and although he did not care much for them he did support their cause about the way they were treated by the Government when he was a Congressman. He died in 1836, at the age of 50 at The Alamo in Texas.

19^th – 21^st October – Panther Creek SP

We then moved to Panther Creek campground on the shores of Cherokee Lake for a few days. This park had some lovely hiking trails and we went out in the kayak on the Tuesday.

Pigeon Forge, TN

22^nd – 25^th October – Shopping/Lodging/Dining

We travelled down to Pigeon Forge to meet up with our friends from Michigan, Charlie and Doreen.

This area is on the Tennessee side of the Great Smoky Mountains and is one continuous sprawl of theme parks, amusements, shops, motels etc.Trolley buses travel up and down the main drag. At every stop an automated message tells you what is there – however it is always the same “shoping, dining, lodging”. At this time of year the area is very popular as people come to see the Smoky Mountains in the Fall Colours. However this year is a late Fall so the full splendour is not yet fully on show.

23^rd – Oktoberfest – Gatlinburg

The four of us took the trolley to the next town of Gatlinburg for the Oktoberfest up on Ober Mountain accessible via the Tramway. We enjoyed a meal with German-style musical entertainment. Audience participation was encouraged and Alison having been sampling the Moonshine Liquor earlier was invited out on the dance floor by one of the band members.

24^th – 25^th – Pigeon Forge            

The trolley buses are a great way to get around the towns and save the hassle of parking. They also enabled a guilt free sampling of the local moonshine which we all enjoyed (big improvement from Kentucky Bourbon!). 


There were about 12 different flavours to try and even at our mature age we had to provide ID each time. 

We took in a couple of shows in the evenings.  The Ole Smoky   Opry Variety Show was very enjoyable.The Hatfield and McCoy Show, was a comedy song and dance show, and included dinner.  Alison was ‘volunteered’ to go up on stage – this time Paul was dragged along too.
 (It’s that moonshine that does it).

North Carolina

26^th – 29^th Oct – Chimney Rock, NC

The four of us set off in our respective RVs to travel the I-40 over the Appalachian Mountains into North Carolina, heading for a campground near Chimney Rock, south east of Asheville.

On the Monday we visited Chimney Rock state park and travelled up the 26-storey elevator inside the mountain.  At a height of 2,280 feet we had a beautiful view down the Hickory Nut Gorge and over Lake Lure.  Lake Lure is where the 1987 film Dirty Dancing was made starring Patrick Swayze.  Some scenes in the 1992 film The Last of the Mohicans, with Daniel Day-Lewis, were filmed at Chimney Rock too.

The village had some interesting shops and we had lunch by the river on this lovely sunny day.

On the Tuesday Charlie and Doreen set off for warmer climes; south towards Florida.  We spent the next two days chilling out and taking the kayak out on Lake Lure. 

30^th Oct – Oxford, NC

We then set off for the 240 mile drive east to Oxford, just north of Durham to stay with Louise for the next few weeks.