Heading to Montclair, NJ to see Tracey and the big grands, Lily and Ben. Stopped in Hagerstown, Maryland on the way. It has been raining for a couple of days now and everything feels so damp. We have towels on the couches and on the floor so the dogs can lay down wherever they want.
Arrived at the Mahlon Reservation where we will be staying for the next few days. It is REALLY out in the boonies! Only 20 sites and very few people here right now because of the rain. It is truly the quietest place we have ever stayed. There are bears out here too so we have to be careful with food and the dogs.
Had dinner with Tracey at Fresca's. Really nice place and dinner was great. Lily stopped by on the way home from her job (she is an ice cream scooper). She has grown so much since we last  eld on Wednesdays to avoid kids staying out all night. They do skip school the next day though.
Still raining the next day on and off. The dogs are enjoying being at Tracey's house. She has a little patio outside and when it's not raining.
Ben came over the next day to see us before he left to do his comedy show in NY. He is taller than I am now and such a nice young man. Guy and Tracey and Jason and his mom all went to see Ben's show. They said he was really good. Maybe we have a comedian in the making. I stayed with the dogs since we had nowhere to leave them.
On Sunday, the dogs got to meet their cousin, Clementine. They was all very happy to see each other and it was immediately as if they had always been together. No snipping, growling, or being mean. Just three little pals hanging out together.

Clementine

Tracey did her second half marathon to qualify for the PA marathon next year. She did very well but did it in the pouring rain and cold, and came home with a well earned medal, and a sore knee!
Guy helped Tracey with a few daddy does such as light bulb changing in her very high ceilings.
Monday, everyone was in school or working, so we drove to Pennsylvania to see Guy's cousins and the dogs' other cousin, Bonnie. Guy's cousin just has a bone marrow transplant and had to wear a mask and stay away from the dogs and crowds but we figured it out and had a wonderful visit. We had a wonderful pizza night with the kids and Tracey before heading on to our next stop in Rhode Island. It was so good to see them. I had to keep asking for extra hugs to make up for lost time. I do love my grands (anD their momma)!

Lily and Arlo

Just a funny sign I saw in Montclair!

Mothers' Day! Today, we travelled through the Blue Ridge Mountain Parkway on to Fancy Gap, Virginia. There are no pictures or words that can really describe the beauty of this area. It was very slow going for us in our little camper and we only saw one other small camper. I can't imagine driving on the BRMP in a large camper. Scary!
We saw two large pull outs which were actually huge mowed fields filled with at 50-100 or more people all with blankets, picnic baskets, balls, and volleyball nets. They were having a blast. Cars were parked all over and anywhere. Nowhere for us to park though so on we went. Sure was a neat place to picnic though.
Our campground in Fancy Gap, VA is gorgeous. It is just off the Blue Ridge Mountain Parkway and  so quiet! The dogs have their own fenced in doggy yard right at our campground. It is only for their use believe it or not. The dogs were not impressed. They preferred to go for a walk and take their business elsewhere. They have already had their pictures taken twice in the short while we have been here and now they think they are all that!

The next day we went back out along the Blue Ridge Parkway. It was so pretty everywhere. We drove for two hours to take the dogs to a certain winery (of course it was for the dogs lol), only to find it was closed for the next two days. Headed back to camp and took a long walk around the grounds. Had several people stop by to talk about the Airstream and the dogs. It's so funny, it's as if we are not even there with all the attention the three of them get! I have changed the name of the Airstream again. I think this one will really stick. It's The Ritz!!

On Tuesday, we went back out on the Blue Ridge Mountain Parkway again. We wanted to go to the Blue Ridge Mountain Folk Music place, but again...it was closed for Tuesday and Wednesday. Not having such good luck. We decided to hit a hike instead. We hiked up the hill and around and back down for 2.5 miles. It was really hot higher up because the trees were so many and close together. Arlo never slowed down. He went probably 10 miles to our 2.5. Annie just plodded along. She seems to be showing her age more than Arlo even though they are both the exact same age.
Found a nice little restaurant called Chase and Charley's that had a really pretty deck over looking a small river and forest. Smoking IS allowed here unfortunately, and so we had to smell a cigar for a bit while we ate. Started raining on the way back to the campsite which was fine as we were leaving in the morning.
When we were at our last campground, we kept finding little painted rocks all around the area. Found one at our site with a dog paw on it and put it on one of the kids' chairs of the family camping next to us. Well, I found another at this camp site and found out that you are supposed to take a picture of it and put it on Facebook on the RVers Rocks site. So I did and have had several responses to my post including a lady who found it where I left it. You are supposed to take it with you and leave it there for somebody else to find. Next time, I will do that. Haven't seen any since though but people find some really neat ones that they post.

The day after the Biltmore, we decided to go to the Biltmore Village. Turned out to be more of an outdoor mall. Too commercialized for us, so we decided to head for Dog Welcome Center, the first of it's kind, which was also in the downtown Biltmore area.

The dogs got to scrounge around in the pet store part and we received a welcome to the city package which contained all kinds of dog friendly information about the area, doggie poop bags, and free doggie treats.

After we left the dog welcome center, we headed for the Grovewood Arts Gallery and Antique Car Museum. It was on a county club and we saw a lot of beautiful garden art.

We went over to the Antique Car Museum. The owner wanted pictures of the dogs in front of his mumuseum. He had put his fourteen year old dog to sleep two days before and was very taken with our dogs. The dogs happily obliged.

The car museum was very cool with lots of very nice cars. There was an MG TD 1950 which was one year newer than the one we owned in 1968. We had to sell it in 1970 after we had our second child.

After we left the car museum and checked out the local Appalachian artwork, we headed downtown for lunch. Being from Colorado, we thought it only fitting that we have lunch at the Wicked Weed restaurant.

I tried boiled peanuts for the first time (not bad!) and pickled okra (meh!).

When we went back to the campground, it was buzzing with activity. Apparently, it has over 200 campsites and they were all full for Mothers' Day weekend. Kids were everywhere on bikes and interestingly enough, they weren't wearing helmets. I think I saw two kids with helmets. They were hunting for and finding little painted rocks which had been hidden around the campgrounds. In the morning, I found one at our site with a dog paw and a heart on it. I hid it on a kid's chair at the next site over. That evening, there was an ice cream social and bingo at the camp. I went to the big tent for bingo which was hilarious. So many little kids sitting on their parents' laps, teenagers, and old folk, all having a great time at bingo. I did not win but it was sure fun for $2.00!

Today, we went to the North Carolina Arboretum, where we again saw many local crafts. Some really talented people in this area. I was waiting for Guy to come out of the store when a huge black snake came out of the bushes and slowly made it's way across the entrance to the store. People from N. Carolina merely stepped across it and went into the store. They told me it was just a black snake and not a very big one at that. Looked pretty big to me! Arlo was very interested in it but Annie didn't even give it a second glance.

There was a bonsai exhibition so we headed over to check it out. They had several different trees and even a couple of forests.

 

After we checked out the bonsai, we took the dogs over to the train exhibit. The

dogs weren't particularly interested in the trains. The trains were set up outside with a sweet little village. The main engine was Thomas the Train. Pretty funny! 

Our next stop was the Asheville East KOA in North Carolina. This is probably the largest campground we have stayed at yet. There are two huge lakes and multiple campsites and tent sites. So many ducks, including some black and white ones that walk around in pairs. Males are larger than the females and have turquoise heads. Not sure what kind they are. There are multiple pairs of Canadian geese with many babies, some really tiny babies and some almost as large as their parents. There are many fish in the lakes and several people are fishing. Arlo lays outside the camper on his dog bed and watches the ducks and geese hoping to catch one as they walk quite brazenly past "his property."

So... we find out the downside to the campground fairly quickly. The noise! We are near the highway and the traffic is so loud and fairly constant. The worst though is the train that does right beside the campground several times a day. It sounds a horn that is incredibly loud. The first night we were there, it woke me up at 1:30 am, so I decided to read for a while. Suddenly, I hear this very creepy circus music. At first I thought it was someone camping nearby watching a movie, but then I hear it again, and again, and again! Very creepy and Stephen Kingish! The next day I found out from the camp hosts that it is coming from the game room and goes off automatically every few minutes.

Early the next morning, we headed for the Biltmore Estate. What an experience!

This is one of the most beautiful mansions I have ever seen. It is the largest privately owned mansion in the US. We loved the beautiful gardens and scenery. It was several miles from the entrance to the  

mansion. Gorgeous trees and shrubs line every road on the estate. 

The front door.

Such a cool dude! He forgot to turn his hat around after taking pictures!

Bridge across from the mansion.

The gardener's cottage.

Just a few of the flowers around the estate!

We were very lucky to be visiting at the same time as they were having a Chuhily exhibit and many of his creations were already displayed around the property. Too bad we couldn't be there to see the exhibit after everything was in place and/or the exhibits were lighted up at night. Absolutely gorgeous.

The dogs loved the grounds. We took turns sitting with them under an incredible arbor while each of us toured the house. We were very lucky to be there for the Titanic movie exhibition of all the clothes worn in the movie. They had beautiful mannequins wearing each outfit scattered around the rooms of the mansion. The many, many rooms of the mansion. There was a bowling alley, swimming pool, a dozen private changing rooms by the pool, a separate rotisserie room with a giant fireplace that looked like a whole pig could be roasted on the spit, a private gym, an incredible library with over 10,000 books, many guest bedrooms, a huge dining room, two large kitchens, and even a room full of vases, which are used for the multiple flower displays throughout the building. We loved our time spent there, some five hours. Later in the afternoon, we drove to Cedric's Place for a late lunch. Cedric's Place is still on the property, even though it is located four miles from the mansion. Cedric was the first St. Bernard of many that have lived on the estate over the years. Speaking of dogs, ours received so much attention everywhere they went throughout the estate. We got so many comments on their good behavior, Annie and Arlo must be thinking they are royalty after all the stroking, petting, and good words they are hearing.

Off to Charleston, South Carolina today. We will be staying at Joint Bases Charleston RV Park. I think this is the last of our military stops for a while. It was a smooth trip but on the way we were warned of a plane crash on the highway. Luckily, we did not see it but did see several emergency vehicles going by. Turned out a C-130 crashed on the highway killing five people aboard the plane. So sad.
This is a beautiful but little noisy campground. I think we are the smallest camper in the entire campground.
Today, we drove to downtown Charleston and took the Charleston Ferry Boat around the Harbor. Beautiful views of everything, and once again, we were able to see dolphins. Got off the ferry at the USS Yorktown and beside that a very old and damaged submarine. Hung around there for a while looking at all the sites then returned to the ferry to go to downtown Charleston. Hoards of people everywhere. We stopped at a street side restaurant and ate. The table next to us also had two labs. People were stopping and laughing at Arlo who was stretched out on the street sleeping. He can relax anywhere.
The next day we drove to the Magnolia Plantation. This has been a tourist attraction since just after the civil war. Originally, the crop there was rice and Charleston actually became rich on rice crops. Rice so famous it became known as Charleston Gold. They do not grow rice there anymore. We took a boat ride out into the swamp where we saw several alligators.

We also saw blue heron and many white egrets. The magnolia trees are only just beginning to bloom at the plantation, so we missed seeing all of the trees in full bloom. After the boat, we decided to take the dogs on the train that goes around the property. This is the first attraction that the dogs were not fond of one bit. Arlo was particularly scared of being on the train and Annie just would not settle down. They finally did settle but were obviously not enjoying the train. We could not figure out why. Maybe because it was a little bumpy but who knows. They are usually up for anything.

There was so many gorgeous flowers at the plantation. One I was surprised to see was the red amaryllis. For some reason, I always associate these at Christmas. That is when everyone has them in Colorado anyway.

However, in S. Carolina, they are grown as a border plant.  There was a 500 year old oak tree on the plantation as well as a California redwood which was quite small at 150 years old. I was unable to get in a position to take pictures of those though.

The next day, we headed for Jamestown Island. This also had a dog park with a huge pond, so once again the dogs got a change to run around and swim and generally get wet and stinky. We stopped at the Crab Shack for some appetizers and more attention for the dogs. On a side note, the lady in the camper next to use referred to our camper as a little jelly bean, so we have decided to officially name our camper "the Bean" after our beloved Norma Jean.

Off to find a special dog park for the dogs today. It is in Amelia Island, which is a beautiful little village. This particular dog park is run by the SPCA here on the island. It is attached to the SPCA Adoption Center and is run totally by volunteers. It is a huge park with $80,000 worth of astro turf and a large dog bone shaped pool. It costs $10.00 per dog to go in and $5 for a second dog which anyone from Colorado who frequents dog parks, is a huge deal. All proceeds go to help the dogs in the shelter. The dogs loved it! They spent a happy couple of hours swimming and jumping into the pool.

The next day, we decided to spend the day hanging out at the campground. Did some much needed laundry and went to the commissary and stocked up on some groceries. I am getting used to cooking in such a small space. Speaking of small spaces, we have had so many compliments on our little Airstream. And, have given quite a few tours of the inside. I may have to start charging.

   We were walking through a clover filled area on the base, when we saw what we thought was a ground hog. On closer inspection though we decided it was a rascally muskrat and a very large one at that. Back at the camp, somebody told us that there are loads of them around here. They dig little holes all around the campground and eat the grass roots. The grounds people replace the grass every other month or so, and the muskrats come in at night and get them again

.

Decided to go to a place called Hook'd Bar and Grill for lunch the next day. Absolutely beautiful view of the beach while we ate fresh grilled shrimp and redfish. After lunch, we drove to a place called The Conservatory Park. It wasn't quite what we were thinking but nonetheless very interesting. It was actually swampland with many dragonflies and Cypress Knees. We walked on wooden walkways around the swampland. Many warnings about alligators but we didn't see any. The dogs were not impressed with the 1.6 mile nature walk around the swamp. I was really surprised how fluorescent green the swamp was.

On Friday night, the family camp had a low country shrimp boil. Wasn't sure what made it low country, but found out that it means shrimp, sausage, corn, and potatoes. Many people showed up for the boil. I guess at $10.00 a bowl it was a very good deal and quite good

Next day, we headed for Jacksonville, Florida. We were staying at another Air Force Base Family Camp. The guards at the gate of the base were having a lot of fun with Guy's 33 year old military ID card. It is older than all of them. Mostly they were saying that they had never seen one that old. I think he keeps it because his photo is so young!

Since we both volunteer for Safe Harbor Lab Rescue in Denver, we couldn't help but stop for lunch at Safe Harbor Seafood Market and Restaurant for lunch. We had no idea what was going on. The place was jammed with three lines of people. The lady in front of me filled me in on the deal. The first line was to buy your fish which you were going to take home. There was a huge fish market in there with every kind of fish, crab, lobster or oyster you can imagine. The second line was for those who wanted to go through the market and pick the fish they were going to eat in the restaurant. The third line was for those with their fish and who were waiting to order the catch of the day and also eat in the restaurant. The lady in front of me handed the cashier her fish and told her she wanted it with no head and blackened and her scallops blackened. Those, a drink, and a side cost her $16.00. Couldn't help but imagine what that might have cost her in Denver lol. We ordered fresh grouped grilled and it was one of the most delicious meals we have ever had.

The dogs were sleeping under the table, when a lady came and sat down at the next table. She was obviously put out that the dogs were there and when the manager came over, she said something to him. We would gladly have moved to another spot but the manager just shrugged his shoulders. When we were leaving some time later, the woman said to me, "those are the best behaved dogs ever". I know! Good Annie and Arlo!