The alarm went off at 9am and it was raining! So we rolled over and slept for another hour and a half , before getting up. The rain had stopped so we packed up the camper and headed home. It was nice knowing that this was the last time I would have to pack up the camper for a while.
It was a topsy-turvy ride down the mountain, so to combat motion sickness I closed my eyes and ended up falling asleep for about half of the ride home. It wasn't until Doug pulled into Green Ridge State Park for lunch, that I awoke. We made lunches in the camper and took a short walk to the overlook to eat.
Then it was back on the road, with one stop in mind- HOME! The girls were very eager to get back, to see their dog Harley. Once we were on I 83 headed north, their excitement started building. When we hit Gore Mill Road (where our house is), Maddie rolled down the window and stuck her head out like a dog, smelling the air. It was way too funny to watch.
The moment we parked the truck, they bounded up the steps to the house to greet Harley, who was very excited and happy to see us all.
We were racing an impending thunder storm as we unpacked. We almost made it....
Then we had to take Aaron, our house sitter, home. Luckily it was his father, Craig's birthday cook out so when we got there we had dinner. (Thanks Craig and Patty and Happy Birthday Craig).
It is good to be home, but we are all looking forward to next years 3 week adventure!
Sunday, July 28, 2013
Green Bank and Cass Railroad
An awesome day!!! My cousin, MaryAnn was our personal West Virginia tour guide. She took us to Green Bank to see the radio telescopes at Green Bank. It was really cool. There is a 10 mile radio-free zone, and all electronics aren't allowed within about a half-mile so although we did see the telescope very close we could not take digital photographs.
We took a tour to learn about the telescopes and how they work. It was interesting for everyone, especially Doug (no surprise there) and Maddie. We were able to see the very first radio telescope and several others, including the largest most recognized one. We also had a chance to see the sun through a telescope, and go through the various exhibits in the education center.
After the train ride was over we went through the museum and country store. We had ice cream and decided to drive up to Spruce Knob, the highest point in West Virginia. I was so glad that Doug offered to drive up the mountain. It was a very curvy road and I was not comfortable taking the Suburban up to the look out. It was an awesome sight, so beautiful. We went on a short hike and then on our way back down the mountain stopped at the Spruce Knob lake where we saw a beaver and Doug and the girls skipped stones. It was so beautiful and a lot of fun for everyone.
By then it was almost 7:00, so we headed back to MaryAnn's home to have dinner and chill out for a while before going to the camper for bed.
It was a fantastic way to wrap up our vacation. I hope we can actually find time to make it back to West Virginia to see my cousin.
We took a tour to learn about the telescopes and how they work. It was interesting for everyone, especially Doug (no surprise there) and Maddie. We were able to see the very first radio telescope and several others, including the largest most recognized one. We also had a chance to see the sun through a telescope, and go through the various exhibits in the education center.
After we left Green Bank we headed to the Cass Railroad to ride the steam engine up the mountain. It was so cool. The steam engine we rode was originally a logging train. It was a beautiful trip, we all had so much fun. We had the opportunity to get off of the train and see some of the old logging equipment and cabins before we rode back down the mountain.
After the train ride was over we went through the museum and country store. We had ice cream and decided to drive up to Spruce Knob, the highest point in West Virginia. I was so glad that Doug offered to drive up the mountain. It was a very curvy road and I was not comfortable taking the Suburban up to the look out. It was an awesome sight, so beautiful. We went on a short hike and then on our way back down the mountain stopped at the Spruce Knob lake where we saw a beaver and Doug and the girls skipped stones. It was so beautiful and a lot of fun for everyone.
By then it was almost 7:00, so we headed back to MaryAnn's home to have dinner and chill out for a while before going to the camper for bed.
It was a fantastic way to wrap up our vacation. I hope we can actually find time to make it back to West Virginia to see my cousin.
Saturday, July 27, 2013
West Virginia
I know that am late, again with blog entries but we were staying in an area without any Wi-Fi. So here it goes....
We were on our way to my cousins home in West Virginia, it was a beautiful drive, with many scenic overlooks. Doug could not resist stopping and taking a look at the beautiful mountains.
We arrived in West Virginia, and I called my cousin so we could figure out where to meet up. She does not have an actual address so finding her house and the campground that is below her would have been impossible without her assistance.
We met up at a little gas station and followed her to the campground where her husband helped us get hooked up. Then went to her house for a while to catch up. Hailey and Maddie got hungry, so we went into town to a place called Big John's. It had video games and some good food. Maddie was not feeling too well, but once she had some food she perked up for a while.
Once we got back to the camper her headache got worse, I think she had her first migraine. She was in tears and looked horrible. She ended up laying in bed with Doug and me until she was almost asleep. Poor thing...
We arrived in West Virginia, and I called my cousin so we could figure out where to meet up. She does not have an actual address so finding her house and the campground that is below her would have been impossible without her assistance.
We met up at a little gas station and followed her to the campground where her husband helped us get hooked up. Then went to her house for a while to catch up. Hailey and Maddie got hungry, so we went into town to a place called Big John's. It had video games and some good food. Maddie was not feeling too well, but once she had some food she perked up for a while.
Once we got back to the camper her headache got worse, I think she had her first migraine. She was in tears and looked horrible. She ended up laying in bed with Doug and me until she was almost asleep. Poor thing...
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
Natural Tunnel
I am making another attempt at a blog entry, the Wi-Fi at this campground continues to be horrible! The only place we can get a 4G connection is a specific place on the bed in the camper. Hopefully I will get todays post in without any trouble.
Knowing that we had 2 days planned for this campground we did not set the alarm last night. We figured we would sleep in a little. We definitely slept in, it was 11:30 before we got up. I guess we all needed it! Once we got up we drove to the Natural Tunnel area of the park, where we took a chair lift down to the tunnel. Yes, more heights for the woman how is afraid of them. Lucky Me! Actually the ride down was not the greatest but the ride up was much better. Both were much better than yesterdays trip down the steps into the cave. I managed the chair lift with little difficulty and with my eyes open.
The moment we got down to the bottom it was so beautiful. The trees, the water, the mountains, it was all breath taking! We first hiked to the log cabin, and looked around, It was pretty cool. When we were ready to leave Hailey jumped up and said wait a minute, and she ran into the log cabin and burst open the window! It was cute!
We then made our way to the bottom of the Natural Tunnel opening. It was really cool to see, Doug wanted so much for the train to go through, Unfortunately it did not come through while we were down there. We did have a chance to take plenty of pictures and look at everything,
We then hiked to the overlook and saw the tunnel from that point of view.
The girls got antsy we headed back to the chair lift and went back to the visitors center. Once we made it to the top of the ridge, the train came through- Murphy's Law strikes again! We went through the exhibits there, which covered the history of the tunnel and the area.
We headed back to the camper for a snack and to get our swim suits on. Then we went to the pool for a few hours. The girls loved the 10 foot slide, and Doug and I enjoyed resting and having a chance to chill. The pool closed at 6, so we went to this little diner at the edge of the State Park and had dinner and ice cream. It was a cute little place decorated in a 1950's style with Betty Boop everywhere!
Now we are back at the campground sitting around the campfire, enjoying the evening! We can not sleep in tomorrow because we need to be in West Virginia by dinner time.
Knowing that we had 2 days planned for this campground we did not set the alarm last night. We figured we would sleep in a little. We definitely slept in, it was 11:30 before we got up. I guess we all needed it! Once we got up we drove to the Natural Tunnel area of the park, where we took a chair lift down to the tunnel. Yes, more heights for the woman how is afraid of them. Lucky Me! Actually the ride down was not the greatest but the ride up was much better. Both were much better than yesterdays trip down the steps into the cave. I managed the chair lift with little difficulty and with my eyes open.
The moment we got down to the bottom it was so beautiful. The trees, the water, the mountains, it was all breath taking! We first hiked to the log cabin, and looked around, It was pretty cool. When we were ready to leave Hailey jumped up and said wait a minute, and she ran into the log cabin and burst open the window! It was cute!
We then made our way to the bottom of the Natural Tunnel opening. It was really cool to see, Doug wanted so much for the train to go through, Unfortunately it did not come through while we were down there. We did have a chance to take plenty of pictures and look at everything,
We then hiked to the overlook and saw the tunnel from that point of view.
The girls got antsy we headed back to the chair lift and went back to the visitors center. Once we made it to the top of the ridge, the train came through- Murphy's Law strikes again! We went through the exhibits there, which covered the history of the tunnel and the area.
We headed back to the camper for a snack and to get our swim suits on. Then we went to the pool for a few hours. The girls loved the 10 foot slide, and Doug and I enjoyed resting and having a chance to chill. The pool closed at 6, so we went to this little diner at the edge of the State Park and had dinner and ice cream. It was a cute little place decorated in a 1950's style with Betty Boop everywhere!
Now we are back at the campground sitting around the campfire, enjoying the evening! We can not sleep in tomorrow because we need to be in West Virginia by dinner time.
Mammoth Cave
We got to camp so late yesterday that I did not blog. Also the campground where we are has HORRIBLE Wi-Fi. I am going to try and cover yesterdays adventures as good as I can...
We went to Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. I thought it was going to be a lot like Carlsbad, boy was I wrong! It was NOTHING like it. If you are afraid of heights, like I am, I do not recommend that you attempt to visit the "New Entrance" like we did. I was not a happy camper at all. We had to go down into the sink hole 280 steps, very steep high steps. By the way did I mention that I was afraid of heights? I was shaking and freaking down all 280 of those stairs. I had Hailey joking behind me, and Maddie worrying about me, and Doug was trying to support me. OMG! It was very nerve racking, even though the cave was about 50 degrees, my anxiety had me sweating like it was 80. When I made it to the bottom I cried because of the anxiety - who says facing your fears is good? The thing is, I did make it to the bottom, I did not freeze (although I wanted to), and I was able to see the cave in its entirety - Go Me! Will I ever do that again, definitely NOT! We found out later that 2 other guys in our tour did not make it down, so I did better than them. Whoop Whoop!
The rest of the cave tour was great. It was beautiful to be able to see it. One of the best parts was when the turned out the lights so you could really see how dark the cave was. We saw cave crickets, Frozen Niagara, beautiful limestone formations too. It was amazing!!! This was different from Carlsbad because water doesn't seep in from above (except where the Frozen Niagara formation is), some would call it plain. But this is the largest cave system in the world with 400 mapped miles and an estimated 600 more that haven't been explored yet.
After we finished the New Entrance Tour we hiked down to the Natural Entrance to the cave to see it. It was pretty cool, the most amazing part was feeling the temperature change near the cave and at it's entrance. Doug and the girls went several hundred feet into the entrance and said there was a strong wind coming from below. It was pretty wild.
After we were through with that we went through the exhibits at the visitors center and learned more about caves and how they are formed as well as bats and how to protect them.
It was then time to head to the next campground. Not before we made a stop for Hailey, she was determined to eat at Kentucky Fried Chicken in the state of Kentucky. Which we did, we found one and had an early dinner. On our way to Virginia, Doug also found where the first KFC was, so he even made a quick pit stop there to show Hailey where the very first one was. He is such a good Dad!
We went to Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. I thought it was going to be a lot like Carlsbad, boy was I wrong! It was NOTHING like it. If you are afraid of heights, like I am, I do not recommend that you attempt to visit the "New Entrance" like we did. I was not a happy camper at all. We had to go down into the sink hole 280 steps, very steep high steps. By the way did I mention that I was afraid of heights? I was shaking and freaking down all 280 of those stairs. I had Hailey joking behind me, and Maddie worrying about me, and Doug was trying to support me. OMG! It was very nerve racking, even though the cave was about 50 degrees, my anxiety had me sweating like it was 80. When I made it to the bottom I cried because of the anxiety - who says facing your fears is good? The thing is, I did make it to the bottom, I did not freeze (although I wanted to), and I was able to see the cave in its entirety - Go Me! Will I ever do that again, definitely NOT! We found out later that 2 other guys in our tour did not make it down, so I did better than them. Whoop Whoop!
The rest of the cave tour was great. It was beautiful to be able to see it. One of the best parts was when the turned out the lights so you could really see how dark the cave was. We saw cave crickets, Frozen Niagara, beautiful limestone formations too. It was amazing!!! This was different from Carlsbad because water doesn't seep in from above (except where the Frozen Niagara formation is), some would call it plain. But this is the largest cave system in the world with 400 mapped miles and an estimated 600 more that haven't been explored yet.
After we finished the New Entrance Tour we hiked down to the Natural Entrance to the cave to see it. It was pretty cool, the most amazing part was feeling the temperature change near the cave and at it's entrance. Doug and the girls went several hundred feet into the entrance and said there was a strong wind coming from below. It was pretty wild.
After we were through with that we went through the exhibits at the visitors center and learned more about caves and how they are formed as well as bats and how to protect them.
It was then time to head to the next campground. Not before we made a stop for Hailey, she was determined to eat at Kentucky Fried Chicken in the state of Kentucky. Which we did, we found one and had an early dinner. On our way to Virginia, Doug also found where the first KFC was, so he even made a quick pit stop there to show Hailey where the very first one was. He is such a good Dad!
We finally made it to Natural Tunnel State Park Campground at about 11. We were all tired and ready to sleep.
Monday, July 22, 2013
Graceland
We woke up to thunderstorms this morning that encouraged us to roll over and go back to sleep which we did for a while, and did not get up until after 9:30. Who wants to tour Graceland in the rain? (Or in Doug's case who wants to tour Graceland at all?-LOL). When we finally did get moving the rain had almost stopped and we drove the 2 miles to the Graceland. Being the Elvis fan that I am, I was so excited.
We went on the self guided audio tour of the Graceland Mansion. It was so cool to be in the same house where Elvis Presley lived. It was all preserved and in its original state. The rooms were magnificent. Even the girls liked the audio tour.
It took us through the entire first floor of the Mansion and the gardens. We went through his trophy room and it ended at his grave site, where he is buried with his parents and paternal Grandmother (who out lived them all).
We then toured his car exhibit, Maddie loved the pink Cadillac. Doug liked several of the cars as well.
We also toured both of Elvis' airplanes, The Lisa Marie and Hound Dog II. We ate lunch there as well in a little hamburger place that had a 50's style juke box that played Elvis songs. Hailey was rocking out to "Viva Las Vegas" doing the moves from the Wii game "Let's Dance" It was a lot of fun!
We also saw other exhibits that showed his clothing (including his famous jumpsuits), his film career, time in Hawaii, and his Vegas Shows.
It took us through the entire first floor of the Mansion and the gardens. We went through his trophy room and it ended at his grave site, where he is buried with his parents and paternal Grandmother (who out lived them all).
We then toured his car exhibit, Maddie loved the pink Cadillac. Doug liked several of the cars as well.
We also toured both of Elvis' airplanes, The Lisa Marie and Hound Dog II. We ate lunch there as well in a little hamburger place that had a 50's style juke box that played Elvis songs. Hailey was rocking out to "Viva Las Vegas" doing the moves from the Wii game "Let's Dance" It was a lot of fun!
It was amazing! I really loved it. Doug was a good sport and so were the girls. In the end Doug was surprisingly entertained and liked the trip, although he still claims he is not an Elvis fan. I am so glad that I was able to go and do everything!!!!
Afterwards, we made the 5 hour drive to Kentucky and because of our late start, we ended up setting up in the dark again! Luckily Doug's back is finally feeling better and my cough is not as bad as it was last week. Everyone seems to be doing fine. The refrigerator is still not working well; however, that is a manageable issue. The air conditioner is also acting wacky, it spews out the condensation in the camper. last night we must have collected at least a half gallon worth of water in a bucket. Again, it is annoying but manageable. We will have some things to take care when we get home.
Sunday, July 21, 2013
Digging For Diamonds
Today we went to Crater of Diamonds National Park to dig for diamonds. I will be honest and say that when Doug told me that we were going to do this, I was less than excited and did not think it would be fun. I will admit, that I was wrong! It was a lot of fun digging and sifting through the dirt looking for treasure. Unfortunately, we did not find any diamonds, we did find quartz, jasper, calcite, and some antique glass. While we were digging, it did start to rain. Hailey and I were already under cover wet sifting the dirt we collected, but Doug and Maddie were out in the middle of the field. They actually stayed out for a while until it started to pour and thunder, then they joined us. Maddie ; however, continued to dance in the rain for a while. She is such a free spirit. The rain did stop eventually, until we had checked out and were ready to head to the car. Then it poured again, at least we got some good time in. Doug was smart and made sure the campers water tank was full, so we could all shower before we hit the road. It was very necessary as we were all covered in dirt and mud from digging.
We had to stop at Wal-Mart today on our way to Memphis to restock supplies. I then decided that I had had enough microwave meals and needed a salad. Once again via my trusty smart phone, we found a wonderful place called Nick's Catfish and Barbeque and we had a very tasty dinner. The Barbeque salad was to die for, and so were their ribs.
We made it to Memphis and settled in to our site at Elvis Presley Blvd. RV Park. Tomorrow we are going to visit Graceland. I LOVE ELVIS! This is going to be a real treat for me. I can not wait to see it. Hopefully the girls and Doug will not be too bored out of their minds considering my appreciation for Elvis does not extend to them.
We had to stop at Wal-Mart today on our way to Memphis to restock supplies. I then decided that I had had enough microwave meals and needed a salad. Once again via my trusty smart phone, we found a wonderful place called Nick's Catfish and Barbeque and we had a very tasty dinner. The Barbeque salad was to die for, and so were their ribs.
We made it to Memphis and settled in to our site at Elvis Presley Blvd. RV Park. Tomorrow we are going to visit Graceland. I LOVE ELVIS! This is going to be a real treat for me. I can not wait to see it. Hopefully the girls and Doug will not be too bored out of their minds considering my appreciation for Elvis does not extend to them.
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