An Official Goof Off Day…

We decided to make today an official Goof-Off day.

We went out for breakfast about 9:30 am at the Astronomical Pancake & Waffle House.  And when they say ‘Astronomical’ they mean it.

Jan got an order of pancakes that consisted of two pancakes more than a foot in diameter, with blueberries the size of small marbles.  They hung way over the side of the plate.

On the way back to the coach we stopped and got gas.  And that was it for the day.

The rest of the time we worked on stuff around here.  Jan hemmed some new pants for me and then did some other sewing chores.  I worked on several small things around the coach that needed fixing.

For supper we heated up the El Pollo Loco takeout we bought home with us while we were in Virginia Beach.  Delicious as always!

Later…

Williamsburg and Jamestown…

Today we moved about 100 miles northwest to Williamsburg, VA  for a few days.

We want to visit Colonial Williamsburg,  Jamestown Settlement, and Yorktown Battlefield.

We’re at an RV park called Anvil Campground.  It’s only about 5 miles from Colonial Williamsburg,  but it’s not near as nice as our last park on the lake in NC.

Anvil Campground Site

Anvil Campground View

It’s OK,  but I guess we got spoiled at the last few parks.  Our coach backs up to the highway with no fence separating us,  so we have to keep a close eye on Mister when he’s out,  and although we have no neighbors right now, the sites are close together.

And there is a railroad track about 200 yards through the trees out in front of us.  We can’t really see the trains, or hear them, but strangely enough, we can feel them.  The whole coach vibrates as the ground rumbles.

After getting set up and goofing off for a while, we headed out to a local Hooters for our hot wing fix.  This was the first time we’ve been back to Hooters since we left Gulf Shores in March so we were starting to go into wing withdrawal.

In the latest news from the RV repair front, both my recent problems, the leaky water heater and the leveler jacks that wouldn’t go down, have mysteriously fixed themselves.

The water heater T&P valve stopped leaking the day before we left NC, and after not working when we got to the park in NC, the levelers worked fine here with no problems. Who knows.

More Tomorrow…

Mustangs and Tomahawks…

Today we drove back over to Virginia Beach to visit the Military Aviation Museum that we had scouted out yesterday.

I was surprised to find out the Museum is privately owned by Gerald Yeagan who also owns a company called The Fighter Factory that specializes in restoring and maintaining old military planes.  He owns over 20 restored military planes with a number of others under restoration.

The complex consists of a museum area flanked by large hangers on each side, with an operating airfield out front.

Military Aviation Museum

Even the red checkered water tower is of WWII vintage.

The Museum had several interesting displays.  Two planes caught my eye.

A replica 1911 Wright Flyer and a 1918 Sopwith Pup fighter were on display.  These were remarkable due to the fact that we had just visited the Wright Brothers Memorial at Kill Devil Hill and had seen the 1903 Flyer.

The amazing thing was the quick progression of the planes.

The 1903 Flyer was very primitive, with the pilot lying prone on the wing next to the engine, steering by swinging his hips back and forth.  The elevator is in the front of the plane and the engine is almost toy-like.

1903 Wright Flyer from the right rear

The 1911 Flyer was a big jump.  The pilot sat in a chair, steered the plane with a control stick, and the elevator was in the front, all just like today’s planes.

1911 Wright Flyer

Note the 1911 Flyer has a much bigger engine and also landed on wheels, rather than skids like the 1903 version.

This 1911 Flyer was also used to make an intercontinental flight from New York to California to the win a $50,000 prize put up by William Randolph Hearst.  This means that only 8 years after the first flight, man is now flying from one side of the country to the other.

But the real jump is this next plane, the 1918 Sopwith Pup.

1918 Sopwith Pup

In just 7 more years, we now have plane with a fully enclosed cockpit, engine, and fuselage, and, of course, machine guns, that can fly hundreds of miles in one flight.

And all this only 15 years after the first flight of 120 feet. 

Quite a jump, indeed!

They sure have a lot of great planes here, and what’s really amazing is that they’re all in flyable condition, or being restored to flyable condition.

Here’s some of the best.

P-40 Tomahawk

P-40 Tomahawk

P-51 Mustang

P-51 Mustang

Supermarine Spitfire

Supermarine Spitfire

Hawker Hurricane

Hawker Hurricane

F4U Corsair of “Bah, Bah, Black Sheep” fame

F4U Corsair of "Bah, Bah, Black Sheep" fame

PBY Catalina Flying Boat

PBY Catalina Flying Boat

TBM Avenger Bomber – George H. W. Bush flew one like this.

TBM Avenger Bomber - George H. W. Bush flew one like this.

T-35 Mentor trainer – I had flight training in one of these.

T-34 Mentor trainer - I had flight training in one of these.

But the real treat was getting to see the P-40 Tomahawk fly!  These big engines make a roar that is unmistakable.

Taxiing Out

Taxiing Out

Take Off

Downwind Turn

Approach

Roll Out

Finally, I’ve shown you pictures of area mascot animals, like pelicans in Seabrook, TX,  moose in Coeur d’ Alene, IA,  and mermaids in Beaufort, SC.

Here in Virginia Beach they have a porpoise mascot, and the Museum did theirs up in a plane motif.

Plane Porpoise

We had a great time at the Museum.  And I’m really lucky to have married an Airforce brat who likes old planes and airshows.

After leaving the Museum, we stopped off at Supercuts to get our hair cut and then ate a late lunch at El Pollo Loco before heading home.

Later in the evening after it had cooled off, we sat out in the shade of the coach, looking out over the lake, drinking Sangria,  and watching Mister do his “Catch and Release” program with the many blue dragonflies.

Campground View

Or rather, it was ‘Catch, and then I yell at him until he reluctantly raises his paw and lets the dragonfly go – Release program.  He never seemed to hurt them, but just held them down for a while. 

What was really amazing is how fast a 22 pound cat can move.

Today is our last day here in NC.   Tomorrow we move north to Williamsburg, VA.

More then…

Kitty Hawk and Kill Devil Hill…

Today we drove the toad about 50 miles south to Kitty Hawk and Kill Devil Hill, NC to see the Wright Brothers Monument celebrating the first powered flight on December 17, 1903.

Here is the the picture of Kill Devil Hill where the Wright Brothers first tested their gliders starting in 1900. 

Kill Devil Hill

Here is a pic of the 1900 glider that they flew from this hill.

1900 Glider

Here is a couple of pictures of the 1903 Flyer that the Orville Wright used to first achieved powered flight.

1903 Wright Flyer from the left rear

1903 Wright Flyer from the right rear

They made 4 flights that first day before a gust of wind overturned the craft while the brothers were discussing the 5th flight, ending their flying for that year.

The first flight traveled 120 feet,  the second traveled 175 feet,  the third traveled for 200 feet, and the last flight traveled for an amazing 852 feet and lasted for 59 seconds.

You can see the relative distances in these two pics.

First Flight Distances 1, 2, 3

First Flight Distances 2, 3, 4

I had to spread them across two different pics to get them all in.

It was really amazing to contemplate while looking at the Wright Flyer, that less than 66 years later,  we landed on the moon.

After leaving the monument area we drove around the area doing some sightseeing.

Later we headed up north to Virginia Beach, VA to eat at El Pollo Loco and stop off at a Sam’s Club for ‘stuff’.

Due to running out of time, we decided to visit the Military Aviation Museum tomorrow.

Later…

Cousins and Kitty Hawk…

We left my cousin’s house in Graham, NC this morning about 10:45 am.  We had a great time and wish we could have stayed a little longer, but we’re fast running out of days before meeting the kids in New York on July 18th.

Before we left this morning, I noticed one new problem and now that we’re parked here in Shiloh, NC, I have two problems.

This morning I noticed water was leaking out from behind the door where the water heater resides.  Opening the door showed that the T&P valve was leaking slightly.

So far, I’m not sure if the valve itself is leaking, or the thermostat is letting the heater run too hot.  I’ll start looking at it tomorrow.

And then after we got here, I tried to lower the hydraulic levelers, but they won’t…lower or level, that is.

It’s not giving me any warning messages or error lights.  It just won’t work.

More fun!

After a 5 1/4 hour trip that included a 1/2 hour delay in Raleigh for a traffic accident,  we pulled into our site at North River Campground here in Shiloh, NC.

It’s a very nice park with wide, long sites and nice scenery.

It’s kind of hard to see from this picture but Mister is already camped out under the picnic table.

North River Campground

And here’s the view out our front window.

Campground View

Tomorrow we plan to head over to the Outer Banks to visit Kitty Hawk and Kill Devil Hill where the Wright Brothers first flew.

After that we’ll head north to Virginia Beach, VA to visit the Military Aviation Museum.  Next comes a stopover at a local Sam’s Club for new ‘stuff’ and then dinner at El Pollo Loco, a favorite of ours from California last year.

More tomorrow…

Flamingos, and Kitties, and Moose, Oh My!

Tomorrow we’re going to head another 235 miles east to Shiloh, NC.  This will put us about half way between Kill Devil Hills to the south, where the Wright brothers first flew,  and Virginia Beach, where we want to visit the Military Aviation Museum.

I did have a chance while we’re here to put out most of our yard animal collection.

Yard Animals 1

Yard Animals 2

Jan thinks this is all of them, but I think we have one or two more stuck away somewhere.  I’ll have to keep looking.

Runaway trucks and The Biltmore, one last time…

We left Asheville about 10 am this morning heading about 210 miles east to Graham, NC to visit my cousin and her family.

Jan started panicking early because this was the same route we had take to Grandfather Mountain and she was worried about a fairly steep grade that we had to go down, or at least, fairly steep for around here.

It was a 6% grade and had 3 runaway truck ramps along the downgrade, but I kept it slow and used the exhaust brake to keep our speed under 45 mph.

We had done 10% grades in Canada so I knew we wouldn’t have any problems here. 

But Jan has to have something to worry about.  If she doesn’t have anything to worry about, she worries about that.

We got into Graham about 2 pm and park the coach at a local WalMart, so we could unhook the toad and drive it out to my cousin’s house.

They wanted us to park at their house and I wanted to check it out the driveway first.  I’m glad I did it that way because I found out I didn’t know where her house was.

I had the address, but I found out later that there had been some street name changes and her place was now hard to find.  Even UPS had problems.

But some cell phone directions got us there, and after checking out the driveway and talking for a while,  Jan and I went back to get the coach, which was about 6 miles away.

We weren’t going to hook the toad back up. Jan would just follow me in it.

I had a little problem getting into the driveway because a guy was trying to pass me on the left as I was trying to swing wide left to turn right into the driveway.

I dropped the outside right dual rear wheel into the ditch which made the coach lean over, but I powered it on thru with no problems.

Jan, of course, just knew the coach was going to turn over when she saw it happen.  But then, that gave her something new to worry about for a few minutes, so it all worked out.

We’re plugged into their garage for power and using our internal tanks for drinking water and waste water.  So we’re doing just fine.

I finally got around to scanning the picture we had take at the Biltmore, so here it is.

Jan And Greg At The Biltmore

More tomorrow…

More Moose and Mountains…

Today was our last full day in Asheville and we had one more ‘touristy’ place we wanted to visit.

But before we headed down the road we stopped for lunch at our new favorite restaurant, the Moose Cafe. 

There is kind of an interesting story about the large moose that greets you as you walk in the door.

Moose Cafe Moose

They don’t really know who gave it to them.  One day a stranger just showed up and asked them if they wanted it.  Of course, they said ‘Yes’!

When we first walked in the door and saw the giant moose, I just looked over at Jan and said “No, you can’t have it”!   I’d probably have to cut it in half to get it in the coach, and Jan already has her large moose footstool.

And another great meal was had.  Jan had the Chicken Pot Pie with green beans and baby carrots, and I had the Fried Chicken with mashed potatoes and sliced cantaloupe.

After lunch we traveled about 75 miles northeast to Grandfather Mountain.  This is another one of those high, scary places that Jan really doesn’t like,  but I drag her to anyway, usually by telling her there’s a gift shop involved.

But the scenery on the way there was great too.  There are a lot of Christmas tree farms in the this area.  In fact, pretty much around every curve is another hillside covered with trees.

Christmas Tree Farm 1

Christmas Tree Farm 2

But before I could Jan to the top of the mountain, I had to deliver on the gift shop.  And I did it one better by also delivering…wild animals.

It was a twofer!

Along with the nature museum/gift shop about half way up the mountain, they also have a small animal habitat area, with bears, bald eagles, otters, cougars, and deer.

The bears were neat because you could buy bear food (Purina makes Bear Chow?) and feed the bears in their enclosures.  And they seem to love it.

Bear 1

If you look closely in this next shot, you can see he’s almost got the pellet in his mouth.

Bear 2

Feed Me!!!!!

Bear 3

 Here are some other pics.

Bald Eagle

River Otter

Cougar

Deer

After dragging Jan away from the animals and the gift shop, we headed another 1000 feet up the mountain to the top.

Grandfather Mountain is 5282 feet high with a 228 foot long swinging bridge crossing an 80 foot chasm between the two peaks.

It looks like this.

Mile High Swinging Bridge

 This next picture shows the overall view of the bridge on the far left that leads to the peak toward the right.

Mountain Overview

This picture shows what it looks like back toward the bridge from the cliff edge.

Cliff Edge

There is not really a path from the bridge.  You just walk/climb over the rocks.

And now for the amazing part.  I got Jan across the bridge!!

I was really proud of her.  I didn’t expect her to go the edge, so what she did do was great.

That’s Jan in green just to the right of the left hand vertical support.

Jan on the Bridge

And here’s a closeup.

Jan on the Bridge Closeup

And here we both are, thanks to a kind passerby.

Mile High Bridge

Before we headed back to Asheville we stopped at local produce stand and bought some fresh peaches and tomatoes.  As we left the stand Jan said she wanted to buy some day lilies as a gift and wanted to stop at a place nearby that we’d seen a sign for.

It turned out to be a private home surrounded by day lily beds. They even had their own bee hives for pollination.

They had 40 – 50 different varieties, including some rare ones that went for $30 – $40 a plant.  They had so many it was hard to pick.

And here are some pictures.

Day Lily 1

Day Lily 2

Day Lily 3

Day Lily 4

Day Lily 5

Day Lily 6

 By the time we drove the 75 miles back to our coach, it was almost 6:30 pm.  And since we had to drive right by the Moose Cafe,  it wasn’t a hard decision to also have supper there.

So we did.

Estates and Rocks…

Today was Biltmore Estate  day, the main reason we did a 500 mile jog in our trip up the East Coast to Nova Scotia.

It’s hard to realize how big this place really is.  The house is 175,000 square feet inside.  That’s FOUR acres!

It has a total of 250 rooms, with 35 bedrooms for family and guests, and 43 bathrooms.  It is/was the largest private home in the US.

It took about 6 years to build and was completed in time for its first party on Christmas Eve, 1895.

It was built by George Vanderbilt,  grandson of Cornelius Vanderbilt, the shipping  magnate.  No one knows exactly how much it cost to build, but it’s estimated to be about 10 million dollars, and that’s in 1895 dollars.

The Biltmore

 

The Biltmore Stables

The stables shown above are to the right of the main house.  I couldn’t get back far enough to get everything in one shot.

Originally, the Biltmore Estate consisted of 125,000 acres.  Now it sits on 8,000 acres.  The rest is now part of the Pisgah National Forest.

I was also amazed at the landscaping involved.  They used over 2 million plants to landscape the grounds. 

What I found even harder to believe was this view from the loggia (porch) at the back of the house.

View from the Porch

When the house was built in 1895 this view was of scrub brush and bare hills, with eroded gullys and fire-blackened tree stumps.

So Vanderbilt decided to have this area completely re-forested. 

They resculpted the hills for the rolling look you see today, and then planted 10 of thousands of large trees and 100’s of thousands of bushes and scrubs.

It’s  amazing what you can do if you have more money than you know what to do with!

After our tour of the house which took about 3 hours, we ate lunch at the Stable Cafe, which as the name indicates, is in the old stables. 

The stalls have been converted into dining areas with tables also out in the center.

The Stable Cafe

Our Stall at the Stable Cafe

The food was very good, with Jan having a Chicken Salad Sandwich with Sun-dried Tomatoes on a croissant, and I had the Harvest Turkey Sandwich with melted brie, arugula, and blackberry mustard spread on a panini.

In addition to the Cafe, the stables also houses several gift shops and guest services.

After we left The Biltmore, we headed out about 25 miles northeast to Chimney Rock State Park. 

Chimney Rock has been a tourist attraction since 1885.  Over the years paths,  staircases, and trails have been added to make access easier.

Finally in 1946,  a 198 foot tunnel was tunneled into the side of the mountain,

Tunnel to the Elevator

and then a 268 foot vertical shaft was blasted down from the top to provide an elevator to the top.

After taking the elevator to the top, the path leads thru the obligatory gift shop and then out on a walkway to the stairs that takes you up on Chimney Rock at a height of 2280 feet. 

Jan only made it 2270 feet, but I was really proud of her. She has a real fear of heights and I think she only does things like this to humor me.  She made it to the top of Chimney Rock, but couldn’t do the last 10 feet to the edge.  Honestly, I was really surprised she made that far.  After 42 years, she still manages to surprise me.

Chimney Rock

Chimney Rock Closeup

From there you can see for 75 miles on a clear day.  Our day was a little hazy, but still a great view.

Chimney Rock View 1

Chimney Rock View 2

 After having ice cream at the cafe on top of the mountain, we headed home about 4 pm. 

A long day, indeed.

Moose and Squirrel… (What, there’s no squirrel?)

Today was our first full day in Asheville, or actually Fletcher, NC,  where our RV park is.

It’s really a great park,  on a small lake with a lot of shade trees, but not too many to shut down our Direct TV satellite.

Rutledge Lake RV

And the weather is great.  We have gotten some rain, but they need it around here. 

Plus the temperature last night was 64 degrees, and the high today was only 85.  This is a nice change from the high 90’s that we’ve been encountering. 

Being over 2000 ft up in the mountains has many advantages, besides the beautiful scenery.

We first headed out about 11:30 am looking for a place to have lunch.  A guy in the site next to us recommended a place to us, but we were never able to find it from his directions.  And although our GPS listed it, when we got there we found no restaurant, either.

So we drove in the opposite direction and stumbled across a little piece of heaven for Jan.

Moose Cafe

If you know Jan, you know anything ‘MOOSE’ is a must. 

And the Moose Cafe was a great find.  And they had a moose gift shop too.

The food was good old country cookin’, with all the favorites, fried chicken, meatloaf, chicken & dumplins, Virginia baked ham, and more.

Jan had the one of the specials, the Turkey & Dressing, with mashed potatoes, and green beans, and I had the other special, the Roast Pork Loin & Dressing, with mashed potatoes and collard greens.  We also got an extra order of macaroni & cheese to split between us.

They also serve ‘Cathead’ biscuits.  They’re called that because they are the size of a cat’s head, and they come with homemade apple butter and molasses.

Then for dessert we split a Blackberry Cobbler with Ice Cream.  

 

After an expensive trip thru the Moose Cafe Gift Shop,  we drove around Asheville looking at the homes and the landscaping.  One thing we noticed is that there are day lilies everywhere.  So many that we wondered if the day lily was the North Carolina state flower.  (It’s not, the North Carolina state flower is the Dogwood).

Day Lilies

Jan said she had never seen ‘red’ day lilies before.  

Later we stopped at a Starbuck’s for a caffeine infusion and some directions to areas with a lot of old homes.

We were told about the Monford area and headed that way.  After a few miles we came upon the Asheville Visitor’s Center and stopped off to pick up more brochures and ideas for things to see.

We also found that Gray Line was running a 1.5 hour Trolley Tour, and that we were there just in time for the last trip at 3:30 pm.

So off we went.

One of the places we saw was this unusual church, especially unusual for a Baptist Church.  This is the First Baptist Church of Asheville.

First Baptist Church

The design was based on a Catholic church in Italy.  Certainly different.

On the Trolley Tour

While we were at the Visitor’s Center, we purchased discounted tickets to the Biltmore Estate that we’re going to visit tomorrow, and also got information on Chimney Rock Park and Grandfather Mountain, two other places we’re interesting in visiting. 

After the tour was over, we headed back to our coach and sat outside for a while with the Mister and Emma, our cats.

Emma

We keep Emma on a leash because she’s easily spooked and might run off.  Mister, on the other hand, knows who feeds him and never wanders off.

More tomorrow…