December,
2001
Saturday, December 1 found us pulling into the
Thousand Trails Preserve, Forest Lake, in Mocksville, North Carolina. We
had driven Thursday and Friday through dreary, misty weather in West Virginia
and Virginia, hoping to stay at a Thousand Trails Preserve in Virginia.
However, it was closed for the season and we just moved on. Friday night
was foggy and rainy, so we stopped in a rest area on I-77 and moved on in the
morning to Forest Lake. This preserve is really a great one and we're sure
that it is crowded in the summer. There are many things to do for all ages
including two pools, miniature golf, and separate clubhouses and game rooms for
adults and kids. On Saturday afternoon we went into town to watch
the Christmas parade. It lasted two hours and had over 100 units...we
think every fire truck in a 25 mile radius participated! At the end, they
lit all the Christmas lights in the town square. That evening
we attended the campground Christmas Party. Elvis was scheduled to appear,
but had called in sick. A hastily recruited band arrived to take his place
and did a great job of getting everyone involved in good times and
dancing. All of this, plus lunch at noon, had been free...the joys of a
membership campground. On Sunday we took several walks through the wooded
preserve and chatted with several "fulltimers" who were staying for a while and
gave us info on where to get our leveling jacks repaired.
Early Monday morning we hooked up and headed into the
Charlotte area. Just as our new friends predicted, we hit stop and go
traffic on the freeway. Luckily, we didn't have much further to go when we
did. We were at Tom Johnson Camping Center on the north edge of Charlotte
(Concord) when they opened. As they had promised over the phone on
Saturday, they took a look right away at our non-extending jack and after some
serious troubleshooting decided that we needed a new solenoid. Of course,
they didn't have one in stock....nor did Fleetwood...so the part had to be
ordered from Wisconsin and hopefully would be at Tom Johnson by Friday the
7th. So.............we have been staying at the adjoining campground,
Fleetwood Racing RV Resort, all of which is adjacent to the Lowe's Motor
Speedway of Nascar fame. On Tuesday we took a tour of the Speedway
(which seats 220,000 race fans) and rode on the track (in a van, not the
RV!). It is quite a place. (But with thousands of camping and parking
spaces, we don't think we'd want to be here on a race day!) We also went to the
Concord Mills Mall whose anchor store is a big Bass Pro Shop/Outdoor
World. But to us "browsers" it doesn't compare to Cabella's near
home! On Wednesday we visited the museum at the Cannon Village..a restored
area surrounding the Fieldcrest towel and linen factory. There are a lot
of linen and furniture outlets here - but we don't have room for a lot of those
bargains in the RV. That evening we attended the Christmas Tree Lighting
at the Lowe's Speedway. They had live Christmas music and refreshments and
some of the drivers and local team mascots were there for
entertainment...outdoors in a pleasant 65* after sunset.
First turn
on the track at the
speedway In
the winner's
circle
By a strange coincidence we recognized another Rv/tow
car rig here in the campground that we had seen in Homer and Soldotna,
Alaska. We spent some time visiting with Ed and Randi and comparing
stories of travel and fishing in the Last Frontier. Luckily, the weather
here has been fantastic, the campground has full hookups at a very reasonable
price and we've found things to do each day. Hopefully by the weekend,
we'll be heading on south.
Surprise! Surprise! Our part from
Wisconsin arrived in Charlotte on Thursday afternoon. So, bright and early
Friday morning Tom had the Bounder parked at one of the service bays, and Mary
headed to the laundromat. By the time Mary returned with clean clothes,
the leveling jack had been repaired and Tom had everything all ready to
travel. We hooked up the car and headed south once again. We arrived
in the Savannah area in the late afternoon and checked in at the Whispering
Pines RV Resort. On Saturday we took a driving tour of the old historic
Savannah....a city of well maintained old buildings centered around 21 beautiful
squares..a wide variety of interesting architecture and landscaping. We
also drove out to Tybee Island and toured an old military fortress and climbed
to the top of the still working lighthouse.

On
Sunday, December 9 we moved on to Jacksonville, FL. On the recommendation
of an internet friend from the RV Club, we stopped at the Flamingo Lake RV
Resort. It is another great park with full hookups including cable
TV. We've been living a life of luxury this trip! Many of the RV's
are all decorated and lighted up for Christmas. Festive, but still strange
when the temperature is in the high 70's.
Tybee
Island Lighthouse, Savannah, GA
In
Jacksonville we encountered more rainy weather, so it was difficult to enjoy the
outdoors. So, we chose an indoor activity and toured the Anheiser-Busch
Brewery. It was quite interesting and we enjoyed their "hospitality room"
before heading on to do some shopping. For dinner on Monday we had a fun
visit with Harold and Tish Ponsell who are "soon-to-be-fulltimers". We
shared tips and experiences over a tasty BBQ meal.
click
on the "forward" and "back" buttons above to see more of our December
adventures
click on the "forward" and "back" buttons above to see more of our
December adventures
On
Tuesday morning, Dec. 11 the weather was brighter and we started driving down
Route A1A from Jacksonville towards St.Augustine and Daytona Beach. We had
intended to visit our old home, Palm Coast, but passed on by when we realized
they charged a hefty toll per axle over the new bridge to get there. The
big rig and tow car probably would have been a problem in a residential area,
anyway. We did, though, enjoy the drive along the ocean and stopped to
walk on the beach near Flagler Beach where we spent a lot of time with the
kids back in 1978. It didn't take but a few minutes to realize why I liked
the beach so much when we lived there. From the Daytona area we turned
west and went to the Orlando area where we checked in to the Thousand Trails
Preserve just west of the Disney Resorts.
click
on the "forward" and "back" buttons above to see more of our December
adventures
Once
again, we found the Thousand Trails Preserve to be a really nice place to
"camp." This one is geared to attract "snowbirds" and is quite
large. One area has quite a few trees. Another, where people pay
extra to stay by the year, was extremely well landscaped by the lease
holders. All the spaces were wide and angled so we didn't feel like we
were on top of one another. The clubhouse had a ballroom as well as game
lounges and a restaurant and there are two pools. They even had four modem
hookups! We took advantage of allowances to wash the RV and the car (after
4pm or before 10am) and the nice laundry to do the clothes, too. We even
got the bikes off the back of the RV and rode all around the
preserve. And would you believe....we met once
again with the people we'd seen in Alaska and again in
Charlotte.
Of
course, we had to go to Disney World! We had two days each left on
"Park-Hopper" passes purchased 10 years ago, so we got our money's worth.
(We paid only $147 for the pass that now costs $247 but they are good
forever!) On our first day we went to the M-G-M Studios first thing in the
morning, then moved over to Epcot at 5:00 when MGM closed. The second day
we opened up "Animal Kingdom" at 9am, then moved to Epcot again at noon.
True to articles in the paper and on TV, there were few tourists there compared
to normal. We did not stand in any lines. We walked right in to
rides and attractions and got to pick our seats. There were no lines for
food, including the fancy restaurants. Tom and I were even chosen to
participate in the "Pearl Harbor" production. (A wet proposition!) We
passed up going to the "Magic Kingdom" and maybe someday we'll return there with
the granddaughters! We thoroughly enjoyed the exhibits and attractions,
many of them changed from our previous visits. The entire Disney property
is decorated beautifully for Christmas. The only strange thing about it
was that it was 85* and we were wearing shorts! Both nights we attended
the "Christmas Candlelight Procession." A guest narrator (actress Alfre
Woodard on our nights) read the Christmas Story while a 500 voice choir (each
holding a candle) and 50 member orchestra provided the musical
accompaniment. It was quite a sight as they darkened the park and the
choirs walked into the outdoor amphitheater singing. Obviously we enjoyed
it so much - we went back a second time. The grand finale at Epcot each
night is the fireworks/laser show set to music....another emotional
performance. We returned to the RV around 11 both nights and had no
trouble falling asleep!
Saturday, Dec. 15 found us in Sebastian, FL on the Atlantic Coast.
We drove the car there to visit Toledo friends, Kathie and Dan Stout (and Buster
the dog) who had retired in the Spring of 2000 and built a gorgeous home in
Sebastian. They showed us around their town and we walked on the beach and
through an art fair in the town park. Kathie fixed us two delicious meals
as well and we had a great visit into the late evening.
On
Sunday we did some cleaning and organizing and got ready to move on. Early
Monday morning, Dec. 17 we were on the road once again, making a stop at Camping
World in Tampa and then on to Bradenton. We parked in an RV park near
Tom's parents mobile home, which is still for sale, and spent several days
tending to details dealing with his
parents. In Bradenton we
also had some tire work done as we had noticed a vibration while driving.
So far, it seems to have done the
trick! On Wednesday, Dec. 19 we headed
back to Lazy Days RV near Tampa and took advantage of their hospitality and
looked at new coaches (Tom picked out a American Eagle Triple Slide for his
dream sequences) while we waited for our electrical monitoring system to be
replaced under warranty. From there it was north for the
holidays.
Along
A1A near Flagler Beach, FL
Mickey
giving us a hug at the MGM Studios
Kathie
and Dan
We arrived at the Escapee's RV Park at Raccoon
Valley, Tennessee on December 22. We had arranged to leave the Bounder
here for the holidays and we got it all set up in a regular campsite where we
left it plugged in to electricity and with the furnace running. On
Christmas Eve day we drove the car to Marysville, OH and spent five nights with
our daughter Ann and her family. We had a great Christmas and a wonderful
visit with our three granddaughters who seem to be growing every minute.
Grandpa quickly became a favorite playmate for the girls and for Jack, the
puppy.
On the 29th we headed to Toledo to visit friends and family. We have spent
30 of the last 33 New Year's Eves with Kathy and Dennie Dew and can't break a
precious tradition with good friends!
2001 has been a busy year - full of exciting
adventures, as well as some anxious moments, frustrations and despair. We
have been blessed to be able to travel and meet so many wonderful people and see
some fantastic sights. We appreciate that we have the freedom to
continue our adventures in this great country of ours and expect to do so in
2002.