Safe and Sound at Lake Norman

July 17th

Today was the last push across Tennessee and into North Carolina about 300 miles. We stopped for lunch with a colleague of Pete's in Asheville, NC and arrived at Lake Norman in mid-afternoon. It has been a long trip of 4850 miles and we are looking forward to working in our new house for a few days before heading north. It will be very nice to be out of the RV for a few days in a real house.

Thanks for reading along the way and we hope you got the sense of what a great trip this has been for us. We don't expect to do one like it anytime soon.

Cheers to all - stay cool!

P&L

The Grand Old Opry

Here we are right where Johnny and June Carter Cash stood to sing so many times.

Nashville cats, play clean as country water,
Nashville cats, play wild as mountain dew,
Nashville cats, been playin' since they's babies,
Nashville cats, get work before they're two...

                                                John Sebastian/Lovin’ Spoonful 1967

July 16^th

Today was primarily a travel day as we come down to the touring end of our trip. By Tuesday evening we will be on Lake Norman for the rest of the week working on some painting in our new home and supervising the unloading of the PODS container we sent down there before we left Nashua.

Our 5.5- hour (320 mile) drive today from Memphis to Crossville, TN (incidentally the Golf Capitol of Tennessee) took us through the music city of Nashville. We plan to spend some time in Nashville once we have moved to NC permanently, but we couldn’t resist a lunch stop at the venerable Grand Old Opry just outside the city. We had lunch and then explored a bit before going to the Opry House for our All Access, Backstage Tour.

Little did I know that right in the area around the Grand Old Opry is a store/museum with the country’s largest collection of memorabilia from the 1979-1985 TV series The Dukes of Hazzard.  We HAD to stop in! The gift shop was a vast wonderland of all things ‘Hazzard’ and the store-keepers were quite taken with our name. We did some gift shopping but it would spoil several presents if I elaborate any more on our purchases.

The Opry has been on radio since 1927 and the tour of this amazing theatre/facility was very detailed. It was very sobering to see the line on the wall inside which marks the height of the water from the Spring 2010 floods which hit the area and made the national news. It is amazing that they were back using the theatre in October of that same year. You would never guess there had been any issue at all; the place is beautiful. We got to be on stage and I got to see where all the musicians sit and look over the house instruments. Our readers who are musicians may be interested to know that while the Grand Old Opry’s 4-6 shows each week are always “live” on radio and sometimes TV, the bands/artists who appear on the show do so without any rehearsal or sound check.

Hi All,

Pete and I have really been tourists the last two days as we completed the music venues on our bucket list.  Graceland was amazing!  I highly recommend that anyone who lived through the Elvis years go visit.  It was like going back in a time machine to see the interior of his home.  The whole complex is expertly managed and we had a great time.  We did some gift shopping there as well.

Today as we drove over to Nashville, we travelled on Route 40, also known as the “Music Highway”.  I tried hard to take a picture of one of the signs but since I didn’t know exactly where they were, I couldn’t do it.  How appropriate for the road between Memphis and Nashville.  The Grand Old Opry was also great.  I can’t wait to go back and actually see a show there.  We are going to have to get our country on!

By tomorrow night we will be in North Carolina at Kevin and Kathy’s house.  I must admit I’m looking forward to living in a house again.  We have had a grand adventure touring these 4250 miles of America in our little RV.  I think we would have bitten off more than we could have handled to do this any longer at one time.  What we have done feels just right.

Nashville from I40

Pete finds yet another huge guitar! Outside the Grand Old Opry

Licia waits for her Opry debut in the "green room" off stage At the Opry it is called the Family Room.

The house from the band's perspectve - these 4 chairs are the horn section

The stage from the house.

Walkin’ in Memphis! (Marc Cohn)

July 15^th

The Mississippi delta was shining like a national guitar.
I am following the river down the highway through the cradle of the civil war.
I'm going to Graceland, Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee. I'm going to Graceland.

                                                                                                            PAUL SIMON 1986

It has been a musical day in Memphis for sure. Our morning today was consumed by a VIP tour of Graceland, the home for 20 years of Elvis Presley, his parents, Priscilla, Lisa Marie, and in later years his grandmother Minnie Mae. The estate is on one side of Elvis Presley Blvd., the ticket office and exhibit complex cover about 5 acres on the other side. We arrived to pick up our VIP passes at about 9:30AM, noticing that there were very few cars in the parking lot. We were off on our tour by 9:45 and were the only two people in a 20-passenger shuttle bus with our own guide as we crossed the street and drove through the gates of the estate.

The biggest surprise to me about this beautiful property is how normal it looks. This could be any farm with an antebellum, plantation-style manor home. It doesn’t have the look like the ‘crib’ of a modern rock star, sports or entertainment celebrity. Elvis bought it from a family who had worked it as a farm. Even the name “Graceland” came from the previous owner’s Aunt Grace. He paid $100,000 for the property in 1957 and it is furnished as it was at the time of his death in 1977. Fascinating! It took about 2 hours to tour the place and then our shuttle delivered us back across the street where we spent another hour and a half viewing the various exhibits, visiting several souvenir shops, and having some lunch. We even explored his private Convair 880 tour jet and all of his automobiles.

We got back to the RV just before 2 PM and had an hour to relax.  Then, at 3 PM, we were picked up by a driver and town car and driven into the downtown music area. Our first stop was the Museum of STAX Records. This is a terrific museum focusing on the predominantly black artists who contributed to the gospel, pop, rock, blues, jazz and soul genres. The building also houses an exact copy of the Stax Recording Studio, complete with the original console, tape recorders, and house instruments. I got to see the Hammond M-3 organ on which Booker T played “Green Onions” (you younger readers can check it out on iTunes sometime.)

Back in our car, we were dropped off on Beale Street. This section of town has many clubs, restaurants and bars where live music is king. On the weekends traffic is banned from three blocks of the street and folks can walk in the street from side to side. People from each establishment are out on the street trying to get you to go in and hear the band in their joint. There is also nothing to prohibit you from taking your drink with you from place to place – I gather this is much like New Orleans. We had a terrific time, dodged a strong afternoon rain shower, and shopped for some more souvenirs.

We were dropped off at out RV at a little after 5 PM and are enjoying a nice relaxing evening before we drive to Nashville tomorrow and “get our country on” with a tour of the Grand Old Opry.

Till the next post!

Licia & Pete on the steps of Graceland

 

Elvis's Gibson guitar.

Elvis's pool room - note the fabric walls and ceiling.

Sunset on the Missippi

July 14^th

Licia writes:

Hi All,

We started our day today in another thunderstorm.  Not wanting to drive in this we waited it out at our campsite and took the time to plan our tours in Memphis and Nashville.  Once the weather cleared and cooled off (Yeah!!), we took off for our last Laura Ingalls Wilder stop at Rocky Ridge Farm in Mansfield, MO.  This was the house that she lived in while writing the books.  It started as two rooms and was added on to room by room until finished it was eleven rooms.  Everything there was the original furnishings and was a great ending to this part of my bucket list.  Again, we could not take pictures inside but I am going to do a scrapbook of the trip and will use the postcards that we have bought.  It has been quite an odyssey to begin in Pepin, WI and finish in Mansfield, MO.  I am definitely going to reread the books (my new hardback copies – an early birthday present) now that I have seen the places.

Pete writes:

The “Little House” stops being over, we turned south and traveled for 4 hours through Missouri and into the Ozarks. The route also took us  through Arkansas, where we bought a tank of gas for $3.15 s gsllon! Finally, we crossed the Mississippi for the 4^th time on this trip and motored into our campground on Elvis Presley Blvd., Memphis, TN. One of my colleagues in website management who works for Finalsite (our web software firm) had asked us to join her and her husband for dinner, that is Bar-B-Que. Lorrie and John Mark Jackson picked us up at 6:15 and drove us into downtown Memphis to “Central BBQ”, one of the most popular places in Memphis. We quickly found out why. The ribs and pulled pork were some of the best we have ever had. By the time we finished and were leaving, the line to get in was out the door and into the parking lot. We had just beaten the rush.

On the way home the Jacksons drove us downtown to see the city and we stopped for a few pictures (See below). We ended our tour in a beautiful park on the river and I got a great shot of Licia as the sun set in the west. It was a great day covering another 250 miles. Our total for the trip is now over 4,100.  We’re ready for a full day in Memphis tomorrow, including Graceland and Beal Street. Until our report tomorrow night. . . . . .

Licia at Rocky Ridge Farm, Mansfield, MO

In front of the famous Sun Recording Studio - home of sun Records.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Elvis, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash and many more of R & R's early years mage records here.

The balcony of the Lorraine Motel, Where Dr. MLK, Jr. was assassinated in 1968.

With Lorrie Jackson on the Missippi.

Right at sunset on the Mighty Missippi.

Toto, we’re not in Kansas anymore.

July 13^th

Pete writes:

Today we had another history lesson as we drove from just outside Wichita, KS over to the Missouri border and down to Springfield, MO. Licia will write about our stop at Fort Scott, KS. My story today is the adventure we had on the way.

OK so today was Friday the 13^th. Now we’re not superstitious but wouldn’t you figure that it would be today, (16 days and 3,800 miles into our trip) that we had a brush with some dangerously severe weather.   After a leisurely morning, we left our last Kansas campground for the 3-hour drive to the eastern border of Kansas. The weather was hot (92+) but beautifully sunny and we were exited about the day ahead. About 1 ½ hours into the trip as we crossed, yet again, miles and miles of wide open spaces on flat, straight roads, a strong wind began to come up. I had driven through some wind in crossing Ohio on the first part of our trip, but it was not this bad. High wind, particularly coming from the side, can be very difficult when you are driving a box that is 10 feet high and 23 feet long. The side of the RV becomes a big rectangular main sail which tries to take over steering the vehicle. For about an hour I fought the steering wheel to keep the RV on the road. We have been doing most of our traveling on the farm roads rather than the Interstates. The farm roads are very good quality two and four lane roads between all the farm towns and they have been remarkably light in traffic. Thus, we were quite alone on the road. As we drove on the wind and clouds increased and the sky ahead began to grow very dark. As the conditions grew more and more ominous, we switched on the radio. The RV has a regular AM/FM radio but it also has the band for the NOAA Weather Radio Network built in. As we listened to the usual temperature, humidity, etc., a different voice broke in with a special severe weather alert concerning dangerous thunder and lightning as well as large hail and 50 knot winds. Licia scanned our map atlas for the name of the county we were in to see if it was one of the ones where people were to seek shelter. We, of course already knew the answer, but were hoping it wasn’t the case. Then the rain started. It grew progressively stronger and by the time we were 10 miles from our destination we were actively looking for some place, even a private driveway in which to pull over. Suddenly we saw one of the small blue signs with a camping trailer silhouetted on it, indicating a campground was coming up.  Someone was looking out for us as the Lake Frances RV park’s entrance appeared.  We turned in and drove behind the first building we saw to get out of the direct path of the wind. As we rolled in , the owner, Mr. Robinson appeared. I asked if we could wait out the storm and he showed us a spot to pull in. The heavens then let loose and we spent an hour eating our lunch amidst the crashing thunder and pelting rain. (See the photo) Fortunately no hail ever appeared, the RV got a free car wash, and we rolled into Fort Scott after our one hour rain delay.

Licia writes;

Hi all,

Fort Scott Ambulance

Fort Scott

Hospital

Our visit to Fort Scott was the last of the western history spots to see.  This fort was not what I would call a fort rather it was a compound of buildings built around a center parade ground.  It reminded me of the Fort Devens layout in Ayer, MA before it was closed down.  Fort Scott was designed as a peace-keeping fort to help with Indian and settlers relations.  It was a cavalry unit so one whole end of the compound was a huge horse barn.  The buildings were two-story with wide staircases and verandas.  They are the original buildings that are being restored with period exhibits.  The fort was active in the war with Mexico and again in the Civil War.  The main building housed the hospital in the upstairs and in one of the back buildings there was an ambulance used in the Civil War.  (I thought Jen would enjoy seeing the older ambulance!)  The officer’s quarters were quite luxurious although Laura and Geoff would have had to have all three children sleeping in a trundle bed next to theirs!

As we traveled the route of the Santa Fe Trail, we saw train after train after train.  The tracks follow the trail and are right next to the road.  Some of the trains stretched for two miles from front engines to the back engines.  It is easy to see how important the rail system was for the expansion west and is for the transportation of goods around the country today.  The map in the picture was taken at Fort Scott, the old A. T. and Santa Fe engine was at the Boot Hill Museum in Dodge City, and the newer cars were passing us as we traveled on our way.  Maybe our next bucket list trip should be a train ride across country!

Modern Santa Fe car.

Tomorrow we finish the Laura Ingalls Wilder stops and then off to Memphis and Elvis.

The Santa Fe Trail, Cowboys, and Stinky Cows!

July 12th

Licia writes:

Hi all! 

Bent's Old Fort - Colorado

Today was a day of experiencing history.  We traveled the Santa Fe Trail backwards from Bents Old Fort, Colorado to Dodge City, Kansas.  Fort Bent was started as a trading fort used by Indians, buffalo hunters etc.  The Bent brothers built and ran the fort together.  It was the farthest American outpost and a welcome stop for the covered wagons traveling west.  It was built in the adobe style and was quite large for the time.  It was inhabited by about 60 people but swelled up to 200 at various times.  The original fort burned but a surveyor had drawn exact dimensional plans while visiting the fort and these survived so it has been

rebuilt in exactly the same spot.  I love seeing “live” history.  Having grown up watching all the westerns on TV it is fascinating to see it up close.  What a hard life it must have been.

Again as we drove it was miles and miles of open land – some farmed and some cattle ranges and some just dry prairie. I am amazed at how much open land is in this country.  I wonder each and every time where do the children in the homes that are so isolated go to school?  Most of the small towns can’t possibly support a full school system.  If it is regional these kids must have the longest bus rides ever.  (Only a teacher would think of this!)

Stinky Cattle - Feed Lot

Pete continues: Leaving our early morning visit at Fort Bent, we drove 3 ½   hours East leaving Colorado and entering Kansas headed for Dodge City. We also lost an hour as we returned to the central time zone in Kansas so we really arrived in Dodge after 4 ½ hours. The trip through Kansas brought us past many cattle ranches. We also passed by about a dozen local “feed lots”. These are huge holding pens for cattle along the railroad tracks but also in most cases right alongside the road. The singular most impressive feature of these feed lots is the incredible STENCH, far worse than those cattle yards we went by yesterday. Growing up in New York state farm country, I am no stranger to the pungent aroma of cow manure. In fact, the smell of it in the spring as farmers spread it on the fields as fertilizer is rather pleasant. In these feed lots, however, many hundreds of cows are crammed together in large holding pens and the massive amounts of manure are combined with urine and cow sweat. The stink is unbelievable and Licia was forcibly holding her breath and her nose as we drove by. Incidentally, this was with the RV’s windows shut and the air conditioner turned off!  The absolute straw that broke the camel’s back was when a 40 foot trailer filled with cattle turned onto the road in front of us. We pulled up to a red light and I pulled alongside the truck to be sure to be in front of it when the light went green. As the stink from the truck began to work its way into our vehicle, we looked out the window as a cow began to urinate out the side of the truck onto the street next to us. We zoomed ahead of the truck and avoided any cattle trucks for the rest of the trip.

Front Street - Dodge City, KS

One of many gun exhibits.

The main street of Dodge City has been reconstructed next to the site of the original Boot Hill Cemetery. Contrary to popular opinion, no one famous was buried there and the main street of the town, home to lawmen such as Bat Masterson and Wyatt Earp, is faithfully reproduced.  While the buildings are replicas, the artifacts, costumes, etc. are authentic, and from the town and its 1867-1912 residents. It is a fascinating glimpse at a town and a time which most of us know only from the movies and TV shows like Gunsmoke.  We chatted with the current Marshall, and I was amazed by the exhibit of more than one hundred pistols and rifles, all formerly owned by residents, good and bad, of Dodge. It was a really good 2 hours spent.

Current Marshall - Painted onto the side of his car!

We are writing tonight from an RV park about 10 miles west of Wichita, KS about 2 ½ hours East of Dodge. A 350-mile day with a whole lot of great history.

Till tomorrow . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

On the Road Again

July 11^th

Licia writes:

Hi all!

We have just spent a wonderful two days with Kim and Andy, Matthew and Michael.  Thank you so much for taking in weary travelers and showing us such a good time.  It was great to spend time with all of you and to enjoy playing with the boys!  They are growing up so fast.  Many thanks for the use of the washer and dryer that didn’t stop the whole time we were there!!

Pete started driving again across the grasslands and fields of Colorado.  You can see for miles in all directions.  I swear the sky is much bigger out here.  As we saw in South Dakota and Nebraska it is primarily ranches and farms.  Although in this part of Colorado,(the southern route) it is more populated.  The towns we went through today after Denver, had about 4000 people instead of 400 people.

Occasionally we drove past beef cattle stock-yards or milking cow stock-yards.  Hundreds of animals all contained in small fenced off areas next to each other.  It must be similar to old- fashioned round-ups.  The one distinguishing characteristic of all of them was the smell.  Boy, do they stink with so much manure in one place.

Tomorrow we follow the Santa Fe Trail with stops at an early trading post fort and in the famous Dodge City.  Who knows, we may even witness a gun fight on Front Street!

Wonderful Day in Woodland Park

July 10th

This was a day of family and fun with no travel. It was a welcome chance to take a step away from the road trip and spend quality time with daughter Kim, son-in-law Andy, and grandsons Matthew and Michael. It was a busy day but the kind of busy which is no strain. We started with a nice morning walk through the neighborhood. The four adults walked and the boys zoomed around us on their bikes. Matt is an accomplished rider and looks great on his John Deere bike. Mike is on his smaller bike and still has the training wheels attached, or I should say had his training wheels attached. Just as we got back from the walk to the house, Matt announced "I'm ready to go on two wheels. So we witnessed the great event as Kim took of the training wheels and Andy gave Mike a push while we all shouted our encouragement and sure enough, Mike zoomed off on two wheels and within 10 minutes he was riding like a pro.

Pete & Andy in front of the house on the morning walk.

Matt's John Deere bike.

Mike's off on two wheels

The boys approve of the bed in the RV.

The rest of the morning was filled with games and fun. The boys checked out our RV, and had some time in their new pool.  Licia and I were also very happy to have an "all access pass" to Kim's washer & dryer and 9 days of laundry are now ready for the next leg of the trip.  My only issue has been the altitude. Here in Woodland Park we are at almost 9,000 feet. (3,000 feet higher than Colorado Springs.) In having a vigorous frisbee game with Matt (we brought him a Buffalo chip frisbee from South Dakota) I was sucking wind after only about 5 minutes. This air is really thin.

Enjoying the new back yard pool.

Grandad gives Mike a few pointers.

After lunch we all drove down the pass to the Springs and went bowling! What fun. We had the six of us on one lane and played one game. It took almost two hours and was great fun. The boys had the gutter bumpers in place as they bowled and then they would disappear for the rest of us. Scores didn't matter of course, but the boys did very well and it was good family fun for all of us.

Kim, Andy and Matt at the bowling event.

Back at the house for the late afternoon and evening there was more fun, laughter, board games, and even a peak at the MLB All Star Game. An unexpected treat after dinner was a Skype visit from Laura, Madden, and twins Aubrey and Tyler from Monterey, CA. Geoff was off to Ohio for a look at the Air Base and local area where it seems they will be stationed after he graduates from the Naval Grad School, so Laura and the kids Skyped with us and it was fun to see the cousins interact and to hear what was going on in the Levine camp.

We will be here through mid-day on Wednesday when Licia and I start the trip south and west with a target of being in Memphis, TN by Saturday afternoon.

That's it for now - till the next post!
P & L

A Very Long Day

July 9th

Nebraska Plains

Monday has been a very long day of travel from Rapid City, SD to Woodland Park, CO. The trip was a little over 9 hours. We traveled 505 miles down through South Dakota, into and all the way down through Nebraska into Colorado, and across to Denver then down to Colorado Springs and up the Ute Pass to the Wojtalwicz's  home in Woodland Park.

Castle Rock - South of Denver on the way to the springs

Ute Pass - Waldo Canyon Fire Damage

We narrowly missed being kept out of Ute Pass because of a mud slide. It happened minutes after we got through there.  The slide which temporarily closed the road was caused by rain on the exposed earth of the pass walls. The trees and vegitation are gone; victims of the recent Waldo Canyon wildfire. The air still smells of smoke and the view of the burned areas was staggering as we drove up the pass.








It is wonderful to be with Kim, Andy, Matt and Mike. We had a great dinner, a game of "Sorry" with the boys, and are going to bed early as we are simply exhausted. The real bed is a welcome change from the RV for sure.

Grandad reads Mike (L) and Matt (R) a bedtime story.

Thanks for reading and have a good night - more to come tomorrow.

The Black Hills: 4 Presidents, a great Chief, and lots of wildlife

July 8^th

Pete writes: This was the most beautiful day on the trip to this point. After sleeping in a bit and having RV pancakes for breakfast, we headed out for a day in the Black Hills. As the day went on the weather got clearer and very sunny, and we became very happy that we had rented a car in which to do this touring. We started by driving the 11 miles from our campground to Mt. Rushmore. Our rented car had a parking pass paid for by the last renters but which was good for a year so we parked at the monument for free.  It may sound trite but as often as we have seen this mountain and its carvings, seeing it in person is simply breathtaking. We took lots of photos and even had the chance to speak with a 91-year-old gentleman who had been one of the rock drillers creating the monument in the 1930s.

After Mt. Rushmore, we drove further south and into Custer State Park where we got some lunch and then drove the 20-mile “Wildlife Loop”. This circuit through the state park is loaded with indigenous animals. It took over an hour to do the loop and the photos will show you the local residents with whom we were able to get ‘up close and personal’. It had the feeling of the scenes we see on TV of an African safari but it was in South Dakota. 

 

 

 

 

Crazy Horse - Look for his face in profile above and left of the hole.

The last stop of the day was at the site of the ongoing creation of a monument to the great Oglala Lakota Chief Crazy Horse. The Lakota Elders commissioned the sculptor Korczak to carve the mountain in 1946 and when he died in 1982 his wife and 10 children took over the project.  According to Korczak’s wife there is no way to predict when this project will be done. To give you a comparison of size, the Mt. Rushmore presidential heads are scaled as if their whole body was 465 feet tall so the heads are about 60 feet tall. Crazy Horse’s head will be 87 feet high and the whole sculpture will be more than 560 feet tall. It is simply amazing.

What a wonderful and awe inspiring day. I will turn it over to Licia who will describe our dinner which had some interesting props. Tomorrow we rise early and take the 8 hour drive to Woodland Park (Colorado Springs), CO to spend some time with Kim, Andy, Matt and Mike.

Licia writes:

Hi all!

Licia in the Black Hills

My section of today’s blog goes out to my colleagues from Peabody High School.  As we have been in the same campsite for two nights, we took the time to put up our pink, turquoise and lime green lanterns (a present from especially Jean, Cheryl and Karin)!  We also found some guitar lights to add to our festive lights.  Ironically, we are the only RV with lights in this campsite.  Go figure!  To top off our fantastic day we dined with pink flamingo decor and had a fabulous penne pasta and sauce dinner. (Again compliments of Jean, Cheryl and Karin)  I would have baked up some chocolate chip cookies but it got so hot in the RV during the three days of 100 plus temperatures that the chips completely melted together and then hardened into a solid lump with the air conditioning!    Some of our neighbors complimented us on our festive look so “Thanks Peabody”!

Here's to you Peabody FACS !

Flamingo Centerpiece

Off to Colorado tomorrow and a visit with the Wojtalwicz’s.  It will be a welcome break from the road.  But Kim, please note that your washing machine will be working overtime as we clean lots of laundry.  Can’t wait to spend time with you, Andy and the boys!