Busy time at home, heading south, Congaree National Park, Great Smokies NP, Alabama, Georgia and finally...Florida!

 

Hello from...Grand Haven, at least for a few days. In addition to being crazy busy for the few days we were home with seeing family, going to doctor's, dentist's and vet appointments, I packed up for a girl's weekend with my book club. As you can see I tried to pack light but it's so hard when you're used to having your whole house with you! I am so fortunate that I got invited to join the book club my dear friend Wendy (and 2 other ladies whom all met on a cruise a few years ago) started. Several months ago we joked about taking a trip together to a location of one of our books. So, Wendy's turn to pick the book and she picked one set in Niagara on the Lake in Canada (which happens to be where Wendy grew up) and with her amazing organization skills made the trip happen for the 4 of us.  We had just the best time!

We had a jam packed itinerary (yes,Wendy made an itinerary!) dining at restaurants that were mentioned in the book and a great tour of the falls...from her brother! It was full family service as we were educated about the falls from one brother and then chauffeured around to wineries by another!  We dined in the Skylon Tower and got some awesome photos of the falls, the American side first then the Canadian horseshoe .

We had so much fun at the wineries, this one was called Amo but being both Wendy & Sheryl go by Oma (grandma) we liked the sign better the other way around! Our next winery included a tour and we got to go into the ice room. It was nice they provided coats but it was still chilly; poor Leslie's teeth were chattering!

We had the best time and a huge thank you to Wendy for all her planning! If you're feeling bad for Dave because I left him in Grand Haven, don't be! He got to go visit his son Brian and go flying. He was a very happy man! Once I got home we also got to see Brian & Josie, Brady and his new girlfriend Kylie. 

We also got to see our friends, Anne & Carl and enjoyed Grand Haven's best breakfast spot, the Morning Star Cafe. It was great of them to drive over from the other side of the state to visit. We were able to play lots of games of hand, knee & foot with mom and dad and had a lively round of 6 with Anne & Carl too!

It was such a crazy busy time being home I said to Dave "I can't wait to get back on the road and rest!" Our first stop heading south was in Williamston, MI (which was technically east😄) at a Harvest Host salt cave. They are so relaxing and good for Dave's lungs but mostly it was the perfect first stop for relaxation.

The relaxing continued as we headed into Ohio and stayed at Alum Creek Campground, which was the very first campground we stayed at the night we got Eleanor (our first RV). The weather turned cold and rainy on us and unfortunately continued all the way to South Carolina. We stopped in Charlotte/Fort Mills to visit with Kathleen who I worked at Eastbrook with for 25 years. After she retired she moved down to be closer to her son & family. We had hoped to spend time outside and do the river walk but instead had a lovely visit inside while it just poured outside. It was great to see her enjoying her well deserved retirement. 

 

Next stop was Congaree National Park and even though it was still raining we ventured out. Bummer that the government shut down was in place since that meant the visitor's center was closed and no stamp for my book.😥 We made the best of it and did the boardwalk hike since it was mostly flat and an elevated walk over the swamp. While certainly not as grand as many of the other National Parks, it had it's charm.

The sun did finally come out but the chilly temps remained as we made it to Asheville, North Carolina. We decided a soak in the hot springs was just what the doctor ordered. It's funny how all of the hot springs across the country can be so different. This one had individual tubs that were on a private deck overlooking the creek. It was wonderful being in the hot water but chilly getting out and walking back to the truck.  The next day the drive to Gatlinburg was so beautiful with the colors about perfect coming across the Foothills Parkway. I just love fall, I even have a little fall decoration on the dash you can see.😊

Maybe it's just that I get to see Emma that I love fall so much. 💗This year we finally did the Ramsey Cascades trail. Four miles up with almost 2000 feet in elevation gain and then of course...what goes up must come back down... those same four miles! It was an amazing hike with trees bigger than I have ever seen in the Smokies.

Dave was such a trooper as there were a LOT of stairs! They had just been redone last year and we were thankful for the guided path. The higher we climbed we lost more of the fall leaf color but went through areas with tons of Rhododendrons that I can only imagine would be spectacular in the summer months when blooming. 

 

Emma spotted this cute little snail among the leaves, good eye Emma!

I was so proud of Dave for making it up to the falls! We had tried doing this hike 25 years ago and didn't make it all the way so this was quite an accomplishment! 

What a gorgeous spot!  

This was our after the hike picture...yes, it was dark! We hiked about the last mile and a half in the dark which was not optimal but Emma was prepared and had a headlight. We knew it would take a while to do the hike but sort of forgot about losing the hour of light with daylight savings time ending. It was a LONG day but wonderful to spend it with Emma.

And then to our happy place...Hippensteal Mountain View Inn. We were ever so thankful for the bathtub this year after our hike! It is good to see friends we have made over the years we have been going there. This is Jim Thomas who is 92 years old and still comes to the Inn with family even after his wife Mary passed. Dave loves talking politics and solving the world's problems together with him.

I had another picture of Gary & Ruth but liked this one she posted on Facebook better since you could see Gary's colorful eye! We are so glad he was OK after falling down the stairs the night before we got there. Probably now one of my funniest stories from the Inn as Gary tells it, when he fell he was yelling "oh God, oh God"...Chris & Angela were in the room next door but just thought "well, it is a bed & breakfast" and didn't come to help!😜 We just love laughing and spending time with them! It was their 30th anniversary on the 4th, the day before our 25th on the 5th. 

 

We celebrated by going to the Greenbriar for dinner (thank you to Lauren for taking our picture before we left the Inn). It was delicious just like it was 25 years ago on our wedding day. We received a complementary dessert and Bruce & Jan called there and paid for our drinks. It was a special night at our favorite place. More thanks to Mom & Dad, Stephen & Donna and Aunt Pris for the gift certificates to the Inn. We couldn't ask for a better Christmas present!

 

The time there always goes so fast but it is so good to see everyone, including Ali, Emma's sweet kitty who is 16 years old. She is doing pretty good but losing some hearing and has a little arthritis, but hey, don't we all?  😁

Which takes us next to Alabama and the best of times sitting out on the front porch. Mom & Dad Thomas are still doing well and we are so blessed to have them at 96 & 98 years old! We are also thankful we got to see Dave's brother, Jim and wife Anita who drove down from Tennessee while we were there. We also got to see Bearl and his wife Sue. Here are the 3 boys, just missing the youngest Steve.   

And Dave, Bearl and their sister, Ivy. We are so thankful Ivy and her husband, Ron are next door and take such good care of Mom and Dad. We love our visits with all of them, it's amazing how Mom & Dad keep up with all the visitors!

Next stop, Thomasville, Georgia to see Aunt Pris. We were the courier for her birthday present from Mom & Dad Craw. She loved her new purse. 😀 She is doing well and had a nice ramp built to make it easier for her to get in and out of the house. She did just have to put Abby, one of her kitties down due to kidney failure. I am glad she still has her other kitty, Bella to keep her company.

Finally, our last stop, back "home" to Florida and our RCR friends. 224 nights, 16,189 miles all the way to Alaska and back; what an EPIC summer we had!!! Thank you for all your prayers along the way. We will fly back home to Michigan for Christmas in a few weeks but I can say I am glad to be in one place for a while. Happy Thanksgiving to all of you! Love, Martha & Dave