No Sky Wheel on the Beach for Me!

Days 48 & 49 - Wednesday & Thursday, August 31, & September 1, 2022

Carrollwoods RV Campground and Vineyard, Tabor City, NC

This campground is in a rural area, and we have to drive several miles to find a restaurant.  Dale's Seafood Restaurant in Tabor City is a winner, with unlimited trips to the salad bar, and a menu with various seafood entrees.  My favorite is grilled shrimp, which is not on the menu, but served on request.  

Tabor City is on the southeastern border of North Carolina and since we are so close to Myrtle Beach, we drive into South Carolina on Thursday to explore the area.  I am delighted to see that the sand is a beautiful white color, but I don't have my beach shoes on, so I settle for going just a short distance toward the shore to take a few photos.

There are beach umbrellas as far as the eye can see, and farther north from the entrance where we came in is a huge 17 foot Sky Wheel, which is advertised as an observation wheel.  It contains 42 climate controlled enclosed gondolas, which can seat up to six passengers.  At the top passengers get a spectacular view of the Atlantic Ocean through the glass windows and doors.   In the foreground of the photo is a zig-zag fence, and I assume it is to protect the sand dunes from washing away with the surf.

In my childhood I was only familiar with a not too tall Ferris Wheel, which was scary because the rocking seats were not enclosed.  We only had a locking bar across them.

With so many restaurants to choose from, we decide on The Kitchen Table, which features breakfast, brunch, and lunch.   As we walk in, the first thing we see is a 'To Do' display suggesting to 1. Catch a sunrise, 2. Enjoy pancakes and a sunrise mimosa, 3. Head to the beach for fun in the sun, and then 4. Hit the town for dinner and some fun activities.

It sounds interesting, but we don't exactly follow the suggestions.  Herb chooses a seafood omelette with grits, while my choice is a seafood omelette with pancakes.  The generous servings allow leftovers for a snack later.

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,

   and of Walldog and Willie

   Thursday, September 1, 2022

Fighting Tigers and the Civil War

 Day 47 - Tuesday, August 30, 2022

Carrollwoods RV Campground and Vineyard, Tabor City NC

Today's lunch is 'worth writing home about.'

Wing and Fish Company restaurant is in Shallotte, North Carolina, and ten minutes from the beach.

We enjoy our seafood -- fish tacos and lobster salad -- and feel right at home with the flags and banners that remind us of Texas and Louisiana.

I'm not sure if the tiger neon sign was meant to be LSU in Baton Rouge, but I see purple and gold and a Tiger paw.  

I found the following on LSU's web page:

"Way back in the fall of 1896, coach A.W. Jeardeau’s LSU football team posted a perfect 6-0-0 record, and it was in that pigskin campaign that LSU first adopted its nickname, Tigers.

‘Tigers’ seemed a logical choice since most collegiate teams in that year bore the names of ferocious animals, but the underlying reason why LSU chose ‘Tigers’ dates back to the Civil War.

According to Arthur W. Bergeron, Jr., PhD. and the “Guide to Louisiana Confederate Military Units, 1861-1865” (LSU Press, 1989), the name Louisiana Tigers evolved from a volunteer company nicknamed the Tiger Rifles, which was organized in New Orleans. This company became a part of a battalion commanded by Major Chatham Roberdeau Wheat and was the only company of that battalion to wear the colorful Zouave uniform. In time, Wheat’s entire battalion was called the Tigers.

That nickname in time was applied to all of the Louisiana troops of Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia. The tiger symbol came from the famous Washington Artillery of New Orleans. A militia unit that traces its history back to the 1830s, the Washington Artillery had a logo that featured a snarling tiger’s head. These two units first gained fame at the Battle of First Manassas on July 21, 1861. Major David French Boyd, first president of LSU after the war, had fought with the Louisiana troops in Virginia and knew the reputation of both the Tiger Rifles and Washington Artillery.

Thus when LSU football teams entered the gridiron battlefields in their fourth year of intercollegiate competition, they tagged themselves as the ‘Tigers’. It was the 1955 LSU ‘fourth-quarter ball club’ that helped the moniker ‘Tigers’ grow into the nickname, ‘Fighting Tigers’.

Thanks to Arthur W. Bergeron, Jr., PhD., a historian at the Pamplin Historical Park, for contributing to the above information."

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,  and of Walldog and Willie -- Tuesday, August 30, 2022

   

What? A Television Set in the Garage?

Day 46 - Monday, August 29, 2022

Carrollwoods RV Campground and Vineyard, Tabor City, NC

Kenny's weekend holiday is over and he invites us to see the house he is remodeling to suit his needs and tastes, and as we drive toward the exit of our campground, we get a couple of views of the Grapeful Sisters Vineyard.  Now on to Shallotte, North Carolina.

Touring the house, we see where walls have been taken out, and so many changes have been made that it makes my head spin.  His brother-in-law, Ricky, is helping him with the remodel.  Ricky's last name is Ottaway and Kenny jokes that Ricky (the professional) says, "I'm Ricky Ottaway and I want Kenny Out-of-the-way!"

I am amused at seeing the TV in the garage.  It looks so strange there among the supplies, but Kenny says when they take a break, they can keep up with the news.  He assures me that it will eventually be relocated to the living room.

Now for the fun room -- appliances are stored in one room while the carpentry and painting are finished in other parts of the house.  I see a washer, a refrigerator/freezer, but what really gets my attenton is the refrigerator with the sign, "Warning - Beer Fridge".   Kenny laughs as he explains that it is a joke, the sign is a gift from his sister, Amy.  He says there is only bottled water stored inside, as there will be no 'drinking on the job!'

After taking group photos with everyone's phones, we say goodbye for now and promise to come back next week to see the progress they have made.

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,

   and of Walldog and Willie

   Monday, August 29, 2022

 

A Vist to Oak Island

Day 45 - Sunday, August 28, 2022

Carrollwoods RV Campground and Vineyard, Tabor City NC

It's quite warm, 71 degrees, and humid early this morning when Herb and I take a walk around the campground.  Yes, it's foggy also.  You would think our home for the next two weeks is in a swamp.

Our walk takes us past the campground's laundry room and beyond to the entrance gate, where we see a sign for the vineyard, which is located near the front of the lot across from the main check-in building.  I love the humorous name of the vineyard, "Grapeful Sisters," and I will write more on the nearby winery later.

Returning to our site in the trees, Herb points out the spider webs that show up when moisture is on them.  He laughs as he warns me not to walk between these two shrubs.

I call myself a tree person, because I simply love to look at different trees, the trunks and bark, the leaves, the shape of the tree.  It reminds me of the poem by Joyce Kilmer, "Trees."    "I think that I shall never see...."

At the bottom of this tree is evidence that a critter also liked the tree.

We plug into the GPS the Oak Island address of Kenny's sister, Amy, where he will be today.  Being Sunday, he takes a day off from building his house in Shallotte.  Oak Island is a beach town on the coast of North Carolina and is separated from the mainland by the Intracoastal Waterway.  I take a quick photo of the water as we cross the bridge.

It is great to see Kenny again, and to meet Amy and her dogs.  Kenny has a small dog named 'Little,' who climbs up into my lap as soon as I sit down.  Dogs always know who the 'good guys' are.  He also has a larger one named Maggie, and Amy has a dog who is named Lolly.  Little is pictured below.

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,

   and of Walldog and Willie

   Sunday, August 28, 2022

   

Kenny, Here we Come!

 Day 44 - Saturday, August 27, 2022

Carrollwoods RV Campground and Vineyard, Tabor City NC

We are still having nice cool morning temperatures here in the Northeastern US, and already have a hint of sunrise at 6 am.  The parking lot at Cavendish Brewing Company is small, so for our early morning walk we go down the hill and across the street, where we find some lovely gardens. Herb checks out the sundial and sees that it is 8 am.

We learn that it is an educational garden, sponsored by Two Rivers Utilities, Gastonia's utility company.  There are rocks, blue vervain, roses, mulch, and a bush that looks like a variety of a pine tree.

I have always been interested in ecology, and the Stormwater Runoff panel explains how it is possible to get rid of harmful pollution when heavy rains wash them from the roads and parking lots and into the storm drains. One of the grasses mentioned here is Big Bluestem, a native prairie grass.  It towers above most other plants, reaching 4-8 feet, and is also called "Turkey Foot" because its seed spikes often branch to resemble a bird's foot.  I love the butterflies and sweet bluebird that grace the panel.

The planted areas in the center of this garden are known as a 'bioswale.'  Some rainwater is caught by the plants, which filter out contaminants rather than funneling them straight through the storm pipe and into a lake or river.  Deep rooted plats eat up the excess algae-growing nutrients and help water to be re-absorbed back into the soil.

We leave Cavendish around 10am and look forward to our next destination, which we have chosen after learning that a son-in-law, Kenny, has recently moved to North Carolina, and this is the closest campground to where he now lives. 

Since we are not on an Interstate highway, there are no Rest Areas where we might stop for lunch.   But a sign gets my attention -- apparently North Carolina has some peach orchards. There's a big parking lot, and to my delight the store not only sells peaches, but peach ice cream as well.  I see many cars at one end of their parking lot, so this speaks well for the popularity of the stop.

I do a bit of reasoning:  just like a Harvest Host, if we take advantage of their parking lot to have our lunch, we will make a purchase from their store.  

Did I really have to justify our purchase of peach ice cream?  It is yummy, containing bits of peaches.  The serving is so generous that it provides dessert for lunch and for tonight's dinner.

Traveling on toward Carrollwoods Campground, we arrive mid-afternoon to the check in and ask for a site where StarLink can see north in spite of the many trees in the campground.  We are given a choice of two, but actually neither works; however the campground has free high speed Internet!  Herb puts StarLink away and we settle in for the evening.  Mare's tails tell us it is windy here.

Beer and Music Bingo

 Day 43 - Friday, August 26, 2022

Cavendish Brewing Company, Gastonia NC

Today's destination is a Harvest Host venue, Cavendish Brewing Company in Gastonia, North Carolina, and as we leave town we pass a beautiful Episcopal Church and stop for a photo.  

A plaque in the garden reads, "Trinity Church. Known originally as Augusta Parish Church, it was founded in 1746 as the County Parish.  The Virginia General Assembly met here in June 1781 to avoid capture by British raiders.  The present church was erected in 1855 and was used by the Virginia Theological Seminary during the War Between the States.  The First Bishop of Virginia, James Madison was a member of the church."

I especially love the sign on the fence and the phrase, "No Exceptions."

Our route parallels the Blue Ridge Mountains for a time and we enjoy more of the mountain and forest scenery.  When we cross into the state of North Carolina, we see that the highway is wet and assume we are following some rainy weather.  Seeing a dark cloud ahead, we expect we will get rain, also, but only have a few sprinkles.  The photo below warns of a tight curve going downhill.

 

We stop at the North Carolina Welcome Center for an up-to-date map and tourist attraction brochures.  I am delighted at a display I see -- it takes me back to my younger days when I used to watch The Andy Griffith show on television, with Deputy Sheriff Barney Fife and Sheriff Andy, who lived in the town of Mayberry.  Such an innocent, family oriented TV show. 

I am glad Cavendish Brewing Company has a restaurant, and especially happy to learn they have pizza -- a favorite of mine.  There is one other Harvest Host guest who has a motor home in the parking lot and we invite him to join our table and share the pizza.  All other patrons are local residents.

The restaurant provides music, and the DJ announces a game to play -- Guess the Tune Bingo.  They pass out bingo 'cards' to all who want to play, and I am fascinated by a ten year old girl who rocks in her chair to the music and tells her older family members what the tunes are as the DJ plays them.  I mark my Free Space, and several songs are played before I recognize even one.

A - The songs are all of a certain genre that only the very young will recognize.  Or that their parents will.

B - Someone at the ten year old's table wins time after time.

C - Sour grapes:  Why can't the ten year old tell me some answers?

D - It is a great pizza, and we did recognize one song! 

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,

   and of Walldog and Willie

   Friday, August 26, 2022

A Sandwich at the Depot

Day 42 - Thursday, August 25, 2022

Walnut Hills Campground and RV Park, Staunton VA

Today's weather report:  We wake to 63 degrees.  For the past few days we have turned on the heat in Sweet Georgia Brown until sunrise, when it warms us up a bit.  Then shortly it is AC time! This far south in Virginia it is not daylight until 6:15.

We drive through the town of Staunton just like any tourist would do, and notice a restaurant called Depot Grille, which is in a building that at one time served the train that came through.  I am told that it opened in 1990 and has since become one of the favorite family restaurants of residents and tourists alike.

We love historical buildings that are repurposed, so lunch will be here today.

Originally a freight depot, it now has beautiful hardwood floors, and booths made of oak pews recovered from an old church building.  There is a 40 foot Victorian bar from a turn of the century luxury hotel, and the dinner menu is so varied that it makes it hard to choose an entree.

Once I see the salmon BLT, I don't look at the menu further.  It is described as Bourbon Salmon BLT on toated whole wheat with lettuce, tomato, and applewood smoked bacon. The fries are the best I ever tasted.  With so many ingredients and generous servings of the vegetables, I can eat only half of my sandwich, and ask for a take-out box.

Our tablecloth is butcher paper, and crayons are given for drawing pictures.   A chalkboard with the specials for the day lists blueberry pie and is surrounded with drawings by previous guests.   It isn't just the children who draw, as I see one about a Martini, shown directly below the desserts listed.

As Herb walks down the steps to our car, I ask him to pose in front of the train cars.  I would love to have a tour of some rail cars today and have someone explain the purpose of each.  Years ago I took all this for granted.

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,

   and of Walldog and Willie

   Thursday, August 25, 2022