3 days and 7 states later, we're home!

April 26-28th

We left Georgia in the rain and just in time! The floods were right behind us. It was fun going through all the small towns along the highway…lots of Christmas stores, antique stores, lawn ornaments, chainsaw animals and BBQ. We had a laugh at a couple, Fatz Burgers and Fat Buddies BBQ. We saw an OLD Gulf Oil gas station….how long since you saw one of those? Or a Piggly Wiggly? We crossed into North Carolina at the Macon County line and traveled on the Great Smokey Mountain Expressway and the Blue Ridge Parkway into Tennessee. The mountains there may not be at the high elevations that we see in Colorado but the grades are just as steep or steeper and the curves are really extreme. We crossed the Appalachian Trail which starts in Georgia. The trees grow right up and over the tops of the mountains…there is no timberline there!

We made Nashville that night after driving past the Grand Ole Opry and stayed in a great Walmart with a beautiful view of the downtown Nashville skyline. (3458 Dickerson Pike) The next morning we headed north on I-24 into Kentucky, then Illinois and across Missouri. We crossed the Cumberland River in Kentucky, the Tennessee River in Kentucky, the Ohio River on the border between Kentucky & Illinois, the Mississippi River on the border of Missouri and the Missouri River west of St Louis.

Did you know that there is a quilt museum in Paducah, KY? www.quiltmuseum.org.

That Kentucky is the “Birthplace of Lincoln”, that Illinois is the “Land of Lincoln”, that 94% of all farms in Illinois are family farms, that in Illinois you get a $10,000 fine and 14 years in jail for hitting a traffic worker?

That there is a world auto museum (http://autoworldmuseum.com) and the National Churchill Museum (http://www.nationalchurchillmuseum.org/)  in Fulton, MO?

That there is a store in Kingdom, MO called Nostalgiaville USA, that sells everything from poodle skirts and 50’s theme decorations to famous people collectables?  (http://www.nostalgicstuffusa.com) That there is a world famous truck stop called the Midway Truckstop, as seen on the Travel Channel, (http://www.midwaytruckstopusa.com/) and the Snorty Horse Saloon (http://www.snortyhorse.com/)  in Columbia, MO?

That even Missouri has wine, http://missouriwine.com/wines/?

That Kleinschmidts Western Wear in Higgansville, MO has 19,000 pairs of boots? (http://kleinboot.com/)

That you can go online to funeralcenterkc.com and compare prices and make funeral arrangements?

That there is a museum in Kansas City about WW I. You can learn why the 1st world war was not the last. It is an interactive museum with the largest collection of WW I artifacts in the world. (http://theworldwar.org)

There are lots of great things to do in Missouri! And we learned all this from billbords…. Who knew?

We stayed for the night in a great RV park in Odessa, MO,Country Gardens RV park, (http://www.countrygardensrv.com/). They have a store that has  over 140 varieties of cheese (http://www.onegoodtaste.com/Cheese___Meat.html) and  lots of unique relishes, sauces, salsas, jams and pickles (http://www.onegoodtaste.com/Jarred_Goods.html) and here is another website for more Amish goods, ( amishwedding.com). We only had a ½ hour to shop, which is a good thing! We bought some awesome smoked Gouda and some white cheddar with blueberries….wow! they were so good.

And now for fun billboard knowledge about Kansas.

Did you know that one Kansas farmer feeds 155 people plus you?

That there is a store in Wilson and Topeka, Kansas Originals, home of the largest Czech egg and that sells foods and art made in Kansas? (http://kansasoriginals.com/)

That in Wamego, Kansas there is an Oz museum (http://visitwamego.com/Things-To-Do/Oz-Attractions/Oz-Museum/default.aspx), an Oz winery with such wines as “Witch in a ditch and “Witch gone good” (http://visitwamego.com/Things-To-Do/Oz-Attractions/Oz-Winery/default.aspx) Totos Tacoz and the Oztoberfest, (http://visitwamego.com/Things-To-Do/Oz-Attractions/OZtoberFest/default.aspx)

That the historic Midland Railroad Hotel, built in 1899, is still in operation today in Wilson, Kansas the Czech capitol of Kansas?

And finally a billboard with this statement:

Recession 101….Bill Gates started Microsoft in a recession.  

Link to pix: Last leg pictures

Georgia on my mind

We left Florida in the rain and drove north through some beautiful country, heading to Athens and Hiawassee to visit with Becky’s cousins, Kevin and Phillip and their families and her Aunt Jean. More family that Jim’s never met! Along the way we saw signs for Ginnie Springs Ginnie Springs and Scuba diving at Ginnie Springs.Definitely another dive destination someday.

Once we crossed into Georgia, we were amazed at the number of billboards along the interstate, one right after another. And what was really strange was that there were billboards on both sides of the interstate, all facing northbound traffic.

We had a wonderful visit with Becky’s family in Athens. It had been many years since she had seen her cousins and had never met their families so a great time was had by all. And the food was amazing, not to mention the flowers. Sunday afternoon we followed Aunt Jean north up into the Georgia mountains to her cabin in the woods east of Hiawassee. What a beautiful drive…the dogwoods and azaleas were in full bloom all over the hills. Pictures of Athens and Aunt Jean's.

We took a couple of days to see the local sites; notably, Hamilton Gardens in Hiawassee and the Tallulah Gorge and lots of stuff in between.  Hamilton Gardens (History of Hamilton Gardens) is known for its collection of over 400 varieties of rhododendron in addition to gardens flowering with dogwoods, magnolias, azaleas, lady slippers and trillium. It was a little early for the rhododendrons to be blooming but the rest were gorgeous. Then later in the summer, the Georgia mountain Fair celebrates gospel music, demonstrations of pioneer & traditional crafts & recipes.Georgia mountain fair

Hiawassee itself borders Lake Chatuge, a huge lake…..FYI, there are no natural lakes in Georgia….they were all created by dams, most built during the 30’s by the CCC. It is a beautiful town, surrounded by wooded hills. It also has one of the last remaining 5 & 10 stores left in America (in my opinion)…. Nobletts. Hamilton Gardens and Hiawassee

Tallulah Gorge is the deepest gorge in the eastern US. Most of you have seen parts of it as it was the location for a lot of the film “Deliverence”. It is over 2 miles long and more than a 1000 feet deep! Karl Wallenda crossed the gorge on a tightrope in 1970. You can still see the towers that anchored his gear. There are 6 waterfalls and you can walk down 531 stairs to the suspension bridge that sways 80’ off the bottom.  You get the best views from there but then you have to climb all 531 back up! Most of the river flow was cut off in 1913 by a dam for hydroelectric power. On an average day the flow is 35-40 CFs. But the kayakers come out in droves when they open it up for “whitewater” days when the flow is 500-700 CFS. Wow! 

Links:

My pictures of Tallulah Gorge

Tallulah Gorge State Park

You Tube video

We finished up our visit to this corner of paradise by visiting a local vineyard which was just across the highway from Aunt Jean’s. Hightower Creek Vineyards is just one of at least 10 vineyards in the area. They use a Norton grape in their red wines, which they said was an old American variety of grape. Very interesting flavor. Hightower Creek Vineyards Info on Georgia wines Georgiawine.com

Another bit of movie trivia from this part of the country….”Trouble with the Curve” was filmed in Hiawassee and Young Harris including a scene on the highway right by my Aunt Jean’s house.