25 - LAST STOPS (GEORGIA, ALABAMA, TENNESSEE, LOUISIANA)

ALL ABOARD!!!

Hold on or you might miss something! Our last week was like the proverbial "a horse heading back to the barn", the light was at the end of the tunnel and our pace started to quicken. Instead of making a direct bee line to Houston, we did manage to squeeze in a few more stops of interest.

Toccoa Falls

GEORGIA'S WATERFALLS:

Along the top rim of the canyon & Tallulah Falls area

The northern parts of Georgia and Alabama contain the southern parts of the Appalachian mountains and feature rolling hills, valleys, waterfalls and pretty hiking trails. The Toccoa Falls in Georgia are set in the well manicured grounds of a college campus, which is open to the public and reached by a short path from the parking lot. This was only a warmup to the Tallulah Falls, which lie slightly further to the North and are best seen from a trail that runs around the rim of the canyon. The falls and surrounding hills are connected by a picturesque drive, dotted with small farms on the valley floors and weekend cottages in the peaks above.

More falls along the upper trails

All this waterfall watching is tiring!

ALABAMA'S WATERFALLS & CAVES:

Nakkulah Falls

Further to the west, the town of Gadsden, Alabama hosts the Nakkulah Falls, which have their own special story. According to legend, the chief of a local Indian tribe had a beautiful daughter who was desired by all the braves, but especially so by the son of the chief of a neighboring tribe, with whom her father desired peace. This seems to be a common thread amongst many (most?) cultures of the older/ancient world: Young women as the instruments of alliance between otherwise warring factions. This story also played out like many other legends: the young Indian princess was in love with one of the braves of her own tribe. Unable to face the prospect of being married to someone else via her father’s arrangements, and despondent at the thought of losing her true love, she instead hurled herself from the rocks above the falls. If she could not have the man she wanted, then she would have none at all, and none would have her. The legend does not say what became of relations between the two tribes, but a bronze statue in honor of Nakkulah’s legend now stands at the top of the falls in a perpetual state of stepping off the cliff.  One of the cool features about the falls today is that there is a small, unmarked trail that can be taken to the pools below, where it is possible to pass behind the water and come out, dry, on the other side of the river bed.


Watch your step!



Those little ant like objects are people walking along the inside rim

Dave was hoping for a wet t-shirt...no such luck!

Cool view from inside the waterfall

North of Nakkulah Falls lies Desoto State Park, site of a small dam and falls and one of the early attempts to generate power from water in the area. A local businessman doubled the height of the 10’ dam and installed a generator in the 1920’s, representing the first example of hydroelectric power in the state. However, the same park also boasts another first, which is open to some debate: The first European settlement in North America. This is subject to significant dispute, but contained within the park is Welsh Cavern, a natural cave which was further excavated by man at a distant point in the past. The odd thing about these caves is that none of the local Indian bands were known to have tools or knowledge of excavation as it appears in this cave, nor of the methods of construction used to build the stone walls that appear just outside of the cave entrance.

Desoto State Park

Local legend says that the caves were excavated by the Welsh Prince Madoc in 1170 – some 300 years before Columbus “discovered” America. It is believed that the prince landed on the Eastern shore of what is now known as Mobile Bay and found his way to this cave, possibly pressed northward by the local native populations, some of which may not have been entirely friendly. This legend is supported by local Indian folklore which speaks of a people living there who called themselves “Welsh” and by a reference within a report written in 1799 of the discovery of 6 skeletons encased in brass armor bearing a welsh coat of arms. However, if these skeletons ever actually existed, their present whereabouts are unknown and so this legend of what might have been an early European colony on American soil remains a legend only.

Mmmm, just a little bit closer my wild turk-a-dees....

All puff and plumage!

Of somewhat less dispute is the beauty of Sequoyah Caverns. This is a privately owned cave which has been developed for public access with the addition of walkways and lighting and is very pretty, containing numerous pools that mirror the stalactites above them. It’s hard to do justice to this cave in pictures. We were the only ones there for the tour and walking around in the reflective silence it was easy to imagine that you had been transported to some distant, magical fairyland.  Our guide was very friendly and had lots of interesting stories to tell while touring the cavern, (always a bonus when you meet people who absolutely love their jobs), if you ever go by that way and have Carrie as your guide, make sure you ask her to tell you about the growling bear story... :)

 

Squeezing through Fat Man's Alley...

An illusion of depth, hard to believe 1-4 feet of water can create this!

TENNESSEE'S HIGH FLYERS:

Driving farther north to the outskirts of Chatanooga, Tennessee, we were surprised to see a man stepping off the cliff beside the road... Fortunately, the man had a hang glider attached to his back, but the slope off the mountainside looked ominous in any case.

Lookout Mountain, favorite hangliding spot

A ramp not for the faint hearted

LOUISIANA'S FRENCH HISTORY:

Palmetto dwelling, a typical 18th century structure built by the Acadians

Within the town of Lafayette is Vermilionville; a small, recreated Cajun settlement, complete with restored houses and interpreters dressed in period garb. One of the restored houses contained an older lady working a spinning wheel. It was fascinating to watch a blob of harvested cotton being spun into thread. The lady explained that, using this equipment, it would take about 300 hours to spin enough thread to make a man’s shirt. This does not, of course, include the time required to grow the cotton in the first place, or to remove the seeds (done by hand in the earlier years and then later by a cotton gin). Of course, once the threads were ready, it was still necessary to weave them into a fabric, using the loom that stood in the corner of the room. It’s pretty astounding to think of the total number of hours required to make something as simple as a cotton T-shirt; something which today could be bought for the equivalent of a portion of one hour’s wages.

An almost life sized bale of cotton

Another example of the time it took to carry out simple tasks was demonstrated by the old kitchen. Today, we might spend the equivalent of an hour’s labor to produce a meal which would far surpass meals of pioneer times, yet meal preparation then was an all-day affair, often requiring churning the butter, grinding the flour, baking the bread and growing the vegetables.  Tasks that we consider minor today were major undertakings back then, forcing people to work long hours simply to break even with the day’s requirements for basic food, clothing and shelter. Thanks to science and technology today, we enjoy vastly higher quality with significantly less effort and significantly more efficient use of time and energies, leaving much more time free for pursuits other than simple survival – like touring the country in a fifth wheel trailer!

Live performance held in old school house

Cajun or Zydeco...is there a difference? While at Vermilionville, we listened to 2 men play some Cajun music. When asked the difference between Cajun & Zydeco, (which they played both types for us), we came to the conclusion it all kind of sounds the same after a while!!!

View from our campsite, fish stocked pond & large spacious sites

HOME!

Driving into Houston was a little weird for us, when we saw the downtown skyline in the distance we both felt like we had left only a week ago and just the calendar said differently. Interesting how our time spent away felt as we came back full circle.

"We have too much stuff" was the first thing we said when we arrived home. After living in a trailer, we became accustomed to living a more organized, less cluttered and simplified lifestyle. So before officially letting everyone know we were home, we started cleaning house, 2 weeks later the dust started to settle and we are slowly getting the word out to friends, and visits and what I guess is considered "a normal routine".  Catalina instinctively knew she was back in a familiar place. While driving into our subdivision, she immediately perked up, tail was wagging and she was anxiously peering out the back window. "Home!, even if it's only filled with boring squirrels, we're home again!". It is interesting to note that before we left, Catalina didn't spend much time lounging outside. We have a doggie door that allows her in and out of the house when she wants and most of the time she would spend it in the computer room, looking out the window onto the front lawn, ready to bark at any trespassing dog, cat or rodent... Today, the computer room is mostly vacant and a lot of the time we will see her lying on her dog cot (yes, they make those for spoiled dogs), outside in the sunshine.

We cannot thank our neighbors enough for looking after our place. The "dead animal" smell in the house turned out to be the toilets had dried up and just needed flushing as well as the washing machine to remove the sewer gas.  It is nice to be missed in a neighborhood where we didn't miss anything happening!

THE SCALE OF TRUTH?

To Dave's amazement, he lost weight over the last 6 months. For me, when I stepped off our bathroom scale for the first time in 6 months, my first thought was, "our scale is broken!"....

D&A's TOP 10:

"So what was the best place?" is a question most asked...Without sounding too vague, it all was great, each place offered something diverse that there was no favorite for either one of us. I guess I could ask you, which blog did you like best? Do you have a favorite?

22,000 miles (half of that towing a trailer) - lots covered but still much more to see!

DID IT, DONE IT, BOUGHT THE T-SHIRT:

Sadly, the Raptor has now been posted up for sale. Fingers crossed, it will find another happy home to hit the road and see more of the country. Our reasons for getting out of the rv scene is that the chances of having this large amount of time off won't happen again in a while. Dave did miss flying and so with our future trips will most likely involve the airplane and a rental car, (sorry Catalina!). If we want to travel again in a rv, it's probably best to buy another one when the time comes, rather than pay for storage for the Raptor. So if we've infected you with the desire to buy an rv and travel, "Have I got a deal for you!!!" (wink, wink).  Seriously, if anyone has any questions regarding what to look for, maintenance or just our opinion on how to stay happily married for 6 months in a 39 ft box, just send us an email :)

F1 Rocket going up for the first time in 6 months...like riding a bicycle but a lot more fun!

24 - Charleston, SC



Boone Hall Plantation, the 4th house (this time built from brick instead of wood)

FRIENDLY, SEXY, SOUTHERNERS:

Another place that had positive reviews was Charleston.  I suggested going there to Dave, who responded, "and what will we do there, what's there to see?" to which I shrugged and said "I don't know, but according to Wikipedia, it has civil war stuff, pretty Southern style homes and was voted America's Sexiest & Friendliest Place"... So on a whim, we decided to give Charleston a try. Our campsite, Jolly Acres RV Park (about 45 min from downtown Charleston) was a very nice campsite, complete with a dock & pond and food to feed the ducks and fish.
Our first full day was a Sunday and so not too many tours were open so we decided to drive to one of the more popular plantations North of Charleston, Boone Hall Plantation.  Boone Hall is one of the oldest active plantations (over 320 years) that today grows fruits & vegetables for the local markets as opposed to cotton, rice and indigo for England back in the 1700's.  When you look at the grounds, you kind of think you've seen this place before...we found out it is the most photographed plantation and has been the set for many movies & tv shows, (The Notebook, North and South, Days of Our Lives, The Queen, to name a few).


Row of Oaks along main drive up to Boone Hall Plantation



The plantation did a good job of mixing self guided areas with tours and performances/demonstrations to give you a better idea of what life was like in the 1700’s.

Slave quarters (the lucky ones & highest ranking)



Descendant from the time, illustrating the life and the Gullah language (slave slang)



Oldest tree on the plantation, approx 300 years!

THE LANGUAGE OF GULLAH:
Although we didn't do a tour about Gullah, we did learn from our plantation visit how it was derived and examples of what people would say. Today, if a person speaking Gullah was to recite Martin Luther's "I have a dream" speach, this is what a sentence would look like:

Ie hab uh dreem dat one uh dees ol’ day, ebby wally gwi’ be raise up, ebby hill ‘n mount’n gwi’ be mek lo’ down, de haad ruff place gwi’ be mek plain, ‘n de crookit place gwi’ be mek skrate, ‘n de glory ob de Lawd gwi’ be sho’ up, ‘n ebbyboddy gwi see um tegedduh.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.

WALKING THROUGH HISTORY - DOWNTOWN:

 

The following day we spent on a walking tour of downtown Charleston. A little bit of history and architecture were the topics of discussion.  Charleston is like Washington D.C. in that there are no really tall buildings around. I liked how colorful the houses were painted, the wrought iron fences & gates, and bounty of trees & plants flowering everywhere.  It's like every square inch has something to look at. "This would be a fun place to live in" I thought, "yeah, but Dave would go crazy with the lack of space", was my second thought... We ended our day touring the Fort Sumter monument. Fort Sumter's claim to fame was being the site where the first shots were fired, starting the Civil War in 1861.



Fort Sumter, located about an hour from shore, (via ferry)



We were told if you are visiting Charleston for only a few days to plan on spending one day North of the city, one day in the city and the other South of the city on one of their beautiful beaches.



3rd largest cable stayed bridge in the Western Hemisphere, New Cooper River Bridge



CONGAREE SWAMP:

Getting knee'd by a Cypress...in a swamp....???

We decided instead of visiting a beach to visit a swamp, or more aptly, a wetland area.  How many of us have had someone say, hey, let's go tour a swamp for fun?... Congaree National Park is a relatively young National Park (by designation) but in actuality is the oldest old growth bottomland hardwood forest in the US (bottomland meaning forests in lowland/floodplain areas).

Concerned about mosquitoes, we decided to walk the 3 mile, self guided boardwalk trail. One thing I learned was cypress knees. I had seen at craft fairs these wooden, cone-like objects, painted with some Christmas theme (mostly Santa Claus), but I never knew where they originated from. Since the wetland areas are prone to flooding, the cypress trees grow "knees" so that they can act as straws and allow the tree to breathe during flooding. 

Along the boardwalk

This kind of looks like a scene from Lord of the Rings, where are the Hobbits?

CHRISTINE THE TRUCK…

No, it's not something from a Stephen King book, it really, really happened!!!

We had considered going on an evening ghost tour but with logistics and having Catalina at home in the trailer, we decided to forgo the idea. Little did we realize we would have our own personal poltergeist experience. That night, while walking Catalina in the campsite, I noticed our truck started up. Curious, I walked towards the truck only to find Dave standing outside beside the truck looking straight at me all wide eyed. "Where's he going at this late hour?", I thought.  He wasn't going anywhere, he had heard the truck start up and came out of the trailer to investigate. I didn’t have the truck keys on me, they were in my purse in the trailer and Dave’s were in his pocket. So who started it???? Or should I say, “what” started it???

Well I guess we took this as a message that our truck wanted to go home...so after leaving Charleston, we started our way back to Texas, (with a stop here or there)...



Where Dave found Avril after the Christine incident..."is it safe to go back?"