Tuesday (Oct 9)
I didn’t hang around a long time this morning. I went over to an empty pad in the trees close to the water, in fact, the one in the center left of this picture, and did the tai chi form – felt great!
Just by the way it’s laid out, this campground really looks like it was Army Corps built. Heck it’s even next to a lake!
I like Georgia. I liked Starkville, MS as an appealing, we try harder town. The rest of Mississippi is not generally likable to me. I did not like Alabama, because the loud and proud redneck, Trumper, Lost Cause vibe was palpable everywhere I went. Florida cities sucked, Florida backcountry is awesome. Georgia has well-maintained highways, and all the towns seem above average :)
This morning, after my slightly pricy but oh so pleasant night at the county campground I drove 25 miles to Perry GA, where I relaxed well and ate well. I went straight for the quaint old downtown and the Bodega Brew. Totally enjoyed it. Then on the four-lane highway on the way to I-75, I glimpsed a tiny Jamaican restaurant. It took a minute to sink in, but I realized that once I got on the interstate the only restaurants I will see are chains at the exits. So I sat through a couple of endless left turn lights and get myself back to Jamaican Flava. Curry chicken with braised cabbage and plantains, cooked and served by a genuine Rasta dude who appeared to sleep in the back – spectacular! Every now and then I see the right move and do it .. as opposed to not doing it and berating myself for the next 100 miles.
WHUFU page for: Petersburg Campground
On Strom Thurmond Lake, god help me. According to the map I am on the Georgia side of the lake, South Carolina ten miles away. There are a number of ACE campgrounds on the lake. All except this one closed at the end of September.
tonight:
I went for primitive site, which is why it's such a good price for an ACE campground. The primitive loop is pretty low tech though, gloomy and chilly today.
But also peaceful and secluded and restful.
God help me I am camping on Strom Thurmond Lake. It’s very peaceful and comfortable here. The Savannah River defines the GA-SC border all the way down to the city on the coast. It is dammed up here to make this lovely lake with the unlovely name. I think I will call it the Savannah River Lake in the future. The rains have cooled things off so it’s in the low 70’s at sunset, rather than the mid-80’s I’m used to. Even though it’s comfortable, it feels if possible, even more humid (97% according to Wunderground) than before. Sturdy paper – a AAA map – feels like toilet paper, right now, like it might melt to your touch. The weather, the campsite, the time of day and my mood were all against taking a walk tonight. So I hung out at my little picnic table and watched colors on the lake as the sun set. There weren’t many campers here, but those that are here are pretty active. There was a covey of kayakers, and some kind of water party event going on right around the bend. Boats would motor over from the other side and there would be bright cocktail party kind of conversation for a while.
Wednesday – Friday
It was worth the little detour south to northern Augusta to start the day at Rooted Coffeehouse – a civilized coffee place. I did not stop to venerate Augusta National, sorry golfers.
Then it was a few miles to the South Carolina state line. Today’s drive was basically a backroads tour of the South Carolina Midlands from Georgia to North Carolina.
I could’ve followed I-20 to I-77 in a straight, no chaser shot to Charlotte. But that of course ain’t my style. There is a town called Whitmire smack in the middle of the Sumpter National Forest. Sadly the Forest doesn’t have campgrounds, but it seemed like it would be a pretty place to drive through. So I took Route 121 north through Whitmire, then on to I-77 a few miles outside the Charlotte megalopolis. As I have discovered before, smaller roads cease to be fun when you get to the suburbs. It was a very pleasant drive.
It was Charlotte rush hour by the time I got there. Maps got me off the interstate EXACTLY when the brake lights and the backup started (good job Maps!) and routed me over hill and dale through 6-8 miles of pleasant, leafy inner suburbs until I came to the leafy inner suburb where Lloyd and Cathy live. Their yard is a very steep uphill climb. I parked on the street, which turned out to be the right thing to do. Cathy met me at the gate to their parking area, which was closed to keep in the new puppy, named Sadie. New puppy isn’t my thing, but Sadie was about as cute and engaging as a critter could be. An Australian shepherd (?) that pretty much vibrated with energy all the time she wasn’t sleeping. We had a nice dinner (thanks Cathy!) and I watched the Warriors preseason game after everyone went to bed. Sadie barked from the kitchen.
Thursday
Hurricane Michael arrived today, and its violence surprised not only me, but the city of Charlotte. Lloyd’s simple plan was to take me on a little driving tour of the city. He lives in a leafy part of town, and the normal route to downtown goes through a nice area of big houses set back from the road with big trees in the yard. Today, there was not just one, but many big trees blown down. After our second downed-tree detour he decided to find a less-forested street to drive on. It was kind of cool being out there during the storm. We toured downtown, saw where the Panthers play, saw where the Hornets play … We drove through NoPa (NoDa?), a former mill housing slum that is the up and coming hipster district – that’s where I would be if I spent more time here. There are a ton of micro breweries, and other nice bars, but they all don’t open unti 4. The Brass Tap however was there for us! It opened at 2, so we stopped and had a coupla beers and a few laughs and looked at the storm damage from the safety of their big windows. It was a good outing. They have many, many breweries here it seems.
Friday
The hurricane has moved on and the weather is pretty near perfect. 20 degrees cooler than yesterday with low humidity and very, very clear. According to the news it’s the same perfect, clear weather down on the Gulf, except whole towns are completely leveled.
I hang out on their back deck for a good chunk of the afternoon. Mostly because it was beautiful, but also to escape the busy puppy. I took it personal when Lloyd let the puppy outside so he could have a break. :)
Saturday – Monday
Leaving Day. I am starting from a friend’s house and ending at a friend’s house, so I didn’t see any point in pretending this was a normal road trip day where I try to stick to the backroads. I just got on I-85 in downtown Charlotte and exited it in suburban Chapel Hill like everybody else. So it was a three hours on the freeway day. Not too different from driving from Reno to San Rafael … without the mountains.
Lloyd and Cathy have lived at the house just left for 30 years. Mike and Carol have lived at the house I’m arriving at for four days! They are downsizing. They moved out of their own 30 year house to a smaller, brand new place in a 55 and over community fifteen minutes away. They are still cleaning crap out of the old place and figuring out where stuff goes in the new place. The new place seems quite comfortable. Two bathrooms, all the latest appliances, but … no internet!
Waiting for Godot … er the internet guy was sort the theme of the visit. They had things to do, so I hung around most of Monday waiting. When I left Tuesday at noon ATT had blown through their Tuesday morning commitment, and Mike was waiting… waiting … waiting on the phone to reschedule. Their excuse is a pretty good one, namely that the multiple hurricanes have strained their resources, but still … can’t a brother get some internet in Research Triangle?
Carol’s daughter Sarah was there helping unpack. I met her on a trip through here when she was an alienated high school smartie … 16 years ago? It was decided that pizza would be the thing tonight, so Mike and I drove to hippin’ happenin’ Carrboro to pick up a couple of tasty pies, and a good time was had by all! I fell half-asleep in a comfie chair an half-listened to them chat away about her kids and such. It was very comfortable.
Sunday
Mike and I went to the old house to get yet more boxes, then around 1 pm we repaired to the clubhouse of their new community. He plan was to watch the Panthers game on the clubhouse TV, I planwas to get me some internet on the clubhouse’s wifi. I was successful. He was not. Somebody had fiddled with the TV setup and we couldn’t figure out the magic to get it back to HDMI1. He went home. I stayed for three hours doing internet things and drinking the already opened white wines clubhouse partiers had left.
Sarah has her two boys back from the ex and invited us over for dinner – score! Her plan was get a double dose of grandpa energy for the boys. Great meal, and we did have fun with the kids. The older one (11 years) wants to be an electronic music DJ (really?!). He made a beat out of my saying something. We followed each other on Youtube – now I have a follower! We all kicked a soccer ball with the little one in the back yard. Fun times! The suburbs of Chapel Hill and Durham are so woodsy and pleasant, seems like everybody’s back yard abuts a forest.
Monday
There is a large piece of driftwood at the old house that Carol wishes to be at the new house, and my van was elected to be the carrier. So around 1-ish I headed over there and picked it up. Carol also hooked me up with some jigsaw puzzles that I am excited to get to when I get home. There was a 2′ tall Buddha in the yard that she tried to give me. I did bring it to the new hosuse with the other stuff, but on the way over I came to my senses and realized that it was just too big to lug across country in the ole van, not to mention too big to fit into the ole condo when I got it home. She accepted the inevitable – it’s not going to leave her, it’s been following her since college. We found it a new home in the garden along with the driftwood.
Party again tonight! My three nights here have been two dinner parties and a pizza party – visiting Mike is fun! Tonight is a tight crew of six couples who’ve been friends for 30 years. I guess the first prerequisite would be to live in the same area for 30 years, so that let’s me out. The host’s house was on the edge of a forest (of course). They had a sitting area screened on three sides facing the woods. Man would I love that! Someone else lived on a creek, another lived on a lake. They had all worked solid pension-creating jobs teaching or for some level of government in public service and had nice, comfortable lives for themselves. The seemed like admirable people.
Anyway, the host is finally retiring, and to make a point about weekends and weekdays being the same now, he had his retirement party on Monday night! There was a little grumbling from the 2-3 folks who are not yet retired and actually had to set an alarm and be somewhere tomorrow, but it worked out great for me. One of the fellows had a great line which I know I will use again, to the effect that he and they all are in the “pre-geezer” stage. He might be kidding himself about the “pre” part. I think we are full-on geezers. But hey, 70 is the new 60, so maybe he’s on to something.
Tuesday
Leaving Day again. As mentioned above, I hung out all morning waiting for the cable guy, then Mike came home, we said our goodbyes and I’m off on two nights of road-trippin before the next stop … and he’s still waiting for the cable guy.
I haven’t eaten this morning, so I found a country cafe with internet in the small town of Creedmoor – Finch’s Family Restaurant. You couldn’t tell from the outside, but it totally had its shit together. Breakfast all day! The steak and eggs was very good. As I told the cook when she asked: “you did a great job wth an average piece of meat”.
The drive was longer and more tiring than I thought. I-85 was under construction most of the early afternoon, with a 45 mph speed limit and frequent lane shifts. This is where cruise control makes life better. It’s very stressful to keep yourself to 52 mph on the freeway.