Ft. Chiswell..LAST DAY

EWWW.. A dark, rainy, cold day.  That started too early for me.  Geez, these people and their diesels at 7 a.m. in a sardine can.  We don't let ours run for 20 -30 minutes.  And slam doors and yell back and forth.  But we're thinking about it in the morning when we leave.  Altho, the ones packed in here tonight are not the same ones that were making all the racket this morning.  Who cares.  I was not in a very good mood when I was made to get up.

The park was almost empty about noon when we went into town to get a few groceries.  Got that done and sat down the rest of the dark, rainy afternoon ...Ronnie watched ballgames and I read.

 We are giving some consideration into looking at a motorhome versus the fifth wheel that we now have.  We absolutely love the fifth wheel....the layout can NOT be beat.   But the ride in the dually leaves a bit to be desired in our old age.  He's always said he'd not feel comfortable driving a motorhome, but he is seriously thinking it's doable.  It will be a slow process of deciding.  Another plus would be to have a smaller "toad" to run around in when we stop rather than this huge truck.  We're to the point of making a Pro/Con list.   We spent some time on the laptops researching.   Found one that had the TV/Fireplace setup that we now have in the fifth wheel. 

Anyway, we'll be leaving in the morning for Crossville and a visit/stay with Helen and Dick.  Looking forward to our visit.  Helen and I graduated high school together; and 40 years later, we have reconnected.  We did see each other at a reunion every now and then, but since we've had our annual "girls' bunking party weekend" with some other HS grads, we've gotten to be friends again. We always enjoy being around them both.

This 6 week trip has been fun, but we've decided the next trip will be to a destination somewhat closer (as Colorado) and stay at one spot for 2-3 weeks or so.  Too much driving, but we saw a LOT. '



This is the first time in I can't count the years that we've not had our annual family birthday bash.  Ronnie;  our son, Scott; and our daughter, Dana, all have a birthday within a week of each other during the last week of September-first week of October.  I always get a cake that says, "Happy Birthday, Ya'll" and we have one celebration.  Missed it this year and it doesn't feel right.  But.....Happy Birthday to our two great kids--could not have chosen any better ones!!  We are so lucky to have them; they have been two true blessings in our lives.  But they are getting old...LOL. 




Payton Binns CHS HC Parade

We've got some ballgame catching up to do also when we get home.  Granddaughter, Payton, marches in the Cabot High School band---we've missed those performances and grandson, Braden, is tackle for the Cabot 7th grade North...we've missed his games also.  Got a great picture, tho, of him going up against Michael Oher's (The Blind Side) son (Braden's first thought when he saw him) . LOL  But Braden got by him and into the backfield 2 times  to tackle....He wears his grandfather's #60 for practice and his dad's Jr. Hi #41 to play....both for CHS (Crossett High School and Cabot High School)




Braden Binns (down in stance) against the purple



Ft. Chiswell VA

Not much to write about.  We got here to this very convenient park right off I81 and...on the surface as we came in, it looked fantastic.  A section in the trees...big wide sites.  But we wanted satellite so we asked to be put in a treeless site....OK...there's an upper part that is virtually treeless.

We parked, sat outside in the wonderful sunshine and whoaa... here comes RV after RV after RV....they started lining up to check in.  And one pulled in right beside us and there was barely room to walk.  Another motorhome on the other side and we started to feel like sardines.  These sites, we realized are a LOT closer together.   But we've got great satellite...  It was just aggravating to  have people so close to  us.  Actually, there's cable TV at each site and it had all the channels we wanted, but it's not nearly as clear as our HD satellite. 

By nightfall, the park was FULL.  But, we also noticed that those around us had not even unhooked their fifth wheels from their trucks and the motorhomes still had their "toads" attached.  Sure enough, this morning, the diesels started up.  Now, I understand, by their standards it was not early, but I didn't like being this close to that much noise.  The motorhome had to warm up his engine for 15 minutes before he finally left...and it was RIGHT beside the bed.  Geez. 

We had a nice day, tho, took a walk....no one around, but now, at 5:30, the park is nearly full again and we are repacked.  The poor guy next to us had to duck to get under our window (cranks out) to get his electricity hooked up....I think we could shake hands from their slide to ours. 

Regardless, Ronnie's cooking Montreal chicken outside....it's turning much cooler and rain is expected tonight and all day tomorrow.  We have to make a grocery store run again (I know, sounds like we eat a lot, but I don't have a lot of storage space) tomorrow, and it's supposed to be raining.  ugh. 

We've enjoyed the day, watched the ballgame, I read and we did some bookwork.....man, our credit card is smoking.  We had to make adjustments for the value of the Canadian dollar and the US dollar so that made the transactions that I had entered into my checking account software wrong.  Had to figure it all out.  And the Foreign Transaction Fees...oh my....not much for each one, but a lot of them. 

Tomorrow is another "rest" day and then we leave for Crossville TN to stay in the driveway of our friend's home....full hookups.  Then we'll all journey down to Crossett AR for our High School Reunion....Helen and I graduated together and Ronnie and Dick are just coming along for the food.

Gettysburg Day 2

Our day two; not the Battle Day 2. 

Very relaxing day...the weather was really nice.  We went to Historic Gettysburg and walked around a bit.  It was not as "tee shirty" as I first thought.  A LOT of the old buildings have been turned into bookstores; small museum type stores.  I couldn't stay in them too long....dark and close. 

I did see a row of books in the window of a bookstore that intriqued me.  So we went inside.  There's a series of books about the "Ghosts of the Battlefield".  Very interesting...I glanced through a page or two and read about some of the sightings people have seen...one in particular in the Valley of Death between Little Round Top and Devil's Den....the very bloody battle that made the little stream run red.  I would not be surprised at a sighting of  the hazy column of mist.....but I would also imagine that the men who participated and/or died in the battle would never want to return...dead or alive. 
I started to buy the book; but after a second thought...decided that I didn't need any reminders of spirits walking around this battlefield. 

After the much needed purchase of a sweatshirt (no, I really needed a sweatshirt!), we went to the Diorama exhibition a couple of blocks down.  The Artillery Ridge Campground gave us complimentary tickets to it.  It was really good.  A miniature layout of the entire battleground landscaped as it was in 1863. The town of Gettysburg was smack in the middle of the battlefield.   Little miniature soldiers (really minature--about 1/2 inch tall) dressed in Union and Confederate uniforms.  Horses, cannons, wagons...the whole show.  We were given about 10 minutes to go around it and view it.  Then we sat on bleachers and watched as a documentary/narrative described the entire 3 days.  Lights went out in the room and as he described each battle, the area was spotlighted on the layout.  At the end of each day, the spotlights went out and the little town buildings lit up inside and there were little red campfires dotted around the countryside showing the encampments around the town.  The area of the battleground covered about 530 acres +/-.  In 2008, the Gettysburg National Military Park had 1320 monuments, 400 cannon, 148 historic buildings, 2 1/2 observation towers, and 41 miles of roads, avenues, and lanes (8 unpaved)--one of the largest collections of outdoor sculptures in the world.

Having been through the fighting..with the auto tour, it helped us understand a little bit more how it all played out.  There is still confusion with all the names of the regiments, men, etc.  but it was a bit of help.  We enjoyed it a lot.  We did learn one thing that we had wondered about:  The lady showed us on the diorama exactly where our campground is located....it is right behind Little Round Top and held Union soldiers.  We had wondered about it and felt that it was probably occupied.    We enjoyed the 30 minute show....it is all just so sad.

Leaving there, we ate a burger and bought a few more groceries.  Last night, at Dobbin House, there was SO much food and we wanted dessert, so, we quit eating dinner, got a take out box for the rest of our steaks and that will be dinner tonight along with baked potatoes and salad.   Dessert was good, too...Ronnie got pecan pie with Haagen Dazs ice cream...I had apple crisp with Haagen Dazs.  I know.....calories, calories...I think we'll have to do WW again when we get home. 

We got back to the RV around 3 and sat outside in the sunshine and 75 degrees and read a while.  There's no one beside us on our "front" side, so we had wide open spaces to view out over this side of the campground (and imagine all the Union soldiers camped out around here). 

Tomorrow we'll leave, after having thoroughly enjoyed this part of our journey.  So far, the top 3 stops that we consider our favorites:  NYC, Bar Harbor and Gettysburg. 

Next stop will be in Virginia at Ft. Chism RV Park near Max Meadows, VA.  Three night stop .

A note on Gettysburg and Pickett's Charge

Had an email  on why they marched across an open field face-to-face at Pickett's Charge....knowing that everyone on the front lines (which changed constantly) would die.....their fighting tactics were patterned after the French.....'nuf said.

Gettysburg National Military Park

Where do I start….at the beginning.

 

Rained last night..again.  Got up in the foggy, damp weather, but by 10 a.m. the sun began peeking through and we started our Auto Tour of Gettysburg.  It ended up being a warm (high 70's) day. 

 

We toured the entire battlefield around the city of Gettysburg (pop 2400 in 1863) using the CD and auto tour guide.  It was really good.  He did talk a bit too fast for me --  I need a slow Southern accent.  But we put the CD into my computer and could pause and back up at will. 

 

The Battle of Gettysburg took 3 days (July 1-3, 1863).  It was a brutal, bloody 3 days. 

 

Day 1:

 

The first battle took place at McPherson Ridge.  The first shot was fired when a Union soldier spied the Confederates advancing up toward the town and he fired.  From that point, the battle began.  It took place over acres and acres of fields.  They came across the fields from the white barn.

 

 

 

 

 

Confederate soldiers had taken shelter in this railroad cut through the McPherson Ridge.  It proved to be a wrong move as Union soldiers could advance without being seen and capture or kill them.  They had no place to escape.

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the end of the war, a monument called the Eternal Light Peace Memorial was erected and dedicated in 1938 by Roosevelt.  The flame still burns at the top.  At the dedication  over 2000 Civil War veterans attended, most over 95 years old; a few over 100.  They shook hands with one another and “beared no ill will.”

 

Day 2:

 

Little Round Top and the Valley Death

The second day’s battle was held around the area known as Little Round Top, a hill held by the Union.  The  Confederates advanced on Little Round Top from Warfield Ridge onto a huge outcropping of rocks known as Devil’s Den. 

 

Devil's Den

 

 

 

 

 

The valley between the two points became known as The Valley of Death.    The battlefield was so bloody, it was said that this little river ran red with the blood of all the killed and wounded.   Devil’s Den was a popular place for journalists and photographers to take pictures…some before the dead were removed.  It brought the war home to all those back home.

Water ran red

 

Another horrific battle on Day 2 was at the Wheatfield (the only time the word wheatfield is capitalized—when it refers to this battle).  It was located a little below where the battle at Little Round Top was carried out.  It was said that you could not walk across the field and step on ground, it was so covered in bodies.  The wheat was red. 

Cannon ball hole in barn

 

 

 

 

 

Day 3:

 

The Confederates came from this direction.

The High Water Mark or Pickett’s Charge—the beginning of the end for the Confederacy.  The Confederates, led by Longstreet (who disagreed with his superior, Lee, about this particular battle) marched straight across this field towards the rock wall to fight the Union army.  The battle of Gettysburg took 3 days and  23,000 Union soldiers and 28,000 Confederate soldiers were killed.  The movie, Of Gods and Generals, was about Pickett's Charge.

 

 

 

 

This 2.5-3 hour tour…we took nearly 6 hours.  And those 3 paragraphs are such a short description of all that we saw and heard from the CD.  It was a very good tour and I finally feel like I may have a grasp of what occurred.  However, I could go through it 15 more times before I could really understand it all. 

 

All states participating in the battle have monuments...many regiments, companies, battalians, also.  This is Arkansas. 

 

Many are located where so many of the regiments were killed ...as is this one for Michigan at the Valley of Death.

 

We have reservations at Dobbin House for dinner…a Civil War home.  Then we’ll come back to watch the debates.  An after statement:  It was wonderful!!!  Ronnie  had the prime rib; I had filet mignon and it was all perfectly done.  The entire house has been turned into the restaurant.  We ate in the upstairs bedroom area.  All period furniture..candlelight...really nice.  I'm stuffed.

 

Tomorrow, we’ll walk through historic downtown.  It’s a cute, quaint little village….with more than its share of tee shirts, official Civil War relics, and souvenirs.

 

It was a history filled day.  Emotional, mind-boggling.  I am honored to have stood today where these brave men stood, fought and died for our country...no matter what side they were on.  But, win or lose, I'm proud to be a Southerner!!

 

 

Artillery Ridge Gettysburg, PA

A short day driving.  We wound our way out of that tight little park this morning ...started raining again and rained on us all 176 miles.  Hazy, foggy, wet.  But in the I81/I84 part of Pennsylvania, the colors were great.  The hills were alive with reds, yellow, oranges...even in the hazy rain, it was pretty.  But then the farther south towards Gettysburg, they pretty much disappeared. 

We have decided that the $20 hooded rainjackets that we bought in Bar Harbor were the best investments we've made in a long while. 

We got here at Artillery Ridge Campground around 1:00.  We had requested a "satellite friendly" site and that's exactly what we got....sorta up here on a ridge with no trees.  I like it.  Ronnie put the satellite finder out and immediately got it...even got our locals (Little Rock) in HD....cannot figure that out at all.  The dish thingy still has the Northeast settings on it because he forgot to change them.  Strange...  but it's good to see Craig, Liz, and Ed.

Soon as we got everything fixed, we set off for the Visitor's Center.  It's only about a mile down the road from us and the National Park is just across the road from that.  We went to the VC and found just what we were looking for:  a CD self-guided auto tour.  Bought it complete with 2 cd's and maps that take you all through the park and go into detail at each stop explaining all 3 days of the Battle of Gettysburg.  With that purchase, you could also buy a nice soft sided cooler for $15 ...so we did  and will use it for a picnic lunch while on the tour.  First, though, I'll have to fix a lunch. LOL. 

After we got that done, we drove to the Outlet Mall and shopped a bit.  Then found a place to eat dinner and then back to the RV.  It's nearly 7 p.m. and we're tired.  We're looking forward to tomorrow...we've always enjoyed reading and studying about the Civil War.  Although we've been to Gettysburg and have taken a guided tour of the battlefields, it was a few years ago and I've forgotten a lot.  It'll be nice to take our time and really absorb what we are hearing on the CD and looking at....no one will be hurrying on to the next stop. 

We've watched pretty much all the movies that have been made on the War.  I remember years ago going to one of the Breckinridge Theaters in LR and watching the movie, Glory.  I just sat there and cried.   It's always been an emotional thing for me...not sure why.  I think I probably had some ancestors who were involved in it, but it feels real to me. 

We are smack in the middle of it all right  now.  Sitting up here on this little ridge, I feel like we're on the edge of a battle somewhere.  I just hope the spirits are quiet tonight....

The road MOST traveled....

 

We were on it.  Left on 91 SOUTH (!) down the side of Vermont, through the middle of Massachusetts, Connecticut then 84 West through NY.  I have NEVER seen so much traffic—bumper to bumper, mirror to mirror.  Big trucks; little trucks; cars., left lane closed; right lane closed; merge right; merge left…It was a nerve breaker for me.  But he handled it like a pro.  Everyone is in a hurry.

 

Much construction, major and minor.  From real road work to limb trimming (which had the other side of the freeway completely shut down for 5-6 miles or more)  Interestingly, at each “construction” site all along the freeway (and many right in the middle of the cities) and on the exit/entrance ramps, there were two state troopers.  One at the beginning of the work and one at the end..just there with their lights on.  Some of the 4 million newly created jobs..IMHO.

 

One thing we noted while in Canada, Nova Scotia for sure, was the lack of troopers/police.  No one was speeding, everyone was polite on the roads and NO ONE was talking on their cell phones! 

 

Finally, finally…(beginning to think we were back in Canada), we located a truck stop/fuel station just over the NY line.  It was in town.  Packed with trucks.  But we were able to fill up and go into the RV and eat lunch and sit in the peace and quiet for a bit.  Now when I say peace and quiet in a truck stop, that should tell you something of what the road was like.  I long for our wide, open spaces.

 

 

 

The colors of the trees slowly started fading out the farther south and west we got.  They are just barely beginning to turn in NY…which, by the way, is a beautiful state. 

 

 

 

                         We eyed the Catskills off in the distance at one point.   

 

And as we progressed west in NY towards Pennsylvania, the traffic cleared and it was a much better drive.  Good roads .  Beautiful countryside.  Until we got to PA…bad roads, beautiful countryside.  Bad roads.

 

We put our destination into the GPS last night and he (and Google Maps, also) routed us down to I95 right through NYC….George Washington Bridge, no less.  I couldn’t believe it…this is supposed to be a GPS unit made specially for RV’s.  Why would anyone take an RV through NYC on purpose unless they were staying there.  Crazy.  We picked another route and got him to go our way.  And to avoid toll roads. 

 

Got here at Tobyhanna PA (something like that) around 3.  Oh my goodness.  If you like trees, this is the place to be.  Trees, trees, trees.  A pretty big park, but it’s like a little road cut thru the forest with “seasonals” dotted along it.  We had to go to the very end of the park in order to get turned around and  back to the front where our site was.  To look at it, you’d think it was very level, but it took us 45 minutes to get it level enough to use.  We have the largest, easiest to get into? site so we are grateful for it.  We saw another Fifth wheel come in later longer than us…he went toward the back where the “seasonals” are and never came back out….dunno.  It’s nice if you like tight trees and once you get in, it’s pretty to look out the windows at woods.  In the morning, we have to leave and go back to the back again in order to turn around and get back out to the front entrance again.  Interesting.  It does have cable and wifi. 

 

Tomorrow we’ll be at Artillery Ridge RV in Gettysburg for 3 nights.  This seemed like the longest hardest day we’ve done….The traffic and bad roads (bone jarring roads) will make for a long, hard day.