Month: October 2016

Return to Mount Pleasant & Oak Plantation Campground with the Taj 

We returned to our site – nicely cleaned up by the campground staff but half of the place remained inundated with water from nearby ponds and new lakes left by the rain. We went home to our house which was fine with just a few palm trees who lost their fronds. The landscapers arrived in afternoon to spruce up lawns and edging. I will trim the palm tree out front that suffered. Our crepe myrtle lost most of its leaves as it bore the brunt of the wind on the east northeast side of the house. 

By late afternoon we had all the plants in pots watered and the patio furniture returned to the backyard. Things are returning to normal but on our way home we saw extensive tree damage and water levels that remained high in rivers, swamps, wetlands and the many ponds & lakes that are prevelant in low country. 

We are thankful that we came through this terrible storm with minor damage. 

 W want to thank our public safety & public works people for helping to preserve our beautiful new town.  Our Mt Pleasant Police Chief did a Facebook video tour of our area on Sunday that was a big help in reassuring folks. 

Thanks also to our  governor and her able emergency planning staff – the evacuation plans made a big difference and although we all now have this week missing from our lives – we are alive & safe. Unlike other states who did not take the threat seriously thus their people have suffered mightily, we were urged to evacuate and wait out the storm on high ground. We might not agree with her on some issues but we were very impressed with governor Haley’s handling of crisis – that’s the true test of leadership and government. 

Here are some photos of the campground to give you an idea of the water intruding into normally dry land:

This is the campground’s front lawn – no water there normally…..

Lots of egrets, ibis, herons & storks fishing in new ponds. 

No pool visits today!

Live oaks are now in the water providing great sightseeing space for water fowl. 

Statesville KOA – waiting on Matthew…..


We are among many other evacuees here in North Carolina where the people in stores & restaurants have been very hospitable. It’s funny when people ask you is you visiting – not really – we are evacuated and waiting on a good result at home in Mount Pleasant. Fingers crossed and prayers that everyone stays safe. 

Recent photographs from Mount Pleasant & Ashley River before we evacuated. 

This was Sunday evening from our front yard. 


And this was from the bridge over the Ashley River on our way to Oaks Plantation to get onboard the Taj. Gorgeous sunset – one of hundreds we’ve seen but we hoped it was a good omen. 

Our first evacuation!

Being from the Northeast means we get the instruction – “shelter in place” and – stay indoors to be safe – so getting an evacuation order on Tuesday was pretty weird. Leaving our new home was hard – although we done it before – leaving not knowing what palm trees will be standing was nerve wracking. But we also heard that the Oaks Plantation campground on Johns Island was closing so we had to move the motor coach somewhere safe. 

So we packed up some food, clothes & the dogs and headed to the Taj. We planned to leave early Wednesday AM and after many try’s we found a camp site north of Charlotte NC  – a KOA in Statesville some 250 miles away. And because our new car is coming in mid October the C-RV can’t be towed anymore.  I would drive the car with dogs & Rick would drive coach. 

It was a long day – 700 am to 200 pm was exhausting – with lots of traffic and three dog stops  but we arrived and are happy we evacuated. The Motorcoach was safe & so were we. We would head back home on Monday & do the return trip over 2 days. 

Meantime it’s fall here in midland/western NC and a bit cooler than we are comfortable with. It takes getting used to 50 degree temps at night. 

 The Dogs were freaked out by the drive and very nervous resulting from the quick trip  but they should relax by tomorrow. There isn’t much to do here but watch weather news & movies – it’s not a big tourist spot although there is a Nascar Speedway 25 miles away.  We will however add this unusual experience to our adventure list.

 Matthew is a Cat 4 hurricane and making land fall Mid East Florida coast now. She’ll be close to Charleston in less than 24 hrs. – Saturday & Sunday. Our fingers are crossed that she weakens and we just had a nice four day visit to NC. But either way we are glad we evacuated – especially since our insurance would not like it if we stayed & had damage. 

So we will update everyone when we see the full impact of the storm  – pray  it is safe for all. 
 

So busy from mid August thru September…..no time to blog!

Although we did not write much ~ we had a very eventful August & September.  After the wedding, we headed to Lilburn GA & the Stone Mountain RV campground.  We were wildly busy actually.  We had an appointment at National Indoor RV center to test drive an Entegra Anthem and we ended up test driving a Cornerstone – the 600 horsepower model – and buying a beautiful 2016 Entegra Cornerstone 45 B on the lot. It is  equipped with the full shower bath & 1/2 bath which was a key point after the higher horsepower. The interior lights,audio & shades operate off the Vega system on a dedicated iPad – which is very cool & convienent.  It has beautiful interior with medium dark cabinets and a light beige leather L shaped couch. The kitchen & bath counters are a light granite that complements the wood nicely. And there is a tile floor throughout with just a small amount of carpet in the dinning area!  My allegeries will be positively affected. We stayed around the area for 10 days to make sure everything worked right and to get me driving lessons!!  I now drive the coach half the time and have over 400 miles under my belt already. We hired a trainer who was very good and made some good suggestions. He taught me how to back up,parallel park and negotiate turns in traffic properly. The more practice I have the more confident I get but I actually enjoy it more than I though I would. 😎


We also plan to change our towed vehicle and have an all while hard top Jeep Sahara on order for delivery mid October. We decided that would be a better vehicle for our travels West and to Alaska in 2017-2018. Also it will match the new coach better than the CRV and be able to be towed at speeds over 70 mph unlike our current tow.  Here are a few interior photos:


Living space is great and we can seat up to 8 people as needed. The bathroom has a convenient double sink and well proportioned shower. The driver & passenger seat turn around 180 so the can be used in the salon area. Great lighting & darkening shades – a tempurpedic matteress – all make sleeping onboard a joy.


Although we had not intended to make this purchase we believe it was a good decision and will offer many years of comfortable safe traveling.

Home to Mount Pleasant for birth of our newest grand daughter Isla! 

Although she was a little late with her premiere – it was worth the wait! At 9 lbs 11 ozs she came in as a beautiful heavy weight who already looks three months old.  We are delighted  to add her to our family.  


We stayed two weeks at home to see her and her family before embarking on our first trip in the new coach. We planned to visit Georgia again – Savannah this time, and our friends in Bainbridge and then travel back to Mt Pleasant via Hilton Head Island. 

Stone Mountain Georgia!

Stone Mountain is not far from the current location of National Indoor RV Center and we stayed at the camp ground in this beautiful state park. The Mountain on the site of a former quarry is the site of a famous memorial honoring Generals Robert E.Lee & Stonewall Jackson and Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederacy.  Political comments aside, it is an amazing sculpture more than 75 feet high and it took over fifty years to complete. It is taller than Mt Rushmore’s famous 60 foot sculptures.  There is a tram to the top of the Mountain if you don’t want to hike up…we took the tram.  It affords beautiful views of the surrounding area and you can see Atlanta on a clear day as we could.  

It can be quite hot so being your water and take time on the top to enjoy the view and the narrative inside the structure that offers insight into the Mountain’s surrounding climate.  Walk across the top but wear your hat and sunscreen – you are closer to the sun up there!   On the weekend there is a laser show presentation accompanied with inspirational music offered for a reasonable fee. The park has a variety of entrance options on its website and discounts for seniors & military like us. We did not get a chance to see the laser show but we will next visit – the campground is lovely and has a nice pool and very spacious sites with a view of the lakes surrounding the Mountain. There is Reputed to be good fishing although no swimming in this lake.  Many Beautiful trails to stroll, walk or hike and lots of birds and water fowl to observe. We would recommend this park and the staff was always helpful & delightful. They pick up trash at your site  – always a plus. 

There is also a museum at the base of the Mountain which we recommend as it has two great films worth seeing – one on the Civil War and one on how the Mountain was built and carved. It’s a valuable visit. Worth your time & money. We watched the Olympics while we were there – inside and outside – love the outside tv! 

We would also recommend National Indoor RV Center – everyone from the president (who took us out to breakfast) to the maintenance folks who worked on our coach getting it ready and trained us on the new elements – to the salespeople who were not hard sell but wanted us to be happy with whatever we decided to purchase.  Consider them if you are in the market for an Entegra or Newmar coach.  We will be returning there for service as it is closest to our SC home base and between home and our winter Florida home. 

Also a shout out to the Entegra folks who manufacture a superior product and who have welcomed us into their family with open arms!  Thank you for our Taj II 😎

%d bloggers like this: