A Rally Of Our Own: Stony Fork Campground

Dorcas and I are attending a Country Coach rally the last weekend in May and wanted to camp somewhere the week before the rally. We invited several of our RVing friends to attend "A Rally Of Our Own". Unfortunately, most had conflicts, but Terry and Peggy were able to join us for the Memorial Day weekend. Terry suggested Stony Fork Campground in the Jefferson National Forest near Wytheville Virginia. We had never been there, but Terry said it was a nice place, so off we went. Dorcas and I arrived mid-afternoon on Friday before Memorial Day and set up on Site 47. This is indeed a very nice campground. It is nestled in the valley between Big Walker Mountain and Little Walker Mountain. It has 53 paved sites in a single loop and the East Fork Stony Fork crosses the loop four times. About half of the sites have 30 amp service and a few have water. The only drawbacks were the kids and the dogs. Since it was a holiday weekend, the place filled up, and everyone had three barking dogs and four whining kids. The kids all had bikes and delighted in circling the loop in packs as fast as they could. Kinda like short-track NASCAR for rugrats. Also, I have recently observed that the smaller the camping rig the larger the attendant dog(s). A 42' motor home will have one small yippy dog. A 10' pop-up camper will likely have three German shepherds and a black lab. Thankfully, on Monday most of the riff-raff cleared out, and it was very quiet and peaceful.

On Saturday we drove to Garden Mountain where the Appalachian Trail crosses VA 623 to perform "Trail Magic". Trail Magic is a term the AT through-hikers use to refer to surprise food or treats provided by "Trail Angels". Terry brought hot dogs, buns, chili, baked beans, chips, cookies, fruit and cold drinks for the through-hikers. We fed about 10 hungry hikers including "Spidey", "NoAmp", "Couscous", "Chili Pepper", "Happy", "Rock" and "Roll".

On Sunday we hiked the Seven Sisters trail along the ridge of Little Walker Mountain. The trail was five miles long and crested 7 minor peaks along its length, terminating, amazingly, at Site 47. About 2 miles from the finish, we met a guy walking up the hill carrying a unicycle. His plan was to walk to the crest of the trail and ride his unicycle back down the hill. I just hoped he was in control when he came back by us. It turns out he was very skilled and whizzed by us very much in command of his vehicle.

On Monday we slept late and lounged around camp. Terry helped me remove the rear slide topper awning, which had blown its roller spring. Terry and Peggy left for home about noon. I'm hoping I can get a new spring when we get to Sevierville and maybe some fellow Country Coachers at the rally can help me put it all back together. Somewhere I am going to have to borrow a pop rivet tool. (Note to self: pack pop rivet tool in coach for next trip.). Tuesday and Wednesday were both lazy days. On Tuesday we explored Wytheville, bought groceries and checked our e-mails. We wanted to do a hike, perhaps on the AT near Burke's Garden, but the weather was threatening, so we wimped out. On Wednesday it rained for sure, so we just hung out, read and did some computer maintenance. On Thursday we will pack up and drive about 175 miles down I-81 to Sevierville, TN.

Matilda is doing great. I think she has grown four pounds this week. We have not had a single "accident" in the house (knock on wood). She is doing some serious teething, though, so we have to watch and make sure she doesn't eat the tires off the coach. A Toyo 12R-22.5 is an expensive chew toy.

Good News; a New Family Addition and Other Stuff

Great news: On Wednesday my mother went to see her new doctor in Morganton. He told her that her cancer is in remission. Yeah!!!! No more treatments, and he doesn't need to see her for two more months. Dorcas and I visited Mom on Tuesday and helped her hang pictures and did some other chores. Every time I look at all her stuff, I am amazed that we got her moved at all. Folks who know me know that I keep things and have a lot of stuff. Folks who know my mother will understand where I got it from.

We have a new family addition. Izaak has been gone a little over a year now, and it was time to fill that terrible void in our hearts. Last night we picked up Matilda, a six-week old Australian Shepherd. She is as cute as she can be. We took her to the vet this morning for her initial exam and vaccinations. We are leaving this afternoon for two and a half weeks in the motor home, so I guess she will get used to traveling and camping pretty quickly. At least that's the plan.

In about an hour we are leaving on a short (for us) motor home trip. Our first stop is Stony Fork Campground in Jefferson National Forest, about 5 miles northwest of Wytheville VA. We will be there six nights and then head southwest to a Country Coach rally in Sevierville TN. After 4 nights in Sevierville we will move again to either the Great Smoky Mountains National Park or to the Mt. Rogers National Recreation area, for about a week. Ain't retirement grand?

I am grossly behind updating this journal with past trips. I have been very busy and not a little lazy about posting reports. I will try to post something soon. In short, 1) we survived eight nights on the Buffalo National River, in spite of a deadly thunderstorm as we were taking out, 2) we experienced a very interesting and eventful bike ride from Fleetwood to Todd, a trip not usually known for being interesting and eventful and 3) we enjoyed the friendship of our Lumber River Canoe Club friends while camping at Hanging Rock State Park and paddling five straight days on the Dan River. Whew! Too many adventures, not enough time.

Paddle: Dan River with the LRCC

From Wednesday May 14 until Sunday May 18 we attended the spring campout and paddle at Hanging Rock State Park with the Lumber River Canoe Club. Members of the LRCC converge at HRSP in the spring and again in the fall every year for a long weekend of camping, partying and paddling on the Dan River. The Dan River is a jewel. It is scenic and relatively unspoiled. There are tall rocky bluffs and the rhododendrons were blooming. There are no real rapids, but there are enough turns, riffles and ledges to keep it interesting. Best of all it is only about 25 miles from our house. During the week Dorcas and I paddled tandem on two days, and I paddled solo in Dorcas' Bell Wildfire on three other days. Five straight days of paddling on the upper Dan River. Heaven. To read Don's trip report click here.

A Mother's Day Homecoming

The mother hen is roosting in her new coop. We have successfully moved my mother and all her belongings 666 miles, from Shelby MS to Morganton NC. Mom was raised in Morganton and raised her two sons there. She moved to west Tennessee in 1973 and to Mississippi about 10 years later, but has looked forward to coming home for many years. She now is in a townhouse three blocks from the courthouse square in downtown Morganton. She is a short walk away from many services and the downtown shops.

Dorcas, my brother Ran, and a few of Mom's friends, packed all day last Sunday. On Monday we picked up a 26' U-Haul truck, the biggest, baddest truck that U-Haul offers. U-Haul claims this truck will hold all the furnishings in a 4-bedroom house. They lie. Granted, we are not professional movers, but I put myself through college loading trucks at UPS, and I do know how to pack a tight truck. We packed this one so tight that the mice were suffocating. However, by the time the truck was 3/4 full, it was obvious to all that there just wasn't going to be enough truck. And we still hadn't loaded the beds and mattresses, the exercise bikes, the washer, the dryer, Mom's clothes, her two 1500 pound armoires and the bottle tree. Don't even ask why we were moving an eight-foot tall, 100 pound, wrought iron bottle tree 666 miles to a house with no yard. After much discussion, we determined that U-Haul's 12' trailer (their largest offering) would not be enough, and they had no more trucks. Ultimately we called Budget Rental and rented a 24' truck. Ironically, the Budget truck cost only half what the U-Haul truck cost. On Tuesday we began our trek to North Carolina. The U-Haul truck had a gross weight rating of 20'000 pounds and was certainly overweight. The Budget truck had a gross weight rating of 26,000 pounds and was only 1/3 full. Go figure. We skipped the weigh stations; I was prepared to claim ignorance if we got stopped. Ran and I drove the trucks straight through to Morganton, while the ladies took it easy and spent the night west of Knoxville. On Wednesday and Thursday we unloaded the trucks. On Friday and Saturday we put it all back together and helped her get settled. All in all things went pretty smoothly. We only broke two items, a glass lamp shade (unfortunately, an antique) and a glass hurricane globe. We are still missing two marble table tops, but I know they went onto the truck, so they will show up sooner or later.

The bids from professional moving companies exceeded $10,000. We did it for a small fraction of that price and gave our mother a very happy Mother's Day gift and a fine homecoming.

Off to Mississippi ... One Last Time

My mother has lived in the delta region of northwest Mississippi for the last 26 years. It is a miserable place. Many times I have told her that I would only come out there one more time, and that I would be driving a U-Haul truck to bring her back to North Carolina. Every time I said that, it was a lie .... until today. Today Dorcas and I and my brother Ran are departing for Shelby MS. On Monday we will lease the largest truck that U-Haul offers, and by Thursday next week we will have her moved into her new townhouse in Morganton, the town where she was born and raised.

Mom has been battling lung cancer since her diagnosis in Dec 2006, but the doctors think the cancer has stopped growing. She feels tired and sick due to her chemotherapy. Her doctor suspended the chemotherapy about three weeks ago, so maybe she will begin feeling better soon. She probably is not up to this move, but she is headstrong and this is what she wants to do. Perhaps coming home will be good for her. At least, it will make it easier for her sons to visit.

Bicycle Fleetwood to Todd: A Most Calamitous Bike Ride

The bike ride from Fleetwood to Todd and return in Ashe County is a very popular ride. This Sunday a number of our friends met on this overcast Sunday for what was supposed to be an easy and uneventful ride. Little did they know .... The route follows the South Fork of the New River along an old railroad grade and probably doesn't rise more than five feet during its ten-mile length. Thousands of bikers negotiate this route each summer, most without incident. Not so on this day. In the following account the names have been changed to protect the stupid. The day started out OK. Dorcas and I arrived at the parking lot on time. I unloaded our bikes and gear. I then proceeded to pump up our tires. While doing so, the valve stem blew out of my rear tube and went flying across the river. Of course the tire immediately went flat. There was no chance of locating and re-installing the valve stem, but thankfully I had a spare tube. I installed the new tube and was ready to go. However, it is now 1/2 hour after our meeting time and the rest of our group had not arrived. Then Dorcas gets a call. It turns out that Biker No. 1, who is not accustomed to carrying bikes on the top of his car, does the drive-through at McDonald's in North Wilkesboro. You get the picture? Thankfully the bikes are not damaged, but the sign is mangled. It takes about 15 minutes to untangle the bikes from the bar and chains hanging from the "Low Clearance" sign. In the meantime the other drive-through diners get rude and things start to get ugly. The manager calls the cops. The cops arrive and bring on a ton of reports and paperwork. Things must be pretty dull in North Wilkesboro on a Sunday morning. Film at 11:00. Finally the bikers escape McDonald's and arrive at the trail head only about 1 1/2 hours after the appointed time.

The ride to Todd was uneventful. We had lunch at the old Todd Country Store, where Biker No. 2 was busted for taking pictures inside the store. I am pleased to know that Homeland Security is alive and well, and keeping the Todd Country Store safe. After a very nice lunch at the store, we started our return ride to Fleetwood. Not far from the start, I stop to put on my jacket. As I catch up with the group, I see a tangle of bodies and bikes in the road. Oh no!!! My first thought was that Dorcas had taken a spill. On most bike rides Dorcas takes a spill. But this time it wasn't Dorcas. It turns out that Biker No. 3 had run off the road onto the shoulder and then suddenly back onto the road. Biker No. 3 then collided with Biker No. 2 resulting in a tangle of pedals handlebars and wheels, with both bikers going down in the road. Biker No. 3 was uninjured, but Biker No. 2 had a badly bruised and swollen knee. Thankfully, there were no serious injuries, and everyone was able to bike on. About a mile from the finish Jim and I were biking side-by-side when a car approached from ahead. I sprinted ahead to get into single file and my chain broke. I looked back and it was laying in the road like a snake. My first reaction was to stop and turn around to go get the chain, but I quickly realized it would be better to just keep going ahead. I was only about a mile from the car, and it was all down hill, as it were. I hollered back for someone to pick up my chain, and I hunched into my best low-profile racing crouch. Eventually I slowed and began pushing off like I was on a scooter. Finally, about a half mile from the finish, I grabbed Jim's luggage rack and he towed me the rest of the way in. The way things were going you might expect that that would lead to another catastrophe, but you would be mistaken. Jim and I arrived safely at the parking lot without incident. By now everyone has arrived at the parking lot, and you might expect that there would be no more calamities, but, again, you would be mistaken. Before parking his bike, Biker No. 4 (Evel Knievel) rides over a pile of logs and wipes out. Woodpile 1, knee 0. Thankfully we all survived to ride another day.

Off to the Buffalo River

The Buffalo River is by far the best camping river we have ever paddled on. It flows freely through public land in the Ozark Mountains of northern Arkansas for over 135 miles before converging with the White River. Along its course it flows by numerous 300' limestone bluffs and large gravel beaches, perfect for primitive camping.

Tomorrow we are leaving home headed to the Buffalo River.We hope to put on the river on Tuesday afternoon for a 10-day camping trip. We had originally planned to leave yesterday and put on today, but were thwarted by high water levels due to monsoon-like spring rains and storms. Barring further rain, water levels should be perfect when we put-in on Tuesday. We are hoping the heavy rains will stay away for the duration of our trip. As you can see in this hydrograph, water levels can and do reach flood stage very quickly after a heavy rain event. Anything above 8.5' at this station is rated for "Experienced Floaters Only" Above 12.5' the National Park Service "closes" the river. The long term forecast doesn't look too bad. Wish us luck and bon voyage.

I won't be able to update this journal again until we get off the river about Apr 24.

Photo of the Week

I guess he drove his Chevy to the levee ...... but the levee didn't stay dry.

Paddle: Mitchell River

We had planned to paddle on the Uwharrie on Saturday with friends. The Uwharrie is a nice float and the water level was good, but the weather was terrible. Several newbies who particularly wanted to paddle the Uwharrie backed out, so we postponed that trip. Instead, we decided to paddle on the Mitchell River on Monday with our friends Wayne and Lynda. The Mitchell heads up in Alleghany County and flows into the Yadkin River near Elkin. It is very difficult to catch the Mitchell with enough water to paddle. Typically you have to put on just after a hard rain but before the roads begin to dry. Ferguson sites a minimum level of 2.4'. Yesterday the river peaked at 4.5', so we decided to give it a shot. By the time we put on the river today, the level was 2.5' and dropping fast.

I had not paddled the Mitchell in about five years. For Dorcas, it had been even longer. I had forgotten how scenic and unspoiled it is. The Mitchell has dozens of 2-3' ledges that are not very hard, but that are a little technical and really keep you on your toes. We had no difficulties, but did put some wear on the bottom of the boat. We put on at Kapps Mill and took out at NC 268, a distance of about 14 miles. We saw dozens of belted kingfishers, mallards and great blue herons. We saw a few ospreys. A wild turkey flew across in front of the boat and landed on the right bank before scurrying into the rhododendrons. Normally we see some deer on this trip, but not today.

After the paddle we stopped at our favorite burger joint in the greater Elkin area, Basin Creek Country Store. While waiting for our burgers and wings to be served, I dazzled everybody with my gaming prowess. I swung a washer tied to a string hanging from the ceiling onto a hook in the wall 10' away. It only took me 147 tries.

Izaak Remembered

Today is the first anniversary of Izaak's death. Izaak was, by far, the best dog I have ever had. He did everything with us; he paddled, he hiked, he even biked on occasion. He had a great disposition and everyone loved him. Even Wayne admitted: "He was pretty good .... for a dog." We still miss Izaak terribly and think of him every day.

We want another dog, but had decided that we would not start looking until the end of the summer. We had planned to visit Isle Royale National Park on Lake Superior this summer and you can't take a dog onto the island. We have learned that our friends, who really wanted to visit Isle Royale, won't be able to meet us there this year, so we may skip that destination. Consequently we are now receptive to another dog adopting us. We won't look very hard. When the right dog comes along he will find us. In the meantime, we have told our friends to be on the lookout. We continue to pet OPDs (other people's dogs) every chance we get.

Linville Gorge Dayhike

We had not done a real hike in a long time. We had been home from three months in Florida for less than a week. What kind of real hiking can you do in Florida? Our friend Andy called and proposed a hike in the Linville Gorge Wilderness Area. Anytime you hike into the Linville Gorge, well, that's a real hike. He had heard of a special place near the lower part of the river known as Daffodil Flats. It's not on any map but he thought he could find it. It was reported to be an open area with thousands of daffodils. If our calculations were right, they should be in peak bloom about now. Andy sometimes plans rather ambitious hikes, and we had no reason to believe this one would not be hard. It would probably be hard even if we were in good shape. But we are always a sucker for Andy's hikes, so we loaded our packs and I donned my brand new virgin LL Bean Leather GoreTex Cresta Hikers and off we went.

We met Andy at the usual place: the Burger King off I-40 at the Icard exit. From there we proceeded towards Lake James and up the Kistler Memorial Highway (a pretentious name for a steep , mostly single lane, gravel road) to the Pinch-In Trailhead. We put in and began our 1800' descent into the gorge. The trail started rather gently and passed through a recently burned area, which offered unusual and outstanding views of of the gorge and Shortoff Mountain on the far rim. The trail then dropped steeply into the gorge, with no switchbacks and no relief for aching toes and knees. Did I mention my new boots? Normally one would not want to wear out-of-the-box boots on such a trip, but this is my fifth pair of Bean Cresta Hikers and I have always been able to wear them without any break-in period. Today my luck held once more and my feet hurt no more than anyone else's.

Before long we reached the bottom of the gorge and the Linville Gorge Trail. Our exit route was left and upstream, but Daffodil Flats would be right and downstream, at least a mile. So we turned right and proceeded down the Linville Gorge Trail. Most of the Linville Gorge Trail is very rugged. It is steep, poorly graded and poorly maintained, if maintained at all. If a tree falls across the trail, hikers will blaze a route around the tree, resulting in steep and ugly scrambles. However, this section of the trail, while not very heavily traveled, was relatively level and smooth, with few obstructions. After about an hour and perhaps two miles we reached Daffodil Flats. There we found a flat open area perhaps 150' across, thick with daffodils in bloom. I have seen fields with more daffodils, but never in a setting as rugged and remote as the Linville Gorge. How did they come to be here? Perhaps there was a homestead here once, but that seemed unlikely. We saw no signs of a cabin. Perhaps it had been washed away long ago. After a while taking pictures we backtracked up the river to a gravel beach and ate lunch. From there we started our return trek north up the Linville Gorge Trail. After reaching the junction for the Pinch-In Trail, the Linville Gorge Trail I remembered so vividly reappeared with a vengeance. We scrambled up and down around boulders, downed trees and ravines. We probably averaged less than 1 mile per hour for the next 3.5 miles. We finally reached our exit, the Conley Cove Trail and began our ascent. The Conley Cove Trail is pretty heavily used. We saw signs of trail maintenance and foolishly assumed the trail would be clear. No such luck. We had to negotiate several more particularly nasty downfalls before cresting the ridge and reaching the trail head.

It was a hard hike, but a rewarding one. I think we will give Andy another chance and hile with him again sometime.

Andy writes a pretty good trip report. You can read his version of this hike here.

Paddle: Uwharrie River

After months of paddling on Florida's flat water and slow moving springs, it was refreshing to paddle on some real Piedmont moving water. Wayne and Lynda live near the Uwharrie River and paddle on it almost every other day. So it wasn't long after we returned from Florida that Wayne called and said let's paddle on the Uwharrie. The weather was pleasant and the water level was just right, so off we went. As the tradition goes, we met at Rick's Restaurant in Denton for breakfast, then headed to our put-in at the bridge on High Pine Church Road. Wayne and I shuttled a car to the take-out at the NC 109 bridge. I had not seen Wayne in a few months, so we had a chance to jaw a bit and solve all the worlds problems on the short ride back to the put-in. The Uwharrie River passes through a mix of private and National Forest land, and is relatively unspoiled. It has no significant drops, but it does require some attention as you must maneuver through rock gardens and gravel bars. We had a nice lunch at the the low water bridge about half way down the 14 mile paddle. We arrived at the take-out unscathed. After loading the boats and picking up Wayne and Lynda's car, we had an early dinner at Skipper's Seafood Restaurant in Thomasville, another rut ... er, I mean tradition.

Florida Trip Wrap-up

We have just completed our first annual snow bird tour, and it was a big success. This has been the longest of our three big motor home adventures since Dorcas retired last spring. It was also more relaxed and laid back than our long trips out west New England. We weren't totally slovenly, we walked often and walked fair distances, but we didn't do as many rigorous hikes. Hey, this is Florida after all. We did more tourist-type sightseeing and more just hanging out and relaxing. We stayed in a much smaller geographical area and stayed at more highly developed parks (read: water, electric, sewer WiFi, etc.) than on previous trips. We bounced around central Florida between two Thousand Trails preserves and several motor home rallies and RV shows, generally staying within 75 miles of Clermont. We camped, paddled and biked with at least four different groups of friends from NC, and visited and played with a number of brand new friends we met on this trip. Highlights of our trip included seeing a space shuttle launch, seeing three Disney parks decked out for Christmas and canoeing on many of the best spring runs.

Thanks to our friends and neighbors who watched the home front and made it all possible.

By The Numbers:

• Duration: 95 days or about 13 1/2 weeks
• Distance: 1336 miles (not counting miles in the Honda. I gotta start logging Honda miles!)
• Price of Diesel: $3.069 (Dec 14 departure) $3.859 (Mar 17 arrival home)
• Number of Days Paddling: 20
• Number of Nights at Thousand Trails: 51
• Number of Meals at Crown Club: 32

The Eagle Has Landed

Dorcas and I have arrived safely at home. After leaving Tennessee we visited with some friends in Asheville and Morganton before completing our journey. The house is cold and dark, but otherwise everything appears to be in good order. We will be home for at least a few weeks, and will be eagerly planning our next series of adventures.

Almost Home

We left Mom's house late this morning and made a leisurely drive across the length of Tennessee. The weather was fine and we stopped at practically every rest area. We are camped tonight at the Wal-Mart Supercenter in Newport TN at I-40 Exit 435. We hope to be home tomorrow afternoon.

The Last Leg: Shelby MS

Sadly, we departed Florida Sunday morning about 9:00 am. We drove north and west across the length and width of Florida and its panhandle, and after about 600 miles, camped at the Cracker Barrel in Hattiesburg MS. We had lost an hour Sunday morning when we went to Daylight Savings Time, but we got it back Sunday afternoon when we crossed into the Central Time Zone, so that was a wash. This morning, after a hearty Cracker Barrel breakfast, we drove the last 220 miles to Mom's house in Shelby MS. Our drive was uneventful except for the bumpy interstates through Jackson, MS. We have been on bumpy roads before, but these were the worst. It's ironic: in Florida there will often be a sign warning of a bump ahead, and we never feel the bump. In Mississippi, I guess they don't have enough "BUMP" signs to go around (Florida must have cornered the market), so they don't bother to put any out. Our coach stands 12'1" tall. We held our breath going under bridges with 14' of clearance, because we figured one end or the other of the coach was two feet off the pavement at any given moment. The bright spot of our trip was buying diesel fuel for $3.469. That may not seem like a big deal, but we had been seeing prices in the high $3.80s and over $3.90 all week. When your tank holds 135 gallons and the needle is on "E", it's a thrill to find a bargain, as it were. We squeezed in every drop we could and filled every empty vessel we could find to boot.

There was 6" of snow here in Shelby on Saturday, but it is all gone now. Today was a wonderful spring day. Mom is in the process of selling her house here and buying a townhouse back in Morganton, NC. I expect Dorcas and I will be helping her pack to move and maybe fill up the car with fragile items.

Our plan is to stay here about a week and then return home. We have been gone since December 14 and we are anxious to be home.

Play Ball: Part Deux

Today we watched the Atlanta Braves and the Houston Astros at Disney's Wide World of Sports complex, the Braves spring training camp. The difference in the venues at Oceola County Stadium and Disney's Wide World of Sports complex was like night and day. The Oceola County Stadium is nice, but the DWWS stadium is grand: much larger, cleaner, colorful and stylish. Of course, this IS Disney, so you would expect it to look nice. Besides that, the entertainment was much more, well, entertaining. There were games and music between innings. Several times the Disney Philharmonic Saxophone Quartet performed between innings, including the seventh inning stretch. These guys were dressed in old-timey baseball uniforms and played different saxophones ranging from harp-sized horns to flute-sized horns. Even the game was much more entertaining. Being a former Braves fan, I recognized a few of their older stars, particularly Chipper Jones and Javier Lopez. Both these guys played at least half the game. The players were very relaxed and had a good time. Chipper Jones hit a long line drive to the outfield during his first at-bat. As another runner was headed for third, Jones got pinned between first and second. Just before getting tagged out in the run-down, Jones called a time out. The umpire didn't buy it of course, but the fans loved it. The Astros won 7-4, but who cares anyway? It was a wonderful day at the ballpark and a fitting last day before we were to leave Florida.

Play Ball: Grapefruit League Style

We have spent a lot of time in Florida during the last few winters, but we have never watched any Major League Baseball spring training or attended any training games. Many MLB teams have training camps all over central Florida and play each other during exihibition/training games in the "Grapefruit League". When we were in Port St. Lucie a few weeks ago we were within walking distance of the Mets training camp and stadium, but they had not started playing games. Time was running out on our Florida trip, and we still had not been to a game. Yikes!!! Well, it turns out that our friends John and Pat had made plans to attend two games. We had become fairly close to John and Pat over the last few weeks. Before we ever met them, I had noticed their motorhome: it is the same model, year and color as ours. It's the first one I had ever seen with the identical color pattern as ours. The only difference is that theirs is a 40' model and ours is a 33' model. It looks just like ours, but on steroids. So John and I had been swapping motorhome woes and fixes, etc., and I had been playing Pickleball with both of them every day. In any case, they invited us to join them for a couple of games.

Today we attended a game between the Houston Astros and the Cleveland Indians at Osceola County Stadium about 20 miles away from our camp. It was a warm and hazy day and a great day for baseball. I don't know if they were only playing rookies, or if I'm just out of it, but I didn't recognize any of the players. I guess it was naive to expect to see Roger Clemens pitching. Maybe he's tied up this week lying to Congress. Both teams were changing pitchers every other inning, and I expect most of them are headed back to the minors, because the game was a slug fest. The Indians won 11-5, out-hitting the Astros 19 to 9. Neither team tried very hard to win; apparently that's not the objective in spring training. But that certainly didn't keep us from enjoying the game.

It's a Zoo Out There!

Dorcas is a zoo freak. We have passed by many zoos in our travels, and most were probably quite nice, but we have stopped at very few. Dorcas really wanted to visit Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo, but I was a little skeptical. I figured it was a relatively small county operated zoo and wouldn't be that good. I mean it was bound to be a disappointment, with Busch Gardens Africa just down the street and all, and having recently visiting Disney's Animal Kingdom. But Dorcas was determined, and you have to keep Momma happy. Besides, she found a 20th anniversary deal where tickets were $10 each (normally $18.95) with free commemorative T-shirts to boot. Besides that, we needed a reason to go to Tampa and visit the Crown Club one last time before we left Florida. So off we went. I will admit I was pleasantly surprised; the zoo was really very nice. It was larger than expected and had a much wider array of habitats and animals than I expected. The only real down side was that there were hoards of small school kids about, and it was difficult to move without getting ice cream on your knees. Thankfully, the kids were short enough to see over and were gone after lunch. Highlights included the African penguins, a warm-weather species, very content in the West Central Florida climate and the kangaroos and wallabies. The kangaroos and wallabies were in a habitat where you could enter, and if they wished, you could pet them. There was one momma with a baby in her pouch. The baby looked quite large to me; a large head and two large legs protruded from the pouch. She was very nimble bounding around the habitat, even carrying her full load. Another very exciting moment occurred when a large black snake blundered into the habitat of a young Florida panther. The cat anxiously watched the snake for a few moments, and then pounced and chased the reptile. The snake beat the inexperienced hunter to the edge of the habitat and narrowly escaped the attack. Wild Kingdom lives!

We did have one unfortunate technical mishap when leaving the zoo. Dorcas had placed her computer under the seat in the car while we were parked. At some point the CD/DVD drive apparently self-ejected, and when she pulled the unit out from under the seat, the drive caught on something and was mutilated. The PC still works, but the drive unit was totaled. The PC is still under warranty, but we haven't contacted Toshiba yet to see if this kind of abuse is covered. Maybe we could tell them that a gorilla got it and thought it was a piece of Samsonite luggage or an elephant stepped on it. Might be a good advertising angle.

Pedal: West Orange Trail Again

Today we biked on the West Orange Trail. Dorcas and I met our friends Dave and Audrey at the Panera Bread store in Clermont. From there Dave and I sprinted about seven miles on the Hancock and South Lake Trails to Killarney Station where we met Dorcas and Audrey. From there we biked on the West Orange Trail to Winter Garden and lunched at Stromboli's. After lunch Dave and Audrey returned to their car at Killarney, while Dorcas and I continued north on the trail to the Ingram Outpost. We then enjoyed a liesurely 12-mile return ride back to Killarney Station.