Home today. We left Fernley this morning and had an easy 120 mile to Nevada City, arriving around noon.
Not much else to say. It was a great trip. No issues and arrived safely. It was a long drive (6,119 miles) but well worth the time and effort. It is good to be home however and getting back to normal, whatever that is.
Thanks to all for your help and support.
Pat & Judy
Got an early start from Ely this morning. More US 50, "the Loneliest Road in America". It lived up to its name. Long stretches of straight road with curved windy roads through and over the series of ridges that run north-south across Nevada. They are not small hills but range from 5,000 - 6,000 ft. summits. There was also very little traffic. The long haul truckers avoid it and stick to either I-80 to the north or I-10 to the south. Luckily, there was very little wind which made the trip easier. We travelled 320 miles today and only went through two small towns along the way, both county seats.
We arrived in Fernley NV about 30 miles east of Reno around 3:00 pm. We didn't want to push it all the way home after a long day driving. We stayed at an RV park that was featured in a recent movie, Nomadland. The park was the Desert Rose RV Park. There was also a lot of smoke in the air from a wildfire southwest of Reno. We also had some rain overnight. It was early to bed after dinner in the RV.
Pretty much more of the same today. We joined US50/US 6 West after another couple of 6,000 ft summits and headed across what is known as the “Loneliest Road in America”. We can’t disagree. Before we left Utah, is was straight ahead roads with nothing in sight. Into Nevada we started the up and own over the ridges that run north and south across Nevada. In between, more nothing.
We arrived in Ely, NV our stop for the night at a KOA where
we stayed on a previous trip. We didn’t
remember that when we made the reservation but recognized the park when we
arrived.
Fernley, NV tomorrow.
More nothing in between here and there.
Expecting some smoke from a fire south of Reno.
It was an interesting drive today. We were a little late getting started. It was relatively short drive (215 miles) because it was too far to keep going go our next stop Ely, NV and nothing much else between our destination today, Richfield, UT and Ely. So, we finally got on the road around 10:00 am.
The first part of the trip was pretty boring – desolate high plains, no cows, no people, no water. Even the traffic was pretty light. The speed limit here is 80 mph and it was a little strange to see curve warning signs recommending you slow down to 75 mph.
After we got into Utah things changed
dramatically. We traveled up and down
and through magnificent rock formations and geological rock faces, terraces,
canyons and hills. Our elevation varied
from around 4,500 ft to over 7,500 ft and back.
Millions of years of geological history were on display.
A stop at a roadside viewing area had spectacular views of what
is called the San Rafael Reef. It is a
30-mile long barrier, a sandstone wall at the eastern edge of the San Rafael Swell. It is a very unique geological feature and
very impressive. It was also a major
engineering challenge when the interstate highway was built.
We arrived at our RV park in Richfield, UT about 3:00 pm.
Dinner again in the RV and early to bed.
Ely, NV tomorrow.
We did the Rockies today.
We left Golden, CO at 9:00 am this morning and headed west and uphill on
I-70W.
Golden is around 5300 ft. and our top elevation for today
was 11,600 ft at the Eisenhower Tunnel. We also had a 10,000 ft + summit at
Vail. Lots of up-and-down, curves and
traffic. The bonus was the beautiful scenery.
We followed the
Colorado River for awhile after we descended to around 5,000 ft and worked our
way through and around canyons, bluffs and mesas to just past Grand Junction, Co
to Frutia, CO our stop for the night. We
are staying at a very nice RV park. It
is very near the Utah border and adjacent to the Colorado National Monument, a
preserved landscape of plateau-and canyon country embracing 32 square miles of
rugged terrain. We don’t have time to
check it out, but here is more information about the monument:
Getting closer to home.
We decided to get a little earlier start today due to forecast wind conditions and predicted thunderstorms in the Denver area, our stop for tonight. So, we were on the road by 8:30 am after gas and coffee.
As it tuned out, we only had strong crosswinds until about
50 miles west of the RV park. After that,
the wind velocity diminished and became more of a tailwind. It wasn’t much of a
factor the rest of the way.
We were in the high plains with the elevation consistently
in the 4,000 – 5,000 ft. range all day today. Still
lots of large farms, ranches and grain elevators. Not much else except the occasional town and
services. We also gained an hour as we
entered the Mountain Time Zone in Western Kansas.
We arrived in Golden, CO just west of Denver ahead of the
predicted thunderstorms. Golden is the
home of Coors Beer and the Colorado School of Mines, the Harvard of Geology Schools. We have stayed here before several years ago,
toured the town, the Coors Brewery and the School of Mines Museum. They have moon rock samples on display from
each lunar landing mission. It is a neat
town.
As it turned out, we did get some rain later on as predicted
but nothing heavy and it all seemed to pass over fairly quickly.
After a short walk around the park it was dinner in the RV
and early to bed. It is the Rockies
tomorrow and a stop in western CO tomorrow night.
Not a lot to report today. We left Lawrence, KS and headed west on I-70. It is a toll road to Topeka, KS. Not very expensive and a very well maintained road.
The terrain west of Topeka flattened out a lot but still had
gentle rolling hills. Lots of large farms
and ranches, mostly farms. We are now definitely
in the prairie.
We arrived in Wakenney in western KS, our stop for the night around 3:00 pm.
It is on to Golden, CO just west of Denver tomorrow.
We left St. Charles, MO around 9:30 am in the rain. It had been raining most of the night. As we headed west on I-70, it continued to rain off-and-on, sometimes heavy with low visibility. It wasn’t thunderstorms or steady rain, but periods of rain in between cloudy skies and even a little of blue now and then. This weather pattern continued most of the way to Kansas City.
We are staying in Lawrence, KS tonight. The weather here is sunny and not to hot or
humid. It will be a series of overnight
stops from here. Heading west on I-70
until Nevada. We are not pushing it and
have scheduled reasonable travel days (200-300 miles per day). The 500-mile power drives are long gone for
us.
Looking forward to getting home.
Back on the road today. We woke up to heavy rain that lasted until just about when we were ready to depart the RV Park. We left about 9:30 am under cloudy skies and occasional rain showers. The weather was about the same the whole way to St. Louis, MO although it cleared by the time we arrived at our stop for tonight in St. Charles, MO. There were thunderstorms here this evening but no severe weather.
The trip was uneventful but lots of traffic on the
Interstates and a couple of delays due to traffic accidents and lane constrictions due to ongoing road/bridge construction. It was lunch at a rest stop and dinner in the
RV.
On to Kansas tomorrow (Lawrence , KS just west of Kansas
City).
Our first stop today was the Texas State Museum in downtown Nashville. It is a very impressive and complete history of the state in a beautiful building. We got a little bit of a late start so we didn’t linger but had a good overview of a very interesting and eventful history from the earliest time to the present day.
Our next stop was the Ryman Auditorium in city center. It was an easy 10-minute ride on paper from
the museum to the Ryman. Not so
today. Center city was packed with lots
of traffic and people. By the time we
parked the truck and walked to the Ryman, we did not have time to fully tour
the Ryman before we had to leave for our scheduled 1:00 pm tour of the new
Grand Ole Opry House near our RV park.
We just made it back in time (a few minutes late) for our backstage tour.
The Grand Ole Opry goes back a long way. It started in 1925 and began broadcasting on WSM 650 . It moved to the Ryman as a permanent location in 1943. It truly was the place where Bluegrass and Country Music had its growth and expansion and became a signature American music genre. Here is more information regarding the history of the Grand Old Opry. Very interesting:
Performers arrive for concerts through a special entrance, everyone must show their ID, no exceptions, even if
visually recognized. Every member has a
mail box and a locker. We got to see
about 20 dressing room lounges where the performers change and get ready for
their performances. It was a great tour
and definitely worth our time.
We got up early and were the first in line when the RV park laundry room opened at 8:00 am. The plan was to finish the laundry in the morning then head into town and tour the state museum and the state capitol building – a thing we like to do whenever we are in a state capitol .
Alas, the laundry took longer than expected. It was very hot and humid and by the time the laundry was done and we ate lunch it was 1:00 pm. So, we decided to skip heading into center city with Friday traffic and limited time to tour the state museum and capitol building before it closed at 4:00 pm. Instead, we relaxed in the air conditioned RV.
The RV park here is excellent. We are glad we ended up here and know where to stay next time.
We have been impressed with the friendliness of the people we have meet in the south. For example, tonight we went out to eat at a local restaurant just down the road. While waiting for a table in the lobby, we were talking to another couple, also waiting. They were about our age, maybe a little younger, and had a nice long conversation for about 15 minutes while we waited. Larry, works in construction and his wife works at home doing medical billing QC. A very nice couple, locals, and we apparently stood out somehow as “not from around here” but still O.K.
We had an excellent dinner and when it was time for the bill, the waiter said Larry paid it and wishes you well on your travels. A totally unexpected thing and it reinforced my fundamental belief in the goodness of most people.
Today was planned as a short 200-mile drive to Nashville with a hour gained as we entered the Central Time Zone. Our plan was to arrive early in the afternoon, do laundry and then do Nashville things Friday and Saturday.
It was a pretty drive again as we headed west across the Appalachian foothills and down out of the mountains but still over-and-down some rolling foothills. Our next big hills are the Rockies next week.
Well, the drive took longer than planned with delays on I-40
w due to several accidents, construction, and heavy traffic. When we
arrived at our RV park in the NE part of Nashville, our reservation was only
for a site without sewer hookups. A
reservation snafu on my part. Luckily,
the KOA close by had a full hook up site available, so we ended up there. By the time we got settled in it was after
3:30 pm. Although hot and tired, we
tried to do the laundry. The RV park laundry
was slammed and no machines were available for use before the laundry room closed
for the night. So, we retired to the RV
for a glass of wine and a pizza for delivery for dinner.
We will do the laundry first thing in the morning (hopefully)
then travel to center city (about a 20 minute ride). Our plan is to tour the state capitol and
state museum but we’ll see how it all goes and how much energy we have. It appears there is a lot do here and we
will only be able to get a taste of it in the two days we will be here. A return trip may be in order.
We slept in a little today then had a huge southern breakfast at a popular restaurant in town, The Applewood Farmhouse Restaurant & Grill. It is a large restaurant with several attached dining rooms that can easily handle a party of 17 (They did while we were waiting). It is also part of a large complex with separate buildings, including a winery, ice cream shop, country store, etc.
After breakfast we visited downtown Sevierville. The town
was formed in 1795 and is the county seat of Sevier County. They have a very impressive Court House/County
Government Center with a bell tower that rings on the hour and half hour. It is an old building
but very modern inside. Sevierville is
also the hometown of Dolly Parton and there is a statue of her on the courthouse
lawn. We also walked around the center
of town a little. Not much going on as the
main attraction seems to be the family oriented types of things along the
parkway.
Sevierville is the first town on the corridor down to The
Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The parkway passes through Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg,
TN. The area is a popular tourist destination
with Dollywood, the Dolly Parton amusement park and activities center in Pigeon
Forge as the main attraction. It is a major tourist destination for regional
family vacations. There are all sorts of
other tourist attractions, businesses and restaurants along the parkway. Lots of traffic everywhere, even during the
week. I imagine it may be worse on
weekends. We avoided the Hatfield and McCoy Dinner Theater, the NASCAR Go Cart
Adventure, and the Pirate Experience (Pirates in Tennessee?). The Moonshine History Tour at a local distillery
looked interesting. Maybe the next time
we are here.
After picking up some needed medicine refills for Judy at the local
Walgreens, it was back to the RV for a light dinner. We are still recovering from our large breakfast.
Nashville tomorrow.
We left Natural Bridge, VA at 9:00 am and after gas and a truck stop flavored coffee we headed southwest on I-81. It was a pretty drive with a lot of up and down and around through the Appalachian foothills. We arrived around d 2:30 pm in Sevierville, TN near Pigeon Forge, home of Dollywood, Dolly Parton's resort and theme park. We will be her for two nights.
We don’t have any definite plans for tomorrow. We will not be visiting Dollywood which is primarily designed for families with
amusement rides, a water park and family entertainment. We will just be looking around the area. Pigeon Forge is a gateway to the Great Smoky
Mountains and a very popular place to visit.
There are lots of great outdoor things to do in the Great Smoky
Mountains National Park that we not be able to do due to time constraints and
physical limitations but we are interested in learning about the area.
We went out for dinner at a local BBQ restaurant just down
the road from our RV Park. Nothing fancy
but great BBQ.
Pictures to follow tomorrow.
We left our campground in Gettysburg around 9:00 am for our stop tonight at Natural Bridge, VA. It was an easy ride down the Shenandoah Valley through the Appalachian Mountains. It was very scenic route as we cut across from Gettysburg to Harpers Ferry then south on I-81S. We actually crossed portions of 4 states today – Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia and now Virginia.
We arrived at our
campground around 2:30 pm, a nice KOA.
It will be dinner in the RV and early to bed. Our next stop is Sevierville, TN (near Pidgeon
Forge, home of Dollywood) for a two night stay.
It is the 4th of July. The activity for today is a living history civil war battle reenactment at a farm just down the road. It is sponsored by the Gettysburg Battlefield Preservation Association.
The event included many civil war reenactors in period costumes.
These are people with an interest in the history of the civil war who have
become involved in participating in living history of the period by reliving
the life style, acquiring costumes and uniforms and attending events like this
one.
The event today was the 2nd day of a two-day
event. The reenactors we saw today were
sleeping in civil war pup tents (some had cots) and cooked meals over a period
wood stove. The only bathrooms we saw were portable toilets. Their living area
encampments were open to the public and most groups had canopies where they
gathered. It did not seem there were
many individuals/couples without some sort of group/family affiliation. Also, lots of young people, not just an old
guys thing .
There were also several booths selling things, mostly civil
war related. Likewise, there were several
booth/tents demonstrating various civil war era technologies (sewing, quilting,
laundry, etc.). There were also lots of
people dressed up in civil war uniforms, both Union and Confederate. We toured
the various things to see and endured a long line at the food booth for a chili
dog lunch.
The reenacted battle between the Union and Confederate
reenactors began at 2:00 pm. It was sort
of a reenactment of the battle in the Wheatfield on Day 2 of the Battle of Gettysburg. The Union won this one. It was very impressive. There were cannons, cavalry and lots of people in uniform. Also, lots of spectators. Someone said there were 6000 people here
yesterday. I am not sure there were that
many people here today but it was very crowded. The weather was clear and hot and a little
humid and we drank lots of water.
We are glad we went.
It was an excellent example of living history and people enjoying their
hobby of historical reenactment as well as a lot of spectators who came to
enjoy the show. I am sure there are some
people who do not approve of civil war reenactments, probably thinking they
glorify the Confederate cause that should be best forgotten. History is a little more complicated than that
and how it should be viewed retrospectively is another discussion. Today was just a celebration of Americans,
none whom I am sure want to reintroduce slavery or succeed from the Union. It was just people celebrating their historical
heritage, bringing their families to a special place, and having a good time.
No more no less. We celebrate
the 4th of July today and resume our trip home tomorrow.
It was a long day today. After breakfast we set out to travel the 24-mile self-guided auto tour of the battlefield. Here is where we travelled and the history of the battle:
Battle of Gettysburg - Wikipedia
There are 14 identified stops along the route. We also had a National Park Service cell phone app that has a video and audio description for each stop. Here is a sample, very well done (Stop #8 Little Round Top – 8 minutes).
Video
(U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)
The battlefield is designated as a national battlefield
instead of as national park because it is not all confined within defined boundaries
of land controlled by the federal government.
The battlefield is interspersed here-and-there with private property and
sections of the town of Gettysburg.
Compared to many other civil war battlefields we have visited a
remarkable amount of the land has been preserved. There are also active community, state, federal
and trust organizations interested in acquiring adjacent land and protecting the battlefield and preventing future
encroachment and commercialization. This is especially true on boundary properties that could
be added to the battlefield it the future if found to be historically
significant and relevant.
The battlefield is also noted for the large number of monuments,
statues and markers placed at more-or-less exact locations of a particular
action or event. Most have been placed by
states and or state veteran organizations either shortly after the war and into
the early years of the 20th Century until around the start of WW
I. They are essentially memorials
recognizing the sacrifices of the men who fought there – on both sides of the
conflict. There are over 1000 such monuments
etc. throughout the battlefield.
Historically, it is hard to underestimate the impact the
Battle of Gettysburg had on the country, both during the war and afterwards.
When the war was over and the smoke cleared, over time there was a common national
effort in both the north and south to recognize the enormity of the loss of
life and to memorialize the contributions of the soldiers who fought here. Thus,
the large number of markers and the timeliness of siting them has resulted in
perhaps the most accurately marked Civil War battlefield in the country.
We finished up our tour with a brief visit to the adjoining Gettysburg
National Cemetery where president Lincoln gave the Gettysburg Address when the cemetery
was dedicated in November 1863. If you
haven’t read the Gettysburg Address lately, it is worth reading again. I am not
sure it is being taught in our schools anymore, but it should be. Here it is:
The
Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln
We wanted to spend more time there but our energy low level
light was flashing. We picked up some Chinese take-out at a local supermarket
and headed back to the RV for dinner, arriving just before the rain that was
forecast started.
Slept in again today a little. Breakfast in the RV then on to the Gettysburg National Battlefield Visitors Center about 2 miles away.
This is the 4th time we have been here and every time
we come back something seems to have changed. For the better. Not the history
thankfully, but how it is presented and the accommodations for the many
visitors that come here each year. According
to park information, 3 million people visit the park each year. The visitors center is the place to start the
visit. There are lots of staff and
volunteers, an information center, a place to buy tickets to various
attractions in the park, an eating/snack bar (the restaurant is still closed
due to COVID restrictions) and of course, a bookstore and gift shop.
Parking is not really an issue as they have at least three
lots with free, regular shuttle service to/from the visitors center. Here is a little background about the development
of the Gettysburg Battlefield:
Gettysburg
Battlefield - Wikipedia
Our first stop was the Gettysburg Cyclorama. The Cyclorama is a 360 degree painting of the
Gettsyburg battle created in 1884. It is
an amazing creation.
Gettysburg Cyclorama
- Wikipedia
Shows are every 15 minutes and are 45 minutes long. You start in a IMAX type theater and see a
very well done overview off the battle, with background leading up to the war
and the Gettysburg battle, a recap of the battle from July 1-3, 1863, and the
aftermath following the battle and the Civil War. It is narrated by Morgan Freeman is very
well done.
After the movie, you move upstairs to the cyclorama. It has
been restored and enhanced with audio, lighting effects, foreground props, sound effects
and a narration. It is a spectacular presentation. We had previously seen it in its old location,
but it was nothing like this.
After the cyclorama, we had lunch at the snack bar then
toured the Gettysburg Museum attached to the visitors center. It is very extensive, very well done and
displays many original artifacts form the battle and the era. There is also many audio visual displays as you travel through the museum.
At the bookstore there was a relatively famous actor and author, Steven Lang, who has played many roles in Civil Ward movies signing books he has authored. I passed on buying his book or getting a $37.00 Gettysburg tee shirt at the gift shop.
All this was a pretty full day for us. It was back to the RV in late afternoon and
dinner in the RV and early to bed.
Tomorrow is our self-guided battleground tour – a 24- mile circuit of
the battlefield with 15 stops along the way.
Gettysburg VisitorCenter Pictures
Interesting day today.
We slept in a little and got on the road for home around 10:00 am. We avoided the GPS recommendation to take a
more direct route from Cape May to Gettysburg, PA our destination for
today. That route was on a number of
rural roads and routing around Philadelphia through Wilmington, DL and Baltimore,
MD. We felt however we would have a
better chance of getting through it all by going around to the north of
Philadelphia a little. Never blindly trust the GPS.
The whole area around Philadelphia is heavily impacted with
lots of traffic and congestion and there is no easy way to get through it
all. Sure enough, traffic was heavy,
stop-and-go traffic, police activity and accidents didn’t help. To add to it
all, it was raining, sometimes really hard.
We made it through it all however without incident and headed west on
the PA Turnpike to Harrisburg, PA, then south to Gettysburg. There was also lots of traffic on the
turnpike and more heavy rain. At one point
the rain and visibility was so bad we had to pull over until the cell passed.
Anyway, we are here at a nice campground and are planning to experience the variety of activities at the Gettysburg National Battlefield and related 4th of July activities. We will be here until 7/5. Lots of pictures to follow and the weather look good.
