Winston-Salem, NC, Part: 1

We first went to the Visitor's Center to see what there is to do in this city. First thing we wanted to do was go to Old Salem Museums & Gardens.

 In the pictures below you can see some of the beautifully restored businesses and homes there.

It is $21 a person and includes entrance to the huge museum. Unfortunately we did not get to go into it because they only take so many people every hour and the wait was long.

 This picture below is me sitting on a bench in front of the bakery.

We went inside and spoke at length to the baker who was making loaves of bread for the day.

This little birdie below was sitting on the wooden box next to me, from the picture above. He didn't move or make a peep when I took his picture!

See ya in a minute.........

Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Part 2

Founded in 1776 by the Moravians, a Protestant faith that began in what is now known as the Czech Republic. he restored town of Salem is a vision of life in a congregational community in the early American South. 

Costumed tradesmen and women re-create life by producing essential goods like tools, ceramics, furniture and metals using traditional practices of long ago.

Mr. Lineback's business in addition to his office also has a printing press for printing articles of news.

The tavern barn was originally located elsewhere in North Carolina and transported and reconstructed at this site in Old Salem.

This is a photo of the interior of the barn.

The Mickey brothers created the giant tin coffee pot now located at the northern end of the Old Salem historic district. It was created as an advertising gimmick and a shop sign for their 19th century tinsmith business.

Below is a picture of my friend, Sherry, who took this adventure with me to Old Salem.

See ya'll .....

Bunker Hill Covered Bridge, NC

I saw a sign while driving and decided to take the exit to see the Bunker Hill Covered Bridge. It is in Catawba County.  It turned out to be only a few miles off the interstate and very easy to find.

It was about a quarter mile hike to find the bridge. It is only one of two covered bridges left in North Carolina. The other being in Mt. Pisgah in Randolph County, NC.

This bridge was built by Andy Ramsour in 1895. The picture below shows the construction technique of the bridge.  It is the only remaining example in wood of Improved Lattice Truss design.

Originally constructed as a 91 foot open span, eventually the sides were added.  In 1921 the wooden shingles were replace with a tin roof.

Below is a pic of me standing in front of the entrance to the bridge. You can see the inside of the bridge walls - covered with grafiti - it is a shame !

See ya'll down the road !

North Carolina - Asheville & Cherokee areas

While visiting in Asheville I went to the Thomas Wolfe Memorial. Mr. Wolfe was a short-story writer and novelist. His most notable writing was his book entitled Look Homeward Angel.

This book was about his ten years living in the house below with his family. This was a boarding house. He was born in Asheville an was one of eight children.

The writing of his first book was much to his mothers dismay as it was all about his life and experiences while living in the boarding house.

Mr. Wolfe died when he was thirty-eight years old (1901-1938) when he was in Seattle, Washington. He died of pneumonia. His body was returned for burial in Asheville at the Riverside Cemetary.

Below is a picture of Mr. Wolfe's grave marker at Riverside Cemetary.

Another house I visited was the Smith-McDowell House. This is Asheville's first mansion and the oldest surviving brick home in the city. It is a 4-story mansion that was built approximately twenty years before the Civil War.

Colonel Daniel Smith who built this house had 30,000 acres most of which were not right at his property. The house was high on a hill and could oversee the city. When Col. Smith died in 1856, the house went to his son but was later sold to Mr. William McDowell.

After that there was a succession of owners and in 1951 the Catholic Diocese purchased the home to be used as a boy's dormitory. Then in 1974, A-B Tech College purchased it and now the Western North Carolina Historical Association is in the process of restoring it.

The next three pictures below are from Riverside Cemetary which is located in the Montford Area Historic District. It was established approximately in 1885 and sits on 87 acres of beautiful rolling hills. (Thomas Wolfe and his family, along with some of the Smith-McDowell families are buried here also).

Later in the week my friend, Sherry & I, drove up to Maggie Valley and to the Cherokee Indian Reservation area. I didn't get time to go to the Cherokee museum - maybe next time.

As you drive along the main road in Cherokee you will see all along both sides of the road the beautiful bears that are painted up. Below is a picture of one of them in front of a touristy place.

Now, I didn't just go driving up the mountains to see some fake bears - I went for some gem-panning.

Yep, I wasted my money on that venture - but it was fun! I got some sapphires and rubies, but the trick is to let the gem cutters cut and polish them for you. Too little gem for too much money so I opted NOT to do that..........

(See my two little baggies of gems........yep that is me holding those giant rocks !)

See ya'll later !

Lawrence Shoals Rec Area, Georgia

We went camping with our neighbors, Dennis, Peggy & their daughter, Saleena, to a Georgia Power run park on Lake Oconee, about 2 hours from the house called Lawrence Shoals Recreation Area. This is in Putnam County. Our neighbors also happen to be Jeff's cousins and they brought up their boat for some fishing. This is a huge lake which is Dam controlled and it is just beautiful. Lots of boaters, fisherman and people with their pontoon boats!

This is our site, #17. It is a great site. The price is $20 a night for water & electric . There is a dump station there also. There are boat ramps and docks. There is a swim area within the park. There is a campground host on duty. The sites are large, and wooded and beautifully shaded.

The streets are nice and wide with no obstructions. There is a nice, clean bathhouse and areas for the kids to play.

There is a cemetary within the park, it is where the Little family is buried and another area within the park where the slaves are buried. There are lots of hiking trails - although turkey hunting season was starting the next day so the trails were closed to visitors.

Also within the park you can see some lovely flowers. Here is a picture of one below.

See ya'll later !

Asheville, NC - Hiking

While visiting my friend, Sherry, in Asheville this past week we took a drove to take a hike up to Max Patch, which is part of the Appalachian Trail. Her daughter and her boyfriend went, along with their new baby, 8 week old Willow.

This is a picture of Sherry & I once we were near the top of the mountain where we were going to fly kites!

And this is a picture of Sherry's daughter, Jennifer with beautiful little Willow.

Here is a picture of Willow taking a nap after filling up on her bottle.

As it turned out, Ian was the only to 'go fly a kite' and we just watched and ate lunch!

See ya'll later !

Sunnyside ATV Park, Wrens, GA

Let me start out by saying that this IS a duplicate post. Somehow the original one got lost.

So, to start over: This is Sunnywide ATV Park, in Wrens, GA. This is about 1 hr 15 mins from our house. It costs $20 per bike to ride all day. There is a small cafe on premises for when you must quinch your thirst of have a burger. Also there are Jiffy-Johns to use when needed (bring your own TP - I did and glad I did so!)



This is one of several chalk mines that was currently working mines within the park.

Notice the ATV way down near the chalk mine pit. This gives you an idea of how big these areas are.

This is a pic of Jeff tackling the downside of a large hill on his own.

As you can see from the picture below, we used our bike helmets, as we don't have any enduro helmets yet.

This is a picture of an actual hill we came down. May not look impressive but it felt like it when going down it!

A picture below of ME on the ATV........it was such an awesome day. This park has 50 miles or riding trails. Some open areas like this, some muddy and some not. So much fun...........