On the Road Again Only Different...

We don't close on our house in Norfolk until the last Friday of the month, so we are taking a road trip to TN, AR, OK, NM, AZ, TX, AL and NC to see family and friends.  This post is about our first two days where we went as far as Conway, AR.

We thought, "Why not?"  Maybe we should re-think buying another RV and just take road trips. We shall see, but since we have a three weeks it was a good time to travel and see how we like it.  My hypothesis is, "it will not compare to the wonder and joy of RV living, but it can still be good."

On Day 1 of our trip, we made it to Maynardville, TN for an overnight stop.  We like to get on the road early and crept out of our 5-star accommodations at Goldmanor (Kelly and Jon's house where we are staying) and made stops at Wawa for coffee and McDonals for a couple of egg McMuffins.

We crossed over the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel as the sun was rising. Then it was on to Richmond on I-64 over to I-81.  Before we got there we crossed through the Shenandoahs and were greeted with this.

Yikes!  Snow!  It only lasted for about 20 minutes but it definitely got our attention.  We keep thinking we have avoided winter but that hasn't happened entirely.  The last three weeks in Virginia Beach have been a mix of different weather with some warmer days and some cold ones lately.

We pulled into Mike and Joan's neighborhood about 3:30 PM and since we were only going to be able to stay overnight, we better see Helen and Bill first.  Chances are that we would not be leaving Joan and Mike's once we got settled in.  So we stopped in to see Helen who had just returned from Physical Therapy.  She had knee-replacement surgery and Bill had her all set up in an easy chair with her knee raised.  Everything is going well with her recovery except the pain.  Ouch! She did say to much about it but once we asked questions she indicated it is some major pain.  But she is dealing with it and getting a little better each day.

Next stop was Joan and Mike's.  We unloaded our suitcases and air mattress and sleeping bags and it worked out fine.  Mike had fixed dinner and we had some great fajitas and beans.  On our way to Virginia Beach after selling the Roadrunner, we stopped in to see them and they were both ill.  They were much improved and were like their old selves so we were thankful for that.

On Day 2, we headed out of the driveway before six AM and got on I-40 heading west.  We refueled a couple of times along the way.  It is a bit of a shock to fill up on a road trip for under $30 when we were used to filling up the Roadrunner for $250-$300 a pop.  We like the lower numbers.  I noticed its not as easy to take a quick nap in the car as it was in the Roadrunner, but it is manageable.

The weather forecast didn't look too good on our route because of high winds, rain, and the threat of tornados.  We didn't want to do anything crazy, but we kept on eye on things as we traveled. We hit some rain for a couple of hours then it was mostly high winds toward Little Rock, AR.  About noon the east bound traffic on I-40 was backed up for a couple of miles as they cleaned things up from a tractor trailer that over turned.  Not sure exactly what happened but he may have gotten blown into the side rail in the passing lane and went over.  Out side heading west was fine.

We arrived in Little Rock and drove downtown to the Clinton Presidential Library and Museum.  It is one we had not seen before so we were hoping to see it and the Arkansas State Capitol.

The grounds are well maintained and in a great location a few blocks from downtown Little Rock.  On thing that struck me was the size of the building.  I might be the largest of the Presidential libraries we have seen in our travels.

 Both outside and inside the grounds, we saw artwork of Dale Chihuly.  We love his work.

Inside, the security was friendly and we paid the $8 fee before going to the third floor and taking a self guided tour.

 View from the third floor toward downtown Little Rock.

The Oval Office is always an interesting place.  Many of the presidential libraries we've seen have life-size replicas like this one.  For $50 we could side behind the presidential desk and get our picture taken.  Yikes!  We passed on that one.

We weren't able to spend the time it deserved, but we were glad for the chance to see it briefly.  It is one of the more well done presidential libraries we've been to and I was very impressed.

The afternoon weather was a big change from what we had experienced most of the day.  We drove over to the capitol building.  I was closed but I managed to take a few pictures.  

We thought we could drive some more and continued on I-40 to Conway AR where we got a motel for the evening.  After two hard days of driving, we went to dinner and then back to the motel and hit the sack.  

That's all we will relay for now and I'll save some more for the next couple legs of the trip to Tucson. Thanks for joining us on this adventure of the Roadrunner Chronicles!

Adams National Historical Park Visit

It was about a 40 minute drive into Quincy MA from our campground at 4th Cliff  MWR Campground.  We left about 9:15 AM and were in no rush since this was the only place we were going to see today.

We took the backroads and did a lot of winding around and went through some old neighborhoods before we finally ended up at the birthplaces of both John Adams and John Quincy Adams.  The buildings are in their original location and 75 feet away from each other.

My first impression was that the buildings were probably relocated and place on the same corner of the block which was a barely large enough for them.

We were surprised the buildings was closed and only "open for tours."  Hmm.  Wonder what that meant?  We rechecked our Google Maps and found we ended up at the Birth Place and not the actual Adam's National Historical Park.  

Turn's out the National Park Service Visitor Center  for the Adams National Historical Park is in an office space rental in a corner of a large building in downtown Quincy which also has a parking garage.  This was unique and different than other historical sites we've visited.  Once inside, we learned there was a trolley bus that took visitors to the birthplace site and John Adam's retirement home ("Old House at Peace field").

We were scheduled for the 11:15 bus and had some time to kill.  We saw the orientation film on the Adams and their contributions to America.  The tiny center had one display that had a lot of information.

We all boarded the trolley bus and made the 15-20 minute drive to the first stop:  the birthplace homes of John Adam's and John Quincy Adams.

Pam and I were in the front seats and at the first intersection, the driver turned to me and asked if I could tie a tie.  ?Yes, I said, I knew how to do that.  He asked if I wouldn't mind tying a 'double knot' in three ties that he handed me!  

I was glad to help and felt as if I was on some gameshow in a race against the clock.  I tied the first one, it was too short, so I retied it.  That took a few minutes.  I managed to get it the others tied, slipped them over my head and handed them back to Stanley when we pulled up to our stop.  He was from Haiti and thanked me.  It was my pleasure!  

I was glad to help and thought of all the times I watched my father and older brothers tied their ties and taught me.  Its nice to be useful.

At the first two buildings/birthplace homes, we had a young lady who really knew her stuff.  She did a great job of giving us a history lesson.  

In 1735, John Adams was born in the smaller home.  Years later he married Abigail Smith and they moved into the larger home/farmhouse next door.  They had four children one of which was John Quincy Adams, born in 1767.  John Adams was our second President, John Quincy Adams our sixth President.

John Adams was quite an accomplished statesman, serving as the first Vice President under George Washington and later becoming the second President of the United State.  He collaborated with Samuel Adams, served as a delegate to the Continental Congress, and assisted in drafting the Declaration of Independence.

After an hour, we boarded the trolley bus again and went over to the Old House, also know as Peacefield.  After John Adams served as ambassador to England, he and wife Abigail purchased the Vassall estate and 40 acres.  They moved into it in 1787 and over the next 12 years made additions.
After failing to win re-election in 1801, Adams returned to the Old House where he resumed farming and writing.

We got another really good Park Ranger for our tour.  Very interesting and informative.

Abigail furnished the house in the Victorian/English style with many reminders of European influence.  She had grown accustom living in Britain while John Adams was ambassador and referred to her knew home as a wren's nest.  I

Unlike some other historical places we have visited recently, this home was furnished with many original and precious pieces.

The paneling in this room was solid mahogany.

 This was the study where Adam did a lot of writing.

In one of the back hallways, Abigail's china was on display.

Before we concluded our tour, we took a look inside the Stone Library which was separate from the Old House.  To guard against potential fire destroying his collection of books, he had a building created in 1870 which housed 12,000 volumes in his collection.

Four months before he left office, John and Abigail Adam's moved into the "President's Mansion" later know as the White House in 1800.  Abigail died in 1824 and John Adams died on July 4, 1826 - a few hours after Thomas Jefferson died.

My impression of the Historical Park changed after taking the two hour tour.  The two birthplace buildings were in their original location for us to see.  The 200 acres of Adam's property has been swallowed up by 'progress' and is now hidden among the busy streets and residential neighborhoods of Quincy.  The Visitor's Center is a bit odd.  But I'm glad we took the time to see it all.  It was better than I thought it was going to be.  I learned a lot.

That's all for this time, on the Roadrunner Chronicles.  Thanks for joining us!

Camping Our Way From Virginia to NY - Summer 2018

Thought I'd give an update of where we've been over the last few weeks.  We are now on our 'Summer 2018 Trip' to the Northeast.

Malek Visitor's Center, USMA, West Point

We're currently at the military campground at the United States Military Academy at West Point.
On the map below, our location would be at the northernmost point (F). We were here six years ago.  The campground hasn't changed much but the Visitor's Center at the USMA is brand new.  More on that and some of what we've been seeing.

We stayed in Virginia Beach all of May and most of June.  

Sea Mist RV Campground, Virginia Beach, VA

The last day of June, we made a quick trip

Rest Stop Along the Way

to South Carolina for some annual motorhome maintenance

Cross Country RV Park, Denver, SC

and got to see D and Jackie in Lincolnton, NC and Cindy in SC.  We headed back to the Virginia Beach area for a couple of weeks near Williamsburg, VA.   Our first stint for a few days was in Newport News.

 Newport News City Campground, Newport News, VA

King's River Campground, Cheatham Annex, Williamsburg, VA

There we got to see Bill and Kris and spend more time with Kelly, Jon and the grandkids.  Before we left we spent some time with Jon's parents (Diane and Marty), up from Augusta GA for a few days,

We drove a long day after departing Williamsburg and made it to out reserved site at Mountain Springs RV Resort just north of Shartlesburg, PA off I-78.

 Mountain Springs RV Resort

We hit the rains the whole way from Virginia Beach, but it hasn't been too bad.  They have been a series of hard rains, light rains and then now rain.  It hasn't been a constant downpour.  We carry an umbrella and wear rain gear and have kept dry.

Round Pond Campground, USMA, West Point

We snagged this site which is pretty level.  We are glad to be able to get satellite TV.  The internet and cell phone reception is sketchy at best.  I'm posting this from Starbucks at West Point which has great Wi-Fi.

We've seen a lot here and along the Hudson River Valley.  Over the last few days here, we re-visited the USMA Museum which is outstanding.  We also took another windshield tour around the premises and got some great views of the Hudson River.

Earlier we took a day trip over the Hyde Park (FDR home, Presidential Library and Museum), Val-Kill (Eleanor Roosevelt's Retreat) and the Vanderbilt Mansion.  Earlier today we made the two-hour drive to see Martin Van Buren's home in Kinderbrook.  We'll be telling those stories about our times there in the coming weeks.

Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles!

More on our Day in Atlanta

Seeing the Georgia State Capitol, we found the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum.  We were glad it was open.  The ground and parking lot gave the notion of it being an important place.  It was well groomed and flags were flying.

 It reminded me a little bit of the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum we visited in 2014.
We were greeted at the door with the news that entry for veterans on Veterans Day was free!

 That was a nice gesture!

We saw the orientation film that was excellent.  One thing it described was how he was affected by corruption in a state election.  He lost and the next time he ran one of his by lines was, "I will never lie to you."
I would say among his most significant accomplishments during his presidency was winning the Nobel Peace Prize for his tenacious and wise work with Egypt and Israel and reaching the Camp David Peace Accords.

 Then the tour of the museum took us through a number of hallways and displays.  A lot of it was about his early life from Plains to his time at the U.S. Naval Academy.

 The Iranian hostage crisis happened during his tenure and they were released after 444 days.  The Iranians finally let them go about the same time as Jimmy Carter was leaving office when President Reagan was being swore in.

The museum housed the presidential library and archives.  We could see rows and rows of filing boxes.  It contains 27 million pages of documents, 500,000 photos and another 40,000 objects (videos, audiotapes and films.)

We liked our tour and thought it was very well done.  It is worth the visit.

Next, we found the Atlanta Underground.  We weren't really sure what that was about but wanted to stop and see it.  The parking was free and we wandered around a little while.  It was a lot of shops and not much was going on.  We might not have been in the right entry way?  Or there might be a better vantage to see it.  We did not stay long and headed over the downtown area in search of the Coca-Cola Museum.

The World of Coca-Cola multi-media center outgrew its first location near Atlanta Underground and we went over to the larger site near the Olympic Park.

We actually walked through the Olympic Park to get to the World of Coca-Cola.

This was an interesting display commemorating the athletes.

They had a number of weekend events ongoing.  It is a place where events are staged and locals have a chance to bring a group for some kickball.  We saw a game in progress.

The World of Coca-Cola was across the street.

We were met with a statue of John Pemberton who was the inventor of Coca-Cola.  He had a saber wound from hostilities during the Civil War and began a life-long addiction to morphine.  He died of cancer in 1888.

As a trained pharmacist, he began experimenting with ingredients until he stumbled upon a concoction that he accidentally mixed with carbonation to get the "secret mix".

The lines were long because they had a power outage and weren't selling any new tickets.  Oops.

We looked around and went to the gift store instead.  More long lines.  But that was OK.  We didn't see anything we couldn't do without...

We saw this display of the polar bear which I remember from a couple of Christmases ago.  I thought this is a new twist and why did Coca-Cola decide to make and advertising campaign around a polar bear.
As the sign says, it was started in the 1920's and then re-introduced in 1993.  So it has been around a long time.

And there are all kinds of gifts to grab to fit any budget...

Outside and across the street, we made our way back through the Olympic Park grounds

Some very well done tributes to people who train for years and years in order to make it to the Olympics and some are lucky enough to get a medal.  And have their name engraved on these monuments.

It turned out to be a real busy day for us in Atlanta but we got to see a lot of different things.  And determine which other things we want to see next time.

Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles!