And this vacation will henceforth be known as “That fall camping trip when it rained so much”.

The trip ended as it began: camping in the rain. 

We left Fancy Gap, VA on Saturday morning, heading north on the Blue Ridge Parkway (MP199).  The day started with bright sunshine, but clouds moved in as we went around Roanoke, threatening rain.  We continued on the parkway to the south shore of the James River (MP64), exiting toward Lynchburg on route 501.  From Lynchburg, we traveled on to Appomattox, then to Holliday Lake State Park. 

The park is small, only 37 campsites, and it was full on a Saturday in October.  On our arrival, the clouds had disappeared, and in mid-afternoon as we set up, I switched to shorts and t-shirt in the upper-70 degree sunshine.  We took Ranger out for a walk to the lake and took a short hike along the Lakeshore Trail (0.8 miles).  The evening was pleasant enough to grill dinner and have a campfire.  The campers in the next site came over to share our fire; they were from Hawaii and spend several months each fall and spring traveling in their Class B motor home around various regions of the US.  The night sky was full of stars, and it was hard to believe the weather forecast called for high of 50 and rain on Sunday.

And at 1:30 am, the rain arrived.  It continued most of the day Sunday, with falling temperatures.  We talked about heading home early, but decided to just relax and hope to pack up in drier conditions on Monday morning.  So another day was spent reading in the RV.  The rain let up enough to get Ranger out for a number of short walks.  (I was cautious about getting too far from the RV after a disastrous early morning walk when we both were soaked to the skin by a downpour.)  By evening, it was heavy overcast, but the rain had stopped, and we had a quiet evening of TV and indoor dining.

The trip home from Appomattox should be easy one, perhaps two hours of driving.  

Yesterday (Friday) we had a near perfect fall day for traveling along the Blue Ridge Parkway.

After a foggy start to the day, we entered the parkway around MP393, close to our campground at Lake Powhatan.  We had a brief stop at the Visitor Center to pick up a map and then proceeded northward.  While the leaves are not yet at a peak there was plenty of gold and red along the road.  Dan did a great job driving the hills and curves while I enjoyed the beautiful scenery.

We took a break at Linville Falls, a place recommended by brother Jim.  There is a 0.5 mile trail to see the falls themselves, and Ranger benefited from a chance to stretch his legs.  The falls were spectacular!  We only wished we had more time to explore the other trails in the area.  We did take the opportunity to check out the campsites there, which I would love to return to at some later time.

The afternoon's drive took us through less dramatic, but still pleasant views of hills and farms, and we arrived at the Fancy Gap KOA at around 5:00.  (Do not try to follow Google maps to find this place----we had a frustrating 15 or 20 minutes being lost in Fancy Gap and ending up on a narrow dirt road!)

Day at the Biltmore Estate

We spent the whole day today touring at the Biltmore Estate.  A huge house, with good audio tour, and amazing gardens with thousands of mums.  We had an excellent lunch at Cedric's in Antler Hill Village where the winery is located.

Thursday morning, and we're at Lake Powhatan in Pisgah National Forest, just outside Asheville.

Tuesday afternoon the rain stopped after lunch, and while it remained cloudy and damp, we were able to hike to Stone Mountain Falls.  Ranger seemed quite happy to get out of the RV and move a bit.

Yesterday we packed up and drove approximately 150 miles to Asheville.  We parked the RV at the Visitors Center (where there was a good farmers' market at which I got apples, veggies, and muffins for breakfast).  From there, we boarded one of the "red trolleys" which provide a tour of the city with commentary.  One can hop on or off at various stops to shop, browse around, try out one of the restaurants, or visit a museum.  But we rode the whole loop, learning about the sites from a tour guide who spoke for an hour and a half, spouting all sorts of facts and figures along with corny jokes, while driving a large trolley through the narrow streets of the downtown area and dodging traffic.  Well worth the time and money for seeing the sights of Asheville!

We're camping for two nights here, and I rather wish we had planned for more time.  The National Forest has lots of hiking trails and our site is good.  Today we plan to spend the day at the Biltmore. How can one visit Asheville without touring "America's Largest House"?  We were told that one can spend two full days touring the estate, but we'll make do with just one day before heading up the Blue Ridge Parkway tomorrow.

Tuesday morning, and it is still rainy.  We spent the whole day inside yesterday as a steady rain fell.  Actually we got out a few times when the rain diminished to a drizzle, to get Ranger moving a bit, and each time the rain picked up while we were away from the RV.  The day was spent reading and relaxing, not a bad thing for a vacation, though I would like to see a bit more of this state park.

Today's forecast is for the chance of rain (now 70%) to gradually drop, so we may be able to get out for a hike or walk in the afternoon.  It is definitely warmer today, and right now it's very foggy.

Sunday we awoke to the sun....finally.  With only a 92 mile drive to our next stop, we spent the morning walking on the Little Mountain Falls trail, giving Ranger a chance to expend some of his considerable energy.  We left Fairy Stone SP in early afternoon for a drive that was mostly on winding two-lane roads.  We crossed into North Carolina and drove through Mt. Airy, NC, which is the home of the Andy Griffiths Museum.  Local businesses' names tended to reference Mayberry and its characters.

We arrived at Stone Mountain State Park around 4:30.  The park is relatively new and the camping area is in an open field, though they did leave patches of tall grasses and wildflowers as barriers between sites.  The area with electric hookups has only 8 campers, so we have plenty of privacy.  Although the forecast is for much rain over the next two days, the evening was pleasant enough to grill dinner and sit out at a fire.  We even got to see an almost full moon rising before the clouds moved in.

Sometime during the night, the rain started, and from the weather report, it will continue through the day and night, with the chance of rain dropping to only 70% tomorrow.  Fortunately we are dry and snug in our RV, and we have plenty of snacks and reading matter.  I was able to get Ranger out for a long walk early in the day, before the heavier rain set in, and the park is very nice----well-kept with many hiking trails, which will have to be left for a drier day.