2019 Fall Western Trip: Cape Hatteras, then home

Tuesday 10/29:  239 miles, parked at Cape Hatteras KOA, Rodanthe, NC

Site 801

Nearly empty Cape Hatteras KOA

We arrived at the nearly empty Cape Hatteras KOA about 1:30.  The only busy part of the drive was around Raleigh.  We took Rt. 64 all the way to Hatteras and then Rt. 12 south to the KOA in Rodanthe.  On Rt. 12 you could see the effects of recent Hurricane Dorian.  The road crews were still busy cleaning up sand off the roads.

After setting up, and sitting outside to relax for a bit, we drove further south about 15 miles to meet up with fellow Gouverneur friends, including Judy's sister Sue.  Sue and Al, along with good friends Chuck and Anne rent a condo on the Outer Banks every year in late October.  Our trip timing this year was such the we could connect for a few days.

We had cocktails on the deck overlooking the ocean and got caught up with all the news.

We called it a day and were back to the camper by 6:30 for dinner and some reading and TV watching, especially our favorite show, NCIS.

Wednesday10/30:  Outer Banks, North Carolina

Judy and I are really enjoying the warmer mid 70's weather today.   We know it will end soon.  The beach at the campground is gorgeous.  The nice thing about the beaches at the Outer Banks is that so much of it protected by the National Park System.  There is something about the ocean that draws you to it.  Maybe it's because 75% of the earth is covered by it.

We went to the condo to meet the gang about noon.  The girls went shopping around 2:00, while the guys had a slow and relaxing day of reading.  Al and Chuck grilled shrimp and scallops for dinner.

It was a very foggy drive back to the camper, where we ended the night with some reading and TV watching.

Thursday 10/31:  Outer Banks, North Carolina

We had light showers on and off all day.  After dog walking on the campground beach, we stopped over to condo about 3:00.  It was very warm, with temps in the high 70's.  Judy cooked her Instant Pot rib recipe at the condo, and it was a huge hit.

Friday 11/1:  Outer Banks, North Carolina

It was terribly windy during Thursday night and this morning, to the point that the camper was rocking on the jacks.  The dogs were petrified!!  However, I slept through most of it.  :-)  Judy, however, didn't get a good nights sleep.  By morning the weather front had passed, and the winds had died down.  We took the dogs to the beach for a beautiful morning walk.  While this KOA is one of the most expensive campgrounds we have stayed at, the beach is worth it.

After lunch, Judy and I went to see the Cape Hatteras lighthouse.  I couldn't climb the stairs because it was off season, and it was closed.  Beautiful structure.  It actually has been move about over half a mile inland back in 1999 because of beach erosion at its original location.  Here is a really interesting article from the National Park Service.

Here you can still see the path that was created to move the structure.

That evening, we met up with the gang for dinner at the Ketch 55 in Avon.

So, here is a Cape Hatteras KOA summary.  We really enjoyed the stay here.  The beach was awesome!!  The campground was nearly empty when we were there.  Interesting note.  As of November 1st, the off season rates go into effect.  So our last night only cost $70, instead of the $100 per night for the first 3 nights.  I image it is crowded here during the summer season.

Tomorrow, we move on toward home.

Saturday 11/2:  306 miles, Waynesboro North 340 RV Park, Waynesboro, VA

Site 17

After an early morning walk on the beach at Hatteras, we were on the road for the final leg home.

It was a decent drive, although busy through the Virginia Beach area.  We arrived at Waynesboro to a much cooler day in the mid 50's.  So much for the warm Outer Banks weather.

Waynesboro 340 North is a very wooded campground, and we had a pull thru, site 17.   It was perfect for a overnight stop.  It appears that about 75% of the campers here are long tern residents, who had back ins.  It looks like the the pull thru sites are saved for travelers passing through, like us.  It was a quiet and pleasant campground.  We would stay here again.

Sunday 11/3:  306 miles and camped at Jonestown KOA, Jonestown, PA

Site 5: long pull thru with patio.

We've stayed here many times.  It is very convenient to I-81, and is open year round.  The weather was pleasant, but cooler. We arrived about 2:30 and chose a long pull thru site, #5 with a patio to celebrate our last night on the road.  However, it was too cold and windy to use patio.  :-((  We cooked up some homemade soup for dinner in the camper.

Monday 11/4:  332 miles, and HOME!!  8,548 miles for the entire trip.

We had a pleasant drive on I-81, and arrived home about 3:30.  It was in the mid 40's, and very chilly.  We aren't used to this.  The dogs went crazy with the smells and sights of home.     We unpacked enough to get through the night in house and will finish the rest over few couple days.  As always, it's fun to travel, but "there's no place like home."

Stay tuned for our next adventure.

2019 Fall Western Trip: Kentucky to North Carolina

Friday and Saturday 10/25, 26: 206 miles, Kentucky Horse Park, Lexington, Kentucky

Site 25

The drive was on Interstate 64 all the way today.  We have stayed here before, and we like the campground very much.  The paved sites are water and electric only, back in, good size and usually treed.   The only downside is that the sites were designed as perfect 90 degrees back in, and the paved pad is narrow.  Thus it can be a challenge backing in, especially if the ground is wet.  The park was quite full, which has not been our experience in the past when we camped here in October.  After a streak of about 10 days of sunny weather, the forecast for tonight is for rain all night.

It rained again off and on all day Saturday.  We had wanted to spend time at the Horse Park, but the weather would have made it unpleasant.  So instead we made our last grocery shopping stop for this trip.  Then we read, napped, and watched some college football on TV.

Sunday 10/27:  304 miles, Asheville East KOA, 

Site A-2

We left Lexington by 9:00.  The itinerary was I-75 south to Knoxville, TN where we picked up I-40 east. to Asheville.  The traffic on I-40 was horrible, especially as we got closer to Asheville.  There were several places of 5 mile per hour stop and go traffic.  The entire journey of 300 miles took over an hour longer than it should have.

This is a pleasant KOA, with a stream flowing through it and a couple of large ponds for boating and fishing.  Like most KOA's, the sites can be a bit tight, but that was offset by the views of the water and a really nice place to walk the dogs along the stream.

It was a sunny 73 when we arrived.  Our original plan was to hunt up the recently opened New Belgium Brewery.  However, we were so spent from the drive, we just stayed at the campground and relaxed.

Monday 10/28:  210 miles, parked at Jordan Lakes SRA near Apex, North Carolina

Crosswinds Campground, Site 50

We decided to leave I-40 as soon as possible today.  There is so much traffic, and so many slow downs.  Today it was an accident that closed one lane.  Just east of Statesville, we got off the Interstate and took NC Rt. 64.  It turned out to be a very nice drive with some beautiful countryside and small towns.  It was a nice drive that was not as stressful as I-40.  I'm glad we took it.

This is an amazing campground.  Jordan Lake Reservoir is 14,000 acres with 180 miles of shoreline, and the State has created a Recreation Area to protect it.  

There are several campgrounds in the recreation Area.  We are in Crosswinds.  I reserved the site online, not really knowing what to expect except most of the reviews were very good.  Boy, did we get lucky.  The sites here are HUGE!!!  They are wooded, large, and private.  They have water and electric only, but there is a modern bathhouse near us.  We also have a waterfront site.   I now wish we had booked several days here.  It is so beautiful and quiet here.

The beach at our site.

Sunset over Jordan Lake

Tomorrow it is on to the Outer Banks of North Carolina and the Cape Hatteras KOA.  

2019 Fall Western Trip: Kansas, Missouri & Illinois

Saturday 10/19:  262 miles and parked at the KOA in Goodland, Kansas

We decided to take non Interstate roads  most of the way today, and it was a really pleasant drive.  The roads were good, very little traffic, the speed limit was 65, and we saw some beautiful rural farm country.  There was range land, wheat fields, along with some corn and milo.

We checked in to the KOA about 2:00, and we were the only ones there.  By 9:00, there were about 7 more.  Still, the park was only 10% full.  They close at the end of the month for winter. It was sunny, 70 and windy.  We sat outside for a bit, but it was too windy.

Sunday 10/20:  129 miles and parked at Ellis Lakeside Campground, Ellis, Kansas

A little warmer this morning at 43 degrees.  After stopping to see the Goodland van Gogh sculpture of   sunflowers, we were on the road by 10:00.

It was a short drive today on Interstate 70.  I-70 out here is a very nice road.  There is not too much traffic and the road is in excellent shape.  We arrived at the campground about 1:30.  This is a small city owned park with about 18 sites that are first come, first serve.  And at only $20 for water and electric, it is the best deal of the entire trip.  It was less than half full, so we had our choice of sites, each with a water view.  On top of that, there was a  lot of space to walk the dogs.

Site 11, Ellis Lakeside Campground

Crews constructing 9 more sites

Monday and Tuesday, 10/21- 22:  220 miles,  Deer Creek Valley, Topeka, Kansas

Site 44

Mid 50's and terribly windy on the drive today.  We took Interstate 70 the entire way to Topeka,  and traffic was light.  Deer Creek Valley is an immaculate park, with level concrete pads and beautiful maintained lawns between sites.  There appear to be many long term RV's here, but their sites are kept  immaculate as well.  It was too windy and cold to do much outside, so we stayed inside and caught up on our reading.

Tuesday was a rest day.  We aren't the heavy duty road warriors we used to be.  We prefer to limit our drives to 4 or 5 hours each day.  And then, every 2 or 3 days, we take a break and have a rest up day.  Today was one of those days.

Wednesday 10/23:  230 miles, Lazy Day Campground, Danville, Missouri

Site 14

The drive was Interstate 70 all the way today.  It was good going, except driving through the maze of highways through Kansas City.  Some of that was white knuckle driving, but we putted along and survived.  Thank God for our GPS navigation!   We arrived at Lazy Day about 1:30 to beautiful, sunny 70 degree weather.  This park is a charming and wooded campground.  The sites are large, and they are very nice.  We didn't even have to unhook.  The campground is quite hilly, so many of the sites have been leveled with landscaping walls.  We had an end site that overlooked the woods.

Thursday 10/24:  212 miles and camped at Rest Up RV Park, Grayville, Illinois

Site 11

Much cooler as a cold front is moving across the US.  Never got above the mid 50's.  It was another day of Interstate driving: I-70 to St. Louis, and then I-64 for the rest of the day.  The only challenging part of the trip was passing through St. Louis, but it went fine.  In fact, not nearly as stressful as Kansas City.  :-)  Rest Up is a relatively new park.  The sites are long and level, with adequate space between them.  However, there are basically no trees yet since they are all saplings.

Tomorrow we continue east to Lexington, Kentucky for a couple nights.