We were over 1400 miles from home and getting homesick to see our grandson and the rest of the family and friends. Arrival home was on August 9th, so we covered some ground seeing wild animals, enjoying friends in Virginia, experiencing bluegrass and mountain music in the western tip of Virginia, relatives in the Charleston area and finally home. Whew! Here we go.
On July 28 we headed for a short drive from Holmes County to Cambridge, OH. We would camp here the next two nights taking a "safari" at
The Wilds.
Last year we visited The Wilds, but Linda didn't get enough of seeing and taking pictures. Our safari was in an open air bus, so we could get close to the animals.
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| Impressive stripes on zebra |
Some animals got real close to the safari bus. We were cautioned about sticking fingers our of the bus.
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| Camels like to nibble on fingers and take cameras |
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| Rhino mother with baby |
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| Przewalski’s Wild Horses |
The Wilds is in the rolling hills of southeast Ohio. This land was reclaimed from from a utility gas company.
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| Field of flowers at The Wilds |
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| Stare down with a giraffe |
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| African Wild Dogs |
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| Cheetah in the shade |
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| An unusual animal called Dhole |
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| Scimitar-Horned Oryx |
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| African deer sharing the pond with geese |
We had a great time at The Wilds. I'm sure we'll go back again. Maybe some visit we'll have enough courage to ride the zip line over the hills.
Linda loves nature photography. The above images are only a fraction of the hundreds of pictures she took.
July 30th had us making the short 150 mile drive to
Pipestem Resort State Park . Good friends from Treasure Island and fellow RVers, George & Betty Gessler had recommended this park. At the height of tourist season, we don't usually try to stay in state parks because they are popular and busy. We called ahead on the 30th and were told they had 1 site available that we could squeeze into. Sure enough we were able to squeeze in. Amazingly we were even able to get satellite TV. Linda was happy.
Pipestem turned out to be a beautiful and wonderful park. Thanks to the Gessler's suggestion.
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| Campsite at Pipestem we squeezed into |
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The Bluestone River runs through Pipestem Resort State Park. There is an aerial tramway that runs to the gorge below to the river. At the bottom of the gorge the river, restaurant, and hotel.
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| Aerial tramway to Bluestone River gorge |
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| Deer at playground in Bluestone River gorge |
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| Gaga Pit |
Our grandson, Caden, calls Linda "gaga". I don't think this game was named after her. They had this game at the park along with other great facilities. More info about:
Gaga Pit . We wanted to spend more time at Pipestem Resort State Park, but the weekend was coming and our campsite was reserved by someone else.
On July 31st we made a couple hour drive Pipestem Resort State Park, WV to Smith Mountain Lake, VA. We visited our friends, Mike & Barbara Forte, last summer and were eager to see them again. We stayed at a new RV park called Halesford Harbour RV Park. After a little difficulty getting into our site traversing narrow and steep interior roads and loose gravel, we got parked. We meet the Forte's at Jake's Place Restaurant for dinner on the lake.
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| Mike & Barbara Forte, Linda and Tim |
After dinner we watched some kids feed the catfish on a nearby dock. This is a great pastime on the lake.
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| Kids feeding catfish on dock at Smith Mt. Lake, VA |
We had a great visit with the Forte's. Mike was a fellow prostate cancer patient at the University of Florida Proton Therapy Institute in Jacksonville with Tim. Their treatments overlapped by a couple of weeks.
Another short drive of 120 miles took us to Fries, VA. Our friends, the Gessler's, had recommended we spend some time there and stay at the Fries New River RV Park. They didn't explain the last 5 miles of the drive to the RV park were very narrow and curvy for a 67 foot long rig between the bus and tow car. Oh, well, we made it without incident and were rewarded with a wonderful, quiet RV park.
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| Campsite at Fries New River RV Park |
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| Patio area of campsite |
The RV park is a few blocks off downtown Fries, set in a "holler" along a stream. It is very peaceful, quiet, and serene. Our campsite was next to the stream and a short walking bridge to cross it. In a nearby campsite was a classic Shasta travel trailer dating to the 60's.
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| Classic Shasta travel trailer |
The owner of the RV park told us about a bluegrass jam session that is held in the city theatre. He said its how country folk live. We headed to the theatre that night and had a great time. The pickin was good. Different local musicians would come and go, joining in when they wanted. Everybody was welcome. Many people danced, including some of the musicians. At the end of the night, there was a "cake walk". You start on a number on the floor in a circle of people. as the music plays you move around the circle of numbers. When the music stops, you stand on a number closest to you. A number is drawn and whoever is standing on that number wins a homemade cake. Two cakes were awarded that night and they happily shared with all.
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| Bluegrass jam session held here |
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| Musicians at Fries Theatre jam session |
There are lots of thing to do and see in the area. New River, New River Trail, Galax Theatre, Fiddler's Convention in Galax, Blue Ridge Parkway, and Blue Ridge Music Center are only a few of the sites. We spent the next few days exploring.
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| Linda walking her bike on bridge over the New River |
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| Tim with bike outside of New River Trail tunnel |
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| W arrived a few days before the start of the convention in Galax, but some fiddlers already camped out |
The owner of the RV park also suggested for us to visit the Dairy Bar in Galax. We went and got an extra treat while eating our dinner.
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| Early arrivals for the fiddlers convention pickin on the porch of the Dairy Bar in Galax |
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| Beautiful Barracuda 1967 parked at the Dairy Bar along with early arrival campers for fiddlers convention |
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| Galax Fair Grounds early arrival campers for the fiddlers convention |
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| Rex Theatre in Galax. Bluegrass every Friday and Saturday nights |
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We next explored the Blue Ridge Parkway outside of Galax. It is a beautiful drive with lots to see.
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| Blue Ridge Parkway entrance near Galax, VA |
The Blue Ridge Music Center
Blue Ridge Music Center is on the parkway. The museum is wonderful explaining life and bluegrass and country music of the area. We listened to a pickers jam session in the breezeway of the music center. Again, musicians came and went.
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| Jam session in breezeway of Blue Ridge Pkwy Music Center |
Later that night we went to a bluegrass concert at the Music Center amphitheater. Two groups performed.
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| A thousand of our friends enjoyed the bluegrass at the Blue Ridge Pkwy Music Center amphitheater |
Another day was spent along the Blue Ridge Parkway. You have to visit Mabry Mill. It is the most photographed scene along the parkway and one of most famous.
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| Mabry Mill along the Blue Ridge Pkwy near Galax, VA |
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| Mabry Mill |
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| Man made ditch to channel water to the mill |
There are many out-buildings near the mill worth exploring.
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| Sign explaining the mill, owners and their other industrious activities |
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| Blacksmith Shop sign near Mabry Mill |
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| Ranger talking to visitors outside of the Blacksmith Shop |
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| Old grindstones from the mill |
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| Home near the mill |
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| Inside the home |
We ate lunch next door to the mill. The food and service was great along with many items in the gift shop.
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| Fence line along the Blue Ridge Parkway |
One afternoon before the Rex Theatre bluegrass show we wandered around Galax.
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| Tim in front of fiddlers display along sidewalk in Galax |
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| Tim by pigs at BBQ near Galax Rex Theatre |
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| Funny sign in the restroom at the Galax BBQ |
The Fries/Galax area needs to be visited again. There is so much to see and do. And it's a great place to relax.
We had one more stop to make before we arrived home. We'll tell you about it in our next post.
