Late October – Early November 2021

Huntsville, Alabama

Traveling in a compact motor home brings the opportunity to go a bit off the beaten track. Many state parks were built in the 1940s, when camping rigs were smaller and sites were nestled in the woods. The sites are usually spacious and set further apart. We really like these campgrounds, even though the amenities may be a bit behind the times. The Monte Sano State Park near Huntsville, Alabama is one of these.

To find the North Alabama Japanese Garden at Monte Sano was a pleasant surprise. This woodland strolling garden was started by Robert Black as a hobby garden about 35 years ago.

It has many of the elements of a traditional Japanese garden, including a tea house. We noticed evidence of an ongoing struggle with deer that dine on the native azaleas, but the garden is still sweet.

We made a day trip to Huntsville to visit the U.S. Space and Rocket Center. About half of the center has interactive displays designed for kids.

It took us a while to find the Saturn V Hall, in fact, we almost missed it, but it alone is worth the price of admission. The story of the intensity of the space race, the bios of the key figures involved, the display of the Saturn V rocket, and the science that put astronauts on the moon is mindboggling.

For example, the exhaust cones shown above have perimeter rings that are pumped full of fuel that acts as a coolant that protects the cones from overheating and failing. John also was amazed that rocket fuel, which sends these massive craft to the moon, is made from kerosene.

Each exhibit in this hall contained interesting facts. The original Airstream trailer, which housed astronauts while they quarantined after returning to Earth, is open for visitors to walk through. There are even Moon rocks on display. The whole experience is eye-opening.

And so the new space race continues. NASA plans for expeditions to Mars in this decade, likely in partnership with Elon Musk and SpaceX. For now, I’m content to stay on terra firma and explore our planet.

Clemson, South Carolina

We moved on and stayed at Mile Creek Park, a county park on Lake Keowee, not far from Clemson. Our campsite was right on the lake, with water views and quiet camping. I think our late October timing helped. This place is probably jammed with boaters and swimmers in summer.

Clemson is nearby, and we cruised through the busy college town. (Go Tigers!)

We spent the afternoon at the University’s South Carolina Botanical Garden, partly to get some exercise and partly for Sally to see flowers. We explored the Heritage Garden Trail, which features a collection of various native habitats.

I think we liked the carnivorous plant area the best, as the pitcher plant display was so colorful. We walked for a while, and then hustled back to the van as the light drizzle turned into a steady rain.

Our campsite water view turned into a scene more like the Scottish moors, with swirling mist and rain that continued through the night. By the next morning, we were ready to pack up and head on down the road.

Hartwell, Georgia

Cool temperatures and on and off showers followed us into Georgia. We camped at Watsadler Campground on Lake Hartwell.

The lake is a manmade reservoir bordering Georgia and South Carolina. In 1775, William Bartram’s botanical journey passed through this area, under what is now the lake.

Like most Corps of Engineer parks, there’s a dam nearby that’s managed by the COE. We hiked out on top of the dam, which was pretty impressive. The 56,000 acre lake was made by diverting the Savannah River.

We visited another botanical garden. (Is there a theme here?) The Hart County Botanical Garden is small and charming.

Within this woodland setting, we were surprised to see an open-air, Japanese-themed structure, fragrant ginger lilies in bloom, kinetic sculptures, and a clever children’s garden with a free library.

The garden is maintained entirely by volunteers and they do a great job.

Two visitors we met in the garden suggested that we travel on up the road to see the Georgia Guidestones. We’d never heard of these, so decided to go see for ourselves. What an oddity to find this out in the middle of farm country, off the main road. Sometimes referred to as an “American Stonehenge,” the 19 foot tall granite pillars contain “guidelines” for a new world order.

The list of these 10 guidelines is inscribed in eight modern languages and four ancient scripts. The whole thing has overtones of doomsday-ism and conspiracy theory. While we were there, a steady stream of visitors came and went. I suppose I’m glad that we saw it, but it left me with an unsettled, creepy feeling.

On a brighter note, we rounded out our visit with a birthday lunch for John at Southern Hart Brewing Company in Hartwell. All in all, a good stay.

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

We do like this area.

We stayed at Huntington Beach State Park, where we’ve stayed before. The campground is right next to the beach, and at night you can hear the ocean.

The Huntington Botanical Gardens are right across the highway. There are places to hike and bike and lots of wildlife to observe.

Warm afternoons brought young alligators out onto logs to soak up the sun and interesting shore birds were hanging around the bay, scouting for lunch.

There is a dedicated biking trail into town and there are lots of places to shop and dine.

Just by chance, we discovered that our brother-in-law Steve would be visiting a mutual friend here at the same time as our stay. It’s always fun when our paths cross. So, we got together with Steve and Bill for two evenings of wonderful meals and good conversation. (Thank, guys!)

On our own, we did some shopping for supplies, caught up on laundry, and had lunch at Russell’s, a small family-owned seafood house that we’ve enjoyed on other visits.

Edisto Island, South Carolina

Edisto Beach State Park is one of South Carolina’s most popular. Half of the campground is on the ocean; the other half is down the road, tucked in the woods on the bay side.

Edisto Island is historic and still has an old-time feel to it, yet it’s close to Charleston and bigger city life. Unfortunately, we arrived about the same time as a cold front with high winds, chilly temperatures, and rain that lasted several days. Charleston was on flood watch, which meant that the causeway to the island might be flooded and closed, so we skipped our day trip into town and stayed out on Edisto.

Rain at the beach can be pretty dismal. In a 72 square foot shared living space, it can be challenging, but we mudded through.

We sampled a few local restaurants and had pizza at Coot’s – within walking distance from our campsite and the only bar and grill on the beach. On our last day, the sun returned. We hoped it would stay with us for our next stop.

Savannah, Georgia

Skidaway Island State Park is a great home base for visiting Savannah. Last time, we took the Hop-On Hop-Off bus tour, which we really enjoyed. This time, we walked the waterfront and took a boat cruise on the Savannah River.

We heard a narration about the history of Savannah and how today it’s one of the nation’s busiest shipping ports. However, we only saw a few large container vessels. I guess many are waiting off-shore in the pandemic-induced traffic jam we keep hearing about.

Skidaway Island is very pretty and fun in its own right. We hiked nature trails and enjoyed the park.

On the recommendation of our campground host, we had a dinner at Castaways. Glad the host gave us directions. We would never have found this place on our own, and it was one of our best meals ever. What a surprise to have such a creative meal in this hidden, out of the way spot.

The next day we continued our southerly coastal route and crossed into sunny Florida!

Next Up: Florida – November 2021