Dec. 4, Dec. 5 and Dec. 6
Still in Knoxville. It's cold here and keeps trying to snow but not much is sticking. We have been here for 21 days and tomorrow we are leaving. They have fixed everything except the pac/compression break. It won't hurt to drive the motor home the way it is. We will probably get it worked on when we get to Texas. I bought another Christmas tree, an artificial one with lights. I bought small ornaments to put on it.
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| my little tree |
Snow this morning and it lightly covers the ground but it is a very dry snow. We said our good-byes and left for North Carolina. We spend the night near Winston Salem.
Dec. 8
We move on today to Shawboro N.C. which is close to the Otter Banks area of North Carolina. The closer we got to the coast we saw acres and acres of cotton fields. They had already been harvested but balls of cotton were everywhere, even along the road. We found a great seafood market/restaurant for dinner.
Dec. 9
It's sunny and cold today. The east is still getting cold weather. We got up early to head to the Otter Banks in the Jeep. Our first stop is Wright Brothers National Memorial four miles south of the town of Kitty Hawk. The reason the Wright Brothers selected Kitty Hawk to work on a successful flight is because of the wind there and sparse population. The visitors center has full-scale reproductions of the 1902 glider and the 1903 flying machine. We heard a ranger talk about the Wright Brothers and the four flights they took on Dec. 17, 1903. The first went 120 feet for 12 seconds. Each flight that day increased in distance with the last one going 852 feet in 59 sec. After that last flight a gust of wind rolled and damaged the plane beyond easy repair. Outside there is a marker were the first flight took off from and markers were the four flights landed. Next we stopped at Bodie Island Lighthouse which is being restored and covered in scaffolding. We drove across a very long bridge to Roanoke Island and visited Fort Raleigh National Historic Site. The Otter Banks area has large homes along the beaches. They are built on stilts at least 8 feet off the ground because of flooding. Most houses are an additional three stories high with roof top decks. We drove along Cape Hatteras National Seashore and stopped at Cape Hatteras Lighthouse which is the tallest brick beacon in the country. We enjoyed our day on the Otter Banks.
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| reproduction of 1903 flying machine |
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| reproduction of 1902 glider |
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| actual picture of first flight |
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| first flight marker |
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| markers where the 4 flights landed |
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| Cape Hatteras Lighthouse |
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| Bodie Island Lighthouse |
Dec. 10
Heavy frost covers the ground this morning and we leave for Myrtle Beach South Carolina. The campground we are staying in is large with about 750 campsites. It was pretty quite this time of the year but probably full in the summer. We can see the ocean from our motor home. It is great hearing that ocean sound.
Dec. 11
Rain in the night and still raining this morning. It stopped long enough for us to walk on the beach. We did a little shopping and had a good seafood dinner.
Dec. 12
Decided to move further south and maybe it will be warmer. We are camping by the town of Yemassee S.C. and staying here for 3 nights. We are close enough to drive the Jeep into Savannah Georgia. We got here around noon time so I can do laundry this afternoon.
Dec. 13
It's Sunny but cold today and there is a cold wind blowing also. We drive the Jeep to Hilton Head Island. This is a very up scale area with lots of golf resorts. Had a great fish and chip lunch in a little restaurant. We went to Fort Pulaski National Monument at the mouth of the Savannah River in Georgia. It was part of an extensive chain of coastal forts built to protect the United States from foreign invasion. During the Civil War in 1862, Union forces on Tybee island bombarded the fort for 30 hours and forced the surrender of the Confederate garrison. The bombardment tore gaping holes in the walls of the fort. The fort has a moat around it and a draw bridge. This is one of the best forts we have visited on this trip.
Dec. 14
Got down to 22 in the night. Sunny this morning with a slight wind blowing. We drive the Jeep into Savannah this morning and take a trolley tour of the historic downtown area. There are many historic homes of different styles and 22 park like squares about 2 blocks in any direction scattered in this historic area. There are museums, famous houses and churches to see on this tour that lasted 90 minutes. We enjoyed seeing the beautiful historic town from a trolley with narration. On the way back to the motor home we stopped at Savannah National Wildlife Refuge. It was established in 1927 as a preserve and breeding ground for native birds. We watched a movie about how the area was once a rice plantation dating back to the mid 1700s. We leave here in the morning and head to Daytona Beach Florida for a couple of days. Will be glad to finally get to Florida and hope the weather is warmer, then we will go to Orlando area for a few days. Definitely Happy Travels, Barb
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