Day #8 – Paula Deen & New Friends

Thursday, December 3, 2009 – Day #8
St Helena’s Island, SC

Today didn’t go quite as planned, but then, that’s what this trip is all about.
 

We started out by stopping at an old church (Chapel of Ease - http://www.nationalregister.sc.gov/beaufort/S10817707045/index.htm) we’d passed several times going back and forth to the campground.  The church was built in 1740 and was burned by a forest fire in 1886.  The walls were built of "tabby" - a type of concrete that used sea shells instead of gravel in the mix.  The roof had been destroyed long ago – nothing was left but the walls and spaces where things used to be.  You could see the shape of the windows.  There were regularly spaced notches in the walls where pews had been anchored.  You could see where the pulpit had been.  Outside, graves were still visible.   Moss and lichen had grown over most of the tombstones, but we could still read some dates.  It seemed that many children had died in a very short time period.  We found out later that Yellow Fever had ravaged the island during that time.  We thought sadly of all those lives lost and the impact it had had on the families.



When I walk through a graveyard, I wonder what happens when we die.  If some part of us lives on, does something happen when that spark is thought of or remembered?  Do the dead continue to exist as long as they are remembered or thought about?

We drove on to Savannah, intent on eating lunch at Paula Deen’s restaurant, The Lady and Sons.  It was fun, but I gotta tell you, it was a disappointment.  While we could have ordered from a menu, we opted for the buffet.  All the food was at room temperature – not what I expect for fried chicken, greens, macaroni and cheese, and so forth.  Kelly however, continued perfecting the art of small souvenirs.  Today she found a jar opener to replace our old one and some tiny silicone finger mitts to use when pulling hot bowls out of the microwave.  Both are Paula-approved and trailer-friendly.

We walked through the Cotton District, down by the river.  We had a horrible experience with a caricature artist.  I’d rather not dwell on it other than to say we don’t look anything like what he drew.  He had to put our names on the sketch so that we could even identify ourselves.  You won’t be seeing that in any of our photo albums!

By the time we finished our walk, it was late afternoon.  I had wanted to hike around Tybee Island for a full day, so you can imagine how happy I was to have just a couple hours.  But, off we went!

First stop on the island was Fort Pulaski National Monument (http://www.nps.gov/fopu/index.htm).  This was one of the most beautiful forts I’d ever seen.  Robert E. Lee worked on the design and building of this fort, mostly the drainage system.  Since it sits right on the ocean, built on sand, and is huge, there were quite a few architectural issues.  One of the exhibits in the visitors’ center showed a cut-away model of the fort.  The drainage system was amazing.  Did you know that Lee graduated from West Point and was a member of the US Army Corp of Engineers? 

Construction started in 1829 with the pilings – 75 feet in length – to support the proposed 25 million-brick structure.  The fort was expected to be one of 300 built to protect our eastern coast from invaders.  Construction of these forts was slow, so only 30 were built by the time the Civil War began.  The Union’s weapon technology had improved to the point that the fort could not withstand the cannon bombardment and no more forts were built.

We walked to the fort, crossed the moat (yes, alligators live in the moat), and wandered around in tunnels that were carved underneath, then entered the main structure.  We climbed up lots of steps to walk along the top, then climbed down a narrow circular staircase to get back down.  There were many of these circular staircases – I felt like I was in a 3-D version of Chutes and Ladders.

There was a plaque outside the fort that said, "On April 13, 1862, following the Union capture of Ft. Pulaski during the Civil War, Maj. Gen. David Hunter issued General Orders No. 7 freeing those enslaved at the fort and on Cockspur Island.  Hunter, an abolitionist advocating the enlistment of black soldiers in the Union Army,  ordered the freedmen subject to military service.  Not yet committed to a comprehensive plan of emancipation, President Abraham Lincoln overturned the orders.  However, Hunter's orders were a precursor to Lincoln's own Emancipation Proclamation, formally issued January 1, 1863, and to the establishment of the Bureau of Colored Troops on May 22, 1863.  Local African-American units included the 103rd Regiment USCT, which served at Ft. Pulaski 1865-1866."

Near dusk, they kicked us out of the fort, so we headed on to the main portion of the island.  I needn’t have been peeved at missing wildlife – Tybee Island is all about tourists.  It’s Little Tybee Island that is wild and natural.  In our search for a sunset, we got hopelessly lost.  We picked a road and followed it, trusting logic that we’d find the ocean. We lucked out – the road we chose ended at the beach.  Would you believe it – we had to pay for parking!  No sooner had we pulled in, than another vehicle with Pennsylvania plates, and sporting two high-end touring kayaks, parked next to us.  Steve, a kayak buddy of Linda’s, and his girlfriend, hopped out to meet us.  We laughed about coincidences and had supper together at the local crab shack.  They were on their second day of a week of coastal and surf kayaking around the two islands.  They had driven down through the gale and were glad to see better weather.  Linda had told us the two would be in the area, and told the two of them that we would be there, too, but none of us ever imagined we’d meet.

The drive back home was a long one, but we had a beautiful moon to keep us company.

Day #7 - NOAA Warnings

Wednesday, December 2, 2009 – Day #7

St Helena’s Island, SC

This morning, NOAA warned us a gale was heading our way and that tornadoes might come with it.  Like the true Pittsburghers we are, we headed to the grocery store for bread and milk.  The search for staples, in the face of impending doom, may be hardwired into all of us because the supermarket was very busy.

Kelly decided we needed garlic.  In the garlic section, she met Miss Mazyck who gave her the following recipe for a sore throat remedy:

•    Smashed up garlic

•    Honey

•    Black strap molasses

When I asked Miss Mazyck about lemon, she though it wouldn’t hurt.  And yes, folks, you eat it.  You do not rub it on your throat – you eat it.  Think about it awhile or even mix up a batch and I bet your sore throat will clear right up.  Actually, it makes sense: both garlic and honey have antibiotic properties.  Plus, honey is soothing on the throat.  I’m not sure about the molasses.

I couldn’t decide what to do about this weather.  I thought we should, at the very least, collapse the trailer so that it might better withstand high winds.  There wasn’t much point in trying to out-run the storm because there really wasn’t anywhere safer we could get to before the storm arrived.  We decided to sit tight.

I put together an emergency bag.  It contained some extra clothes, the polartec sleeping bags, water, food, flashlights, the first aid kit, and a bottle of wine.  Thanks to Nina and Carolyn for helping us pick the appropriate wine for surviving a tornado.  Our basic plan was to keep NOAA on alert status and run for the concrete bath house if necessary.

The whole town was in an uproar over the weather forecast.  The school closed early and many businesses shut down.  Luckily, the Gullah Grub restaurant stayed open through lunch.  We feasted (think last meal before dying or being swept away to Oz) on BBQ chicken, collard greens, corn bread, squash casserole, red rice, lima beans, and sweet potato pie.  What a way to go!

It rained hard that night.  Kelly wanted to go to bed, but I made her stay up and play cards with me.  By midnight, the rain eased.  The wind never howled or roared like a freight train.  No trees fell.  We were not swept off to Oz.

In the morning, I quietly unpacked our emergency bag and cooked us some breakfast.  Kelly managed to not laugh at me.  I let Carolyn and Nina know that we survived the night – they didn’t laugh either.

Day #6 - Our First Week Ends Well

Tuesday, December 1, 2009 – Day #6

Lexington SC to St Helena’s Island, SC

high 65; cloudy, then rain

Our patches held up to morning ablutions and breakfast dishes! We’re still holding our breath, but it was a good start.

Kelly went to Wal-Mart to return a large unneeded storage box, drop some stuff off at Goodwill, and put gas in the truck. Suzie did laundry and started the packing.

Our 125-mile trip to Tuck in the Woods Campground on St Helena’s Island was an easy one. Kelly was quite stressed about our RV battery. It was completely dead, so we were running the fridge on either propane or the truck battery. Using the truck battery puts a strain on the alternator, but we weren’t sure how bad it would be. Every time Kelly walked past the trailer, she was sure she could smell burning electrical. Suzie smelled nothing. Kelly was sure the trailer would burn to the ground. Suzie reminded her that we had a Plan B and that she couldn’t get out of the trip that easily.

St Helena’s island is reached via a narrow two-lane drawbridge. While it was very pretty, it caused us to both grip various parts of the truck quite tightly and hold our breath. We arrived without incident and set up without any problems.

A side story – Kelly has been working to learn how to roll her kayak. One of the first steps in this process is to hang upside down in the water, without falling out of the kayak, for at least ten seconds before beginning the rolling steps. Kelly tends to count to ten in about two seconds. I teased her that, given how well she’d been holding her breath while towing through mountain passes, across narrow bridges, and so forth, she should have no more problems with that 10 count. At which point she suggested that I count the number of fingers she was holding in the air.

Back to our day – Kelly checked our repairs after dinner and announced that both were continuing to hold. Yippee!

The Tuck in the Woods campground was quiet with large spots for RVs and lots of trees.  Everything was clean and tidy.  There was a pond with a boardwalk.  Even though there were signs warning of alligators, we saw none.

We got the TV working on Kelly’s laptop and were able to watch the end of President Obama’s speech and a bit of Biggest Loser. When the rain started, it was so loud on the roof of the trailer that we couldn’t hear the TV.

This first week is wrapping up to be a good one. We were able to solve the problems we encountered and we developed more self confidence. We also learned some new skills. We can hitch the trailer to the truck pretty quickly. In most conditions, Kelly can tow the trailer easily. Suzie learned how to hook up and clean out the sewage system. We still need to learn about electricity. Our backing-up-the-trailer-into-a-spot skills need some work. And, one of these days, Suzie is going to tow it!

Day #5 - Holding Tank Repair

Monday, November 30, 2009 – Day #5

Lexington SC

high 65; sunny, then rain

Today we decided on a solution to our problems. All we had to do was push some mesh through the hole in the tank, then pull it back towards us so that it neatly covered the hole from the inside. Then we’d put a bit of goo or epoxy or something on the outside to hold the mesh in place. Easy to picture; hard to do. The hole was the size of a thumbnail. As for the leaky valve, well we were sure we could find a replacement. If not, Suzie wanted to just push lots of the same goo or epoxy or whatever around the valve. What’s good for one plumbing problem would surely be good for another – right?

First stop Camping World, which is a super store and service center for all things RV. No valves to fit and no materials for a repair. They advised that we should replace the holding tank, which would take a few weeks. Clearly these folks were not used to dealing with creative women on a tight budget traveling in a 13-year old trailer. We did however, find some dandy junk that we could not live without. Onward!

Second stop lunch. After all that shopping and repair angst, we needed to refuel. Oatmeal and bananas get these girls only so far.

After lunch, the stops blur a bit. There was a pool supply place. At a hobby store, we found plastic mesh that we thought would work. A study of all their glue products led us to the conclusion that we’d need a glue that would work on wet things. We settled on a product that we’d used earlier…even though it wasn’t rated for plastic or wet areas. We managed to leave the hobby shop with just the mesh even though Suzie found some knitting yarn that she thought would make cheerful chemo caps.

At the auto parts store, we found a repair kit that was pretty much what we’d already cobbled together, but with better components. The mesh was fiberglass and the glue was designed to work on wet plastic. The only difference – they recommended patching from the outside. Sounded great to us. We never did find replacement valves for the leaky water drain hose. Everyone agreed that a marine store would be the most likely source for that.

The repair went without a hitch. First, we formed a pancake-shaped patch with the epoxy – about ¼ inch thick – and pressed it over the hole. Second, we pushed a piece of mesh into the pancake. After it set for 15 minutes, we pressed another thinner, but larger, pancake over it all, thus making a mesh sandwich. We pushed the leftover epoxy around the leaky valve. Then we dashed to clean up before the thunderstorms arrived. We agreed to not test our work until morning. Because of the rain, we wanted to give our repairs extra time to set.

After dinner, we decided to connect a laptop to the cable TV provided by the campground. We both have adapters in our computers that allow us to plug in a TV cable. As a separate solution, we also have a digital antenna that can pull a TV signal in to a computer. We had tested both of these items in Pittsburgh and they worked just fine. We expected to have TV when we wanted it without having the extra baggage of an actual television.

We fussed for a couple hours with our cable adapter and then went to bed, defeated. While we had both agreed to cut back on TV, neither of us ever agreed to cut it out completely. It never occurred to us that we couldn’t have TV when we wanted it. Given our level of crankiness over this failure, it appears we’re more addicted than we thought. Suzie thinks it’s better for us if we can’t get the blasted thing to work. Kelly has already found a small flat-screen TV with a DVD player that she plans to purchase.

Day #4 - We Have Leaks

Sunday, November 29, 2009 – Day #4

Lexington SC

high 73; sunny

Suzie woke up cranky, which should have been a portent of things to come. She blamed her mood on a sore throat and runny nose – little did she know.

Our gray water holding tank – holds dirty water from the kitchen and bathroom sinks and the shower – had a hole in it. The problem wasn’t apparent until we had about ten gallons in the tank. Suzie thought the hole was about ¼ inch in diameter; Kelly thought it was the size of her thumb. Either way, yuk. In addition, one of our fresh water drain valves had sprung a leak and was dripping like crazy under the trailer. While these two leaks helped explain why the trailer seemed to have gone off level, we sure weren’t happy with the reason.

Instead of the romantic RV notion of hiking, bird watching, and playing cards, we faced the reality of trying to find solutions on a Sunday in a state with strong Blue Laws.

We succeeded in reorganizing our stuff and finding better ways to store it. We also thought through some solutions to the leak problems and some work-arounds to make life a bit easier in the water-less interim.

We also returned the heater and bought a different brand. We found boxes at Staples that fit perfectly in the cupboards under the bed and the storage area in the back of the trailer. They are called “Really Useful Box” and they really are!

Day #3 - Congaree National Park

Saturday, November 28, 2009 – Day #3

Lexington SC

High 50s; sunny

Woke warm and toasty under our fleece blanket (thanks, Tina), our Polartec sleeping bags, and one Mountain Hardware 40/25 Flip. Although we haven’t set up the thermometer yet, we’re guessing low 40s or upper 30s. Bright sunny skies; a Pine Siskin in the tree outside our dining room window. We agreed to hike first and peel another layer off our Onion of Clutter later today.

We ran into horrendous football traffic on our way to Congaree National Park. According to all the eye candy on the SUVs, cars, and vans, little orange kitty paws would soon be fighting angry chickens. (Thanks, Debbie, for telling us it was Clemson and USC.) While there was no road rage, nobody was driving nicely either – not letting folks in the way we do in the ‘Burgh.

Entering Congaree National Park (http://www.nps.gov/cosw) was like entering a different world. Trees grew high along the road, nearly touching over us, like a tunnel. This is a relatively new park and there was quite a bit of Tree Hugger vs. Logger fighting prior to its designation as a national park. We walked along 2 ½ miles of boardwalk.

The trees in CNP average over 130 feet high. It is said that the forest canopy formed by the trees is taller than any deciduous forest on earth. We saw a Loblolly Pine that is the tallest in the state. Another, which had fallen during Hurricane Hugo, was over 200 years old. American Beech, Bald Cypress, and Tupelo also grow in this swamp. Often, after one of these trees dies – usually due to lightning – it gradually becomes hollow. Bats nest in the hollow trees, sometimes as many as a thousand in each one.

Wildlife seen in the park:

• Squirrels

• Eastern Wood-Peewee

• Yellow Bellied Sapsuckers

• Ruby-Crowned Kinglet

• Pileated Woodpecker

• Red-Bellied Woodpecker

• Granola girl nature photographer on an unsuccessful quest for tree frogs

We drove back to our trailer in the same football traffic. Many roads were closed. We took the detour suggested by our GPS; it took us right by the stadium. Maggie (our nickname for our GPS) Magellan has a sick sense of humor. Even though the Kitty Paws lost, their fans were the only ones smiling. Go figure.

Day #2 - Our First Campground

Friday, November 27, 2009 – Day #2

Wytheville VA to Lexington SC

Came out of the motel to find snow on the trailer. Okay, so it was only a one-foot stripe across the front and barely an inch deep, but it WAS snow. Can’t wait to get south. Today we descend 3010 feet, from 3295 in Wytheville to 285 in Columbia, to the coastal plain. We are expecting to be white-knuckled for the next few hours.

Came through the mountains without any problems. It was a very gradual slope and the views were gorgeous. The North Carolina welcome center was one of the prettiest with lots of stone work outside and a wonderful mosaic of wildlife inside. At the South Carolina welcome center, we were greeted by Baptists bearing Little Debbie Cakes. Christmas Little Debbie Cakes and small vessels of Deer Park water bearing a label that said, “This water is free just as the love of Christ is a free gift to you. Blessing on your journey.” Actually it was quite kind and a welcome sentiment. Thank you.

Snacked in the truck on PB&J, jerky, Little Debbie cakes, and other various junk. Arrived in Lexington SC cranky. Wonder why. Knew we weren’t hungry so we set up the trailer at the Barnyard Campground. Joanne had advised us to always have a nourishing snack before attempting trailer set-up. Instead, we made a promise to each other to be kind and gentle, and we were.

Went to local Mexican restaurant (San Jose) famished and cranky. Scarrfed down copious amounts of chips, thus ensuring we could bring half our main courses home for the next day. This is a Good Thing because it was some of the best Mexican food we have eaten. We recommend the chicken ranchero and the pork carnitas.

After dinner, we drove down the main drag looking for some excitement. Found a Piggley Wiggley and a Wal-Mart. Didn’t go to either….yet.

We arrived back to our little home and were confronted by all our stuff. Just two days ago, we were so pleased and happy to have stowed all our belongings in this tiny space. Now, we can’t wait to pare down some more. It felt like towers leaning over to engulf us. Go figure.

We plugged in the electric heater and started to work on it. After the heater blew out (probably a short developed during travel), we turned on the furnace.  Sure were glad we filled the propane tanks and had warm sleeping bags.