Tire Trouble

I decided to get an oil change today, even though it was a few hundred miles too early.  Someone must have been watching over me, because the dealer found a nail in the sidewall of one of my tires, and it was not fixable.  Who knows what might have happened if this hadn't been discovered?  Had to put the spare on, but the lock on the spare cover had something broken off in it.  I told the guys to break the lock, after they assured me the latch would still be fine and the spare would not be flopping all over the highway.  But now I need a new tire, because I really don't want to be driving without one.

After calling many tire stores, no one carries the Bridgestone V-Steel rib 265 LT245/75R16 120-110 Load Range E.  What to do?  As I continue on my journey, I will keep calling tire stores on my way, hoping they can help me.

Tonight's campground is okay, but the site I'm in is nowhere near level, I have to go to the clubhouse to get wifi, and I'm peckish because of my tire.  Tomorrow will be spent at Appomattox Courthouse which will take my mind off my temporary troubles.

It's a Slow News Day

Slow because we just traveled from one campsite to the next with no planned genealogy/history/tourist attraction on the way.  It rained most of the night and the thunder and lightning were fantastic!  First time since I've owned WindDancer that there has been a storm.  It was still raining this morning, so did not leave the campsite until nearly noon.

There was nothing planned, but I found something along the way to investigate anyway.  There is a town called Saltville, Virginia, and it's fame is reflected in it's name.  It is a major salt-producing town.  There were two Civil War battles there - who knew?  The battles were over control of the salt source.  Confederates won one battle, Federals the other.  There is a museum housing the history of the town plus a lot of dinosaur fossils that have been excavated from the surrounding area.  The museum is run by a lovely lady who filled me full of local history (General J.E.B. Stuart's wife made her home in Saltville after old J.E.B. died in the Civil War) and sent me off with a complimentary sample of salt, which she claims is 99% sodium chloride, no additives.  I will not be sharing it with one of my children who already uses too much salt.

Comedy of Errors

Took the long, winding road to what I thought would be the cemetery.  Had the correct address put into the GPS.  No cemetery, just a hayfield and a church.  Scratched the spare tire cover by backing into a barbed wire fence trying to get out of the hayfield.  Back down the road, this time it seemed longer and more wind-ey.

Then to Bean Station.  It is still a thriving town, and the people at the tourist information center were happy to meet the great-great-great-great-great granddaughter of William Bean.  I was thinking there was a monument here, but there was none.  Just a plaque on a scenic overlook that says,

BEAN STATION

One of Tennessee's earliest settlements.  The valley you see was a warpath for the Cherokees, led Daniel Boone to Cumberland Gap and was traveled by Davy Crockett.  Across Highway 11W to the right stood Bean Fort, built by William Bean, first permanent white settler in Tennessee.  In front of the fort stood Bean Station Tavern, the largest tavern between Washington, D.C. and New Orleans.  It hosted Presidents Polk, Johnson and Jackson.  During the Civil War, the Battle of Bean Station was fought around the tavern.

It was time to find the campground for tonight.  I had not made reservations, but had the address.  A camping friend of mine, who also travels solo, said she never makes reservations, so I was not too worried.  Famous last words.  Found the campground, all right, but there was no one in the office which was locked tight at four in the afternoon.  Wandered around and found there were no sites that I could drive my RV straight through - I am a danger to others and myself if I need to back into a space.  So I decided against that campground and drove on.  And on.  And on.  Where is a sign pointing to a campground when you need one?  After a few hours I found a sign and followed it.  When I reached the campground there was yet another sign, this one stating the campground was permanently closed as of May 15, 2013.  I literally laughed out loud!  On the road again, I passed a Hampton Inn and seriously considered staying there.  But stubbornness won out and I continued to follow the next campground sign.  I am now only an hour away from tomorrow's campground!!  But this campground sign proved reliable and I am now cozily ensconced in a forested area with darkness descending.  My site is not supposed to receive wi-fi, but so far the signal is good enough.

Definitely time to turn in for the night.  I am now traveling in the Eastern time zone, so I lost an hour crossing over some bridge in Tennessee.

Mixed Results

Today was Fentress County, Tennessee genealogy research day.  I had three cemeteries to find, and a library to visit that was reputed to have excellent Fentress County genealogy information.

I found only one cemetery.  The one with only one ancestor in it.  She must not have liked the place, because she was not there.  Maybe she picked up her headstone and moved to somewhere more to her satisfaction.

The library did indeed have lots of information, and I spent two hours copying names, dates, offspring and random facts into my genealogy program.

Upon returning to camp I did a more extensive search to find the two missing cemeteries.  I tried every keyword combination I could think of and at last got information on one of the graveyards.  Even got turn-by-turn directions.  So tomorrow, first thing, before setting out on the next leg of the journey, a trip to Bowden Cemetery is planned.  This is the cemetery with the most ancestors in residence, too!

Mammoth Cave

Fun excursion today to Mammoth Cave.  The park ranger who led our tour told us to imagine a bowl of plain spaghetti, then turn the bowl upside down onto a plate.  That is how twisted and tangled the 400-odd miles of caverns are!  It's the world's longest known cave system.

Spending the night in Jamestown, Tennessee where I will return to my genealogy work tomorrow, searching out ancient graveyards.

The Hermitage

The Hermitage is the home of President Andrew Jackson (1767-1845).  Most of the furnishings are from the period the Jacksons lived there.  The rooms are very large and beautifully preserved.  Local reenactors act as guides.

The employees here were very interested in my personal connection with Jackson.  My distant cousin was a rifle maker in Tennessee.  He would make his rifles then take them down to Louisiana to sell.  He would be gone more than a year each trip.  Once he returned to find his wife with a brand new baby.  Furious with her infidelity, he cut the ears off that baby to mark it forever as being illegitimate.  Then he ran, knowing this terrible act would rightfully put him in jail for a very long time.  At last he stated he would surrender only to the local lawman:  Andrew Jackson.  This, of course, was long before the Presidency.  There is a History Channel program about Andrew Jackson and about 20 minutes into the program is the story of my cousin (four times removed, thank goodness) and his surrender to Jackson.  And that is my personal, dubious connection with the former President.

A wagon tour is offered, winding through the grounds and explaining how the plantation operated. The 1,120 acres also contain a 1.5 mile walking trail accompanied by an audio program that highlights some of the 40+ sites on the property.  I took advantage of both, and it was well worth it.  My feet, however, are annoyed that I only wore sandals.  Tomorrow I should break out the sneakers.

Carnton Plantation

Today's sightseeing trip was to Carnton Plantation in Franklin, Tennessee.  This is one of the main reasons for my summer adventure, second only to the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg which occurs next month.  Carnton was beautifully portrayed in Robert Hicks' book, Widow of the South in which he explained how the plantation became a field hospital after the Battle of Franklin on November 30, 1864 (see previous post).  I read the book several years ago and promptly added Carnton Plantation to my Bucket List.  The home is restored and includes many items belonging to the McGavocks, owners of the plantation at the time.  The clock in the parlor, which belonged to Carrie McGavock, still works and chimed the hour during our tour.  There are collections of Civil War-era medical kits, including a bone saw and an early intubation device.  Many Confederate soldiers stayed in the home for months recuperating from their wounds.  A greater number did not survive and are today interred on the grounds of the plantation, each of the 1,481 graves now marked with stone markers replacing the original wooden head and foot boards.

Franklin, Tennessee

The town of Franklin was the scene of a bloody Civil War battle on November 30, 1864.  On a walking tour of the area it was discovered that cannon balls fell on top of houses, went through the roof, sometimes through the flooring on the second floor, and landed on the first floor creating a large dent in the wooden flooring which still exists today.  Many private homes, as well as the Episcopal church and the Masonic Temple, were used as field hospitals.  The house of Fountain Branch Carter, a wealthy Franklin citizen, was located just inside the Federal (Union) defensive perimeter.  The fighting in his yard was bloody and savage, with bodies piled like cord wood in the end.  The battle lasted only five hours but resulted in some 9500 casualties: 2000 dead, 6500 wounded and some 1000 missing.  This is the back of two outbuildings on the Carter premises, showing bullet damage:

Across the street from the Carters, a family named Lotz (rhymes with "moats") had nowhere to hide in their home, so they went to the Carter house and stayed in their basement along with the Carters and several others for the duration of the siege.  The Lotz house was heavily damaged and it took more than four years to repair until the family could live in it again.  Eventually the Lotz family moved to California, Mr. Lotz being unable to build his furniture making business back to the point where it could support his family.

After the

Nashville

There has been no blog for a few days.  I have been researching my Tennessee roots by visiting libraries and schlepping through graveyards.  Not of great interest to most of my readers.  Plus the fact the campground where I stayed had no wi-fi.  It was a beautiful place, though, and my campsite was directly on lovely Lake Nickajack.  Here is a view from the door of WindDancer:

Hard to leave a view like that, right?

But now it is on to Nashville, which will be my home base for the next several days.  No more genealogy for a while, just being a tourist with emphasis on history.

Sweet Home Alabama

Never a dull day!  Got a phone call this morning that I had fraudulent activity on my credit card (the one I left at home).  It so happens this is the credit card that much of my automatic payments are charged to.  The bank canceled the card and will send a new one to my home address.  This is fine, since I wasn't using it on this trip anyway.

And thank you, technology!  In the matter of half an hour I went online to the vendors who send their charges to the old card and changed the payment method to one of the cards I'm carrying on the trip.  All is well in cyberspace.

I planned a scenic route to tonight's destination in the hope that I would find something interesting to explore on the way.  I am here to tell you there is nothing to do on US 72 in Mississippi and Alabama.  So Magellan and I arrived at the campsite earlier than anticipated.  The internet signal was very weak, so little work got done and it was early to bed for this girl.

Memphis

Graceland Mansion – check

Elvis’ two custom jets – check
Elvis automobile museum - check
Elvis Hawaii exhibit - check
Sun Records - check
Beer and Blues on Beale Street - check

And I more than did my part to contribute to the local economy!  'Nuff said.

Haven't had this much fun in ages.
 

Toad Suck!

Another long day of driving.  Today I found the elusive Toad Suck, Arkansas.  It is little more than a wide place in the road, but ever since I heard the name ten years ago it was on my bucket list to visit, just because it’s strange.  Here’s what the internet has to say about it:

Long ago, steamboats traveled the Arkansas River when the water was at the right depth. When it wasn't, the captains and their crew tied up to wait where the Toad Suck Lock and Dam now spans the river. While they waited, they refreshed themselves at the local tavern there, to the dismay of the folks living nearby, who said: "They suck on the bottle 'til they swell up like toads." Hence, the name Toad Suck. The tavern is long gone, but the legend lives on.

Here are the highlights of Toad Suck:

Really.  Those are the highlights.  Buck's is the local watering hole.  It doesn't open until 2 in the afternoon.

I don’t like heights.  Just ask my family.  There are a lot of bridges in this country, and a lot of them are really high.  I have to resort to my Lamaze breathing to get across them.  And when they are not only high but over water like the Mighty Mississippi, well, just let it be said I turn a little pale.  There were many bridges on today's route, and my shoulders were up around my ears every time.

This is Magellan:

He is my copilot on this trip and may appear in future photos if he is not too shy.

After visiting Beautiful Downtown Toad Suck, Magellan and I continued on to Memphis to visit Graceland.  We got there late in the afternoon, so all sightseeing will be done tomorrow and the next day.  Until then, it’s time for a shower and some vegan junk food for dinner.

Nitey-night!

Relaxing in Arkansas

Maybe I was just tired from a long day of driving.  Maybe it was because the propane alarm kept going off for no reason.  Maybe it was the good air.  In any case, I so overslept this morning that I had to bypass one of the sights I wanted to see so that I could get to tonight's campground in time.  Lesson learned, and alarm set for tomorrow morning.  Cannot wait to see Toad Suck, Arkansas!  There has to be a story behind the name of that town!

Day One: San Antonio to Colbert, OK

No matter how you slice it, it takes a very long time to get out of Texas!  Camping tonight on the Red River, in a very pleasant RV park about 25 yards inside the Oklahoma state line. 

GPS is a wonderful thing, although the "Lady in the Box" actually started to sound annoyed about the third time she said "recalculating" when I deviated from her instructions.  I had a good reason, though:  she was directing me through a town where my birth mother grew up and is buried.  I took the chance to go to the graveyard and pay her a visit.  I told her about my adventure this summer, and that I was doing some genealogical work on our common ancestors.  I think she would be proud of me;  she was a defiantly independent woman when such were much rarer than today.

T Minus One

The big adventure starts tomorrow.  So today is filled with last-minute chores plus meeting half a dozen friends for a Bon Voyage lunch.  I keep wondering whether I should/should not take something on the trip, then it occurs to me that there are indeed shops and stores strewn throughout the United States.  So most things will likely be left behind, filling in as needed.

Honestly, I'm wondering if I've lost my mind, embarking on such an ambitious trek.