Friday, October 8, 2010

Annual Unplugging 2010

This past weekend (9/24/2010 - 9/27/2010) we decided that we would take a week of vacation, me away from work and Wifey away from most of the house work. That's right Kiddo did have to go to school for most of the week but hey, the days she did have off were fun for her I'm sure.

So with Friday the start of our vacation we decided what better place to unplug than our favorite camping area, Frozen Head State Park in Wartburg, TN. Wifey, being the most excellent wifey there could ever possibly be, had everything packed up, loaded up, and ready to go as soon as I got home from my half day of work on Friday. We got to the park and had our tent, canopy, and the rest of camp set up within a couple hours all while the kiddo collected wood for the fire.

It was unfortunate to find out that the bathhouse was closed all day Friday, but for good reason. You see they had laid new tile in the bathhouse which is a big upgrade from the concrete slab that served as the floor for as long as we've been camping, hiking, picnicking, etc. there. I just want to inject here real quick the importance of the floor as there is more to this side story later. So with the prospect of no bathhouse for the evening, we were not dismayed as it was just a short hop to the bath rooms across from the playground. Of course having to go at 2a.m. might prove a bit more challenging considering the circumstances.

After settling in for the weekend, and facing the news of no bathhouse for the night, we opted for some supper. Wifey had prepared most of the food prior to heading to camp. For the first evening we supped on, BBQ Sandwiches that Wifey made the the night before and only had to heat up on the Coleman stove.

After supper it was time for coffee and sitting around the fire relaxing and enjoying the evening. Oh yeah and the short trek to the bathrooms when necessary due to the bathhouse.... We actually made a pretty short night of it as we were totally exhausted from the day's activities and hit the sack earlier than normal.

The next morning we awoke to find that it had rained overnight. Our Eureka tent had done well considering. There were a couple of damp spots here and there but nothing to totally discourage us from staying. Luckily it was done raining once we made our way out. While it was a bit soggy outside it didn't keep us from our morning coffee nor our breakfast of biscuits and sausage gravy. Have I mentioned how much I love the Coleman Stove?

For the most part we hung around camp collecting wood for the evening fire, walking the Trusty Sidekick around and playing with her, and the normal what not stuff you do around camp. Later in the afternoon, mom and dad came up to visit and have supper with us. The evening menu included Chili and cornbread made in the dutch oven. Of course there was Birthday Cake for dessert as Wifey's birthday was the following Tuesday and mom and dad brought a cake up with them.

We enjoyed the evening fire and sitting around having good conversation until it was past dusk and mom and dad had to depart and head back to the homestead. Afterward, it wasn't long before kiddo and the side kick were ready to hit the hay. By the way, the bathhouse was open this day so we didn't have to walk or drive to use the facilities. It wasn't long after the kids were in bed that we hit the bathhouse to clean up and refresh ourselves before heading to bed ourselves.

Sunday we awoke to find that luckily it had not rained. Sunday was a wonderful day weather wise. For breakfast we had some tasty pancakes and bacon with juice thanks to wifey's wonderful camp culinary skills. It was this day that we had really taken notice to the fact that the lady who cleaned the bathhouse daily was really taking the cleaning of the new floor to a bit of an extreme. In years past she would normally do the regular cleaning between 10-11 am like the sign says, at which time the bath house is closed for said cleaning. However, it seemed that she was there every thirty minutes or so just to clean the floor. It was like an obsession or something. Of course we made light of it at the time because it really hadn't interfered with our stay really. At one point I think we dubbed her the mop lady.

Later in the afternoon, we took the side kick for a walk down the Flat Fork nature trail as she had pretty much been restricted to the campsite for the most part with the occasional excursion for potty breaks and chasing the hickory nuts that kiddo and I would hit with a stick. It was shortly after our return when we had our first encounter with the "Mop Lady". I need to use the facilities and she was in the men's room mopping the floor. Again. I leaned up against one of the rocks across from the bathhouse thinking that she would be done in just a few minutes and I could go about my business, when she stepped out and said that I needed to go down to the other restroom because everything was wet and she was cleaning the floor due to the mess they had left when the contractors laid the tile. I didn't think much of it at the time other than she was a touch rude about it and I carried on about my way just a slight bit perturbed.

A little while later we noticed she was back and well the kiddo needed to go to the bathhouse and this is were things got worse with the "Mop Lady". Kiddo returned within seconds because the "Mop Lady" told her she couldn't use the bathroom because she was cleaning the floor. However, as this whole incident occurred, there was another little girl already in there. So wifey, decided that was enough with the "Mop Lady" and proceeded to go have words with her and her obsessive behavior over the new floor. I remained at the camp site because I could see and hear everything that was going on. At one point the "Mop Lady" was no longer dubbed the "Mop Lady" when she told wifey, that "I don't give a damn if your daughter has to pee". It was at that moment that the "Mop Lady" was promoted to "The Bathroom Nazi". Wifey at that point took kiddo to the other restroom and then proceeded to the Park Office and filed an official complaint against "The Bathroom Nazi".

After that whole fiasco we were at the verge of leaving the campground and heading home a day earlier than planned. It was starting to rain at this moment and instead of packing up, we moved everything we didn't want getting soaked to either the jeep or the kitchen area. Once complete, we got in the car and headed into town for ice cream at the local Sonic. Yes, that's right, we broke the rules and went and got a treat at a fast food joint while camping, but could you blame us? Nothing cools heads better than ice cream.

Upon returning to camp, we decided we would stay the rest of the night and head out the next day. Besides "The Bathroom Nazi" was off for the rest of the day and we wouldn't have to deal with her any longer. So we chilled at camp until supper time. We built up the fire and I roasted hot dogs over the fire and warmed a can of chili in the coals. For dessert, we had left over birthday cake. It wasn't long after that the kids were ready to hit the hay. Wifey and I stayed up a while longer sitting by the fire and listening to our favorite camp radio show, "AM Coast to Coast".

Seriously, wifey isn't 92.

The next morning it had stormed early early. When we got up, it had stopped just long enough for us to decide it was time to make a quick cup of coffee and start breaking down camp. It was about an hour later and everything was packed up and we headed home.

I hope I didn't put you off on staying at Frozen Head for your next camping trip. We definitely will camp there again and again. After all, it is our favorite place to camp. The head ranger called here the other day to apologize for "The Bathroom Nazi" and to let us know he had talked to her and her behavior has been corrected.

So that's our unplugging for 2010. Well not really, that was just a small part of it. Stay tuned for more posts about the rest of our week. There is a wonderful hike wifey and I went on, and a couple of festivals we went to as well.

Happy Trails,
Tim and Robin

A few more pics from the camping trip.

Wifey just hanging around camp.

The Sidekick and I are definitely not thespians.

Sidekick just chillaxin.

Kiddo doing what she does best at camp. Reading.

Friday, October 1, 2010

Storytelling Time in Tennessee

The weekend before last we went through the out door and headed up to Big South Fork NRRA for the annual A Haunting in the Hills story telling festival. I'll just say that we had a load of fun listening to the stories. They had some wonderful storytellers again this year along with the ever wonderful MC and Storyteller in her own right, Faye Wooden.

We arrived just before dusk, in time for us to grab some food, or what was left of the food at the 2 vendor areas that were there, and settle in for some amazingly spooky, haunting, stories. That's right we missed the dulcimer and bluegrass music but that's okay, we can certainly catch it next time. Besides there was work to be done around the house before we could get up there.

Anyway, back to the storytellers. As I said their stories were amazing. This year the featured storytellers included Gran'daddy June Bug (Mitch Capel), Charles Maynard, Joyce Slater, and Elizabeth Ellis. I have to say that this year Gran'daddy June Bug was the storyteller of the night. Not to take anything away from the other storytellers as they are great in their own right. However, Mitch really gave a spectacular show. He had the kids involved and in an uproar with his first story and then really tugged the heart strings with his last story.

After enjoying the evening of haunting, chilling, and heart wrenching stories not to mention the cheeseburgers and popcorn, we called it a night and headed back to the homestead. I believe that even the kiddo's friend enjoyed the haunting stories as well as her cheeseburger hold the burger.

Until the next installment, which will be soon because I'm quite behind considering we've been on vacation this week and have done much.

Happy trails and go through that out door as much as possible.

God Bless,
Tim and Robin

P.S. Pictures may be included at a later time. It really all depends on if they are any count or not. They were mainly night shots.

Saturday, September 18, 2010

September Out of Doors East Tennessee

As you all know, Fall is in the air and rapidly approaching. This can only mean one thing here in East Tennessee. It's time to get out of doors and enjoy our natural wonders, take in the local culture, and just be outside. From football, to heritage festivals, this time of year really brings out the best of what Tennessee has to offer, well at least in my humble opinion. Robin hates football.

If festivals aren't your sort of thing, then maybe a scenic drive, or a wondrous hike in many of the great parks East Tennessee has to offer. I for one can say, that I am looking most forward to the Haunting in the Hills storytelling festival at Big South Fork today. It's been an annual favorite for our family, and this year will be no different.

Camping is another great thing to undertake this time of year, the weather is starting to cool down, which means less bugs, and less heat. Several of the parks in East Tennessee offer rustic tent style camping. If you prefer to go deeper in the woods and away from the campground crowds, then the back country should fit the bill. The Smokys, Big South Fork, Frozen Head, you name it, there are plenty of back country camp sites to enjoy.

If you'd like to find out more about the festivals that are around the area, I suggest you check out tnvacation.com. They have a wonderful listing of festivals and other entertainment options in the East Tennessee area and more.

So if you've been cooped up and crazy busy this summer due to the heat, work, family, etc. take some time this weekend to get out of the doors and experience life around you. I know we will.

Happy Trails,
Tim and Robin

Monday, September 6, 2010

Big Ridge Cycling

So this morning, after a cup of coffee, Wifey suggests a bike ride at Big Ridge State Park. Of course I think this is a grand idea. It's still early, cool, and I've always loved cycling. This of course isn't the first bike ride we've been on. We've done the Virginia Creeper Trail earlier this year, mountain biked at Panther Creek State Park, even rode Cades Cove loop in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and rode a nice mountain bike trail in Big South Fork NRRA.

Since I agreed enthusiastically, we left our back deck and went to don our cycling apparel and prepare for the ride. It had been quite some time since we last had the mountain bikes out, and you know what that means. That's right, you guessed it, they had to be wiped down and cleared from spider webs and the tires needed a good airing. Once that was complete I loaded the bikes into the back of the jeep. We recently purchased a new car and hadn't tried our bike rack on it yet for fear we might tear of the rear window wiper.

With the bikes loaded, water bottles at the ready and helmets in hand, we were off to Big Ridge. Upon arriving, the sun was shining bright, the weather was just a touch warmer. Looks like wifey's bet of freezing while on the ride was lost. We started down by the gristmill, up the hill towards the front of the park, around the campground, past the swimming area and tea room, out to the front entrance, back towards the gristmill to the back entrance, turned around and went back to the gristmill and for good measure back to the back entrance and to the gristmill once more.

Total approximate distance was 3.5 miles. Don't know how long it took us but I could tell it had been awhile since we had been in the saddle. For those who are interested, here is a link to the course we took, mapped out on gmap-pedometer.com. The course isn't exact as the campground and the tea room roads aren't properly mapped on Google maps. http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=4020623.

Anyway, it was truly a wonderful way to start our Labor Day. Until next time, stay out of doors as much as possible. There's a whole world outside waiting for you.

Well wishes,
Tim and Robin.

It's a Byrd, it's a Creek...

Fall is in the air this weekend here in East Tennessee. Although we are in the last stretch of Summer, this weekend has felt like the beginning of Autumn. With this being the case and the additional bonus of it being Labor Day weekend, we decided it was high time to get in the woods.

While a camping trip would have been wonderful, and I guarantee one is being planned for later in the month, we really couldn't swing one this weekend. So instead we opted for a nice hike at Cumberland Mountain State Park.

As always, the night before we were ~~looking~~ researching a place to hike. We decided, since it had been a few months since our last hike, we'd do something that was a bit easy to more or less get back into the swing of things. Additionally, since we've done most of the short easy hikes that are in our vicinity we decided on Byrd Creek Trail to Cumberland Plateau Nature Trail.

This hike was only 2.7 miles and had a total elevation gain/loss of approximately 60ft. For the beginner to intermediate hiker, this is just enough to get the heart rate up and the terrain is good to "cut your teeth on". It was a mix of soft sand and pine needles in some spots and real rooty, and/or rocky in others.

The park itself is really pretty, offering plenty amenities for those that don't hike or need something extra. The history of the park is rather interesting much like the origin of the man-made dam. Unfortunately the lake was down causing Byrd Creek to seem rather unmoving and a bit stagnant. Aside from this, there was plenty of flora and fauna to admire along with birds, trees, and other cool trail features like the Boy Scout bridge just before the nature trail portion of the hike.

So that's all we've got on this adventure. Stay tuned for our next edition. As the weather turns cooler there will be more adventures to go on. Until then, enjoy the pictures.

P.S. - For a more in-depth trail description check out cloudhiking.com's entry. Keep in mind we did the hike in the reverse direction and did not do the Overnight trail portion.