So, Arts In The Park has come and gone. The weather was a mixed bag of tricks, rain one minute and sunshine the next. In spite of the rain, we had a good crowd and I met some great folks including new neighbors.
The ground became soggy enough to turn into mud and the art center spread hay which only helped marginally.
However, it was warm enough for shorts and as always the air was fresh and the mountains were beautiful. I’m sure the people who came from out of town enjoyed their weekend.
Thanks for stopping and visiting.
On Monday, September 15th we made our official inaugural excursion in the T.O.A.D. (Winnebago Rialta).
We arrived at Standing Indian Campground in the Nantahala Forest of North Carolina. It was a darn steep grade we climbed getting there and the transmission fluid temperature was entirely too hot by the time we crested the mountain. I think it survived but a transmission cooler is now high on the list of things to do to the T.O.A.D.
We found site #14 at the Headwaters of the Nantahala River right away and put boots on the ground. Boy, the temperature of that water was chilly. I checked and it was 58 degrees.
Since Standing Indian offers no hookups for RVs, setup was simple. Back T.O.A.D. into place, open the door and windows and crank out the awning.
#14 is a great site. It has no space for neighbors on one side and the other side is a nice distance from anyone. Walk right out the back of the site and up a small hill and you are at the bathrooms. And nice bathrooms they are, clean, concrete, wonderfully private showers with hot water and convenient.
One of the community fresh water spigots just happen to be right ouside the site so I used very little of my on board 45 gallon fresh water supply. That was nice.
HeyLeigh and I went for a walk around the loop to check things out where we met our camp hosts, Judy and Gerald Morgan. They also operate the camp office/general store. They gave me some great information and maps outlining where the trails are and general layout of the camping areas.
What was left of the afternoon, we sat at the site and relaxed. I with an Irish whiskey of course and HeyLeigh with a dog treat. Oh, I thoroughly enjoyed having ice in the freezer to pour my Jameson over. Our one pot dinner was cooked outside on the 1 burner Coleman propane stove. After, I read a bit and by the time we turned in, I had to close the windows. It was pleasantly cool and we slept well. Monday was a delightful day.
Tuesday morning we awoke around 05:30. I put a kettle of water on the stove in the RV. A short time later thanks to hot water and a coffee press we sat outside and enjoyed our morning coffee – pretty much the same as at home. Ahhhh Life Is Good!
At first light we hiked over to the Group Campsites and explored Kimsey Creek. The campsite area is in a glen where large and obviously old apple trees thrive. I was amazed by the number of apples lying on the ground. I’m certain the bears and other critters love that place.
Apples at the group campsites
When we returned home to the T.O.A.D. I scrambled some eggs and sausage with green peppers for breakfast. Oh, and another round of coffee was in order too.
After breakfast I tested the generator. It took way too long to warm up and had difficulty carrying the load when I turned on most of the appliances. Fortunately it wasn’t a big deal and I let it go for the time being. After giving it some thought (and reading the manual) I decided it was running too rich at the altitude we were. After I returned home to Blairsville, I checked it out and tweaked the carburetor. Bingo! No more problems.
Next we hiked back to Kimsey Creek. This time I brought a pan along with me. Kimsey Creek is well known for its gemstones and rubies, sapphires and garnets can be found if you look in the right places. I found lots of tiny garnets. It is amazing how every handful of gravel from the creek bed is littered with bright red pieces of garnet. I didn’t find any rubies or sapphires though. Well, I might have tossed them back being as how I haven’t a clue what they should look like in the raw. We were un-plugged entirely, we had no cellular coverage or other form of internet. I couldn’t research them online while I was there. Next time I’ll bring reference material. Lots of it!
We also hiked along several of the other trails in the area which are native and natural (not unlike living on the national forest back home). The late afternoon once again brought the pleasure of an Irish whiskey over ice. This time it was accompanied by a delightful Ybor City cigar. Did I mention that Life Is GOOD?
Dinner was a warmup of Monday’s dinner which was just as good the second time around. I lit the single mantle Coleman propane lamp and settled in with a good book for the evening. The weather was perfect, we didn’t encounter any annoying insects and the silence IS golden.
Once again I brewed coffee in the morning and we sat outside enjoying the early dawning of the day. This time I headed out with the camera to try and catch some early, first light photos. Upon return it was eggs and sausage and then a stroll around the camping area.
We struck the colors and broke camp around 11:00. I chose a different route for the return trip. I didn’t feel like riding the brakes all the way down that mountain. We went over to Franklin and picked up 441 south through Dillard to Clayton GA where we turned onto 76 which takes me right back home through Hiawassee and Young Harris. It was a peaceful drive.
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Boy was I happy when I dropped the pan from the Rialta transmission this morning and found no metal shavings or particles attached to the magnet in the bottom. Oh, there was a generous amount of goop. But no evidence of any serious issues. I guess the153,000 miles it traveled have been gentle.
I installed the new dipstick (VW sealed the transmission – no dipstick), cleaned things up a bit, replaced the filter and reinstalled the pan. After filling it and bringing everything up to temperature, everything was dry.
I drove over to Tennessee (around 60 miles round trip). We climbed enough hills to thoroughly heat up the transmission, monitoring the fluid temperature the entire way. For having no after market transmission cooler, it did alright.
So, with that behind us, we’re heading for Standing Indian campground for a couple days, the first of the week.
Let the games begin!
Cheers
Well, I think I’m ready to take the Rialta out for a little test camping trip. We’re going to Standing Indian Campground in North Carolina. This campground has no electric, water or sewer hook ups so we’ll have a chance to test the stand-alone systems a little.
I have a friend who did some panning in a creek there where he found an abundance of small saphires and rubies. I’m looking forward to checking this out for myself.
