On the road to South Carolina - Clemson and Beaufort

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Hey there everyone, we're on the road again. This year we're not doing any volunteer work. We loved the experience last year ( the blog entries for that trip start inDecember 2011) but the volunteer situation we were accepted for this year involved cleaning public bathrooms and that is just not part of our retirement plan. Ron told them that when they hired professional cleaning crews we would apply again.





We left Brighton on November 25, Sunday at about 9 and pulled into Levi Jackson State Park near Corbin, KY around 6pm. A great little park and perfect as a park to organize all the stuff we just threw into the camper before we left. Somewhere along the way one of the rear panels fell off the camper!! It's like losing a back panel off a car. It is covered under the warranty, but we have to find the time and a place to take care of it. Sheesh!





We have been wanting to try out some Corp of Engineer parks and our next stop was in Clemson, South Carolina, at just such a park called Twin Lakes Campground. Electric and water hook ups for $12 a night for oldsters - can't beat that. Our site had a sweeping view of the lake, and since Kristin introduced us to taking panoramic pictures on our phones, this was a perfect time to try it out.





We had good weather for our 4 night stay in this park and Janis, a friend of mine since 8th grade, joined us there for a few days. It was good to see her before she embarks on her own great adventure.Together we visited Pendleton, a nearby town with a great BBQ called Smoking Pig and a very quaint downtown with a town square.



We are still in S. Carolina at one of our favorite parks, Hunting Island State Park near Beaufort. We love the miles of beach along the Atlantic Ocean, the rough bike trail to the lighthouse, and the very old historic town of Beaufort. The first Spanish and French explorers arrived here in the 1520's. Beaufort also survived the Civil War when so many other southern towns were destroyed by the Union Army. The union soldiers were headquartered in the town so it was spared.

While sitting on the beach yesterday we watched pods of dolphins feeding at the surf line as the tide was going out. There was a mama dolphin and a baby going up and down in the waves - so cool to watch and so close.



Another great historic place in the area is the Old Sheldon Church which is now a ruins. the church was originally built in the 1740's - burned during the Revolutionary War - rebuilt in 1826 and burned again during the Civil War. It's a great place to visit and walk around and read the headstones in the cemetery on the grounds.



We did get out in our kayaks on Tuesday. We went to a 'creek ' off of the Suwannee River in Rincon, Georgia called Ebenezer Creek. A really weird place with huge old cypress trees all along the shore. It was a good workout and a great paddle.



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