Friends and Family on a Southern swing, Pt 1

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We decided to take a leisurely southerly swing to visit friends and family in Alabama and Florida. As mentioned in an earlier blog, my former boss, Ellen, and her husband Dennis, had retired to Double Springs, Alabama, in the northwestern part of the state. They were a prime influence on our decision to retire in AL and we have enjoyed visiting them on several occasions. I had finally gotten an appointment with a dermatologist for mid-September and we suggested since the doctor was in Cullman, about half way between us, that they could meet us for lunch after my appointment. Ellen countered with "Why not come spend a few days here before the appointment?" That was not a difficult decision to make, as we had stayed previously in June and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. So we packed up the RV and headed to Bug Tussle, Alabama to stay with our friends.

In June, we had taken the RV over and used it mostly to transport the cats and give them a place to stay at night. Dennis and Ellen have a beautiful home on Smith Lake, complete with boat house that has Seadoo, canoe, boat, and sitting area with ladders into the lake for swimming. Their house is rustic but modern with beautiful wood throughout, large rooms, large kitchen and views of the lake and woods. While visiting in June, we had taken the boat down the lake to lunch, swum several times, took the canoe out for a morning paddle, and checked out several local restaurants and sampled the wares. Ellen had fun fixing some great breakfasts, excited to find someone else who appreciated and would eat bagels and lox.

This time we enjoyed a takeout seafood dinner from Swamp Johns, had steak and met another RVer from down the road, and again enjoyed the swimming in the lake. We took Dennis and Ellen geocaching at Natural Bridge in Alabama and hiked the area and enjoyed the scenery. We also got a personal tour of the cabin Jack Daniels had been raised in and where he learned how to distill the corn into whiskey. The cabin had been purchased by a neighbor of Ellen's and she and her husband merged a modern home to it without losing any of the charm or ambiance of the home. It was an honor to be shown this beautiful treasure and have a chance to meet some very nice people in the area.

The visit went by all too fast and soon we were up and off to Cullman to visit the derm. I was pleased with the doctor, even if he did freeze spots on the head and then do two biopsies, but he gave a very thorough exam and I felt I was in good hands. By the way, the Dermatologist's name is Dr. Skinner. Really!

We left Cullman and headed south for Florida, ready to visit family and relax in the sun and surf. Heading straight through Birmingham and then around Montgomery, we angled toward Eufaula. This is a beautiful southern town on a river with real charm. It is often listed as a "Places Rated" spot for retirement and we could see why, based on the wide streets, ante-bellum homes and ample parks and recreation offerings. We pushed on through to GA and headed for Albany where we planned to spend the night, either at a WalMart or at the Marine Corps Logistics Base campground.

I called the campground several times and got no answer, so we decided it would be a night at WalMart...at least until Trish saw how close to a very busy highway it was. "No way! I won't sleep a wink with that noise," she said. So now it was on to Plan C. Only problem--I had stopped with Plan B. We saw a sign for Tourist Information and got off the by-pass and there was another sign for Camping. We decided to take a chance and followed the signs. We ended up at Chehaw Park outside Albany, a wonderful preserve with picnicking, campground, zoo, BMX trails and park, children's play areas and nature center. It was only $16 to camp and the site was shaded with water and electric, a bathhouse with good showers and a lot of peace and quiet. We now have it marked on the GPS and will plan to stop again if we are close by and traveling. It is a very convenient stop over and makes for an easy drive either direction.

The next day, we were up early and heading for Florida where we would get to spend time with Josh, Jen and Drew.

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Photos

Geocaching
This was the 2nd find. It was on a magnet up inside the post. Ellen spotted it and Dennis pulled it down. They were really excited at how this works.

Dennis finds Cache #3
I spotted the cache and let Dennis and Ellen look. They caught on quickly and had fun. We were all disappointed that the 4th on on our list eluded our find. Guess we'll have to go back!!

Alabama Natural Bridge
We actually got to the AL Natural Bridge before we have ever seen the more famous Virginia Natural Bridge. This was a quiet, beautiful spot not far from Bug Tussle, AL.