Twelve Feet, Six Continents, One Year

For starters, I mistakenly thought the Blue Ridge Parkway ended in Asheville, a beautiful small city nestled in the mountainous western region of North Carolina. Not so! We aimed for milepost 380 of the BRP but the roadway doesn't end until MP 469, in Great Smoky Mountain National Park, in Tennessee. Oops. Another mistake was the RV Park where we made a reservation for our arrival. Remember the absolutely gorgeous Stone Mountain State Park I mentioned previously? The one with epic quiet and space for the kids to roam? Yeah, this one had a pool so dirty the bottom was invisible. And a playground with free tetanus. Also, nothing separating our camping pad from the adjacent (45 mph) roadway. Fortunately, we were able to relocate to somewhere much better for the next two nights. Our weekend in Asheville really had two highlights. One was visiting with family. Elise's Uncle Tom and Aunt Martha retired to Asheville to enjoy a view of the mountains and having black bears as neighb...

One picture captures these last few days in the Appalachian Mountains of western Virginia and North Carolina: From an itinerary point of view, here's the recap: Monday: Wake up in Luray, VA. Avoid the northern terminus because there is a 12'9" overpass and we are 12'6" (but told to round up to 13'0"). Enter parkway at MP 90 (after harrowing ascent from Buchanan, VA) and drive four miles north to Peaks of Otter campground. Tuesday: Breakfast and schooling in Peaks of Otter lodge; hike to the top of Sharp Top Mountain. Campfire. Sleep. There's an entire entry dedicated to this day here . Wednesday: Drive south on the parkway for about 25 miles then exit to Roanoke; eat lunch, use laundromat and do school in a dubious parking lot; take interstate into North Carolina and get a little wayward (not lost!) en route to absolultely gorgeous Stone Mountain State Park. Thursday: Return to Parkway via numerous hairpin turns and drive north, back into V...