George Washington's britches

Williamsburg, VA -- With careful, tiny stitches using flax thread, the craftsman worked on the supple deerskin leather as a pair of wheat-coloured knee-length britches took shape on his work table. He was just one of a series of artisans we visited through the day on our tour of Colonial Williamsburg. The britches would soon be worn by George Washington -- well, his impersonator -- in a dramatic presentation to audiences of school kids, families, and retirees like us in the coming season.

It's a great way to absorb American history -- in a living village of costumed colonials with a wealth of information to share. We took the short drive from our campground this morning, having donned our sturdy walking shoes and Tilley hats, and having consulted the weather forecast. It promised a high in the upper eighties -- in great contrast to yesterday -- and we were ready.

It was not an overly busy day, so it was easy to pop in and out of various historic sites and watch people at work. We chatted with a wheelmaker, who told us about the strength and grain of different woods as he smoothed the spokes of a large wagon wheel with a rasp. Then it was a chocolate-making expert, grinding roasted cocoa nibs on a hot stone into a glorious, thick mass of molten deliciousness.

Some of our visits were guided tours, and at one of them the guide asked if anyone had been to Williamsburg before. One said five years ago, one a couple of years, then I said "fifty years!" -- which in fact was wrong; it was actually more like sixty years since my last visit! Yikes! Am I that old?? But yes, when we lived in Washington, DC in the fifties, our family made the trip to Williamsburg. I must confess I didn't recognize much, but I'm sure it's probably a totally different place from those days.

They say it takes at least one full day to see everything. We saw a lot, but we certainly only scratched the surface. Still, it was great to chat with artisans of every type, and to stroll on the shady streets as ox carts or horse-drawn carriages clip-clopped by. We stopped in at Chowning's Tavern for a tasty lunch with a stein of ale and a meal made with fresh, locally grown ingredients.

Some of the buildings are accessible to ticket-holders like us, while others -- like the taverns and gift shops -- are commercial establishments anyone can visit. They had lovely wooden utensils, silver jewelry, old-fashioned toys like penny whistles and rag dolls, and linen napkins that are one yard square. That was one thing I did remember from the last time; we ate at a restaurant where the servers tied huge yard-square napkins around our necks, practically drowning us kids in cloth folds! The tri-corner hats were another souvenir my brothers acquired those long years ago. Nowadays, each one costs $30! There were lovely Christmas tree ornaments but I wasn't willing to part with $25 for a little tin carriage, so we kept our wallets in our pockets.

By day's end, we had hit 86 humid degrees, and I was grateful for the occasional water fountain on the grounds, disguised behind wooden barrels. I was also glad I didn't have to spend the day in a long mutton-sleeved dress, apron and bonnet!

Where are my woolies?

Williamsburg, VA -- Beautiful azalea shrubs decorate the front entrance to our KOA campground here in historic Williamsburg. We've seen lots of gardens on our journey today displaying this showy emblem of spring in shades of red, peach, pink and white -- lovely. The campground is large and beautifully maintained, and surprisingly underpopulated at the moment, so we almost have it to ourselves.

 Brisk was the descriptor of the day today; I was loathe to emerge from my snuggly sleeping bag this morning! Expecting that it would warm up as the day wore on, I donned my usual light clothes and sandals and Val set out with T-shirt and shorts. By the time we stopped for lunch, we noticed most people were dressed in long pants and fleeces, and after supper we capitulated and turned on our furnace for the first time! It barely made it into the low sixties at best -- no idea why, but apparently the chill will be short-lived: tomorrow they're predicting 81 for a high.

Again today, we set out on Highway 17 north, but not long afterward we branched off to Highway 13 in a northwesterly direction. I had seen a Walmart Supercenter on Google Maps last night as I scoped out our route, and in due course we found it and turned in. In addition to a few groceries, we wanted to get a large plastic tote box to organize our stuff in the back of the RV a bit better, and having measured the space beforehand, we found exactly the right size. The RV has lots of wonderful nooks and crannies, which we've been filling up happily as we go along -- and still there is room to spare. We've also identified a few things we brought but don't really need (like Val's dozen pairs of sox!!) so we can pack more effectively on our next trip.

I realized by the afternoon that I hadn't seen a single strand of Spanish moss hanging from any trees today. We asked Janice at the Williamston campground if there were alligators this far north, and she said that one had been spotted a few miles from their site. But most of the southern flora and fauna are tapering off now that we have crossed into Virginia, even though this state was considered part of The South, historically speaking. Any self-respecting lizard or alligator would have made a beeline for warmer climes on a day like this chilly day has been.

Our route took us through Suffolk, and past Portsmouth and Norfolk, and we aren't even in England. The landscape ranged from flat, rural farmland, with fields freshly combed for spring planting, to heavily industrialized areas where ships dock and factories spew smoke, to genteel neighbourhoods with pillared homes and groomed lawns.

When we arrived at our destination and went in to register, Peter, the staffer who handled our arrangements, had a strangely familiar look. Tall and lean, with a thin beard around his angular chin and glasses perched on his nose, he could easily pass for Abraham Lincoln by simply donning a cravat and top hat! We asked him if he had ever portrayed the former president and he said yes -- a part time role he plays for business groups in the area. Even his voice resembled that of Daniel Day-Lewis, who starred in the excellent movie Lincoln that we have watched.

Carolina on my mind

Williamston, NC -- There was a Sunday feel about today, as we headed north from Myrtle Beach on Highway 17. We passed more souvenir shops and dinosaur mini-golfs, but also quite a few pancake houses with lots of cars in the parking lots, and customers coming or going dressed in their Sunday best, having fed their souls and now enjoying a feed of another kind with friends and family.

There are plenty of churches in this part of the world, and many have huge parking lots which, of course, were full of cars today. I saw many a Baptist church, and some Lutheran ones, as well as AME churches (African Methodist Episcopal). A lot of them are low-profile buildings with soaring white spires topped with a cross that dominates the landscape of a small town in a peaceful way.

Although our route was nicknamed the Ocean Highway, and the tiny bird's-eye-view map on our RV's navigation screen indicated quite a bit of blue water along its eastern edge, we didn't actually see a lot of ocean. There were long stretches of straight road with green forest on either side. Traffic was light and the weather was fine, so that was helpful.

We had a couple of larger cities to find our way through as we remained faithful to Highway 17 from start to finish. We didn't really need to consult the GPS lady till later in the day, content to follow the route the old fashioned way on a paper map. There was only a short stretch in South Carolina before the state line. Our road atlas was fine in a pinch, but we like to have a recent edition of each state's official map to make sure our information is up to date and accurate, and we didn't have one for North Carolina.

So, when we crossed into North Carolina we kept our eyes peeled for a Visitor Center where we could get said map, and sure enough, the turn-off appeared within a mile or two. Remember what I said about a Sunday feel? Right....the office at the rest area was closed. There was only one other car in the parking lot. At least we could access the restrooms. Fortunately Val found a literature rack near the men's facility that had the official NC map, so all was well.

Wilmington was the first large centre, and the first bridge we crossed took us over Cape Fear River. I caught a glimpse of the port area, but was soon engrossed in keeping an eye on the 17 North highway signs through the city streets. Next was Jacksonville NC, where there's a large military base. We stopped for lunch near a grocery store where we stocked up before setting out again.

At this point we activated the GPS to get a better idea of what time we would reach our destination. It put the GPS lady into a snit because for several miles the four-lane was squeezed into two due to construction. The system couldn't recognize that we were traveling on the northbound half of a highway that is normally two southbound lanes. I've never heard "recalculating" that many times in such a short space!

The final glimpse of a waterway was at Washington NC, a small town that straddles Pemlico River. I liked the village just before we got there, named Chocowinity!

Our camping spot tonight is a small family park that has seen better days. It has a rumpled, well-used feel, but it was deemed acceptable by Good Sam directory folks, and the staff were friendly and welcoming. We are so well set up in our little home on wheels, our surroundings don't have to be fancy.

Beachy keen!

Myrtle Beach, SC -- Brrrr! This morning the temperature was 58 degrees when we got up, so our fresh hot coffee was most welcome. It didn't take long to warm up to a more comfortable level, though, once we were set for the day.

The beach was our objective, and our KOA staff offered a free golf cart ride from the main entrance, plus the promise to pick us up at a time of our choosing. It was such a short trip, we figured we could get back on our own, but we booked a pickup for two o'clock just in case.

 We walked the short block to the beach from our drop-off point and past the hotels, then the fenced-off dunes and the soft sand till we got to the packed section near the water. A long, long beach stretched out in both directions, and although there were people there, it didn't seem crowded at all. A fresh breeze was blowing as we started our stroll, heading north with the waves crashing in on our left. The sand was coarser than at Honeymoon Island in Florida, and I was surprised to see that the seashells, of which there were plenty, were much thicker here -- almost like shards of flowerpots, rather than the fragile ones we'd crunched on during our Florida stay.

A small plane droned overhead, dragging a huge banner for one of the beach stores in town, with the message "Shark tooth necklaces 39 cents" flapping behind it. Not long after that, we overheard a woman telling her friend she'd found a shark tooth, which she held out for her friend to examine. My shell-searching immediately augmented to a shark-tooth-searching mission, and I actually picked up a couple myself -- or so I thought. Later, on our return stroll, we saw the woman again and asked her to look at them and see if they were. She said no -- and then gave me one of hers, which was very kind!

We watched a couple of people way out above the waves, suspended from a parachute which a motorboat was pulling along. They sure looked tiny -- but I bet they had a terrific view. There are high-rises all along the beach but they are set far enough back from the water so there is plenty of room for literally thousands of bathers, which I guess there are in the high season.

After our stroll, we stopped for lunch at a Friendly's restaurant, which was buzzing with customers, but served up a tasty meal. Then we set off toward the campground, but not before we stopped in at one of the kitschy stores for a wee browse. Flip flops, sunhats, bathing suits, plastic buckets and shovels, as well as gaudy souvenirs jammed the aisles! Didn't see any shark tooth necklaces though.

Since it was Saturday, I went off to do our weekly laundry once we got back to the RV. But not before chatting with our new neighbour Gwen, who had arrived next door in our absence in a Roadtrek RV very much like ours! She said it was brand new, and even asked Val to show her how to work some of its features. Her quick run-through when she picked it up had left her overwhelmed, so she wanted to master one new thing at a time at each stop she makes. We were glad to oblige.

When she found out we were from Canada, she told us about her trip to Montreal some years back. She and a friend were unwitting victims of a Just For Laughs gag that she says is still on You Tube! Must look it up! Another example of the interesting stories and people you meet with this mode of travel.

Forests and factories

Myrtle Beach, SC -- According to the KOA literature about this campground, we are in the middle of the city of Myrtle Beach, but looking out our door, we seem to be in the middle of a pine forest. All around us are tall, straight pine trees, and the wind sounds like a huge sigh as it blows through the needles. Every now and then there's a 'bonk' when a small pine cone hits our roof. The ground is carpeted with pine needles and live oak leaves.

It may sound peaceful enough, but in addition to that gentle breeze is a lot of noise! Across the way is a huge jumping pillow for the kids, and all through supper we could hear them screaming with delight. There are several motorcyclists in the park who seem to be making repeated circuits of the roads with their roaring engines. And, despite Mother Nature's free sweep of wind, a park employee has been slowly strolling the grounds with a blower droning away. It's a study in contrasts.

Our day had a leisurely start, since we only had a two-hour trip to make and checkout time was noon. So we took a few minutes to explore the Mount Pleasant campground before we left. It has a lovely artificial lake stocked with fish and, according to a staff member we spoke to, an alligator or two and an otter. He says there used to be three otters but doesn't know what happened to the other two. Hmm.

Great puffy clouds were gathering overhead with that anvil grey underside that promises rain, so we dumped our tanks and set out at about 10:30. Our route was quite straightforward -- Highway 17 all the way. The clouds never did open up, so we missed out on a free car wash.

Although our route paralleled the Atlantic coastline, we saw very little of the ocean. Most of the way was a straight four-lane with tall deciduous trees on either side. By noon, however, we reached Georgetown and crossed the bridge over the Waccamaw River and Winyah Bay. Down below were several marinas with pleasure boats galore, plus more utilitarian vessels. A huge factory on the left side of the bridge was busy turning logs from all those forests into paper.

Once we got into town we saw several signs guiding visitors to the historic downtown and harbour. The sign that caught our eye was "Gullah Museum" -- we'd heard of the Gullah people from our friends Scott and Mary Jane. They were among the African slaves that were brought to tend the plantations in this area but developed a distinct culture. It took some hunting to find the tiny museum, and when we walked in we were greeted by Andrew Rodriguez, a softspoken elderly black gentleman who was the proprietor and interpreter for the one-room display area. African artifacts and story quilts sewn by his late wife decorated the walls, with displays about rice and indigo crops. He showed us the quilt that his wife had made depicting the ancestry of former First Lady Michelle Obama, a descendant of the Gullah people. He talked about how the white plantation owners sought out Gullah slaves to tap in to their knowledge of rice cultivation that they brought from Africa. Mr. Rodriguez was more than willing to continue with a lengthy, scholarly lecture on every detail of the history, except we had to cut it short and get on our way. We were glad to know more about this aspect of American history.

After a quick bite of lunch, we continued along Highway 17 through Garden City and Surfside Beach. A series of strip malls, mini-golf courses and souvenir shops reminded us of the type of businesses you find around Niagara Falls. There was one store selling beachwear with a huge shark in front, and the shark's mouth was the store entrance! A Jurassic mini-golf had giant dinosaurs and waterfalls of blue-dyed water. And I'm sure I saw a Ripley's Believe it or Not museum somewhere in there.

We'll spend two nights here so that we can explore Myrtle Beach in more detail tomorrow. Stay tuned!

Through the tangles

Mount Pleasant, SC -- We are just north of Charleston, the South Carolina city where the first shots were fired in the Civil War. It's a place we've been before, so we recognized some of the sights as we drove through. We are at a lovely KOA campground, complete with a lake, wide, open sites and plenty of amenities. The blurb says it is situated on an old plantation.

It was a fresh morning when we set out from Jekyll Island Campground. We had spent a good session the night before mapping out our route for the day, because we didn't want to spend the whole time dodging transport trucks on the interstates. Our chosen route was along Highway 17 pretty well the whole way. There were two parts that made me a bit nervous; those were the parts where you could see the little "17" on the map on one side of the big city and on the other, but there was a whole mess of other highways in the middle with no clear indication how our little red line got through them all. The two cities were Savannah, GA and Charleston.

So, off we went, Val at the wheel and me with copious maps spread out on my lap and in the door pocket beside me. Full of optimism and confidence that we'd get out the other end none the worse for wear.

After crossing the bridge off the island, we turned northward on Highway 17 to a second more impressive bridge that took us over the Brunswick River and past the city of Brunswick. The Sidney Lanier Bridge is Georgia's tallest cable-stayed suspension bridge, and soars above the river. It replaced a vertical suspension bridge that had been twice struck by ships.

For much of our route, we followed a straight line with tall trees on either side and only a few glimpses of the marshes and waterways to the east of us. But the traffic was light and the weather was fine, and the two big cities were way off to begin with.

I confess that my level of anxiety did augment somewhat as I looked at the map and our GPS screen and saw that Savannah, our first hurdle, was nearing. With no fewer than three maps, I'd sort of seen how Highway 17 worked its way through, but we've had surprises before. My eyes were glued to every signpost on the roadside, and each time that lovely number 17 showed up I smiled inwardly. Yay! As the big city faded into the distance behind us, with not a single glitch or wrong turn, I rejoiced.

Shortly after Savannah, we crossed the state line into South Carolina. When the urban sections had thinned out, we stopped to have lunch and gas up. Our only other objective was a grocery store. We passed a couple of Piggly Wigglys (love that name!!) on the wrong side of the highway before using the GPS to find us a Publix store nearby. The one it found required a U-turn, but we made it with little difficulty and soon were back on good old Highway 17. That was the only time today that we had to hear the GPS lady drawl "recalculating"!

Besides the highway signposts, there were plenty of other signs with odd street or town names. We saw a Rude Dog Lane in one town, and passed another town called Ashepoo, next to the Ashepoo River! Another one I saw the other day was Horse Stamp Church Road. How about that.

A couple of times, our highway joined up with the Interstate 95 for a few miles, so we got to see the wisdom of our choice to avoid it. We were soon back onto the road less traveled -- though it was a four-lane for much of the way with a decent surface.

Charleston was approaching. Another tangle of incoming highways and city expressways! By this time we'd engaged our GPS lady full time, and her calm tones kept us on the right path throughout. Our final destination was only a few minutes beyond Charleston -- or so we thought. As our turnoff to Highway 17 approached, we saw an electronic sign that said "Incident on Ravenel Bridge. Expect delays." We were in the thick of rush hour traffic by this time, headed for...the Ravenel Bridge. A long line of cars snaked up ahead, and we had to squeeze sideways three times for police, ambulance and fire trucks to struggle past with sirens ablaze. When we finally got abreast of the incident there was no sign of a crash, so we fear it must have been a jumper.

As soon as we passed the emergency vehicles the traffic flowed freely and in no time we were at the KOA. Whew! Not quite: our reservation could not be found. Finally, the staff lady checked with another employee and realized it was under Vanin instead of Zanin! Next time I reserve over the phone I will say ZED instead of zee when I spell our name!

The cycle of life

Jekyll Island, GA -- First thing this morning, we were at the campground office door in order to register officially, since we arrived after office hours yesterday, and to see about renting a couple of bicycles. We'd been told there were only about five bikes to rent, but our promptness gave us the entire fleet from which to choose. Since they were all identical, it wasn't too difficult! And fortunately they were quite comfortable coaster bikes, with a heavy frame and fat wheels.

The island has a network of bicycle paths, most of which are smoothly paved, and we had a map to help us find the local highlights. We set out northward to the tip of the island, under a wide canopy of live oaks festooned with Spanish moss, which filtered the morning sun and dappled the road ahead. We passed a corral where one could rent horses for rides on the beach, and then arrived at the pier at the northern tip. The path continued in a southeast direction through flat, open marshland before opening onto a sandy trail leading to Driftwood Beach.

Craggy, weatherworn branches of felled trees clawed the sky from the wave-washed sand, and large rolling waves the colour of coffee curled in from the ocean. To our left and right as far as we could see, more fantastic driftwood branches dotted the beach, throwing crooked shadows on the sand. Val discovered a small jellyfish that had beached itself, and started chatting with a woman who had a long-lens camera around her neck. She took a picture of us with my cellphone, and we ended up conversing for some time with her about her horses and her travels. One of the fun things about traveling to new places.

The next leg of the circuit was more citified, with residential houses on either side of the road. By the time we reached Tortuga Jack's seaside restaurant, we were ready to get off our saddles and have a tasty Tex-Mex lunch and a chilled drink.

Sufficiently refreshed, we hopped back on to the trail, turning inland along the expansive golf course and toward the town. We had hoped to visit the Jekyll Island museum, but discovered that it was in transition to a brand new facility that will open three days from now. Where it was moving from was not clear! So we continued along the path, which took us past a series of enormous mansions with manicured gardens, pillars and porches where the rich folks had lived in bygone days. We also saw the massive Jekyll Island Club Hotel, set back from the road, a venue in times past for folks like the Rockefellers to get away from the winter.

By this time we had crossed to the east side of the island and were heading northward toward the campground. Across the water we could see the bridge to other nearby islands, and a wide swath of marshland in between. It was a pleasant vantage point for the Horton House, the island's first building in 1753, overlooking the mainland. The ruins of the house still stand; the building material is called 'tabby', a mixture of crushed oyster shells and other materials that clearly have stood the test of time. In its earliest days, Jekyll Island had been a plantation with cotton as a major crop. It changed hands several times between the Spanish, the French and the British.

We were very glad to see the campground entrance at last, having nearly circumnavigated the whole island! The temperature hit the mid-80s today so we felt we'd earned the ice cream bars that we picked up at the camp store on the way to our site.