We leave Florida for the season and head to SC for 2 weeks to visit with sons and grandsons. Our son Jimmy celebrated his 40th birthday. We don’t understand how our children are getting so old! And our youngest son Brian announced his engagement! Ron played golf with the boys a couple of times. We enjoyed our campsite, where Ron made friends with the horses. And then we start our trip north, with stops in Knoxville TN and Louisville KY. Our route will bring us to Upstate NY for the remaining summer.
In Knoxville TN we drove Cades Cove drive which was very slow, but pretty. But we took a nice hike to Abrams Falls and saw 4 bears crossing the path. It was impossible to get the camera out quick enough to take a picture. Too bad! We went to a local festival, the Louie Bluie Bluegrass festival, the singers were terrible, the BBQ was great, and the local people were entertaining!
Next stop in Kentucky was a “must do” for Ron, the Bourbon distilleries. He tried Four Roses Bourbon (not Whiskey) in Italy and loved it. The only place where it is sold in the USA is Kentucky, otherwise only in Europe and Japan. We toured the distillery and tasted the mash before it went into the Smokey oak barrels. It was about 200 proof and burned your throat! But after its time in the barrels, it is very smooth. In Louisville, we enjoyed a famous Hot Brown Sandwich at the Brown Hotel and then went to Churchill Downs for a Mint Julep and a couple of races. We bet on one and won! Then, we went to the Louisville Slugger Factory for a tour and to a Whimsical Garden.
We thought we would spend a few days in Elkhart, Indiana. But we ended up being there for over 2 weeks and drove away with a new paint job on our 5th Wheel.
While we were in Elkhart, besides having our RV painted, we took a drive to South Bend to visit the University of Notre Dame. It is a very impressive campus, especially the famed Gold Dome. We also took a drive to Lake Michigan and were surprised that the water is so blue and there are huge sand dunes.
Finally, after July 4, we were back on the road. It turned out to be a summer of family reunions. We visited Ron's Uncle Larry in Sidney Center NY, whom he has not seen for over 35 years. Uncle Larry and Barbara were gracious hosts and we had a wonderful time listening to old stories. Then Ginny and her 2 sister's all got together at her brother Bob's in Kingston. He and Karen had their children and grandchildren there. It was fun to see all the nieces and nephews and their families. Then, after NY we went to New Hampshire to visit our oldest son, Jack, and 4 of the grandchildren. Then, back to NY to spend a few days with Ron’s sister Kathy and Joe while they were on vacation in Lake Placid.
We enjoyed the rest of the summer touring around the Adirondacks. Then headed back to Elkhart for touch-ups on the RV paint-job. The summer is over and we will reverse our route and stop in SC before returning to FL for the winter.
