Bill and Nancy: July 2014

Paddling The Caney Fork River!! – Tuesday, July 29, 2014

A - Myrtle Beach State Park, Myrtle Beach, SC - June 18-25
B - Zooland Family Campground, Asheboro, NC - June 25-26
C - Stony Fork Campground, Wytheville, VA - June 26-July 2
D - Natural Bridge State Park, Slade, KY - July 2-13
E - Kentucky Horse Park Campground, Lexington, KY - July 13-17
F - Canal COE Campground, Grand Rivers, Ky - July 17-24
G - Texas T Campground, Cornersville, TN - July 24-28
H - Floating Mill COE Campground, Silver Point, TN - July 28-Aug 1

Tuesday, July 29, 2014 – Paddling The Caney Fork River!!

We appreciate all the nice comments from yesterday’s post about how we picked such a wonderful campground and site. However, we didn’t really pick it. We came here because David and Sharon, a couple we met at the Spring RV-Dreams Rally, were going to be camping here. They had already reserved site 92, our first choice, so we were left with site 71 because it was the only other one we could fit in. So see what great things come from making new friends at an RV-Dreams Rally.

For those that weren’t at the 2014 Spring RV-Dreams Rally,

David and Sharon are an amazing young couple

who are preparing to sell their life’s mission, Butterfly Hollow,

to start living the full-time lifestyle:o))

They built Butterfly Hollow from the ground up into a B & B and Wedding venue.

Click on this link to see the beautiful place they created: http://butterflyhollowfarm.com/farmhouse.html

If you know anyone who would like to buy this beautiful place,

please share this link with them:

http://tennesseebedandbreakfastforsale.com/

It is so great to have personal tour guides who know the area and know where to paddle.

Our campground is the green dot on the map and our paddle is the red line.

The plan was to put in at the Buffalo Valley boat ramp

and

take out at the Happy Hollow boat ramp.

Our paddle would be about 5.25 miles.

About 10am, we drove down to David and Sharon’s site.

We followed them in the Tahoe through some beautiful Tennessee back roads

to the take out point and they parked their truck.

Then the four of us drove to the put in at the Buffalo Valley boat ramp.

It is located right in front of the dam that blocks the Caney Fork River to create Center Hill Lake.

Today, the dam was generating which means not much paddling was required, just steering;o))

What a beautiful ride on a beautiful river!!!

As we paddled, we were surrounded by the Tennessee Hills:0))

Hey David, another one of those hills with a hole in it ;o)))

02b2 -Hey David there's a hole in the hill

David and Sharon just recently got their Sea Eagle, but they sure are in sync!!!

02c - David and Sharon are really in sync

We passed beautiful rocky cliffs and even an artist painting from a rock in the river!!

We found a nice area to pull over, stretch our legs and eat our lunch.

Then it was just a relaxing float down the river on a spectacular day:o))

There was a bit of congestion and a few rather rude boaters at the take out.

They were just chatting and messing around while we waited;o((

However, if we hadn’t had to wait,

we would have missed this at the top of the ramp!!!

Perfect ending to a wonderful paddle down The Caney Fork!!

Back to Nature and More Friends :o)) – Mon, July 28 to Fri, Aug 1, 2014

Monday, July 28, 2014 – Travel Day to Floating Mill COE CG, Silver Point, TN

We waited until about 9am to head north on I-65 toward Nashville. Most of rush hour traffic was over and we had a beautiful trip. We took an outer loop around Nashville to I-40 east. It was a beautiful and relaxing 2 hour trip.

This photo is the the type of view we had most of our trip:o))

I know they talk about the Tennessee Hills,

but I had no idea how very GREEN this state is... BEAUTIFUL!!!

We arrived at Floating Mill COE Campground before noon.

The host at the gate, actually came out and directed us to our site.

There are a couple tricky turns and she wanted to be sure we made it:o))

We are on site 71 which sits at the top of the terraces above Center Hill Lake.

There are no campsites between us and the lake so our view is wonderful!!

Even the view from inside is pretty special :o))

Once we got setup and had some lunch, we took a walk and explored the campground.

It is hilly and there are not many sites that a big rig would fit into.

However, site 71 and 92 are two of the best with the greatest views!!

This campground is beautiful and all the sites are along the lake.

If you were a tent camper, you would have many, many wonderful sites to choose from.

Since it is a Monday, the campground is very empty.

As we walked, Bill scoped out firewood that had been left by the weekenders.

He took the car back to pick up his find.

He is back to feeling great and spent the afternoon splitting his load!!

I spent the afternoon, cheering him on and doing a little bird watching…

We have an adorable Bluebird Family at our site:o))

Yep… We’re Gonna Like It Here !!!

Moving On To Tennessee!! – Thursday, July 24 to Monday, July 28, 2014

Thursday, July 24, 2014 – Travel Day to Texas T CG, Cornersville, TN

We left Canal Campground in Grand Rivers, KY and headed toward Nashville, TN on I-24.

Originally, we were supposed to stay at Henry Horton State Park just south of Nashville. However, a couple weeks ago, Henry Horton SP called to say they were closing the campground for renovations and could not honor our reservation;o((

We are in this area to visit some former neighbors/friends who now live in Franklin, TN. There really are not many good campgrounds to choose from. But I remembered that Gail and Rick had a daughter who lived in Franklin. I gave her a call and she recommended Texas-T in Cornersville, exit 27 on I-65.

Well, it is perfect!! Nothing fancy, but easy FHU pull-through sites:o)

01 - Texas T Campground, Cornersville, TN - Site 5

01b - Texas T Campground, Cornersville, TN - The Neighborhood

We have to drive a little further to get to our friends home, but time wise it is quicker.

Fri & Sat, July 25-26, 2014 – Fun Time With SPECIAL Friends!!!

From 1995 to 1998, we lived in Wild Dunes on Isle of Palms, just north of Charleston, SC. During that time, we met Bill and Shelley. They became good friends and we have seen them at different times and in different places during the last 15 years. Two years ago, they moved from Massachusetts to Franklin, Tennessee. It has actually been 7 years since we have seen them…so it was time;o))

Bill and Shelley’s New Home In The Beautiful Westhaven Community

We arrived at their home about 3pm and it was like 7 days, not 7 years, had passed since we last saw them. They had invited us to stay overnight so we could attend a concert-picnic at one of their community's parks. Then on Saturday , the two Bills will be hitting the golf course and the girls will be hitting the farmers market and few other fun places!!

Heading to the concert and picnic.