Tela's Travels: October 2020 - Pisgah National Forest & back down to Florida

Virginia - North Carolina - Georgia - Florida

October makes a full year since we got married and left on our honeymoon adventure. It was pretty cool to be back in Virginia to celebrate that milestone.

When we arrived at Dad's, we were greeted by the new ruler of the house - Ronnie! Two stray kitten brothers had wandered up and decided to adopt my dad. The Ronster now runs my dad's place, and his brother Cooper is getting spoiled at Diane's. They're cuddly, silly, and ridiculously photogenic.

At first Ronnie was afraid of the dogs, but he warmed up to them pretty quickly!

Fall in the Appalachians is gorgeous - one of the reasons we chose this area & time of year for our wedding.

Nearby Whitetop mountain is the perfect place to take in the fall colors and get some fresh air. We loaded the bikes into the back of Dad's van for the slow and curvy 40 minute drive up the mountain, and found very limited parking at the top. (There are a few shuttle companies that will drive for you and drop you off, but due to Covid we weren't interested in being on a crowded shuttle.) We were rewarded with 17 miles of mostly downhill bike trail through some of the most beautiful scenery around.

The trail was a lot of fun and fairly easy. A big part of it follows a clear stream with plenty of picturesque waterfalls and benches to stop and rest. We had a great time coasting down the mountain with Dad and Koby.

About halfway down, we sat by the water for a nice picnic lunch and watched the other bikers roll by. It took us a few hours to make it back down to Damascus where we parked our truck. Koby and I waited with the bikes while Kyle & Dad drove back up to the top to get the van.

While catching up with Grandma, we asked if she had any projects she needed help with and she surprised us with a big one! She'd just bought a house to renovate and needed help knocking down an old chimney. With a ladder, a thick metal cable, and some leverage, we got it down and broken into pieces for hauling away.

Grandma made us her famous chicken & dumplings and I made a wool Precious figurine for her.

I made a pickle playing bass for my dad.

We spent some time in Dad's recording studio - Kyle had a blast playing on Dad's amp! and we got to see the newest Pickle video before it was released!

We always enjoy watching the bees and butterflies in Diane's flower garden

And, tried a new recipe - Breakfast Pizza!

Another bittersweet goodbye later, and we were headed south once again.

We spent our anniversary (the 19th) near Asheville, NC, in Pisgah National Forest. The clear stream with waterfalls, mossy rocks, and sparkling mica fragments reminded us of our visit to Nantahala National Forest.

We found crawfish and newts in the shallow pools.

The sound of water flowing and wind through the trees was so peaceful.

The road we were on only had a few sites big enough for travel trailers, and we drove past them since they were pretty crowded. We ended up parking next to a tent site and had a pretty rough time turning around without going further up the mountain.

Made a cute little mushroom

We left Pisgah National Forest on the 22nd, heading to Concord Hunt Camp near Monticello, GA.

Dirt roads lead to a flat open area, with a rough loop at the end and a few shooting targets.

During our down time there I needle felted a Totoro and a set of Rick & Morty heads.

We wanted to push through and get to Florida in time to vote, but incoming hurricane Zeta changed our plans. We drove halfway instead, which got us to Cusseta where we used to live, and we stopped for the weekend at our old stomping grounds - Riverbend Park.

Passed the old house!

After Zeta cleared we drove the last few hours to Wilderness Landing Park. We'd camped here earlier this year (and got kicked out when it shut down due to Covid). There were recent reviews that it was open again, and it was right near Pensacola where we had things to take care of. WLP is free, and really big so there was plenty of room for everyone to spread out. Khaleesi was really excited to see the beach again, and we had a great time walking the beautiful nature trails.