Where are Cheryl and Dennis?: October 2021

October 18, 2021 – Monday the drive to Big Meadows Campground was only 91 miles, half of which was in the park. Once we entered the park the roads were curvy and the speed is 35 mph. The campground was at mile marker 51 so it took a while to get there. We checked into the ranger station and found out there were only 4 first come first served sites left. We grabbed one and set up. Well, after several attempts we got set up. So now I'm going to bitch a bit.

A few years ago the camping industry started installing a type of step that is one solid piece that flips up into the doorway of the camper (MORryde steps, ours will be on market place in spring). They then pull down and sit on the ground with feet that you can adjust. The theory is good as the step rests on the ground providing nice solid steps unlike the older style that pulls out and becomes a spring board. We have this new type of step in our new camper. They work well if the ground on the door side slopes away from the camper. However if the ground slopes up sometimes we can't shorten the legs far enough on the steps that the door will close. Here at Big Meadows we got the camper all nice and level with blocks under the wheels, unhooked, got the stabilizing jacks down and then I went to close the door. The door would not close. Crap! Ok, reverse that entire process, hook up the truck, take some boards out from under the tires and try again. Now the camper is no longer level and the door sort of closed. We ended up taking the leveling feet out of the steps to make it work. If the ground would have been any higher we would have needed to take more boards out from the tires and been less level. Frustrating!! When we get back to Wisconsin we are going to look into getting different steps. In the meantime another set of level blocks may help. If necessary we can raise both sides of the camper to get the steps to work.

Tuesday we took a hike to Lewis Falls. It was a 3.3 mile loop and takes you part of the way on the Appalachian Trail. It was a pretty strenuous hike as there was a significant elevation change (990') and several areas where we had to cross boulder fields. We made it to the falls which were a bit of a disappointment as there was not much water going over. On the way back we met a group of ladies visiting from Taiwan.

Wednesday we took another hike to Hawksbill overlook. This was a 2.9 mile trail with 860' elevation change again partly on the Appalachian Trail. Not as many boulder fields but still a challenge. There were more hikers on this trail and it was pretty busy at top. Still a good work out and the view from the overlook was awesome. In the afternoon we drove to Elkton to see if we could purchase a new pair of hiking boots for Dennis. His feet must have grown because he said his shoes are too small. We stopped at Appalachian Trail Outfitters and he purchased a pair of Merrial Boots. On the way back to the campground a bear crossed the road in front of us. Cool!

We needed to take a rest from hiking so on Thursday we drove to Monticello near Charlottesville Virginia. The weather has been beautiful so far with sunny days and temperatures on the mountain in the mid to high 60'. However the forecast for Charlottesville and the valley that day was a high of 80. We did not want to leave Mica in the truck and we were able to take her on the property just not in the buildings. That also required us to walk up a very steep, half mile path to the house at the top of the hill instead of taking a shuttle. So much for resting! We each took a tour of the house at a different time so one of us stayed outside with Mica. It worked out and after the tour we listened to a Thomas Jefferson impersonator.

No hiking again today. We just took walks through the campground, hung out at the lodge to catch up on internet stuff, talked to Alex on the phone and in the evening went to a Ranger talk at the park amphitheater. It was the first presentation I've been to that started the safety rules with...if a bear shows up...!

We started Saturday with a 4 mile, 890' hike to Rapidan Camp. It was a beautiful hike along a mountain stream with three stream crossings, one of which was a log bridge. Rapidan Camp was the weekend retreat for President Hoover and First Lady Lou Henry Hoover from 1929 to 1932. The camp was lovely and was an idyllic location for a vacation spot. The only issue was from the parking lot to the camp was all down hill so it was all uphill on the way back. Despite that it was my favorite hike so far. Tomorrow we leave Shenandoah N.P. and Skyline Drive and start the Blueridge Parkway.

Where we are parked: Big Meadows Campground in Shenandoah National Park - 131 sites, Mar-Nov, All ages, Tents, 100 ft max RV length, 3541 ft elev, Accepts Big Rigs, tables, grill, toilets, dump - $20/night, $10/night with the senior pass. We stayed 6 nights.