Back in NJ

 

Our trip from Knoxville to NJ was uneventful. We missed all the storms that have been chasing us since Texas; there was a tornado in Hondo, about 45 minutes west of where we stayed in San Antonio, two nights after we left. More weather in other areas after we had departed. We only saw the occasional brief sprinkle of rain so we timed it just right. Tornados are a major concern in springtime so we are grateful we dodged them all. We travelled from Winchester, VA and skirted around Baltimore using the northwest section of route 695 to avoid the Baltimore tunnel and had no traffic slowdowns at all the whole way. That’s a miracle right there!

We arrived about 1:30 Tuesday afternoon at my daughter Kristen’s house and were greeted by her husband Jason (who was working from home today) and their three boys (who had just finished their remote learning for the day.) Later, we had a wonderful reunion with Kristen, our daughter Catherine and children; and son Tim and his wife, Bernie. 

We’ve been reading about possible fuel shortages this summer so we filled up before our arrival and now we are set for 600 miles more of travel. This week we will visit doctors and spend time with family. Life is good!

San Antonio, TX to Knoxville, TN

 We left San Antonio almost a week ago—where has the time gone? We spent three nights in Livingston, TX while Bob renewed his driver’s license and we ran errands. Not very exciting. We left Wednesday for Monroe, LA on a bone-jarring trip along Louisiana back roads. We’ve decided not to go to Livingston again until my license needs renewing in four years; we don’t like the roads. 

On Thursday we drove right through Mississippi to Alabama, through the upper corner of Georgia, and then yesterday we arrived in Knoxville, TN.

Our campground is in the Smokey Mountains by a lake. Sites are pretty close together but we have a lovely view and people have been friendly.

I love Knoxville. We first visited here in the fall of 2016, when we crossed Tennessee heading west. This is a two night stop, since I was pretty sure we’d need a little breather after averaging over 300 miles a day since Livingston. So this morning we got to play a little. We drove over to Jeffries Wood Works and found some very cool pieces of wood for Bob to turn.

Afterwards we went to Market Square in Knoxville where we ate lunch at The Tomato Head. It was very good food.

The Burn Memorial, commemorating Women’s Suffrage 

Bob spent the afternoon puttering while Auggie and I sat outside on the wooden deck, knitting. At one point a couple of young teens walked by with a German Shepherd puppy tugging on the leash. When the pup tried to pull them over to me I heard the girl say, “Stop! Leave the old person alone!” Bob said I should have shouted “Get out of here, you young whippersnapper!” Lol!

Tomorrow we head to Dixie Caverns in Virginia, which not only brings us one day closer to our destination but also has AN ANTIQUE STORE AT THE CAMPGROUND! I kid you not. Every campground should have its own antique store, to my way of thinking.

I guess I AM old.