Asheville, N C October, 2015

Hi! It's been awhile since I posted. I may go back and post some of our adventures since August. Jeffrey's phone died in August and we had to invest in a new one. Then we discovered my tablet was no longer compatible and hence my absence. I'll show youwhat we did today. This week we are at Rutledge Lake RV Resort outside of Asheville, N C. We came up here last week for a FMCA (Family Motor Coach Ass.) rally last week with our friends, Terri and Charles Setzler. It was great to get away as we have been parked in our oldest son's backyard in Leesville, S C since sometime in September. Now we feel like we don't want to go back, but our son, Bryan is getting married November 21 and he is buying the house from us. We' ll stay
near until the day after Christmas when we will head down to the Keys again and possibly stay in Florida for the winter. Jeffrey didn't take alto of pictures today. We took a trolley tour through the city. There were 10 stops all over the city.  The ride itself takes about 1 hour and 1/2, but we got on and off to tour the various areas. The pictures don't do the city justice. It is beautiful.  The temperature today was in the low 70s.  The leaves have not begun to change colors yet, but the mountainous region is vibrant. To tell you about the economy here, they are building six new hotels in Asheville this year. I loved touring the downtown area. Lots of small businesses, boutiques, eateries, etc. One of the pictures shows the shops at Grove Park and the trolley tour included a stop at the famous Grove Park Inn.  Even president Obama stayed there. Beautiful old architecture homes. Another area worth visiting is stop number 7, the River Arts District, but it requires lots of walking between the various artists studios. They recommended driving your car down to this area and moving from the different artists' studios to access the better. Another stop, actually, stops, 8, 9, and 10 take you over to the Biltmore Village Shops. Specialty shops and great places to eat and visit.  Of course, Asheville is known for the Biltmore House which was built for George Vanderbilt near the 1900s. Don,t quote me, but it's one of the largest mansions built in the U S. It's phenomenal to visit, but we've visited twice before.  Another beautiful area to view is the Blue Ridge Parkway which is a drive through the Pisgah National Forest.  You can view the Appalachian mountains through western North Carolina. Just to let you know, the campground we are staying in is easy access near the Asheville Airport.  I really think I could maybe settle in this are, but not for all of the seasons of the year. It' s still too early to even consider, but I want to keep that thought. For those of you who have followed my blog,you missed out on me sharing our ending weeks in Michigan in August and our trips into Indiana Amish Country and the motorcoaches manufacturers.  We also enjoyed Loretta Lynn's Dude Ranch and Campground near Nashville, Tennessee. And we visited Nashville. When planning your travels, don't miss either one.  We got to see Loretta Lynn and her sister, Crystal Gail perform the week we were there and it is a nice campground but close to nowhere but Loretta's developed town, Hurricane Mills, Tennessee. We enjoyed it, but had to drive 7 or more miles for groceries and eateries. We did like eating country, home cooking at Lorreta Lynn's Restaurant at the interstate 40 exit. Okay, I'm going to check on other photos and share something else. See ya!