Beautiful this quiet morning amid tall trees and the blush of dawn lighting the sky. What a peaceful spot here at Cosby Campground. 71 degrees at 7 AM. So many shades of green!
After a light breakfast, we wind through some small towns and countryside, leaving the mountains and heading north on highway 81. We figure we drove 721 miles in Tennessee over the past few days!
81 is a super highway, with lots of truck traffic. After a few hours, we decide to hop off a bit and take a part of Skyline Drive for a while. It is a scenic route in the Appalachians that parallels 81. No trucks allowed and speed limits are slow as we dawdle along, stopping at various overlooks: Rocky Top, Massanutten, Brown Mountain, etc.
At Doyle's River Overlook we see a group of Appalachian Trail hikers (the trail follows the road briefly). The young couple we talk with are from England and have completed the West Virginia to Maine section of the Trail; now working on West Virginia to Georgia section.
The "detour" took longer than anticipated, so we head back to 81, reaching West Virginia at 5:10, then Maryland at 5:30. We exit at Rt. 66 and travel through Maryland, past Catoctin Mountain Park and Cunningham Falls, which are just adjacent to Camp David. Looks like an interesting area to explore at some point, but we've called Anita and Kevin, near Hanover, PA, and head there for dinner.
We arrive at Anita's about 7:00, have a nice dinner (thanks, guys!) and catch up a bit. They are super busy with work (they own Keystone Alarm company), their daughter Vanessa's upcoming wedding, and getting ready for a Gem and Rock Show event near Baltimore. We will head to Greg's Mom's tomorrow, about another hour and a half drive, and come back here to help a few days before the wedding.
Thursday, 9/6/2018
73 degrees this morning, as we head out towards Lancaster, PA and enjoy the farmland and countryside en route. Few signs of the recent flooding from torrential rain as we cross the Susquehanna River in morning fog. Anita says there are several bridges washed out on some of the back roads.
We stop at an LA Fitness to work out some of the kinks, then head to Greg's Mom's place in New Holland, PA.
This is the heart of Amish country and the countryside is beautiful. It is the end of Summer and we pass numerous stands selling fresh produce - corn, beans, peaches, etc. Just the beginning of Fall crops like squash and pumpkins.
We pass many fields of tobacco, which is still grown as a cash crop. It is just beginning to be harvested and hung in ventilated barns to dry.
Fun catching up with Mom and we have a nice dinner at the cafe downstairs, which has quite a selection of soups, salads, grilled things and dinner entrees. Greg's Mom lives at Garden Spot Village which is a wonderful retirement community with cottages, apartments, assisted living and nursing care all under one umbrella!
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