2010-06 New Friends and the Grove Park Inn

From 2010-07 Grove Park Inn

Our stay at Creekwood Farm RV Park was one of our most enjoyable.  Besides the beautiful scenery in the surrounding mountains, we really enjoyed the people we met.  

Among the first we met were Jim and Sharon who were parked just behind us.  Jim is one of about 13 work campers who work about 20 hours a week in exchange for their campsite.  Jim works with the grounds crew, and they kept the campground looking immaculate.  Jim remembered meeting me somewhere.  We quickly established that he and Sharon belonged to the Palmetto Pals Chapter of the Newmar Kounry Klub, and that we had attended the same rally in SC last year.  However Jim said that was not where we had met.  The next day he came back and told me that he remembered that we had met two years earlier in the Barnyard RV Park back In Lexington, SC.  Boy I wish I had a memory like Jim's.  Regretfully I failed to take a photo of Jim and Sharon.


The next friends we made were Bob and Barbara who are also full time RVers.  We enjoyed visiting with them and took a day trip together to Dillsboro, NC to eat lunch at the Jarret House, a historic hotel and restaurant we highly recommend to those visiting in western NC.  Then we came back to Waynesville and toured the Shelton House Museum of NC Handicrafts (See prior post about this wonderful museum.)

From 2010-07 Grove Park Inn and Neighbors

Bob is an outstanding wood carver.  He carved this "patriotic" gecko that he put up on his motorhome mirror for a July 4th decoration.

From 2010-07 Grove Park Inn and Neighbors

Here is a duck decoy that is in progress.  He is working to complete the detailed painting of the feathers.

From 2010-07 Grove Park Inn and Neighbors

Here is a completed decoy:

From 2010-07 Grove Park Inn and Neighbors

Another couple we enjoyed meeting were Jim and Cora who were parked across the road from our site.  

From 2010-07 Grove Park Inn and Neighbors

Jim and Cora are from Louisiana and were staying for several months.  They have camped at Creekwood Farm in prior years and enjoyed returning to the area.  They joined us for a day trip to Asheville.  


After I stopped at an allergist to get my weekly allergy shot, we had a great lunch at Cheddars.  Then we spent several hours wandering through the two gift shops associated with the Southern Highlands Craft Guild.  One shop is in Asheville and the other is a short distance away on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  We all enjoyed seeing the wonderful artwork created by local artisans.

From 2010-07 Grove Park Inn and Neighbors

From 2010-07 Grove Park Inn and Neighbors

We next drove over to the Grove Arcade (see our earlier post) and then to the Grove Park Inn.  The Grove Park was built in 1913 and is a famous regional resort.
 

From 2010-07 Grove Park Inn

It is a wonderful hotel with outstanding restaurants.  One is on a balcony facing this lovely view to the west.

From 2010-07 Grove Park Inn

The Balcony Restaurant is a great place for a special occasion.  My sister Nora Ann and brother-in-law Jack celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary there on July 3rd.

From 2010-07 Grove Park Inn and Neighbors

Jack and Nora Ann's visit also added to the enjoyment of our time in Waynesville.  They brought their travel trailer up from Lexington and stayed at Creekwood Farm.  They came back to Waynesville for their 50th anniversary because their honeymoon trip had been to Lake Junaluska and Fontana Lake, which is a bit further west in NC.  It was great spending time with them before we headed north to our next scheduled stop in Michigan.

2010-06 Friends and Roses

From 06-10 Roses at Lake Junaluska, NC

One of the delights we enjoyed while in Waynesville was the opportunity to spend a day with our friends and former neighbors from Lexington, SC - Hal and Beverly Zorn.  The Zorn's have a second home in the mountains near Waynesville - a great way to escape some of the summer heat in Lexington.  They invited us over for a visit.  They have a lovely home with a great view.

From 06-10 Roses at Lake Junaluska, NC

We also went for a ride around Waynesville to get their recommendations for good restaurants and places to visit.  A top recommendation was already a favorite of ours - Lake Junaluska. 

From 2010-06 Roses at Lake Junaluska

We stopped for a stroll along the lake at the section of the walkway lined with beautiful roses.  Here are just a few of the rose varieties we admired:

From 06-10 Roses at Lake Junaluska, NC

From 06-10 Roses at Lake Junaluska, NC

From 06-10 Roses at Lake Junaluska, NC

From 06-10 Roses at Lake Junaluska, NC

From 06-10 Roses at Lake Junaluska, NC

2010-06 Evening Primrose

Evening Primrose

From 2010-06 Evening Primrose

We are easy to entertain! 

We sometimes take a walk late in the evening shortly before sunset. One evening Bob, the manager of Creekwood RV Park, called to us to hurry over.  He pointed to a plant in his yard and told us it was just about to “pop open”.  Several others were already standing there watching.

From 2010-06 Evening Primrose

Bob explained that the flowers on this plant, which he thought was called a “Nicademus Plant”, would pop open in a matter of seconds.  The flowers open at night and only last for one day.  He and his wife had watched it for  the first time the night before, and thought it opened about 8:30pm.  We all stood there staring at the plant for about 15 minutes.   We began to think he had set us up for a joke  - “How long can I get these people to stand here staring at this silly bush?”.

However about 8:45pm the plant began to vibrate, and several leaves along the stem could be seen to move as if blown by a breeze.  Then sure enough, a yellow blossom petal popped out.

From 2010-06 Evening Primrose

Shortly afterward the four pedals of the green pod that enclosed the bloom, snapped down and the four yellow pedals of the bloom untwisted and opened.  The whole process only took a few seconds.  It was marvelous to see.

From 2010-06 Evening Primrose

Here are four of the blooms after they have opened.  All opened within a 5 to 10 minute period.

From 2010-06 Evening Primrose

I came back to the RV and did some internet research.  It turns out this is an Evening Primrose.  You might find it an interesting addition to your garden.

2010-06 Lake Junaluska, NC

From 2010-06 Lake Junaluska

The Saturday of Memorial Day weekend we drove the short 8 miles over to Lake Junaluska.   This is a huge  Methodist Assembly and Conference Center surrounding the lake from which it draws its name.  Growing up in Mississippi, I used to hear about various retreats and conferences, especially for the youth, at Lake Junaluska.  It always sounded like some magical place of wonder far away from home way up in the mountains.  

It truly is a beautiful place, and it has been a real treat to visit Lake Junaluska several times over the years as an adult.

This afternoon was very lovely as we walked around the lake.  It seemed like we were accompanied by half the citizens of the nearby town of Waynesville!  I assume it was just more crowded due to the holiday weekend and the fact a large conference was underway for another denomination using the facilities. 

The late evening views around the lake were really pretty.

From 2010-06 Lake Junaluska

From 2010-06 Lake Junaluska

There were a large number of geese in several spots around the lake including this family group.

From 2010-06 Lake Junaluska

We saw several pretty flowers along the way.

From 2010-06 Lake Junalusk

One reason we came over that Saturday evening was the fact our campground has live entertainment on Saturday's from 7 to 9:00pm outside the recreation hall.  We are parked close to this building and did not care for the loud music.  The Bluegrass players sounded good, just way too loud.  So we went looking for an escape and ended up at Lake Junaluska.

This past Saturday we left before the program started and drove about 30 minutes over to Asheville and did some shopping.  We came out of one store to see a beautiful sunset.

From 2010-06 Sunset in Asheville

Not sure where we will go next Saturday evening.  The following weekend we will be in Mississippi.  We will make a quick trip down to Columbia, SC by car for another Doctor visit.  Then we will head across to Mississippi for a few days to visit family and attend a wedding.  Then back to Waynesville late Sunday June 20th.  This will be a long round trip of about 1900 miles.

2010-05 Creekwood Farm RV Park in Waynesville, NC

Overlooking Waynesville, NC

From 2010-05 Creekwood Farm RV Park and Waynesville, NC

We are currently at Creekwood RV Park in Waynesville, NC which is a lovely town in the  Blue Ridge Mountains about 30 minutes west of Asheville.  We will be here until July 5th when we head north to Mackinaw City, Michigan.

This is a lovely campground.  There are several couples who stay here as “work campers”.  Each husband and wife work 25 hours a week in exchange for their campsites.  Four of the men are dedicated to grounds keeping, and they really keep the place looking nice.  

The only downside to the campground is the fact a wood chipping plant is just across the highway.  Their operation is pretty loud, and they start work around 6:30am.  We have gotten somewhat accustomed to the noise, and happily they have been shut down most of this week before Memorial Day.  

From 2010-05 Creekwood Farm RV Park and Waynesville, NC

A prominent feature of the campground is the old barn and silo left from the days this was farmland.

From 2010-05 Creekwood Farm RV Park and Waynesville, NC

There is a pretty creek that runs down one side.

From 2010-05 Creekwood Farm RV Park and Waynesville, NC

I saw a mother duck and her little ducklings in the creek.

From 2010-05 Creekwood Farm RV Park and Waynesville, NC

A nice deck overlooks the creek at one end of the campground.

From 2010-05 Creekwood Farm RV Park and Waynesville, NC

On the other end is a picnic area open to all campers. 

From 2010-05 Creekwood Farm RV Park and Waynesville, NC

In between the deck and picnic area are a number of pretty sites that back up to the creek. 

The campground is close to both Maggie Valley and Waynesville so it is a good base for exploring this area.   We are just a mile or so from I-40 which gives easy access to drive over to Asheville.  This is a Passport America Park, so it would be a good overnight stop if you are traveling through this area between Asheville and Knoxville in your RV.

2010-05 NC Arboretum

From 2010-05 NC Arboretum

We love the NC Arboretum and that was the first place we visited after our arrival in Waynesville.

We wanted to see the latest patchwork quilt garden.  They change the design 3 times during the spring/summer/fall growing seasons.  The current one has very muted colors.

From 2010-05 NC Arboretum

But there were other more colorful plants.

From 2010-05 NC Arboretum

From 2010-05 NC Arboretum

The bonsai exhibit is always a delight.

From 2010-05 NC Arboretum

From 2010-05 NC Arboretum

From 2010-05 NC Arboretum

While taking a picture, I heard Monique gasp.  I turned around to find here staring at this young snake (non-poisonous).

From 2010-05 NC Arboretum

He soon slithered away.

From 2010-05 NC Arboretum

This is our 4th or 5th visit.  If you like gardens and forests, do stop by if you are in the Asheville, NC area.