To Mars Hill, NC - #71-01

January 3, 2007 (Wednesday) Home to Winchester, VA (292 miles Today 292 total) - We're parked in the same Wal-Mart parking lot that we parked in last year on our way south. But this time we came by way of I-78 and I-81 (Last year it was by way of Baltimore, MD and Frederick, VA). The distance is about the same and probably the traffic is too. We got off this morning at about 9:30 (39° and sunny), got gas in Matawan, NJ ($2.17/gal) and made our way to the Garden State parkway northwest, I-287 and I-78 West and finally I-80 South. The Yarn Basket (a yarn shop) is still in business in Chambersburg, PA and open this time - it's been closed the last couple of times we've passed this way.

We pulled in here at about 3:15, got permission from the Wal-Mart floor manager to spend the night and settled in near a big class A towing an SUV. Several fifth wheel campers, a pickup camper and a car joined us as the evening went on.

Q034156 Camp Wal-Mart Winchester, VA B

January 4, 2007 (Thursday) Winchester, VA to Mars Hill, NC (397/689 miles) - We'd parked with a slight list to starboard so Mark spend a good deal of the night fighting the tendency to role out of bed. This, the usual first night restlessness and being slightly cold made for too little sleep. Even so we were able to get off by 8:08 (45° and sunny) albeit without eating breakfast. We'd have taken care of that at the first rest stop, but it was very small and very crowded. Virginia seems to be going to work on their rest areas along I-81 because most (by a big margin) have closed their rest rooms and set out temporary facilities. The next rest area was one of the few with open rest rooms.

Q is slightly too big to go into the "cars only" area at most rest areas but we feel uncomfortable taking up on of the huge parking spaces reserved for trucks when it is crowded. We should have gone into the car area, as we sometimes do, because while we were fixing and eating breakfast the truck parking spaces filled and overflowed. Trucks began to park everywhere - on the approach road, in to swing areas, and along the rest- area exit road. We didn't linger! For lunch we used the car area - and stuck out a little bit.

The Blue Ridge Mountains displayed their usual magnificence as we drove down through the Shenandoah valley and presented their usual challenge to heavy trucks through the pass on I-26 (or I-181 as some call it).

We've been having the unusual good luck of stopping at the lowest priced gas station - $2.17/g in Northern VA where prices were ranging around $2.23 and higher and $2.11/g in Tennessee vs $2.19 to $2.21.

We arrived at Bob and Pat's at 4:14 (62°) - a day early as it turned out. (we'd given them the wrong arrival date!) They were happy to see us though and their neighbors were gracious enough to allow us to come along with them to dinner. The new addition to their house - a large kitchen and great room area - is beautiful and very functional.

January 5, 2007 (Friday) Mars Hill, NC - This morning was the first that we've wakened to a pastoral scene with Llamas outside our window. Bob and Pat's neighbors (the ones where we ate dinner last night) have a small herd. There is a much larger herd (100 or so) in the field beyond but we've seen only a couple of them.

January 6, 2007 (Saturday) Mars Hill, NC - Bob and Pat threw a big party (well big by our standards anyway) today to celebrate the "opening" of their new addition and Bob's birthday. 30+ people, mostly from their church, came by for drinks and dinner. What a great bunch of friends they have. And what a wonderful place for a party. The weather was perfect - warm for this time of year yet cool enough to not want to linger outside without a sweater or light jacket. The rain from yesterday has moved off to the east.

January 7, 2007 (Sunday) Mars Hill, NC - This morning Mark and Bob attended the men's breakfast at the church. After sausage, bagels and coffee there was a group discussion, with personal sharing, about miracles in our lives. In the early afternoon Mark spent much unproductive time on the telephone trying to get help from AT&T Worldnet in solving our email problem. Other than that we managed to fill the rest of the day with unremarkable activities and watched "Lady in the Water" (movie) in the evening.

January 8, 2007 (Monday) Mars Hill, NC - We spent most of today in Asheville, NC in various interesting shops. While Joy and Pat "did" the quilt shop (and others) Mark and Bob went to the Best Buy to exchange a telephone system for a properly working one. Lunch was in a very good Mexican restaurant. Dominoes are planned for the evening.

As you might have gathered, we are still having trouble with email sent to our main address being blocked by AT&T. If you are trying to get in touch and getting error messages for your effort, please use our alternate address. We are getting email that is sent there.

Q034553 Bob and Pat's yard. (x5)