The first ten days of March marked our initial maintenance visit to the Tiffin complex at Red Bay, Alabama. After getting checked in and assigned our place in line, we made several new Tiffin-owner acquaintances. Bill learned a lot about the internal workings of our “home” and how to do many small repairs and check-ups on a very different type of house!
March 3, 2020
Mississippi
While waiting for our turn in the maintenance bay, we took a drive to Tupelo, MS, to visit Elvis Presley’s birthplace. To our surprise we discovered a beautifully landscaped property, very well-thought out and designed for anyone to enjoy. Since spring was just beginning to burst out in the area, landscapers were hard at work putting down new sod in areas damaged by the winter. Being from New England, we were fascinated at the bundles of long pine needles being spread around the shrubs and flowers like we use bark mulch back home. The early trees and daffodils were in full bloom. The walk around the reflecting pool with the fountain splashing and the waterfall gurgling added to the serene beauty of the site.
March 5, 2020
Alabama
A visit to Tuscumbia, Alabama, would not be complete without a visit to the birthplace of Helen Keller. The homestead, Ivy Green, was clearly depicted in the movie “The Miracle Worker.” The famous pump where the great breakthrough between teacher Anne Sullivan and her unruly student, Helen, came to fruition stands in the backyard.
March 7 and 8, 2020
Alabama
While waiting for our turn in line at the Tiffin maintenance facility, we made a weekend trip to northeastern Alabama for some sightseeing. On Saturday we stopped at Russell Cave National Monument to see one of the caves inhabited by some of the “First Americans.” The dwellers have been documented to have lived in the area from at least 7000 BC to AD 1650. Sunday we traveled down to Little River Canyon National Preserve to see the nation’s longest mountaintop river. We spent a peaceful day walking trails along the river and waterfalls and driving the curving canyon road with beautiful overlooks. We were sad to not have one more day to spend in Huntsville at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center, but we plan to go there on another trip through Alabama.
After our maintenance was finished it was time to move further east. We traveled through Robins AFB FamCamp in Georgia; Parris Island RV Park (our first Marine Corp base), South Carolina; Foster Creek RV Park (the Navy side of Charleston AFB), South Carolina; Fort Fisher AFRC, Kure Beach (unfortunately, the beach was closed due to COVID), North Carolina and finally on to Smith Lake Army RV Park at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Unfortunately, while we were enroute Bill received the news that the marathon he was registered to run there had been cancelled because of the virus. We completed our stay at Fort Bragg and headed north as campgrounds began closing and most of our reservations were being cancelled as state after state decided to restrict travel from out-of-state residents.
March 30, 2020
Virginia
With the coronavirus raging across the United States, we began self-quarantining in Fredericksburg, VA, at the end of March. Getting used to this new way of life hasn’t been easy. We wear face masks and gloves every time we leave our car and enter a store, which for the most part we have limited to one day a week.
KelJon Journeys 