Camp Hosts – Week 3 & 4
Sunday, January 15, 2017
I have decided I like Jimmy Dean sausage patties better than Bob Evans. They are slightly smaller & a little leaner & just taste better. So, that’s what I’ll get from now own. Learn as you go. Eggs from Tracie Pollard’s chickens were delish & much appreciated. Her friendship is even more special. And I’m still using the bacon I cooked at home before our great adventure began. Only using 2 slices a day makes it last (frozen) for many days.
Camp Hosts – Weeks 1 & 2
Sunday, January 1, 2017
We may have stepped aboard the “Crazy Train” by becoming volunteers at Ft Yargo State Park … but I’m actually thinking we have just begun a fantastic adventure!
Cold Weather Camping
Thursday, December 1, 2016
It’s time to start the winter camping adventures &, although 37 – 40 degrees is not “cold” to some, it is to the pups. They were sporting their cute little sweaters for the first time of the season.
We Are Back At It Again!
Monday, October 24, 2016
We have survived (& thrived) two months of participating in Festivals with my Sweet Tea’s Soaps & Stuff business & it’s time to camp again! We love doing festivals but sure do miss camping during that time. Our intention was to unload the truck when we got home Sunday in preparation of a swift morning departure. But we were exhausted & put off the task until the following day. It was a dusty festival so all our equipment & product we brought home would have to be cleaned up so the crates of goods were literally left on the workbenches & will be dealt with upon our return. The equipment, while put away neatly, will have to be taken back out & washed thoroughly. All’s good though. We had five of the best festivals ever & had fun doing them.
Local Camping
Tuesday, August 23, 2016
It’s always good to “shop local” & we decided to extend that mindset to “camp local” for a week. We restocked Wilbur after our last trip & hit the road – all of 15 minutes worth of road – to Ft Yargo State Park. We were hoping to snag a lake front site as those are our favorite-the water & birds are both beautiful. Unfortunately, there are only a few of those locations & others must have had the same idea. <sigh> We picked another site that was equally wonderful (without the water view though) that had a great tree canopy & was roomy. It was probably the easiest set up we have had to date & that is saying a lot. Our 30 minute set-up was done in 20 minutes!
Wandering in the Mountains
Thursday, July 28, 2016
A few months ago I made the mistake of buying & installing a large outline sticker map of the United States on Wilbur’s slideout. There are small stickers that you put over the blank states as you camp in each, showing all who see it where you have traveled. Being a rule follower by nature we will only put the state stickers on as we actually camp in each state. Although Perry & I have personally been to nearly all 50 states, Wilbur has only been to Florida & Georgia. So, our map is pretty pitiful. Which prompted our current trip to accumulate more stickers. Yes, that’s our excuse for this trip!
A Trip for Lily before School Starts
Friday, July 15, 2016
We arrived at Fort Yargo at about noon, hoping to grab a spot by the lake. It was not meant to be – others had arrived first & those few great spots were taken. <sigh> Not that the other spots at the park are bad by any means. It’s truly one of the Georgia Park treasures. So, we cruised through both Campground #1 & #2 before we decided on a pretty pull through site relatively near the brand new bathhouse in Campground #1. The new bathhouse is a huge improvement over the old! It was squeaky clean & the shower stalls have actual locking doors which makes me happy. The bathhouses at this park have always been clean & well maintained but I personally like a solid door on my shower stall instead of a curtain. Enough about the bathhouse for now.
A Family Trip to the North Georgia Mountains
Friday, June 16, 2016
My friend Gigi McInnis arranged for us to stay at the Mountain Lakes Resort just outside Helen, GA. She’s a longtime member there & knew this would be a fun adventure as Perry & I continue to test & grow in our Glamping experiences. So, with Wilbur in tow, we hit the road to this most fabulous resort! After a stop to pick up Lily at Summer Camp we were on our way. It would have helped if I had loaded the correct address in GPS to begin with (we would have avoided driving through downtown Helen) but we got to the resort in short order anyway. And Lily got to see Helen as we slowly drove through to which she has declared was the coolest place ever. We will return soon, I’m sure, so she can see it more closely than through a car window.
We’ve Gotten Rusty!
Monday, May 30, 2016
A couple of months had passed since our two week adventure to Florida & we forgot some of our newly acquired camping capabilities. During the Spring & Fall, we participate in several Festivals where we sell my Sweet Tea’s Soaps & Stuff products so camping is set aside during that time.
The First Big Adventure
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Finally feeling like we have this camping stuff figured out, we decided to venture beyond the comfort zone of Ft Yargo State Park, just 15 miles from home. Actually, we hit the road to Florida & a two week, multi park walk-about (or drive-about). We hooked up the trailer (which will forever more be called “Wilbur” instead of “Trailer”) loaded with whatever we felt would be needed over the next 2 weeks with the exception of food we would need to pick up along the way. The dogs were all snuggled in the backseat of the truck & we set about seeing some memorable things along the way to our first stop. We were delayed at a crossing by the cutest little train engine in a small town we passed through – wish I had thought to get a picture. And I loved seeing the draping Spanish moss hanging from the trees – I remember so much of this hanging from oaks as I grew up in Bradenton, FL. But one must be aware of the chiggers!
Experimental Trip #3
Thursday, January 28, 2016
Okay, we felt pretty sure we had this whole “glamping” thing understood so after the 3rd weekend we plan on calling our trips something other than experimental. I mean, how many experiments does one conduct when creating something? We certainly weren’t the creators of camping but we became self made guinea pigs & enjoyed the spinning wheel we were running on.
Experimental Trip #2
Friday, January 15, 2015
Our first camping adventure went more smoothly than we had expected but we needed to get more kinks worked out with this whole “glamping” thing. So it was back at Ft Yargo for us, prepared to learn even more. The rain came down pretty hard as we got the trailer hooked up to the truck & hit the road. After the long, arduous 15 mile ride, we pulled back into Campground #1, hoping to snag the same spot as the previous weekend. Unfortunately, someone had already laid claim to that spot so we settled for one just a few spaces over. It turned out to be an even prettier spot, overlooking the lake, & in closer proximity to the bathhouse! WIN! I stood out in the cold rain & directed Perry into place – sort of. It’s a stretch to say I was directing when he won’t listen & does it his way. But, he did good after a few backwards & forwards. One of the other campers who patiently waited to get by even rolled down his window to say Perry did better than most. I kind of wondered if that meant another trailer had ended up in the lake earlier. Let’s hope not!
Experimental Trip #1
Friday, January 8, 2016
Our first camping – or “glamping” – adventure! Perry hooked up the trailer to the back of his truck with all the fancy attachments & light kits that cost “extra” when we bought the thing. I finished outfitting the “household” & got the pups ready to go. They were smelling & looking mighty fine with fresh haircuts & baths & for that I was grateful. Just one “OPPS!” right off. When Perry pulled the camper out of the backyard, he forgot to retract / turn the door rail & it caught on the fence. It’s pretty bent so I suppose we will have to replace it at some point.
Backyard Shenanigans
Thursday, January 7, 2016
Over the last week or so, Perry has widened our back gate so the travel trailer we bought in December can more easily be parked in the backyard & taken out as needed. I wish I had taken pictures or even a video of the calamity that ensued when we first brought it home. Our good neighbor, Jason Martin, helped direct Perry as he attempted to back into the fence opening on that fateful first day. But the short fence that divides our backyard was giving them fits as it curves & blocks a straight access. So, the two of them decided to drive the truck & trailer in face first. Opps! Maybe not such a good idea as the truck was then wedged in & took some serious maneuvering to get it out from around the trailer. This left the trailer facing in the wrong direction with no way to hook it to the truck & bring it back out. After a day of contemplation on this dilemma, I decided to go visit my friend Debbie & allow Perry & his partner in crime, Chris Humble, time to come up with a plan. And they did. Mind you, I was not there to witness – or fret – over their solution. But from what I understand, they put the trailer hitch on Chris’ golf cart & used it to turn the trailer around. Whatever works folks! At least we had hope this new “toy” would not become a permanent fixture or just yard art in the backyard.
The Purchase
Tuesday, December 15, 2015
We bought a travel trailer! As Perry is retiring at the end of this year, we thought a new “hobby” was in order. He grew up camping with his family, mostly in the summer at Hanging Dog Campground in Murphy, NC. I, on the other hand, was a city dweller. My family wasn’t particularly into doing much together so I don’t even remember but a couple vacations throughout my childhood. Perry & I did take our son Robby on vacations every year, mostly to Disney, Tybee Island, skiing in Boone, NC, Memphis, etc. But my idea of “roughing it” was the Holiday Inn or a similar economically priced hotel. We made great memories all the same & I wouldn’t trade away one for a million dollars.
This is a blog about the adventures of Perry & Beth Barton, designed as a lasting memory for our sweet granddaughter Lily when we are both “lived out” one day. It’s meant to be full of fun & laughter, with some family history & personal thoughts mixed in, as well as a few recipes we use while on the road glamping in our motorhome we call Waldo. In case you are curious about the name “Moonshine” for Perry – it’s because he occasionally buys moonshine while we travel about on our trips. Beth’s nickname of “Sweet Tea” was adopted because she was the creator of Sweet Tea’s Soaps & Stuff & Sweet Tea, The Magazine That Refreshes. The word “Coddiwomple” means “To travel in a purposeful manner towards a vague destination.” That’s what we do – our intention is to see the world – the journey is just as important as the eventual destination. We are full-time RVers on a quest to spend time exploring all of the lower 48, Canada & Alaska over an extended period of time. So, enjoy the blog & make a “Coddiwomple” experience of your own.
