Gunter Hill COE Campground- Montgomery, Alabama (January 2020)

Shakedown!

You can almost hear Deputy Barney Fife yelling “shakedown” as we started talking about a short camping trip to help us figure out where things should go in our new Rosie. (Rosie is what we call our Airstream trailer.)

We didn’t want to stray too far from home in case we discovered a big problem with Rosie. For the record, we found a few things Airstream needs to fix and we went ahead and made our reservations for some Airstream factory warranty service. 

This was our sixth visit to Gunter Hill COE Campground. As with most U.S. Army Corps of Engineer Campgrounds, this is a great place. The sites are large and the Catoma loop offered full hookups. The older Antioch loop wasn't open this time, but it didn’t have sewer connections the last time we camped there.

Sign at Gunter Hill COE Campground

The temperatures were pleasant during the day and close to freezing at night. This allowed us to test the heat pumps in Rosie along with the furnace. As expected, the heat pumps worked well until the temperature dropped too low, then the furnace took over and made sure that Rosie was very cozy.

Rosie in Gunter Hill COE Campground

Roads in the Catoma loop were paved and that made it nicer to walk Suzy, our long-haired Yorkie dog. On one of our walks, we talked with a retired U.S. Army soldier. He said that this was the first COE campground that he and his wife had camped in and he was surprised at how nice COE parks were. We told him that there were a few “rustic” parks out there, but most COE campgrounds were very nice.

Paved roads and the bridge in the Catoma Loop

One of the things we didn’t understand was the reservation system. My estimate was that only one-third of the campsites were occupied. We went in as a walk-in because the online reservation system showed the park as full. This wasn’t an isolated event because we experienced the “ignore the empty sites because the online reservation system says the park is full” syndrome at other COE and state parks. 

There is what appeared to be a river behind the campground. There wasn’t a convenient path to the shore.

Along the shore at Gunter Hill

Here are some specifics about this campground:

• Our site had 20, 30 and 50 amp electrical service 
• Our site had a water connection
• Our site had a sewer connection 
• There were two dump stations in this park, one for each loop
• Sites in the Catoma loop had concrete pads
• The Antioch loop was closed so we were unable to note the condition of those sites. They were dirt and gravel two years ago 
• Our site in the Catoma loop was level
• There were two bathhouses in the Catoma loop. Both were modern, well maintained and clean
• The park did not provide WiFi service 
• AT&T provided marginal 4G voice and data service over our campsite 
• We were able to watch ABC, CBS, FOX, PBS and NBC using Rosie’s TV antenna. We also received digital channels Antenna, Buzz, Decades, Escape, Get, Grit, H&I, ME, Movies and THiS 
• This was a pet friendly park 

A selfie

Rosie's campsite

Foley RV/Airstream of Mississippi - Gulfport, Mississippi (January 2020)

Hello and Goodbye.

We scheduled a trip to Gulfport, Mississippi. It was time for some regular maintenance on Rosie, our Airstream trailer. In the past, this has meant a trip to the Airstream factory in Ohio. Instead of heading north, we decided to go to Foley RV/Airstream of Mississippi. We heard from several fellow Airstreamers that this was a good dealer with a strong service department. 

While setting up our appointment, we asked a few questions about their inventory. We figured we could pass the time while they were repairing Rosie by looking at some new Airstream trailers. 

One trailer they expected to arrive from the factory in a few weeks piqued our interest. It checked most of the things we had on our “we wish Rosie had this” list. 

As we talked to a salesman over the next few weeks, we started toying with the idea of seriously looking at this new trailer before starting the planned maintenance procedures on Rosie. We realized that we could trade Rosie in instead of keeping our service appointment. 

It felt funny pulling into Foley RV/Airstream of Mississippi knowing that we were really considering trading in Rosie for a new Airstream trailer. It didn't take long to make the decision. We were about to say goodbye to Rosie and say hello to a new Rosie.

I felt like we were taking a page from my brother's playbook. He had multiple dogs who were all named “Happy.” We were very comfortable with calling our trailer Rosie so the new one would also assume the name Rosie.

Our new Rosie was parked in Foley RV’s camping area behind their service building. They parked our old Rosie next to it to make it easier to transfer our things from one Rosie to the other. 

When we awoke the next morning, our original Rosie had been moved to another section of their lot. It felt funny seeing our original Rosie parked away from us. At the same time, we were busy setting up our new Rosie. 

Original Rosie after being moved away from the new Rosie

We were not alone in the camping area at Foley RV/Airstream of Mississippi. One other new Airstream owner was parked in this area at the same time. Our neighbors were planning to take their new Airstream trailer to Montana. While that sounded exciting, January’s winter weather may slow them down.

Camping at Foley RV / Airstream of Mississippi

We planned to stay another couple of days when we saw that a big storm was heading towards the east coast and we didn’t want to travel in what was being described as severe storms going home. 

We said our final goodbyes to our first Rosie as we hitched our new Rosie to our truck, then we were off.

About to hitch up the new Rosie

Pulling out from Foley RV / Airstream of Mississippi

We made it home ahead of the storm and parked Rosie in the storage warehouse we use. We plan to go on a “shakedown” camping trip in a week or two. After all, we have to figure out where things go and we need to start discovering our new Rosie’s personality. 

Goodbye old Rosie. Hello new Rosie. 

River’s End Campground - Tybee Island, Georgia (November 2019)

River’s End was not supposed to be the end of our WBCCI 2019 Southeast Coast Caravan, but it happened. There was one more stop before the caravan officially ended, but we didn’t make it there.

Sign at entrance welcoming our caravan

Sign at the campground

Things started off about as normal as it gets on the road. We arrived at the campground and were led to our site by the park’s staff. This turned out to be very helpful because our site had several difficult trees along the path. The park staff person was familiar with how to slip in dodging the trees and provided some helpful hints as we parked Rosie, our Airstream trailer.

Our site in this campground

Once we were safely parked in our site, we noticed that it was a little larger than most sites in that campground. Most sites were very close together and too shallow to hold a 25 foot rig and tow vehicle. Our site was deep enough that we could hitch up without blocking the road. 

We were thankful we were not in the sites along the access road. Trailers in those sites were as close to the road as you could get. They were also packed in about as close as the laws of physics and human interaction allows.  We were happy our site was in the middle of the campground. 

We visited Fort Pulaski National Monument while camping there. The fort was built in 1847 and saw action during the Civil War. We thought this was one of the better preserved forts we have visited from this era.

The moat around Fort Pulaski

Inside the fort

A canon inside the fort

There is a monument to John Wesley near the fort. John Wesley was an evangelist and religious leader of a movement that became known as the Methodist Church. Having grown up in Methodist parsonages, it was interesting to see that monument.

John Wesley, founder of the Methodist Church

There was a lighthouse near the campground. We didn’t have a chance to explore it.

The Tybee Island Lighthouse

Here are some specifics about this campground:

• Our site was a back-in
• Our site was paved with gravel 
• We had to use leveling tools to correct a left-to-right lean
• Our site had 20, 30 and 50 amp electrical service
• Our site had a water connection 
• Our site had a sewer connection
• There was a dump station in the park 
• The bathhouse near our site was clean and well maintained 
• The campground provided basic cable TV service 
• We did not check to see if we could pick up any stations using Rosie’s TV antenna 
• AT&T placed two bars of service for voice and data over our site 
• We were unable to find a WiFi service at this campground 

We were in this campground for a day and a half instead of three. We left the caravan a few days early due to health reasons. We hated to leave early, but we knew we needed to head home. 

It seems that all of the WBCCI caravans we have been on have been great and this was no exception. We enjoyed being with that group and hope to see them on other Airstream caravans. 

Hunting Island State Park - Hunting Island, South Carolina (November 2019)

When we camped here in 2014, the park’s volunteers greeted us with, “Welcome to paradise!”  There was no such greeting this time.

Sign at the park

We were shocked to see all of the beachfront sites were gone along with most of the trees in that section. Hurricanes and storms have taken a toll on this park.

The old beachside loop

Also among the missing was the maritime forest that we found to be very interesting during our first visit. It is somewhat ironic that the majority of the park’s destruction came from Hurricane Michael, the same storm that leveled Port St Joe Peninsula State Park on Florida’s Gulf Coast. It was sad to see two state parks, one on the Gulf Coast and the other along the Atlantic, were damaged by the same hurricane.

The beach

The loop we camped in the last time was about six rows of campers back from the beach. Those sites are now as close as you can get to the ocean.

Rosie in the campground

Another photo of Rosie in the campground

Bits of asphalt and disconnected wires from the old campsites were visible along the beach. These reminders of destroyed sites were under water during high tides. 

It was easy to see where the beachside loop was before Hurricane Michael

Two of the things that were the same from our earlier visit were the mosquitoes and raccoons. We learned how important it was to quickly open and shut the door to keep flying pests out of Rosie, our Airstream trailer. 

Our 2019 Southeast Coast WBCCI Caravan was able to attend morning colors and graduation ceremonies for approximately 500 new United States Marines on the training base at Parris Island. It was inspiring to ride around the base watching Marine recruits in training and to see the newest Marines graduate from basic training.

Morning Colors at Parris Island

Graduation at Parris Island

Drill Instructors wait for their platoons to arrive for graduation

Pass and review at graduation

As our caravan group was riding on a bus to Parris Island, I couldn’t help but think about the last time I was on a bus in South Carolina heading to a military basic training facility. I remembered the names of my Drill Sergeants and the head Drill Sergeant screaming at us to get off “his” bus and how a certain part of our anatomy belonged to him. He also emphasized that we needed to quickly move that part of our anatomy off his bus. 

Looking back, it seemed as if drill sergeants tended to believe they owned everything and I was not going to challenge that assumption then or now.

Sign at Parris Island

A Marine Corporal served as our host on the base. He was knowledgeable and a great example of a U.S. Marine. 

Here are some specifics about this campground:

• Our site was a back-in
• Our site was paved with gravel 
• We had to use leveling tools to correct a left-to-right lean
• Our site had 20, 30 and 50 amp electrical service
• Our site had a water connection with low pressure problems 
• Our site did not have a sewer connection
• There were two dump stations in the park 
• The bathhouse near our site was clean and well maintained 
• We were able to occasionally watch ABC and PBS using Rosie’s TV antenna as the signals tended to drift in and out—mostly out
• We were able to occasionally watch TV digital channels Bounce and Grit 
• AT&T placed one bar of service for voice and data over our site 
• The campground provided WiFi service that never seemed to work for us
• The campground had a good and well stocked store

The Hunting Island lighthouse

Campstore

Visiting a Kazoo factory while in the area

We enjoyed a horse-drawn carriage ride around Beaufort 

Huntington Beach State Park - Murrells Inlet, South Carolina (October 2019)

Huntington Beach State Park has been on our list to visit for a while. We were happy when we saw that the 2019 WBCCI Southeast Coast Caravan planned a stop there.

There were two camping loops in this park. The south loop was a parking lot. The sites were close together and there were few trees for shade. Those sites also had concrete pads and full hook-ups. 

We camped in the north loop. While only a few of these sites had sewer connections, the large sites and shade trees made this our preferred loop.

Rosie's site in the campground

It was easy to hear the sounds of the ocean when outside Rosie, our Airstream trailer. There was a short trail from our loop to the beach.

Path to the beach

Enjoying walking on the beach

Most roads in the park were paved. This made it easy to walk Suzy, our Yorkie. 

We watched a raccoon steal something in a plastic bag under a trailer one evening while on a walk. Suzy was suddenly restless a couple of times while we camped here. We figured she heard some raccoons as they checked out our site. 

We toured Brookgreen Gardens and took the creek boat excursion while camping in Huntington Beach State Park. The gardens featured hundreds of sculptures from American artists. Our guide said that more than 2,000 sculptures were there.

In the gardens

Enjoying the sunny day

Trees in the gardens with Christmas lights hanging from them

One of the sculptures in the gardens

The creek tour was fun and we did see an alligator from the boat.

Waiting to board the boat

Here are some specifics about this campground:

• Our site was a back-in
• Our site was paved with gravel 
• Our site had 30 amp electrical service. 
• Our site had a water connection 
• Our site did not have a sewer connection
• There were several dump stations in the park 
• The bathhouse in our camping loop was clean and functional
• We were able to watch ABC and FOX using Rosie’s TV antenna 
• We were able to watch TV digital channels ME-TV and MY
• AT&T placed one bar of service for voice and data over our site 
• There was WiFi available at several bathhouses 

Sunset over the lake

Sunrise along the Atlantic

Sunset along the lake

Back to the beach

Carolina Beach State Park - Carolina Beach, North Carolina (October 2019)

This is the type of campground we normally love. Most sites are large and wooded. 

If you sense a big “but” is about to surface, you are correct.

Carolina Beach State Park Sign

I wish we had scouted this park before we arrived with Rosie, our Airstream trailer. Some sites are great while others are difficult at best. 

Our site required Becky to back Rosie, our Airstream trailer, uphill and between several trees. To make things more interesting, our site took a turn to the right about 20 feet in. Once we parked Rosie, we knew that it was going to be difficult to hook up when it was time to leave.

Rosie in the campground

Another view of Rosie's site

Several trailers in our caravan had to move to another site because they could not squeeze between the trees on their original assignments. 

Our WBCCI Southeast Coast Caravan had a low country boil while at this campground. Several at our table thought these boils were a Louisiana Cajun thing. Others thought it was more of a South Carolina tradition. We ended up asking the caterer who said this was best described as a southern thing. The Louisiana version substitutes crawfish for shrimp. He added that locals call the boil we had “Frogmore Stew.”  Whatever it was called, it was great.

Cooking the Frogmore Stew

Time to eat!

We also visited the North Carolina Aquarium while there. This is a small but very enjoyable aquarium. It was nice not having to fight crowds to see the exhibits.

A shark at the aquarium

An eagle at the aquarium

Becky resting on a sea turtle statue

A turtle that was going to be released back to the wild in a couple of weeks

This park was billed as one of the few places Venus Flytraps are native. We didn’t see any while on a trail known as a habitat for these plants. It turned out that people love to pick these flowers and it was getting hard to find them.

Some pitcher plants in this park

Here are some specifics about this campground:

• Our site was a back-in
• Our site was difficult to back in because the site curved and had trees that wedged around Rosie 
• Our site was paved with dirt and gravel 
• Our site did not have any electrical service 
• Our site did not have a water connection 
• Our site did not have a sewer connection 
• A few sites in this campground had electrical and water connections 
• A few sites in this campground had sewer connections 
• There was a dump station in the park 
• The bathhouse in our camping loop was clean and functional. It was also very dated and appeared that it occasionally was underwater when hurricanes hit the Carolina coastline 
• Without electrical power, we could not check on the reception of local TV stations
• AT&T placed one bar of service for unreliable voice and data over our site 
• There was WiFi available at the park office and the marina 
• The gate to the park was locked every night at 9 p.m. If you went out for the evening, you had to make sure you were back before 9 or you were locked out of the campground 
• We wondered if there had recently been trouble in the campground. The ranger patrols through the campground were frequent and thorough 

Path to the beach