OK, Our age is showing!

If you remember watching the Andy Griffith TV show, you know what I mean. (Our kids say Who?) After leaving Maryland, we headed towards Mount Airy, NC for a couple of days. Mount Airy is the home of Andy Griffith and the inspiration for Mayberry, the town featured in the Andy Griffith show. We stayed at the Mayberry campground www.mayberrycampground.com. Downtown it's a blast from the past as they have preserved the downtown as it was in the 60's.

We ate here for lunch. Snappy Lunch is mentioned by Andy in the TV show.

Every kind of candy is available here.

60's police cars in town.

Andy & Opie statue outside the museum.

Floyd's Barber Shop

There is an Andy Griffith museum in town that has memorabilia from the show there. While probably best known for the TV show, Andy Griffith also had a recording career and a movie career. There is also an exhibit for Eng and Chang Bunker, famous Siamese twins from Thailand who lived in Mount Airy. 

We headed to the Freightliner Service Center at Gaffney, SC next. A few minor problems were checked out. Next up: Tiffin Service center in Red Bay, AL for warranty work. It will be our home for the next 3, 4? weeks. 

Flight 93, Lincoln, Gettysburg, & more

We've tried to see as much as we can while here in MD. However, you could spend every day seeing historical sites around here. The east coast is rich in history, especially with the Civil War.

I had wanted to see the Flight 93 Memorial in PA for some time. We decided to go on 9/12, one day after the large tributes of 9/11. The memorial is designed to commemorate the flight path the plane took before crashing, while also paying homage to the passengers and crew of that flight who gave their lives to save others. It is a fitting memorial while reminding us of the horror of that day and how it changed lives forever. 

Son Sam & I outside the Visitor's Center

After that we went on to Gettysburg for the first of two stops there. In downtown Gettysburg we found the David Wills House. This is the house that President Lincoln is believed to have stayed in the night before giving his Gettysburg Address. 

History abounds here, with plaques everywhere. This sign indicates that this church was used as a hospital during the Civil War.

Putting history aside for a while, we traveled to the Hershey Park RV Show, the largest RV show in the US. After all, we were only a couple of hours away, so why not go? 

Just a few people and RV's at the show 

On the way back from Hershey, we stopped at Gettysburg again. This time we went to the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center. We viewed the show the History Channel did on the Gettysburg Battle, then went up to the Cyclorama, where there is a 377 foot painting (by a french artist) of Pickett's Charge, which was completed in 1844 and has been restored. There is a story narrated while lights highlight certain aspects of the painting and the battle. I wish that every student of US History could visit this museum-it brings "alive" the battle of Gettysburg and the lives it cost. This is much better than just reading a textbook. The museum also has numerous artifacts from the war. 

You can take a self guided auto tour. After doing part of it, we decided that if we came back we would spend the time and money to take the 2 hour bus tour with a guide. The whole park is nearly 30,000 acres and includes the Soldiers National Cemetery. 

Tomorrow we leave to head towards the Freightliner Factory in Gaffney, SC and then back to the Tiffin Factory in Red Bay, AL for maintenance. We will miss everyone, but especially these two guys-

Jacob sleeping with Vince behind him 

Bicycles and Air Conditioners

It doesn't matter whether you're sitting in one place, or traveling. The RV life continues to have challenges.

It started with a trip to a bike shop to repair a cable on my bike. While there, we started talking with the employees about alternatives for bike racks, since the one we had was not optimal. It turns out that the bike rack we had is fine for the car, but was not rated at all to be on the back of the motorhome. (The company would not pay for any damages caused by it coming loose.) The vibrations caused by the motorhome as we drive on the road are too much for a "regular" bike rack. So we began the search for a new, heavier duty one. After having one shipped to us we had to test drive it.

Why, you ask? Well, the bike rack sits behind the motorhome and in front of the car. We had to make sure that the bike rack did not rub against the car when we make either a hard right or a hard left turn. (Although we try not to do those, sometimes we don't have any choice.) This meant we had to unhook everything and pull the slides in. We headed towards a large vacant parking lot so we could do the testing. With a bit of adjustments, we got the rack to work.

New Bike Rack (folded up) 

After returning, we had to level again , get hooked up, and let the slides out. We had postponed dinner until all this was done. I was waiting for the AC to kick in (a very hot day) when it came on for a second and then quit. This is on Sunday, with Monday being Labor Day. We can't even call customer service until Tuesday morning.

Luckily it cooled down that night so we were able to sleep without any problem. We called early on Tuesday. Following the instructions of the tech, we did various tests to determine the source of the problem. It turns out we blew out the Precision Circuits Control Module. After disabling that, the AC works perfectly (a new module is on its way here). That is a BIG relief as temps this week are over 90 every day with the heat index being close to 100 some days. There's never a dull moment in an RV'ers life!

Middletown,MD and surrounding area

While we haven't been traveling, we have been exploring the area. Here are some pictures, in no particular order. 

Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. This sign is outside of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ACT), which is approximately the half way point of the Appalachian Trail.

War Correspondent's Memorial, Burkittsville, MD

Time for Football! We've been enjoying grandsons Vince and Jacob's games.

We've seen some amazing sunsets and sky views while here.

Here's another pretty sky view.

Martina McBride concert, thanks Allison and Vince! 

Hagerstown, MD Roundhouse (RR) Museum.

Old railroad cars outside of the museum.

Part of the model railroad tracks inside the museum.

Orange sky at night with the steeple of Zion Lutheran Church.

Grandson Jacob eating ice cream at More's, our new favorite ice cream place.