On the Road

Happy Monday! 

We are on the road again to California for the birth of my niece's baby.   We made this trip in December 2011 and you made the trip with us by sharing in the blog.  Our destination is Modesto which is 2,800 miles from Manson.  We will drive this distance in four days, spending about 50 hours total on the road.  On this trip, I hope to share with you the beauty and magnificence of this great country to include pictures and activities. You will have the chance to post questions and I will do my best to answer them in the evening so you will see my responses during your next computer class.

I had intended to post along the way, but regrettably experienced technical difficulties.  I think I've solved them, so I'm working now to catch-up.   By the time you read this first post, we will have arrived in Modesto, CA. 

We departed Friday morning, April 4th, around 7:30 A.M. - the skies were clear, the car was packed to the roof, and both occupants were already tired before we even started. 
We headed down Interstate 85 to Interstate 40 traveling west through North Carolina to Tennessee. It wasn't long before those clear skies became overcast and the rains started and stayed with us throughout the day.

Our state has a vast array of landscapes - beaches, mountains, hills, flat lands, lakes, forests, and more.  One of North Carolina's most beautiful assets are the mountains in the western part of the state.  These mountains are part of the Appalachian Mountain Range and home to the most visited state park in the United States.  Your first assignment, tell me the name of these mountains and the name of the State Park?  Now tell me why you think these mountains are called that.   If you don't know, take a look at the picture below for a hint.

Hopefully, many of you have had the opportunity to travel to this area, visit the state park, see the bears, swim in the river, picnic, and visit many of the other sites.
 

Many people do not like driving through this area because of the tunnels and the "S-curves".  This area has a great deal of exposed rock which often results in rock slides along the highway, especially between Ashville, NC and the Tennessee border.  The state highway uses a number of methods to protect passing motorists from falling rock - there might be fencing placed over the rock to help keep the rock from flowing onto the highway, or in the picture below on the right, there is a safety wall made with jersey barricades and fencing which keeps rock off the road.

 

We finally arrived at our hotel in Jackson, Tennessee around 9:30 Friday evening having traveled 697 miles this first day. 

 

This first post is a little short; however, I want to be sure this is working before I post too much.   Happy reading, and I will be back tomorrow with more.