Raleigh, NC to Fort Wayne, IN - Week 25

From the NC shore, we sped north toward Raleigh where we had dinner plans at my friend Carrie's place.  Her friend Ben was visiting from France and they had prepared an amazing seven course meal for us from supplies bought at the farmer's market.  Home-made grilled jalapeno poppers, cucumber salad, caprese salad, potato salad, grilled stuffed bell peppers, and grilled margarita chicken, followed up with a homemade peach and blueberry pie.  What an amazing spread!  Carrie even sent the leftovers home with us, plus some excess fresh produce.  Holy moly we were spoiled.

Luckily we had another day with Carrie.  It was Ben's birthday and they had morning kayaking plans.  But Carrie had recommended a a place called Poole's in downtown Raleigh for brunch.  We got there at 11 am when it opened and there was already a huge line.  We barely got seated in the first rush, then proceeded to have the best restaurant meal since leaving San Francisco.  Brian had huevos rancheros, I had eggs benedict and Lukas had a blueberry hotcake.  Each dish was topped with a sauce that really made the dish stand out.  Fresh squeezed orange juice, great coffee, speedy and friendly servers.  Our Poole's experience certainly backed up Carrie's statement that Raleigh is in the midst of a foodie revolution.

After brunch, Brian went golfing with birthday boy Ben while Carrie and I took Lukas to a train show at the fairgrounds.  That took about an hour, then we just toodled the rest of the afternoon away.  With the most special of friends it really doesn't matter what you're doing but you have a great time doing it together.  When the boys returned from golfing we had a little party with champagne, cake and ice cream.  The sun was dropping but we decided to take a dip in the neighborhood pool anyway.  Finally we left the duo to dinner plans and returned to the RV to eat our yummy leftovers.  Thanks for a wonderful weekend, Carrie!

The next day we began our Michigan journey in earnest.  That night we stayed in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.  The weather was beginning to cool down.  After two months of heat we had just put away our pants and jackets, only to need them again!  As San Franciscans we had forgotten about seasons.  It was mid-August and the nation-wide heat wave was breaking.

I grew up near Virginia, but never ventured to this part of Virginia.  This was the backcountry, where the  mountain folk reside.  Our campground had a Cowboy Church where anyone was welcome.  It was an open barn with a rudimentary wooden cross that had a cowboy hat resting on the base.  The walls were decorated with vintage toys and Coca Cola signs.  We weren't there for a Sunday but certainly enjoyed taking refuge from the rain in this most basic of cathedrals.  

Tuesday night we stayed just outside of Charleston, West Virginia.  This campground had by far the most interesting name and city of all the places we've been: The Rippling Waters Church of God Campground in Romance.  It seemed like many other campgrounds we've stayed at, except for the chapel and the rules against public smoking, drinking, or use of foul language.

We got in fairly early so decided to go explore Charleston.  When looking for a grocery store I found the Capitol Market, which is much like a smaller version of the ferry building.  Despite having just bought groceries, we didn't feel like cooking, so instead went to the Bluegrass Kitchen.  From the outside the place looked like a bust, but inside they had fresh and local fish and boasted of their organic ingredients and sustainably farmed produce.  Lukas was very well behaved considering, and we had a good time with the guys across the way who were on a business trip from Virginia.  They were experimenting with beer and shots of Frambois, a thick and sweet raspberry ale.  The final verdict: drop a shot glass full of Frambois into your Hoegarden and it will be delicious.

Overall, a fun time out in West Virginia.  We did not see any brother-sister pairs making out or barefoot teenagers missing several teeth.  Somehow West Virginia gets a bad rap.  However, our waitress was from Portland and she did allude to the fact that it's been a difficult transition for her and her girlfriend.  We may have stumbled upon a couple of the best places in the state.  Anyway, we didn't stick around long enough to find out.  Next stop was Ohio!

We tried to find somewhere to stay in Columbus, but instead ended up way out in cornfield and tobacco country.  It was a fun campground with lots of activities to keep Lukas busy.  The drive to Columbus Zoo was very pretty.  Cornfields gave way to a river, then suddenly there was the Zoo.  Columbus Zoo has long been associated with Jack Hanna, which adds publicity and funding to the venture.   A few years ago Columbus Zoo opened a water park and amusement park adjacent to the animal area.  They also own Safari Golf, a golf course across the street from the Zoo.  I have to admit that I was a little turned off by the dual entrance to the water park and the Zoo, but once in the Zoo the hectic feel of an amusement park dissipated and it felt more like a Zoo visit.

Columbus Zoo houses quite a few gorillas, and many of them are related to the gorillas at San Francisco.  Zura and OJ were born at Columbus during the era when keepers pulled gorilla babies from their mothers and hand raised them to increase survival odds.  Over the years we have learned that hand raised gorillas do not always learn appropriate gorilla behaviors and the current philosophy is to allow a surrogate gorilla mother, or in some cases father, to raise a gorilla infant that is not being properly cared for by its mother.  Columbus Zoo has pioneered the Birth Management and Surrogate Introduction programs and have done numerous surrogate introductions themselves.  When San Francisco Zoo found themselves in the position of having to hand rear a gorilla infant, it was Columbus Zoo who really came to our aide.  Maureen and Barb flew out to get our program started, then returned to make sure all was progressing on course.  They were tremendously helpful, infinitely patient, and just plain nice.

I was hoping to see Maureen or Barb during the visit, but was super last minute about contacting the Zoo.  Instead I planned to visit the gorilla keeper talk and bug them for more information on the relatives of the SF group.  Lo and behold, as I entered the indoor gorilla viewing, who should I see but Maureen!  As always she was so nice and proceeded to spend the next couple hours with me, giving me backstories on each of the gorillas and introducing every keeper we ran into.  It was a real treat to finally meet Colo, the first gorilla born in captivity, and the grandmother of Zura and OJ.  Colo is 54 years old but she looks great and is the spitting image of Zura.  Zura's mother, Toni, was waving her hands near her mouth just as Zura does.  Apparently none of the other gorillas at Columbus has that behavior.  I also met Mac, OJ's brother, whose face is vaguely similar and the mannerisms are spot on like OJ's.  Mac took a liking to me and followed me around the yard, just as OJ will often do with a young(ish) female observer.  Maureen also made sure I visited the bonobos and the manatees.  All the exhibits were well done and it was a very satisfying zoo visit.

Colo, Zura and OJ's grandmother

Toni, Zura's mother, tapping her mouth

Mac, OJ's brother

Gorilla hunt accomplished, the next day I decided to search for the Amish.  The area around Millersburg, Ohio is said to have the largest population of Amish in the US.  My curiosity was piqued, despite the two hour drive.  Brian was out golfing so it was only Lukas I needed to convince that this was a worthwhile journey, and he doesn't have too much say in such matters so it was an easy sell.  I figured there would be plenty of Amish sightings along the way to the epicenter of the community and we would not need to drive the full distance.

Well, I was wrong.  After two hours of driving along country roads we finally made it to the Amish Flea Market.  This had been much hyped on the internets as being a very special market.  There was a horse and carriage parked out front so that boded well.  However, inside it was a bunch of junk in a warehouse.  We left disappointed and I was feeling pretty dumb for driving so far.  I had seen a cheese factory a few miles back so decided we would stop there for a snack.

The Guissberg Cheese Factory was closed that week, but I was able to buy some of their famed Swiss cheese and ended up talking to an Amish woman selling baskets across the street.  We talked about the weather and their horses and how all children are interested in the horses and buggies.  Lukas watched a horse getting hitched to a carriage and didn't seem to notice that all the women wore bonnets and the men wore hats.

Just past the Cheese Factory was Herschberger Farms, and this is where the real fun happened.  It was an Amish owned farm with carriage rides, giant draft horses, and lots of baby animals to feed.  In the adjacent building there was produce and baked goods for sale, as well as a little cafe.  We played with the animals for quite a while, had some lunch during a brief rain shower, then watched kettle corn being made over a fire.  It ended up being a great day, made even better by Lukas sleeping the whole two hour drive back home.

Big Ben, the Belgian Draft Horse, would kick his metal sign whenever someone bought animal feed from the table right in front of him.  Of course he got a whole food cone from us.

A "Zorse", yup, the offspring of a zebra and a horse

The evening didn't end there.  We went swimming, then picked up Brian after his 36 holes of golf.  Since it was Friday, the RV park was making pizzas, hosting a hay ride, and showing "The Great Outdoors" on the big screen.  It was a full day and we all slept well that night.

It was time to leave Ohio and make the next move toward Michigan.  Our travels would take us through Fort Wayne, Indiana, so we decided to stay the night.  We took a brief car trip downtown and were surprised to find a rock festival in full swing.  There were more alternative types than I would have expected from Indiana, but I didn't know much about Indiana and still don't.  Brian went out later and chatted it up with some locals and had a good time.  Overall the town seemed interesting, like I could have spent a couple more days there, but I wouldn't really fly in just to check it out.  We were eager to move on to the Great Lakes, so move we did.

RV PARK REVIEWS

North Carolina State Fairgrounds, Raleigh, NC: B-

  Lot behind fairgrounds, grassy, close to town, quiet most of the time.  Lukas loved the morning construction crew that was building a road behind the RV park.

Deer Trail Park Campground, Wytheville, VA: B
  Woodsy setting, small creek, scummy fishing pond, pool with slide, playground, Cowboy Church, friendly kids on bicycles, apple trees, horses living next door, a little dusty.

Rippling Waters Church of God Campground, Romance, WV: B
  Clean, well maintained, two ponds, pool, zipline, chapel, no ungodly behavior allowed.

Autumn Lakes Campground, Sunbury, OH: B
  Rural setting next to cornfield with "Back Forty" woodsy area, petting zoo with donkey and two goats, pool and splash pad, two playgrounds, store, pizza on Friday nights, weekend activities, no sewer hookup, some trash on ground.


Johnny Appleseed Campground, Fort Wayne, IN: B-
  City run campground, very friendly host, laundry, next to river, playground.