Chasing Fall Colors

We made reservations at Auburn’s Leisure Time RV Park and the great folks there parked us down along the creek side.   Just off I-85, the terrain provides a quiet peaceful campsite we have come to enjoy. We were able to spend time with our sons and attended the Auburn Theatre’s production of “God of Carnage.”  Our youngest son had a lead role and it was fun to watch him perform. 

Next, we decided we wanted to see some good fall colors and headed north to the Tennessee and Kentucky border.  Based on some Internet research, we selected Bandy Creek – Big South Fork National River Recreation Area Campground west of Oneida, TN.  The National Park campground offers 50/30 amp electric and water with a central dump station.  Sites were level and paved, with fire rings and a picnic table.  The temperatures were perfect and we did not need the A/C or heat.

We met with the park rangers and they suggested some day hikes for us.  We also used the Jeep to explore some of the back roads and trailheads further from camp.  The fall peak colors were beautiful in this area with about two weeks of viewing before they are gone. Of course some of our favorite Fall colors are Orange and Blue as we like to watch Auburn Tigers football on Saturdays.

Each day we selected trails based on weather conditions.  Some days we did 5 miles and others 2-3 miles between fall showers.  We normally select easy to moderate trails.  There were many trails in all categories in this area to choose from.  The ones we experienced were well marked with ladders or steps over major obstacles.  This is an excellent area for hikers with many trails at all levels of difficulty nearby. 

 We watched the wind strip the leaves and carry them to the ground…and on top of The Bus.  To remove the leaves before pulling in the slides, we purchased a cordless blower.  I use our folding ladder to get up there and the blower does a good job of getting the debris off the toppers.  Once packed up, we used the central dump station to clean our holding tanks and were on our way back south.

Our next stop was Pigeon Forge, TN Creekside Campground.  Neither of us have been to this area in 40 years and it has changed drastically.  The entertainment commercialization is extensive with amusement activities, restaurants, and souvenir shops covering all but National and State Park lands.  We took it all in, but spent most of our time exploring the mountain hiking trails.  We made some new friends, compared stories, and broke bread together.  It was a good stop that we will keep in mind if we have grandchildren to entertain one day.

Apparently some campers have fed the ducks

We stopped for two nights at a James H. Floyd Georgia State Park then three nights at Whitetail Ridge Army Corp campground on West Point Lake.  We did some more light hiking and fishing.  However, when we went to put the front driver’s side slide out, I noticed one end went out faster than the other and immediately stopped.  We examined it and used the Tiffin FB page members to help us diagnose the problem.  It was a broken sheer pin on the main shaft.  I found a local hardware store and bought several Grade 8 bolts to make repairs.  Pattie and I worked together to adjust the slide on both sides and then used a bolt to replace the broken pin.  The slide works fine, but it is not flush at the top when fully closed.  We will need to adjust it some more for a proper fit.

Next stop Auburn to celebrate Thanksgiving with our sons.

Thanks for keepingupwiththejonesrv!

RV Tip:  Preplanning your route together will make the trip go smoother and in some cases is critical.  The most direct route from Auburn to the Bandy Creek campground would have taken us through Oneida, TN.  However when we planned our course (we call it “Chair Flying” the route), we saw the multiple switchback turns between Oneida and the campground and elected to enter from Jamestown to the west instead.  During our exploring, we drove the Jeep through those switchbacks and were thankful we did not try to bring The Bus though them.