MABRY MILL (VA)

Location:
Rocky Knob Campground
Blue Ridge Parkway, VA


First a little bit of history about Mabry Mill from Wikipedia:

Mabry Mill is a watermill located at milepost 176.2 of Blue Ridge Parkway in Floyd County, Virginia. A short trail around the mill connects historical exhibits about life in rural Virginia. The trail allows visitors to view the gristmill, sawmill, and blacksmith shop.

Mabry Mill was built by Edwin Boston Mabry (E.B. Mabry). E.B. Mabry returned to Floyd County in 1903 and began the construction of the mill. It was first a blacksmith and wheelwright shop, then became a sawmill. By 1905 it was in operation as a gristmill. By 1910 the front part of the mill was completed and included a lathe for turning out wheel hubs, a tongue and groove lathe, a planer and a jig-saw. Between 1905 and 1914 E.B. Mabry bought adjacent tracts of land, mostly for the purpose of acquiring more water power.



MABRY MILL

An early Thursday evening photo after nearly everyone had left
After closing there were four deer inside the fence that surrounds the mill...
...they were all munching on the same thing, apples that had fallen from the trees.
An early Friday morning view of the mill
A little bit closer view
The inside pulleys that are attached to the outside water wheel
A belt driven jigsaw
The sawmill table inside of the mill
The drying rack for the lumber after it had been cut
A puffy cheeked chipmunk inside the mill, stocking up on corn for winter no doubt
The stone grinding wheels for the grist mill
The front entrance to the Mabry's Cabin
The rear entrance to the cabin
A whisky still
The blacksmith shop
A different view of the mill
The flume that carried the water down the mountain to power the mill
The water finally arrives at the top of the mill wheel
Simple fencing that you see everywhere along the Parkway
Bidding a final farewell to Mabry Mill


OUR EXPERIENCE AT THE MILL

Walking around, taking photos and looking at all of the exhibits was interesting, but talking to the rangers and the mill's caretaker was the highlight of Mabry Mill for us.

The rangers explained why the cabin's doorways were less than 6 feet tall. It wasn't because the Mabry's were short people, but because it helped keep the heat closer to the floor during the winters.

The mill's caretaker must have been in his early eighties and was proud to mention that he grew up not more than 5 miles down the road. He is the one who throws corn on the mill's floor and feeds no less than four chipmunks all year long. They scurry in, pack as much corn in the pouches of their mouth as possible and scurry back out. They are very fast and are extremely camera shy.

He also took time to explain to us what each attachment in the mill does and how they operate off of the same shaft of pulleys that is driven by the water wheel. Belts are attached to each devise and the pulley to power them one at a time. The whole time he was talking with us he was sweeping out the mill and keeping it in perfect show condition.



Until next time
TWO PEAS


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BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY - STOP #2

through



TRAVEL DAY - 81.3 miles

PEAKS OF OTTER CAMPGROUND
to
ROCKY KNOB CAMPGROUND

Another relatively short move between campgrounds


While staying here at Peaks of Otter Campground we didn't get out much to do any sightseeing. With no cell phone signal inside the campground we had to travel 12 miles down into the valley to the town of Bedford, VA to get any work done. Tricia is just finishing up her work for the month and it gave me a chance to get caught up on this blog. We found a very comfortable place to work inside the public library. Free electricity, free air conditioning and a free table for two, what more could we ask for. We spent two of our three days at the library and on the third day it rained and was very foggy.

It's too bad because we really wanted to take the bus tour up to the summit of Sharp Top Mountain. It is a bald mountain which means it has no trees at the peak, only rocks, not unique but most of the nearby mountains are not bald. The campground is at the base of Sharp Top Mountain. With the weather being less than desirable we opted to go to the visitor center just across the parkway and check out the small exhibit they have inside.



Until next time
TWO PEAS


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PEAKS OF OTTER CAMPGROUND (VA)

GPS: 37.44315, -79.60471
10454 Peaks Road - MP 85.9
Bedford, VA 24523
(540) 586-7321

through

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3 nights on campsite #T51
at $10.00* per night

* = Lifetime Senior Pass discount




SCORECATEGORYCOMMENTS
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
scenery Wooded campground and three tiers of campsites
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
privacy Mostly pull through sites that are end to end, so not much privacy
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
cell signal None. Visitor center 3 miles south had usable Verizon signal or we drove 12 miles to the library in Bedford, VA
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
campsite size Long enough but very unlevel
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
table/fire ring On every site
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
showers None nearby
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
bathrooms Flush toilets and sinks buy very old and not well maintained
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
security None at night but ranger patrolled during the day
1-2-3-4-5 wildlife Twice deer walked right through our campsite
1-2-3-4-5 quiet nights Very quiet because the campground was nearly empty
1-2-3-4-5 park staff Friendly and informative
1-2-3-4-5 activities Lots of hiking and Sharp Top Mountain Tour was around the corner


Bonus Points:

No bonus points here.


Additional comments:

None here.


Our Dining Out Experiences:

Read Two Peas And The Pod ..'s review of Original Italian Pizza on Yelp



Until next time
TWO PEAS


We encourage everyone to use the comment section below and if you wish to receive an email notice when there is a new blog entry for your review, please use the Subscribe widget at the top of the right hand column on every page.

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BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY - STOP #1

through



TRAVEL DAY - 25.4 miles

OTTER CREEK CAMPGROUND
to
PEAKS OF OTTER CAMPGROUND

A short hop between campgrounds today



FRIDAY


While we were at Otter Creek Campground we finally got some decent weather. On Friday morning we took advantage of a clear day and got out to see a man-made waterfall at the dam on Otter Lake. It is mainly fed by Otter Creek, the same creek that two miles upstream runs right past our campsite. Here are a few photos we took that morning!


A view of the waterfall from the parking area


Down near the creek bed looking up to the parking area


A trail crossing that Tricia just had to prove she could tiptop across


A large boulder that must have tumbled down the mountain into the creek


That looks like a doable trail for us. We'll have to try it tomorrow!


Right after we visited Otter Lake we traveled another mile down the Parkway to check out the James River Visitor Center. We saw they had a short trail that crosses the James River to an historic canal lock. It was one of nearly a hundred locks that were built in the 1800s to allow small boats to travel up and down the James River when water levels were much lower, which created shallow rapids all along the river. Here is a slideshow of the trail!


THE JAMES RIVER CANAL LOCK TRAIL

The James River Visitor Center
Their picnic area down by the river
A pedestrian bridge below the Parkway allows you to cross the river on foot
The James River as it looks today
A foot path leading from the bridge to the Historic Canal Lock
A little wildlife along the trail
Another one who prefers purple to yellow flowers I guess
The entrance to the canal lock
The canal lock exit
Nearly the full length of the canal lock


Well that's enough for today! Tomorrow we are going to check out the .9 mile long Otter Lake Loop Trail. It's supposed to be a 45 minute walk, we'll see how long it takes us, weather permitting of course.

Until next time
TWO PEAS


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OTTER CREEK CAMPGROUND (VA)

GPS: 37.5756, -79.3388
85919 Blue Ridge Parkway - MP 60.8
Bedford, VA 24523
(434) 299-5125

through

=

4 nights on campsite #64
at $10.00* per night

* = Lifetime Senior Pass discount



A view of our site from across the creek


A view looking out the back window of our pull through site


Our view when we open the door to leave the POD



SCORECATEGORYCOMMENTS
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
scenery Beautiful campsite on the edge of the creek
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
privacy Sites close together with no division
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
cell signal Verizon signal 3 miles down the road at the visitor center
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
campsite size We fit in ours just fine but most sites are smaller
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
table/fire ring On every site
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
showers None reasonably close by
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
bathrooms Flush toilets and sinks but not well mantained
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
security None at night but ranger station manned during the day
1-2-3-4-5 wildlife Not much other than squirrels
1-2-3-4-5 quiet nights Just the babbling creek
1-2-3-4-5 park staff Very friendly and helpful
1-2-3-4-5 activities Lots of nearby hiking


Bonus Points:

No bonus points here.


Additional comments:

None here.


Our Dining Out Experiences:

Read Two Peas And The Pod ..'s review of Silver Pig Barbecue on Yelp



Until next time
TWO PEAS


We encourage everyone to use the comment section below and if you wish to receive an email notice when there is a new blog entry for your review, please use the Subscribe widget at the top of the right hand column on every page.

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OTTER LAKE LOOP TRAIL

Location:
Otter Lake, VA
Blue Ridge Parkway - MP 63.1


Today we are exploring the Otter Lake Loop Trail. It was supposed to be a 45 minute trail but we took nearly 1:45 because we stopped many times to enjoy our surroundings and to take all these beautiful pictures to share with you! ENJOY!



This shouldn't be too bad! It's only .9 miles long.
Otter Creek just before it reaches Otter Lake
An easy way to cross over the creek to access the backside of the lake
A far away view of ROVER from the other side of the lake
A make shift foot bridge over a smaller creek that feeds into the lake
I've never seen this much lichen before
A view of the fishing pier
We are getting closer to the finish
A view of Otter Falls from above
A shallow cave behind the big boulder
A last view from above Otter Lake
Time to get back down to creek level below the falls
Our final water crossing to get back to where we started


Until next time
TWO PEAS


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SHENANDOAH NP - STOP #3

through



TRAVEL DAY - 86.7 miles

LOFT MOUNTAIN CAMPGROUND
to
OTTER CREEK CAMPGROUND

Exiting Shenandoah National Park and entering The Blue Ridge Parkway



Shortly after leaving the campground today THE POD will have traversed the entire 105 miles of Skyline Drive located in Shenandoah National Park. We started in Front Royal at the north entrance station back on September 6th and today we will exit at the Rockfish Gap south entrance station on September 20th. We took two full weeks to travel the distance, but I guess if you wanted to you could drive the whole thing in just three hours, after all there is a 35MPH speed limit on the entire drive.

We stayed in three out of the four National Park campgrounds located on Skyline Drive. We missed staying at Lewis Mountain Campground when we got kicked out of the park. They closed because of the threat Hurricane Florence posed to the safety of anyone left in the park. By far our favorite campground was Loft Mountain, the last site we stayed in. We had an awesome view from our campsite, but we also had cell phone signal (on our site) and there were pay showers located at the entrance to the campground. It was the first time I felt like we were leaving a campsite too soon. The day we left the weather was beautiful and outdoor activities were once again possible.

But we have a schedule to keep, with all of our campsite reservations ahead of us. I'm so used to having a guaranteed site waiting for me when I arrive at a new location, it's a hard habit to break, but I'm going to work on that next spring.

Anyway enough talking, I know you all only come here to see the pictures, so here they are!





Until next time
TWO PEAS


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LOFT MOUNTAIN CAMPGROUND (VA)

GPS: 38.2487, -78.67057
Mile Marker 79.5 on Skyline Drive
Shenandoah National Park
(434) 823-4675

through

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4 nights on campsite #A59
at $7.50* per night

* = Lifetime Senior Pass discount


Campsite A59, this is where we rode out the foul weather

The intersection of our back yard walkway and The Appalachian Trail.
See the AT's white blaze on the tree on the right?

The view of our back porch from standing in the intersection

The view of our trailer from standing in the same intersection



SCORECATEGORYCOMMENTS
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
scenery Maybe the best scenery from our campsite yet
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
privacy We had the whole campground to ourselves
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
cell signal We had usable service on both AT&T and Verizon
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
campsite size Very large pull through
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
table/fire ring On every site
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
showers Pay showers at the campground entrance
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
toilets Flush toilets in every bath house
1-2-3-4-5
6-7-8-9-10
security No night time security but Ranger Station at the entrance during the day
1-2-3-4-5 wildlife Several deer sightings and plenty of squirrels
1-2-3-4-5 quiet nights Extremely quiet
1-2-3-4-5 park staff Very helpful and understanding
1-2-3-4-5 activities Lots of hiking and scenic drives nearby


Bonus Points:

No bonus points here.


Additional comments:

None here.


Our Dining Out Experiences:

No dining out here.



Until next time
TWO PEAS


We encourage everyone to use the comment section below and if you wish to receive an email notice when there is a new blog entry for your review, please use the Subscribe widget at the top of the right hand column on every page.

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WE WERE CAMPED IN A KOA, WHY?

Arriving at:
Loft Mountain Campground
Shenandoah National Park, VA


TRAVEL DAY - 60.4 miles

LURAY KOA HOLIDAY PARK
to
LOFT MOUNTAIN CAMPGROUND

Back on track to our original planned route


This past Thursday at noon Shenandoah National Park closed down due to the weather threat that Hurricane Florence posed. We were planning on moving that day anyway, but not out of the park, and certainly not to a KOA campground. After checking around the nearby private campgrounds that were available to us the KOA seemed like the logical choice. It was the closest campground outside the park, but not the cheapest. Up until this point on our trip we were averaging about $28.00 a night for camping fees. At KOA the Thursday night price was $58.00, with Friday and Saturday's nights being premium nights, they fetched a nightly rate of $64.00, well over our average. By joining their Value Kard program for $30.00 we were entitled to a 10% discount on their rates. Not knowing for sure when the National Park would reopen we opted to join the discount program, it turned out to be a wise decision.

Along with the discount card we received a directory of all the KOA campgrounds in the United States. It also had a lot of advertising for mobile RV services around the county that may come in handy in the future. So with that information in it I decided to not immediately dispose of the directory into the trash. On Friday morning I was having breakfast and glancing a little more thoroughly at the book when I saw a KOA ad near the front. It talked of three special weekends that KOA puts on each year, like if you stay in a campground on May 11th you get May 12th for just $20, or Father's Day weekend when kids camp for free and the one that caught my eye was Value Kard Rewards Appreciation Weekend, where if you stay as a paying guest on September 14th you get September 15th for free. Guess what day we arrived at Luray KOA Holiday campground, that's right September 13th. So we paid the discounted rates of $52.20 for Thursday night, $57.60 for Friday night and Saturday was free. That made the average cost for this weekend closer to $36.50 per night and by adding back in the cost of the discount card, we were still below $47.00 a night, which was our previously high nightly rate that we paid in a South Carolina State Park.

After having now visited a KOA campground for three nights I can see why some people highly recommend them. Each campsite was very well maintained, the grass was recently cut, there were potted flowers all around, level gravel driveways, a newly painted picnic table, concrete pads that are positioned so they fall under your awning and door to your trailer when you are backed in, complete with a fire pit surrounded by paver stones. The bathrooms were cleaned several times a day, there were washer and dryers to do your laundry for $1.75 each. There was a pool and hot tub, but after Labor Day it gets closed for the season, so we missed that. They had complimentary hot chocolate, hot tea, coffee and muffins in the office every morning. There were also DVD's you could borrow for free and a lending library of books to choose from. All this is included in the standard campsite price. If that is not enough for you, they have premium sites for a few dollars more that usually include a little nicer view and a covered outdoor sitting area. It really is a home away from home backyard atmosphere here. In conclusion, you get what you pay for!

A lot of RVer's choose to spend their time in this sort of setting, we however still consider ourselves campers, not RVer's, and prefer a more natural setting that we find in National and State Parks. So for now at least we can save $600-$900 a month by camping were we prefer, and save the private parks for possibly later in our journey.


On Friday we got word that the National Park would reopen the Skyline Drive, the hiking trails and lodges at 4:00PM. The campgrounds would all reopen on Saturday. Because we were camping for free on Saturday we stayed at KOA and reentered the park on Sunday morning. Our next reservation wasn't until our usual Monday arrival so we had a choice to make, stop at Lewis Mountain campground for one night or proceed on to Loft Mountain campground and arrive a day early. I wanted to stop at Lewis Mountain and stay one night, but Tricia didn't feel it was worth the effort to set up everything for one night, she wanted to drive to Loft Mountain. Guess what we did? Loft Mountain here we come.

Now on Sunday morning Hurricane Florence had already come ashore down in North Carolina and really created havoc along the coast. It quickly downgraded to a tropical storm once it traveled a short distance inland, like most hurricanes seem to do. The forecast was for it to travel further inland and then make a northernly turn towards Shenandoah National Park. So I was a bit surprised when we got the word that the campgrounds were reopening only two days after they had closed, because the worst of the weather was yet to come to the park.

Also riding out the storm at the KOA was the campground host from Loft Mountain, who had also been evacuated on Thursday. She came by our trailer on Saturday morning to tell us she was returning to work at Loft Mountain and hoped to see us up there, she also gave us a recommendation of where the best campsites in the park were located. When we started to reenter the park on Sunday morning the wind and rain were beginning to increase, but the worst weather wasn't supposed to arrive until Monday.

We arrived at the Ranger Station to check in and asked how busy they were because we once again wanted to switch sites from the one we had reserved six months earlier. He kind of chuckled and said that would not be a problem, other than the campground host who arrived yesterday, we would be the only ones in the campground. I instantly began to second guess our decision to return to the park so quickly. The campgrounds always seem to empty out on Sunday's after the weekend is over, so we decided to go ahead and check in. We set up on what we considered the best site in the park, it had marginal cell phone signal that we could boost to a usable service and it had a great view, if the fog and clouds would just disappear.

We were sitting at the dinette Monday morning when around 9:00 AM the campground host came by to inform us that Skyline Drive was once again closed due to some downed trees and downed power lines that occurred the night before. She advised us to stay put and not venture outside of the campground until repairs could be made. We heard the wind the night before but didn't think it was all that bad, we must be on the safer side of the mountain. At 10:00 AM a Park Ranger came by and knocked on the trailer door, telling us about the road conditions and that we had to be out of this campground by 11:00 AM, but we could go stay at Big Meadows campground, 30 miles north, back up Skyline Drive. It's the same one we were kicked out of last Thursday. Before he could even get back in his car a Law Enforcement Officer pulled up and asked when we planned on leaving and I said Thursday morning. He then told us to stay put. I sure wish they would all get on the same page!


Just before posting this at 6:00PM we got another visit from another Law Enforcement Officer to make sure we knew the only reason we are being allowed to stay in this campground is because we agree not to try and leave it before Skyline Drive has been reopened. We assured him we understood and would comply!



Until next time
TWO PEAS


We encourage everyone to use the comment section below and if you wish to receive an email notice when there is a new blog entry for your review, please use the Subscribe widget at the top of the right hand column on every page.

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