Looking for a historic scenic drive? Perhaps you don't want to pay hefty tolls along the Penna Pike? Try this drive on for size.
Welcome to Interstate 68, the National Freeway, and one of the routes across the Appalachians towards the midwest. This highway follows one of the first highways that the US federal government built in its infancy: The National Road, now known today as US Route 40. Although the upgrade to interstate standards was not completed until the early 1990's, and the interstate's right of way departs from the National Road west of Keyser's Ridge, the National Freeway still remains a highlight for scenic driving in Western Maryland, which was on our bucket list of places to go.
When first approaching the highway on the east side, after seeing Pennsylvania in one window and West Virginia in the other due to a combination of natural (Potomac River) and political (Mason-Dixon Line) borders, you are greeted with the long Sideling Hill and welcome center. This cut through the mountain is a sign of what is to come. Meandering through the Green Ridge and Rocky Gap state areas, you eventually come up to the city of Cumberland. Be careful with this drive, especially if you have a trailer behind you, as the steep hills and tight roadways bring the speed limit all the way down to 40 MPH, and for good reason. After clearing the valley, it's back to the scenic driving of the open road in the far west portions of Maryland.
Eventually as you continue west, the country road takes you home to West Virginia, and the breathtaking views of the surrounding wilderness continue. West Virginia offers a bit more of an "open road" setting while driving the highway, heading through Coopers Rock State Forest. Eventually, you are led along a southeastern bypass of Morgantown, home to West Virginia University, and the end of the National Freeway at Interstate Highway 79. There have been several plans in the past to extend this highway further west, but none have come to fruition. From this point, drivers will either head south to dive further into West Virginia, or head north to Pennsylvania to rejoin either Interstate 70 or the National Road on the way to the midwest.
So if your Internal Compass tells you to head west and you find yourself presently near the Mid-Atlantic, maybe give the National Freeway a chance. You might find it one of the most scenic drives you've had in quite a while.
Off they go to another course!
Welcome to Powell Station Park in Powell, Tennessee, just on the outskirts of Knoxville for today's disc golf match. Powell Station is a free-to-play nine-hole course situated on a municipal park near the local high school. Although this is a shorter course, it can be deceptively tricky with the number of trees protecting the holes even along the fairway. Signage is fairly good, including how to get across the dried-up creek bed. Most importantly with this match, how did our players do?
Course Result:
His Holes: 1
Halved: 1
Her Holes: 7
Course Record: Him 9 - 4 - 14 Her
Holes Record: Him 62 - 91 Her
Right off the bat, this was not going to be a good game for him with some short fairway shots. Our players traded missed putts, but she had enough to win the first hole. On both holes 2 and 3, a shot into the rough cost him, as she took both. A misdirected tee shot put him further into the hole, as despite traded missed putts, she takes hole 4. The missed putts continue for him, this time costing him hole 5 and sealing the victory barely halfway through. Things get worse for him, as bad tree luck slows him up, giving her a sixth win on hole six. Despite traded missed putts, she was able to get to the green quicker, leading her to take yet another hole. Things would turn around for him on the eight, as a missed putt gave him the win and prevented the sweep. He had a chance to also take hole 9 with bad tree luck from her, but a missed putt from him halved the final hole. The shots were 45-51 in her favor, a complete domination as he was unable to break five shots on any hole.
The competition is starting to look out of reach, but can he pull anything back? We'll find out at the next course, but until then, be sure to Follow Your Internal Compass.
Welcome back for another brew review! Today, we take you to Magnetic South Brewery on Main Street in Anderson, South Carolina to see what they have to offer. As with this and all other brew reviews, please ensure that these, or any brews, are enjoyed in accordance with local laws wherever you may be.
Starting off this time will be the Hitman Hops IPA. A citrus scent comes from this hazy colored brew, yet upon first sip, the hops come to you in a very controlled manner that is not overpowering to the taste buds. The roof of the mouth will experience an aftertaste, but is not too bitter that even the beer drinking novice will be able to tolerate. This seems to be a good all weather choice for any season that you'll want to grab if you happen to be in the area.
Next up is the Legacy American Amber Ale. This particular offering was created in memory of a fallen inspirational brewer in South Carolina, and is the result of a collaboration between many other brewers in the state. Once greeted with the traditional amber scent and brownish red color you come to expect, the first sip will bring a little bite to the taste buds on what is otherwise a fairly smooth brew. There is a slight aftertaste that will be left after drinking. Although this is a fairly average selection when compared to other ambers, the tribute is enough to be able to choose this at least once.
As full time RVers, we can't wait to get on the road again, so what a better fitting brew for us then the On The Road Again Brown Ale. First presentation gives a golden brown color but with no noticeable scent found. One sip is found to be not heavy at all when compared to other brews in the category, going down smooth with no aftertaste to be found. If you're finding yourself in the transition of seasons, around the time of the equinoxes, this is the perfect choice to help your taste buds through the change. Just make sure you're not having it immediately before going on the road again.
Finally on the docket we come to The Raven, a Czech Dark Lager. This brew is proudly dark when presented with no scent to be found. Though many dark drinkers will prefer themselves over to the stouts and porters, this selection has an earthy flavor that reminds you of a stout, but without all the aftertaste from those other ingredients as it smoothly goes down without any bite. If you're in the colder weather but have said "nevermore" to the stouts, this will be a wonderful alternative to drink.
On a side note, although we enjoyed a number of the brews at Magnetic South, we were a little disappointed by the customer service of one of the bartenders, as she seemed to favor the regulars while basically ignoring the first time visitors. There is a second location in the larger city of Greenville that may be better. This isn't to take away from what is otherwise a good product, but if your Internal Compass takes you to the area and you want to try this brewery, be careful as to when you go and who you see.
Trip 24 saw Freedom Rolling taking a trip up to Delaware State Park Campground in Delaware, Ohio, just north of Columbus. This is a taxpayer-subsidized park in which a five night stay was had.
Grounds: This park is situated along US Highway 23 on the shores of the Delaware Reservoir, which was created by the damming efforts of the Olentangy River by the US Army Corps of Engineers. Although only a few miles from the resupply city of Delaware and a half hour from Columbus's northwestern suburbs, the area is fairly remote and isolated with limited cell phone reception. The park itself is quite expansive covering two-and-a-half square miles, with a large day use area at no charge to visitors as of the time of writing this, and a bit of a drive back to the actual campground itself.
Sites: The campground section contains 214 back-in campsites across four sections. Each section has a rotary around the common bathhouse with five cul-de-sac branches along which the campsites are dispersed. Each campsite is 30-50 amp electric only, with the dump station having a potable water fill so you won't have to travel heavier than usual, and drinking water is available at the bathhouses and cul-de-sac circles. The pads are asphalt paved and angled for an easy back-in, but aren't the most level and may require using overflow parking for those with larger rigs. However, the grassy patio is quite large and easily able to fit a canopy tent.
Staff: In addition to the friendly staff we met at check-in, although we didn't have much interaction with the maintenance staff, it is quite evident that everyone, from the hired staff to the volunteer hosts, takes great pride in the park they maintain.
Amenities: In addition to the aforementioned site-related amenities, the park has so much to offer across both its campground and day use areas, including two beaches with one being dog-friendly, two disc golf courses, playgrounds, hiking trails, a putt-putt course, and one of the cleanest dog parks with agility course and "stick library" we have seen in our travels. Those looking to bring a boat along would be able to use the launches to enjoy their time on the water, or be able to fish in some of the smaller ponds also around the grounds.
Atmosphere: This campground seems to be a wonderful, family friendly resort that has something for everyone. With our stay being during the week at around the time of school starting, there wasn't too much activity happening until the weekend started creeping closer. Had we visited during the peak of the summer season, this may very well have been quite the happening place.
Overall, Delaware State Park Campground is one of the short few to receive our illustrious 10 out of a possible 10 rating. Although this is only going to be available for a short term stay, the price really isn't so bad for the multitude of what is offered. We would be more than happy to return to this park if we're ever in the area again, and if your Internal Compass ever takes you to Columbus, Ohio, then this is going to be the place where you'll want to stay.
For this year's Easter message, we bring you something a little different. Many of you have noticed that we have used as a guideline to our adventure, "Follow Your Internal Compass". We've talked about it in a previous post, but it seems we didn't fully understand it. What if there's another meaning behind this adventure, and perhaps the Internal Compass is not something that we control, nor should control?
Some of you who have delved in Biblical history may know of the Tower of Babel, how the people scared of the effects of a relatively recent global flood started to build a large structure to prepare in case it happened again, all in the same area of what became Babylon. We won't go too much into the details of what was happening; that's mostly covered in this discussion. However, it could be said that they "followed their internal compass", but what they didn't realize was what was the driving force behind this "internal compass". Turns out it wasn't something that good, and who knows what would have happened if it was allowed to continue as one group.
For us, this has been a journey of discovery. For some, the proper morals were already there but a name association was not. For others, the names were known, but didn't exactly act according to the proper morals. Once we started to establish our first few trip locations after going full time, almost in what seemed like a ploy to "fit in" around the Bible Belt, we'd tune to a Christian Rock radio station, maybe pick up a pamphlet or two and thumb through them. It didn't really do much in our minds; they just merely "called out" as an opportunity of sorts. After a few events and realizing that there might be something to these callings, we grabbed good ol' King James with the red text that previously belonged to our ancestors but decided to pack, and started going through it. We were concerned about going through all of it and not skipping over things so as not to miss context. Sadly it proved arduous, and the idea was abandoned. At least, until we made our way back to South Dakota and got in touch with both A Christian Ministry in the National Parks and Crossroads of Custer. The latter gave us a path to go through the whole thing, and despite some turbulence along the way, we were able to get through all of it over the course of a year. In addition, they've given us the chance, even if we're hundreds of miles away, to allow them to help us practice and follow.
It has taken quite a while to realize this, several decades in fact. Maybe it just took a read-through of the Bible, or perhaps it was the multitude of trips and corresponding tribulations. However, we are reminded of when, after Jesus rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven, in Acts 2, that He would send a messenger to each one of us. That is what is imprinted upon all of our hearts. We think of it as "morals" as a way to try to dodge the subject on account of social acceptance, but that is from where it comes. The Lord is our Internal Compass. May He be praised for giving us this greatness. It is now up to us to recognize this, to confess His Glory placed upon all of us, and to share this Good News with the world that we no longer have to be evil. We can choose to follow Him. He can be our Internal Compass.
So this Easter, while some of you may be having fun with egg coloring and hunting, may we more importantly remember that He is our Internal Compass, and that we should Follow.
We're back to finish up this course!
Welcome to Delaware State Park, just north of Delaware, Ohio, this time at the Gordon Holton Memorial Disc Golf Course to finish the course with another match between our two competitors. We've already previously covered this course during the front nine. Again, there will be a two-hole bonus section that will be added to the back nine for the final score. With that out of the way, how did our players do?
Course Result:
His Holes: 1
Halved: 2
Her Holes: 6
Bonus Holes:
His Holes: 0
Halved: 0
Her Holes: 2
Total:
His Holes: 1
Halved: 2
Her Holes: 8
Course Record: Him 9 - 4 - 13 Her
Holes Record: Him 61 - 84 Her
After a typical halved hole 10, some time in the rough cost him, as despite each trading missed putts, she took hole 11. The twelfth hole, otherwise known as "G" on the course, saw another halve. Things started going downhill for him, as on official hole 12, he had two penalties from shots in the out-of-bounds dry stream bed, leading her to take the win despite each having a missed putt. He would miss again on 13, causing him to lose yet another hole to her. Despite misses on 14, some bad tree luck led to her taking yet another win. The shutout would not be, though, as she found herself in the rough on 15, giving him the win. It wouldn't be for long, as a penalty on 16 from another dry river bed cost him the chance to halve, as she took the hole. The 17 saw him make a wild tee shot where he'd never be able to recover, combined with bad tree luck, as despite a missed putt from her, she was able to take it.
The bonus holes start at 18, where he found himself in the rough, allowing her to take the win on the hole. The course has no official "hole 19", as the 20th hole is hole 20, and missed putts from him gave her yet another win. The shot count was 46-54 in her favor on the back nine, and 8-11 in her favor on the bonus holes.
She was able to split the series and maintain her course lead. Will she be able to keep it? Find out next time, but until then, be sure to Follow Your Internal Compass.
Freedom Rolling once again brings you another set of consumption reviews. Instead of turning to the potent potables this time, we'll be looking at some various pizza establishments and giving our take on them. Pizza is one of America's favorite foods, but not everyone does it very well. We'll see how these folks do.
Our first stop is just north of Chicago, Illinois, in the suburb of Morton Grove for Giordano's. Anyone who experiences pizza in the Chicago area will come to understand the deep dish variety, and this restaurant has been serving the midwest's famous pie for over 50 years across several locations across the country. Deep dish pizza does take a bit longer than your typical pizza to prepare, but is well worth the wait. Even if you don't care for pizza, the chicken carbonara served family style is always a winner. Even if you're 106 miles to Chicago, whether or not you smoke, you might want to fill that fuel tank because you could just find yourself taking a trip to Giordano's for a good bite to eat.
We now take ourselves to Custer, South Dakota for Pizza Mill, the area's local pizzeria. Clearly as the concept of pizza traveled west, something went terribly wrong in the execution. Their attempt at pizza was basically nothing but a mountain of dough with a very small amount of toppings thrown in. The only way to get any sort of semblance of toppings was with one of their offerings where they basically took a side salad and threw it on top after the fact. Coupled with charging ridiculous tourist prices for terrible fare, you're better off going to one of the national chains for anything that would be considered pizza.
Finally heading up to the small community of Campton, New Hampshire, just outside of Franconia Notch, we come across Chesley's Pizza, a small convenience store with pizzas, calzones, and sandwiches to satisfy the New England traveler. Although we've heard from locals that this location declined a bit since the original owner sold the business, it doesn't seem to us that they've lost too much of a beat in their concoctions. This is certainly a good place to go if you're looking for a simple slice or even a whole pizza, but much of the other fare will also be one to try.
So while you Follow Your Internal Compass across this great nation, you may or may not find a good pizza, but there will almost certainly be hiding a diamond in the rough.
Time for another trip to the links!
Welcome to Delaware State Park, just north of Delaware, Ohio, this time at the Gordon Holton Memorial Disc Golf Course for another match between our two competitors. Gordon Holton Memorial is located within the day use area of Delaware State Park, which at the time of playing, does not require an entry fee. The course is named in honor of Gordon Holton, who was an integral member of the Mid-Ohio Organized Disc Golf community before his untimely passing in his early 40's. To commemorate, Delaware State Park had laid a massive 27-hole course, of which 20 holes are generally playable. Our players will be playing the 20 holes using the short tees across two nine-hole matches, with the last two bonus holes listed during the back nine match. Up first, though, is the front nine. How did they do?
Course Result:
His Holes: 3
Halved: 4
Her Holes: 2
Course Record: Him 9 - 4 - 12 Her
Holes Record: Him 60 - 76 Her
Holes 1 and 2 each saw good shot placement from him, allowing him to win both holes. However, hole 3 saw him in the rough, allowing her to win the hole. More bad luck in the rough severely cost him on four, as a potential win for him turned into a win for her, and a tie match. It wouldn't be even for long, as a missed putt from her on the fifth allowed him to take the lead. She could have had a chance to make par on the sixth, but a couple of missed putts meant a halved hole. Hole seven saw what almost became the first lost disc as a shot in the water led to a penalty, but the disc was able to be recovered, along with her ability to scramble for a halved hole. He would be able to hold the last two holes to a halve, each at one over par, giving him the victory. The shot count was even at 45-all, as a result of a two-stroke win on the third for her.
He has come back to win two in a row; can he sweep the course? We'll find out next time, but until then, be sure to Follow Your Internal Compass.
Ah, the moment for which we've been waiting is finally here!
Welcome to Powell, Ohio, a northwestern suburb of Columbus, and home to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. Founded in 1927, the Columbus Zoo has always had a reputation for one of the most diverse animal collections in the country, even so far as being top rated by several media outlets. The property is situated on nearly a square mile of land, also including a water park and 18-hole golf course. Notable animal promoter Jack Hanna has done a fair amount of work with the Columbus Zoo, helping with its reputation. Despite some issues in the 2010's stemming from inappropriate uses of zoo funds, the zoo has since been re-accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and continues to be a popular place for visitors around the world.
Upon first entry after paying for parking and dealing with their over-the-top security forces, many choices abound for where to go. Heading under the tunnel, the Congo Expedition give view of the zoo's prized gorillas, including a baby recently born as of the time of our visit. Also in the area are Australia and the Islands with several interesting views, along with the seemingly underwhelming Shores and Aquarium, although being one of the few zoos outside of Florida permitted to help with the development of the manatee. Heading back under to the main area, Asia Quest gives a lovely view of tigers, red pandas, and Asian elephants. The North America section had most of it under construction with hardly anything available for exhibit, although if the majestic moose has eluded you, this is the place to find it. The zoo does offer a shuttle between the entrance area and Africa to at least help people get around the construction zone. Africa did not seem all that well laid out, as many of the animals were in the open prairie and difficult to view. The one saving grace to this zoo was Adventure Cove, being able to see the playful sea lions and harbor seals, along with other marine life and a tribute to the work of Jack Hanna.
At the end of the day, although we were very much looking forward to this place, the Columbus Zoo did not live up to the reputation it has garnered in years past. One full day is all you really need to get through the entire menagerie, though be sure you're ready to walk around because it is expansive. Make sure to bring food and drink with you, as the concessions are over-priced well beyond even most of the tourist traps we've visited across the country. Sure, the variety is nice, and it is clear that the staff does well with upkeep, but with a large chunk of the exhibits closed down for one reason or another, and especially at the price customers pay, you'd expect a better value.
Sometimes, your Internal Compass will really push you to go to certain places. Just make sure that expectations aren't set incredibly high, lest you be disappointed in what you find.
Since we started RVing, we've done quite a bit of experimentation with different setups with not only indoor and outdoor living areas, but also with the rig itself, both in motion and stationary. You may have seen some of our short life-hack videos on the topic, but here's a little more information on what we're doing to make our lives easier.
First thing's first: Stabilizing the RV. You don't want that thing rocking around on the wheels when you're parked, but what could you use? Sure, the camping stores are going to get you to purchase those plastic leveling blocks. They aren't that bad of a product to help with getting the jack contacts to a higher point for better stability, but they do fall apart somewhat easily from being plastic, and looking at various outlets, can be quite expensive. One of the better choices that we've found are step stones that you'll find in a hardware store. Not only are they relatively inexpensive, but much more sturdy. Even with the rounded top edge, they'll still stack comfortably which was one of our original worries that has been alleviated. The one square foot size is what works the best for our jacks, and when we travel, they fit between the rungs of our ladder and provide some ballast to offset the weight of the trailer. They are a little on the heavy side, so if you're averse to picking up one of these, you can always cut down a pressure treated 2x12 into squares, but be aware that they aren't going to last as long, as we've had some of them split on us.
Now that everything's set up, let's look at that outdoor kitchen. We've tried those grills with the foldable legs before, but they are incredibly flimsy. Sure, you could detach and re-attach more sturdy legs like we do with a smoker, but it's not always the easiest to do that, not to mention a larger amount of room would be needed for storage when traveling. Enter the tabletop grill. This one could have turned into a bit of an issue as less and less RV parks are including picnic tables with their sites. Coincidentally, one of the parks actually requested that a board be placed between the grill and the picnic table to prevent damage. Upon further investigation, it was simple plywood, and was able to be found inexpensively. Couple this with the difficulty of finding metal fold-up tables at a reasonable price, and two and two came together to simply use the folding card tables with some pressure treated plywood.
Heading back inside, one of the most important things for all of us is drinking water. Sure, many people think to drink from the tap, but this isn't always a good option. We've come across moldy water pipes in one location, along with tap water in another that was so rich in iron that it turned our shower orange. These aren't exactly things you want to drink, and those filters that you put into a water pitcher or similar small dispenser just weren't doing the trick. So we started turning to water bottles, but not only was this getting expensive (especially in states that charge bottle deposits), but the amount of trash dramatically increased, despite the pup having a "ten second toy". The solution ended up being a water pump that we would attach to refillable water cooler bottles. The good news is that there are caps you can get so you can simply refill instead of exchange, saving even more money to make the system pay for itself. How many bottles you get would depend on how close you intend to be to a refill station or a spot you know to have clean water. It can also fit in the truck if you're traveling and don't want to spend an arm and a leg on convenience store drinks.
So while you're out there Following Your Internal Compass, take a look at some of the hassles in your life and see if you can make things easier for you.
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