Day 4-6

Jeep Odometer


Day 4 = 267028 km
Day 5 = 267298 km
Day 6 = 267388 km

I drove from Richmond to Luray, VA to meet with 14 friends from Greenville, for a weekend of fun.  Along the way I managed to drive about a 40 mile portion of skyline drive through Shenandoah National Park.  The drive was spectacular, with a series of overlooks and one breathtaking view of the Shenandoah Valley.  The valley is made by the Blue Ridge Mountains to the east and just west is the Alleghany Mountain range.  I met with the group at Luray Caverns, one of the largest cavern systems in the eastern United States.  The guided tour takes you along a lit path that is over 1 mile long.  It includes an organ someone built in the caverns that works by tapping different stalactites and stalagmites with a series of solenoids. Each ‘pipe’ resonates with a different sound creating a musical tone.

In the evenings we cooked, ate, enjoyed the hot tub and a few beverages.  Saturday morning some of the brave souls got up early to ski at the nearby Massanutten ski resort.  Others went off hiking for the day.  Everyone had a great time and celebrations continued into the evening Saturday night.  This was a great way to kick off my trip

Sunday we parted ways, everyone else went back to Greenville, while I drove on to Bloomingdale New Jersey.  I had dinner with Tom Mirabelli’s Parents, and spent the evening there.  They were great hosts and it was nice to have a sit down dinner with them and Tom’s grandmother.  A true New Jersey family experience, full of “forget about it” and all the proper lingo.   They were also kind enough to let me leave my Jeep in their driveway for the week while I visited NYC.

Full Albums for each Day:
FTF Day 4
FTF Day 5
FTF Day 6

Day 3

Jeep Odometer = 266674 km

Today I woke up to beautiful weather, warm temperatures, mild winds, and I was on the beach so I went for a nice 6 mile run.  Out on the beach and returned via road.  This really is the good life, I think I will get used to this lifestyle.  After breakfast and breaking camp I headed back North along Hwy 12 to Kitty Hawk to visit the Wright Brothers National Memorial and the site were the first powered manned flight took place on Dec 17th, 1903.  It's been somewhere I have always wanted to visit and it was very interesting and educational.

Next I headed further north into Virginia on my way to Richmond I stopped for a quick look around Williamsburg, unfortunately I managed to lock my keys in my car at this time so I ended up staying longer than expected.  Luckily the AAA coverage I just bought paid off and I was back on the road 30 minutes later.

I headed for Richmond, Va and met with my Couchsurfing host Ben.  Ben is a recent graduate engineer working at the VA hospital in biomechanics to help disabled people.  We went out for pizza and beer and some good conversation about work, travel, and living in Richmond.

Friday I will meetup with my friends from Greenville, SC at Luray Caverns and spend the weekend with them in Shenandoah Valley skiing, hiking and more.

Day 2

Jeep Odometer = 266080 km

Today I woke up early said goodbye to Trent and headed for the Outerbanks of North Carolina. It’s one of the only areas in the Carolinas I have not visited in the 11 years I have lived here (between Charlotte and Greenville), so I managed to incorporate into my trip so I can could have a look and see Cape Hatteras, Fort Raleigh and the site where the Wright Brother’s achieved powered flight.


I stopped briefly at Fort Raleigh National Park to see the site of the first British settlement in the United States, although it failed after only a year it does have historic significance. From there I headed straight to the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, dropped my Jeep’s tire air pressure to 20 psi and then headed down the beach for a few miles. It was a blast! Afterwards I checked into my campground, a very bland RV campground that is almost entirely empty, but it is the only thing available (the rest are closed for the season) and it is near the beach, plus they have WIFI and hot showers. I then headed further south to see the Cape Hatteras Light House and National Park, and took some great photos as the sun went down. Finally back to camp for some dinner (Tuna Helper with extra veggies), blogging, facebooking and bed. Tomorrow I will visit the Wright brother’s flight site and more.

 

Day 1

Jeep Odometer = 265712

Today all of the planning, packing, reading, saving and preparations finally came together. Today was the day I would leave Greenville, and start the biggest adventure of my life. One chapter in my life has finished and another as begun. I may never live in Greenville, or South Carolina again but I will miss it dearly. It has been my home since the summer of 2003, I have made some of my closest friends there, completed my MBA, started my own business (which ultimately led to this trip) and have had some amazing experiences during that time. Greenville, SC will be the gold standard that I compare all future cities to when I am considering living there. The friendly and compact downtown area, the revitalizing of old parts of the city, and the addition of new parks, restaurants and bars has made it a great place to live. I will miss Greenville, but most of all I will miss the friends there I have become so close to. Since all of my family is 700 miles away, and I have been single for the past 2+ years I have had to lean on my friends for support and encouragement and they have always been there for me. Right down to this past Friday when they threw me the best surprise going away party ever. Special thanks go out to Grant and Kristin for putting that together.


The first day of the trip is a relatively short one. I drove 3 hrs from Greenville, SC to Greensboro, NC to catch up with old friend and colleague Trent. He took me out for dinner and beers downtown and put me up for the night.

Outerbanks to NYC

Well the trip plans are taking shape.  I'm leaving in just over 2 weeks.  Still lots of last minute preparations but somehow or another I will be ready.  Check out the intinerary tab for details on where we'll be and when, as we progress I will update the sheet.  I will be in NYC Feb 28th - Mar 6th, I will be visting my friends there and picking up Rose.  Please post suggestions either here on the suggestions page of things I should see while in NYC, DC or elsewhere.

It's going to be really hard to leave all of my friends, but I'm trying to make the most of the last two weeks I have in Greenville.  Many of them have become very close, and I'm sure we'll stay in contact for many many years to come.

Greg