Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Fourth Of July, Trip to West Virginia

Thur. We stayed home and went through our mail.  After paying alot of the Dr. visit bills we drove around some of the small towns found a Starbucks, had dinner and I got a hair cut we came home.
Fri. Happy Fourth of July!!!  Today we got up at 6 after a night of rain from Hurricane Arthur was hitting N.C. coast. The temperature was 60 with no humidity.  We spent the day reading outside and having a cook out.
 As night came we had a campfire and had s'mores (yum yum).  We then watched the fireworks on TV.
Sat. We had a hard time sleeping during the night it was 9 when we woke.  After breakfast we sat down with the maps to see where we are going to go.  The outer banks will be on hold till a later date.(thanks to the hurricane) It will give them time to get things cleaned up after the hurricane.  The park had a golf cart parade to celebrate Fourth of July.  I lost count when we got up to 40.
 Sun. We went to church I got lost on the way home so we stopped by the store and got some more ice cream and things.  We played putt putt for the third time, had a nice dinner, then back to church.  One of the ladies there gave us some cucumbers and squash. It is so nice to eat fresh veg's. right out of the garden.
Mon. We got the rig ready and left for West Virginia. The first two pictures show the beginning of the tunnels we went through and the top right we are in the tunnel.  Middle left row rt. coming out of the tunnel, middle picture is a run off ramp for folks that have lost there breaks on these steep mountains, right and bottom first two are of the parkway, and bottom rt welcome to West Virginia.  We got set up at Beckley Exhibition Mine Campground. We hope to go on the tour this week while we are here.

Tues.  We left for Lewisburg on the way there we stopped by a Info and exhibit of the sand stone in Blue Ridge.  He told us about the Greenbrier Valley.  We found they had a bunker tour at Greenbrier so we got reservations.  Upon arriving there the place was magnified. It has five champion golf courses and last week-end they had the PGA at Greenbrier. As you can see in the middle picture the front of the hotel and top left the side entrance. Top middle is a place where the spring water came in old days people thought it was healing waters. Top right is the swimming pool Middle top some folks playing croquet below it is one of many flower beds. Middle top is the front entrance from the hotel below it and the bottom row some of the golf course.
 The top left is the check in at the hotel, middle the pattern of carpet, right is one of the many meeting rooms with a fireplace. Middle left a ball room, middle meeting room, and right some of the figurines around the hotel.  Bottom left coming up the stairs, right of it is a dinning room, next to it a section of drapes and bottom right a meeting room.
 As we traveled around the courtyards there were many statues and fountains.  I like the top two on the right where in the garden they are across from each other and it looks like they are racing. Some of the statues were hidden or had vines on the picture bottom third from left.
What we do not have pictured of is the  bunker.  We went on a tour of it and had to give up phones and cameras.  It was built at height of cold war and kept a secret for 30 years. It was never used but came close during the Cuban crisis. It had 112,544 square feet, could house 1,100 people in the 18 dormitories.  It had its own power plant, communication area, clinic, meeting rooms and lounges.  The house could meet in its own room and the Senate in its room. It had 20 to 60 feet of dirt between it and the hotel above it. It stood in ready mode till May 31, 1992 when a article "The Last Resort" exposed the site. We both enjoyed the tour and the grounds.
  First two pictures top row are some of the buildings in Lewisburg where we ate at "Food and Friends" (the ribs and mussels were wonderful a large salad, mashed potatoes and veg. melody. This restaurant was featured on the food network. The last two picture top were of Carnegie Hall one of four in operation in the world. The middle four pictures the Cemetery where 95 Confederate soldiers were buried during the May 23, 1862 battle. The middle right is grave of Dick Pointer a slave who defended Fort Donnally in May 1778.  In 1801 he asked for his freedom because he defended the Fort but was denied and the town's people built him a cabin where he lived till his death in 1827. Bottom left was a Coffman Covered Wagon built before 1788 and bottom right two pictures our trip home on I64.







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