Mission 037 - Cabin Camping at Oconee State Park

What??? Cabin Camping? Well, short of a tent (...uh, no thank you...), it's the only way to do the State Park-camping thing without an RV, so we got to try something new this time around! Take a look as we visit Oconee State Park in the Appalachian foothills of upstate South Carolina. We spent a couple of nights in one of the original cabins constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps back in the 1930s (but updated with most modern comforts you'd expect... and demand!). Of course, we took a long hike through some of the park's densely-wooded trails, and checked out the RV campground for you, since we're still RV'ers at heart!

Aiken State Park | CAMPGROUND REVIEW | South Carolina Parks - (Special Report)

New YouTube video! 🎥 "Black Friday" weekend gave us a chance to sleep off our Thanksgiving turkey-overdose over at Aiken State Park!  We spent a beautiful fall Saturday doing a thorough review of one of South Carolina's original state parks, built by the Civilian Conservation Corps during the Great Depression.  Join us as we show you this lush, wooded remote camping destination that happens to be a stone's throw away from our home! (well, maybe two or three stone-throws away, but close enough...)

 

Mission 026 (Pt. 2) - Zip-Lining over DeSoto State Park | mini-CAMPGROUND REVIEW

Our Spring Break 2021 adventure continues!  Nobody would ever call us “adrenaline junkies,” but the thought of zip lining through the trees of DeSoto State Park was just too exciting to ignore!  Take a look as we risk life and limb (well, not really…), and then take you on a little walkabout tour of the campground before wrapping up our week and heading home.  

Mission 026 - DeSoto State Park | RV CAMPING in Alabama’s Mountains

Waterfalls and whitewater rivers in Northern Alabama! Come along and see how the first few days of our Spring Break 2021 week-long adventure to DeSoto State Park begins! We’ll arrive at the fantastic campground there, then check out some of the beautiful river shoals in the park, and some larger falls outside the park and in the surrounding Little River Canyon National Preserve. Watch and see for yourself!

Mission 025 - Chester State Park, in SC's Olde English District

The Olde English region of South Carolina is a part of our home state that we’re yet to explore in depth, so checking out Chester State Park is a great place to start! In this video, we’ll show you one of South Carolina’s original sixteen state parks, dating back to 1936. The 526-acre park is home to a lovely fishing lake constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), as well as a disc golf course and 25-site campground. Not a bad way to spend the first weekend of spring, are we right!?!? 😃 

Mission 022 - Dreher Island State Park in Prosperity, SC (on Lake Murray)

This is the one in which we are finally convinced that a weekend just ain't long enough for a camping trip... 😞  Dreher Island State Park is another little gem in the roster of South Carolina state parks, and was a welcome opportunity to break out of our kinda-sorta local camping "rut" we'd been in for most of the year.  Situated on three small islands in Lake Murray, just above Columbia, SC, the park is a great choice for both RV campers and tent campers.  Come along and see what little bit of fun we were able to find in just a short weekend! 

Mission 021 (Pt. 1) - Lake Hartwell State Park | RV CAMPING | RVing Upstate SC

Labor Day Weekend 2020!  (Yes, we're still making videos!!!)  Our last trip of the summer takes us to Upstate South Carolina, where we camped in Lake Hartwell State Park.  The campground sits along a couple of inlets, with boating access to Lake Hartwell’s 56,000 acres of water.  Join us as we travel up there late on a Friday afternoon, and then spend the next day wandering about the campground and basking in some cooler upstate weather… for a change! 

Mission 019 - Hot, HOT Camping at Elijah Clark State Park

Hot in the Summer! ☀️ Elijah Clark State Park on the Georgia side of Lake Thurmond (thankfully) offers campsites open to larger areas of the lake, allowing the lake breezes to provide a little relief from the sweltering July weather. Of course, jumping INTO the lake also helps beat the heat! Come along on our long weekend trip to this lovely park, where we see a little bit of Revolutionary War history and learn some more about the fantastic camping opportunities here in the Central Savannah River Area (CSRA).

Mission 016 - BACK TO CAMPING at Mistletoe State Park, Appling, GA!

Mistletoe State Park was our destination for this long-overdue return to RVing! It's a fairly short ride for us, being just outside of Appling, GA, meaning we spent more time camping and less time driving! Take a look as we show you the beautiful countryside on the way there, the gorgeous waterfront campsites on the shores of Lake Thurmond, and the lush almost-rainforest-like hiking trails that meander through the park. We were so happy to be released from "COVID Clamp-Down" that we'd have enjoyed this trip no matter what the park was like, but so much the better that we found it to be a great place to spend a long weekend with the "Aluminum Falcon!" 

UPDATE! How We're Being Hit by the "COVID Clamp-Down"

Howdy, Happy Campers out there! Jessie here again with an update about what's happening with our travel plans these days.  Let's face it - just about none of us anywhere are camping during these trying times lately, and I imagine that very few of us are happy about it.  One week from today (as I'm writing this), Smokey and I were supposed to be pulling into Fort DeSoto Campground down in St. Petersburg, Florida for our only long trip of the year.  We were oh-so looking forward to taking the new Aluminum Falcon on a lengthy adventure and finding lots of new and exciting things to see and do, and to make lots of video content to show all of you.

Well, so much for that!  You all know that I'm an educator (an elementary school librarian, to be precise), and with schools everywhere shut down for the duration of this health crisis, I've been working extra hard preparing materials and arranging things for our students to engage in some Socially-Distant learning.  Smokey being an administrator in healthcare means he's been working just as hard, if not harder, than usual, with no end in sight.  Even if Florida's governor hadn't closed things down, chances are that neither of us would've been able to justify leaving our jobs in early April to take the trip as planned. 

Certainly, we want everyone everywhere to be healthy and safe, and to not take unnecessary chances.  We're human, though, so we can't help but be disappointed that current circumstances are preventing all of us from living our lives.  Not only do we enjoy the few chances we get to go RV camping, we also enjoy making videos of our experiences to share with you, and we are thrilled beyond description that you seem to enjoy them.  Sadly, there won't be as many of them over the coming weeks, however, and that just kills us!  

We'll try to do a few things on our YouTube channel in April and May to let you know that we're still out here and still wanting to keep you engaged.  Please don't forget about us while, like you probably are, we're all cooped up at home waiting for this crisis to end, and please keep following us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, 'cause we'll still be posting there!  We're hoping that our next scheduled trip, to Baker Creek State Park in mid-May, will still happen, and we can get back to doing some Livin' and Learnin'!  Stay healthy, everybody!

Thinking of Buying an RV? 🤔 | ASK YOURSELF THESE QUESTIONS!!! - (Special Report)

It’s definitely a major life-decision - should YOU make the investment in a recreational vehicle? Why wouldn't you??? Well, to be fair, there are some decisions in life that definitely should NOT be “impulse” decisions, and deciding whether to purchase an RV certainly fits into that category. In this video, we share the thought process we followed when we first starting kicking around the idea of getting into the RV lifestyle. Take heed of our experience, fellow “noobs!”

Mission 011 (Part 2) - Kings Mountain National Military Park

Our newest video is up on the YouTube channel! Our long weekend at the Kings Mountain parks continued with our Saturday visit to the National Military Park, the site of the Battle of Kings Mountain in 1780. We lucked into visiting on the weekend before the October 7th anniversary of the battle, so there were lots of goings-on with re-enactors and other demonstrations to see, in addition to the lovely forest hike. Take a look at our jaunt through this historical place and see yet another fine example of the great work the National Park Service does in preserving America's special places!

Mission 011 (Part 1) - Kings Mountain State Park

More video fun for you!! Fall camping season begins, although you'd never know it as we departed for Kings Mountain State Park. Early October was still brutally hot down here in the South, but that didn't stop us from going camping! Join us as we discover one of South Carolina's original state parks, up where North and South Carolina meet. This historic location is known for its extensive hiking and equestrian trails, the "Living History Farm" (which we explore), and fishing and paddling on Lakes Crawford and York. We camped, we hiked, we grilled... see how it happened over on our YouTube channel!!

End of "Camping Season?" BAH!! Bring On the Fall!

Hey, fellow Campers!  Jessie here again!  Fall approaches, and parts of the country may see the end of "camping season" on the horizon, but we here in the warm, wet South don't look at it that way!  Cooler weather just means changing your camping expectations, and to keep you apprised of our itinerary, today we share what we have mapped out through the end of the year.  Here goes: 

• For the Labor Day weekend (and our wedding anniversary!), we'll return to the site of our very first RV'ing trip - Lake Greenwood State Park.  With a year's worth of experience under our collective belts, we may actually have a stress-free trip this time around - although the first trip there was wonderful in its own way! 
  
  
• In the first week of October, we'll head up to the unique Kings Mountain State Park, which is kinda-sorta two parks in one. Not only does SC Parks & Recreation operate the State Park, but the National Park Service also participates in the property, managing Kings Mountain National Military Park. The park is also a big destination for horse-lovers, with lots of equestrian activities there. 
  
  

• We'll spend the Halloween weekend in a very UN-spooky place - Watson Mill Bridge State Park over in Georgia! Famed for the old covered bridge at the park's entrance, this park caught our attention while we were researching our trip to Tallulah Gorge. We expect lots of opportunities for great fall-colors photo-taking there (weather permitting, of course)!
  
  
• Thanksgiving Break presents a challenge, as we want to use the time off from work to go camping, but families "demand" we remain close to home, so as a compromise, we'll camp at Richard B. Russell State Park. On the opposite side of Lake Russell from Calhoun Falls State Park (where we had a wet. wonderful weekend this summer), this Georgia park is close enough to my folks' place that we can still do Thanksgiving Day with family during our stay.
  
  
• The year ends with our week-between-Christmas-and-New-Year's vacation, a tradition we hope we've started after our Asheville adventure last winter. This year, we've decided to see Myrtle Beach State Park... in the dead of winter! The way we figure it, all of the summer beach-crowd won't be there making lots of racket, right...?  

We'll provide more details as these dates approach, and more stories and pictures after the dates pass!  Stay tuned! 

Mission 009 (Part 2) - Tallulah Gorge State Park

Since the long weekend at Tallulah Gorge State Park began with the death-defying hike into and out of the river gorge, the philosophy we adopted for the remainder of our weekend was “Low-Energy Relaxation!” Check out our much less-stressful “hike” (more of a leisurely stroll) on the lovely Shortline Trail, followed by some frolicking in the waters of Lake Tallulah. Oh, and as always, we share a few “Lessons Learned” as we wrap up the great weekend!

See how it all played out over on the YouTube channel!

Mission 009 (Part 1) - Tallulah Gorge State Park

Our newest YouTube video is up and running! After climbing out of Tallulah Gorge, we felt the urge to shout "DELIVERANCE!" to the Heavens, as we then totally understood how Burt Reynolds and Jon Voight felt at the end of that movie! Well, maybe we exaggerate a little... Take a look at our visit to Tallulah Gorge State Park in the Georgia mountains, where we foolishly jumped into the infamous "Gorge Trail Hike." Rushing waters, jagged boulders and broken toes all conspired to wear us down, but we conquered the trail and lived to tell the tale! 

The ANGRIEST RV vlog Ever Recorded!

Well, sometimes the best-laid travel plans just don't work out. In our latest video, you'll see how our trip to take the Aluminum Falcon back to the dealer for some maintenance was only partially successful. You may also see Smokey blow his stack... EEK!!!

New Month, New Updates!

Hey, Happy Campers!  Today's post is just a "status update," to let you know that, just because the world at large considers this time of year to be the camping "off-season," we still have some things going on.

We got the Aluminum Falcon up to Camping World in Spartanburg last week for his planned maintenance.  Of course, we had to leave him there for a while, as we expected, but we intended to spend the weekend in a hotel in Spartanburg and do some other things while we were there.  Note I said "intended" - that didn't work out so well...

However, it did provide some fodder for our next YouTube video!  Keep your eyes open this Sunday, when our latest video mis-adventure will debut, and you'll get to see for yourself how we adapted to everything from Mother Nature to the Lodging & Hospitality industry working against us.

We haven't pinned down a date for running over to Congaree National Park, as the afore-mentioned Mother Nature seems determined to never again allow the Southern U.S. to see a sunny weekend.  When it happens, we'll let you know.  St. Augustine is still firmly on the calendar, though!

Again, check back either here or on the YouTube channel this Sunday for the new video, and be sure to subscribe to the channel, and share it with others! It's easily found at YouTube.com/LiveNLearnRV.  

Mission 005 - Aiken State Park, or as we call it, "Camp Spooky"

Peace and quiet. These are just two of the many things RV camping can offer, depending on where and when you go. Can there be such a thing as TOO MUCH peace and quiet? Well, check out the video for our recent long weekend at Aiken State Park for the answer.

Again, we won't be doing any camping in February or March, but there will be travels (of sorts) and news to report, so keep your eyes peeled for more words here!

Mission 003 (Part 2) - Can You Get Lost in the Woods in a State Park...?

The rest of our Thanksgiving weekend trip to Santee State Park wraps up with a loooong hike down the nature trail, where we found out how much some hurricane damage can change a stroll through the woods into a survival test! (okay, we exaggerate, but it WAS a heck of a workout!)

See the video here 👉 https://youtu.be/1mRPo-WMFkU