Old man winter eased his grip on East Tennessee this past Friday and we packed up the Pleasure Way and headed to Harrison Bay State Park just North of Chattanooga. This was just a short overnighter to shakedown the new rig and to visit the Tennessee Sandhills Crane Festival in Birchwood, TN.
We headed down US 411 South through great small towns Madisonville, Etowah and Benson then turned West on US 64 then on to Harrison Bay. There is a lot of construction going on in the park but campground A is just about finished and we setup camp on site A15 right on the water.
The campsite was impressive, a new spacious pad with fire ring and picnic table made for easy parking and leveling. The new electrical towers with hookups for everything from a simple 110V extension cord to 30 and 50 Amp service for RVs and trailers. New water standpipes with freeze-proof spigots completed hookup facilities.
It only took about 30 minutes to get the rig setup for the first time, it ought to take half that but we were checking everything very closely this first time. Then we took a short break to watch the heron stalking the shallows for minnows.
Time for us to try out the kitchen and dining room – tight space but very serviceable if you follow the basic Class B RV rule: only one person moves around at a time. I busied myself with sitting and opening the wine while Mary built the salad and heated the Lasagna for the late lunch. Our dining room is plenty big for two and could probably seat 4 friendly folks.
Our post lunch walk showed beautiful views from most sites. Walking to the B loop we saw sites more in keeping with our previous state park stays, small, questionable electric and mostly sloping. There were a few hearty campers in B and they had lots of privacy but B, B, and D will all be upgraded this year. On our way back to camp, we saw sever groups of deer (probably a dozen or so) as the sun began to settle over the far shore and we deemed our first afternoon here a success.
Cometh the night with our little home parked on the shore! If you have ever been responsible for a plane, train, automobile, boat or RV, the first night aboard is often uneasy. With temperatures predicted to drop into the mid 20s, the furnace began its cycle of – click, blow, click light, run click, flame out, fan off wait 15 minutes and repeat. By the way, when the temperature is dropping especially during winter, furnace maintenance services olathe ks is essential. You can visit polaraire.com if you need help with your heating system. Accompanied by the similar (but less noisy) cycle of the water heater, my brain recorded every sound, tick and crackle until sometime around 3am my over-active brain finally cataloged every sound and pronounced them benign. Ah, blissful sound sleep.
Sunrise and my turn in the kitchen – first the coffee then English muffins, eggs, bacon and cheese. Campground breakfasts have always been my favorite meals. We needed to fill our waste tanks to the top, break camp and dump our tanks for training purposes and get on the road to Birchwood and the Sandhill Cranes.
The nearly 70 degree weather brought thousands of people out and the festival was a madhouse, an hour and a half wait at the community center for the shuttle bus out to the viewing area. Then, back in line for the trip back to the center. There were hundreds of cranes in the viewing area but we decided that next time, we’ll just come visit the cranes on a weekday before or after the “Festival” and leave the weekend to the crowd.
Waiting in line sure works up an appetite so we headed off to one of our favorite places, Jacob Meyers Riverfront Grill in Dayton, Tennessee about 20 minutes from Birchwood. Buffalo Chicken sandwiches and roast beef wraps chased by cold beer goes a long way toward easing the pain of standing in line.
Time to head for home – a successful first overnight in our little RV.
We traveled 198 miles and enjoyed every minute. Next month, heading South.