Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 21:14:27 -0400
Reply-To: Robert Rountree <rountree@PLANETEER.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Robert Rountree <rountree@PLANETEER.COM>
Subject: Trip Report (long)
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Left Ontario April 8th...
....got down just past Cincinnati, into Ky. on I75...
pulled over in a rest stop for a wink...woke up to a thunder clap that
sounded like I had just been boarded by pirates...next, Heavy hail playing a
cute little staccato number on my plastic sky light (thanks Trevor for that
double thickness plexi) ... turned on the radio.. National weather service
advises all persons in Owen Co. Ky. to run for the basement... look at my
map... hummm I'm in Owen Co. Ky....Time to get moving!!, a little natural
adrenaline and out of there...Heavy Heavy rain, not the kind of conditions I
like driving in, very hard to see anything, but it's escape this zone or
visit Toto & Auntie M .... later somewhere near Lexington, bunched up &
surrounded in a moving wall of trucks and spray, something came out from
under a wheel ahead and I ran over it on the passenger side, think it was
maybe a 2x6, in the next few miles lots of other cars had pulled over and
were out with flashlights checking their tires, I did the same... Nothing...
lets hear it for that extra Syncro clearance & those reinforced Coni's, By
morning I was nearing one of my favorite runs....hwy 129 out of Knoxville
Tenn. then 321 into The Great Smokie Mountains, Cades cove, then Parson
Branch rd. .... then the best sports car / motorcycle rd. on the east
coast.... 20 miles of which are maintain by the Miata Sports Car Club of
America..... I had this black Durango on my tail.... at first he thought he
was going to pass me....then he learned to enjoy the ride... kinda fools
some
folks... my Syncro...later that evening I found an All You Can Eat Catfish &
Ribs, family style place (TangleWood), Hey it's my vacation... I deserve
some real food once in a blue moon (& I got lots on this trip) ..... Next
Roll into Atlanta (Avondale Estates for those in the know) and spend the
next 48 hrs enjoying some fine Southern Hospitality.... The front page of
the Atlanta Journal shows a bunch of houses tosted all over the place....
head line.... Tornado hits Cincinnati (sound familiar?).......Atlanta was
just busting at the seams with flowers... Azaleas, Dogwoods, Wisteria,
Triple Dogwoods (this is were someone grafts a white, pink & red dogwood
onto one tree)... Had a super party with some friends I haven't seen in over
30 years... them in their Suburban's, Tahoe's, Rovers & Benz
stationwagons.... they thought my camper was neat.... (dream on... you'll
never know until you travel in one).... next leg... down to Lakeland Linder
Airport Fla.... as I was driving down I75 near Macon Ga., the wind was
blowing the pine tree pollen around so much that it was a yellow haze
reducing visibility.... allergies anyone?....By late Sun. night I was at
the Fly-in... next morning... in the day use parking lot, I counted 6
Vanagons, 4 Westy, 2 GL's.. one was a dark blue Westy from B.C, ... was a
hot day.. I came to see all the new GPS stuff and old 120,140, J3's, 7 & 9
cyl. Radials..... I digress..did meet an interesting fine old Huey Vet, we
had a taco salad & some tales together..... next leg... up the east coast
and 4 days camping and surf fishing in my favorite park.... Boy that granny
gear
is just the tool for that soft sand on the beach.... ate every day at
O'Steens... The only way you can get fresher shrimp & crab is with a
net...Next leg... old hwy 80 from Savannah to Macon.... paid homage to my
elders burial grounds & ate some BBQ.... nothing like a little south in your
mouth....on last leg... up over the Smokies again... now this was really
COOL... every year they have this monster Custom car show in Pigeon Forge
Tenn.... so I'm driving up the south side of the Smokies and all these
custom rods are driving home, down from the show...... imagine the best
custom car show you've seen in years, from the comfort of your own captains
chair, set against the moving backdrop of the Smokies........loose total
VW's.... 20 to 25 Campers... most in Fla.... 6,000 km and only 3/4 a liter
of
15-50w SemiSynth... guess what?.... 15-50w SemiSynth is now THE choice of
the aircraft owner.... I did see 2 Rilaita's I think in Fla... But there is
one thing I know for sure.... My Syncro could easily pull them out of the
sand (:^).... all in all not one real problem.... why?... because I read
some of the good stuff on the list and I DID IT...... Moral?... get out
there and enjoy yourself.... there is NOTHING like a trip in a VW
Camper..... Did I see anything that worried me? Yes....there are a lot of
cars on the road with at least one quarter panel smashed in and not
repaired..... this, to me means... there are a lot of people driving cars
with no insurance..... Be
VERY careful out there my friends things are not all they appear to be.
Drive as if NO one else is paying any attention to what they are doing..
(cause most of them aren't)
Rob
87 Westy SyncroGL.....Cynosure 86k km
Moonstone Ont.
Rountree_RD@hotmail.com
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