All good things must end

There was another day to the Rally but there was nothing more we wanted to see or do so we broke camp and headed for home on Thursday. We figured it would take two days to get back home; we planned to stay in a commercial campground Thursday night so that we could dump and arrive home with empty holding tanks.

After consulting the Triptik, Jean laid out a course more to her satisfaction and we headed out. First off, we topped our fuel tank, then got right on the interstate for a short run. We generally prefer secondary roads; they are more relaxed and you get a better sense of the country you are driving through.

At a Coke (and bathroom) stop in late afternoon, we brought up camping app on the smart phone. We picked a spot that looked interesting in Greenville, SC, and punched it into the GPS. When we got to Greenville it took us into the country and then announced that we had arrived. There was no campground in sight, no sign on the road, just a driveway leading to a house. So we drove in. The driveway led past the house and to a small campground behind the trees. There were a few trailers parked there and some empty spaces. There was no office and no one around to ask. It was like a deserted movie set.

So we looked  up another nearby campground and put it into the GPS. This led us to the other side of Greenville to the Springwood RV Park. At least this one looked more like what we expected, and it did have an office. The office was closed (by now it was about 6:00) but there was a phone number posted. We called the number and in a few minutes a man arrived on a golf cart. He was very friendly and opened the office and checked us in. He pointed us to a convenient full-service space and left again. We found a very level spot on the space and hooked up the electric. Taking a walk Gene found that the campground had no baths and showers and no trash bins. Is there something strange about Greenville campgrounds?

Next morning we dumped our tanks and hit the road for Virginia, buying breakfast on the road. The route took us within sight of the mountains for a while. It was pleasant but otherwise unremarkable. We made good time until we almost got home. Driving south of Lynchburg, we saw a big traffic jam on the other side of the road. There was a burned-out car towing a big trailer at the side of the road, along with fire engines and police.

Observing the slow-moving backup on the other side we said that we were glad not to be in that. No sooner had we said this than we ran into a backup of our own. This one was not moving, just sitting. Way up ahead we could see a big column of smoke. After a while, everyone had to pull onto the shoulders to let an ambulance and a fire truck creep up the road between us.

Eventually the line started moving a little. First a few cars in one lane, then a few cars in the other. We finally got to a point where we could see a long string of fire engines ahead. We never did see the burning (or burned) house (as we suppose), but we did have to go across a large-diameter fire hose laid across the road.

That little adventure cost us about an hour, but we still made it home before sunset. Happy to be home, but thinking about our next adventure.

The usual statistics: We were gone 20 days and covered 2,485 miles, including 11 days parked in one place. I'll figure out how much (gasp!) it cost later but that will be my secret.