Thanksgiving in the North Carolina Mountains
The Whomptons joined the Comptons and Astorians at Green River Preserve, a summer camp that Stephanie runs in the Blue Ridge mountains of North Carolina. To get there from Saint Louis meant a healthy amount of driving. We left STL Tuesday afternoon and arrived in Nashville at bed time; Mama Jo and Papa Bill joined us on the road early Wednesday morning as we headed out east.
Whomptons normally plan out our meal excursions whilst travelling due to my pseudo-vegan ways, but we failed to do so for this trip. Chipotle to the rescue! For multiple years, Raina has been able to eat an entire burrito bowl, and she did not disappoint here. Lola pulled out all the stops, though, by eating a significant portion of my meal and an adult sized quesadilla. Wow!
Then we entered into the mountains. We took a twisty-turvy pathway that wound up and down mountains at 15 mph; we followed a river the majority of the way and had beautiful views. The girls had great fun throwing themselves to one side of the car or the other as we made 270 degree turns. I concentrated all energies on not being sick.
Then we arrived at Green River! Woohoo! Most of the family explored the camp, the lake, the trails. (Eric and Atticus are pretty cute together.)
Stephanie stayed behind to make Wednesday night's chili and cornbread dinner.
One of the many benefits of celebrating Thanksgiving in North Carolina was hiking EVERY SINGLE DAY! The family (sans Jerry) set out to reach the Lower and Upper Balds Thursday morning. We had a rather harrowing drive to the trail head -- all occupants of the Prius exclaimed "look at that hole!" or "oh my goodness, we're tilting!" multiple times up the mountain. But then we were safely at the trail head and we could delay thinking about the return drive for a few hours. Instead, it was time to enjoy the beautiful scenery. A gentle snow greeted us for certain sections of the hike, which matched the reindeer lichen all around. We were able to look into South Carolina from our positioning.
The morning hike and exploration of Long Rock heightened our lunch appetites. We returned to Stephanie's house ready to devour everything in site, and also to play with the bunny. Jerry had an amazing spread with lasagna and apple pie.
Thursday evening saw us hanging around Missy and Sandy's house and planning the excursion for the next day.
Friday morning's hike destination was Pretty Place, a YMCA chapel with a gorgeous overlook into the mountains. Stephanie, Eric, Emily, Jerry, and I departed early in the morning to hike the 3.5 mile path. The view was absolutely worth it.
The rest of the family drove up and met us there; we huddled together for warmth and shielding from the wind. Stephanie took the little kids back home in the car, while Mama Jo, Papa Bill, and Raina joined us for the hike back home. Traditional Thanksgiving fare was served for lunch, and we totally earned couch sitting for a while.
But requisite family photos needed to occur. Papa Bill loves group family pictures! They needed to go quickly, though, because it was super cold. This picture is my favorite, because we all tickle attacked Stephanie.
We enjoyed a campfire, silly songs, roasting marshmallows, and s'mores Friday night.
We amassed on the covered bridge, overlooking the waterfall, for one last view.
And then it was time to go. The Whomptons and Nashville Comptons crammed into cars and began the journeys back home. Substantial kudos go to our camp director Stephanie for planning such a wonderful trip! The Whomptons look forward to returning to Green River soon.
Whomptons normally plan out our meal excursions whilst travelling due to my pseudo-vegan ways, but we failed to do so for this trip. Chipotle to the rescue! For multiple years, Raina has been able to eat an entire burrito bowl, and she did not disappoint here. Lola pulled out all the stops, though, by eating a significant portion of my meal and an adult sized quesadilla. Wow!
Then we entered into the mountains. We took a twisty-turvy pathway that wound up and down mountains at 15 mph; we followed a river the majority of the way and had beautiful views. The girls had great fun throwing themselves to one side of the car or the other as we made 270 degree turns. I concentrated all energies on not being sick.
Then we arrived at Green River! Woohoo! Most of the family explored the camp, the lake, the trails. (Eric and Atticus are pretty cute together.)
One of the many benefits of celebrating Thanksgiving in North Carolina was hiking EVERY SINGLE DAY! The family (sans Jerry) set out to reach the Lower and Upper Balds Thursday morning. We had a rather harrowing drive to the trail head -- all occupants of the Prius exclaimed "look at that hole!" or "oh my goodness, we're tilting!" multiple times up the mountain. But then we were safely at the trail head and we could delay thinking about the return drive for a few hours. Instead, it was time to enjoy the beautiful scenery. A gentle snow greeted us for certain sections of the hike, which matched the reindeer lichen all around. We were able to look into South Carolina from our positioning.
The morning hike and exploration of Long Rock heightened our lunch appetites. We returned to Stephanie's house ready to devour everything in site, and also to play with the bunny. Jerry had an amazing spread with lasagna and apple pie.
Thursday evening saw us hanging around Missy and Sandy's house and planning the excursion for the next day.
Friday morning's hike destination was Pretty Place, a YMCA chapel with a gorgeous overlook into the mountains. Stephanie, Eric, Emily, Jerry, and I departed early in the morning to hike the 3.5 mile path. The view was absolutely worth it.
The rest of the family drove up and met us there; we huddled together for warmth and shielding from the wind. Stephanie took the little kids back home in the car, while Mama Jo, Papa Bill, and Raina joined us for the hike back home. Traditional Thanksgiving fare was served for lunch, and we totally earned couch sitting for a while.
But requisite family photos needed to occur. Papa Bill loves group family pictures! They needed to go quickly, though, because it was super cold. This picture is my favorite, because we all tickle attacked Stephanie.
We enjoyed a campfire, silly songs, roasting marshmallows, and s'mores Friday night.
Saturday morning was our scheduled departure day, but we managed to sneak in one more hike before we left. We trekked over to see a gorgeous waterfall.
We amassed on the covered bridge, overlooking the waterfall, for one last view.
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