2003 Dressage at Devon

Pre-Devon Diary

Sunday September 21, 2003: The Miles

An early wake up at 7 AM proved to be necessary if we were to fulfil our today's goal: getting into Virginia or preferably Pennsylvania. When crossing three states in a day, the way nature changes becomes very apparent. In Georgia, remnants of Florida tropical climate of palms and oak trees got mixed with loaf and pine trees along the rode. In South Carolina pine trees dominated the view together with the many orange and pink flower beds that flourished along the highway. In North Carolina and Virginia loaf trees gave you the impression that you were actually driving through a forest.

Driving through the Carolinas, I regularly noticed road signs pointing to cities which were of great importance during the Secession War: Richmond, Charleston, Fort Sumter, Ford Maultrie. All these locations reminded me of one of my favorite tv shows ever, North and South. Leaving Savannah, we headed toward Florence.

As we planned on taking the Interstate 95 up to Washington, Mary called ahead to several KOA campgrounds where we could spend the night. Unfortunately the Richmond/Fredericksburg area was severely struck by hurricane Isabel and the KOA's were without power. We replotted our course and headed from Florence towards Charlotte. On 151 we drove past large patches of cotton and soy bean fields. The first part was, therefore, very interesting, but the second one (closer to Charlotte) became unattractive due to the dry land and unappealing houses.

The city of Charlotte contrasted severely with the region we had just left behind. Endowed with a beautiful skyline due to two New York-like skyscrapers, Charlotte was a haven for car dealers. Every single car brand was represented on a big lane leading into the city. What an epitome of mass production.

Driving into Virginia was a big relief. With still 130 miles to go (destination Natural Bridge KOA in Lexington, Virginia) and a bladder filling up rapidly with Mountain Dew, I was very eager to get to the campground. On our way, JJ regularly taught me about American history. For instance, every big superhighway we drove on had a sign "Eisenhower Interstate System", so I asked JJ the meaning of it.

After being 9 hours on the road and covering about 590 miles, we finally arrived at a beautiful campground in the middle of the woods. On the driveway I spotted two deer. Mary and I walked the dogs to the local gas station to get some wine (they didn't have it) while JJ set up the camper. We wanted to watch the Emmy Awards, but this KOA didn't have cable so we watched the Survivor premier show before going to bed.

by Astrid Appels