August 14 -16

After spending 2 nights in Whitley City, KY we headed south into Tennessee for few more stops before arriving at my sister's house in East Tennessee. Big South Fork NRRA is also in both KY and TN. The main visitor center is at Bandy Creek where there is a campground and a public swimming pool. Outside the flowers were beginning to fade, but I think the petals of the beebalm are unique.

Big South Fork NRRA - Bandy Creek, TN
Scarlet Beebalm


We went over to Oak Ridge to visit the second site of the Manhattan Project National Historic Park, at the beginning of the trip we had visited the site in Los Alamos, NM. Next year we plan to visit the third site in Hanford, WA. As with the site in Los Alamos, this site is still under development and only has a small presence in the American Museum of Science and Energy.
Outside is a metal sculpture made from steel beams damaged in the 9-11 attack on the World Trade Center.

Manhattan Project NHP - Oak Ridge
9/11 Sculpture


NPS desk


In the lobby of the museum was a full size car that had been created on a 3-D printer!! I am fascinated with what a 3-D printer can and will produce. This was pretty amazing.

3-D car


3-D car specs


Besides visiting my sister the purpose of arriving here was to park our van with her for 2 weeks and rent a car to continue our trip along the East coast. Three years ago when we did an extensive trip along the East coast we got very frustrated driving the van. As we were traveling in August camping was not planned so we decided to try something new. I had reserved a standard car and we got lucky and got an upgrade to a Jeep Patriot. This car gave us plenty of space for our gear and was much easier to maneuver.

Jeep


Once we transferred our gear and figured out the bluetooth set up (easy) we continued on our way. Before leaving Tennessee on this leg of our trip we stopped in Greeneville, TN at the Andrew Johnson NHS. This is where our 17th President lived before and after serving as President. He truly came from humble beginnings; as a young child apprenticed as a tailor. Within the visitor center is his Tailor Shop where he hired readers to educate himself.

Andrew Johnson NHS - Greeneville, TN

Walk to house


Display


Tailor Shop


We then headed north into West Virginia. The hilly terrain made driving less than enjoyable. The large trucks bogged down going uphill, then came charging downhill. We understood the dynamics of driving in this terrain, but it made driving challenging.

We stopped at Sandstone Visitor Center for New River Gorge National River. This site also manages the Bluestone National Scenic River and Gauley River National Recreation, all of the sites we visited two years ago. This center is newly designed and does a great job of interpreting these ecosystems.

Sandstone Visitor Center


Sandstone plaques


We ended the day in Charleston, WV in a downpour, just when I was registering for our room. Better than while driving, but it delayed unpacking. Luckily we had picked up a pizza before registering so we ran in with a couple of beers and enjoyed our dinner. By the time we finished the rain had stopped.

Wildlife Sightings

White-tailed Deer

American Crow
Warbler
Northern Cardinal
Turkey Vulture
American Robin