There is no place like home

It was time to head home, but on the way we had one or two more adventures.  We packed up from Pine Grove Furnace and started the six hour drive to our last camp site in Virginia.  Taking Kelly's good advice again, we made a stop in Gettysburg to take in a little history.  

President Lincoln and I were having a pretty serious conversation about his address when Landon very rudely inturrupted.  We later came to understand his motives were clearly linked to his allegiance to the the rebels.  

While we enjoyed a little silliness, we also found some some really beautiful scenery and a deeper understanding of our shared history.  

Gettysburg is literally spattered with monuments, memorials and historic sites.  We were surprised to learn that there wasn't just one battlefield.  There were several locations of battle and the audio driving tour was over 25 miles long.  We didn't really have time for all that, so we stopped at a few that seemed most interesting.  

We stopped at Big Round Top, Little Round Top, and Devils Den.  We hiked up the walking trail for a view of several sites before getting on with our drive.  

Driving was not fun.  We finally made it to Hungry Mother State Park in time for an evening swim in the lake.  

And then out for a quick bite in Marion, VA.  We found a Japanese style restaurant called Yummy Yummy and both had hibachi steak with soup and salad.  The place lived up to its name!  The steak was delicious and the ginger salad dressing was amazing.  

The town seemed pretty cool with a drive in theater and zip lining just outside of the park, but I was really ready to hit the road for home the next day.  I practically broke camp around Landon's sleeping body first thing in the morning.  We were packed, dressed and driving out of the park by 8:30.  Only 4 hours to go!

As much as I love being on the road and living in nature, I love returning to our very own habitat.  Marcus Lemonis (The Profit) welcomed us back to the land of television, air conditioning, and king sized beds with the promise of many more adventures ahead.

While we say goodbye for now, nature hasn't completely abandoned us.  

Serene, Pennsylvania

We find ourselves now somewhere in Pennsylvania.  The town itself is not important, however the mountains and beauty are.  This is why I camp.  I guess some of us must be forced to slow down and take in the beauty of nature.  I find I am most connected to this energy when I am high in the mountains and unable to worry about the reality I have left behind.  

Here there is absolutely nothing to do but take it all in and reconnect with yourself at the core.  After the hustle and bustle of Philly, this was a welcome commune.

We still had some dryimg out to do from Brandywine.  What you can't see is the steam rising from the towels stretched out on the van.  There wasn't much sunlight to help the drying process so we had to get a little inventive.  We were actually pretty happy about this because it meant our campsite was cool and shady!

This place was perfect and we settled in for a couple days stay.  I could have spent a solid two weeks here and been completely satisfied.  

We had some tasty food at a British pub called The Market Cross Pub & Brewery in Carlisle PA.  I had the cottage pie, which was composed of hamburger (almost the consistency of a beefy chili) covered in cheddar cheese, green beans, and mashed potatoes.  It was a welcome change to have a little bit of comfort food.  I am looking forward to making my own version of this when we get home.  Landon had chicken wings again.  

We saw some pretty cool wildlife here too.  I've never seen a moth this color!  We had a little scare one night on the way to bed.  We were talking pretty loudly and getting into the tent.  When I turned the light on, something large (we think a deer) moved very suddenly right behind our tent.  It sounded like the deer might come charging into our tent and trample us under its hooves!  Of course, we probably scared it pretty good.  It was a reminder of our vulnerability in the woods with a sheer piece of fabric between us and the wild.  

When I selected this park as part of our trip, I didn't realize it was the exact halfway point along the Appalachian Trail!  We visited the AT Museum on the park grounds.  To be honest, I got a little emotional in the museum.  I don't really know why, except to say that the pure love for the trail and the lifetime commitment these people have made to preserving the natural beauty of our countryside simply for posterity is overwhelming.  

Maybe one day Landon and I will make a thru-hike?  Until then, we settled for a short piece through the park.  

We also hiked a quick trail to a creek behind our campsite.  The trail looped behind the campground.  We took off from our tent site, which required the use of a map and a compass to locate the trail.  

Hehe

We found it!  We also found an amphitheater and a peace sign along the way.  

After all this hiking, we were pretty hungry and had dinner at the camp store near the museum.  We both had burgers and shared a large fry.  We had no idea at the time that we were really in for a treat.  I ordered a hiker's burger which included double cheese, a fried egg, bacon and avocado.  I realize that my "hikes" were nowhere near deserving of a hiker's burger, but I couldn't resist.  Remember we have already thrown caution to the wind in terms of healthy eating anyway.  It was SO worth it!

We also found out a little more information about the Pine Grove Furnace State Park.  The name was such a mouthful and we didn't really know what it meant.  So- we found out!

This is the Furnace that the park is named for.  The Furnace was used to smelt iron.  The process involves iron ore, limestone, and a very hot fire.  The pine trees in the area were used to make charcoal to fuel the fire.  Hence, the Furnace needed to be near the resources required to process iron, including the iron ore & limestone in the mountains and the pine trees in the forest.  

The next day it was time to pack up and head on to our last camp stop on the way home.  I did NOT want to leave this place and resisted.  Notice that I am still representing Irmo!  It was pretty chilly in the morning- which is why we always head north for camping.