It was a chilly night on the mountain! The last weather forecast I saw had said it was going down to the mid-40s and I think that was about right. Slept in my sleeping bag and was nice and cozy!
I slept in a bit and didn’t really get up and get moving until after 7!
After a leisurely breakfast I decided to take a walk around the campground. I was thinking about doing a proper hike but the main event for the day was to go to the farm so I didn’t want to delay too much. The kids two sites down had been up for hours! It looked like it was at least 3 families – maybe more. The kids seemed quieter, but they were full of energy! I walked all the loops and checked out who had come in since I’d arrived. I’d say the campground was a 1/3 full – mostly tents and many families with small (infants, toddlers & preschoolers)children! It was about 9:00 when I headed out. The great thing about dry camping in the van is that when you are ready you just secure everything and drive off!
As I drove down Skyline Drive I scouted the trail head parking areas and noted that all had room for me if I’d wanted to park and hike! Early in the morning there was plenty of room and I could have backed into a spot and headed out. I’m liking the 1 night trip idea!
From Skyline Drive I could see what I thought was Signal Knob where I’d hiked last week. I wasn’t sure though. As I was driving I thought, “if only I had binoculars, I’m sure I could see the TV tower and know that it was Signal Knob” Well, duh, I have my binoculars! I pulled off at the next overlook which happened to be my favorite overlook to watch the sunset and it’s name: Signal Knob Overlook! HA! I was looking at Signal Knob. I did pull out the binoculars and I found the TV tower!
We’d been told we could come out to the farm anytime between 11 and 2. I’d emailed Farmer Leigh about where I could park Roxy and he advised that I come closer to 11 so I wouldn’t encounter lots of folks coming out. See, the farm is about a mile from the paved road on a very narrow 1 lane dirt road! I zipped down Skyline Drive and 66 and arrived at the farm a little before 11!
The drive in on the dirt road was fine! It def seems a lot narrower in the RV, but it was plenty wide enough. Good thing I didn’t encounter another car! When I got to the farm I was one of the 1st people to arrive and I pulled into what I think is the prime spot. I’d have to back out but I figured I’d deal with that when the time came. The RV was fine where it was. But then I second guessed myself and decided that I needed to back in now so I could just pull out later. So I backed up and pulled down the road and attempted to back into the spot. It was an obtuse angle, I know better than to try backing in, I knew before I started that it wouldn’t work. But the Sprinter can handle things I never would have thought it could handle (like a U-turn in heavy traffic!), so I went for it. I managed to get wedged in between a tree and some big trash cans! 1st time I’ve gotten her stuck! I was starting to panic a bit because I wasn’t sure how to get out, when I looked up and saw that I was blocking the whole road into the farm and there was a line of cars waiting to get in. I managed to pull forward and cut it hard and drove down the road to another spot where I could park right by the farm van that wasn’t going anywhere. This time it was a straight shot backwards and Leigh ran over to help me! Just when I didn’t need help anymore! :-)
I ended up hanging out at the farm until almost 2 since there was a steady stream of cars in and I really didn’t want to run into anyone coming the opposite direction! Also there were cars parked in my way and I would have had to make at least a 3 point turn to get out. I helped some new shareholders learn the ropes and made friends with some folks who also pick up in Manassas! I had 2 conversations with folks about food and how gross industrialized & processed food is! So fun to meet people who have watch the same things I have and read the same books and have made the same changes as me! Around Noon I went back to the RV and made lunch and sat under a tree and ate! Then I found a chair a read my book. It was a lovely day!
After the farm I hit up Wegmans, then came home to unload and then took Roxy back to storage. I got home a little after 5, which was perfect to have my evening and get the sheets washed! Looking forward to having tomorrow to cook, clean and catch up on TV!
The 1 night trip is something that will be happening again!
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