Day 11 Visiting with family

We drove up to Crestwood Ky to visit my sister Pat and her husband Archie.  My brother Bob and his wife Linda drove down from Independence Ky by way of Georgetown (pick up daughter Kasey at Georgetown College).  My sister cooked a beautiful meal and afterwards had fresh baked apple pie and ice creame.  Here are a couple of pictures of us sitting around the table chatting about our children and granchildren.  Was a wonderful way to spend a Sunday afternoon.  It has been over five years years since the three of us had gotten together at the same time.

Here is a group pictute.  From left to right, Archie, Pat, me, Diane, Bob and Linda

Here is a picture of the three of us.  I'm the oldest, then sister Pat and brother Bob is the youngest
Whenever the three of us get together we take a picture to commerate the few times the three of us can be together.

Day 10 Jim Beam Distillery Tour and Kentucky Bourbon Festival, Bardstown Ky

We drove down to Clermont Ky and toured the Jim Beam Distillery there.  Was a very interesting tour.  Everything you wanted to know about how the worlds finest bourbon is made.

Inside the master distiller's house, where several generations of Beam's oversaw the family business we watched a seven minute video on the history of Jim Beam bourbon distilling.  Here is a picture of a miniture distillery that was showcased at the 1964 Worlds Fair in New York City.  This replica actually works.

From here we saw an exibit of one of the olodest copper stills in America.  It was capable of making three gallons of "white dog"  (moonshine).  The clear liquid was then stored in 53 gallon oak barrels and the aging process gives the bourbon its color.  Its aged anywhere from 4 to 9 years.

This is a warehouse where the barrels of bourbon is stored while aging.  These buildings are not heated or cooled.  There are nine floors.  Barrels are stacked in rows three high and fourteen deep. Each barrel contains 53 gallons of bourbon.  Thats a lot of bourbon!

Notice the color of the trees.  They are not burnt.  The black is a fungus that grows on trees and roofs of buildings around the distillery.  Its refered to as "angels share" because the angels get to sample fumes given off from the aging bourbon.  This helped the govt men in finding illegal moonshine stills.

After the tour we got to sample some of the small batch bourbons distilled here.  We sampled 129 proof Booker's and 80 proof Red Stag.  Believe me you can really taste the difference.

display of the different Jim Beam bourbons

Its late, tomorrow I'll post some pictures of the Bourbon Festival.  We intended to tour some of Bardstown but the town was so crowded due to the festival that we decided to try and come back on Monday and do that.  So we ate lunch at Mammy's Kitchen and then headed back to the campground.

Day 9 Travel Day

Rolled out of bed about six thirty this morning.  The temp got down to about 47 last night.  We have a small electric heater that we kept on low all night to keep the chill off.  Had to turn on the RV heater once we got up to get warm.  Back home we would still have the AC unit running.  Was a lot easier traveling today although a little breezy.  Must be the front that came thru Kentucky that brought the cooler weather.  We arrived at the Louisville South KOA about 2:30.  We were assigned site 317.  Not the greatest site to have.  Its got the basics but we're disapointed.  Thats going to happen when you go to a new campground for the first time.  You have no idea what site to ask for.  Now that we are here we will scope out the rest of the sites and make a list of sites to choose from if we return here in the future.
    Tomorrow we plan on visiting one of the distilleries on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail and then head down to Bardstown Ky.  Want to visit "My old Kentucky Home" and there is also suppose to be a Civil War Museum.

Day 8 Travel day

We almost got an early start this morning.  After leaving the campsite we drove separately down the hill to the CC entrance.  After hooking up the car to tow I noticed that I left the 90 degree adapter on the water intake.  This made me remember that I also forgot to take the pressure reducer when I disconnected the water hose.  LOL  Had to walk all the way back up to the site and back to retrieve the gadget. We have a detailed checklist to use when we get the RV ready to take on a trip.  I need to make up one to use when we break camp.  the day was overcast.  Ran into some heavy fog on I-64 west in West Va.  Also rained most of the way up the West Virginia turnpike.  When we pulled into the Ashland/Huntington West KOA about 3 pm  we finally saw blue sky.  This KOA is convienient to I-64 at exit 179.  I would recommend it for an overnight stay if you need one.  Tomorrow we head west to Louisville Ky.  We will be staying at the Louisville South KOA.  Will be touring that area of Kentucky as well as visiting with my sister.

Day 7 part 2

After the walking tour of Staunton's historic districts we ate lunch and then headed to the Frontier Culture Museum.

The museum is an outdoor, living history museum featuring exhibits and programs that explore the origins and history of the American people.  The first part of the walking tour shows how the people who imigrated lived before they came to America.  The first exhibit is a West African Farm.  Unfortunatly, these people did not come voluntary.

Next we have the English, Irish and German Farms.  Each farm had someone there who gave us an oral description of how they lived.

English Farm house

 Irish farmhouse

 German Barn

This bed is typical of the Irish farmhouse.  We were told that due to health reasons most had to sleep sitting up in bed to breath easier.  Hench the shorter beds?

The next exhibits show the homes that were built in the different periods after the migration to America.

1740s American Farm

1820s American farm

1850s American farm

1850s Barn

Inside the barn was an authentic replica of a Cyrus McCormick horse drawn reaper

All of these structures, both from overseas and American were purchased, disassembled, and transported to the museum and put back together.  Its an amazing amount of man hours that went in to all of this.  We really enjoyed the museum.  Would recommend it to anyone interested in american history.

Day 7 Staunton Va and Frontier Culture Museum

Another beautiful day today.  We got out early and drove into the town of Staunton.  Its a beautiful town with  great historic districts.  Actually the town is divided into five districts.  After parking at the downtown parking lot we walked to the Visitor Center located on New St between Beverly and Johnson Streets.  There we got a pamphlet which enables you to take a self guided tour of the Historic Districts.  Our first stop was the National Valley Bank.  This bank is basically just the way it was when established back in 1865.  There is also a small area designated as a museum in the bank.  The entrance is thru a revolving glass door.  The interior features a magnificent oval glass skylight.  Some pictures:

Trinity Espiscopal Church 1855.  This is an example of early gothic revival architecture and boasts 12 Tiffany Studio windows. 

In the Wharf Distric we visited Sunspots Studios and watched a glassblowing demonstration

Next was the old train station.  The original building has been a restaurant in the recent past.  It is currently being renovated again.  Amtrac has a small building also.

Augusta County Courthouse.  This is the fifth courthouse to be built on this site.  The first, in 1745, was a crude log structure.

There are 82 structures in all the five historic districts.  You would have to be a lot younger than us to walk the tour and view each one.  After the above we were pooped and found a nice small restaurant ( The Pampered Palet on Beverley St to eat lunch.
       Tomorrow is a travel day.  We will be heading west from here to Louisville Ky to visit my sister and her husband.  We will have an overnight stay outside of Ashland Kentucky before arriving in Louisville Friday afternoon.  Tomorrow night I will post pictures of the Frontier Culture Museum.

Day 6 Fall 2011 trip

Got an early start today, the pets woke us up at 6am.  They were ready for a morning walk.  We slept with the windows open last night.  Was the first time on this trip we did not need to run the AC unit all night.  Temp was in the upper 50s when we ventured outside and were also greeted with a beautiful sunrise.  Spent the morning doing chores, did our laundry among other things.  After lunch we headed up to the Shenadoah National Park and a trip along skyline drive.  Was a nice drive with quite a few senic overlooks.  But frankly, we were both a little disapointed.  Having driven the Blue Ridge Parkway many times, it seemed that the Skyline Drive was not what we expected.  There seems to be much more to see along the Blue Ridge.  Anyway, I've traveled thru Virginia many times, north and south and east and west over the past many years and always wanted to drive the Skyline.  We'll the cost was excellent, got in free with my National Park Senior Pass.  Have had the card for about five years and this was the first time I got to use it.  So, checked Skyline Drive off my bucket list.  Here are some pictures: