Nashville, TN: Wingin It

When I left Autumn Olive Camping, my GPS took my a route that I never knew existed. A one lane, dirt road, that curved around a few miles before bringing me to a highway. Over the past few days I have reached out to a number of people in the Nashville area to host me, but with no luck. I decided to go there anyway and see if anything came through. It was nice driving to my next destination and not have the car struggling uphill. Siri took me through some cute, small, country bumpkin looking towns, one of which was named Allardt: Home of the Giant Pumpkin. When I stopped for gas I FaceTimed some girlfriends and showed them the man dressed in overalls riding his tractor up to the gas station. Inside, everybody working there knew everybody coming in and there was a plethora of tobacco selections for sale. 

Louisville, KY: The beginning and the end

Kentucky is the next stop on my route. The only other time that I have been to Kentucky was a year and a half ago with my mom and two of my cousins; we drove up from Tennessee to go to a mall since none of us had ever been to the state before. The ‘mall’ we came to was one of a few businesses in a small plaza and it was more like a flea market. Granted, we did find some awesome things in there. I found a sign that says something along the lines of: I got gas here! and has a photo of a gasoline pump on it. Because I’m classy. Mom had the best find, though. Her sister, who we were visiting in Tennessee, runs a campsite business with her husband (more about that later) out in the boonies. The cabins have electricity, but no water, so Mom found a portable potty for my aunt to scare future campers with. Then we went where any other person just over the state line would go to extend the trip- Kentucky Fried Chicken! And our trip was complete.

Fayetteville, West Virginia: Stopover

About 10 years ago I met a guy named Dave through a mutual friend and we got along famously. Dancing, baseball, tie dye, drinks, and lots of laughs that weekend. We’ve kept in touch since then and when I was planning out my route for this trip, I wanted to visit some new states, like Ohio. That’s where Dave is from so I reached out to him to see if he would be around this summer when I come through. He tells me that it depends on the dates, because he and his wife bought an RV and are driving out west. Are you serious?! What are the chances! That’s my plan! We nerded out so hard the next few days about length, weight, route, cars, plans, family, life, etc. It’s refreshing having a connection to this lifestyle with a friend that won’t get sick of hearing you talk about it. As I narrowed the dates down, Dave confirmed that they will be in town when I come through. Yay! Off to Cleveland I go, but that’s a long drive from Asheville, so I plan to stop over in Fayettville, West Virginia.