Arches National Park

We only stopped for one night in Moab/Arches. It was a great place for a layover between Breckenridge, CO and Bryce, UT. We arrived early enough to spend a few hours in Arches National Park. For me, this was more than enough as my eyes become visually over stimulated. Spend an extra day or two here if you want to explore more.

Arches is
located in Eastern Utah(adjacent to the Colorado River and 4 miles north
of Moab, Utah). Wind, water and underground salt beds have created the
most incredible monuments. Definitely a must see. After you
see it you will be left saying to yourself " What did I just see?" 

Cost
to get into the park is $10 per car but with a National Park Disabled access pass, the fee is
waived. You can view much of the park from your vehicle. A few scenic locations have wheelchair accessible trails to view even more spectacular sights. There is so much to look
at and the road is constantly turning, so if you're prone to motion
sickness be prepared. There are several designated stops along the way
to take beautiful pictures. Other activities in the park include hiking, biking,
backpacking and climbing. My recommendation is visiting in the spring
or fall because summer temperatures can become quite brutal.



I
do not have an RV park to recommend. The place we stayed at is
going out of business. There were a few other RV Parks in the area to choose from.



 















Another
fun thing to do in this area is shopping and eating. The city of Moab,
Utah is flat with tons of shops, restaurants and bars to choose from. We
ate at, La Hacienda. It was really good!

Breckenridge, Colorado

Breckenridge
is located in the state of Colorado with an elevation of 9600 feet. The
population is about 4500, but they are mainly part-timers with
vacation homes. Breckenridge is mostly known for snow skiing. However
it's pretty popular for outdoor summer activities… Mountain biking,
hiking, fishing, etc. Being in a wheelchair I wasn't sure what I would
find, but I knew my husband would have a blast.

               We stayed at:

      The Tiger Run Rv Resort

             85 Revette Drive

      Breckenridge, CO 80424

              970-453-9690





 

Amenities include;

Full RV hook ups

Extra large sites

Chalets (cute log cabins)

Wi-Fi (that actually worked)

Indoor pool and spa

Tennis court

Volleyball and basketball

Game room

Kid and dog friendly

Laundry and showers

Etc.…







This
place is beautiful. Well-maintained and beautifully landscaped. Each
spot seems very private. Some of the RV sites are up to 60ft. deep and
20ft. wide. All of the sites are privately owned and at times owner
occupied  All have picnic tables and some have much more.  ** they do
not allow truck trailers, pup pup trailers or anything under 20ft. in
length or more than 20 years old. If you want to give the RV a rest, the
cabins are a wonderful alternative to a hotel. The cabins come stocked
with all of the basic necessities and room for four adults. The only problem I
have with this RV resort is that I am now forever spoiled.



**
If you rely on GPS make sure you look at the route it wants to take you
on. Ours had us get off the freeway and drive up and over a steep
mountain road (above the tree line). Only to find out, that if we stayed
on the freeway until the next exit we would be right at the entrance of
our destination..



Breckenridge has a lot of outdoor activities.
In the winter of course there is skiing. The rest of the year is for
bicycles, hiking and fishing. There is a paved trail that leads all the
way to Vail, Colorado. A motorized wheelchair or scooter would have no
problem on the trail. This is just a beautiful place to be outside.

The
actual town of Breckenridge is NOT wheelchair friendly, at all. The
streets and sidewalks are in rough condition. The curbs are high and
most of the parking is not close by. We look for a restaurant, but
everything way found was up a flight of stairs. In all fairness, this
is a high mountain ski destination. We were also visiting during
Oktoberfest. Because I didn't want to completely miss out on the
celebration, I had a beer and bought a beer stein.







Close
by is the town of Frisco. Frisco is extremely wheelchair friendly. The
streets and sidewalks are mostly flat. Shops and restaurants are easy to
get into. If you like pizza you're in luck… It's everywhere. We ate at
Kemosabe Sushi. It was delicious!

One scary night in Kansas

We
were driving from Nashville, Tennessee to Colorado. Due to a heat wave across the South we decided to take
the most direct route and cut straight through Kansas on I70. After we
crossed into Kansas my husband asked if I knew anything about the state.
Jokingly I said, "No, except I've seen The Wizard of Oz". I70 from the Turnpike to Topeka would be our first ever toll road. Who knew that this day would
be our first for a whole lot of things.



As we drove on the wind
started to pick up. Drizzle began to fall in the sky got darker. We saw
the most spectacular lightning display in the distance, across the horizon. Our only
concern was trying to capture the perfect photograph. The rain and the wind got
very intense, and the sky went dark. At the end of the toll road there
was a note on the toll booth that read, " No Toll. Find Shelter". We explained to
the kid battening down the hatches of the toll booth that we were from California and
understood earthquakes, but had no clue what to do in a tornado. He gave
us a quick tutorial, and said we would have no problem because the
tornado was behind us. Wow... was he wrong. All of the weather
conditions became worse. We could not see where to go.  Driving speed
was now down to about 20 mph. It seem like we were the only ones left on
the road. There were very few buildings and nothing but open space. Not
even an overpass. Our radio and the cell phones were going crazy.
"Tornado Danger – Get Low! Flooding Danger – Get High"!!!



Suddenly,
we saw light off in the distance. My husband said, "That is where we
are going". It was a small truck stop filled with more trucks then I have
ever seen. The trucker that we pull behind said something that I will
never forget and actually made me cry, "You are safe now, my truck is
not moving until the morning". Eventually we were packed in like
sardines, and I never slept better.



The morning was quite
surreal. The sun came up and birds were singing. We saw the trees that
actually blew up from the lightning strikes. We saw the freeway signs
that were twisted like pretzels. There was a semi truck that was mangled
in the ditch. And then there was someone on an overpass
waving and American flag, because oddly enough it was the anniversary of
9/11

Nashville, Tennessee pt.2

 

Nashville was a convenient place to stop and have a little fun on our way back across the country. We stayed at the Nashville KOA.

2626 Music Valley Dr.
Nashville, Tennessee
(615) 889-0286

This
RV park is really nice! On our first trip to Nashville we stayed here,
and had no reason to try anything else. They have tons of amenities...
Full hookups
Wide level spots
Patio furniture w/ fire pit
Pool, Jacuzzi and sauna
Playground for the kids
etc...

There
is a shuttle available that will take you into downtown Nashville.
However, the shuttle is not wheelchair accessible and does not have a
lift. On my first trip to this RV park my big complaint was that I
couldn't find the trashcan. This trip I figured out how it works... Each
morning your bagged trash gets picked up from your site (how great is
that).

Downtown Nashville is NOT wheelchair friendly. The city is
built on sleep hills and the sidewalks are in poor condition. I did
find that C Street is definitely manageable. It's mostly flat with
restaurants, bars and plenty of shopping. This is the place to go.



The
Country Music Hall of Fame should not be missed and is definitely
doable in a wheelchair.… As long as you get dropped off in the front of
the building. The best parking for this is at a close by church
parking lot. It will cost you about $7 for the day. In different areas
throughout the city there is underground parking around $15.

Close
to the Nashville KOA is the Grand Ole Opry. I wanted to visit The Opry
but it was very expensive, so I chose to go downtown instead. In
hindsight I wish that I had spent the money, because downtown was
extremely difficult... Maybe next time.

Ranger

In loving memory of Ranger. 

1-2000 to 7-2016

I
feel blessed to have had Ranger in my life at for 15 of his 16 years.
He was a smart, loving and kind Labrador retriever. He had a huge
personality and could always make me smile. He was sweet but definitely
the alpha dog in the house. We adopted him from Pet Orphans in Van Nuys,
California. They found him at a local animal shelter. One of my
favorite memories of him will always be… During our adoption home check I
showed them our dog doors and the dog-run where he would go potty. I
was told "that dog will never do that". I said , "give him 10 minutes ". I
was wrong, it only took him 5 minutes. I really can't take any credit
for that. Ranger was scary-smart.

He was a known escape artist
who love to explore. If we weren't careful, when a door would open he
would wander out. Luckily he loved people and people loved him.
Neighbors would escort him back home and strangers would call us after
reading his tags. His wandering spirit never stopped.



After we
started traveling in the motorhome, Ranger could not have been happier. He
got to travel and explore with his family. He got to visit many state
and national parks. He left his mark in countless forests, lakes and
trails. Truck stops and rest stops were equally fun. He traveled in and
out and through so many different states. He clocked in an estimated
20,000 miles.  Definitely, a life well lived!







I will forever miss my love puppy.

Rest in peace, Ranger. 

Brevard, North Carolina

While staying in
Asheville, we stumbled across another treasure. From that point on we
found ourselves making daily trips. Brevard is located approximately 20
miles south of Asheville,  Even though the population is under 8000,
with the exception of downtown, everything is pretty spread
out. I recommend a good road map and an idea of what you want to see each
day. To say this city is beautiful would definitely be an
understatement. Brevard has gorgeous green mountains, forests, lakes and
waterfalls. In fact, Brevard is known as The Land Of Waterfalls.





  

The
DuPont Forest is located here. To be precise, Dupont is southeast of
Brevard, between Hendersonville and Brevard. Officially, it is The
Dupont State Recreational Forest. This is where scenes from the movies,
The Last of the Mohicans and The Hunger Games were filmed.


DuPont
is loved for its miles of hiking trails, mountain biking, horseback
riding, and swimming etc. If your a wheelchair user (like I am) there is no
reason to feel left out. When you present your Access Pass to the ranger
in the main office, you will be allowed to drive through the park. Triple
Falls, High Falls and The Bridge are set up for wheelchairs. They all
have parking, a picnic areas and wheelchair accessible Andy Gumps. Be
warned… I could see everything and should've been perfectly happy, but I
thought I could get a closer look. My front wheel got stuck in a rut and
I took a tumble out of my chair. A lot of people came running to give
me a hand. No harm no foul… Except for my ego nothing was hurt. After my
husband finished giggling, he told me that on the previous day both he
and two of his friend fell off their bikes in the same area. I became a proud member of the "I
wiped out here club".





















  















Also
adjacent to Brevard is The Pisgah Forest. I think this is one of the
most spectacular places on the planet. Every moment took my breath away.
I literally felt like I was living inside a beautiful oil painting. The
lush forest is full of high peaks and cascading waterfalls. Most of the
sites have areas to pull your car over and take pictures. Also, pack a
lunch because there are picnic tables everywhere.

 

On Highway 276, as you enter The Pisgah National Forest you will find Dolly's Dairy Bar. This is a MUST STOP for great ice cream. 





A little further up 276 is the Ranger Station and Visitor Center. Continue up 276 and you will see Looking Glass Falls, Sliding Rock Falls and a Vanderbilt hunting cabin. 

You can see Looking Glass Falls from the road. There is an accessible overlook for a better view. Stairs go down to the bottom of the falls but they are not very accessible.

Sliding Rock is a fun activity spot. For just $1 per day you can
actually slide down and play in the waterfall. This is not an accessible
activity, but the viewpoint is.

 







One of Vanderbilt's hunting cabins still stands.















Topping 276 is The Blue Ridge Parkway with several accessible overlooks.

Downtown
Brevard is relatively flat and touristy. There are many fun little shops, restaraunts and a retro movie theatre. While you
are there I recommend eating and Millberry's café.







 





The co-ed movie
theater is a retro experience with first run movies for only $7 during
the day and $8 at night.
The popcorn is pretty great, also!



 









*
Sidenote… Another reason that I love this place could be because my
favorite holiday is Halloween, and Brevard is the County Seat  of Transylvania county.

Asheville North Carolina

This
was our second trip to this area. We loved it so much the first time we
started considering a permanent move. We wanted to see Asheville a
little more normal day-to-day and less as a tourist. We also wanted to see how the August heat would effect my MS symptoms. I believe we
accomplished our mission and did a lot of fun stuff too.



We stayed at;

Asheville's Bear Creek RV Park & Campground

81 S. Bear Creek Rd.

Asheville, NC 28806

828-253-0798

www.ashevillebearcreek.com

Amenities:

Full hookups

Tent area

Heated swimming pool – seasonal

Bathrooms

Laundry

Playground

Cable TV

Wi-Fi

I
love this RV park! The people are incredibly friendly and helpful.
Everything is well-maintained and clean. The Wi-Fi is hit and miss
(depending on the time of day). Some of the sites are satellite
friendly, but this is a mountain location with a lot of trees. The lower
level is definitely wheelchair friendly, however the rest of the sites are on a hill. The higher you go the better the views. Providing you have a car the location is perfect. Easy
freeway access no matter what direction you're headed to. The freeways encircle Asheville and are easy to navigate. But, some of the on and off ramps are confusing.



We had
to check out the farmers market. The NC Farmers Market is close to the
RV park but you will still need your car. This market was enormous. It's
not a walk-through it's literally a drive-through. They had tons of
fruit, veggies and plants… However, I was surprised that they had
nothing organic.



An indoor shopping mall is only a couple of miles from the RV park. It has enough stores to get your retail fix
and lots of parking.



About 6-miles away is the North Carolina Arboretum.

It's located next to the Blue Ridge Pkwy at 100 Frederick Law Olmsted Way.

The
price is per car not per person. There is plenty of handicap parking. I recommend using a power
wheelchair or scooter. The Arboretum has 65 acres of gardens. 10 acres of hiking
and biking trails. Lots of events for kids. Most of it is accessible but there are a couple of spots that may be difficult for any type of wheelchair. They have a gift shop and a cafe, but I recommend packing a lunch.

One of my favorite things is to drive the Blue Ridge Parkway. No matter what time of year it's gorgeous! You can read about the Parkway to the North in my first Asheville post. And you will be able to read about the Parkway to the South in my upcoming Brevard post.







The Folk Art Center

382 Blue Ridge Parkway

Asheville, North Carolina



Since
the 1930s the folk art center has been the gathering spot for mountain
craftsmanship with shopping and exhibits. The parking and facility are very accessible. However, it is a steep ramp up to the
front door and a ramp to the second floor.





I never end a blog post without food recommendations;

Asheville Pizza & Brewing Company

675 Marion Ave.

Asheville, NC 28801



This
could be the perfect place. Pizza, beer and movies. It's a fun place
for the whole family and the pizza is really good. My only negative was
that we were sitting outside with our dog and everybody was smoking.









All Souls Pizza

175 Clingman Ave

Asheville, NC 28801

 

Gourmet pizza at its best!

Bandidos Latin Kitchen

697 Haywood Rd.

Asheville, NC 28806

It's an awful location, But the food is great and the margaritas are amazing!!