COAST MAGAZINE FALL 2022
TUCSON DELIGHTS Savannah:
Shaded Squares and Southern Charm by Day, Spooky Ghost Stories by Night
America’s Finest Fall Festivals
FALL DESTINATIONS
Harmony Lakeside RV Park and Deluxe Cabins Silver Creek, Washington
Pride RV Resort and Family Campground Waynesville, North Carolina
Rifle River Resort Sterling, Michigan
CONTENTS
TRAVEL 11 TUCSON DELIGHTS
CHAIRMAN OF CAMPING WORLD HOLDINGS Marcus Lemonis CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER Tamara Ward PRESIDENT OF GOOD SAM MEDIA AND EVENTS Vilma Fraguada BUSINESS MANAGERS Christine Distl & Christina Din MARKETING COORDINATOR MaryEllen Foster COAST TO COAST PRESIDENT Bruce Hoster CCRPresident@coastresorts.com MARKETING DIRECTOR Kristin Moser EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Dee Whited ART DIRECTOR Aubry Meyer COAST MEMBER SERVICES 64 Inverness Drive East Englewood, Colorado 80112 800-368-5721 info@coastresorts.com COAST TO COAST WEBSITE CoastResorts.com
Affectionately known as “The Old Pueblo” Story by Emily Fagan Photos by Emily & Mark Fagan
16 SAVANNAH: SHADED SQUARES BY DAY, SPOOKY GHOST STORIES BY NIGHT Stories and Photos by Richard Varr 21 AMERICA’S FINEST FALL FESTIVALS Mark your calendars By Dave Houser 29 LION COUNTRY SAFARI By Paula Loehr
COAST FACEBOOK PAGE Facebook.com/CoastResorts
VOLUME 41, NUMBER 4. Coast to Coast (ISSN 1093-3581) is published quarterly for $14 per year as part of annual membership fees, by Coast to Coast Resorts, 64 Inverness Drive E., Englewood, Colorado 80112. Coast to Coast Resorts assumes no responsibility for unsolicited manu scripts or artwork. The contents of this publication may not be reproduced by any method without prior written consent of the publisher. ©2022 Camp Coast to Coast, LLC. Coast wing logo is a registered trademark of Camp Coast to Coast, LLC. The GOOD SAM ICON, and Dream. Plan. Go. are registered trademarks of Good Sam Enterprises, LLC and used with permission. Unauthorized use of Coast’s or Good Sam’s trademarks is expressly prohibited. All rights reserved. PRINTED IN THE USA. COVER PHOTO BY EMILY & MARK FAGAN CTC62338 - 0822
DEPARTMENTS 5 RESORT UPDATES 33 RV REVIEW
RESORT PROFILES 8 RIFLE RIVER RESORT Sterling, Michigan 9 HARMONY LAKESIDE RV PARK AND DELUXE CABINS Silver Creek, Washington 10 PRIDE RV RESORT AND FAMILY CAMPGROUND Waynesville, North Carolina
Crystal Lake RV Park
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RESORT UPDATES The 2022 Coast to Coast Resort Directory is packed with everything you need to navigate the network of Coast to Coast Resorts and Coast Good Neighbor Parks. To keep members up-to-date, each issue of Coast magazine includes any updates that have occurred since the last issue.
DELUXE RESORT TERMINATIONS
GOOD NEIGHBOR PARK TERMINATIONS Alabama Parnell Creek RV Park, Woodville (page 160) California Heritage RV Park, Corning (page 163) Waiiaka RV Park, Yreka (page 165) Mississippi Cajun RV Park, Biloxi (page 171) Montana Billings Village RV Park, Billings (page 172) Southside RV Park, Dillion (page 173) Nebraska I-80 Lakeside Campground, North Platte (page 174) Texas Dinosaur Valley RV Park, Glen Rose (page 183) Washington Ocean Park Resort, Ocean Park (page 189) British Columbia, Canada Northern Lights RV Park, Dawson Creek (page 192)
New York Champs RV Park, Whitehall (page 122) Montana Conestoga Campground, White Sulphur Springs (page 117) Utah Pleasant Creek RV Park, Mt. Pleasant (page 142)
CLASSIC RESORT TERMINATIONS
Texas Hillcrest RV Park, Punkin (page 138)
PREMIER RESORT TERMINATIONS
Utah Antelope Valley RV Park, Delta (page 141)
Campbell Cove RV Resort
RESORT UPDATES
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NEW GOOD NEIGHBOR PARKS
ARIZONA Campbell Cove RV Resort Year round 1523 Industrial Blvd, Lake Havasu City, 86403 Phone: (928) 854-7200 Email: rvpi@campbellcovervresort.com Website: RV notations: 2023 Coast rate $44.40 - $50.40. Rate includes 2 adults, full hook-ups. Additional charges: Tax 7.85%. ILLINOIS Camp Lakewood Campground Year round 1217 W Rickelman Ave, Effingham, 62401 Phone: (217) 342-6233 Email: camp@camplakewoodcampground.com Website: www.camplakewoodcampground.com RV notations: 2023 Coast discount 10%. Rate includes 2 adults and full hook-ups. Additional charges: Add’l adult $5. Crystal Lake RV Park Website: www.crystallakerecreation.com RV notations: 2023 Coast discount 15%. Rate includes 2 adults and full hook-ups. Additional charges: Add’l Adult $8, add’l child $8, add’l vehicle $5. TEXAS Colorado Landing RV Park Year round 64 East Bluffview, LaGrange, 78945 Phone: (979) 968-9465 Rate includes 2 adults per site, full hook-ups. Additional charges: Add’l adult $2, tax 8.25%. Big Oak RV Resort Year round 6300 US Hwy 377, Tolar, 76476 Phone: (817) 682-4545 Email: bigoaksrvresort1@gmail.com Website: www.bigoakrvresorttx.com RV notations: 2023 Coast rate $42.50. Rate includes 2 adults and full hook-ups. Additional charges: Tax 8.25%. Year round / Limited facilities in winter 600 East 17th Street, Rock Falls, 61071 Phone: (815) 499-0520 Email: crystallake11@comcast.net Email: coloradolanding@yahoo.com Website: www.coloradolanding.com RV notations: 2023 Coast discount 15%.
WASHINGTON Elma RV Park Year round 4730 US Hwy 12, Elma, 98541 Phone: (360) 482-4053 Email: elma1@surepost.net Website: www.elmarvpark.com
RV notations: 2023 Coast discount 15% Sunday to Thursday available Sep 15-Apr 15. Rate includes 2 adults and full hook-ups. Additional charges: Add’l adult $2, add’l child $2, dump fee $5, tax 9.5%. Gorge Base Camp RV Park Year round 65271 Hwy 14, White Salmon, 98672 Phone: (509) 493-1111 Email: management@gorgebasecamp.com Website: www.gorgebasecamp.com RV notations: 2023 Coast discount 15% Sunday to Thursday, 2-night minimum, available Oct 1-Mar 31. Additional charges: Add’l adult $5, add’l child $2, pets $2, add’l vehicle $10, tax 7.5%.
Gorge Base Camp RV Park
RESORT UPDATES
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“ IF YOU’RE NOT HAPPY, I’M NOT HAPPY. ” "If you're happy, I'm happy."
Need anything? I’m here to help. CALL MY OFFICE 866.232.8790 or Email me at MarcusVIP@goodsam.com I'm here to help. Call my office 866-232-8790 or email me at MarcusVIP@goodsam.com
Marcus Lemonis Chairman and CEO
Marcus Lemonis Chairman and CEO Camping World and Good Sam
Camping World and Good Sam
CTC60136 - 0221
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RESORT TYPE: Premier LOCATION: Sterling, Michigan SEASON: May – October WEBSITE: www.outdooradventuresinc.com/ rifle-river
RIFLE RIVER RESORT A full-service resort in a secluded setting
Outdoor Adventures’ Rifle River Resort Campground in Sterling offers a beautiful, quiet, and secluded setting in the Saginaw lowlands of eastern Michigan. Come and enjoy this full- service resort offering tons of conveniences for the entire family, while maintaining the rustic appeal of the great outdoors. RVing and camping in this area of Michigan is a glorious experience, but camping next to a river doubles the fun. The Rifle River was once a logging river but is now primarily used for recreation. It’s a popular river for tubing and canoeing with no portages or dams with a depth of 18 inches to 5 feet. Add to your enjoyment by planning a river trip. Be it in a canoe or a tube, the staff can help you with your adventure. Stop by the store and reserve a time. The river and resort pond provide opportunities to fish.
At the end of a long day on the river, the outdoor heated pool and hot tub provide great options for unwinding. Kick back and relax and get ready for the next day’s adventure. There’s also a private pond with a beach. Show off your volleyball or horseshoe skills; grab some friends or the person next to you and start a game. Stop by the pavilion for fun with the activities staff, a pickup game of basketball or a game of washers. Have fun at the shuffleboard court. Watch the activities schedule to see when the DJ will be there or when there is an auction scheduled. There are so many planned activities. If sitting back and watching those around you is more your style, grab a chair and a spot by the river. It’s always fun to talk to those on the river while you kick back and enjoy the beautiful day. If you travel without your rig, rent one of the rental units so you don’t miss any of the action.
RESORT PROFILES
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RESORT TYPE: Deluxe LOCATION: Silver Creek, Washington SEASON: Year-round WEBSITE: www.rvinnstyleresorts.com/ washington/harmony-lakeside-rv-park/
HARMONY LAKESIDE RV PARK AND DELUXE CABINS Full-service resort in Washington
Imagine an upscale RV resort built for an unforgettable fun-filled family experience. Harmony Lakeside RV Park and Deluxe Cabins is outdoor camping at its best, with fishing boat rentals, a dog run, friendly people, full service, and a recreational area for campers and travelers who want plenty to do. Discover this retreat, located on Mayfield Lake in Southwest Washington, where you can enjoy kayaking, fishing, water skiing or jet skiing, volleyball, a nice game of chess or bocce ball, maybe cooking on the fire pit, or roasting marshmallows over an open fire. Bring your boat or rent a party boat, fishing boat, canoe, kayak, or paddleboard and tour the lake. These vessels are available by reservation or on a first- come-first-served basis. Spend an afternoon fishing for dinner or sunbathe on the shore. Tour Mayfield Lake with its primitive beauty. Harmony Lakeside RV Park is close to Mount St. Helens and Mount Rainier and centrally located between Seattle and Portland off Interstate
5 on Mayfield Lake (20 miles east of Interstate 5). Driving time will vary from 1 1/2 hours from Portland to 2 1/4 hours from Seattle. The resort is 2 hours from Yakima for travelers who want to take a break on the way to or from the beach. Traveling with children, pets, or by yourself, “this is the park”. Invite your non-RV friends to take pleasure in more than 20 rental cabins, some with glamorous amenities, kitchens, linens, silverware, bathrooms w/showers, and two bedrooms. The amenities onsite are numerous. These include cable TV, Wi-Fi, and shaded or open sites including pull throughs. Enjoy the quiet lake views and clean facilities and beautifully groomed grounds. There’s even a dog run for your furry friends. Mayfield Lake is approximately 13 miles long and 1/2 mile wide. It offers all water sports and has great trout fishing along with tiger musky and silver salmon.
RESORT PROFILES
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RESORT TYPE: Classic LOCATION: Waynesville, North Carolina SEASON: Year-round WEBSITE: pridervresort.com
PRIDE RV RESORT AND FAMILY CAMPGROUND Share in the majesty of the Great Smoky Mountains
High in the Great Smoky Mountains lies a well- kept secret—a vacation destination where each sunrise and sunset dazzles. Lush green grass grows, crystal clear creek water flows, and nature still runs wild. It’s Maggie Valley, North Carolina, nestled up to the border of Tennessee and near to Cherokee, Gatlinburg, and Pigeon Forge. You’re invited to share in the majesty of the Smokies from a vantage point like no other in the heart of Maggie Valley at Pride RV Resort and Family Campground. The comforts of home are all there at Pride Resort. Come get cool in the pool or stick your feet in the creek. Play in the shade on the pro shuffleboard court or sit in the shade on the creek banks. No RV? No problem. Rent park models or cozy log cabins or RV-in. Bring your RV and enjoy plentiful and pleasant RV sites. While at the park take a stroll on a nature trail alongside pristine Jonathan Creek. Outside the park and close by you’ll find Asheville, Cherokee, Gatlinburg,
Pigeon Forge, and many more beautiful towns full of attractions both natural and man-made. There’s great dining, superb sunsets, and all of God’s creatures. Amenities include a swimming pool, hot tub, fire pits, laundry, clubhouse with games and events, and bathhouse with showers. The onsite store serves lunch, ice cream, drinks, and breakfast Friday to Sunday mornings. Ice and firewood are available, as well as tube rentals for tubing down the creek. Daily activities include putt- putt golf, horseshoes, corn hole, holy board, a playground area, two catch-and-release ponds, and adult bingo three nights a week. RVing in the Great Smoky Mountains just doesn’t get any better than this. The spectacular natural and man-made offerings that span North Carolina into Tennessee can be charted on any handy map—or the latest GPS device— and you’ll find Pride Resort right in the center of it all. In fact, Maggie Valley is nature’s resting spot where you can take a step back and enjoy the natural surroundings.
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Tucson Delights Affectionately known as “The Old Pueblo” Story by Emily Fagan Photos by Emily & Mark Fagan The American Southwest is filled with vast cactus-studded deserts, high elevation ponderosa pine forests, and beautiful yet unexpected rivers and lakes that wind through the arid land. However, it is the many kinds of human history embedded into this natural history that flushes out its unique character. In southern Arizona, the city of Tucson offers visitors not only spectacular and unusual scenery but a millennium of human history with buildings and artwork dating back to the earliest indigenous inhabitants, to the Spanish missionary period, and to American settlement of the region. Affectionately known as “The Old Pueblo,” this city is not to be missed. Mission San Xavier del Bac One of our favorites places in the Tucson area is the historic Mission San Xavier del Bac located a few miles south of Tucson. Founded in 1692 by Jesuit Father Eusebio Francisco Kino, the original church was destroyed in an attack by the Apaches. The current church was erected by Franciscan fathers between 1783 and 1797 and its two stately steeples rise up from the desert floor in pure elegance, bright white against a vivid blue sky. Built in the classic Spanish Missionary style from clay brick, stone, and lime mortar, it is adorned with beautiful arches and balconies. One of the towers is fully intact with a dome top supporting an arched peak that houses a lantern inside, while the other tower lost its dome to a lightning strike in 1939. That wasn’t the only natural disaster to wound this lovely church; an earthquake damaged the structure in 1887 as well. Despite these natural disasters, this National Historic Landmark has been preserved and beloved through the ages by the local Papago people who now call themselves the Tohono O’Odham, meaning “Desert People.” A group of community leaders has overseen renovation and reconstruction work since 1999, employing
The beautiful San Xavier del Bac Mission
A lion perches outside San Xavier del Bac Mission
world-renowned experts to refresh the stunning frescoes inside. Church services are still held and the church community is very active. As simple yet grand as the exterior appears, we were blown away by the detail, color, and intricacy of the painted and sculpted decorations on the inside. As the layers of history and artwork have been peeled back during the renovations, it was discovered that the walls were once covered with small blue dots. It is theorized that these dots were actually the “fingerpainted” thumb prints of the people who originally erected the church, and they have been preserved where possible. Seeing hundreds of thumbprints brought the history of the church alive as we pondered who those people were and what their lives in this desert land were like. San Xavier del Bac is considered the oldest and most well-preserved of Arizona’s historic buildings, and we felt like we’d been transported to another time as we wandered about the church, the outer courtyard, and up on the hill where two sculpted lions stand watch.
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While the Mission offers a unique historic and cultural experience, nearby Saguaro National Park is the perfect place to become immersed in nature. Dotted with towering saguaro cacti, some of which are as much as 175 years old, this enormous stretch of lush Sonoran Desert is teeming with unusual flora and fauna. Although it’s fun to hike in the park, and keep a sharp eye out for animals, one of the best places to see them is at the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum where many species of creatures native to the area are on display. They are easiest to spot at opening time, right after they’ve been fed breakfast, because they are out and about, not sleeping in their hiding places. We were among the first people to enter the museum, and we were treated to closeup encounters with a big horn sheep, wolf, fox, javelina, mountain lion, bobcat, ocelot, thick billed parrot, tropical fish, and other unusual animals native to the expansive Sonoran Desert which spans the states of Arizona and Sonora, Mexico. We loved getting close to the animals in the natural habitat that fills their enclosures, and were especially smitten by a mountain lion who Arizona Sonora Desert Museum
kept approaching the glass to have a better look at a little girl. But it was the Raptor Free Flight event that really sent our spirits soaring. Held daily, we found ourselves in a crowd of people staring up at the sky as the presenter told us which kinds of birds would be flying by. With each species, an assistant would go into the aviary and ask the birds if any of them wanted to fly out and get a treat while the presenter held a handful of raw quail meat on the far side of the crowd. Since they leave it up to the birds to decide who will fly over to get a treat, there’s no knowing exactly which birds you will see. The first bird that chose to come out to us was a raven who flew right to the presenter’s gloved hand for a snack. A great horned owl came after, and his feathers were truly noiseless as he flew down to the presenter’s hand, grabbed the meat, and flew off to a branch to enjoy his meal. The last bird to swoop by was a peregrine falcon. It was flying totally free without the leather hood on its head that falconer’s typically use. The falcon was an acrobat in the air, and we were awe-struck watching it zooming around and diving from great heights.
The raptor free flight at the Arizona Sonora Desert Musuem
Children delight in the animals on display at the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum
In spring enjoy the colorful blossoms of various cacti
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Saguaro National Park Petroglyphs Another special place in Saguaro National Park is the collection of petroglyphs that were pecked out on boulders by ancient people centuries ago. We drove the graded dirt road, Bajada Scenic Drive, to the Signal Hill trailhead, passing through stunning desert scenery on the way. The Signal Hill hike is a short path that goes to the decorated boulders. The Ancients somehow managed to chisel away the dark surface of the rocks to reveal a lighter shade underneath, and their designs on these rocks include circles with spokes that look like wheels, and animals with swept back horns that look like African impalas but are officially thought to be big horn sheep. One very large spiraling circle adorns the flat face of a huge boulder, and another rock is decorated with a circle that has rays coming out of it. That image just had to be the sun. It is drawn exactly the same way a modern child would draw the sun.
There are a few designs of four-legged creatures with long curving tails that might be lizards, and there are other designs that look like doodles. We will never know exactly what this “rock art” depicts or why it was created, but it is fascinating to look out at a landscape that is completely devoid of the human touch save for a collection of boulders where ancient people created patterns in the rock long before Europeans arrived.
A spiral Signal Hill Petroglyph at Saguaro National Park
Adobe home in Tucson’s Historic District
Signal Hill Petroglyphs at Saguaro National Park
Tucson’s Historic District Tucson is a lively and an artsy town, and the heart of its vibrant flair can be found in the historic neighborhoods where old adobe homes line the streets. Before air conditioning was invented, people living in the Sonoran Desert had to find ways to stay cool. Adobe is a thick mud that is formed into bricks, and the adobe walls of these homes are 8 inches thick or more. This keeps the house relatively cool when the summer sun starts to bake the area at 110 degrees or more every day. We loved the brightly colored doorways of these homes, and their deeply recessed doors and windows, and we spent several pleasant hours walking the streets.
Strolling these scenic neighborhoods on your own during the daytime is fun, but joining dozens of locals to walk or jog these streets in the early evening followed by a drink and/or dinner at a bistro is even better. “Meet Me at Maynards” is the name of a weekly Monday night event that takes place all year, rain or shine. At day’s end an enthusiastic crowd gathers at Hotel Congress, grabs a route map, and ventures out into the streets for a walk or a run. It is a totally self-paced event, and distances range from two to five miles while speeds range from a leisurely dog-walking stroll to full-on race pace depending on how fit, and how much exercise, each participant wants.
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To our complete surprise, a band was playing when we arrived at Hotel Congress. Spirits were high among the crowd and everyone left on their walk or jog whenever they felt inspired to go. The historic neighborhoods had a different and more intimate aura in the twilight than in the daytime, and lots of people were out enjoying the warm evening air. Along with seeing plenty of historic buildings, we passed clusters of people making music together, strumming guitars and singing by lanterns in the dark. At the end of our walk, back at Hotel Congress, we sat at an outdoor table and enjoyed a locally crafted beer.
Listen to live music at Meet Me at Maynards
Take time to enjoy one of the glorious Arizona sunsets
Mount Lemmon Northeast of Tucson lies towering Mount Lemmon whose peak is 9,171 feet above sea level and nearly 6,800 feet above the city below. One of Arizona’s special Sky Islands—or mountain peaks that thrust up from the desert floor— the temperature is always 30 degrees cooler at the top than down in Tucson because of its immense height. Driving the 26-mile Sky Island Scenic Byway from the base of the mountain to the top, we passed through several Arizona ecosystems, going from the Sonoran Desert at the bottom to ponderosa pine forest at the top. It was if we’d driven from Mexico to Canada, and the landscape became greener and greener as we drove. We were astonished to see cyclists grinding their way up to the top, and we learned that Lance Armstrong used to train for the Tour de France on this mountain.
These wonderful delights are just a few of the many special sights that await travelers in Tucson, and we will definitely be back again.
For more information: San Xavier del Bac: www.sanxaviermission.org Saguaro National Park: www.nps.gov/sagu/index.htm Arizona Sonora Desert Museum: Raptor Free Flights: www.desertmuseum.org/visit/rff_index.php
Tucson Historic District: Meet Me at Maynards: www.beyond-tucson.org
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SAVANNAH: Shaded Squares and Southern Charm by Day, Spooky Ghost Stories by Night Story and Photos by Richard Varr
The shadows of tree limbs snake along the grounds of Chippewa Square as the sun filters through the thick Spanish moss. I’m walking within one of Savannah’s most popular city squares where I can’t help but notice the imposing bronze statue of sword-wielding Gen. James Oglethorpe, the Englishman who founded the city and, in fact, Georgia. However, I’m more interested in finding the bus stop bench where Forrest Gump contemplated life through a box of chocolates. It doesn’t take long to realize that the Tom Hanks character’s bench is not here. The bench was just a prop used during the filming of the American classic of the same name. A quick look in my Savannah guidebook reveals the scene was shot somewhere on the square’s northern edge—vague, but I get the idea. Nonetheless, strolling through Chippewa Square is a great introduction to one of the South’s most charming and historic cities, also noted for its blockbuster movie heritage and seemingly unending ghostly hauntings.
“It’s interesting to note that Savannah was the first planned city in America, laid out in a grid but also around these squares that were working squares,” explains former city tour guide Harriet Meyerhoff. The linear grid pattern of squares surrounded by stately homes and inns—many cornered by landmark columned churches with towering steeples—came about from Gen. Oglethorpe’s initial city design. In 1733, he claimed the area along the Savannah River as the first city of the 13th colony for England’s King George. Oglethorpe’s plan created four initial squares with surrounding blocks which expanded to 24 by 1851, 22 of which—now mostly luscious with greenery—remain today. They make Savannah a uniquely walkable city with another square just a few minutes jaunt from the last, and many with park benches and shade for a rest or a cooling break from summer heat. Many pay tribute to momentous historical events, war heroes, and key figures taking part in the city’s founding and culture. I see a passerby, for example, posing with a statue of Savannah favorite son and songwriter Johnny Mercer in bustling Ellis Square, just opposite the pedestrian street along the City Market. In nearby Johnson Square, a 50-foot marble monument marks the grave of Maj. Gen. Nathanael Greene, a friend of Gen. George Washington and commander of the Southern colonies’ Revolutionary War forces. And just two blocks south in Wright Square, a granite boulder from Georgia’s Stone Mountain marks the grave and honors friendly Yamacraw Indian chief Tomochichi who welcomed Oglethorpe and his settlers to their new riverside colony. My next stop is Reynolds Square, named after Georgia’s first Royal Governor, with a center statue of John Wesley, the founder of Methodism who came to Savannah in 1736. On one corner sits the 1771 Habersham House, a Georgian mansion that’s now one of the city’s most popular restaurants. It soon became known as the “Olde Pink House” when the colors from the façade’s native brick leaked
Chippewa Square with Gen. James Oglethorpe statue
Jones Street is one of the most scenic neighborhoods in Savannah
Savannah City Market teems with activity
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through the plastered walls. Today, diners often find themselves on waiting lists for Southern specialties including shrimp and grits, fried green tomatoes, and cornbread fried oysters. Once a bustling shipping port, Savannah’s riverside today has been transformed into a pedestrian walkway, just steps from River Street’s restored warehouses now filled with ice cream and popcorn eateries, trinket shops, and restaurants. Named after a former city mayor, Rousakis Plaza is where visitors and locals catch a free ferry ride along the river or book a dinner cruise with Savannah Riverboat Cruises’ 1,000-passenger white and red-trimmed Georgia Queen , a traditional-styled, multi- decked paddlewheel riverboat. More of the city’s waterfront history comes alive on a grassy stretch of the riverbank, where the action-like figurine of the Waving Girl statue is based on an actual person. As the story goes, Florence Martus waved at ships approaching and exiting the port, flailing a handkerchief by day and a lantern at night. It’s said she never missed a ship from 1887 to 1931. A short walk south along the eastern edges of the central district, the Pirates’ House Restaurant occupies buildings dating back to 1753 and 1734, the latter the oldest still-standing structure in Georgia. The original blue shutters and doors
were thought to keep away ghosts. It’s where pirates ducked through dank tunnels below the tavern leading to the waterfront, to whisk away drunken patrons who soon found themselves as unwilling crewmembers out at sea. The book Treasure Island mentions the Pirate’s House and is said to have inspired author Robert Louis Stevenson to write it after visiting. Turn any corner and you might recognize some of Savannah’s squares, churches, and homes as settings in great American movie classics. In addition to the Forrest Gump scenes shot here, the 1860’s Italianate-style Mercer Williams House with its burnt red façade and surrounding gate is the centerpiece of both the New York Times best-seller and subsequent 1997 movie entitled Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil . Now a museum, it was once the home of antiques dealer and historic preservationist Jim Williams. My tour of the home includes the front den where, in real life, Williams shot his male prostitute lover. Claiming self defense, he was finally acquitted after four trials. The lavishly decorated home includes some of Williams’ actual antiques and fine arts collections including an 18th-century Gilbert Stuart portrait. Featured on the book cover and at the beginning of the movie is the Bird Girl, a bronze sculpture of a young woman holding two bowls with arms
The Georgia Queen, a multi-decked paddlewheel riverboat, is beautiful at night
Pirates’ House Restaurant is one of the busiest in the city
The Italianate-style Mercer Williams House
Waving Girl statue at night
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Bird Girl statue in the Telfair Academy of Arts and Sciences
Juliette Gordon Lowe statue at her birthplace, the Wayne-Gordon House
extended to her sides. Originally photographed within the 160-acre municipal Bonaventure Cemetery, the 1936 statue now resides in the Telfair Academy, the South’s oldest public art museum with a wide collection within its elegant marble rooms. The sculpture was relocated from the cemetery to protect it from vandalism when the book became extremely popular. A shooting location for the movie, the Bonaventure is where, as part of the story line, the voodoo priestess Minerva performed rituals to justify Williams’ self-defense claim for his pending trials. The Mercer Williams House was also in the 1989 film Glory , used to portray the Boston home of Union Col. Robert Shaw played by Matthew Broderick. Other Glory shooting locations included the grounds of the Georgia State Railroad Museum, and River Street with its 18th- and 19th-century architecture highlighting many of the warehouse-like buildings. A replica of the prop bench used in Forrest Gump sits within the Savannah History Museum, in what was once the expansive historic Central of Georgia Railway Train Shed. With artifacts, uniforms and an actual locomotive, this museum details Savannah’s most dramatic eras including its pivotal roles in the American Revolution, Civil War (when Gen. Sherman spared the city and offered it to President Lincoln as a “Christmas gift”), and the Industrial Revolution. The museum also highlights the founding of the Girl Scouts by Savannah resident Juliette Gordon Lowe.
Several homes have ties to Lowe’s life in Savannah. She was born in the 1823 Federal- style Wayne-Gordon House, also known as the Juliette Gordon Low birthplace, now a museum highlighting her life and career. Inside, original and period furnishings decorate seven rooms. The 1849 Andrew Low house belonged to Juliette’s father-in-law, and eventually her husband. She lived here when founding the Girl Scouts. The adjacent carriage house became the Girl Scouts First Headquarters and today is a museum. Homes with noted Civil War history include the 1841 Greek Revival Old Sorrel Weed House where patrons entertained Gen. Robert E. Lee, and also across the street flanking Madison Square, the 1853 Green-Meldrim House in Gothic Revival architecture, used by Union Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman after sparing Savannah as a Christmas gift to President Lincoln. The 1819 Owens-Thomas House with its restored slave quarters is a museum offering a deeper look into pre-Civil War Savannah. When the homes, museums and shops close for the day, one of the city’s booming industries comes to life with nightly walking and motorized ghost tours. Savannah was named the most haunted city in America by the Institute of Paranormal Psychology in 2003, most likely due to its turbulent history and sudden death from wars and Yellow Fever epidemics, as well as from Indian burial grounds underneath its compact colonial and 19th-century cityscape.
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In fact, in what many say is the country’s most haunted city, it seems everyone has a ghost story or two—children’s sallow faces peering out of windows, the constant clanking of keys unlocking doors and the drone of low-volume piano playing, to name just a few. At the 17Hundred90 Inn and Restaurant, for example, staff tell me about a ghost who was an indentured servant at the inn when it was a boarding house. She fell in love with a sailor and they planned to run away together. He instead left without her and the distraught young woman committed suicide. Her ghost now tugs guests’ bed sheets. And at the Foley House Inn, a B&B facing Chippewa Square, staff report kitchen doors swinging open and closed with no one walking through them, and that a chef there would see a silhouette of a man from the 1800s. Costumed guides lead nightly ghost tours along quiet and dark neighborhood streets, stopping in front of homes with tales of those who were murdered and died there, and their restless spirits left behind. “We have the highest rates of reported poltergeist activities in the nation,” explains the costumed tour guide with 6th Sense World® Historic Ghost & Cemetery Tours who calls himself “The Spirit Formally Known as Prince.” “That means we get the most phone calls for unusual physical activities in the house, for example, furniture moving by itself, things flying through the air, things like that.” Savannah’s summer getaway is just a half- hour drive toward the coast. With the feel of a friendly beach community, Tybee Island has three stretches of ocean beaches offering water sports including swimming, kayaking, parasailing and stand-up paddle boarding. Many visitors book dolphin boat tours that usually encounter tame groups of jumping and playful marine life. Others, meanwhile, take on the challenge of climbing the 178 steps up the restored 1730’s Tybee Island Light Station and Museum with its dramatic views of the coastal so-called Lowcountry. Along the South Channel waterway near Tybee Island sits Fort Pulaski National Monument,
named after Polish Revolutionary War hero Casimir Pulaski. Pockmarked brick walls surrounded by a moat remain after improved Union rifled cannons bombarded and pierced the fort, forcing the Confederate stronghold to surrender in 1862. Farther north up the Atlantic coastline and just beyond the South Carolina border is Hilton Head Island, one of the nation’s foremost beach communities known for its resorts and more than two dozen golf courses. It’s another hour or more drive north to Charleston, so very similar to Savannah with its colonial and Civil War history, antebellum homes, and Southern ambiance. Church spires and multi-tiered steeples tower over the low- rise skyline along streets with swaying palms and mighty live oaks draped in Spanish moss. So-called Rainbow Row is where the most photographed, picture-postcard string of pastel-colored homes sit side by side. It’s where Confederate gunners pummeled Fort Sumter with the opening salvos that started the Civil War. And yes, it’s also purportedly one of the nation’s most haunted cities. Before leaving Savannah, I walk through shaded squares and quiet neighborhoods one last time. “A lot of the old families that date back to the Colonial period are still here,” I recall tour guide Meyerhoff telling me. “There’s a blend of different architectural styles, and it’s all at eye level and not high towers and buildings. There’s a uniqueness and charm.”
For more information: www.VisitSavannah.com
Colonial Park Cemetery, the site of many ghost tours
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America’s Finest Fall Festivals Mark your calendars By Dave G. Houser
Cooling temperatures, changing leaves and ripening fields are signals that autumn has arrived— and that means fall festival season is just around the corner. As farmers bring their crops to market, it’s a great time to pile into the car or RV and follow the sights, sounds and smells to one or more of the hundreds of celebratory fall festivals across the country. Read on for Coast to Coast’s selection of 11 of America’s most entertaining, colorful and appetizing fall fests of the 2022 season.
Leavenworth Oktoberfest Leavenworth WA. Trailing of the Sheep Festival Ketchum, ID.
Warrens Cranberry Festival Warrens, WI.
Harvest-on -the-Harbor Portland, ME.
Note: While the Covid virus continues to menace much of the country, these festivals are largely staged outdoors and to our knowledge none require face coverings. Wisdom, however, suggests having masks on hand for visits to indoor venues.
New York City Wine & Food Festival New York, NY.
National Apple Harvest Festival Arendtsville, PA.
Elk Fest Estes Park, CO.
Oktoberfest Zinzinnati Cincinnati, OH.
Sonoma County Harvest Fair Santa Rosa, CA.
UNITED STATES
Harvest Festival, at Rancho de las Golondrinas Santa Fe NM.
North Carolina Pecan Harvest Festival Whiteville NC.
Autumn at the Arboretum Dallas, TX.
International Balloon Fiesta Albuquerque, NM.
International Rice Festival Crowley, LA.
Pensacola Seafood Festival Pensacola, FL.
0 100 200
Miles
Map credit William Tipton
Harvest on the Harbor Portland, Maine
The first week of November is a perfect time to visit Maine, as the coastal enclave of Portland rolls out its annual fall celebration of the state’s finest locally sourced foods, beers, wines, and spirits. Portland has enjoyed quite a renaissance in recent years and its spiffed up downtown and the rockbound harbor district have attracted a host of top restaurants dedicated to perfecting the culinary art of local, safely-harvested seafood. Think LOBSTER. Harvest on the Harbor shines the spotlight on the city’s dining scene with a variety of competitions and tastings featuring local delights from more than 150 chefs, breweries, wineries and distilleries.
For more information: www.harvestontheharbor.com 207-450-9060
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National Apple Harvest Festival Arendtsville, Pennsylvania Staged annually during the first two weeks in October, this event has been drawing huge crowds to Arendtsville—in the heart of southwest Pennsylvania’s apple-growing region—for more than 50 years. It’s a celebration that’s as American as, you guessed it, apple pie. Festival-goers can join in on apple-picking, apple-bobbing, and pie-eating contests, sip fresh-pressed apple cider, and savor applesauce homemade from scratch. Even if you don’t care for apples, you can watch arts and crafts demonstrations, steam engine displays, and live music emanating from numerous stages scattered around the 24-acre South Mountain Fairgrounds site.
For more information: www.appleharvest.com 717-677-9143
New York City Wine & Food Festival New York, New York Here’s the quintessential Big Apple celebration of fall, bringing together, for the 15th year, top celebrity chefs and vintners for a four-day extravaganza (October 13-16) dedicated to all things eating and drinking. Guests can munch and mingle with their favorite Food Network chefs typically including the likes of Rachael Ray, Bobby Flay, Michael Symon, Mashahara Morimoto, Geoffrey Zakarian, and Michael Mina. More than 80 events are staged throughout the city, with signature events at Hudson River Park’s Piers 76 and 86. Featuring walk-around tastings, late-night bashes, and elegant sit-down dinners, the 2022 event is packed with parties and events for every taste.
For more information: www.nycwff.org 646-213-5401
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Oktoberfest Zinzinnati Cincinnati, Ohio
Another biggie, this is America’s largest Octoberfest celebration, and it’s expected to attract nearly a half million visitors to the streets of downtown Cincinnati, September 16-19. There’s way more than enough beer on hand to wash down all the brats, schnitzel, sauerkraut, pretzels, and Black Forest cake you can ingest— and there are plenty of fun activities, including, as you might guess, lots of polka music. The beer stein race and bratwurst-eating contest are popular events, but the most entertaining happening is the Running of the Wieners. This hilarious matchup pits dozens of dachshunds in hot-dog-bun costumes in a 75-foot dash to determine the winning wiener.
For more information: www.oktoberfestzinzinnati.com, 513-579-3100
Warrens Cranberry Festival Warrens, Wisconsin
Wisconsin is the leading cranberry producing state in America and this event in Warrens has grown to become the world’s largest cranberry fest—drawing more than 100,000 visitors annually. This year’s 49th annual staging of the event, September 23-25, will once again crowd the streets of the wee town of Warrens (pop. 363) to celebrate the annual harvest of the tart and tasty red berries. Visitors can tour the marshes, or bogs, where the berries are grown, eat cranberries prepared every way imaginable, shop at hundreds of flea market and food vendor stalls, join in a number of contests, watch a parade, and cheer the crowning of cranberry royalty.
For more information: www.cranfest.com, 608-378-4200
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North Carolina Pecan Harvest Festival Whiteville, North Carolina
Columbus County, surrounding the hamlet of Whiteville, is one of the top pecan-producing areas in North Carolina, and quite naturally that calls for a festival to celebrate the annual harvest of that tasty and nutritious nut. This year’s event, November 3-5, will feature a gala Pecan Parade, pecan cooking contests, and the Pecan Queen coronation. Other events include a burger cook-off, a car and truck show, a tour of homes, arts and crafts displays, and music from country and R&B bands.
For more information: www.ncpecanfestival.com 910-770-1991
Autumn at the Arboretum Dallas, Texas
Named by Orbitz Travel as the number one “Trip to Put on Your Fall Bucket List” in the Dallas area, this colorful celebration of the visual beauty of autumn is set for September 17 - October 31. It’s the featured fall event at Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden, a nationally acclaimed 66-acre urban oasis on White Rock Lake, just minutes from the city center. Highlight of the festival, now in its 17th year, is the Pumpkin Village, an artful and imaginative arrangement of more than 90,000 pumpkins, gourds, squash, bales of hay and cornstalks set amidst gardens ablaze with more than 150,000 fall-blooming plants.
For more information: www.dallasarboretum.org 214-515-6615
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Pensacola Seafood Festival Pensacola, Florida
What better place for a seafood festival than the Gulf Coast of Florida? Pensacola’s is the biggest and best of them and it’s ready to roll out a multitude of Gulf-to-table delicacies come September 23-25. Dozens of local restaurants and caterers are on hand to serve up tapas- sized portions of their signature dishes. Delicious seafood isn’t the only draw, as the festival also features the largest arts and crafts fair in northwest Florida with more than 150 artisans and crafters who come from all around the country to participate. Entertainment at the event is top drawer too as evidenced by past performers such as Grammy winners Chris Stapleton and Brothers Osbourne and country greats Ashley McBride and Jordan Davis.
For more information: www.pensacolaseafoodfestival.com 850-433-6512
International Balloon Fiesta Albuquerque, New Mexico
Few sights are more exciting than the mass ascension of some 550 hot air balloons filling the sky above a grassy mesa near Albuquerque. This year’s 50th anniversary rendition of the world’s premier ballooning event is slated to lift off October 1-9. Mornings offer the best climatic conditions for flying so it’s a good idea to be on hand early to watch the Morning Glow at 6:30 a.m. followed by the Mass Ascension at 7:00 a.m. each day. Nightly Balloon Glows create quite a sight as well, with hundreds of balloons lit from within by their propane burners. Balloon rides are also available with the event’s official concessionaire, Rainbow Ryders.
For more information: www.balloonfiesta.com 888-422-7177
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Trailing of the Sheep Festival Ketchum, Idaho
The tradition of driving livestock from summer pastures in the mountains to the valleys below probably got its footing in the Swiss Alps—and that’s what this unique Idaho event is all about. Ketchum and Hailey area ranchers herd their sheep down to Sun Valley each fall, culminating in a riotous festival, set this year for October 5-9. Highlight of the 26th annual rendition of the festival will be a parade led by more that 1,500 sheep trailing down Ketchum’s Main Street. You really have to see it to believe it. Visitors join in the pandemonium and also take in the Folklife Fair, the Wool Fest (popular with knitters and weavers), sheepdog herding trials, music and dance performances and the ever- popular Lamb Dine Around & Foodie Feast.
For more information: www.trailingofthesheep.org 208-720-0585
Sonoma County Harvest Fair Santa Rosa, California
It goes without saying that grapes steal the spotlight at this popular northern California wine country harvest festival, set for October 14- 16 at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds in Santa Rosa. If you’re thinking wine tasting you won’t be disappointed, but the headline event is the World Championship Grape Stomp, a zany event that invites bare-footed visitors to join in the traditional and always messy method of extracting juice from the grapes. Another major fair event is the Grand Tasting, Saturday afternoon, October 15, and there will be wine and cooking competitions and musical performances. Ultimately, however, you’ll want to make your way to the Wine Pavilion to taste prize vintages from hundreds of Sonoma winemakers.
For more information: www.harvestfair.org 707-545-4203
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Other Festivals of Note: Elk Fest Estes Park, Colorado October 1-2. Celebrates the annual elk-breeding season (or “rut”) with music, Native American storytelling and bugling contests.
For more information: www.visitestespark.com 800-443-7837
Harvest Festival Rancho de las Golondrinas Santa Fe, New Mexico October 6-7.
Costumed interpreters bring this early 1700’s rancho-turned-living-history-museum to life. Visitors help “villagers” bring in the crops.
For more information: www.golondrinas.org 505-471-2261
Leavenworth Oktoberfest Leavenworth, Washington
Spread out over three weekends in September/ October, this event takes over the quaint Bavarian-style village of Leavenworth, offering a host of activities, lots of authentic German food and traditional Bavarian music.
For more information: www.leavenworthoktoberfest.com 509-264-1852
International Rice Festival Crowley, Louisiana
October 20-23. One of Louisiana’s oldest and largest agricultural festivals, the Rice Fest is a lively celebration of Cajun food and non-stop music, including Cajun, blues, country and soul.
For more information: www.ricefestival.com 337-783-3067
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Lion Country Safari Dare to go wild By Paula Loehr
To fully experience Lion Country’s four-mile- long safari, be sure to travel slowly, no more than five miles per hour—with doors locked and windows closed. Allow one or two hours for a leisurely ride. Listen to the audio tour provided and scrutinize natural hiding places in each habitat. Animals are more easily spotted on overcast rainy days or early in the morning when they are motivated by cooler temps to venture out and about. The drive-through preserve is separated into seven self-contained areas. South American grasslands, Indian forests, and five famous African wildlife preserves inspired their names. As you ride on paved roads, watch for a woolly alpaca from the Andes Mountains resting under a palm tree or a lowland tapir, close relative of the rhinoceros, soaking contentedly in a pond. And don’t be alarmed if a hyper-curious ostrich trots over quickly to peck at your windshield. After all, an adult male ostrich is capable of running up to 43 miles per hour.
Is a wildlife watching safari in Africa, India or South America on your bucket list? There’s a USA-based shortcut for realizing such a dream. You can view free-roaming animals from all over the world at Lion Country Safari in Loxahatchee, Florida. No passports, airport shuttles, or overseas flights are required. It’s just a 20-mile drive from downtown West Palm Beach. Established more than five decades ago in 1967, Lion Country Safari was North America’s first cageless drive-through zoo. It was originally designed to teach and entertain visitors, and those goals have endured. The Safari’s present- day mission is to “be a leader in animal care, conservation, and education to inspire people through connections with wildlife in a fun, family-friendly environment.” During the half- century since Lion Country was founded, the open-concept zoo has survived and thrived. Much of Lion Country’s 600-acre preserve is maintained in a natural state to allow animals to wander freely, graze and nurture their young, just as they would in their native African, Indian, or South American homes. The conservation- oriented park is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and cares for more than 1,000 wild animals representing 90 species. Resident animals appear healthy and energetic in their open habitats and Lion Country reports a remarkable average of 80 babies born annually. Three recent births include Tonk, a male chimpanzee, and Josh and Aziza, male and female Southern white rhinos. While Tonk’s was the first Lion Country chimp birth in 16 years, a total of 38 white rhinoceros calves were born there since 1979.
Lion Country Safari boasts one of the biggest herds of rhinoceroses in America. Photo credit Lion Country Safari
Don’t be alarmed if a curious ostrich pecks at your windshield. Photo credit Lion Country Safari
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