..My only friend, the end.

I apologize for the super long delay...

I arrived at the south Holston river in north East Tennessee around five pm on Sunday.   The parking areas below the dams were packed with people fishing in very close quarters.  Most spinning reel and a few fly fishermen.   I went up to talk to an older gentlemen who had just caught a beautiful, nice size rainbow, about the waters.  He gave me quite a few pointers about fishing the area and even gave me a handful of his tied flies! 

But now was not the time for fishing... I needed to find a free or Atleast cheap campsite for the evening.  The area around the dam had potential but I saw multiple TVA cops lurking around.  I headed into a national forest nearby and started scowering.  I drove about ten miles into the woods and didn't even find a single ATV trail to drive down and set up camp on.   There were no pay sites close by so I drove north across a bridge over Holston lake. At first I was about to set up shop at a boat ramp but the bass spawn and walleye run had people in and out all night long.   I found a fishing pull off that had a skinny little trail next to it and I found my spot.   The morning brought to light the extent of my decision.  

Beautiful lake front property!!  I have say it was bit of a sketchy spot in the sense that the past few owners were most likely drunk hicks, fishing, who had no sense of litter laws.   But being a week day I was in the clear.  I packed up and headed to the river.  

This river was just like the White river in the sense that they had set times they released water and it became hard to wade fish.  I took my time and visited a fly shop, bought new wipers for my truck, stocked up on some food, then got to the river around noon.  The water was set to drop around one so I sat by the river for a bit with Johnny and waited. 

Once the water dropped I headed into the water and started fishing.   I caught a few browns and rainbows.  Sorry I didn't get any pics, but I swear it happened!  They were fairly small fish that were not easy to catch.   This river is known as the best trout river in the east and therefore recieves a ton of pressure.  Around 5 a huge storm cell rolled through and I quickly got off the river.  I headed to my camp spot and the sky cleared up.  I decided to break out my spinning rod and see if I could catch some small mouth.   

Caught some nice fish!  Spending the day in tornado warnings I decided to keep a close eye on the weather for the night.   Every weather app I had said the storm would hit around four AM, so I set my alarm for three and decided to pack up after a few hours of sleep and before the storm.  

Well around two AM I awoke to howling wind and pounding hail and decided to pack up shop as fast as I could and head for the bridge right down the road.   I figured that would be the safest place.   I had planned to set up my dome tent but once I opened it up I realized the both poles were broken from the time I let the kids in Florida borrow the tent.  So I ended up sleeping under the bridge... Hobo style!  

I didn't get much sleep but it was a stellar experience none the less!   I packed up and headed to a tiny diner for a much appreciated hot breakfast! 

All of that for only $3.50!!!  

After checking multiple weather apps on my phone I decided the best idea was to high tail it north since the rain was set to continue for many days.  I got a hold of an old river buddy who lived in southern PA, him and his wife graciously offered a nice dry bed to me!  

He is a huge gear head, like myself, and we talked a lot of shop.   He works at Dewalt and I was lucky enough to get a personal tour of dewalts testing and RD drepartments!  Very cool stuff to see!!  

I had done some research back in college about a small town in central PA called centralia, which was a coal town that had the mine catch on fire and the town evacuated.   One of the famous east coast ghost towns, made famous by the video game/movie Silent Hill, which was very loosely based on the town.  This was about two hours away from the town I was in and I headed there in The morning.  

It was a beautiful sunny day, which was very welcome change from the monsoons I had experienced the past few days.   Rolling into centralia I immediately noticed that one, the town was nearly completely demolished and two, it wasn't as far "out in the sticks" as I had hoped.  Which was all fine though, because I had sunshine and offroad trails a plenty to explore!!

One of the creepy cemeteries hidden in the woods.  

This was on the closed down part of the highway leading to town.  In the winter smoke rises from cracks in the road.  It was unfortunately too warm on this day. 

Exploring some atv trails on the mountain.  

On the top!  

Afterwards I headed east, my college friend Sharis invited me to stay in yet another dry spare bedroom, how could I say no!? 

The first thing I did upon arrival was attempt to dry out, well everything.  The tent dried quickly, mattress pad and sleeping bag, not so much.  In the mean time Sharis and I hiked back to a huge quarry near her house.  Private property of course, so stealth was in order.  I brought fly rods and gave her a quick casting lesson that she took hold of quickly.  The winds though were not in our favor and we called it quits and hiked around.  I had never been to a quarry with such large cliffs and enormous schools of smallmouth bass which I just couldn't catch... 

Next I got to experience one of her new past times, beekeeping!   I got all suited and headed to the hives!!  It was a bit nerve racking at first but the cold weather and smoke made the bees pretty lethargic and docile.  

That night Sharis, her boyfriend, and I got pizza at an extremely sketchy bar that I thoroughly enjoyed then ended the evening with a bonfire.  

The next day we went to a crazy flea market that held some of the best people watching of all my travels!!  There was also a working slot car track there!!!

  

I said my thank yous and good byes and headed towards, as grandpa called it, the vampire state!

Saratoga springs, my old stomping grounds, I decided would be a good place to hunker down and rest for a quite weekend...  Who I am kidding, I stayed with my old pal Scotty in a town where the bars close at 4am...   I had a great time!   

Picklebacks!!!  

After that I shot up to Plattsburgh to check out Todd and Meg's new digs on lake Champlain.   They have a killer spot with lake access, that is sure to be a hoot this summer!    

When the morning came I pointed west towards home!  

After driving most of of the way through the Adirondacks in pouring, cold rain, the sky opened up just outside of Rossi.  I arrived around three pm and the river was in all her glory!  I love this place...

So that's it.    6500 miles, exactly 4 weeks, and 18 states.   Zero car issues, but hey, it's a toyota.  Cases of Campbell's soup and beer.  Some fish caught here and there.   Galllllllons of petrol(didn't even want to keep track of that).   Great people a plenty.  It was an experience I will never regret nor forget.  

Thank you to all who followed along with my journey.   Many many thanks to all who offered their homes up to me, you all are always welcome under my roof when ever need be!    

I will be in Ireland, Scotland, England, the 12th-23rd of June so there might be a few more posts...  But no guarentees.    

East coast

I apologize for the long gap between posts.  I have almost zero perception of time, and I love it.  

I left Florida and headed up the east coast.  I had my sites on the outer banks but knew I needed a stop inbetween.  This ended up being myrtle beach...  There was a state park just south of the main drag and I settled there in a primitive camp site.   

The tent attracted a lot of attention here and I ended up talking to a Canadian fellow for quite a bit and he invited me to his camp fire.   Apparently alcohol is forbidden in any SC state park, so I funneled my yuenglings into an empty Arizona ice tea can I had then headed over.  He was from perry sound Ontario and was an avid sailor/kayaker.   We swapped stories a bit then with the start of some rain I headed back to my site.  

The next day I headed straight up the coast.   I had never realized how many small rivers dumped into the Atlantic along here.   Each bridge I passed I felt the urge to hope in a boat and explore.  Unfortunately that wasn't an option for me. 

When venturing from the south to the outer banks you have to take a two and half hour ferry from cedar island to okarakoke island.  Since this was not peek season, ferrys were spaced out three hours apart.  I arrived right after the ferry departed so I had some time to kill.  I put my 8wt rod together and tried to fish.  This turned out to be a bust so I just explored the beach.  

Finally the ferry arrived and I headed back to the truck.  

On the ferry! 

You can really see my elegant gorilla tape job I did on the cover.   It's held up since Texas! 

On the ferry I met a very nice couple from California, out on the open road, exploring the same as I.   The husband was not only an avid VW fan but also a past 356 owner!  

The ferry schedule really through me off and I arrived at Frisco state park around 9pm and set up camp.  This park is located right in the sand dunes on the ocean side of hatteras.  

Morning brought a stiff breeze and the unmistakeable smell of ocean to my tent.  I took the mountain bike out early in search of a diner since I was craving a big hardy breakfast.   To my surprise none were open.  I guess it still wasn't "in" season yet.  

I headed to the beach!   I do like the ocean, but only in moderation.  Many things can dealt pain and or kill you in it and I always think there may be a tsunami on the horizon.   All things I never worried about on my body of water growing up.   But the smell, the constant surf, and endless beaches really appeal to me.  

After some exploring on the beach I was able to play on some boards! 

The water was not a bad temp at all. There were also numerous dolphins swimming just past the break.  

That night, numerous beers on the beach and a literally, stellar night sky, capped off a great outer banks visit.  

The next morning I got in contact with my old buddy Travis, who used to stay at our cottages, and had breakfast with him in kittyhawk nc.   

I B lined it for central virginia after that.  I had heard there were some fish in the mountains along the blue ridge parkway. On the way I went through some very nasty thunder/hail storms, and after seeing multiple tornado warnings I thought it wise to hotel it that night.   I found myself in Lynchburg VA.  I found a hotel near downtown and since it was Friday night I'd hoped to indulge in some night life there.  I met a few college kids from California at my hotel, they were there for a wedding the next day and in the same boat as myself for the evening. They kindly let me tag along with them to the TWO bars in town...  Needless to say if you are looking to get rowdy at some bars in central VA, skip Lynchburg.  None the less it was a fun night and I made some new friends!  I also got to sleep in a bed and have a hot shower!   

The next day was beautiful and I headed into the mountains.   This part of the country is just beautiful and to my surprise still a bit wild.  I stopped at a parking area for the Appalachian trail to check out the Tye river.   It was a stunning river but nearly void of fish!   Also completed about one hundred yards of the Appalachian trail!  

 

It was the first time in a week I got to put my waders on, so I was happy about that.  

I talked to some fishermen further up stream who informed me that pretty much the time to catch is right after they stock it because most people keep the fish and there are literally almost none left.  They did give me a suggestion to try out the Piney river that had small native brook trout in it. They gave me directions and I was off.  The first turn was a bit discouraging. 

But then I got into the mountains.  The houses started disappearing, the river ran right along the road, and numerous primitive camping sites could be found all around. 

I picked one site way up stream and started to explore.  

With in five minutes I had hooked in a beautiful native brook trout! 

They got a bit larger

And a bit smaller. 

It was all on drys.  And you had to be quite a bit sneaky.   I had a blast catching these fish til night fall.  

I made one the MREs my roommate mike gave me and was spoiled with the desert.

Delish.  

The next morning I headed up and over the mountain towards the blue ridge park way.  The single lane dirt road I was on switch backed up and down the mountain.   Following a small stream that had an epic falls.  

I fished a bit in the area then got on highway 60 heading west.  I crossed under the blue ridge parkway and followed the road to rt81.  This descent on highway 60 was amazing and if you like banked twisty roads like I do, search this one out.

Next I hit the Jackson river, north of Covington VA.  While there I chatted it up with a few fishing guides who were fishing on their day off.  I asked about other va rivers to hit and potential West Virginia rivers.  Both guides told me to skip WV and head south to the south holston  river in north eastern Tennessee. Having no real timeline, I shot for it.  

I will end it there for the evening.  

Sunshine state. Sort of.

After I had fished for a while, with only one strike from a sea trout, I headed back to make dinner at my camp at fort Pickens.  During which a bunch of teenage kids pulled into the spot next to me.  The tent site there was pretty moist already and they began to set up their tents.   The kids soon realized that one of the tents they brought did not have poles in the bag.  Realizing their predicament I offered up the eureka two person tent that I had brought with me for emergencies.  They were thankful and took up the offer, I helped them set it up. 

Well around eight pm it began to ran...  We had a stellar thunderstorm to start off the night, with some less than a second boomers!   Then it just started down pouring.   And kept raining.  Since it wasn't very windy and the sheer volume of rain coming down, it started collecting on my roof.  Every two hours I was using my feet to pick up the ceiling of the tent and dump out the water.  I was staying fairly dry in the middle of the tent but then the wind started.   I had closed all the windows but by this time every thing was saturated.  I peeked out my window around 7am to see that the teenagers site had about twelve inches of water in it.  Both tents, including mine were collapsed and under water.   They had all retreated to their vehicles, undoubtably waiting for a break in the weather as I was in the tent atop my truck.   I stayed in my 3'x3' space of dryness reading my book and checking the radar regularly.  Around ten the kids packed and split, leaving my tent in a huge wet ball underneath my truck.   I needed to be out by noon and around eleven I decided to pack up in the rain.  It was still pouring seventeen hours after it had begun and I packed up everything soaking wet.  I hopped in the showers then started off the island. 

Kind of a poor pic but you can see the tempest, which had also left about eight inches of standing water on the road for about three miles.  My bicycle was not happy after that salty event.  

I had to decided it wise to head straight for my good buddy pattys place in talahassee. He is down there completing his masters at Florida state, and kindly offered his warm, dry, home to me for the holiday weekend.  

When I arrived I took everything wet out of the truck and set it out dry.  The worst parts were the foam mattress pads from the tent camper.  Everything else dried quickly.   

We set out that night to a fine establishment called bull winkles.  Where you pay ten bucks, they give you a cup, and then drink all you want.   I really think this needs to catch on every where. After too many G&Ts we headed to the local late night food spot and got a "box", which consisted of chicken fingers, Texas toast, special sauce, and cole slaw, simply amazing.  

The next day patty took me on a tour of the campus. It was a beautiful place!  

The tour took me to the football stadium as well.  

After which we spent a few drooling over the women's doubles sand volley ball tourney taking place and patty took me through his lab where all the magic happens.  

That night we hit up a local music festival, played bocci, drank a deadly tequila drink, and got another "box" to finish off the evening.  

As you can expect Sunday was spent doing nothing but recuperating.  Well and drinking bloodies, mimosas, and watching lots of hockey and movies. 

Thank you so much patty for the hospitality!!  I had a blast there and hope to visit again soon.  

I left this morning and decided to head due east towards Jacksonville.  When I was about seven, dad, Todd, and I drove down to Florida for spring break; one of the places we camped at was a state park called fort clinch right on the Georgia/Florida border.   I set my sights on this.   

My phone gave me the option of taking 95 north out of Jackson or a1a along the coast.   I took the coast.  I stopped at food truck along the way and the server told me it was one on the top ten beautiful drives in Florida.  She was right. 

Diving in and out of tree covered roads you received glances of the ocean.  It was a perfect day as well which just added to the magnificence.   

I arrived at fort clinch, got a camp site, then headed to the beach to have a few beers in the sun and waves.  

The change in weather was much appreciated.   After staying an hour on the beach I went to go set up my tent which was on the river side.  I also set up my fly rod in hopes of maybe catching a fish.  I walked out to the backside beach and noticed the tide was fiercely going out.  Signs littered the beach warning of currents.   I tossed a few out with no luck and just decided to wander for a bit.  I 

Then headed back to return here for sunset.  

I planned to take out my bike, since it needed some cleaning and maintenance, then use that to check out the fort and view the sunset.  

 

Didn't take long and I was out on the trails.  I stopped off at fort clinch and instantly remembered it from when I was a child. 

Then I watched the sunset with some yuengling and passer by dolphins.  

This pic reminded me of home. 

Well that's it for the evening.  My tentative plans now are to head up the coast and jump over to the outer banks.  But my plans change hourly haha.  

Heading south

I ended up sleeping at a truck stop, but with beautiful clear skies was able to see the blood moon!  I left very early, sleeping in the cab of a Tacoma when you are my size is a painful and frivolous venture.  After I headed due north into the ozark mountains.  

I was able to watch the sun rise over this area and I must say it is a beautiful place!   Tight winding roads, constantly climbing and descending.   One of the places I really wish I had a motorcycle.  

I stopped in at a local fly shop to get some info on the river.  Willie, a big grizzly man entertained me with some fly suggestions and fish stories.  He also warned me of the fairly inconsistent water flows.  Apparently they let water out of the damn according to the power usage of the area.  So wade fishing was pretty much impossible until one ish, after the water flow was cut down.  I took my time getting to the camp ground below the damn because of this.  

When I arrived I stopped at the guard station and just my luck they were closed Tuesday and Wednesday!  Another campground freebee!!!  I set up shop right next to the river and saw how high and fast the river was.  It was also funny to see a different type of fly fisherman. On this river most people use a long skinny flat bottom boat with 25hp outboards. When the levels are high it's all nymphing. There was a constant buzzing of boats traveling up the river and drifting down.  I figured the fish must not be too timid with that racket going on constantly. Back to the fishermen/women themselves; unlike the pretentious patagoochi filled rivers of the west, most of these people seemed to be of the lower middle class.  Beat up boats, raggedy camo jackets, most smoking cigarettes, but with fly rods in hand and having a stellar time.   I got a feeling of relief that this sport wasn't as 1% as I had stereotyped it from my experiences out west.  

The water level eventually dropped and I headed out on the water.  And it really dropped!!! About four feet, revealing a river that was easy to wade and spot fish. They were rising all over.  Hitting very small midges. I caught two nice browns then it died down.  I tied on a dry dropper with some of the killer zebra midges willie recommended and got into a bunch of rainbows. 

My fishing buddy for the day was this guy, who almost caught as many as I did. 

The sun began to set and I heard the sirens for water release, so I headed in. 

That was on one of the many rock islands that be way under water in about fifteen minutes.  

It was a fairly chilling and windy evening and I called it in early for the night.  

The next day I decided I was tired of sleeping in the cold and high tailed it for the gulf coast.  

Crossing the mighty Mississippi near Memphis.  

Mile after mile heading south, it got warmer and greener!  I didn't think I could make to the coast before nightfall so I set my sites on desoto national forest in southern Mississippi.   When I arrived in the little town of Brooklyn Mississippi, I asked the gas station attendants if there was any campgrounds or primitive spots in the area.   Both had lived in the area their whole lives and had not a single clue.  They told me it wouldn't be wise to just camp down a trail in the woods but reccommended sleeping under the town bridge.  Their baffling comments on the woods made me a little nervous so I headed towards the town bridge.  Once there I immediately recognized it as the designated drinking spot for all the town degenerates.  I knew this because it looked like a spot that I would love to hang out and drink at. I was considering sleeping there until I came upon a sign that said "keep out, the rebles tertory", spelled exactly that way in very sloppy cursive.  They teach cursive here I thought!!  Then decided this was an unwise place to camp.  

I ventured into the forest and that was not any more appitizing.  It looked as though all scary movies were derived from this one national forest in Mississippi.  I told my dad that with the windows down I could actually smell skunk ape, the down south version of Bigfoot that apparently emits a pungent stench.  I decided that even if I hit the coast in the dark it would be a better if not safer place to lay my head.  To paraphrase what  my buddy joe told me, you don't have to worry about animals; people are a different matter.  

I got to a state park in deloxi MS around eight and made camp.   Again the office was closed.  It was the first night I broke out my thirty degree sleeping bag and it felt great!!  I got in contact with a fly fishing guide who gave me some pointers for wade fishing in my next destination, pensicola Florida.  

When I left the guard station was still empty, so I snaked out of paying for another campground!  I headed east on i10 towards the sliver of Alabama then onto Florida.  After passing mobile I was on a long bridge where I spotted a real World War Two battleship.  I hit the next exit to go check it out.   It was the USS Alabamba and was a memorial park/museum.   There were plenty of planes and tanks set up on display as well so I had to go in and check it out.  You can tour the whole battleship unassisted!   I spent a good hour wondering above and below deck, a great experience for a war buff such as my self.  

16" rounds! 

You could go in everything!!  I truly wished my brother and dad were there to experience it with me.  

They also had an air museum as well as submarine you could walk through.  That was tight and a bit frightening.  

They had just rolled out this puppy as well. 

I headed to fort Pickens state park.  It's a long, white sand island just south of pensicola.   I had to pay for a campsite this time, but it was worth it for showers!!   It was an overcast day but temps in the seventies, so no complaints!  I spent day fishing in the flats but with no luck.   I had one fish flash my fly and I assume it was a sea trout, but no bites.  I will dive in again tomorrow!