Another relaxing day. We had clouds off and on and at one point were surrounded by rain but it never rained at Deerlick Creek. The temperature did drop by about 10 degrees which made for much nicer walking tonight.
After our morning walk we again cooked breakfast and ate outside. Love eating outside at quiet campsites like this. We sat outside waiting to see if the lock was back in service but never saw any barges passing today. There was construction noise. We haven’t found anything online about a delay but appears the river is not back open. There is usually a lot of barge traffic and it hurts businesses when the river is shut down so hopefully it will reopen soon. We both took naps out on our deck today.
We have seen this young deer every day since we have arrived but today finally got a picture. This area of north Alabama has lots of deer, wild turkey, coyotes and an occasional bear, wild hog, or bobcat. All our neighbors pulled out today so we are the only ones in the river side loop tonight. We might just have to extend our stay.
There is a nice paved trail here called the Tree Trail.
By 10:00 it was 96 with heat index of 100. That is just too hot. However, about that time we started having some clouds come and go. We had thunder and threats of rain most of the rest of the day but never got a drop. We did have some nice light breezes and over about an hour we went from 96 to 88. Much better.
We got a nice walk in this morning before it got too hot. We walked a couple of the trails as well as the roadway in and out of the park, a little over three miles, some nice wooded trails. We also stopped and visited with the work camper in the gate house. He and is girl friend started work here yesterday and we were one of the first RVs they checked in. A nice visit. We might like to work camp here sometime. After a wonderful breakfast of cinnamon raisin brioche french toast at our picnic table we enjoyed reading and relaxing and watching the light boat traffic. We were expecting to watch the barges but never saw any. Then we realized there were working on the locks. From reading the news stories online we found that Holt lock was closed in July for replacement of the gates and is scheduled to reopen tomorrow. That would explain the lack of traffic. There is a neat YouTube video on the replacement of the gates. If it reopens tomorrow we expect lots of backed up barge traffic. It will be interesting to watch tomorrow. As the temps rose we retreated to the comfort of Fred except for grilling a late lunch. We visited with our next door neighbor who left late today and did another hike just before dark. That was our day. A wonderful return to a day in the campground. Good food. Good hiking.
Today was really hot and humid with a high of 97 and triple digit heat index. Yuck!! Thankfully we did a fairly early walk this morning because tonight we didn’t walk but about 15 minutes.
Our Front Yard for the Next Few Days
We had some more errands to run today and a little laundry. Then we packed Fred up and moved a whopping 18 miles to Deerlick Creek Corp of Engineers campground. We have a wonderfully shaded, waterfront site on the Warrior River. This is actually just a few miles by water and one lock and dam to our cabin at Yellow Creek. We always love being on the water. We can watch the boats and barges go up and down the river. COE parks are some of our favorites for quiet restful times. We are only about 30 minutes from Mama Ruby’s house if we need to get back into town to handle some business but we are sort of tired of driveway camping. We plan to stay the rest of the week and just may not leave the park at all. Reading and hiking and resting are on our agenda.
Even in 94 degree heat we had to sit out for a few minutes and look at the river
Friday was another scorcher in Tuscaloosa with a high of 93 and high humidity. We didn’t do our morning walk because Anne had to be at the estate attorney’s office first thing. We have a contract on some of Mama Ruby’s apartments but are trying not to celebrate too soon. They aren’t sold until the money is in the bank. Counting down the days until our August 31 closing.
Friday Sunset
After taking care of business we did some shopping. After almost three weeks in Red Bay where there are no Walmarts or Lowes or Home Depots, it was time. We like patronizing the small, local businesses but after three weeks also appreciate the big box stores. We also had a little visit with one of the neighbors who is 94 years old and actually waited until after dark to do our evening walk. That’s the beauty of a well lit greenway.
Saturday we were on the road back to Blount County to check on the Aunts. We stopped at the produce stand on the way into town and got another watermelon, tomatoes and peaches. All grown by our neighbors in Blount County. Our county grows some good produce! The Aunts were doing the best we have seen in a while. True they continue their slow decline in some ways but in others they seem to be doing better. Helen’s mind was pretty clear this visit, even though she couldn’t remember things. Best of all they both seemed really happy. Helen doesn’t really want to go home but does want us to move into her house. After a good visit we headed back to the mountain to check on things and gather our mail. Max cut the grass while Anne dealt with two weeks worth of mail. She did not get through it all. After the grass was cut we did our afternoon walk with Barry and Donna. Great to see them again!
Sunday we met Barry and Donna for a really good breakfast at Huddle House before church. It was then on to worship. (click here to view the service) Since schools in Blount County start this week, Brother Beck had all the teachers, counselors and school staff come to the alter for prayer. We have a lot of members working in our schools across the county. Brother Beck then had the students come forward and lay hands on and pray with him for the teachers, counselors and staff. What a special time of worship! God was truly at work during the entire service, music, prayer, message and communion. Wonderful morning. After Sunday school there was a fund raiser brunch/luncheon for the Senegal mission team, another team soon the go out from our church. We are so blessed to be a part of the Lester Memorial family.
Prayer for Educators and Students
After church we went back to visit with the Aunts again and then shopped a little at the outlet mall before heading back to Tuscaloosa. Thankful for another day of safe travel a looking forward to a little play time this week. More on that tomorrow. Hope you all had a wonderful weekend.
After our morning walk we again cooked breakfast and ate outside. Love eating outside at quiet campsites like this. We sat outside waiting to see if the lock was back in service but never saw any barges passing today. There was construction noise. We haven’t found anything online about a delay but appears the river is not back open. There is usually a lot of barge traffic and it hurts businesses when the river is shut down so hopefully it will reopen soon. We both took naps out on our deck today.
We have seen this young deer every day since we have arrived but today finally got a picture. This area of north Alabama has lots of deer, wild turkey, coyotes and an occasional bear, wild hog, or bobcat. All our neighbors pulled out today so we are the only ones in the river side loop tonight. We might just have to extend our stay.
RVing With a Purpose 