In June 2019 we set off on a 4,000-mile loop trip with our travel trailer from New Hampshire to Hampton, Virginia; Cherokee, North Carolina; and Gile, Wisconson / Ironwood, Michigan, with many other stops along the way. The trip was primarily to spend time with family at each of those locations but we also enjoyed the local attractions and scenery.

Hampton, VA

In Hampton, VA we had some fun babysitting our grandchildren while their parents settled into a new job and new environment after their move from Denver. We visited a lot of local attractions, including the Virginia Air & Space Center, Virginia Living Museum (a wildlife sanctuary), and the Sandy Bottom Nature Park. We also attended the annual Blackbeard Pirate Festival in Hampton, which was home to (and eventually the hanging place of) the famous pirate.

Cherokee, NC

Next we joined our other grandchildren (and their parents!) for a couple of days in Cherokee, NC in the Great Smoky Mountains, where they were camping for the week. Connie and the kids enjoyed some Cherokee dancing and we stopped briefly at the Cherokee Indian Museum.

Gile, WI and Ironwood, MI

Next we headed off through Tennesee, Kentucky, Indiana and Illinois to Gile, Wisconsin and Ironwood Michigan (adjacent towns), where we got to see Graeme’s brother Bruce in an excellent community theater production of Mamma Mia! We also spent some time kayaking on the Gile Flowage across the road from his house. We did some light hiking along the Black River with its many waterfalls, visited Lake Superior, and enjoyed some quality time with Bruce and his friends.

We finished the trip with leisurely drive home east through the Michigan upper peninsula and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec, stopping at several campgrounds along the way. We spent our last two nights in the most luxurious campground we’ve ever seen at the Camping La Cle des Champs RV Park in Saint-Philippe, Quebec.

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