Littcarr to Breaks

Hummers @ Littcarr & Breaks Park

The humming birds were out in numbers – do you call them a “flock” of humming birds? Anyway, it was great entertainment. They are feisty little devils! I’m not sure what species of hummers they are – not sure if they are Ruby throated, but very similar. We had so many we decided to see how close we could get. (See pic) Also, we don’t have a dog to travel with so I brought my bonsai tree. It’s doing great and having a good time hanging out with the “big trees”.
The last day or two at Littcarr was spent preparing for the next move. You know, cleaning, laundry, looking at maps and routes. We have been taking a chance at some of the parks that have “first come first serve” sites. We heard Breaks Interstate Park was a good place (higher altitude) and the brochure looked real promising. There are lots of trails, whitewater rafting (only in October), pool, horseback riding, an amphi-theater, and a restaurant on site, hotel and even a conference center. Many famous people have been associated with this area – Hatfields & McCoys and Daniel Boone, to name a few. You see those names a lot up here!

The A’s arrived before we did and gave us a panic call! Sue told us John was trying to pull into a pull-thru site and got wedged in between the trees. It’s not easy to maneuver these things. They have a longer fifth wheel than we do. He ended up detaching from the truck and backing up at a 90 degree angle – reattaching and then was able to “crank it around”. Whew! I’m glad we missed that one! He said he did it without a dent or scratch! He added, “It would have been easier if I had my chainsaw!”
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Patsy and I pulled into the entrance and stopped at the gate house to read the sign on front of the gate house. The sign was directing us to the camp store to register. A nice lady (appeared to be in her mid to late forties) came out while I was reading the sign. I said, “Looks like we need to proceed to the camp store!” She said, “Yes that’s right.” And she continued with, “there was another big rig like yours just pulled in a few minutes ago! I think I might have upset the woman in the rig, when I said I just don’t see how those people get those big rigs into those little sites!” Patsy laughed and said, “That was our neighbors, the A’s!” This is a very nice park. There are 4500 acres of trees with beautiful mountain scenery. The only draw-backs are the sites are tight (hard to get into and out of— too many trees) and not very level! Also, they all appear to be gravel – don’t recall seeing any paved sites.

We decided to dine at the on-site restaurant for lunch. Nice place, nice view, nice waitress. We asked her where she lived. She said she lived in Haysi (pronounced -Heysa) and it was only 15 miles away. “Do they have a Walmart?” we asked. She replied in her best VA/KY accent, “It ain’t got one we only gotta Dollar General!” After she left the table we had a good laugh. Then we visited Haysi the next day.
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We didn’t ask her anything! Sue asked her where she was from – Patsy and Sue were sure she wasn’t from these parts due to her unusual accent. She replied, “ I’m from Hey sa.” I asked her how she pronounced it (Haysi)? She again replied, “Hey sa!” Then I asked her if there were any stores like Wal Mart or shopping centers in Haysi? She said in a very southern style, “There ain’t nun. Dare’s only a dol ler gin ral.” You should have seen Sue’s eyes dart around the table at the rest of us – we all had big smiles. She is without a doubt from these parts! And a very good waitress! She didn’t stretch things as far as Haysi is concerned. There is a Dollar General, Edward’s Groceries Store, Hardware Store (lots of stuff), a place to purchase gas and diesel, and the Police Station, Public Library, City Hall, Administrative Office were all in one small building. Neat little town!