Tag: Train Ride

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #374 – On the Move!

Posted in Photography, TravelTagged , , , , , , , , 51 Comments
Truck and camper in Denali National Park, Alaska

John has a fun challenge for us this week – On the Move. He asks “How do you travel? Where do you go?”

I started my blog in 2013 as a way for our friends and family to follow us along on our four month RV journey to Alaska and back. The featured image is of our truck and fifth wheel in our campsite in Denali National Park in Alaska.

From 2006 to 2019 we spent many days on the move as we wandered around the United States and Canada in our trusty Chevy Silverado towing our home on wheels. We traveled from campground to campground, state to state, and through a few Canadian provinces. Sometimes we would be away from home for a week or two, other times for a month or more.

We towed our fifth wheel on interstates and back roads and sometimes took it on a ferry to get where we needed to go. I captured the first image in the following gallery as we waited our turn to board the small ferry to cross the Yukon River from Dawson City, Yukon. We also towed our camper on the Alaskan ferry from Skagway to Haines and on a Texas ferry on the way to Galveston.

We watched this truck and trailer board the ferry to cross the Yukon River from Dawson City, Yukon
Alaska Ferry from Skagway to Haines

During our RV travels we would often take excursions on different types of transportation. In Alaska we took a ride on the Alaska Railroad, rode a bus in Denali National Park, took wildlife cruises from Haines and from Seward, and landed on a glacier in a small plane.

We took a ride on the Alaska Railroad
Our driver with the bus he drove on the road through the Denali Wilderness in Denali National Park, Alaska
Wildlife Cruise from Haines to Juneau
Wildlife and Glacier Cruise from Seward

In 2019 we made the decision to park the RV and take different kinds of trips. We went on our first ever ocean cruise 2022. We were hooked.

The Viking Sea was our home for two weeks as we sailed around the Caribbean on our first cruise.

We had some fun modes of transportation in some of the ports. We rode on a Wacky Roller bus in Dominica, an open-air Safari bus in Tortola, Henry drove us around St. Martin in a Talon 4-wheeler, and the Monster Bus in Costa Rica took us into the rain forest.

Wacky roller in Dominica
Safari Bus in Tortola
Henry drove is around St. Martin in one of these Talons
Monster Bus in Costa Rica

No matter how we move from place to place we always enjoy seeing new places, meeting people, and enjoying the scenery along the way.

Thanks to Egidio for taking us back to challenge #31: Landscapes last week. Your responses took us around the world with your wonderful landscapes of mountains, valleys, oceans, and so much more.

I hope you will join in for this week’s challenge. Be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to John’s post Lens-Artists #374 – On the Move!.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, November 22 at noon eastern time when Patti will be hosting the challenge.

For information on how to join the Len-Artists challenge please click here.

Every Day is a Gift

Blue Ridge Scenic Railway

Posted in Excursions, Georgia, Road Trip, RVing, Tourist AttractionsTagged , , , , , , , 17 Comments

For the second year in a row we made a fall trip to River Vista Mountain Village in Dillard to explore the beautiful north Georgia mountains. Last year we explored Black Rock Mountain State Park, visited waterfalls in North Carolina and wandered around Tallulah Gorge State Park.

This year we had adventures in two new places. One day we went to the top of Brasstown Bald. Another day we drove an hour and a half to Blue Ridge, Georgia to take a ride on the Blue Ridge Scenic Railway.

Our seats were in an open air car for the hour long ride beside the Toccoa River. The train departed the station right on time at 11:00.

Blue Ridge Scenic Railway, Blue Ridge Depot
Blue Ridge Scenic Railway
Open air seating on the Blue Ridge Scenic Railway

As we traveled along at a whopping 10 mph we were able to enjoy the scenery and snap a few photos. A few trees were starting to show signs of autumn but we were too early for the brilliant oranges, reds and yellows that will come later in the season.

The V in the river is a fish trap made of piled rocks by Native Americans over 500 years ago
Blue Ridge Scenic Railway
We rode beside the Toccoa River for most of the trip
The track follows the Toccoa river
It was starting to look like fall
The Toccoa River
The track follows the Toccoa river

Our destination was McCaysville, GA/Copperhill, TN. There was plenty of time to explore the town before the scheduled 2:00 departure. It’s hard to tell which town is which since the state line runs right through the middle of town.

20181003-Blue-Ridge-Scenic-Railway-Iphone-(3)
GA/TN state line

As we wandered around the town we crossed back and forth between Georgia and Tennessee several times. The state line even runs through the middle of some buildings. “Dine on the Line” is the motto for the Copper Grill restaurant where we had lunch. Their address is Tennessee but the state line goes right through the restaurant.

The GA/TN state line runs through the towns of McCaysville, GA and Copperhill, TN
Georgia/Tennessee line

It was nice to sit back and relax on the return trip to Blue Ridge. Before driving back to Dillard we walked across the street from the depot for some fried apple pies from the Mercier Orchard downtown restaurant and store. These pies have been featured on the Food Network and are melt in your mouth delicious!

What’s not to love? A scenic train ride, cool mountain air, beautiful scenery, fresh trout and catfish for lunch, going back and forth between two states just by walking through town, and delicious fried pies! A great day!