Ray&#039;s Motoring Travels

Tags:#camper, #campground, #camping, #motorcycleriding, #motorcyclevideos, #raysmotoring, #stateparks, #travel, #traveladventures
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David Crocket State Park – Tennessee

July 15, 2026

We hated to leave Fort Mountain but were scheduled to be at David Crocket State Park today so woke up around 8:30, ate breakfast, finished packing everything and headed to Lawrenceburg, TN. Was a nice drive over except for the traffic in Chattanooga but that was expected. Arrived around 2:00 PM found our campsite and as it turns out was near the bathhouse. The entire camp ground is full, not seeing one site open at this point. Our Site had no shade however and it was 94 degrees with a heat index of 104 degrees. Ouch… wife don’t like the heat so much. 🙂

My best friend ever lives near by so we went over to his place on Saturday to visit and went out for a late lunch. Then rode through Amish country and purchased some corn, tomatoes, peppers, Amish strawberry jam, and a cantaloupe. Had a great day for sure.

Seems as though most occupants packed up and left today, Sunday. Found out from one of the other campers that most were here for a Southern Gospel Quartet singing convention. Wish we had known this sooner, might have been an interesting event to see in Lawrenceburg last night. For those interested they hold these annually. Current info: The annual gospel convention in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee is the James D. Vaughan Quartet Festival, scheduled for July 29 through August 1, 2026. Held at the historic Crockett Theater at 203 North Military Avenue, the four-day event celebrates Lawrenceburg as the birthplace of Southern gospel music with nightly concerts and matinees. You can do a search and actually purchase tickets online ahead of time.

This campground is very nice, clean and up to date if only the sites had more shade for summer camping. Probably consider it again but maybe it should be on the list of cooler weather months for visiting. There are two campgrounds, #2 the one we chose is open year round, has paved roads and site pads. All sites here have electric and water hookups.

In the park we visited the Crockett Museum, a recreation of David Crockett’s office during the 1800s. It’s like a journey back in time. You’ll find artifacts and exhibits that bring Crockett’s story to life and catch a glimpse of the original stones from Crockett’s gristmill on Shoal Creek. It was so interesting to see and read the stories about the famous legend Davy Crocket.

We also visited Crockett Falls, a small, but mighty waterfall. Serving as one of the park’s most picturesque features. We were a little disappointed as we expected much more. When you hear “water fall” your thinking of a huge water fall cascading down a mountainside, right? Well this was not that, it had maybe a two foot drop but it was a nice cool place to visit and was very refreshing. Also near by was a covered bridge.

We were at the campground for about six days and made several trips over to see my friend Bud and spend some time with him. Health is not really good right now but we think he’s getting better by the day. Made a couple more trips over to Amish country and purchased some more of their fresh vegetables. Also visited with one of the Amish guys that makes dinette chairs and tables from maple or oak. Beautiful work and we will likely order some chairs from him as we are in the market for those. We will just have to make another trip up here to get them once they are finished. All made by hand, these people are truly amazing!

In summary we had a great time in Lawrenceburg, the David Crocket Campground and most importantly getting the chance to spend some valuable time with my best friend. We will likely return here again but choose a cooler month to visit.

Will share a few photos below:

Hope you enjoyed this tidbit of our travel experiences. Subscribe to this blog and hit that follow button to see what happens next. We love to ride motorcycles, travel, and experience new adventures.

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Tags:#camper, #camping, #motorcycleriding, #motorcyclevideos, #raysmotoring, #stateparks, #travel, adventure, camping, hiking, nature, travel
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Fort Mountain

July 11, 2026

We decided to venture a little farther from home with the camper, or at least further than we had been with it before. Maybe a tad nervous but needed to do it for our confidence factor.

Fort Mountain State Park near Chatsworth, Georgia is approximately 350 miles from our home. Normally it’s about a six hour trip but pulling the camper we felt it would take longer. Left home about 8:30 AM, arrived at 3:30 PM, so not bad, about seven hours. Pulling the camper we average about eight miles per gallon, stopped three times for gas, didn’t really need too but each time it reached half tank we stopped to fill up. That’s another thing you need to consider when pulling a camper, not all gas stations have enough room to navigate with a camper in tow.

Camp site was rather tricky to back in but managed to do so with a couple of attempts. As soon as we arrived there was a bear warning, one had been spotted near the campground so it was a matter of caution. Exciting start! When bears are near you cannot leave any food, trash etc. outside of your camper otherwise you will likely have visitors overnight. 🙂

Fort Mountain campground is on top of the mountain so it’s very cool even in the summer. We were there in July and the temperature was in the 60’s and 70’s at night. Very convenient for supplies and shopping, down the mountain to city of Chatsworth on one side or the other side of the mountain to the city of Ellijay. Though it is hot in July in the cities, you know it’s much cooler when you get back up the mountain.

Fort Mountain State Park has an elevation of 2850 feet above sea level resting on top of the Cohutta Mountains. The drive from Chatsworth takes you up a pretty steep climb gaining about 1739 feet in just eight miles. Over 90 campsites with 70 having electric and water hookups. Mountain biking, horseback riding, and hiking are all available. Sadly I feel that the campgrounds have not been well maintained but still it’s a very quiet and cool place to camp. We’ll likely go back again someday.

Mystery of Fort Mountain is an ancient stone wall steeped in legend. The mystery is who built it, when was it built and for what purpose. Many theories abound. One theory is that it was built around 500 A.D. by Native Americans for religious purposes. Others say is was built by Welsh Explorers in the 14th century as a fort against Indians. Cherokee legend say it was built by the MOON EYES, a race of light skinned people who could see in the dark because of their large pale eyes. None of these theories have been supported by artifacts. The wall runs east and west for 855 feet with a height that varies from two to six feet. It is believed to have been much higher before exploration and plunder. It’s all still a mystery and likely to remain so.

We love to camp here especially in the summer will likely visit again in the near future. Will include some photo’s below.

While there we visited Brasstown Bald Mountain which is the highest point in the state of Georgia. It is located in the northeastern part of the state in the Blue Ridge Mountains on the border south of the city of Hiawassee. The mountain is known to the native Cherokee people as Enotah. The visitor center sits atop Georgia’s highest mountain at 4,784 feet above sea level. Surrounded by the Chattahoochee – Oconee National Forest. The cloud-level observation deck offers stunning 360-degree views of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and valleys.

Some photos taken below. These were all taken from the visitor center at Brasstown Bald Mountain near the end of July!

We stayed at the Fort Mountain campground for about six days, loved it.

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Tags:#adventures, #camping, #fortmountain, #raysmotoring, #travel
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Homeward Bound

December 13, 2024

Today (5/24/23) is the first leg of our return home. Departed Deadwood, South Dakota around 7:00 AM (mountain time zone) and arrived in Counsil Bluffs, Iowa around 5:00 PM (central time zone) which means time on the road including stops and sight seeing was about 9 hours. Distance was 554 miles. Tomorrow’s plans are to travel to Little Rock, Arkansas which is approximately 607 miles.

One of our rest stops was a South Dakota Welcome/Information station. Had to do an unexpected short tour and take a few more photos. Below is a small sampling of our personal photos for this leg of the trip home.

Changed our plans, did not go all the way to Little Rock, Arkansas, no hotels there appealed to my co-pilot, not questioning her judgement, she seems to pick them very well.

Today 05/25/23 was our second leg of the trip home. We departed Council Bluffs, Iowa approximately 8:30 AM and arrived in Conway, Arkansas around 5:00 PM. By the way Conway, Arkansas seen on the map by Conway Twitty and Twitty, Texas is how he picked his stage name. Thought you might not know that. LOL

In The Billboard Book of Number One Hits, Fred Bronson states that the singer was looking at a road map when he spotted Conway, Arkansas, and Twitty, Texas, and chose the name Conway Twitty.

Conway Twitty – Wikipedia

Route was down the western side of Iowa on I-29, continuing on I-29 in Missouri to Kansas City, then I-49 the remainder of Missouri to Alma, Arkansas. Then it was Eastern bound on I-40 to Conway, Arkansas. Our distance was 567 miles for the day. Speed limit in Iowa was 75 MPH while Missouri slowed us down a bit with a limit of 70 MPH. Upon entering Arkansas it changed back to 75 MPH. Speed limit of 80 MPH was last seen in South Dakota but Arkansas on the interstates remind me of my days in Texas where the speed limit signs are merely a suggestion. 🙂 🙂

Not a lot to say about the travel through Missouri, more flat land in that area compared to our previous travel days. Noticeable was the mile markers every two tenths of a mile but guessing they have a valid reason for placing them so often? Questionable is the fact that we saw not ONE rest area or Welcome center through the entire state of Missouri on either interstate highway we traveled? Maybe we missed them? 🙂

Arkansas scenery along the highway was fantastic, mountainous and very green! My first time in Arkansas and much more than I had imagined in beauty. A few of our photos below from todays journey below:

Stay tuned for tomorrows travel as we expect this to be the last leg to HOME!

May 26th, 2023:

Our last leg of this trip, homeward bound today, looking forward to getting home. It’s really been a fantastic trip, one we will never forget but getting home is nice too after such a long road trip. No matter how long, would do it again in a heart beat.

Today’s travel started around 8:30 AM with us arriving home approximately 7:00 PM. Total of 582 miles and home sweet home.

In summary this was a 22 day trip started May 5th, 2023, ended May 26th, 2023 with a total of 5,026 miles averaged 26.5mpg. We both loved it and would do it again!

Though this trip has ended we have had other adventures since and will post a few of those as time permits.

Hit that follow button to see what happens next. Not a “biker” by definition, just an old man that loves to ride motorcycles, travel, and experience new adventures.

Keep the shiny side UP!