USA

Asheville, North Carolina: The Biltmore Estate, Linville Falls & the Most Impressive Flush Toilet of 1895

April 30, 2017 by Michael Huntley

Last Updated: May 2026

From Lake Toxaway we moved north to Asheville — arriving in a downpour, which is the correct way to experience western North Carolina in late April. The next morning the clouds had settled into the trees around the campground and stayed there, low and dramatic and completely worth looking at. We had the better part of a week, good weather eventually cooperated, and Asheville delivered on every front.

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Lake Toxaway, North Carolina: 260 Waterfalls, the Blue Ridge Parkway & Where Robber Barons Once Summered

April 24, 2017 by Michael Huntley

Last Updated: May 2026

From Greenwood, South Carolina we crossed into the mountains of western North Carolina and settled in at Lake Toxaway — a 640-acre privately held lake in Transylvania County, the largest of its kind in the state. The mountains were just waking up for spring, the waterfalls were running full from snowmelt, and the Blue Ridge Parkway was almost entirely to ourselves. It turned out to be one of the most beautiful stretches of the entire trip.

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Greenwood, South Carolina: Visiting Family, a Lakeside Motorcoach Resort & Sandy’s Complete Anti-Mosquito Arsenal

April 22, 2017 by Michael Huntley

Last Updated: May 2026

From Savannah, Georgia we headed north to Greenwood, South Carolina to visit Sandy’s brother Eddie. Greenwood sits in the Piedmont region of the state, covers about 16 square miles, and has a population of around 23,000. It has everything you’d need — including, we noted, two Walmart stores, which is the modern benchmark for civilizational completeness. The area is genuinely beautiful, and it’s easy to understand why Eddie has lived here for years.

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Historic Savannah, Georgia: Easter Weekend, a Horse in Bunny Ears & Lunch at a Julia Roberts Film Location

April 20, 2017 by Michael Huntley

Last Updated: May 2026

Leaving Florida behind and heading north toward Greenwood, South Carolina to visit Sandy’s brother Eddie, we made two stops along the way: a night at St. Marys, Georgia near the Cumberland Island ferry landing, and then two nights in Savannah. One of those stops was forgettable. The other was one of the highlights of our entire winter.

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Cypress Woods & Fort Myers: Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve & Buckingham Hydroponic Farm

April 17, 2017 by Michael Huntley

Last Updated: May 2026

Fort Myers became a recurring anchor on our first Florida winter — a practical hub for RV service, resupply, and the kind of administrative tasks that accumulate when you’re living on the road. This was our second stay at Cypress Woods RV Resort, this time for a combination of outstanding warranty work (three days at the RV dealer) and the annual reckoning of tax season. Not the most glamorous week on paper. But the area around Cypress Woods delivered, as it had before, with a nature preserve and a farm worth a dedicated visit.

Jake Huntley at Cypress Woods RV Resort, Fort Myers, Florida

Walt Disney World, Orlando: Four Parks, Four Days & One Soggy Splash Mountain

April 8, 2017 by Michael Huntley

Last Updated: May 2026

Walt Disney World opened on October 1, 1971 — five years after Walt Disney himself died from lung cancer in December 1966, before a single acre of Florida swamp had been broken. The project he initiated in secret, buying up 27,000 acres of Central Florida land through shell companies to prevent land speculation, was completed and opened by his successors. The resort is roughly the size of San Francisco, employs more than 62,000 people making it the largest single-site employer in the United States, and draws approximately 48 million visitors annually across its four theme parks. We visited all four over four days in early April, arriving at the tail end of spring break and ahead of the summer crush. It was 92 degrees and humid every day, and we had a genuinely excellent time.