Category: Uncategorized

Smoky Mountain National Park!

We had to go to the famous Smoky Mountain NP. We were there for a whole day and we did 3 out of 4 visitor centers in the park.  The park was beautiful and it was like skyline drive in Shenandoah NP where you could pull off and see the beauty off the park, and it sure did not disappoint!

There was a hike up a massive hill to the top of the mountain where there was a lookout where you usually could see the whole park but our view was “Smoky”. It took 40 minutes to go anywhere in the park which was crazy! Driving back we saw an Elk it was the biggest elk I’ve ever seen and it was drinking in the river, and then it pooped ( Eli told me to put that in 😂). There was a ranger bear talk we had and the ranger was honestly so funny.  He talked about how they put collars on baby elk to help them know where they are and monitor them. He also talked about how they trap bears causing trouble in campgrounds and picnic areas and then bring them to a far away location in the park.

We stayed in a campground in Gatlinburg, TN.  By far the coolest part was seeing black bears in our campground! Mom, Eli and I were walking back to the camper and other campers alerted us to a momma and her 2 cubs walking down the creek eating the chestnuts. We followed at a good distance and watched!  The babies wrested each other and played under our neighbors campground.  I told my dad who was inside and he didn’t believe me! Boy was he surprised when he walked outside to see them!  

Dollywood!

We took a day to go to Dollywood because it was so close to our campsite. I was excited to ride the world-class roller coasters at the park! I rode ThunderHead which was my favorite, I went 2 times at night and 2 times in daylight. I also rode Mystery Mine twice which was a hybrid indoor outdoor coaster where you went though the mine and after you climbed up the big hills you went straight up on a chain lift. And then it looks like there’s no track and drops you straight down into a corkscrew where you did a loop upside down! It was different but not my favorite! Next up was Big Bear Mountain and Dragonfly which were cool.  Best part was that Eli did both! Big bear was the longest and it accelerated you with magnets.  There were no intense hill but the acceleration was fast! Dragonfly was a hanging coaster where you “Hang” underneath the track. There was a big hill and it was the shortest at the park but still fun. I ranked the coasters: 4. Dragonfly- only because it was short. 3 – Mystery mine it was slow at some parts but it had a story to it. 2- Big Bear Mountain the longest and the acceleration was intense. 1 – the wooden coaster it had the biggest hills and it was sooo smooth and fast! The food at Dollywood was also amazing especially the cinnamon bread.  They make it hot and fresh and it comes with icing that they make at the park.  It was delicious and definitely a 10/10! Dinner was at Reds Drive-in which is a 50’s style gas station/ drive in.  I got my standard -burger and fries. Which was delicious 🤤 probably a 9/10.  Dollywood also had great shows.  Mostly we were to busy riding rides but we did see a show about birds of pray.  They had owls, bald eagles, hawks, and falcons. We learned  about each of them. The bald eagle, named Challenger just retired.  He was the first bald eagle to go to Hawaii! He went for the NFL pro bowl game. If you ever saw an eagle on TV at the beginning of NFL games, that was Challenger!

Dollywood was fun but we also had to try the mountain coasters. They were awesome and cool. There are lots of mountain coasters in the Smoky’s so after some research and talking to some people we met, we decided to do the longest one and we got to go twice. The coaster was nice, you went fast and went through a tunnel. I really liked it because you got great views of the Smoky’s!

Our last full day we set out to explore the last visitors center in the Smoky Mt. National Park. Unfortunately with the government shut down the visitors center was not open so we did not get our last set of stamps for the park.  However, the road to Cades Cove was closed to cars but open for bikers and walkers.  We biked the entire 11 miles and had the park almost to ourselves! It was a beautiful ride but the hills were a lot by the end.  Best part was coming around a corner and seeing a black bear.  We startled him a little bit and he hurried off the path!

Current Leg: 27 miles

Total Distance: 1,895 Miles

Anchor Down Resort in Dandridge, TN

The coolest part of this campground was definitely the pool. What made this pool special was the big waterslide they had.  Eli and I swam in the pool every single day cause the weather was so hot and humid 🥵. The campground also had pickleball and basketball courts.  My mom sadly beat me in pickleball but it was very close. There was also a good ice cream place across the street named Molly’s, we were able to ride our bikes there. 

Lots of entertainment choices at near by Pigeon Forge.  Our entertainment for one evening was the Hatfield and McCoy dinner feud show.  Dinner consisted of fried pigeon (chicken) and badger stew (cream based soup) for dinner.   I was not a fan of the soup but the chicken was delicious.  After dinner, they started the show which was the best part.  It was really well done. There was a section where they jumped off diving boards into water and did tricks to try and be better than the other family and splashed the first few rows of people in the audience, which was us 😂. 

Early one morning, we took a fishing trip on Douglas Lake with the whole family. Captain Nathan, our guide, he was the best. First off was bluegill fishing and then bass fishing after.  Our charter was 4 hours in total and we caught maybe 6 bluegills and a massive freshwater drum. Nathan supplied everything including a nice boat, rods, crickets, and live shiners.  We caught the drum on the shiners and bluegill with the crickets! 

Dad planned some evening entertainment for us at Country Tonite a live country music show. We got front row seats. The dancers and singers were amazing but sadly i did not know many of the songs they sang, but my mom and dad sure did! My favorite part was Bufford. He is a comedian and ventriloquist. He was very funny and sang a whole song back and forth with a doll! Incredible!

My mom and I researched museums in the area and found Wonder Works in downtown Pigeon Forge. The outside looked like an upside down house.the inside had rock climbing,ropes course, tesla coil and much more. We got to lay down on a bed of nails, ride a 3-D roller coaster ride, and laser tag. We also had a slushy!  It was a good day!

Current Leg: 76

Total Miles: 1,869

Into Tennessee…. NEW STATE UNLOCKED!!!

We are at Warriors Path state park for a 4 night stay. On the first night, we went to the night race at Bristol Motor Speedway. We stayed for the first 200 laps but then we got tired so we went back and missed all the traffic leaving. The cars went 200 miles an hour down the stretch. The cars were so loud you couldn’t hear anything other than the engines!

It was everyone’s first Nascar race ever. I thought it was awesome, the best part was the when they started because they were so loud and the whole stadium shook 😂. At the beginning they had a flyover with jets, fireworks, and helicopters which was one of my dad’s favorite flyovers in a long time. BRISTOL, BABY!!!

Then we went to a Dino park where this guy hand-makes a bunch of species of dinosaurs and put them in a park in his backyard. We stayed for three hours because they had a lot to see. He starts with a wood base in the shape of the Dino then he puts tape over chicken wire and paints it to look like scales on some Dinos! He hand-makes them in his backyard which i thought was awesome.

We went kayaking around the island on the last day. On the way to the dock we saw a snake in the water which kind of freaked me out 😳. Coming back from around the island we saw a deer (doe) eating in the field on the island. We did not get eaten by a snake and came back with all of our limbs still attached 👍.

Current Leg: 207

Total Miles: 1,793 

Bridge Walk

We are staying in Clifton Forge, VA at the Buckhorne Campground and Country Store for 4 nights. This place looked way better on the website; I think they used a lot of photoshop. This place is in the running of the worst site. There were no amenities. You couldn’t ride your bike anywhere cause it was so small, but on the positive side the people were really nice and there was ice cream at the camp store. 

The key adventure to this place was New River Gorge NP. It is one of the newest national parks in America. There were three visitor center across the park. We went to the northern most on that was right next to the new river bridge that was 876 feet in the air. The Washington monument and 2 Statue of Liberties can fit underneath🤯. My dad and I went on a walk underneath the bridge called the bridge walk. There was a small catwalk that you walked on across the little more 1/2 mile bridge! You were strapped in with harnesses but it was still scary 🫣 .  My dad was shaking he was so scared😂. I thought it was awesome. You could see every thing from there. Eli was sadly too small to go on it just yet so him and my mom went to do a hike where they got a great view of the bridge while we were walking on it!

The building of the bridge started on June 1974 and was complete in October 1977.  When we drove across the bridge it took maybe 20 seconds but the  road that people used to have to take took over 30 minutes on windy, steep roads just to get across the river! One day a year in October, thousands of people base jump off the bridge for “bridge day” where you can spectate from the middle of the bridge. One person jumps every 10 seconds! They set up a giant inflatable pad on the beach where people try to land but when people land in the river or in the forest they have to be rescued and taken back up for another go!

In other big news, we started homeschooling while we were staying here.  We do a lesson of math with dad and lesson on reading and writing with mom and then a family lesson on topic. Our first topic is geography and is very fitting to start with considering our trip. I liked it and I think I can do it for the next year 👍.

Current leg: 104

Total Miles: 1586

Endless Caverns

From Gettysburg, with the boys still in Blue Knob with Pap and Gran,  Obie and I set out south into Virginia.  Our Campground in called Endless Caverns in New Market, Virginia.  It is close to Shenandoah National Park and Skyline Drive.  We took advantage of one more day kid free and did some longer hikes.  We explored Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historic Park and then entered Shenandoah National Park from the North.  We hiked about 8 miles throughout the day and saw some beautiful vistas.  We had a picnic dinner while we watched the sunset from our truck.  It was an awesome day doing more than we could have done if the boys were here but we are ready for them to be back!

Isaiah here, I’m BACK! 

The prime aspect of our campground was the caves you could tour there. We took a tour, our guide took us underground into the cave system, he said it was the biggest cave system in Virginia, people still don’t know where it ends hence the name “ Endless “. People have only explored 7 so far! The temperature difference was crazy too, outside was 80, and the temp in the caverns was 55! Every season it was 55 and every part of the cave was 55! They said that you could survive a nuke in the caverns and pretty much everything. Our old babysitter Kacie from  Ohio came to visit us . She is now a nanny for a family in Washington D.C. she joined us on the cavern tour and lunch at the southern restaurant in the town of New Market, VA.it was cool to see her after all these years.

We took a hike to the sign next to our campground that said endless caverns, like the Hollywood sign but it said endless caverns and it was way less famous. The hike was only .4 miles but it was still challenging because it was uphill. It was cool because the sign was located in the campground. We also had a jump pad and a playground right next to our camper which we played at a lot! 

We were told about the route 11 chip factory that we had to go to, you got to see how they were making chips, they started with 100 pounds of potatoes and brought them though the slicer which cut them into their distinct chip form. It cut 100 pounds in 8 seconds! Then they funneled into the kettle cooker where there were these big tubs of hot oil and they cooked them in 10 minutes after cooking they went into a conveyer that took the chips to the hand inspection station where they hand pick all the chips that are misformed or discolored and they fed those to the local cows down the street. Then they continued up the conveyer to the seasoning station on the second level, they had season every chip. Then they move to the bagging station on the first floor they fall into the bags and once they hit the right weight the machine it cut the bag into the right size. We got to eat a mini bag of every flavor they made for free, we tried them all and they were delicious and my favorite was the salt and vinegar. We got to eat the salt and pepper chips that they were making fresh that day!

Current leg: 127

Total miles: 1482

Gettysburg

(One more Mom Authored Blog)

Sadly Moochdocking could only last so long, so we set off to Caledonia State Park which was just a short distance away.  Our agenda was to explore the Gettysburg area and learn about the civil war battle that occurred there.   First day was super special because both sets of grandparents came to visit us at our campground and we started our exploration of Gettysburg.  We started out at a cool museum called Beyond the Battle.  It was focused on the history of the region before the war and then about the people of Gettysburg and what it was like when the war came to their front door. They had exhibits of trees and houses that had both bullet holes and cannon balls left in them from the battle. They had games that kids played in that time like a dice baseball game which we got to try out.  The last exhibit was a simulation where you went inside a house and could hear what it felt like to hear a battle raging outside your doors.  It was a little intense to hear and feel the shaking but definitely gave a unique perspective!  

The boys split this trip with going back with Pap and Gran to Blue Knob for a week while Obie and I did more of a deep dive into Civil war history.  If you are ever in the Gettysburg area, I highly recommend doing the private tour of the battle field. It was cheaper than a bus tour and our guide Bruce, drove our truck and took us on a tour of the battlefield.  He tailored it to our interest.  You get out of the car at certain spots.  Ours ended up being 3 hours and 45 mins and I swear it felt like 30 minutes.  It was so interesting and actually being on the battle fields while he spoke gave such perspective.  Since we were kid free, Obie and I tried some local hard ciders which were delicious.  We ate at O’Rourke’s restaurant which was named after James O’Rourke, an officer that fought at Gettysburg—he was in the same class at West Point as General Custer.  O’Rourke was first in his class and Custer was last, graduating a year early.  We saw a monument for O’Rourke on our tour and the legend is that you get the luck of the Irish if you rub his nose.  

Current Leg: 53 miles

Total distance:  1,355 miles

BONUS POST By Isaiah

Travel log “ Ritchey Boys Excursion”

We went to the grandparent camp at Blue Knob, PA. They have a dog named Maia and she’s an English Mastiff and she weighs more than me! She’s big but super sweet. Our favorite activity was playing in the yard and going for walks.

Pap rented a pontoon boat for the day at Lake Galiztin State Park. The day was sadly cold and windy but we still got our fishing in, but we still did not catch anything. Gran packed us sandwiches and chips for lunch.

My pap had a Jon boat that he hadn’t used in 15 years. So you can imagine how much work it took to get it ready. We cleaned it up with the power washer and the hose which took multiple days. Finally after multiple days and some hitch problems, we got to go to the Willmore Dam and I caught 1 fish. It a 3 pound smallmouth bass🎉.

And on the final day we went to the Altoona curve game which was a great game and the curve won 7-6 against the Richmond flying squirrels.  We got to meet mascots Steely McBeam, Al tuna and Loco when I yelled “PLAY BALL” at the beginning of the game on the field. I also got a signature from the catcher of the curve. I ate a burger and fry’s for my food. The game was 9/10 the food was great and the mascots were cool.

We also kept up our National park stickers while we were at grandparent camp. Gran took us to the Lemon House. It was a tavern for people who rode the trains newly built Allegheny portage Railroad. For 30 minutes they ate and got the trains repaired if needed.

.

Cousin Time!

Isaiah here: 

We are mooch docking at our cousins’ house! (definition: staying at someone’s house and using their hookups such as electricity). The first day we got there we just took some time to say hi because we haven’t seen them in a while. They also have moved into a new house so we got the grand tour!  We took a late night swim in their private pool! It had a basketball hoop and a blow up volleyball net. My cousin Molly and I competed for the title of “best volleyballer “. Then we hit the hay for a big day ahead. 

We woke up to go fishing with my grandpa, my cousins and my uncle.  Unfortunately, we caught nothing💀!  Then we headed to a fundraiser lemonade stand that Molly’s friend was doing to support pediatric cancer. This is her fifth year doing a lemonade stand for this cause. It was important to us because our other cousin Harper is currently fighting cancer at just 4 years old so we made sure to support. Her fundraising goal was $2,500 but she raised $3,133🎉🥳!!! We went back to swim in the pool yet again and have a cookout and s’mores!  The next day we woke up to my uncles famous homemade donuts, they were the best donuts I’ve ever had! They were made hot and the powdered sugar ones were the best in my opinion.  Sadly it was time to get packed up but we snuck in one more swim while my parents went to get the camper ready to leave.  

Next stop in the trip is Gettysburg!

Current trip: 134 miles

Total miles:  1,302 miles

Guest writer today of Mom.  We have been having a lot of fun and so busy that we got a little behind on blogs updates.  I am going to help Isaiah get caught up and then hand the reins back to him!  We are starting our home schooling on Wednesday Sept 10th.  His writing will be a part of his school for the year so we hope to stay current!  

We drove from West Point campground to Mount Poconos Campground in Pennsylvania.   Every time we get into a new state, Eli yells from the backseat “NEW STATE UNLOCKED!”    We are keeping a sticker board of the US and we are adding a sticker of the state every time we camp in a new state.  

This stay was a little different.  We had some extended family needs that took me to Pittsburgh but Dad held down the fort while I was gone. 

[BREAK-BREAK! Guest-Guest Paragraph Writer Dad, here!] We had a fun couple of days trying to keep from missing Mom too much while she was in the ‘Burgh. We found a really fun animal rescue/zoo with monkeys, bears, alligators and turtles—of course they had a nice paid upgrade to be able to feed the animals and of course we couldn’t say no. Best part was the lizards licking up the meal worms but the monkeys grabbing fruit thrown at them was a very close second. 

It was crazy busy—and a good value for all the animals they had to visit…We snuck out after to head up the road with our pick-a-nick basket and enjoy the Delaware Water Gap NP. Boys got their stamps and it was one of the better educational setups we’ve seen with many examples of wildlife found in the area. Even better were the deer back at the campsite though, who didn’t seem to mind we were about 20 yards away on the walking trail. Eli liked the deer—and Isaiah thought they would be delicious.

[BACK TO REGULARLY SCHEDULED PROGRAMMING.]

I arrived back at the campsite just in time for our final full day in the Poconos.  Uncle Ryan recommended we go to Old Forge, PA for pizza.  It was just like the pizza they used to serve us in elementary school or you got at the store in the white box.  After filling our bellies, we went to the Steamtown national park in Scranton, PA. We enjoyed learning all about trains and the history of the railroad.  We got to tour a caboose and engine car.  

We were super excited about our next destination… our first attempt at Moochdocking.   That is defined as parking in someone’s driveway and using their amenities instead of a campground.  Stay tuned!  Isaiah will be the author of that adventure.

Current log- 94 miles

Total distance- 1,168 miles

West Point- Round Pond

We are in West Point Fam Cam for a 4 night stay. Getting in was a little bit tricky with a 20 degree slope and lots of winding roads💀. We got in and the whole campground was wrapped around a small pond. The key place we were going to here was West Point military academy.  At the visitor center, there was a movie about the work it takes to go to school there.  They wake up at 5:00 am and go to bed at 10:00pm! They have a very structured schedule. There was also a museum about the history of West Point. The school is set in the mountains above the Hudson River, so there were some beautiful views. However, my dad told me to wait until we are out west to see what a real service academy looks like 😂. GO AIR FORCE! 

The next day, we took a trip to another local pond but not just any pond.  It was a pond with a giant inflatable obstacle course.  They had a small one for Eli and a big one for me 💪. There was a set of cylinders in the water that you had run over and not fall down into the water.  A climbing wall, a slide, and a place to jump off of. The place was fun and we stayed for a couple hours. After swimming, we went to the best ice cream place yet! It was called The Ice Cream Shoppe and were making fresh waffle cones on the spot. I got mint and cookie dough it was a ♾️/10 the warm waffle cones with the perfect amount of dough in the cookie dough go was perfect 👌.

Next adventure is to explore the Pocono mountains in Pennsylvania!

Current log: 204 Miles- longest travel day so far!

Total Miles: 1,074Miles

Newport 

We are staying in Newport for a 4 night stay. Right next to the rv park was a small pond. I caught 4 bass and a bluegill while fishing in the pond. The campground was cool. There was a playground but that’s just about it.

Our first adventure in Rhode Island was to actually go back to Massachusetts to the whale museum in the town of New Bedford. We did the National park before the museum and got another stamp for our book. At the museum, there were big models to show the sheer size of blue whales and humpback whales. There was also a bunch of pictures on the wall of people who whaled. My favorite part was the model of a whale heart that you got to climb inside because it’s that big.

Next up was touring the USS Nautilus, which was the first nuclear powered submarine. There was a whole museum on the ground about how they made the torpedoes and what they were used for, but then you also got to go inside the US Nautilus, which was my favorite part. You got to see how they got to live in a submarine.  What was crazy is the regular soldiers only got like 2 feet of space between their head and the ground yet the commander got his entire own room to him self.

Our last adventure of this stop was to go to the town of Newport, RI.  We did the famous cliff walk which was beautiful but very busy with lots of people.  We trail is along a cliff and in front of these huge mansions.  We could tour the mansions but mom and dad didn’t think we were up for that.  We ended up in downtown Newport and got their famous Frozen Lemonade at Del’s.  

Current Log: 60 Miles

Total Miles: 870 Miles