So. Carolina State Championship “The Bushwhack”

 Side event day at “The Bushwhack”, Ive run into several friends  and quite a few acquaintances.  I spent much of the day shooting the Wild Bunch Mini Match, 4 stages.  Good posse, actually there were 2 posses since we had 27 shooters.  It still took about 4 hours.  Fun stuff including a Texas Star, that’s a devilish five point star with a detachable target on each point.  It starts spinning as the weight balance changes when you shoot off a point.  Carlene came over with me and was there most of the day.  She had some clothes in the swap meet but didn’t sell any.  When I was done with Wild Bunch I made a clothes and gear switch to go shoot some side events, speed pistol, rifle & shotgun.  Just to do some shooting since it has been a month.  During that time Carlene went back to camp and took Skye for a walk & swim.  Skye had stayed back there with the AC on in the trailer.  It was about 82 today.

I guess I got back around 3:30 and set about changing gear in the truck for the main match tomorrow.  It’s a different style camping off-site.  I’m used to camping on the range and just walking back to the camp when I forget something.  But all the ammo is in the truck anyway, so I cant forget that!

Hung out on the deck here with the other three people from NC.  They were cleaning guns, I was grilling burgers.  Now as 9 PM approaches I am finding out that I’m tired!

Narrow leaved blue eyed grass

Toney 2

 Another simple day/. We went for a walk out in back of the pond, to another pond and beyond.  It wasn’t all that far really but enjoyable.  Skye was off leash and had a fantastic time running and swimming and splashing all around.  And chasing ducks too. 

The some more camper maintenance, crawl under it and reconnect some brake wires that were then in the blowout last week.    Then secure what was left of the insulation that was torn loose in that same incident. Just to keep it in place, it doesn’t amount to much really.  

Also had to get some guns & clothes out for the match starting tomorrow.

We were out of milk again, so another run into Belton to find a store.  Found the strip section of town and it has all the usual boxes,; supermarket, fast food, auto parts…

Back at camp we have two neighbors, all from NC.  One couple has secluded in the AC of their camper, the others, a dad and two grown kids, hung out on the deck and we talked a while.  They had been at EOT too, camped in the same lot as we did, just 3 rows behind us.

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Skye didn’t care about no decoys

But she sure was interested in live ducks!

Camp in the background 

Zoomies!

More bird watching

The sounds of a pond in the dark

Full moon rising and reflecting

Toney Creek Plantation, Belton SC

 Nice easy drive today, about 75 miles.  Could have been shorter but the GPS keeps the trailer on bigger roads when available.  So much of the day was on 4 lane non-interstate.  We did see several more nice little towns.

Our campsite is beside a clubhouse of sorts.  Toney Creek is a hunting plantation and this is a dining hall for the larger groups.  There is a nice pond here too.  We were going to let Skye get in a swim but there were fishermen there, and it’s not quite big enough that a splashing dog would probably bother the fish.  There is also a goof sized flock of Mallard ducks here.  They came right up the bank to the building this evening.  Apparently they like to use that bank at night.  They got used to us after a while.  Skye would have been in the middle of them if she was loose.  On her rope she still liked to hang out and watch them constantly.  Like TV for a dog!

We went over to the Belton Gun Club to check it out.  The gates were closed so we didn’t get in, but now we know the route and its only 5 miles away.  Belton city is also 5 miles in a different direction.  We went there too.  Nice enough, but the downtown is pretty small and about half occupied.  We’ve seen that in so many small towns, a lot of vacancy.

Downtown Belton 

The 1908 standpipe 

That ladder looks like a thing that makes nightmares

Belton railroad station, now a museum

A few map shots of where we are

Watching the ducks

The ducks being watched

And they roam around front too

Sunset, it didn’t get to be much more than this

Elijah Clarke 3

 We woke up to a cool and rainy day.  Lacking any real desire to get cold and wet we stayed in all morning.  Skye got bored and wanted to play with me despite whatever I was trying to do.  But since most of the time I wasn’t doing anything important, we played.

We did finish planning the camping places for the next period of time in SC & NC.  So, tomorrow we go to the Belton SC area to dry camp on a private hunting preserve, then a couple days in a SC State Park on the east side before meeting up and camping at Cedar Point NC with David & Gale.  Then a couple more days near where they will be camping after we all leave Cedar Pt.  I think that takes us up to 4/15, and we aren’t planning anything after that just yet.

Later in the afternoon we went driving around a bit.  Checked out how to leave this park by way of the dump station, that sounds pretty simple but it isn’t laid out all that clearly.  I’ve mentioned how I dont like exploring with the camper attached.  Then over the river to McCormick SC.  A nice little town with some nice older buildings on Main St.  We stopped in a couple stores, a cool hardware store that has some of everything.  Except the diesel fuel treatment that I wanted.  And a nifty antique store, a couple floors and all sorts of goods.  The kind that I like to look at.  Old tools, and tempting stuff.  We came out empty handed but entertained.

When we got back we owed Skye a walk around the campground.  Then just sat out front and watched the kids in the neighborhood playing.

McCormick, SC

I’d really like to get out too!

Elijah Clarke 2

 It was a nice night, warmer than expected.  It was 56 outdoors when we got up, 48 was forecast.  

There is a three mile loop trail in the park so we took that this morning.  Very nice, and Skye got a 40 minute swim. She still didn’t want to come out but she was starting to shiver!  Going back to walking up the trail warmed her up in no time.  And she was nearly dry when we got back to the truck. Then we toured some more of the park by truck. 

Follow that with a quick trip to Lincolnton for milk, which became a few more things. The refrigerator in small so we need frequent trips to a store. 

Lounged around camp a bit.  I had to adjust some tire pressures that I’d put off long enough.  It easier with shore power to run the compressor than to use a generator.  

A neighbor was very curious about the toy hauler so made a couple visits to check it out.  

This is the best sunset in several days.  I’m not in shorts &T-shirt tonight but it’s still very pleasant at 8:25.

We found this platform during our walk

Nothing like a good roll in the dirt after a swim.

Followed by another swim to get cleaned up

Watching a Canada Goose in the water

The Elijah Clarke cabin

Two hanging at camp

I want that squirrel!!!!

But I’m on a rope!

Sunset from my chair

Elijah Clarke State Park, Lincolnton, GA

 It was a dark and stormy… day.  Rained cats & dogs from the time we left the peach orchard until just before we arrived at the state park.  Like wipers on full speed and just able to see. Kind of stormy.  We made one stop for munchies when it was in a lull and heard the thunder above us.  That was all the thunder we heard.  The weather map claimed that south GA would have potential for several thunder storms while north GA and all other coastal states from New Orleans to Caribou would have rain.

Now we have bright sunny afternoon on a big reservoir and just some moderate wind.  Beautiful setting.  T-shirt but not shorts today.  But last night I was out at 10 in T-shirt and shorts at 67 deg.  It was still 64 this morning.  It is supposed to be nice for the next 2 days that we are here.  But we’re expecting showers most of next week during the cowboy shoot.  The SC State Championship is next Thur-Sat in Belton SC, about 55 miles from here.  We’ll move up to a dry camping place on Tue.  Sadly, there is no camping on the grounds at the shoot.  

Storm Thurmond Reservoir or Cherry Hill Lake, is 39 miles long in the Savannah River.  Our campsite is across the road from the water with a full view of the lake and of SC on the opposite shore.  It’s a very scenic spot.  Considering that it was just about the last available campsite in any state park in the region last night we are lucky to be here!  We already took a good walk around, met another dog and a few people, Skye went for a swim.  Skye was very wet and happy after that.  She has dried off now in just 2 hours.  She’s ready for another swim, if you ask her.

Last night

Tonight, 3 nights here

Skye got to swim again!

View from our camp