Dynamite Roasting Company - Black Mountain, NC

Cool things around Ashvegas

Shark toys in Bettina's bathtub

Suitcases converted to shelving

Salvaged doors used for under the countertop

Hike in Swannanoa

A walk through the "cesspool of sin" - Asheville

Standing nun on a bike in downtown Asheville

Trough like fountain

Ashvegas Reunion

Lisa, Cynthia, Kirsten

Lisa looking through a glass of water

Rummikub

Lisa, Cynthia and Kirsten

Kirsten, Brian and Lisa

Kirsten and Brian

Brian, Lisa, Kirsten and Ginger

Calvin

Lava lamp

Maria shows off her bathroom design

Purle hangs out in her faux mink bed on the dashboard

Walterboro, Colleton County, South Carolina

Web worms

Sunset on the swamp

Cypress knee

Bridge over the Edisto River

A view of the Edisto River

Azaleas are in full bloom and the bees and butterflies are busy

Picnic table yoga and stretching (the ground was sandy and damp)

Old water tower in downtown Walterboro, SC. Construction of the tower was completed in 1915, designed and built by a Boston Engineering firm. Only two others like it exist in South Carolina. It is built of reinforced concrete and is 133 feet high. The water tank, which holds 100,000 gallons of water, is still used by the City of Walterboro and has become a familiar landmark of Washington Street and Godfrey Alley.

The lower portion was used by the city as a jail for a short time and sometimes stranded travelers were allowed to lodge here for a night.

Total Man Deliverance - Pastor Zellaree Pinckney

Fishers of Men Church

Our next stop is a Colleton State Park in Walterboro, SC. It's a really beautiful park nestled in the woods. Our campsite is next to the Edisto River, the longest completely undammed blackwater river in North America. The river is in the top five in the country for canoeing/kayaking.

The forest ranger was exuberant about the park and (all of South Carolina) gave us the scoop on the trails and outfitters for a float trip. He also mentioned that they have these fabulous treehouses along the river for camping (also known as "glamping").

On Monday we went to town for groceries (milk was $7.77 a gallon at the tiny store close to the park) and explored Walterboro. Population less than 10,000. Founded in 1783 as a summer retreat for local planters looking to escape their malaria-ridden, lowcountry plantations.

In 1942, Walterboro became home to the Walterboro Army Air Field, a sub-base of Columbia Army Air Base and part of the overall network of army air training facilities that sprang up across the US during World War II. The base was established to provide advanced air combat training to fighter and bomber groups. It also hosted the largest camouflage school in the United States, as well as a 250 person Prisoner of War Camp. In 1944 the air field changed commands and became an advanced combat training base for individual fighters, primarily the black trainees graduating from Tuskegee Army Air Field in Tuskegee, Alabama. Over 500 of the famed Tuskegee Airmen trained at Walterboro Army Air Field between April 1944 and October 1945 including individuals training as replacement pilots for the 332nd Fighter Squadron and the entire 447th Bombardment Group. The base closed in October 1945 and returned to its origins as a local airfield.