GLOBETROTTING

Miramar Beach - The Emerald Coast in the
Panhandle of Florida

And there we were, already excited about being at one of our favorite destinations, and then it rains just about every day of our stay on the Emerald Coast in west Florida.

#1 State Park and RV Campground
Topsail Hill Preserve State Park

Topsail Hill Preserve State Park in Santa Rosa Beach, FL is one of the most desired State Park RV resorts in Florida - always being voted #1 in the State of Florida.  This geographical area of Florida is referred to as The Emerald Coast because of the vivid blue green color of the water in the Gulf of Mexico.

Santa Rosa Beach, FL
How can you forget the white confectioner sugar sandy beaches?

This area is very desirable as far as real estate is concerned and so much development is taking place since our last visit.  Hard to believe all the new construction as you drive down Highway 30A. This popular and scenic highway connects Santa Rosa Beach to other planned communities such as Watercolor and Seaside to name a few.

While in Destin I completed an 8 week online business course which will enhance future ARTitude Adjustment classes. During our time in Destin I flew to Toronto for a 4 day business conference that had been scheduled since last April.

Toronto, Canada at nighttime

Toronto, Canada - on beautiful
Lake Ontario

 The trip in itself was worthy of a blogpost, but I'll just say the trip was very successful and worthwhile in many ways.

We are officially on our way to Red Bay, AL and will be in Montgomery, AL for an overnight.  We are traveling with our friends, Clay and Frances Croom, and Mrs. Lynette Croom, Clay's 87 year old spunky and lovable mother.  Our choice of a place to stay while we are getting service in Red Bay is always the Downtown Red Bay RV Campground.

Downtown Red Bay, AL -
Home of Tiffin Motorhomes

Highway 24 - also referred to affectionately as
Tammy Wynette Highway

The next few weeks will be interesting because northwest Alabama holds lots of exciting opportunities....but you have to look for them sometimes.

If you want the freshest catfish dinner anywhere, you
head to Swamp John's Restaurant, Red Bay, AL

The Rattlesnake Saloon  - yes, a pickup truck takes you
to the cave where the restaurant is located inside

Celebrated once a year on Labor Day Weekend - Worth a visit!
Only AKC Registered Coon Hounds are allowed to be buried here.

 By the way, Red Bay is the birthplace of our motorhome, Tiffin Motorhomes, and while we usually pull into town every year, this year we will be here as Red Bay celebrates 200 years on Founder's Day on September 21.  We try to make Red Bay one of our travel stops if possible, where we not only get to visit special friends but we receive exceptional and professional service for our Tiffin Allegro Bus.  

NO SUCH THING AS TOO MUCH BLING!

Sometimes our travel plans don't go exactly as planned, but we've learned that if you can't be  flexible, then maybe the full time RV lifestyle isn't for you.  Complaining or whining isn't going to help so you need to make the best of any situation and you will be happier and so will those around you.

So here we are, in the middle of hurricane season, 2 weeks past our plans to depart Alabama.  We departed Florida last April and we're anxious to return.   However, on the positive side, we are in our home on wheels, safe and sound, and sleeping in our own bed every night....Life is good.

Rain and wind are not what we are looking for!

We are about as northwest in Alabama as you can be... Red Bay, Alabama, where we schedule our annual RV maintenance as well as usually adding a few upgrades to our coach.  Red Bay is located very close to Belmont, MS, slightly west of Red Bay.  Belmont is known as the home to several thriving industries and the birthplace of well known country musician, Mac McAnally.

Welcome to the State of Mississippi!

This is us "Roughing It Smoothly" as Tiffin says

Red Bay is the location of Tiffin Motorhomes, and over the past 10 years of owning our motorhome we look forward to seeing our Red Bay friends every year (and many have become extensions of our family), as well as numerous private contractors that take care of any issues we may have to keep our coach in good condition.  

Fun and Fellowship at the Downtown Red Bay RV Park
Red Bay, AL

These independent contractors do beautiful woodwork, painting, diesel maintenance, general maintenance, and specialized installations.  (If you would be interested in seeing some of our coach upgrades, they are located on the UPGRADES tab of this blog).  

We learn something new every time we visit the area, and a lot of what we have picked up along the way is the importance of Alabama and Mississippi music history, i.e., the "Muscle Shoals Sound".  Within a few miles of us are several Mississippi Music Trail historical markers of country music stars from this area which have influenced all our country music, like Tammy Wynette, known as the "First Lady Of Country Music", from nearby Tremont, MS, and Mac McAnally, from Belmont, MS.  Remember one of his hits, "Where I Come From"?  

"First Lady of Country Music"
Tammy Wynette

Mississippi Country Music Trail Historical Marker

Mississippi Country Music Trail Historical Marker
Mac McAnally

Mississippi Country Music Trail Historical Marker
Mac McAnally

We will be leaving Red Bay (1) when it is safe to return to Florida and (2) as soon as a few electronic component parts on order arrive.  An item you might notice as we pass you going down the road is the new stainless accent trim on our engine compartment doors.  As RV says, "You just can't have too much bling on classic cars, motorcycles, or RVs!"

Rear Engine Doors

THE FIRST LADY OF COUNTRY MUSIC

 After reading about an upcoming festival in the Red Bay, AL area, my friend, Kathy Page, and I decided we could make our Labor Day weekend more exciting by attending a festival in Tremont, MS, on September 1, at the intersection of Highway 178 and Highway 23 North.  Upon arriving, we were pleasantly surprised to a classic car show, silent auction, food, live music, and planned activities.  If you brought your lawn chair you were definitely going to be entertained all day long!

Labor Day Festival - Tremont, MS

Lots of preparation to feed all the people

Car Show

Car Show

Car Show

Car Show - I want it!

Tremont, MS, founded in 1852, is in Itawamba County, MS, and the 2014 population is close to 500, give or take a few.  Virginia Wynette Pugh, also known as Tammy Wynette, grew up between Tremont and Red Bay in the Bounds Community.  We arrived in Tremont by driving from Red Bay on the "Tammy Wynette Highway", which connects MS Highway 23 from the Alabama State Line to Tremont.  

Rural Mississippi

 This small, sweet town has one grocery store, 1 restaurant, 5 very large churches, and the appearance of very few homes.  As it was explained to us, most of the homes are spread out on land from 500 acres to 1800 acres, obviously an important agricultural part of the state.

We were pleasantly surprised to find out what the Labor Day Festival was about through Mrs. Holly Ford, an original promoter, 24/7 marketing director, and who, is also on the Board of Directors of Tremont Village - Home of Tammy Wynette.   This festival was held on the future site of Tremont Village, and has been in the planning stages for about the last 3 years with numerous fans and people involved.  Mrs. Ford's best friend in school was, you guessed it, Tammy Wynette.  

Holly Ford - Citizen of Tremont
Kathy Page - my friend

Tee Shirt - Yes, we  have one!

Tremont Village, when completed, will be a world class attraction and a beautiful tribute to the first lady of country music, Tammy Wynette (5/5/42 - 4/6/98).   Tammy Wynette, one of the most acclaimed performers in the history of country music, had 20 era-defining Number 1 records, such as "Take Me To Your World", D-I-V-O-R-C-E, and "Stand By Your Man".  Country music fans will soon include Tremont as a part of the Mississippi Country Music Trail, a very popular circuit for fans who travel from Nashville, Muscle Shoals, Tupelo, and now, Tremont, MS.

A "Tammy" Fan!

From the Tammy Wynette collection
Red Bay, AL Museum

Tammy Wynette

From Tammy Wynette Collection
Red Bay, AL Museum

From Tammy Wynette Collection
Red Bay, AL Museum

The Itawamba County and Mississippi State Tourism Board seem to be very serious in their vision for "Tremont Village" by making a $2.5 million grant available with matching funds, and that's where this festival, corporate sponsors, devoted fans, and other fund raisers will come into play to make this dream come true.  Artist renderings of the Village are at the Buster Davis Ford Dealership in Fulton, Mississippi.

One of the most impressive tourism and welcome centers in the state is located closeby on major US Highway 78, which will help draw tourists both nationally and internationally.  Tremont Village will include a small recording studio, an auditorium where world-class entertainers will perform, a chapel where weddings or other events will take place, and a 24/7 restaurant/tourism store.

On another note, but related, make sure you buy a Tammy Wynette postage stamp when the U.S. Post Office begins selling them.

ALLEGRO CAMPGROUND 2009

If you've been following RV THERE YET since last year, you might remember how we make our annual pilgrimage to Red Bay, AL, home of Tiffin Motorhomes, the manufacturer of our coach. We make an appointment a year in advance and when we arrive we present them with several pages of service and warranty issues, adjustments and items we'd like added for our comfort....since this is our home. While the facilities provide water, sewer and everything you need, it is dusty and close quarters, so what you do is meet other people from all over the country - many of them full-timers like us, and you trade ideas and see what they've done to their coaches to make them more comfortable. On a daily basis, we are offered delicious fresh homemade country sausage, country thick sliced bacon, huge fresh farm eggs, and there's even a local restaurant owner that drives up and down the rows selling his famous bar-b-que. And I almost forgot the lady that sells fresh baked bread and the 90 year old farmer that sells fresh produce out of the back of his truck. All of these things add to the flavor of our annual Red Bay trip.

When your apppointment time arrives, you leave your parking area about 6:30 a.m. every morning and return to your parking space at 3:00 p.m., the end of the shift for the technicians. Each day you report to a specific bay (there are about 60 bays) and whatever needs to be done will be accomplished before you leave. A huge lounge is on site where coffee and comfortable seating is provided. Animals are allowed on leashes (since many RVer's have animals), and it gets lively sometimes. You sometimes spend hours in the lounge so you meet people from all over. Many people decide to get new coaches, refurbish old coaches, etc., and you can make arrangements to go through the factory where the 2010 models are in production. A bright spot for us is that you meet the people in the community and enjoy all there is to love about this small but special community. The cost of living doesn't compare to most places we travel - a delicious lunch is usually at the Piggly Wiggly, or Swamp John's for catfish dinners, and you meet people who can take care of just about anything you need on your coach, from beautiful finished carpentry, expert diesel service, to state of the art electronics. You might even meet someone who knew Tammy Wynette, from the Red Bay area, and certainly knew someone who wrote songs for her.

Since we were going to be in Red Bay on Labor Day, I had looked forward to the festivities which would be held in the Coon Dog Cemetery (liar's contest, buck dancing, bar-b-que); however, we had an opportunity to leave on Saturday, 9/5, after our coach was completly detailed - inside and out - (and all our service items had been compleeted), so we headed northwest to Tunica, MS, a town less than 20 miles from Memphis, TN. and we will recuperate and take life a little easier before we head toward the Branson, MO area.