We Be Trippin': The Great DIS-nee Road Trip

[Marshay]

And 5 Guys Burgers for dinner! I'm in heaven! I wish they had one up in my area.

OK, OK, you all have convinced me...we are going to 5 Guys soon for burgers and fries!! We have one in our area but I've never been...

 

[Marshay]

The U.S. National Whitewater Center (USNWC) is the world’s premier outdoor recreation and environmental education center. Alongside mountain-biking and running trails, a climbing center, and challenge course, the park’s unique feature is a multiple-channel, customized whitewater river for rafting and canoe/kayak enthusiasts of all abilities.

The USNWC is only 10 minutes from downtown Charlotte and provides over 300 acres of woodlands along the scenic Catawba River. Olympic-caliber athletes, weekend warriors and casual observers share this world-class sports and training center.

Inspired by the successful Penrith Whitewater Stadium built for the 2000 Olympics and the stadium built for the 2004 Athens Games, the USNWC is the world’s only multi-channel recirculating whitewater river. The USOC has designated the USNWC an official U.S. Olympic Training Site.

The national governing body for the sport, USA Canoe and Kayak (USACK) has also designated the Center as its new home. The USNWC hosts World Cup competitions and Olympic Trials, and serves as the home of international Olympic athletes.

On the food theme tour............there is a great restaurant on site (serving yummy wings among other things) that overlooks the water. Just beautiful!

Now this is super cool!! I went white-water rafting on the Gauley River in West Virginia several years ago --- loved it and was super scared on the Class 5's at the same time!! My first and only w/w rafting!

 

[Marshay]

This is the viewing window into the 6.1 million gallon main tank that holds an amazing array of sealife including three whalesharks! Amazing...

...more tomorrow...

Whale sharks???? How totally and utterly cool!!! Between the Coke plant (my DH is a die-hard Coke person) and the whale sharks, I think we are going to Atlanta soon!

 

[Marshay]

Here is some other stuff I wasn't aware of yet.

OMG -- Diving with whale sharks -- If I tell my DH this, we are coming next available dive time!!! So who's going to host us?!!??

 

[Marshay]

Just outside the city is a beautiful Stone Mountain that holds one of the largest exposed granite stones in the world! Most importantly, is the largest low relief sculpture in the world - the Confederate Memorial Carvings - on the northern face of the mountain. The three Confederate war heroes depicted in the carving are President Jefferson Davis, General Robert E. Lee, and General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson. The mountain is 825 feet tall and covers 583 acres. The top of the mountain is 1,683 feet above sea level. The entire carved surface of the Memorial Carving measures three acres, larger than a football field. The carving of the three men towers 400 feet above the ground, measures 90 by 190 feet, and is recessed 42 feet into the mountain. The deepest point of the carving is at Lee's elbow, which is 12 feet to the mountain's surface.

​

Very cool to see Stone Mountain! I was in Atlanta once for business and remember seeing Stone Mountain from far away and wondered what it was...Now I know!​

 

[Marshay]

Ahhhhh! "The Billy Goat Trail"!!! ... Another great choice, Marshay!

Just to clarify -- I did Billy Goat Trail before DD was born! No, I wouldn't climb that straight up rock cliff with her!

When we took DD, we just went on the main rocks -- no uphill.

Anyway, I took my parents to Great Falls Park today since the Potomac River is near flood stage -- WOW!!! The water is so high! Normally it's about 250,000 gallons per second ... and with all the rains we had, it's up to 1 million per second!

 

[KigerKat]

OMG -- Diving with whale sharks -- If I tell my DH this, we are coming next available dive time!!! So who's going to host us?!!??

Y'all can stay with us!! (And while you're here, I may have you help me out with some flowers and scrapbooking crafts...)

 

[Marshay]

Ok, I'm all caught up! Can't wait to hear from Suz (I think she's next? or did I get lost somewhere along the way...) Just please pick me up when you see me on the side of the road...

 

[Marshay]

Y'all can stay with us!! (And while you're here, I may have you help me out with some flowers and scrapbooking crafts...)

That's a deal!!

 

[DISgeeksfromDC]

Ok, I'm all caught up! Can't wait to hear from Suz (I think she's next? or did I get lost somewhere along the way...) Just please pick me up when you see me on the side of the road...

Hmmmmm.... Actually, you've raised a very good question!

I was under the impression that JenniferAtl passed the baton to BTM and KigerKat (leaving the Atlanta portion of our trip in their capable hands) before departing for Savannah.

Oops! 'Just noticed that you were asking about Suz -- not JenniferAtl... Actually, madbrad should be next, followed by Disneymommom. Suz D then will follow those two.


(Psssst! Madbrad: Are you out there? )

******​

To review....

VIRTUAL ROAD-TRIP ITINERARY:

1 (a.) – DISgeeksfromDC (Gaithersburg, MD)
1 (b.) – Mr. DISgeeksfromDC (Gaithersburg, MD)
2 – HaunteMansionFan (Taunton, MA)
3 – 3guysandagal (Richmond Hill, Ontario, CA)
4 – Marshay (Ashburn, Virginia)
5 (a.) – Mrs. fleagle (Yorktown, VA)
5 (b.) – fleagle (Yorktown, VA)
6 – AnnDisneyFan (Charlotte, NC)
7 - BigThunderMtn (Atlanta, GA)
8 – JenniferAtl (Atlanta, GA)
9 – KigerKat (Atlanta, GA)
10 – madbrad76 (Florence, AL) <----- We currently are heading here!
11 - Disneymommom (Dry Prong, LA)
12 – Suz D (Bloomington, IN)
13 – tothesea (Oklahoma City, OK)
14 – spreadingpixiedust (Tyler, TX)
15 – catotigger (Bryan, TX)
16 – swwaake (Austin, TX)
17 – calliaz (Tempe, AZ)
18 – Disneyfalcon (Colorado Springs, CO)
19 – FirstTimeCaller (Freeland, WA)
20 – circusgirl (Seattle, WA)
21 (a.) - mrs autopia driver (Bremerton, WA)
21 (b.) - wotruba-disney/Mr. Autotopia (Bremerton, WA)
22 - DSNY4ever (Folsom, CA)
23 – CalDisneyFamily (California)
24 - Disneyland (Anaheim, CA)
25 - Miss Stitch (Leeds, England)
26 - disneyhockeymad (Kent, England)
27 - Disneyland Resort Paris

 

[DISgeeksfromDC]

....here are our travelling music picks.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDDXHdHSinM

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=UsCW-YWAKpY&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BARLfUmyBJA&feature=related

Yay! 'Tunes for the road!

I have another music pick that sort of fits the current mood:

James Taylor's "Traffic Jam"

(Extraneous "Fluff": I posted this video, 'cuz I'm a fan of this particular version of James Taylor's song. I truly "get" that the protesters in the video don't want a Wal*Mart in the middle their neighborhood --
but I'll admit that I sometimes shop there... )

 

[Mrs. Fleagle]

Yay! 'Tunes for the road!

I have another music pick that sort of fits the current mood:

James Taylor's "Traffic Jam"

(Extraneous "Fluff": I posted this video, 'cuz I'm a fan of this particular version of James Taylor's song. I truly "get" that the protesters in the video don't want a Wal*Mart in the middle their neighborhood --
but I'll admit that I sometimes shop there... )

LOVE JAMES TAYLOR! GOOD PICK DISGEEKS!

 

[Circusgirl]

It's nice to see you DISgeeks, and fun to hear you and Marshay catch up on the trip. It's had many amazing parts and I'm enjoying reliving it with you.

 

[Marshay]

Sorry DisGeeks and MadBrad -- didn't mean to mix the order up...I easily got confused...just remember to pick me up wherever you are!

PS -- I know Disneymommom is visiting friends and family this week so not sure if she will be on this week or not...I'll try to catch her on one of the other threads she hangs out on...I'm very curious what's in Dry Prong, LA!!

 

[DISgeeksfromDC]

Some more backyard fun for the kids while the rest of us chat........

We just put up the slide today!

Lovely place you have here, and the play area is wonderful!

Thanks for such a warm welcome Mrs. Fleagle! Everything is so nice! And this new water slide is amazing! It looks like so much fun--would have loved that years and years ago when actually little enough to play on it! So cool you guys get to have it right in your yard!

I second -- or third -- that! What a fun backyard! (It's practically an amusement park!) I bet the neighborhood kids really enjoy playing at your house!

 

[DISgeeksfromDC]

... this new water slide is amazing! It looks like so much fun--would have loved that years and years ago when actually little enough to play on it!

Eric and I were saying the same thing tonight! I had a metal swingset that tipped over and other than a swampy in ground pool, the preformed plastic kind was it!

Ah yes.....the old metal swingset.
Complete with slide in my case.
Metal slide that is, before plastic.
Pour water down it to cool it off in the summer and then have to let it dry, or dry it off, and then go!!!

Memmmmmmorieeeessss.....Like the corners of my minddddd....

"Proud" owner of a metal swing-set (painted in patriotic colors) during my childhood, too! If you'd swing high enough, the whole thing would "shudder" and its A-frame poles would start to lift out of the ground. ('Guess that might have been a good enough reason to pour cement into the holes! For whatever reason, my parents never did, though. Hey! At least I'm still around to talk about it... )

 

[DISgeeksfromDC]

Thanks for the delightful dinner! I am regretting the lasagne only a little after that last ride...

 

[DISgeeksfromDC]

Wait!!!!

Everyone can't go yet!!! I was just getting the paint ready.

What do ya'll think about these ...

Or these ...

Ummmm.... Wow, Madbrad! (I'm practically speechless...)

One is a snack-food marketer's paradise. The other is... Well! ... It sure is interesting!

 

[DISgeeksfromDC]

Good Morning Everyone....enjoy the sunrise in Virginia Beach....our destination today for a quick visit.

Yay! My hometown! ('Guess I'd better swing by and say "Hi" to the folks!)

 

[DISgeeksfromDC]

Another place I frequented when I was growing up was Mount Trashmore. Ever heard of it. Well it is literally a mountain/park built on a mound of trash!

World-renowned Mount Trashmore Park is 165 acres, 60 feet high, over 800 feet long, and was created by compacting layers of solid waste and clean soil. Recognized for its environmental feat, the park features the Water Wise demonstration garden that boasts xeriscaping where you can learn how to create a beautiful garden with minimal water requirements.

This is perhaps the best viewing area for the 4th of July fireworks display! Incredible!

Yep! Been there, and I even watched the fireworks from there during high school! (One of my friends lived within walking distance of the park, so we'd park our cars in her driveway. We'd then head to Mount Trashmore to catch the 4th of July fireworks display.) 'Guess that was half a lifetime ago!

Do you remember when the interstate heading towards the beach (I-264) used to be a toll road?!?