Short Golf Adventure under COVID Precautions

Tuesday, 19 May

After over 9 weeks of hunkering down, Sprinty was more than ready to be out adventuring again. After all, had COVID not been an issue, Sprinty would be in British Columbia right now, headed for Alaska. Despite Kris and Darrell only setting up a short, golf-focused trip, Sprinty was more than willing to get out and patiently wait for them while they played golf for hours (sometimes feeling like forever). Sprinty is still not sure what the attraction of golf is, but he gets to adventure a lot more when they golf, so he is game. Sure beats being confined to the storage yard.

Our Soleil golf/RV friends, Matt and Lori, were under similar pressure from New Blue, their Forest River Sunseeker RV. After several discussions regarding the mental health of our RVs, we sketched out a golf-themed camping getaway that had to include some precautions that would have been beyond comprehension only a few short months ago.

The first thing we needed to remember was to Avoid MEN. Avoid (touching):

     M - mouth

     E - eyes

     N - nose

Instead, Follow WOMEN

     W - wash your hands

     O - obey Social Distancing

     M - mask up

     E - exercise and eat well

     N - no necessary traveling

Well, we got most of the WOMEN right. If one partially considers mental health as a valid reason to travel, then one might look at the travel as just a little necessary. As we evaluated how we typically travel in our RVs and the precautions we have practiced for over the last 9 weeks and safely exercising outdoors through golf, we determined with some careful planning, we could be as safe as if we stayed home.

The first step was to decide where to stay. As both of us are members of Harvest Hosts, a RV club that organizes wineries, breweries, museums, farms and golf courses to permit overnight parking (dry camping = no hookups) by self-contained RVs for free with an expectation you will support the business in return. Let's see, play golf in order to score a free overnight parking place. As opposed to paying for golf and then going to a campground you have to pay for. What's not to like.

A recent article suggests Harvest Hosts as the safest method of RV travel post-COVID-19.

https://harvesthosts.com/rv-camping/visiting-harvest-hosts-after-covid-19

And the majority of hosts are still welcoming overnight stays whereas some campgrounds are closed, especially state parks, National Forest dispersed camping, Army Corps of Engineers, and even some private campgrounds.

We picked a golf course host in Anniston, Alabama for the first night. Calling ahead last week, a club requirement, we confirmed availability for the night. Lori also researched the COVID situation in the county where the golf course was and found very low number of cases - certainly a lot less than our home county.

Monday was spent getting Sprinty ready for another adventure - mostly provisioning with food. And for this trip, Sprinty is packing a little more weight - Darrell is blaming the weight gain on COVID-19. While some people have put on a few pounds while hunkered down, Sprinty has put on more than 100 pounds!

We enjoyed lighter-than-normal traffic on I-575 south to Kennesaw as the COVID situation still has a lot of people working from home, furloughed, and schools not in session. We dropped the Subaru off at the Subaru dealer for another airbag recall. I think this is the third airbag recall on the Subaru, which only has two airbags. We were surprised that none of the service techs at the dealer were wearing masks.

After dropping the Subaru off, we turned west, and purposefully selected back roads to Pine Hill Country Club in Anniston, AL. We arrived in plenty of time to get Sprinty set up, hit some range balls, and practice putting. The practice putting offered a clue into the condition of the course as th epracyice putting green was rough, and had recently been aerated. Matt and Lori arrived about 30 minutes later.

The golf course was a nice layout in a somewhat rugged condition. It was obvious they are making lots of improvements. We later learned that Corey, the owner, had purchased the course three years ago. The greens were bumpy and the fairways had also just been aerated, so they were filled with aeration holes. We enjoyed a beautiful day, high temperatures only in the 70s, thanks to the cold front that came through yesterday. It was just great to play a different golf course other than the two in Canton we have been limited to for weeks. We maintained social distancing and used Clorox wipes and hand sanitizer a lot as a precaution. Despite the rugged condition, we played pretty well, with Darrell taking honors on the day with an 84.

After golf, we enjoyed a pleasant late afternoon sitting between the two RVs around an imaginary campfire. Earlier, as we waited to tee off on the 10th hole, the single golfer in front of us recommended a nearby golf course. We checked the reviews and agreed we should play there tomorrow. The beauty of plans made mostly of Jello - you can easily adapt as you learn from people you meet in your travels.

At dinner time, we retreated to the rigs for dinners selected for dry camping.

Wednesday, 20 May

A very quiet night, which was a little surprising. The golf course is located in a housing development, which we expected to be quiet. However, as we were playing yesterday, we heard several trains pass loudly nearby. Either the trains did not run last night or they did not honk their horn when they went by at night.

The overnight low temperature of upper 50s made for great sleeping.

Being our first morning in Central Daylight Time, our bodies had us waking up on Eastern Daylight Time. A very relaxing morning as our departure time was just after 8am CDT.

But even getting up on EDT did not compare to the guy who arrived at first light to play golf. He teed off around 6am when it was still pretty dark, and was done by 8am. That is some serious golf.

As we neared the entrance to Cider Ridge Golf Course, we could see it was a pretty course. As we drove past the driving range, we saw that the practice facilities were very nice. While the web site suggested COVID precautions, when we went to the Pro shop to check in, we did not see anyone wearing masks, and people who did not seem concerned with maintaining 6' of distance.

Photo of Sprinty and New Blue taking social distancing seriously: 

We took full advantage of the practice facilities, and teed off on time. The course was so much better than the course we played yesterday, but for the free overnight parking. Nice enough to warrant a future golf trip.

Everyone started off well, with good drives in the fairway. We all managed to miss making par, making us wonder about the day. The greens were very nice, but we struggled to get the pace and lines sorted out. Kris and Darrell were tied up at the turn. Kris picked up a couple of strokes on the next few holes, making it look like it was her day. Darrell started playing better, and managed to tie it up after 17 holes. The final hole was a par 5, 518 yards for the men. Darrell pulled his tee shot left into the woods. And by the time the final putt dropped, that turned out to be the difference. Kris took the day by one stroke.

Plan A was to stay at Rocky Mountain Recreation Campground near Rome, GA. It was a first come/first served site. When we tried to call to get info on whether the park was even open or the likelihood of getting a site, all we got was a recording. We believe the office was unmanned due to COVID. As the campground was somewhat in the middle of nowhere, we were optimistic on our chances. When we arrived, we found a sign saying the campground was full. We drove though anyway in the hopes the sign was wrong, but it wasn't.

So time for a new plan. In putting the trip plan together, we actually had a Plan B, another first come/first served county park. And a Plan C which was a private campground, but the layout did not look appealing. As cell signal was minimal (thank goodness for the WeBoost cell booster) and we would have had to backtrack for Plans B & C which were not sure things, we focused on a Plan D. We found a campground, Harvest Moon RV Park in Adairsville, GA, with good reviews about 35 minutes away. Before heading out, we called the park to ensure they had a site available. They did. And as we were traveling together, they put us in a "buddy site", a site for two RVs (with separate hookups for each one).

After getting settled, we sat by the make believe fire and made plans for tomorrow. Based on weather and location, we picked a golf course Matt and Lori were familiar with that was about 20 minutes away.

After dinner and showers, we took a stroll through the RV park. It appeared to be the tale of two RV parks. There seemed to be an older section, with sites very close together and most sites carved out of small hills (and not level). And a newer side (where the buddy site was) where the sites were more spaced out, grass between the sites, larger sites, and more level.

Photo of New Blue and Sprinty in buddy site at Harvest Moon RV Park

Thursday, 21 May

A surprisingly quiet night. Harvest Moon RV Park is located about 1/4 mile (just over 3 blocks) from I-75. We expected to hear a lot of road noise, especially as we had the windows open enjoying low temperatures in the 50s. To hear the road noise, you had to listen hard for it.

We surmised that a number of the people in the RV park were people working projects in the area. Somewhat confirmed as the truck next door, outfitted with all sorts of construction stuff, took off about 5am. Several other vehicles also left pretty early.

With a 10:52 tee time and a 20 minute drive, we enjoyed a leisurely morning. And enjoyed the outstanding cellular signal that is typical along an interstate.

After getting Sprinty settled in the parking lot at Stonebridge Golf Course in Rome, GA, we practiced before heading out. We got off on time, and all four made decent opening drives. Kris slowly gained strokes. We both birdied the 4th hole. Kris was up by two strokes at the turn. We stayed close on the back nine, and by the 18th, Darrell had finally made up one stoke. He played the last hole better to take honors on the day - a flip-flop from yesterday.

An advantage to being near a town was a Starbucks which was along the route to the destination for the night. After a quick stop utilizing the mobile app to order, and appropriate social distancing pickup, we headed to Fort Mountain State Park East of Chatsworth, GA. We had reserved two adjacent sites.

Fort Mountain State Park History (excerpt from https://gastateparks.org/sites/default/files/parks/pdf/fortmountain/FortMountainStateParkHistory.pdf)

• Fort Mountain State Park sits at the southwestern end of the Cohutta Mountains near the Cohutta Wilderness. Sitting at 2,850 ft above sea level, Fort Mountain is a great destination for hiking and history lessons alike. The area in and around the park was home to the Cherokee Indians for hundreds of years, and their legacy is still felt throughout North Georgia today.

• Fort Mountain State Park derives its name from an ancient stone rock edifice situated near the crest of the mountain. The rock wall zigzags along Fort Mountain for 855 feet and varies between two and six feet tall at points. Archaeological estimates state that the wall was constructed between 500 – 1500 CE. According to Cherokee lore, the wall was built by the "Moon-eyed people." Legends tell that they were a race of people that lived in Appalachia, until they were driven out by the Cherokee. The Moon-eyed people were described by the Cherokee as being small, light skinned people, who saw better during the night than the day. The many theories of who the Moon-eyed people were, if they existed at all, help to lend an air of mystery to the ancient stones. The wall's purpose has also been debated by archaeologists and historians, with theories ranging from a military defense fortification to a spirituaL structure. The true purpose of the Fort Mountain rock wall remains an enigma to this day.

• In addition to its significant historical significance, Fort Mountain State Park is a popular outdoor destination. Hikers can explore the popular Gahuti Backcountry Trail that circles the perimeter of the park in an 8.2-mile loop trail, plus additional trails for hiking and mountain biking. Fort Mountain State Park also offers beautiful mountain views, a 17-acre lake for fishing and swimming, camping, and much more family fun.

After getting the RVs settled,

we broke out the eBikes to ride around the state park. The state park has several mountain bike trails, but we did not feel up to that challenge. We rode through the campground, up the hill to the cabins, down to the beach, and to the top of Fort Mountain. The trail to the Old Fort Wall did not look suitable for our eBikes, and we did not bring locks to be able to park the bikes securely. On the way down the mountain, we stopped at Cool Springs Overlook, which was at the end of a short, asphalt paved trail.

As the state park is located at the top of a mountain, everything was hilly. Had we bought our regular bikes, we would not even have unpacked them. With the pedal assist, we took on the hills with ease, selecting the pedal assist based on the effort we wanted to expend. And as we headed down a long descent (reaching speeds over 30mph), we did not have to worry about the companion long climb on the ride back. We also believe the pedal assist is safer when riding up hills on streets as we can maintain a straighter line than if under pedal power alone. This enables us to be steady on the edge of the pavement for passing cars instead of weaving from having to pedal so hard. We rode over 9 miles, and returned with big grins. Definitely made bringing the eBikes worth it.

After dinner, we showered in Sprinty. Long time readers may recall that we have typically relied on campground facilities. However, the need to be safer by reducing time spent in confined air spaces and reducing touch points, we have enjoyed the full capability of Sprinty's bathroom. We purposefully dry camped (no hookups despite having them available two of three nights) to assess isolated camping. Based on tank and battery levels, we are confident we can dry camp for 5 or 6 days before needed to dump and fill. Maybe longer.

Friday, 22 May

With Memorial Day weekend upon us, traditionally the official start to summer, we brought the trip to an end. Campgrounds with on-line reservations we completely booked, and it seemed best to not be a part of the holiday crowds. Already campgrounds were near capacity.

A most successful trip. We accomplished several objectives of the trip:

• Assess isolated camping in COVID/post-COVID
• Utilize Sprinty's full capabilities by dry camping for 4 days/3 nights
• Assessed the Hollywood eBike rack and swing-away arm to carry two Rad EBikes on the back of Sprinty
• Tested a Zoom meeting using web cam and the TV in Sprinty run off a laptop using cellular connection

And best of all, we got to safely play three different golf courses with our dear Soleil golf and RV friends, Matt and Lori, and their two fur babies, Penny and Ginger.