"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood... And sorry I could not travel both. I took the one less traveled by. And that has made all the difference." --Robert Frost

Tuesday, May 30, 2017

Sassafras in South Carolina

Rocky Bottom, South Carolina
Table Rock State Park



It doesn't happen very often, but it did today.  With all the reservations I have been making over the last few days I didn't check on the cell connectivity at our next destination in South Carolina.  Oops.
 
I rely heavily on a certain App, but have found out that for some reason, even though these cell towers are very nearby, sometimes on the same mountain, it doesn't mean we'll have service.  I've been making sure to call each campground to verify as the service has been very iffy.

 
We had a beautiful spot at Table Top State Park.  There were 2 - 3 bars of Verizon LTE all along to the entrance of the campground.  Cool.  Once we got all set up and turned the computers on, nothing.  Not so cool.  Not even with our booster.  We knew there was WIFI at the camp store and visitor center, both very close by.  This works fine for me, but not for Steve.  Especially if he has conference calls to be on.  He decided to limp by for a couple of days, driving into the nearest town, but after that we'd have to cut short our visit here.  Too bad as there were some nice hikes and kayaking planned.

#16 was a nice long, level site with partial shade and a big grassy area.  $27 for W/E.  There is a beautiful lake for kayaking here.  They do have a tiny laundry room, $1.00 to wash and $1.50 to dry.

The visitor center had a nice dock you could fish off of and a nicely landscaped area in front of it that the ducks and geese were enjoying. 

 



The visitor center with Table Rock in the background that we had hoped to hike later.

 
- - - - -
 
We did another drive/hike to Sassafras Mountain.  At 3,553 feet in elevation, it is South Carolina's highest peak.  Sassafras.  It's a word I find fun to say.  Kind of like Rutabaga.  Something about the way it rolls off your tongue.  Or Salsa (think Jerry Seinfeld). Oh sometimes I'm easily amused.
They have a nice little observation deck that hangs out over the edge a bit.  Nice enough view.  They are starting to look quite a bit the same to me now.  Really, very beautiful, but I'm finding the scenery and views lacking a little in variety.



Sassafras
What is sassafras anyway?  According to the WWW, it is a deciduous North American tree with aromatic leaves and bark. The leaves are infused to make tea or Root Beer. Or in the drug world, Ecstasy or Molly is referred to as Sassafras, again according to the WWW. Ok.
 
As usual, there was a fun geocache up here.

 
Sassafras.  I knew Sassafras was the high point, but I didn't know this spot also separated North and South Carolina.  Too bad they didn't have something more exciting to mark it so that you knew exactly where the border was.  Then you could stand with one foot on both sides.  Corny, but fun!  Nothing up here but a HUGE cell tower!


On the way down there was a clearing for a fire break that looked like a huge waterfall of flowers. The sun was going down quickly but it was shining just on this break in the trees. It was much more impressive in person that this photo shows.

The rain came down for a bit and when it stopped the clouds would start to lift and made for a pretty picture or two.

A cute little gazebo/outdoor chapel with mountains in the background would make for a nice outdoor wedding.

Steve knows this is my favorite John Muir quote, so he picked it up for me at a little farmers market.
I love it!
 
There are more mountains calling, so we'll head Down the Road to North Carolina tomorrow!
 

11 comments:

  1. Sassafras! Yep fun to say. Very nice park and mountains. Love the pics.

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  2. Lots of green everywhere. The gazebo is pretty and yes, it would make a nice wedding venue. I like the sign that Steve got for you :-)

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    1. It's definitely green! Hopefully it won't break. Where are you two off to next?

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  3. Sassafras is my sons fav root beer! You are right about the views from mountains out here in the east - while very beautiful - mostly all very similar! Looking forward to your visit!

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    1. We're looking forward to seeing you and Bill too!

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  4. Bummer about the cell service....totally understand!! And I love sassafras....and now that you mentioned it, it is a very fun word!!

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    1. The cell service has been limiting us on some very nice places we'd rather stay. Not sure why that is since there are plenty Verizon towers out here. Weird.

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  5. I agree on the lines, Deb! I always wanted to paint a line on the road next to Wild Cherry in Michigan where the 45th Parallel went through. :)

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  6. Sassafras is indeed fun - the plural even more so :-) Cacophony is my favorite! Looks like a beautiful place, the water pics are amazing. The flowerfall is really wonderful and so unique!!

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