We awoke early and we’re on the road by 8am. It’s amazing how quickly we get moving when there’s no internet. It really is a time waster in the mornings.

The only thing we had running on our battery overnight was the fridge, and just before we were due to leave, the battery shut off again. So we’re going to need a bigger battery. Mike will rewire our solar controller in case that is shutting it off.

The weather has changed from a stifling sticky humidity to cool in the mornings. We actually had to dig out our jumpers. But it’s a pleasant change.

Today we started on the Blueridge parkway which is an 800km scenic drive through the Blueridge mountains. There are many pull-ins and overlooks along the way. It is very beautiful.

There are also many walks along the way. We stopped off at a lookout and hiked about a km up a very steep hill to a lookout at the top. At the top was a stunning view over the mountains.

There were two guys there setting up a radio transmitter. It’s a hobby they do, climb mountains and set up their gear and see how far they can reach. They transmit on low power which means communicating via Morse code and have even reached NZ before.

We continued our drive, pulling into overlooks, sometimes getting out of the car, other times just looking and driving off.

Today we past the highest point on the Blueridge parkway at 6053 feet. It was there we met another couple driving a van similar to ours. We immediately bonded over vans and got chatting. I was talking to the lady and her husband came over and said ‘I see you’ve made van friends.’ I thought it was funny. They told us about a campground they were staying at up the road so we decided to stay there.

It’s another national park camp, only $10 per night and we have our own private spot. It’s lovely. There’s no power but they have a shower which was more than needed, not having had one for a couple of days. Although I did have a swim.

I love the camping setup they have here in national and state parks. It’s like staying in a doc camp but you have your own site, usually on a firm surface, your own picnic table and fire pit and a pole to hang your rubbish. There is normally water and a dump station, always toilets and sometimes a shower. Sometimes also electricity, water, and sewer on your site. It’s very civilised, yet still the feeling on being in the bush. And a similar price.

We’re going to spend a few days driving the Blueridge parkway to Virginia.