Arriving in Louisville: Part II - Day 1134 (Year 4, Day 39)

Bardstown, KY

Please read Part I first:  http://mitcheryl-rv-journey.blogspot.com/2017/08/the-journey-to-kentucky-part-i-day-1134.html

So we spent the weekend in the parking lot of the Louisville Exposition Center.  I also forgot to mention that we were next to the airport and could see the windows on the planes as they came in for a landing.  I bet the folks could see me waving to them!

One great thing is that we landed in an area with a nice sized Jewish community, which we really missed.  As it happens, every 4th Friday this Chabad has a community dinner after Friday night services, and since this was the 4th Friday, we really lucked out with the timing, especially since we were driving half the day and I wouldn't have had time to prepare for Shabbat (baking the challah or doing the rest of the cooking).  The services were very moving and the rabbi, his wife and the congregation very welcoming.  We also went to Saturday services and were invited to the rabbi's home for lunch afterwards.  Out of all the places we've visited for services, this is the latest time services started!  Normally it's either 9:30 or 10:00.  Here we were told 10:30, but they didn't start until about 11:00, which means it didn't end until 1:30.  There was a nibble (cholent, actually, which I couldn't eat due to the potatoes and beans, but it was pareve so Mitch could have some) at the shul before we headed over to the rabbi's house for lunch at 2:00.

When we returned from services/lunch, it was almost 5:00 pm.  The parking lot was filled to capacity due to the amusement park.  We realized that if we wanted to get out of our space, we had to do it very early, before folks started coming in again (remember, we're about the size of a semi truck and we need a lot of room to maneuver).  The option we were facing was moving to the alternate parking lot (where all the hot rodders would be), with no hookups.  I don't mind conserving water and our black tank is large enough to go at least 1 to 1-1/2 weeks without dumping, but not having electricity was a real concern, especially since I needed to work.  We have a 5500 watt generator, but you can't really run it for 12+ hours straight (not only because it runs on propane and the tank runs out after 2 days of part time use, but because I fear it would overheat or break down if left on that long. (** an after thought - I posted this question to my RV peers on Facebook and the general consensus is that it is PERFECTLY SAFE to run the genny 24/7, although we'll run out of propane fairly quickly).  The rabbi had offered for me to stay at their Hebrew school during the day, and I also toyed with taking a taxi to the nearest library and setting up shop there.  However, neither of these options were very appealing or convenient due to the fact that we don't have a second car and Mitch leaves for work between 5:30 and 6:00 am (although a taxi or Uber would have worked in a pinch).

I did a little more research and found the closest campground that had any openings was in Bardstown, about 35 miles south of the city.  Mitch agreed that although it would mean a fairly long commute, having full hookups was really the best option, especially since it was only for 1 week (on the plus side, the company pays for his travel time and mileage).  So we hitched up the truck at 8:00 am (very challenging on the angle we had to park--see his post with the photos--but it only took about 1/2 hr) and drove 45 minutes on mostly back country roads.

* Little diversion and another interesting challenge in our journey:  the address we needed was on Boston Road.  Apparently, there is a Boston Road and an OLD Boston Road, which is what we really needed, but the campground doesn't mention that.  The GPS (which was actually Google Maps on the phone since we're still waiting for our RV GPS to be replaced) took us down a very narrow, dirt road and told us we arrived at our destination, which was a broken down shack.  It was very hard, but we were fortunate to find, about 1/4 mile down the path, a place to pull up so we could back up onto the road again in the right direction to get back to the main road.  Mitch expertly gave me directions to back it up.  When we called the campground, they told us that this was the WORST road in the entire county!!!  Kind of reminds me of another time we took a wrong turn and had to figure out how to back out in a tight area where there was nowhere to turn.  Remember, dear readers, this is like a semi truck, not like backing up a car!!!)   Harrowing experience, indeed!

The campground we're staying in is out in the country, surrounded by soybean farms.  Right now, it's mostly empty and I feel like we have the place all to ourselves.  Here are some photos of my views:

    

We landed at the campground in Bardstown at about 9:30 am and were set up by 10:00.  I had some client work to do which I wasn't able to finish during the travel week, and Mitch needed to nap.  Note that Kentucky, especially this part of the state, is the Bourbon Capital (my 2nd favorite adult drink is bourbon, 1st is wine).  We enjoyed the moonshine tour in Gatlinburg, TN and I am really looking forward to visiting as many bourbon distilleries as possible, in particular Evan Williams, Makers Mark and Woodford Reserve).  We wanted to go out and do something special, so we decided to visit the nearest distillery, which is Heaven Hills.  Here are some photos:

This is a bull made out of barrels.  We're literally holding the bull by its horns:

Inside the warehouse.  Smelled awesome, like bourbon!

Some bourbon aging in barrels.  They don't make Evan Williams, but they do help age it in their warehouse.

 
The tasting room!



After the tour, we needed to stop at a supermarket for a few groceries.  The route took us through the downtown area, which like most small towns, is very quaint and historical.  There's actually a lot of civil war (Confederate) history here including a museum and colonial village.  We didn't have the time or energy to go there on Sunday.  Perhaps while we're in Louisville, we'll drive the 40 miles to visit (although that's doubtful given all there is to do in Louisville).

So that pretty much covers it.  We'll enjoy the isolation/peace & quiet this week and move on to the next location next week.