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2011 Chapter 400 - Fall Rally Diary
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Saturday (Sep 17th) - The fall rally was held at Cleveland, GA in the northern Georgia mountains. The rally was officially opened by President Renae Butler on Saturday, Sept 17th. The rally group spent Saturday visiting the Babyland General Hospital in Cleveland, home of the Cabbage Patch Kids. A very wonderful trip as the hospital is situated on 650 acres in the Northern Georgia mountains and the views are lovely. The evening meal was made and served by our hosts, Bob and Dot Bragg, Bill and Peg Jones and Walt and Judy Kaiser. TOP
Sunday (Sep 18th) - On Sunday, the 18th, breakfast was served by our hosts in the clubhouse. At noon we all left for Helen, GA which is patterned after an Alpine village. The schedule called for tubing on the river BUT we decided it was too cool so we visited all the stores and shops and spent money. It was a beautiful day and we all enjoyed late lunches or early dinners prior to returning to the campground to play games in the clubhouse. TOP
Monday (Sep 19th) - By Monday, all of our group had arrived. Those attending this rally were Bill and Judy Ansell, Pete and Nancy Armitage, Mitch and Renae Butler, Ed and Peg Chandler, George and Susan Cook, Mike and Judy Hughes, Ed and Kaye Lee, Lonnie Mahan and Sue Mosser and of course, our hosts. We took a trip up to Brasstown Bald mountain, the highest point in Georgia. All but Ed and Kaye either walked up the mountain from the parking lot or took the shuttle bus. Quite a few walked down. We had all packed a picnic lunch and tables were available so we all enjoyed our PBJ's or whatevers. Really enjoyed the mountain views as we ate. From there we all traveled to Blairsville, GA to visit the Misty Mountain Model Train lay-out which turned out to be quite something to admire. If anyone ever gets in this area please do yourself a favor and go visit this place. After we left the trains we stopped at Alexander's General Store which has just about anything one could possibly want. Don't know what all members purchased but Ed Lee actually bought 2 Hawaiian shirts. Kaye was glad to see him might wear something other than western shirts. The evening was completed with a visit to Papa's Pizza where we all indulged in all the pizza we could stuff into ourselves. Another busy day over. TOPTuesday (Sep 20th) - On Tuesday the group had a free day and did whatever they desired. At the 4:00 each couple brought a can of soup (no creams) and we had a hobo potluck for dinner. Then a few games were played. TOP
Wednesday (Sep 21st) - Wednesday the group journeyed over to Dahlonega, GA, site of the first gold rush in the U.S. for a tour of the town. All met again at 1pm at the Smith House for a family style meal. Then most toured the Gold Museum. Back to the park and 4 o'clock was bypassed in favor of a nap. At 6pm we gathered at the clubhouse for ice cream and cake in honor of Peg Jones' birthday. Some stayed on for games and others went back to the 'house' to rest up for a busy day on Thursday. Weather has been mostly good with a slight rain in the mornings and evenings. TOPThursday (Sep 22nd) - On Thursday the group had planned to go play miniature golf but it had rained and thundered all Wednesday night so plans were changed. We went to the old Sautee General Store in Sautee, had lunch there and strolled thru the old store and spent money on cheeses and other things. Some of the ladies went to a quilt store and a couple of small quilts were purchased. Several wine tastings were in the area and some of us partook of the wines. After the 4:00 most of us went to a Mexican restaurant in Helen for dinner. Games and chat followed. TOP
Friday (Sep 23rd) - Friday started off with "breakfast in a bag". What fun that was as we had all sorts of goodies to add to our bags. At noon we all took off for that postponed golf game. We all paired off into teams of 3 and 4 persons. It was a most beautiful day but a bit warm. You could hear the yells when a 'hole-in-one' was achieved. Then it was back to the park to prepare for our potluck dinner. After dinner there was a birthday cake and ice cream for Walt and Pete whose birthdays are next week. Then Renae gave out prizes for the golf game. Peg Chandler won for the ladies and Pete Armitage won for the men. TOP
A great time was had by all and we all head in different directions today. Till we all meet up again, safe travels.