(NOTE: View a larger picture by clicking on the photo(s) above.)
Here is what you have been waiting for. I hope it is worth it. We’ll see. The picture from last time is here again. What is it? A greatly modified John Deere Gator. A previous Maintenance Host build the contraption (box and top) that you see. It has been well used, mostly torn up and hardly runs. But, such as it is, it is what we use to get around the Park. I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me backup.
As you should remember (but maybe you don’t) we are “Parking,” Hosting at State Parks in Georgia. We are presently at Fort Yargo State Park in Winder, GA. Today this busy camping and recreational state park is on the outskirts of Atlanta, but when Fort Yargo was built, this area was on the outskirts of Georgia's frontier, and actually inside Indian Territory. Today the entire facility is receiving a much needed "face-lift," not surprising since it is regularly in the top five of Georgia State Parks based on visitors.
The western push of settlers from the Georgia coast had slowed during the Revolutionary War, but not long after the war ended, settlers once again began to encroach on Creek land. Near the Creek town of Snodon settlers created tiny Jug Handle, essentially a tavern and inn at the intersection of a heavily traveled north-south Indian Trading Path and an east-west trading route.
To protect the settlers from the Creek Indians, Fort Yargo was built in 1792 by a Virginia settler living in the present-day Jefferson area, Captain Joseph Humphries, who is noted as a county clerk, justice of the peace, and inferior court judge. There were no Cherokee towns in this vicinity as it is several miles from the Creek-Cherokee border (the first ridge south of the Chattahoochee River).
Included in the Fort Yargo historical site is the Will-a-way Recreation Area, which actually covers most of the 1,800 acres of land the park encompasses. It is built around the centerpiece 260-acre man-made lake, created by damming Marburg Creek and its tributaries. The Park includes 40 general camping sites, 7 "walk-in" sites for people who are willing to pack in their food, tents and bedding, tennis courts and both pioneer and group camping shelters.
We arrived at this historical setting on July 1st intent on being Maintenance Hosts (whatever that my mean). Right away “Parsons’ Law” (you remember, whatever will go wrong, etc. etc.) went into effect. The camp site we were scheduled to occupy was taken by a camper who was not going to be leaving for several days. Someone wasn’t watching the store! The alternative was to take a vacant site in Picnic Area #2 until the other site became available. The scheduled site is a pull-thru. The alternate is a back-in among the Pines. Not an easy park in a tight spot. However, we made it with the help of another Maintenance Host next to us. You see a picture of our campsite above. Also pictured is our picnic table and swing. As it turned out, it is a very nice site to be in. Quiet and picturesque. You see above a view of the Lake through the Pines as seen from our fifth-wheel. We decided to forget the move to the scheduled site. We like it here.
As Hosts we are only required to work 24 hours per week between the two of us. In return, we receive a free camping site with all the utilities, free laundry and free firewood. The Park Manager is an easy-going kind of guy who is not concerned with the hours we work, just the need to complete the job. What kind of jobs? Well, our first task was to improve the signage on the walking trails throughout the Park. This required marking trees with yellow paint to keep hikers on the trail and determining where signs were needed for turns in the path. We used Community Service Workers to do the hard work like digging the holes and setting the sign posts. We point, they dig.
Our second task was to replace all the shower heads and faucet aerators in every sink and bath in the Park. A lot of riding around and easy work. Next came the installation of electric hand driers in bathrooms. Of late, I have been helping another host install new florescent lighting in several buildings throughout the Park while Carolyn has been keeping the picnic area beautified (read that as raking and picking up).
I know. This certainly doesn’t seem like this could keep us busier than that one-armed-paper-hanger does it? Well, if the Park work was all that we have been doing it would be a breeze. What else? Some of you know that our son, Don, lives nearby, about 22 miles from the Park. As it happens, he bought an investment house to redo and sell. Then, as you all know, the housing market went south. Since his house has not sold, he decided to fix it to move into himself until it can sell. Here comes the work. When we were not at the Park, we were working at Don’s house. A little electrical. A little plumbing. A little carpentry. A lot of cleaning. A lot of sweat. Then, there is the driving back and forth in area traffic. Whew!
We also have to look for a WiFi source to check mail and the internet. Yea!, we bought this expensive antenna that you see pictured above to get satellite internet. So what is the problem? I can’t seem to find the satellite through the tall Pines. I have tried numerous times with no luck. We found the TV Satellite after much trial and error, but not the Internet. Maybe one day. We’ll let you know.
So, that is our story for the month of July. August is just starting, but not without its troubles. We’ll let you know about that next time.
Here is what you have been waiting for. I hope it is worth it. We’ll see. The picture from last time is here again. What is it? A greatly modified John Deere Gator. A previous Maintenance Host build the contraption (box and top) that you see. It has been well used, mostly torn up and hardly runs. But, such as it is, it is what we use to get around the Park. I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me backup.
As you should remember (but maybe you don’t) we are “Parking,” Hosting at State Parks in Georgia. We are presently at Fort Yargo State Park in Winder, GA. Today this busy camping and recreational state park is on the outskirts of Atlanta, but when Fort Yargo was built, this area was on the outskirts of Georgia's frontier, and actually inside Indian Territory. Today the entire facility is receiving a much needed "face-lift," not surprising since it is regularly in the top five of Georgia State Parks based on visitors.
The western push of settlers from the Georgia coast had slowed during the Revolutionary War, but not long after the war ended, settlers once again began to encroach on Creek land. Near the Creek town of Snodon settlers created tiny Jug Handle, essentially a tavern and inn at the intersection of a heavily traveled north-south Indian Trading Path and an east-west trading route.
To protect the settlers from the Creek Indians, Fort Yargo was built in 1792 by a Virginia settler living in the present-day Jefferson area, Captain Joseph Humphries, who is noted as a county clerk, justice of the peace, and inferior court judge. There were no Cherokee towns in this vicinity as it is several miles from the Creek-Cherokee border (the first ridge south of the Chattahoochee River).
Included in the Fort Yargo historical site is the Will-a-way Recreation Area, which actually covers most of the 1,800 acres of land the park encompasses. It is built around the centerpiece 260-acre man-made lake, created by damming Marburg Creek and its tributaries. The Park includes 40 general camping sites, 7 "walk-in" sites for people who are willing to pack in their food, tents and bedding, tennis courts and both pioneer and group camping shelters.
We arrived at this historical setting on July 1st intent on being Maintenance Hosts (whatever that my mean). Right away “Parsons’ Law” (you remember, whatever will go wrong, etc. etc.) went into effect. The camp site we were scheduled to occupy was taken by a camper who was not going to be leaving for several days. Someone wasn’t watching the store! The alternative was to take a vacant site in Picnic Area #2 until the other site became available. The scheduled site is a pull-thru. The alternate is a back-in among the Pines. Not an easy park in a tight spot. However, we made it with the help of another Maintenance Host next to us. You see a picture of our campsite above. Also pictured is our picnic table and swing. As it turned out, it is a very nice site to be in. Quiet and picturesque. You see above a view of the Lake through the Pines as seen from our fifth-wheel. We decided to forget the move to the scheduled site. We like it here.
As Hosts we are only required to work 24 hours per week between the two of us. In return, we receive a free camping site with all the utilities, free laundry and free firewood. The Park Manager is an easy-going kind of guy who is not concerned with the hours we work, just the need to complete the job. What kind of jobs? Well, our first task was to improve the signage on the walking trails throughout the Park. This required marking trees with yellow paint to keep hikers on the trail and determining where signs were needed for turns in the path. We used Community Service Workers to do the hard work like digging the holes and setting the sign posts. We point, they dig.
Our second task was to replace all the shower heads and faucet aerators in every sink and bath in the Park. A lot of riding around and easy work. Next came the installation of electric hand driers in bathrooms. Of late, I have been helping another host install new florescent lighting in several buildings throughout the Park while Carolyn has been keeping the picnic area beautified (read that as raking and picking up).
I know. This certainly doesn’t seem like this could keep us busier than that one-armed-paper-hanger does it? Well, if the Park work was all that we have been doing it would be a breeze. What else? Some of you know that our son, Don, lives nearby, about 22 miles from the Park. As it happens, he bought an investment house to redo and sell. Then, as you all know, the housing market went south. Since his house has not sold, he decided to fix it to move into himself until it can sell. Here comes the work. When we were not at the Park, we were working at Don’s house. A little electrical. A little plumbing. A little carpentry. A lot of cleaning. A lot of sweat. Then, there is the driving back and forth in area traffic. Whew!
We also have to look for a WiFi source to check mail and the internet. Yea!, we bought this expensive antenna that you see pictured above to get satellite internet. So what is the problem? I can’t seem to find the satellite through the tall Pines. I have tried numerous times with no luck. We found the TV Satellite after much trial and error, but not the Internet. Maybe one day. We’ll let you know.
So, that is our story for the month of July. August is just starting, but not without its troubles. We’ll let you know about that next time.
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