Ep. 382: Hurricane Helene | North Carolina RV travel camping Blue Ridge Mountains

[@PatIreland-k5i]

Good planning and a good backup plan. Not moving in the middle of a big storm is the right way to be flexible. Well done!

[@GrandAdventure]

@@PatIreland-k5i Thank you, Pat, and thanks for watching! There was no way I was going to wait for the other shoe to drop. With four mudslides across the road in the first mile after leaving the campground, we were nearly too late already.

[@rschmidt320]

Very happy all of you are safe and sound. That storm tore up a lot of people's lives. Fair winds and following seas.

[@GrandAdventure]

Same to you. The devastation is unimaginable, and as I replied elsewhere, it seems that America's short attention span has already forgotten.

[@cirrus820travelers9]

Really enjoyed your video this week! We canceled our trip to Western NC to visit family until mid-Nov. Amazing seeing how powerful water can erode & destroy homes and reshape landscapes. Stay safe!

[@GrandAdventure]

It's truly awe-inspiring, isn't it? Those poor residents of Appalachia can't catch a break. Our hearts are with them.

[@daviscrt]

Glad you made it out safe, Looking forward to the next grand adventure. Don

[@GrandAdventure]

Thanks Don! We're grateful that our home is on wheels. The residents, however, didn't have that luxury.

[@airstreamer]

Hey, An Airstream! What a beautiful COE park! Packing up in rain is never fun. Really glad you were informed early and able to move to safer ground. How devastating this was for so many people!- Michelle

[@GrandAdventure]

Yes Michelle, we had Airstream neighbors both before and after we moved, and the one in Winston-Salem belonged to a viewer, too! We're grateful to have gotten out of there at the very last moment. Much later, and we would not have gotten out.

[@AmeriAsian76]

Watching here Glad you safe❤

[@GrandAdventure]

@@AmeriAsian76 our home is on wheels, we will usually be safe. Our hearts are with the people whose lives were destroyed.

[@BillSprague]

I’m so glad you had a pleasant spot for Plan B and are safe! I spent a lot of my working life studying and analyzing the aftermath of large flood events. It’s truly amazing how much havoc a storm can bring.

[@GrandAdventure]

@@BillSprague It truly is, Bill. We had to come up with this plan B on the fly, but it worked out very well in the end. Our hearts go out to those affected by the floods.

[@ShawnPatterson402]

Always great to have a plan B for sure. The last three or four weeks has been tough for a lot of folks. We have been in and about the southeast for the past few weeks, and have seen quite a bit of storm damage. One can only for the people that were directly affected. No doubt that while RVing, keeping a close eye on the weather is an essential daily activity. Continued safe travels......

[@GrandAdventure]

@@ShawnPatterson402 same to you! It's been a tough time for the region, for sure. Our hearts are with the residents.

[@scenicdriveways6708]

Another great video Marc. JT

[@GrandAdventure]

Thank you sir!

[@jimlee8785]

Glad you're safe

[@GrandAdventure]

We're of course fine, the benefit of a home on wheels. However, we really feel for the residents there who truly took it in the shorts.

[@wcraig]

Glad that you all are safe. We visited that very area just 4 weeks before Helene hit. It is hard to imagine that streets we drove on and sites we saw are now gone. Stay safe!

[@GrandAdventure]

Same to you! The extent of the devastation is unfathomable. I knew how much rain they were going to get, and we were watching it closely, but underestimated the devastation that would result.

[@WILDEBILL308]

Glad you were able to doge the core of the storm.

[@GrandAdventure]

As were we, Bill! Thank you.

[@scottcochran7498]

We are so glad y’all made it out safe and found a nice campground to relocate. We had a trip planned for Gatlinburg the day before the storm hit. Luckily we decided not to go. The RV park worked with us and let us move our reservation for next year. We were disappointed, but after seeing the aftermath, thankful for our decision. Our town of Batesburg - Leesville, SC got hit hard. Lots of old Oaks and Pecan trees came down during the storm. Some people were without power for over a week. Again, we got luck and only went a day. If y’all ever make it back to our area, you are more than welcome to stay at our place. We have a 50 amp service and water where we hook up our Cougar. We have watched so many of your videos, we feel as if you are family. Weird, huh? We’d love to meet Mrs. Grand Adventure and Miss Zoe.

[@GrandAdventure]

Thanks Scott! Your offer is very gracious and very kind. We feel much the same about our viewers, many of whom we've been lucky enough to encounter in chance meetings on the road. We hope to have that happen with you some day. Gatlinburg is actually in our episode from next week. The town fared rather well, and although our chosen campground in Cosby did flood, they had the damage repaired within just a few days.

[@thewanderingshores]

We have done that drive in NC as well, it's amazing but we ran into some of the serious fog as well on our drive. So glad you guys are safe and had some "warning time". So sad to see all the destruction in the Carolinas, we visited Boone several years ago. Wander On-Kyle and Michelle

[@GrandAdventure]

Hey guys! We were glued to the Weather Channel, Fox Weather, NOAA's website, etc. in the days leading up to the storm. As I just replied to another commenter, we knew full well the amount of rainfall that was coming, but underestimated its impact.

[@rvfuntimes6144]

We were in West Jefferson, NC and witnessed the devastation first hand. We left the RV on High Ground and sat in truck 5 hrs. during the final blast of Helene. Creek at CG luckily didnt take out the bridge but it got over it 3 ft. We rode around Ashe county and boy how aweful it was. These people are still hurting badly.

[@GrandAdventure]

Oh my, you were more in the thick of it than we were. Very happy to hear that all turned out OK for you, but those residents will be recovering for years.

[@georgecarpenter4126]

Living in south Louisiana, we are not strangers to a hurricane's wrath. But Helene was unusual as it hit a mountainous region. It's sad to see the devastation as as we have travelled to that area many times. You stay safe out there, Marc.

[@GrandAdventure]

@@georgecarpenter4126 You do the same, George. Yes, you certainly do know hurricanes down there - and not just the cocktail. 😁

[@lorih379]

Beautiful place you always find the best spots but what a scary time. Sad 😢

[@GrandAdventure]

Our hearts go out to the residents, Lori. It's going to take them years to recover, but of course America's short attention span has already forgotten about them.

[@bertkelly7650]

Thoughts, prayers and a few bucks to WNC.

[@GrandAdventure]

@@bertkelly7650 Yes sir!

[@grillinandchillinwithdeb]

Great video, it is sad what happen was my daughters favorite area. Just heads up finally have new video coming up on my channel.

[@GrandAdventure]

@@grillinandchillinwithdeb Thank you Deb, and we look forward to that!

[@dougbevell7153]

I just got home from New Orleans from a conference and just watched your video on hurricane Helene. The video was very well put together. It's just so sad what has happened in Boone and all those counties in Western,NC and beyond. I hope to make it back to Salem Breeze real soon. I will have to second what you said about that in the video, Salem Breeze is a wonderful place to stop over while traveling for sure. Lexington, North Carolina is hosting its annual Barbecue Festival this weekend. You should research it. I think you will find it quite interesting.

[@GrandAdventure]

@@dougbevell7153 I certainly will, Doug. Thank you very much for reinforcing some key points that we tried to emphasize in this episode. And thank you very much for watching!

[@normgibson6565]

Glad you had a plan "B"

[@GrandAdventure]

@@normgibson6565 so are we, Norm, although we had to develop it on the fly.

[@akgobears]

As always , love the COE campgrounds....You gonna have to grow you some age so you can get the Geezer pass (National Parks Pass) and get half off them campgrounds....Plan B is always a thing when traveling i think...Seems to me especially when your winging it, nothing goes as planned so there better be another plan just in case...Glad all turned out ok....Travel safe, be well....

[@GrandAdventure]

Two more years to the geezer pass, not that I'm rushing it any. 😁 When we're winging it, like we did last season, we had not only a Plan B but also usually C, D, E, F & G! This year, because everything was pre-planned we didn't pay much attention to alternatives. We didn't go looking for an alternative until officials announced that they were closing the Bandit's Roost COE. We had Salem Breeze lined up in less than 15 minutes, and hurriedly started packing in the deluge.

[@akgobears]

@@GrandAdventure Just glad to see all turned out ok...Thats not the case for so many in that area....Stay safe

[@mark98070]

Wow! Talk about dodging a bullet. What campground guide do you use? Salem breeze looks like a nice little destination campground

[@GrandAdventure]

@@mark98070 We found that one quickly with the soon-to-be defunct campendium.com. It turned out to be the perfect port in a storm.

[@trbowlin]

Devastating to that area. I have friends in Ashville, and they are safe but still don't have water.

[@GrandAdventure]

It's heartbreaking, TR. Absolutely heartbreaking.