Living Our Dream

Bellingrath Gardens

Summerdale, AL - Events of Thursday May 10 to Sunday, May 13, 2012

Bellingrath Gardens is located on the far side of Mobile Bay in Theodore, AL, which is to the southeast of the city of Mobile. We love gardens, and we have visited Bellingrath several times before. However, we have never been there at this time of year, so we decided to drive over to Bellingrath to have a look.

It takes a little over an hour to get to Bellingrath from Rainbow Plantation, so we wanted to get a relatively early start. That meant we would be driving near Panini Pete's well before they stopped serving breakfast at 10:30, so we made a point of stopping to have some more beignets.

Paul squeezing lemon onto his beignets

As we mentioned before, the beignets at Panini Pete's are light and airy like cream puffs except without the cream filling. They are served with lemon, which when squeezed onto the beignets, combines with the powdered sugar to lend a delicious hint of lemonade flavor.

After we finished our yummy beignets, we made our way to Bellingrath. Bellingrath Home and Gardens is part of a 65-acre estate originally owned by Walter and Bessie Bellingrath. Walter, who was one of the first Coca-Cola bottlers in Alabama, bought the property along the banks of the Fowl River in 1917 as a fish camp. In the 1930s, the Bellingraths decided to build a year-round home there and moved out of their house in Mobile. Today, the house and gardens are owned by a foundation and are open to the public.

You can buy tickets to visit the gardens, tour the house, and take a boat cruise on the Fowl River. Tickets are available for the garden only or for the garden in combination with either one or both the other tours. We toured the house and took the boat cruise on our first visit, so we just toured the garden this time.

The first stop along the path that starts behind the visitor center is at the Rose Garden and the conservatory.

Rose Garden and conservatory

Inside the conservatory is a nice array of tropical plants.

Tropical plants in the conservatory

More tropical plants

There were even pineapples in the conservatory.

As we continued down the path from the conservatory toward the house, we could see the annuals were just starting to bloom.

Annuals along the Great Lawn

Impatiens along the waterway at the mermaid fountain

Entrance to the Bellingrath home

Another view of the home from the terraces

We stopped for a self-portrait on the terrace behind the house.

Paul by the Fowl River behind the house

The Fowl River is an estuary, which means it is a waterway where fresh and salt water mix. Estuaries are important ecological areas, and Bellingrath has a boardwalk that makes a loop over a bayou that flows into the river right near the house. The boardwalk provides an opportunity for wildlife viewing, although we have never seen anything more than a couple of turtles sunning themselves on a log. However, it's a pleasant walk if it isn't too hot.

Boardwalk around a bayou that flows into the Fowl River

From the boardwalk, we headed to the upper end of Mirror Lake.

Margery sits astride a cast iron lion at the upper end of Mirror Lake

In the past, we have visited Bellingrath Gardens in March to see the azaleas in bloom, in April to see the spring perennials and in the fall to see the mums, but we have never been there in May. We knew most of the perennials would be done blooming, but we were hoping the annuals would be starting to come into their own. Unfortunately, the planter boxes that line the bridge over the upper end of Mirror Lake were not yet in place, and many of the annual beds along the walkways had not yet been planted even though the threat of frost has been over here in lower Alabama for at least two months. One area that was in full bloom, however, was around the pavilion where they sometimes have weddings.

Many annuals were blooming around the wedding pavilion.

From the annuals that were in bloom, we could see this summer's color theme was going to be red, yellow and orange.

The colors for this summer are going to be red, yellow and orange.

On our way back from Bellingrath, we needed to make a stop at Camping World in Robertsdale, which is near Rainbow Plantation. Camping World also happens to be very close to L.A Barbecue where we stopped for a late lunch a few weeks ago, and it was early afternoon when we finished at Bellingrath and Camping World. Since we were already on a cheat day from our diet with the beignets that morning, we figured we might as well stop for a late lunch at L.A. Barbecue.

We both had the same barbecue pork lunch plate we had the first time we were there along with cole slaw and potato salad for our sides. This time we tried some of the alternate barbecue sauces. Paul liked a mixture of Carolina (a thin, vinegar-based sauce) and Texas Tangy. Margery tried several sauces, but went back to the mixture of Southern Sweet and Texas Tangy she liked the first time we were there.

Paul with an array of barbecue sauces at L.A. Barbecue

A few days after we visited Bellingrath was Mother's Day. Margery got a nice Skype call from Lora. Skype, which provides audio and video communication over the internet, works infinitely better with our Verizon Broadband than it did with the satellite internet we used to have. Gone are the satellite delay and the dropped calls.

Later in the day, we drove down to the Shrimp Basket in Foley for lupper so Margery wouldn't have to cook on Mother's Day. The restaurant was fairly crowded for the middle of the afternoon, but we didn't have problem getting a table. Margery had a fried clam basket, and Paul had a fried catfish basket.

Margery had fried clams for Mother's Day.

With the arrival of Mother's Day, we were down to our last couple of days at Rainbow Plantation. We didn't get in all the sightseeing we wanted to do, but that is just a good excuse to return. Look for our next post to see where we ended up next.

Bon Secour, AL

Summerdale, AL - Events of Saturday, Nov. 26 to Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2011

Bon Secour is a small town about 15 miles south of where we were staying in Summerdale. It lies on Bon Secour Bay, which is located along the southeastern edge of Mobile Bay.

Bon Secour was started as a Creole fishing village in the 1800s. The name means "good security" in French, which refers to the fact it was considered to be a safe harbor because it is located inside the mouth of Mobile Bay. The mouth of the bay was also guarded by Fort Morgan, which was completed in the 1830s to help defend the shore line of the fledgling United States following the War of 1812 with Great Britain. We visited Fort Morgan when we were in the area last November. Click here to read about that visit.

The main thing we wanted to see in Bon Secour was the Swift-Coles House, which is a mansion built along the Bon Secour River in the late 1800s. The mansion is normally only open on Tuesdays and Fridays, but they were having special hours on Saturday and Sunday after Thanksgiving for their Christmas open house. We thought about going then, but there was an extra charge for admission during the open house because there were refreshments. We decided we didn't need the refreshments or the crowds of the open house, so we waited until the following Tuesday. It's just as well because Saturday was cloudy and windy, then the heavens opened up and it rained over two inches from Saturday night right through Sunday. The photo below is a view of the lake outside our motor home on Sunday.

As we mentioned previously, the soil in this area is sandy so it doesn't get very muddy, and most of the water had soaked in by Monday morning.

The rain came through ahead of a cold front, and it was cloudy, cool and windy on Monday. Tuesday was still cool and breezy, but at least the sun came out for our visit to Bon Secour. The photo below shows the entrance to the Swift-Coles House...

...and the next photo shows Paul on the porch.

The Swift-Coles House was originally built as a 4-room, dog-trot fishing cabin around 1882. A dog-trot cabin is two small cabins separated by a breezeway (where the dogs tended to hang out in hot weather) all under one roof.

Charles A. Swift, who owned lumber mills in the area including one near the cabin, bought the cabin around the turn of the century and moved in with his wife and 9 children. They enclosed the breezeway of the dog trot and added on several rooms behind the original cabin. Around 1908, they added a second story. By this time, there were 11 children. The mansion ended up having 16 rooms with an area of about 6,000 square feet. There are also over 3,000 square feet of porches surrounding the house. The next photo shows another view of the sprawling mansion and some of the porches. The original dog trot cabin is the ground floor portion of the wing that juts out to the right.

And the photo below shows the side entrance, which is the enclosed breezeway of the original cabin.

Descendants of the Swift family occupied the house until 1976 when Nick Coles, a restaurant owner and antique collector from Gulf Shores, bought the house. Coles performed extensive renovations and furnished the house from his collection of antiques. Nick Coles willed the mansion to Baldwin County when he died, and the house is now operated as a museum.

There is a guided tour of the entire house, but unfortunately, photography is not permitted inside so we can't show you any of the rooms or furnishings. However, if you click the link above to the Swift-Coles House, there are several good photos of the interior on the web site.

After touring the house, visitors are free to walk the grounds. There was an old barn and an out building behind the main house. They were a little run down, but they had a lot of character. What stories could they tell if they could talk?

The Swift-Coles House is located on the Bon Secour River near the point where the river empties into Bon Secour Bay. Ferries bringing Mobile residents to their summer homes in Bon Secour used to dock near the Swift-Coles House.  The next photo is a view up the Bon Secour River from an area near the mansion.

It was a little chilly and breezy, so we didn't walk around the grounds long. Bon Secour is the home of several seafood packing companies, so another thing we wanted to do was to see if we could find some fresh seafood to take back to the motor home with us. We had gotten a tip from some of the other visitors on the tour who were familiar with the area that Billy's Seafood was a good place to get shrimp, so we hopped into the car and drove down the road to Billy's. On the way, we passed fishing boats tied up in the river.

We passed several other seafood places, and we soon arrived at Billy's at the end of the road.

They had a nice selection of different size shrimp at reasonable prices.

We picked out relatively large ones to sauté for dinner that night and some slightly smaller ones to freeze for shrimp au gratin at a later date.

After we bought our shrimp, we put it into the cooler in the car and walked back to the docks behind Billy's. The shrimp boat in the next photo was apparently preparing to head out into the Gulf because they were taking ice on board.

From the dock, we headed back to the motor home. We had some of the shrimp for dinner that evening, and they were outstanding! They were some of the best we've had. They were so good we went back the next day to get some more.

The cool air that moved in after the rain the weekend before was a reminder it is time to continue making our way south. We have a few errands to run over the next couple of days here in Summerdale, then we'll be off to Florida.

Tiffin MotorHomes

Tuscumbia, AL - Events of Wednesday Oct. 19 to Thursday Oct. 20, 2011

Holy cow! When we said there was a general cooling trend on the way, we weren't kidding. We awoke at Cedar Creek on Wednesday morning to temperatures in the low 40s, a stiff breeze, cloudy skys and drizzle. The high temperature was predicted only to be in the 40s. Driving 3 hours south to Tuscumbia, AL didn't help much. It was only about 47º when we arrived around 1:00 PM. Fortunately, the forecast was calling for an increase to the 70s by the weekend.

In Tuscumbia, we stayed at Heritage Acres RV Park. Most of the sites are back-ins, but they do have two pull-through sites in the back row. There are full-hookups with 30/50-amp electric as well as free Wi-Fi (good signal, and pretty fast) and cable. The photo below shows our site at Heritage Acres.

There is a little traffic noise during the day from the four-lane road that passes the campground, but it quiets down at night. Although there are several railroad crossings within earshot, we only heard occasional trains when we were there.

The sites at Heritage Acres aren't very fancy. In fact, there are essentially rows of sites on a gravel parking lot. However, the gravel is clean and fairly plentiful. As you can see from the next photo showing a view down our row, the sites are relatively close together.

As we said in our last post, we are now on Verizon Broadband for our internet access. Tuscumbia is a 3G area. We didn't run any speed tests, but the 3G in this area feels a little faster than our satellite internet. So far at least, we are happy with our decision to switch.

For the past couple of years, we have stopped on our way south in Red Bay, AL where our motor home was built and stayed in the Tiffin Campground. This year, we decided to take a slightly different route through Tuscumbia and not go to Red Bay. The lens on one of our fog lights is cracked, and Paul was going to order a replacement from Tiffin once we got to Summerdale, AL where we plan to stay at least a month before heading to Florida. However, since Tuscumbia is only 45 minutes from Red Bay, we decided to take a day trip to Red Bay to pick up the replacement fog light and to take a factory tour.

Some things about the Tiffin factory tour have changed since we were there last year. Red, who is the 80-something very southern gentleman who used to lead the tours, no longer does that because of his failing eyesight. However, Red is still there every day as the official greeter. He ushers everyone in the door and makes sure they sign in and get safety glasses, then chats with individuals until it's time for the tour to start.

There is now only one tour a day (9:30 AM) instead of two like there used to be. However the tour has been expanded to include the cabinet shop and the Powerglide Chassis assembly building in addition to the main assembly building that used to be the only part of the operation included in the tour.

There were so many people wanting to take the tour the day we were there (about 25 or 30), they split us into two groups. Our group went second, and our tour guide filled us in on some history of Red Bay while we waited about 10 minutes for the other group to get far enough ahead of us that we wouldn't be running into each other once we got into the plant.

When our turn came, we headed through the gate. Tiffin is building 10 motor homes a day (5 days a week), which is down a bit from the peak of 13 they were building when we visited in 2007, but it is up a lot from only 6 a day (4 days a week) they were building when we were there in 2008 when the high fuel prices first hit. We were happy to see there were lots of cars in the employee parking lot (left) and a good many motor homes sitting in the final inspection area off in the distance.

Tiffin employs about 700 people in the town of Red Bay, and 1400 to 1500 total in western Alabama and Eastern Mississippi. They are very important to the local economy.

Our first stop was the cabinet shop. For the second time in less than two weeks, Paul got to enjoy the aroma of fresh sawdust. The first was at the Loiusville Slugger factory. Paul was really impressed by the size and scope of Tiffin's cabinet-making operation.

We entered though the warehouse where we saw stacks and stacks of lumber. This lumber is first planed smooth, then inspected for defects, which are cut out. There were numerous work stations like the one shown in the photo below where boards were being cut to size for various components.

The components are milled to various shapes and profiles, which are then assembled into drawers, doors and other parts. The next photo shows a paneled door that had just been assembled.

And the next worker is assembling a large, decorative ceiling panel for an Allegro Bus.

After assembly, the wood parts are then sanded and finished. The photo below shows finished sections of kitchen cabinets. Rather than a flip-up counter extension, Tiffin uses a roll-out extension in the larger diesel pushers. Drawers are easy to reach since they roll right out with the extension.

From the cabinet shop, we entered the Powerglide Chassis assembly building. Tiffin builds a good many of its own chassis. They build all the chassis for the Allegro Breeze, Tiffin's newest motor home launched last year. It is a smaller, diesel pusher available in 28 and 32-foot lengths. The Powerglide Chassis is also available as an option on some of Tiffin's larger diesel pushers. The next photo shows a chassis for an Allegro Breeze.

The photo below shows Cummins 450hp ISL engines waiting to be installed in chassis for Allegro Buses.

In addition to building some of its own chassis, Tiffin also buys chassis from Ford, Freightliner and Spartan. All chassis go to the welding shop to have floor structures, storage compartment frames and other components welded on. The welding shop is not part of the tour, but the next photo shows a chassis that just came out of the welding shop. Next, it will go to main assembly.

When the chassis enters the main assembly building, workers begin installing components like water and waste tanks, wiring, flooring, interior walls and cabinets, appliances, exterior walls, roof and end caps. We wrote up a fairly detailed description of the assembly when we visited the factory in 2009. If you are interested in reading more about the assembly and seeing photographs, click here.

After the tour, visitors are invited to have a look inside any of the coaches that are parked inside or outside at final inspection. We looked in a few, but some were hard to see because there were several workers inside. We didn't want to get in their way, especially since we are not looking to buy.

From the Tiffin plant, we headed over to the service facility to pick up the replacement fog light. Unfortunately, the company Tiffin used to buy the light from either no longer makes it or is no longer in business, so Paul will have to try to find an alternative. In the meantime, the light still works - it's just the lens that's cracked. We never drive the motor home at night anyway.

Since we just happened to be in Red Bay on Thursday, and since Swamp John's has their catfish special on Thursdays, we decided to have a "cheat day" and stray from our low carb/low sugar diet and stop for the catfish special. The catfish special means the catfish dinner consisting of fried catfish, French fries, cole slaw and hush puppies is available all day.

Swamp John's is a no-frills restaurant that is located in an old gas station. The pumps are still outside, and the main part of the restaurant is where convenience store of the old gas station probably used to be.

We arrived at Swamp John's at the perfect time - 11:45. Tiffin employees have lunch from 11:20 until noon. Lots of people with Tiffin logos on their shirts were leaving, there was only one person ahead of us in the order line and there were lots of empty tables. One of the Tiffin sons was eating with some of the manufacturing employees at one of the few occupied tables. As we were finishing our meals at 12:10, the order line was fairly long and the restaurant was filling up with again with people from downtown businesses on their lunch break.

The catfish was yummy. There was more than we could eat, especially now that we are used to eating less. There were 4 strips of catfish, a hugh pile of French fires, a big mound of cole slaw and two hush puppies - all for $7.49.

Speaking of our diet, we are doing fairly well with our weight loss. We had a slight setback a few weeks ago when we both went up a little at our weekly weigh-in even though we had not cheated at all that week. However, in the couple of weeks since, we lost that slight gain plus a little more. Paul has lost a total of about 10 pounds since we started in early September, and Margery has lost over 6 pounds. This 'diet' is called the Belly Fat Cure which means that we get to measure our waist, too. Paul has lost 1½ inches and Margery has lost 2 inches. Taking a measurment and weighing in means we usually get to see a loss in at least one of those areas.

After lunch, we headed back to the motor home for an afternoon of relaxation (naps). As we keep saying, we have shifted into relaxation mode. However, we haven't stopped sightseeing completely, and there are still some things in Tuscumbia we want to see.

 

Red Bay, AL

As we mentioned in our last post, we stopped on our way south in Red Bay, AL, to have the awning on our motor home repaired and to have the top or our front cap repainted where the clear coat had started to peel. The service coordinator began making the rounds of the new arrivals on Monday, and he got to us early on Tuesday morning. He told us the awning repair would take less than three hours which meant we would get into an express service bay within a day or two. However, he told us there would be a long wait to get into the paint and body shop, and he recommended a body shop in town where we could get the painting done much quicker.

Within an hour, someone from McKinney RV Body Shop stopped by our rig to take a look at the area of the front cap we wanted to have repainted. They gave us an estimate, and we made an appointment to take the motor home to their shop in town on Friday.

In the meantime, we investigated the cost of replacing the entire awning. Although the fabric of the old awning wasn't torn, it was discolored in several places, and the stitching along the top where the weather shield was attached was pulling out. Since we weren't happy with the condition of the awning fabric, and since we knew repairing the awning would be fairly expensive anyway, we decided to bite the bullet and replace the whole thing.

Since we were going to be scheduled for an express bay for our awning repair, Paul went to the service department to make sure replacing the awning would still fall into the three-hour repair category, and it did. He must have asked at just the right time because within minutes of his return to the motor home, someone came to the door wanting to know if we could take the motor home to a service bay right away.

Once Paul pulled the motor home in, the two technicians got to work quickly removing the old awning. Awnings are heavy and awkward; but obviously, these guys had done this before. In the photo below, workers use long support poles remove the awning while another guides the awning out of the awning rail from the ladder.

It took 2 1/2 hours to get the old awning off and the new one installed. The new one works better than our old one ever did. It operates much more smoothly, and the new fabric looks great.

We can't stop in Red Bay without taking a tour of the Tiffin plant. One of the reasons we like to do the plant tour is you get to see what's new because they let you go into any of the motor homes sitting in final inspection. The day after our awning replacement, we decided to go over to the plant for a tour.

Several years ago, the plant produced a peak of 13 motor homes a day. When we were there two years ago when fuel prices were sky high, they were only building 6 motor homes a day and working 4 days a week. Last year, they were building 7 motor homes a day and working 5 days a week. This year, they are still working 5 days a week, and they are building 10 motor homes a day. We're glad to see things are continuing to progress upward.

The tours start out with a short video in the visitor center outside the main gate of the plant.

The tours are still being led by Red, who is 83 or 84 years old, and who is still sharp as a tack. He is a former business owner from Red Bay who was recruited out of retirement years ago by the Tiffin family. He has delivered motor homes, he has represented Tiffin at RV shows, and now he leads the tours. Red is in the center of the photo below.

Inside the gate, there was definitely a lot more hustle and bustle going on. There were a lot more motor homes lined up, and there were more cars in the employee parking lot. Parts were also being shuttled back and forth by fork trucks like the one in the photo below.

Inside the plant, there were lots of workers scurrying about, there were lots of motor homes on the production line, and there was lots of noise. Red, who is very soft-spoken, has a microphone, and all on the tour are given headphones in order to be able to hear over the din.

Last year we described the basic steps in the production of a motor home in our post about Red Bay. To see our photos and read about that manufacturing process and about last year's visit to Red Bay, click here.

Last December, Tiffin Motorhomes created a big buzz at the RVIA national RV trade show by introducing a new compact, fuel-efficient, rear diesel motor home called the Breeze. The Breeze has recently started in production with a 28 foot model, and we saw two of them in the plant. The one on the photo below was getting the finishing touches to the interior, and was scheduled to go to the paint shop in a couple of days.

As full-timers, the Breeze is a little small for us; but we could definitely see buying something like a Breeze if we were to settle down somewhere when we're a little older and travel only part of the year.

As usual we were able to go into the motor homes sitting in final inspection at the end of the tour. We'll probably never be able to afford a new diesel pusher, but it's fun to dream.

Swamp John's is a restaurant that is quite well known around Red Bay for its catfish special. The special, which is available all day on Thursdays, includes 4 pieces of fried catfish, two sides and a drink for $7.00. Swamp John's is located just outside town in an old gas station. Most people eat inside, but you can dine on picnic tables under the canopy among the old gas pumps.

The inside is nothing fancy, but the catfish is good, and the price for the Thursday special is excellent.

We got up bright and early on Friday so we could get the motor home to the body shop as soon after 7:00 AM as possible. They were ready for us when we got there about 7:10, and they quickly began sanding and masking off the upper area of the front that needed repainting.

In chatting with the guys at the body shop, Paul found out peeling clear coat on the top happens occasionally because not enough clear coat was applied during the original paint job. Unfortunately, the problem usually doesn't show up until after the warranty has expired.

After Paul watched for a while, we took about a 25 mile drive to the Walmart in Russleville to stock up on groceries. When we returned, we stopped by the body shop to put the cold things we bought into the fridge and to check progress. Then we went over to the Tiffin customer lounge to hang out for a while.

The customer lounge is very comfortable with sofas, easy chairs, TV, microwaves, and vending machines. Often you can see people sitting around a table playing cards, dominos, or putting together one of the many jigsaw puzzles sitting around. Pets are allowed in the lounge, so Margery was able to get her 'puppy fix.'

When we returned to the body shop a little after 1:00, they were waiting for the last coat to harden a bit more so they could do some final buffing. The end result looked outstanding with an excellent color match and a good-looking, glossy clear coat. By the time we got out of there and got set up back at the Tiffin campground, it was around 3:00, and were were starved.

We were both hungry for Chinese, so we decided to try City King Chinese Restaurant in town.

We both love General Tso's chicken, and they had lunch specials for $4.95 that included General Tso's chicken plus fried rice or a spring roll. However, they also have a fairly extensive lunch buffet for $5.89 that also had General Tso's chicken plus numerous other entrees and side dishes, so we decided on the buffet.

The selection was great, and the food was pretty good for the price for a small southern town like Red Bay. By the way, you really know you're in the south when a Chinese restaurant serves sweet tea.

We got all the work done on the motor home done in less than a week, which was excellent considering the work included painting. We talked to people who were told the wait would be up to three weeks for body work and paint. Since ours was paint only, it wouldn't have taken that long, but using McKinney Body Shop was a good suggestion from Tiffin that probably saved us a week.

As we said earlier, we heard the Tiffin service facility gets busier the later it gets in October. We arrived on Saturday, and there were several rigs in the dry camp sites by Sunday Night. We left a little over a week later, and there were 20 rigs in the dry camp area by Sunday night.

Red Bay is in Alabama just over the state line from Mississippi. For our next stop, we're heading south and just back across the line to Meridian, MS, to do a little sightseeing.

Red Bay, AL 2009

After we left the Memphis area, we stopped in Red Bay, AL, like we did last fall. Red Bay is the home of Tiffin Motorhomes, and we wanted to take another plant tour to see the new 2010 models. Even though we weren't having work done on our motor home like last year (click HERE to read that post), we stayed at the Allegro Campground again because it's conveniently located right at the edge of town and it's cheap.

The Allegro Campground has full hookups, 50-amp electric, and free Wi-Fi. The campground is built at an old airstrip, so it is all gravel, except for the main campground road which is the old asphalt runway. The repair facility, which has 40+ repair bays, is right next to the campground. The sites are pretty close together, and there is a fair amount of commotion between 7:00 and 8:00 AM when everyone is taking their coaches over to the repair facility. But, like we said, the campground is convenient to town, it's cheap ($10 a night), and it's also fun to see all the Tiffin motor homes all lined up in a row and to talk to some of the other Tiffin owners. The photo below shows our site at the Allegro Campground.

The Allegro Campground does not accept reservations, and it fills up by Sunday night or Monday, especially during the snowbird migration, with people coming in for service. Therefore, we timed our arrival for Saturday to avoid the rush and found the campground only about half full when we pulled in around noon.

We headed into town to Tiffin Motorhomes on Monday for the 10:00 AM tour. There is also a 2:00 PM tour; but since the workers go home at 2:30, there isn't as much going on during the afternoon tour. The tour starts at the visitor center outside the main gate.

Red, who is now 83 years young, is still leading the tours. He is very well informed about Tiffin Motorhomes, and he is sharp as a tack. If someone makes a joke, he will pick up on it immediately and join in with some good-natured banter of his own. He knows all the models and all the floorplans; and if someone asks a question to which he doesn't know the answer (which is rare), he will usually find the answer by the end of the tour.

As we walked through the plant gate, we were heartened to see many more motor homes sitting around than there were last year and to see a good many employees' vehicles in the parking lot. Back in 2007, Tiffin built 13 motor homes a day; but when we visited last year when fuel prices were so high, they were only building 6 motor homes a day and they were only working 4 days a week. This year, even with the weak economy, they are working 5 days a week and producing 7 motor homes a day. There are still a lot of lay-offs, but things are on the upswing and they said the number of motor homes will soon be increased to 8 a day. The next photo is the view inside the main gate. Motor homes waiting for final inspection are in the distance, and a portion of the employee parking lot is to the left.

The tour includes only the main assembly building. The chassis shop welds the beams that support the floor and other brackets and components onto the chassis. The chassis then enters the main assembly building under its own power (notice the temporary seat to the left) where workers begin installing wiring, holding tanks, storage bays, and plumbing under the floor.

Workers then install the floor, the carpet, and the tile. Wires and plumbing are fished up through openings in the floor.

Interior walls and appliances go in next. More wiring and plumbing are added.

In another area of the plant, exterior walls are being fabricated. Slabs of polystyrene foam are cut by CNC (Computer Numerical Controlled) routers to hollow out slots for the aluminum frame.

In the next photo, pieces of pre-cut, square aluminum tubing are being installed into the slots in the foam at the table on the left. On the right, the pieces of aluminum are being welded into a strong, solid frame.

After the frames are welded, an outside skin of fiberglass and an inside skin of thin, wallpaper-covered plywood are laminated to the foam. Workers then cut openings for windows, doors, and slide-outs in the walls. The completed wall leaning against the ladder in the photo below is waiting to be hoisted into place on the motor home behind it.

A foam ceiling assembly is fastened down on top of the walls in the bay with the overhead walkway to the left in the photo below. A one-piece, molded fiberglass roof (stacked on the floor) is lifted by the overhead, yellow-frame hoist with vacuum-powered suction cups and placed on top of the foam.

Workers then install slide-outs. A few, smaller Tiffin motor homes have two slide-outs. The rest have at least three slide-outs, and most have four.

Next, the workers install storage bay doors, interior cabinets, furniture, trim, front and rear end caps, and miscellaneous items. When the assembly is complete, the motor homes are driven a few miles north to Belmont, MS, to the paint shop. All Tiffin motor homes get full body paint. The units are then returned to Red Bay for final cleaning and inspection.

After our plant tour, we stopped at La Estancia Mexican Restaurant, which is right down the road from the campground. The food was good, although not as good as our favorite Mexican restaurant Cozumel back in Greensburg, PA; and prices were reasonable. We both had Lunch Special #1, which consists of a chili relleno, a taco, salad (guacamole was extra), and refried beans. Margery substituted rice for the beans. In the next photo, Margery is about to take a bite of her taco.

When we got back to the Allegro Campground, we stopped in at the surplus store. Tiffin sells furniture and other components leftover from older models in a warehouse-like building adjacent to the campground and repair facility. We didn't find anything we needed this time, but you never know what they may have.

We stayed in Red Bay a week, but other than taking the plant tour and eating out once we didn't do much. We stopped at the local grocery story to pick up a few necessities; Margery got a haircut, read, and did some budget work and travel research on the computer; and Paul ran over to the local hardware store, washed the car and motor home, and did a little puttering around the motor home. And to help with the puttering, all the men on the Tiffin plant tour got a gift of a 10' tape measure with the Tiffin logo. It was the best promotional gift he could have gotten. You know men and their toys...big and small.

From Red Bay, we had a short drive to a new destination where we planned to relax some more. Look for our next post, and we'll tell you all about it.

Mobile AL Part III: More Bellingrath Gardens

After the house tour and river cruise at Bellingrath, we climbed up the steps of Bellingrath Grotto and began exploring some of the terraces at the top. The photo below shows Mermaid Pool.

 

The next photo is a view of Fountain Plaza with Mermaid Pool in the far distance.

From Fountain Plaza, we made a stop for a short rest at the south terrace near the house. In the photo below, Margery is surrounded by Easter lilies and delphiniums.

 

The walkway from the house and river back to the parking area follows a different, more winding path than that from the entrance of the estate to the house. As we started back, we took a side trip on the ecological boardwalk that extends out over the water of a small inlet from the river. This is supposedly a good place to view wildlife, but there wasn't any visible the day we were there. However, Paul thought the group of bald cypress trees in the photo below was picturesque.

 

Bald cypress trees grow in swamps, wet areas, and even in the water as in the case of the trees shown above. Like mangroves that we wrote about when we visited the Florida Keys, cypress trees have woody projections that are sent up from the roots above the soil or water level. The projections, called cypress knees, help the root system absorb oxygen from the air. You can see a few knees in the photo above, but the trees in the photo below growing in damp soil elsewhere in the garden had many more knees. We thought some of them kind of looked like prairie dogs.

Back on the main pathway, we passed Mirror Lake.

 

At the far end of Mirror Lake is a bridge that was lined with containers planted with geraniums.

The next photo is a view from the bridge looking back down the lake.

After the bridge, the pathway passes through the rockery.

 

We saw this common five-lined skink sunning himself in the rockery.

The next stop along the pathway back to the parking area was the Bridal Garden where there is a white gazebo that is used for weddings. The gazebo is surrounded by more roses.

The last stop along the return path was the Oriental-American Garden. Water usually plays an important role in Japanese-style gardens, and this garden was no exception. The next photo shows one of several picturesque bridges. Margery liked the way this one was reflected in the calm water.

The next bridge arches gracefully over the water with a callistemon (also known as the bottlebrush tree) in the foreground.

The photo below is from the top of the arched bridge looking back down the lake.

We have one last composite photo showing just some of the beautiful blooms we saw at Bellingrath Gardens.

 

We really liked Bellingrath Gardens and the Mobile area in general. This is one place where we definitely want to return. We're already thinking we might come back a little earlier next year in time to see the azaleas blooming at Bellingrath and stay a little longer. There is a lot more to see and do in Mobile; but for now, we need to continue on our way west.

Mobile, AL Part II: Bellingrath Gardens

With spring well underway in southern Alabama, one of the things we wanted to be sure to see in the Mobile area was Bellingrath Gardens. The historic home and gardens are part of a 65-acre estate originally owned by Walter and Bessie Bellingrath. The entrance is shown in the photo below.

 

Visitors can purchase tickets to see the gardens only, or to see the gardens in combination with a house tour and/or a 45-minute cruise on the adjacent Fowl River. We opted for the full combination that included the gardens, house, and cruise.

In 1903, Walter Bellingrath and his older brother William heard about the opportunity to buy franchises to sell bottled Coca-Cola. They scraped together some money, got a loan, and bought a franchise for southern Alabama. Later, they decided to split the franchise; and since Walter liked to fish, he took the area around Mobile. Walter's Coca-Cola franchise became one of the most successful in the United States; and his business interests later expanded to include owning a ceramic tile company, a warehousing company, and a steamship company.

In 1906, Walter married Bessie Mae Morse, who was his stenographer at his Coca-Cola bottling company. Bessie developed an interest in horticulture and antiques and her tireless energy and love of beauty played a predominant role in making Bellingrath the masterpiece it is today. The fact that the Bellingraths had no children and had almost unlimited funds helped a lot, too.

Walter was somewhat of a workaholic, and in 1917 he bought a fish camp along the banks of the Fowl River near Mobile Bay on the advice of his doctor so he could have a place to relax. As we said, Bessie had a keen interest in gardens, and she had extensive plantings of azaleas and camellias at their residence in Mobile. She soon realized the fish camp was an ideal location for additional plantings and began gardening there.

The Bellingraths decided to open their weekend retreat to guests year-round and to move there themselves from their home in downtown Mobile. They hired prominent Mobile architect George B. Rogers to design a house to be built on the site of the fish camp. The house was completed in 1935.

Mrs. Bellingrath died of a sudden heart attack in 1943 at age 63 after living in the house only eight years. Mr. Bellingrath continued to live in the house until his death in 1955 at age 86. After Mr. Bellingrath's death, ownership of the house and gardens passed to the Bellingrath-Morse Foundation. The Foundation was established to fund and manage the house and garden and keep them open to the public since the Bellingraths had no children.

From the entrance of the estate, there is a pathway that winds through several garden areas and leads to the house. The gardens are beautiful with picturesque scenes and vistas almost everywhere you look.

Bellingrath always has something in bloom, and the web site lists what is currently in flower. Camellias bloom in January and February, and March is the time for azaleas. Summer annuals dominate from May through September, more annuals and chrysanthemums bloom in fall, and poinsettias along with Christmas lights are featured in December. The display of fuchsia, ageratum, and hydrangea shown in the photo below was just inside the entrance.

Bellingrath Gardens has an extensive rose garden that blooms from April to December. The rose garden is planted with large blocks of the same variety in each section.

The composite photo below gives you an idea of just a few of the many varieties in bloom. The fragrance was intoxicating.

 

Adjacent to the rose garden was the conservatory where there is a lush display of tropical plants and orchids.

 

A little farther along, delphiniums, petunias, and cape daisies line the walkway as it approaches the house.

 

The next several photos show various views of the house. The first shows the approach to the house with the entrance to the right.

The next photo looks toward the house across the south terrace where the original fish camp was located.

 

Below is the courtyard near the entrance.

 

And finally, there is a view from the river side of the house.

 

The tour of the house was interesting. The house was the most modern in Mobile when it was built in 1935, but there was no electric power at the time in the relatively remote area by the river where the house was located. Therefore, the house had its own generator until power lines were finally run in 1940.

Make no mistake, at 10,500 square feet, the house is quite large and it is elaborately furnished; but it is designed to give the impression it is more intimate and more modest than it is, thus making it appear to be quite comfortable and livable rather than stuffy and pretentious. You'll have to take our word for that because, unfortunately, photography is not permitted inside.

After the tour of the house, we were just in time for the noon cruise up the Fowl River. French settlers gave the river the name River of Birds because of the many birds that inhabited the area. The English translation became the much less romantic-sounding Fowl River.

From the back of the house, you can see the river. The river boat is barely visible behind the covered landing.

The river cruise included a brief history of Mobile. Spanish explorers sailed into Mobile Bay as early as 1500. The Spanish, who were known as Conquistadors (conquerors), warred with the Native Americans who lived in the area, killing many of them and destroying their towns and villages. But the Spanish never really established any settlements in the area.

After the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588, Spanish power began to wane. Following this defeat, English influence in much of the New World began to grow, but the French remained strong in Canada. In 1682, La Salle floated down the Mississippi River from Canada and claimed the entire Mississippi Basin for France. The French established a settlement near present-day Mobile in 1702. Mobile became part of the United States in 1813 as part of the Mississippi Territory. It later became part of the Alabama Territory.

The river cruise also included a description of the ecology of the Mobile Bay Estuary. The mixing of the fresh water from the rivers with the salt water of the bay creates unique habitats for marine life and serves as a nursery for a multitude of vertebrates and invertebrates, which in turn attracts the many birds for which the river is named.

We also got to see some of the many large homes along the river. The one in the photo below reminded us of Mount Vernon.

 

Seagulls also liked to follow our boat looking for handouts of popcorn. This laughing gull and several of his friends kept flying by.

As the boat docked, we could see Bellingrath Grotto, with its waterfall and seasonal flowers. The grotto was completed in 1929 and is located at the original river entrance to the fish camp.

There are a lot more of the gardens to explore, so look for our next post.

Mobile, AL Part I: Shrimp and More

After spending four full months in Florida (with the exception of taking three trips to Pittsburgh with a duration of about ten days each), we headed north and west to begin our summer travel adventure. Our primary destination this year will be Yosemite National Park in California, but we will make a number of other stops on the way there. Afterward, we plan to visit northern California, Oregon, and Washington before heading back east for fall and winter.

After we left Bushnell, we made an overnight stop at Chattahoochee RV Resort in Chattahoochee, FL. We stayed at this campground, which is located right along the Apalachicola River, our first year of full-timing. The campground is located just downstream of a dam that forms Lake Seminole. The city of Chattahoochee operates the campground and honors a 50% Passport America discount for stays of up to three days. There is also a picnic and boat launch area adjacent to the campground.

The use of the word "resort" in the name may be a little too hopeful, but it is still a fairly nice campground - especially at a Passport America price of about $8 a night. The photo below shows our site at Chattahoochee RV Resort.

 

If you go to this campground, make sure you use a pressure regulator because their water pressure is very high. Without a regulator, the pressure pegged our 100 psi gauge.

The main road in the campground is paved, but the rest of the roads are gravel. Some sites are gravel, but the ones down over the hill near the river are grass. The sites are all back-ins; but the last time we were there, they let us park down over the hill and just pull across several unoccupied sites so we wouldn't have to unhook the toad for a one-night stop. This year, since they again weren't very filled, we did the same thing except we were at the far end of the upper section of the campground. The sites near the river were still a bit soggy because they had been underwater until a few days prior.

Northern Florida and Georgia have had quite a bit of rain lately. There have been a series of heavy storms passing through for the past few weeks. A storm gave Chattahoochee over four inches of rain the day before we arrived. After we got set up, we walked down to the boat launch and picnic area where we could see the water was still pretty high.

From Chattahoochee, it was on to Rainbow Plantation, the Escapees RV Park in Summerdale, AL, near Mobile. Rainbow Plantation has a transient camping area, leased/co-op sites, and deeded lots. The photo below shows our site in the camping area.

We also stayed at Rainbow Plantation our first year of full-timing; but it was fairly cool because it was the end of December so we didn't stay long and we didn't do any sightseeing. Summerdale is located on the eastern side of Mobile Bay, and the city of Mobile is located on the western side of the bay.

One of the things Mobile Bay is known for is seafood. We did a little research online and decided on a restaurant not too far from Summerdale called Big Daddy's Grill, which is located on the Fish River. Big Daddy's is shown in the photo below.

Big Daddy's has live entertainment on weekends, but it bills itself as a family restaurant. The entertainment usually runs from 3 or 4 in the afternoon until 7 or 8 in the evening instead of late into the night. They even have a couple of piles of sand for the kids to play in. There is indoor seating, outdoor seating in the pavilion shown above where there is a huge fireplace for cool evenings, and outdoor seating behind the restaurant overlooking a small marina. Although is was a weekday when we were there and there was no activity to watch at the marina, we chose a picnic table overlooking the water.

 

Margery had a catfish strip basket and Paul had a fried shrimp basket with local shrimp. Both were excellent. The baskets come with hush puppies, slaw, and a choice of fries or onion rings.

Another thing that showed up in our research for seafood was the fact that the Annual Shrimp Cook-off would be held in Mobile the Saturday we were in town. The cook-off is a fund raiser for an organization called Volunteer Mobile, which seeks to promote volunteerism to solve community problems such as disaster relief.

The admission price to the cook-off is a little steep at $15 per person; but it is for a good cause, and it entitles you to all the shrimp you can eat at no additional charge. Advance purchase discount tickets are available at some of the area banks, but the branches on the Summerdale side of the bay didn't have the tickets because they said they were too far from downtown Mobile.

The Organized Seafood Association of Alabama provides all the shrimp for the cook-off at no cost. The contestants, which are made up of professionals such as area restaurants and amateur teams such as civic groups, submit their dishes for judging. The winners in both the professional and amateur categories receive bragging rights. The teams also serve samples of their dishes to the public.

The event is held in Bienville Square, which is a pleasant, shady park that covers one square block in the downtown area of Mobile.

 

The cook-off runs from 11:00 AM until 2:00 PM. We arrived around 11:30, and some of the booths already have fairly long lines. We developed a system where one of us would stand in one of the longer lines line while the other would walk to one of the nearby, shorter lines and bring two samples back to where the other was waiting. The photo below shows Margery enjoying one of our favorite dishes of the entire cook-off - shrimp in an Alfredo-style cheese sauce. We liked that one so well, Margery went back three times and Paul went back four times.

 

The shrimp cook-off had live entertainment that included a band that sounded pretty good. Miss Seafood, the event queen, and several pre-teen members of her court also sang. They were quite talented.

 

We had fried shrimp, peel-and-eat-shrimp with old bay seasoning, shrimp with pine nuts, shrimp with rice, barbecued shrimp, grilled shrimp wrapped in prosciutto, oriental shrimp, and our favorite shrimp in cheese sauce. By about 12:30, most of the lines were getting quite long, but that was OK with us because we were getting pretty full. We had another sample or two and left a little after 1:00.

Since it was still early in the day and since we were already downtown, we decided to drive several blocks to the Mobile Carnival Museum. Carnival is another name for Mardi Gras. The Mobile Carnival Museum is shown in the photo below.

When someone mentions Mardi Gras, we always think of New Orleans. The celebration in New Orleans is more well known than the one in Mobile because New Orleans publicizes theirs more. Carnival in Mobile bills itself as being more family oriented which may also help account for the greater notoriety of the celebration held in New Orleans.

Mobile claims to have the oldest Mardi Gras or Carnival celebration in what would eventually become the United States dating back to 1703. Mardi Gras literally means "fat Tuesday" in French. It is a celebration prior to Lent when supplies of fat and other foods that the pious would traditionally forgo during Lent are used up. Parades and masquerading typically associated with Mardi Gras and Carnival can be traced back to medieval Italy.

Carnival in Mobile is centered around mystic societies (called krewes in New Orleans and other locations) that sponsor parades, balls, and other activities for members, guests, and the public. The mystic societies are private organizations that grew out of the social and business structure that cotton brought to the city. There are approximately 55 active social societies today. Membership in a society is by invitation only.

The king and queen of Carnival are selected almost a year in advance. The selection is made based on social standing, connections, and money. The king and queen don't necessarily need to be residents of Mobile, but they must have a connection to the city. For example, one past queen was a New York opera star, but her mother was a resident of Mobile.

The debutantes of the season serve as Ladies of the Court. Each lady selects her escort. The societies kick off the season in Mobile with a formal debutante ball held Thanksgiving weekend.

The societies also select their own kings and queens who wear elaborate costumes that include ornate trains to some of the events. The Carnival Museum has many of these beautiful costumes and trains on display, some of which are shown in the photo below.



The photo below shows the trains and costumes of the 2008 Mobile Carnival Association king and queen.



The next photo shows the costumes of the 2008 Mobile Mardi Gras Association (formerly the Colored Carnival Association) king and queen.



The gown and train shown in the photo below are from 1936. Although this train is very elegant, you can see how much more elaborate the trains have become today.

 

Children's page costumes are shown in the next photo. The job of the pages is to look cute and stay out of mischief.

The importance of the king and queen having financial resources can't be overstated. All of the dresses, robes, crowns, scepters, and men's costumes are paid for by the families. Each train is designed to include symbols which are meaningful to the wearer. The embellishments are all hand-sewn and the costumes take many months to complete.

The museum also has portions of a couple of parade floats on display. The floats are made from paper mache. The photo below shows us pretending to ride on a float and to throw Mardi Gras beads.



The next photo shows a decoration from another float on display in the museum gift shop.



And finally, here we are posing as King Felix III and Queen Margery. All Carnival kings in Mobile are traditionally named Felix, and since the current Carnival Association is the third embodiment of the ruling organization, the king is called Felix III. The queen gets to use her own name. We can't seem to pass up those tourist cutouts and statues that you stick your faces through for photos.



It was a fun and interesting day, but there is more to see in Mobile. Look for our next post in a few days.

Red Bay, AL Part II: Around Town

Red Bay is a fairly small town (Zeller translation - they don't have a Wal-Mart). Red Bay has a nice, Southern, small-town feel; but there isn't much to do. Our primary reason for being there was to have the windows on the motor home replaced. We needed to stay around the rig much of the time anyway during the early part of the week waiting to talk to the service liaison and during the latter part of the week waiting for them to call us over to service; but we didn't want to spent the entire time just sitting around either.

We knew we would have a couple of hours to wait while the motor home was in the repair bay, so we decided to take a drive to the Coon Dog Cemetery. The cemetery is a little over a half hour northeast of Red Bay off State Route 247.

In 1937, Key Underwood buried his beloved coon dog, Troop, in a grassy meadow that was a popular gathering spot for hunters. Soon, other hunters started burying their coon dogs in the same location. Today, there are over 185 coon dogs in the cemetery.

These guys are serious about their dogs! When asked by a reporter why other types of dogs weren't allowed to be buried there, Key Underwood responded, "You must not know much about coon hunters and their dogs, if you think we would contaminate this burial place with poodles and lap dogs."

Markers range from hand-lettered wood plaques...

...to elaborate, polished-granite grave stones.

After the completion of the repairs to the motor home, we decided to stay in Red Bay a little longer. We still needed to research our next stop, the inland path of hurricane Ike was still a little uncertain, and getting gas had the potential for being a little dicey with many Gulf Coast refineries shut down because of the hurricane. Staying put after the motor home work was completed seemed like the prudent thing to do. It also gave us time to relax after our western U.S. "vacation" this past summer.

One thing there is to do in Red Bay is to eat. There are quite a few small restaurants that many of the locals frequent. One of the local favorites is Swamp John's. The restaurant is in an old gas station (the pumps are still outside) and looks like a real dive, but they serve delicious fried catfish. Catfish is available every day for dinner and all day on Thursdays. Meals are ordered cafeteria-style and are served on paper plates.

Another couple we met at the Allegro Campground also suggested Reeve's Fish and Steakhouse for catfish. They are only open on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. On Thursday of the following week, we headed out to Reeve's. The restaurant is located about 8 miles south of Golden, MS and about 10 miles west of Red Bay on Mississippi Route 25.

The decor at Reeve's has a little (but not much) more ambiance than Swamp John's. The inside is paneled with OSB (Oriented Strand Board - a type of low-cost construction panel similar to particle board), and there are some old photos on the walls. The menu is quite a bit more extensive than Swamp John's with healthier side dishes offered including a bountiful salad bar. Reeve's is a sit-down restaurant, but prices are very reasonable and only slightly higher than Swamp John's.

We both had the fried catfish, and, although they do offer healthier side dishes, we had french fries and onion rings. :) Cole slaw and hush puppies were also included. The catfish was great - piping hot, light, and crispy. The sides were also good.

One day during our extended stay, we went over to Piney Grove COE in Mississippi, a campground on the Tom-Bigbee waterway, to check out campsites suitable for satellite for a possible future stay. We found this COE on our first visit to the area and loved it. Here's a picture of our favorite site in the campground from that 2004 stay in our pre-satellite days in our travel trailer.

As you can see, the park is heavily wooded and the chance of getting satellite is extremely limited to say the least. In fact, we only found one or two sites out of 200+ that might work.

On another day, we also scouted out Corinth Recreation Area campground, a national forest campground, for our next stop. Sometimes we can tell from an aerial view (available from Google Maps) whether or not there are campsites that are suitable for satellite reception. There were several sites at Corinth that looked good, but we couldn't tell from the campground maps exactly what the site numbers were. Therefore, since Corinth was only about an hour and a half from Red Bay, we decided to drive there in person to pick our site in advance.

During the remainder of our stay, we also made a Wal-Mart run to nearby Russellville for groceries, Paul rotated the tires on the Vue, we cleaned the carpet in the motor home, Margery finished entering all her recipes into the computer, and we researched and made some reservations for Thanksgiving weekend and for the Florida Keys. We've learned that the popular camping months in the South are September through March, when the temperatures moderate, so reservations are advisable for popular areas and for holiday weekends.

As we said, we will be going to Corinth Recreation Area about an hour and a half to the east near Double Springs, AL for our next stop. We look forward to getting back to a more natural setting.

Red Bay, AL Part I: Tiffin Motor Homes

We left West Memphis for the three-hour drive to Red Bay, AL, home of Tiffin Motor Homes. We pulled into the Allegro Campground shortly after noon and got set up. The Allegro Campground is owned by Tiffin and is right next to their new 105,000 square foot repair and parts facility, which has over 40 repair bays and which is shown in the photo below.

The campground isn't much to look at, but it has full hookups with 50 amp electric and free Wi-Fi. It is built on an old airstrip and consists of 3 rows of about 80 pull-through sites that are rather close together. There is another small group of "overflow" sites in back with water and electric only and there is more room for dry camping beyond that at the far end of the old runway. The main campground road, which was originally the runway, is paved; everything else in the campground is gravel. Unfortunately, the gravel has a lot of the fine stuff that gets tracked into your rig easily. The photo below shows our site at Allegro Campground.

Although we did see quite a few Tiffin motor homes at Tom Sawyer's RV Park in West Memphis, we have never seen anything like the Allegro Campground. Looking up and down the rows, all but one or two of the rigs were Tiffin motor homes; and, although there is some variation from model to model and year to year, almost all had similar paint schemes and colors.

The campground is a bargain at $10 a night. They will give you one complimentary night if you come for a factory tour, and your stay is free if you are there for repairs during the one-year, basic warranty period. Most of those at the campground are waiting for service in the adjacent repair facility. Consequently, there is a fair amount of hustle and bustle early in the morning and later in the afternoon as rigs pull in and out of the service bays; but the campground is still surprisingly quiet most of the time considering the close proximity to the repair shop.

We have had very few problems with our motor home since we first bought it in 2005. There were problems with our hydraulic jacks back in late 2006 and early 2007, but those were handled satisfactorily by HWH, who is the manufacturer of the jacks. However, a little over a year after we picked up the motor home, we noticed the dual-pane window in the kitchen was fogged indicating the seal between the panes had failed.

Over the next 6 months, three more windows fogged, including the very large (and very expensive) side window by the passenger seat in front. There was a one-year warranty on the motor home itself. Because the windows fogged after this one-year warranty period and believing we would have to absorb the potentially high cost of replacing them, we figured we would have to live with the faulty windows.

Then, when we were talking to a fellow Tiffin owner parked next to us last fall, the subject of problem windows came up. He had a 2006 Phaeton that was built early in the new model year shortly after our Allegro Bay, and he said he had the same problem with some of his windows. Tiffin realized they had a problem with their process around that time (Tiffin makes their own windows), and they replaced his faulty windows at no cost after almost two years under an extended warranty.

Paul continued to drag his feet about the windows thinking our motor home, which was then 2 1/2 years old, couldn't possibly still be covered. Besides, it seemed we were traveling extensively; and it would be inconvenient to stick around near where a dealer was located for several weeks while they ordered the windows and none of our travels took us near Red Bay to have repairs done. Finally, Margery decided to take the bull by the horns and called Tiffin herself. By this time, a fifth window had fogged.

We found out Tiffin had extended the warranty on the problematic windows to two years for parts and labor, and they would cover the cost of parts only for the third year. Unfortunately, our motor home was then about six weeks over the three-year limit. However, since it was such a short time over the limit, Tiffin agreed to cover the cost of the windows.

Tiffin has a reputation for going the extra mile to service their customers. That's one of the big reasons we bought a Tiffin in the first place, but this was beyond our expectations. We arranged our travel schedule to pass through Red Bay after Labor Day on the way back east. Our next, firm campground reservation is November 1 in Myrtle Beach, so we would have plenty of time to have the repairs done.

There are two ways to get service in Red Bay. First, you can call and request an appointment, but it can take up to a year to get scheduled. The good thing about scheduling an appointment is they get you in right away on your scheduled day. The second way to get service is to just show up, and wait until they can fit you in. This can vary from a few days to over a week, depending on what you need to have done and how busy they are when you happen to arrive. We opted for the latter method since our short-term schedule was flexible.

When checking into the campground, they give you a service number if you're there for repairs. Norris, the service liaison, will stop by your site to see you, get any necessary details on the work, and give you an estimate of when they might fit you in.

A total of 55 rigs came in over the same weekend we came in, so it took Norris two days to get to us; but he said our work would take less than three hours so he was going to schedule our rig for the express bay. Although he said he thought we would get in the next afternoon or the following morning, it turned out to be the end of the week.

While we were waiting to get called over for our repairs, we headed into town to tour the Tiffin plant. We had already taken the tour on two previous occasions, but we wanted to see what was new for the 2009 models. Margery couldn't help but think about our first visit in May of 2004 when owning a motor home and going full-time were still only a dream. What a difference four years can make. We are grateful for the way God has ordered our steps.

The photo below shows the visitor center where tours start.

And the view below is of some of the factory buildings. The tour is through the main assembly building, which is to the far right.

As you can see, there are very few motor homes sitting around. The areas inside the fence to the right and left of the entry drive are usually lined up with motor homes awaiting final inspection and delivery. In fact, there weren't very many motor homes in the factory either. The high oil prices are taking a toll on the RV industry and motor homes have taken the biggest hit. Across the RV industry, motor home sales are more than 50% below what they were last year. At least five RV manufacturers have gone out of business in the past year.

Even though Tiffin has had the #1 selling motor home model for the last 2 or 3 years (Phaeton) and the #1 and the #2 selling motor home last year (Phaeton and Allegro Bus), they have not been immune from the big sales drop. Tiffin used to produce 13 motor homes a day. Now they are only producing 6 a day and only working 4 days a week.

One thing we did notice on the plant tour was that most of what was on the assembly line was either Allegro Buses or Zephyrs. These are Tiffin's two highest-priced motor homes. Even though they are selling fewer motor homes, at least a fairly high percentage of the ones they are selling are the high-dollar units.

The tours are led by Red, who is about 82 years young. Red is a soft-spoken, Southern gentleman who came out of retirement and has been leading plant tours for the past 7-8 years.  He is very knowledgeable about Tiffin products; and if there is something he doesn't know, he will find out for you. If you ask a question, Red may lead the tour off in a new direction to show you the answer.

Although Red has his usual route for the tour, he will go almost anywhere in the main assembly building anyone on the tour happens to want to go. In fact, on our tour in 2004, the motor home order for a couple on the tour was scheduled to be on the line. Red spent time tracking down their order and finding their unit under construction. They had the opportunity to go into their motor home before any of the interior cabinets had been installed. It's like they don't take your order for granted and, realize it's a big deal to the customer.

After the tour, we headed back to the motor home to play more of the waiting game. Paul walked over to the parts department and bought a new fog light to replace the one whose lens was cracked, undoubtedly by a rock thrown up from the road. We also went over to the surplus sales warehouse. There are chairs, sofas, carpet, wood trim, TVs, and leftovers of all kinds from previous model years that are no longer needed by the parts department that are for sale to the public. There are also scratch and dent items. It's a fun place for a "do-it-youselfer" to poke around.

We arrived on a Sunday and finally got called over for service on Friday. After the work on the motor home was done, Paul went into the office to pay. To our surprise, there was no charge for either the parts or the labor. When Paul questioned this, they told him we would have had to pay for labor if we had the work done at an RV dealer; but the service manager decided since we came all the way to Red Bay, they would cover the labor as well as the parts. What a surprise...and a blessing!

Even though there isn't much to do in Red Bay, we did find a few things to occupy our time. Check back in a few days for our next post to see what we found.