Crockett Roadtrip

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jamcrocj — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 07:46:00 GMT

Crockett Road

Trip 2008 – Final Day July 12

Today was spent driving home! We left Knoxville about 8:00 and arrived in Madison about 3:30. It was a fairly uneventful day and all of us could not wait to get home. I gave the boys a final exam on the way, history and trivia. Collectively they were able to pass. Craig and Patience were not expecting us until tomorrow and they were with Rachel in Hattiesburg at a softball tournament. They will not get home until about midnight so Brandon is staying with us tonight. When Brandon and I dropped off Will and Wes at their house I asked Clint to take a picture of all 4 of us. It is the only picture of all of us on the entire trip, and I added it to the Manassas group. You may view it as the last picture on the Manassas photo gallery. One thing I need to clear up. There was a departure from the planned agenda. We missed the Antietem Battlefield and picked up Bull Run (Manassas) instead. The change was made because we ran out of time in getting from Gettysburg to Washington D. C. We had hoped to go by Antietem on the way from Gettysburg to Washington because it’s not much out of the way. Bull Run was on the way home so we chose to go there. Overall it was simply a GREAT TRIP. A trip I will always remember and one I hope the boys will too. Here are some things I learned about my grandsons on the trip. Wes will probably have a lot of money some day because he refuses to spend his money when he thinks someone else will pay for what he wants or needs. He returned home with just about all of the “allowance” D’Dad gave him on the trip. Will is probably the world’s best trivia expert for his age; he seems to remember everything. Brandon is the same great kid he has always been; he is oriented toward swords, knives and adventure stories. ALL THREE OF THE BOYS ARE DEFINITELY ALPHA MALES. They are competitive in everything. I simply cannot express how much I enjoyed spending a whole week with them and how glad their D’Dad is that he survived the week. These grandsons are blessings from God!

Gallery: Bull Run

jamcrocj — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 11:00:00 GMT

6th Day

Bull Run Battlefield

jamcrocj — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 10:53:00 GMT

Crockett Road

Trip – July 11, 2008

Not a whole lot to write about today because we spent most of the day in the car on the way from Manassas, Virginia to Knoxville, Tennessee. We got the morning off to a good start by visiting the Bull Run (the Yankees call it Manassas) Battlefield. Again we made it to the visitors’ center and checked out the museum and displays there. We walked over a small part of the battlefield and took some pictures. I really liked visiting this particular battlefield because the Confederates won not ONE BUT TWO BATTLES THERE. Also, it is the place where Stonewall Jackson got his moniker. There is a huge statue of Jackson there as you can see if you check out the pictures. During the drive the boys caught up on their reading at D’Dad’s insistence. More reading is scheduled for tomorrow as our journey comes to an end. We have traveled in eight states and driven more than 1900 miles and in six days. When we arrived at the Comfort Suites outside of Knoxville the boys took a long swim and D’Dad took a nap. We had thought about going to a minor league baseball game, but we arrived later than expected and D’Dad was too tired to search for a ballpark. Supper was a real treat --we ordered pizza, one each of sausage, beef, and pepperoni. Tomorrow will be our last day; it’s been a REAL ROAD TRIP!

Gallery: Gettysburg

jamcrocj — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 22:26:00 GMT

July 10, 2008

Gettysburg

jamcrocj — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 22:17:00 GMT

Crockett Road

Trip 2008 – July 10, Thursday

Gettysburg and Washington D. C.

We left the motel in Gettysburg at about 8 after eating breakfast. The next five hours were spent visiting the Gettysburg Battlefield. First we went to the new visitors’ center and saw the movie, visited the museum, and went to the bookstore and shop. Brandon and Will bought swords and paid a ton of money for them. Wes was more conservative keeping most of his money. The movie and museum were GREAT. We then went on the driving tour of the park. There are 16 stops and we made them all – got some good pictures which I will put on the web. My thoughts on Gettysburg are simple it is absolutely amazing what happened in that BEAUTIFUL place. The many monuments and the cemetery tell a tale that gives you a much better appreciation of the whole war. I think the boys enjoyed this stop on our trip better than any of the others to date. We left Gettysburg and went to Washington D. C. We wandered around the city a while searching for the Nationals ballpark. When we found the ballpark and we looking for a parking place, a nice fellow gave us a parking pass for a place right across from the ballpark, save us $15. We enjoyed 9 innings of a game between the Nationals and Diamondbacks; it was tied 2-2 after 9 innings and we left. The Diamondbacks won 7-5 in the 11^th inning. We drove to Manassas, Va. where we are staying tonight in a Fairfield Inn. We will probably go the Manassas Battlefield tomorrow and then head for home. The boys and I are getting to know each other REAL WELL.

Appomattox

jamcrocj — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 11:54:00 GMT

Crockett Road

Trip 2008 – Wednesday July 9

We had a rather leisurely time today. We left Roanoke about 8:10 and drove to Appomattox Court House where Robert E. Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia to Ulysses S. Grant commander of the Army of the Potomac on April 12, 1865. We tried to change the outcome but our efforts proved futile. There is not a whole lot at Appomattox but what is there is especially interesting. The boys really liked the jail! The house where the surrender was signed is interesting as is the museum. Appomattox is situated in a very beautiful area, but as I read what some of the Confederates who were there had to say about the surrender I felt a real sadness. We left Appomattox and went to Charlottesville to see the University of Virginia. Wes almost wet his britches before we could find a place to park so he could go to the restroom in the university’s theater building. The university is pretty, but I really don’t think it is as pretty as Ole Miss. (One thing I’ll give Chancellor Khayat, he has made the Ole Miss campus second to none in appearance.) We then drove through the beautiful Shenandoah Valley on the way to Gettysburg. This was our first time in the Valley, and I couldn’t help thinking about all I have read about what happened there during the War of Northern Aggression including Stonewall Jackson’s successes and the way the Yankees destroyed the crops late in the war. We got to Gettysburg about 5:00 after a 320 mile drive. We have now driven more than 1200 miles. Checked in to the motel and the boys went swimming while I took a MUCH NEEDED NAP. We then went to eat at a restaurant next to the motel. When we returned to our room the boys wrote in their journals and I wrote this. We are looking forward to what should be a very interesting day tomorrow.

Gallery: Appamattox

jamcrocj — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 11:08:00 GMT

4th Day

Gallery: Chickamouga

jamcrocj — Wed, 9 Jul 2008 12:08:00 GMT

3rd Day

Chickamauga

jamcrocj — Wed, 9 Jul 2008 11:58:00 GMT

July 8, 2008,

Crockett Road

Trip

We left Chattanooga about 8:30 and headed for the Chickamauga Battlefield. First we went to the visitors’ center, toured the museum, and watched the movie about the battle. The museum was excellent and the movie was much better than the one at Shiloh. We then took a driving tour of the 8 stops over 7.5 miles of the park. It worked real well because we could call on my cell which was connected to the Bluetooth in the car and listen to a description of what happened at each stop. At some of the stops we got out and walked around and took pictures. The tower at the spot commemorating the Lightening Brigade from Indiana was especially fun and tiring. It has 137 steps up to the top. We all climbed the tower and I told the boys that I hoped they could climb it when they get to be 66 years old. We left at about 11:30 and drove to Roanoke, Virginia – a long but beautiful drive through the mountains. We checked in to a Comfort Inn, and the boys immediately went swimming. I came back to the room to read my emails and found that I still have a job at Ole Miss. I’ll be teaching Cost Accounting on Mondays and Wednesdays in the fall. The boys EAT AND DRINK ALL OF THE TIME. We are about to go to the Waffle House next door; I’ll probably not get much! Back from the Waffle House; the boys ate waffles and I got a piece of “southern pecan pie.” The juke box took fifty cents of Brandon’s money and didn’t work. Will saw a guy with a baseball cap that had about a foot long bill, and I told him he needed one to attract girls. It was a very good day; I haven’t had to fine anyone for whining yet. Wes came close to getting fined when he commented on the small size of the swimming pool at the motel. Tomorrow we head for Appomattox Courthouse and then for Gettysburg.

Gallery: July 8, 2008

jamcrocj — Tue, 8 Jul 2008 11:28:00 GMT

Shiloh

Roadtrip July 8, 2008

jamcrocj — Tue, 8 Jul 2008 10:50:00 GMT

July 8, 2008

The Crocketts left the Treehouse in Tula about 7:40 and as we were loading up the car I showed Brandon the bag of goodies Mema had sent for us to eat. Brandon said, “I love her!” He later showed them to Will and Wes. We headed to Shiloh where we arrived about 10:00. We watched the movie at the welcome center and then took a tour of the park starting with the Union graveyard and Pittsburg Landing on the Tennessee River. We then drove through the park viewing all 14 stops. Especially interesting was the spot where Albert Sidney Johnston, the commanding Confederate general died. D’Dad took some pictures which you can see on the photo gallery. We left Shiloh and headed for Chattanooga. We ate lunch at Pickwick on the Tennessee River and we snacked the rest of the way. It was a long drive and we arrived in Chattanooga about 5:00. Believe me the boys were ready to stop. When we checked into the Holliday Inn Express the boys immediately went swimming. We ate supper at the Cracker Barrel and an amusing thing happened as we were waiting for our food. A group of teenage cheerleaders arrived and soon afterwards a mother came to our table with a camera and said the cheerleaders wanted a picture of Brandon and Will for their scrap book. They posed of course! Then one of the girls came over and wanted their names which we gave them. Finally they came over and wanted the boys to write their names for them which Will did for both. Wes and I felt somewhat ignored. Wes indicated that the girls were too old for him, and I said that they just didn’t realize that I was a famous author. On the trip today the boys read the story of the battle at Shiloh from a book I have on Civil War Battlefields. Wes said it was the longest 19 pages he read. Wes and Brandon finished the reading, I’m not sure Will did. He tried to sleep all the way. Tonight the boys did their reading.

Gallery: July 6, 2008

jamcrocj — Mon, 7 Jul 2008 11:01:00 GMT

Madison & Tula

Madison to Tula

jamcrocj — Mon, 7 Jul 2008 10:50:00 GMT

July 6, 2008, Day One of Crockett War Between the States Road Trip

Patience and Rachel brought Brandon to our house in Madison; Clint, Janna and Reagan brought Will and Wes at about the same time, 1:30. We packed up the car and left Madison about 2:00 arriving at the Treehouse in Tula about 4:15. All of us ate a snack, I took some pictures and Will and Brandon went exploring. The boys wanted to shoot the 22 so each boy and I shot 10 times at a target down the hill off the back deck. I think Brandon hit the target more times than anyone else, but we all did well. Soon after this we had our first casualty Wes was stung by a wasp while he was on the back deck. Mema had provided the Treehouse with wasp sting medicine so we soon had him back in commission. We then went to the greenhouse where the boys played catch while D’Dad walked 2 miles. Will drove the red truck down toward Randy’s before we went to the greenhouse. It was a one way drive to a turnaround past Randy’s driveway because D’Dad thought that was enough. Will did drive well, but D’Dad kept saying SLOW DOWN. We came back to the Treehouse and D’Dad fixed baloney sandwiches. The boys have been snacking ever since we go to the Treehouse. It is 7:40 and they are playing Ole Miss Monopoly. I am trying to figure out how to put pictures on this.

Rules of the road

jamcrocj — Sat, 5 Jul 2008 05:20:00 GMT

Crockett Road

Trip 2008

Rules of the Road

All important decisions will be made by vote. Will gets 1 vote; Brandon gets 1 vote; Wes gets 1 vote; and D’DAD GETS 4 VOTES.

D’Dad will pay for everything and he will give Will, Brandon, and Wes ample spending money.

The following system will determine who rides “shotgun.” 1^st day = Will; 2^nd day = Brandon; 3^rd day = Wes; 4^th day = Wes; 5^th day = Brandon; 6^th day = Will; days 7 &8 will be determined by coin flip – odd man wins. If someone doesn’t want to ride shotgun during his day he may let someone else ride there in his place.

We will use the “Buddy System” during the entire trip. Brandon and Will are buddies and D’Dad and Wes are buddies. No one can ever be separated from his buddy unless he has D’Dad’s permission.

At night when D’Dad says “lights out” he means LIGHTS OUT!

THERE’S A $5 FINE FOR WHINING! SUCH FINES WILL BE ASSESSED BY D’DAD AND THEY WILL BE PAID FROM SPENDING MONEY.

Everybody must take a shower every day.

Everybody will be responsible for keeping track of their own baggage.

While the radio will usually be set for country music, occasionally it may be set for another type of music with D’Dad’s approval.

Everybody will keep a journal because this trip will probably have historical significance.

Crockett Road Trip 2008 Gettysburg

jamcrocj — Sat, 5 Jul 2008 05:11:00 GMT

I am Jim Crockett and I'm taking my 3 grandsons on a trip from Jackson, Mississippi to Gettysburg this July. The grandsons are Will Crockett (14), Brandon Crockett (who will be 14 on August 4), and Wes Crockett (12). The boys call me D'Dad. We will start our trip on July 6 and return home July 14. This trip should be fun and educational. We will stop at several Civil War battlefields along the way. Here is the tentative trip plan:

AGENDA

July 6 – Leave from Madison stay all night at Tula

July 7 – Drive to Shiloh in Tennessee and tour the battlefield in the morning; drive to Chattanooga, Tennessee in the afternoon and tour the Chickamauga battlefield; stay the night at Chattanooga.

July 8 – Drive to

Appomattox Court House, Virginia

and tour the site; stay the night somewhere close.

July 9 – Drive to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania and spend the night.

July 10 – Tour the Gettysburg battlefield. Drive to Washington D. C. to see the Nationals play the Diamondbacks and spend the night.

July 11 & 12 – Drive to Antietem, Md. And to Virginia and visit Fredericksburg, Richmond and Petersburg.

July 13 – Start home! Stay somewhere.

July 14—Arrive home.