Trip with family to Myrtle Beach SC from Arab, Alabama was fun, but every trip we take has some “adventure” to it as well.
(1) Getting through Atlanta is always a challenge no matter what vehicle you are driving.? But add 41 ft + a tow car is even more “adventurous”.
(2) Who Knew there are TWO Myrtle Beaches in South Carolina.? North Myrtle Beach and Myrtle Beach.? Both have a 5th Ave, but only one of those 5th Ave addresses has a KOA…? Turning around in a small store parking lot was not for the faint of heart.
(3) Diesel Pumps at car fuel stations is not designed for 41 ft with a tow car.
We left on a Monday night after work in hopes of getting through Atlanta after “rush hour”.?? At 10:00 pm, we were successful in that only about a million cars were on the road with us, which is low volume for Atlanta.? We stopped 1/2 way at a Pilot / Flying J and had most of the parking spaces to ourselves.?? It was close to 11:00 pm when we arrived at the Pilot to sleep for a while.? We slept well, and got up around 5:00 am to eat at the restaurant and get on the road again.
There was confusion in the address I told my wife and she was navigating with our cell phone using Google maps.? It successfully got us to 5th Ave North Myrtle Beach.?? Which is not the same as 5th Ave North Myrtle Beach !?? What ?????? It depends on where you put the comma.? Before North, or after North.?? Anyway, we called the KOA number and the nice lady was very patient with us and obviously knew every landmark in both Myrtle Beaches.?? She even said “you wouldn’t believe how many times this happens”? ;-)? made me feel some better.
We got to the correct address and checked in at the KOA.? got hooked up, and went our to see the sites with our kids and grand-kids.? Which was well worth all the excitement of the drive.? We ate at some wonderful places, but the most memorable was the Pirates Voyage Dinner and Show.? The food was good but wasn’t the best part of the evening.? Our grand-kids normally are good for about 30 seconds of quiet time during a meal, like most 2 and 3 year olds.? However, at this show they didn’t move a muscle for about 2 hours.?? The show was very good with talented young folks singing, gymnastics, animal tricks, and diving and swimming with lots of animatronics and special effects.
We also rode a sea pontoon boat out to an unpopulated island where the kids found a bunch of nice large shells and sand dollars in tact.? The boat didn’t have a way to depart without stepping into the water for a few steps to reach the beach.? It was a nice sunny day for a boat ride, but a bit cool for getting wet.? But the kids had a blast.
On the boat ride we also saw a large school of dolphins swimming and jumping in and out of the water.? We got a few good shots, but was really hard to do since by the time someone sees them and points it out, they are back in the water.
Before we left the fun filled and packed full of fun adventure to head home, we rode the Sky Wheel, Dolphin Tour ocean cruise, Pirates Voyage Dinner and Show, Boardwalk Shopping (Including build-a-car),? Zoo,? Aquarium,? Beach photos, Several Playgrounds for grand-kids energy burn-off,? ate at Italian Amici’s, Mexican Abuelo’s,? Captain George’s Seafood buffet, Wahlburgers, and Sweet Carolina’s BBQ.
For my camping friends, it took us 10 hours of steering wheel time (not counting rest stops)? which is 20% longer than Goggle Maps predicted.? We Spent the first night at a Flying J on Generator and had the place to ourselves pretty much.?? When driving back we had the entire trip in one day so we took our time, and stopped for several breaks, dreading the return through Atlanta in mid day Saturday traffic, but it ended up being slow and painful due to road construction.? KOA at Myrtle Beach was nice, but had construction going on with bull-dozers, and back-hoe running all day with beeping backup-warnings making naps less enjoyable, but that will be temporary so I won’t hold that against them for a return trip.?? It was easy to get to and convenient to everything.
When driving I ALWAYS try to maintain a football field distance from the vehicle in front of me.?? I also use the lines as a guide, looking at them far away brings them closer together and it seems to keep me straighter and prevents drifting left and right.? I do use my backup camera just as a reference to what is directly behind me even though I read that some states have a law against that for some reason.? I fully depend on my side mirrors as to what is coming around me on either side.? I used an empty parking lot and had my wife walk to key points on my left and right and down below so I could adjust my mirrors to reduce blind spots as much as possible.
We are sharing a few photos from our trip showing our KOA campground setup,? parking lot camping at Flying J, and a lot of Myrtle Beach things to do, and our grand-kids ( which was the highlight of our trip ).
