Day 50: A Trip Down Memory Lane

Start: Columbia, SC
End: Asheville, NC
Miles Driven: 188.3 (10175.5 total)

The day began with a milestone; we surpassed the 10,000 mile mark just north of Columbia. Other than that the ride was uneventful as we climbed from the foothills of upstate South Carolina to the mountains of western North Carolina.

Today's destination was Asheville, where Patrick grew up. The first stop was Roberson High School and we arrived just as school was letting out. The building was just the same as Patrick had left it six years ago, complete with dirty bathrooms and mean librarians. As we prepared to leave, we realized that neither of us had our car key; we had to make our first call to AAA of the road trip. Luckily, they dispatched "Key Man" and he had us out of our jam in no time at all.
The next stop on memory lane was Patrick's old house on Muirfield Drive. We then drove to downtown Asheville to take in the sights: art galleries, book stores and restaurants. Dinner was at Barley's with local beer and half pepperoni-half tofu pizza.

A drive through the dark backroads of Asheville delivered us to the Grove Park Inn, where famous guests over the years have included F. Scott Fitzgerald, Henry Ford, Harry Houdini, and six US Presidents. Sitting by the huge fireplace of the inn and taking in the century of history around us capped off our evening.