Eastbound into Buckeye Lake, Ohio

9/27/09: Buckeye Lake is a small, resort town with a park and a big lake. There are many small businesses catering to tourists that come to the lake. There were water skiers, swimmers, and boaters. There was a persistent noise of drag racing motors that continued the evening. It wasn't overwhelming. I found a KOA campground that was a great relief to find after having such a difficult time with camping in Bean Blossom. There was a laundry facility and showers. The whole camp was very clean and well ordered. With all the rain that had fallen recently, there were many spaces available and I found a suitable site close to the showers. There's a price to pay for such a great area, but in this case it was worth the money. I unloaded, collected my dirty laundry and headed for the washers and dryers. I got a couple of loads started and went off to find a quick dinner. Dinner out was a treat, but I was getting a little spoiled after eating quite a bit of festival food the night before. Which reminds me of the conversation I had with James Shelton. As I made the CD purchase from him, he insisted I tell him where I'd gotten my banana split. I told him about learning to pick leads before getting very good at playing rhythm guitar, and he said, "It's all about the rhythm." I said that I had some catching up to do. I found a moderately priced restaurant that served Mexican food. After having eaten great Tex-Mex in both Texas and New Mexico, I was skeptical about eating Mexican in Ohio. But I ordered the house specialty and was pleasantly surprised. Though not the richly cooked, deeply flavorful, and relatively spicy of the American southwest, it was satisfying. And much better than festival fare.
Returning to the laundromat, I met a man and a woman that were traveling West for their son's wedding. They turned out to be from Nazareth, PA., though this came to me as I was folding my T-shirts. We were chatting casually when Bob (McGovern), said, "Is that a Martin Guitar t-shirt?" He said that he knew Chris Martin quite well. He said that Chris is involved with the community affairs of Nazereth, PA., as was Bob. (For non-guitar people, Nazareth is the home of the 166 year old C.F.Martin & Co. guitar manufacturer.) Bob said that Chris was the kind of fellow that would be only too happy to give someone a personal tour and I said I might take him up on that. I'd visited the Martin Guitar factory in 2006 after attending the Gettysburg bluegrass festival. In 2006, a guitar playing friend had told me how close the factory was and I'd driven there then. (See great series of photos of my Martin factory tour in my Facebook photos.) Bob and Brenda and I chatted all through a wash and half of a dry cycle about guitars, the Martin family and our careers and retirement plans. They were great folks and though I didn't trade emails, I hope to meet them on the road again. They were driving a newer style Class B motorhome. An Eco-Trek? I stayed a pleasant and quiet night in the town of Buckeye Lake, and moved on the next day. It would be an easy drive to Greenwood Furnace, PA. Site of what looked like a remote State Park in Rothrock State Forest.