Campground Spotlight
Clabough’s Campground, Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
Something tasty and exciting takes place each March at Clabough’s Campground in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee: the Pigeon Forge Chuck Wagon Cookoff.
On Saturday morning, March 2, 2019, approximately 20 authentic chuck wagons will be set up, and cooks will get to work. By high noon, a big meal will be ready to be served to hungry attendees. It will be tasted by judges as well, who will choose the best in five categories: meat, potatoes, beans, bread, and dessert.
Chuck wagon chefs, who were called “cookies” by cowboys on the trail, do everything old-style. The scent of open-fire cooking fills the campground. Everything is as authentic as possible. Cookies dress in historically accurate outfits. And some of them create dishes using chuck wagons that were built as long ago as the 1860s. It makes today’s food truck fad seem as old as the hills.
Register for an RV site at Clabough’s and you won’t have to walk far to enjoy this event. The campground has 310 spaces, including riverside and creekside locations, plus many other amenities. The Pigeon Forge Fun Time Trolley will be up and running again in March; it comes right to the campground, and takes RVers to attractions and shops all around Pigeon Forge, as well as to select locations in Sevierville and Gatlinburg. Clabough’s is about 5.5 hours from Perry, Georgia, where FMCA will hold its 99th International Convention & RV Expo, March 13 through 16, 2019.
The Pigeon Forge Chuck Wagon Cookoff also includes games and activities for children, plus free entertainment. Lunch tickets cost $12.50 and are limited. For event details, visit www.mypigeonforge.com/event/cookoff or call (800) 251-9100.
For More Information
Clabough’s Campground
405 Wears Valley Road
Pigeon Forge, TN 37863
(800) 965-8524
www.claboughcampground.com
App File
Shopping
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Travel
Old Town San Diego Shines During 250th Anniversary
Many consider the historic park known today as Old Town San Diego — the first European settlement on the West Coast — to be the birthplace of California. Old Town’s rich history and culture will take center stage in 2019 as San Diego commemorates the 250th anniversary of the founding of “Alta California.”
The Serra Cross in Old Town San Diego was constructed using tiles from the original presidio built in 1769.
Established in 1769, Alta California’s first settlement included Mission San Diego de Alcala and a neighboring presidio, or military fort, originally built above Old Town. The area later developed into San Diego’s first “downtown,” and today Old Town San Diego brings to life the city’s rich Hispanic heritage from 1821 to 1872.
Old Town San Diego boasts many shops, restaurants, and museums, but locals suggest visiting its lesser-known sites to discover its historic soul. They recommend the following nine hidden gems in Old Town San Diego.
*Old Presidio Historic Trail begins at the base of Presidio Hill, at the corner of Mason and Juan streets, and ends at the Junipero Serra Museum. Spanish soldiers and families walked from the Spanish presidio two centuries ago to tend their gardens and livestock. Around 1820, families started to build houses beside their gardens along the trail, and “Old Town” was born.
*The Pattie Memorial (aka Witches Tower) once was used as a Spanish guardhouse and jail cell to hold an American named Sylvester Pattie. A fur trapper accused of being a Spanish spy, Pattie died in 1828 while imprisoned at the presidio and is credited as “the first American buried in California soil.” The structure earned its “Witches Tower” nickname thanks to a brick pentagon design on the roof that is of unknown origin.
*A trio of statues on Presidio Hill provide insight into its early inhabitants. The Indian Statue depicts a Kumeyaay brave and honors the native people of Alta California; the Padre Statue, a bronze likeness of Father Junipero Serra, who established California’s 21 missions, recognizes the Spanish missionaries; and the third statue, a Mexican vaquero (cowboy), commemorates early Mexican settlers.
*Located on the grounds just below the Junipero Serra Museum, the Serra Cross is one of San Diego’s most prominent landmarks. Built in 1913 with tiles excavated from the site of the original presidio and mission, the cross is a monument to Father Junipero Serra and the first Spanish colonists to the region.
*Silent for many years, El Jupiter is an old brass cannon cast in 1783 in Manila that was once part of the Spanish defenses of San Diego and is now displayed at the Serra Museum.
*The El Camino Real bell marks the beginning of the Kings Highway, which links California’s 21 missions and presidios. Set in front of Old Town’s historic El Campo Santo Cemetery, the bell has been in place since the early 1900s to mark the original route of the 700-mile-long “El Camino Real.”
*Dating back to 1849, El Campo Santo Cemetery provides a glimpse into Old Town’s past. In addition to the 477 bodies buried in the cemetery, others lie buried just outside the gate beneath the sidewalk and San Diego Avenue.
*Casa de Carrillo is the oldest surviving house and oldest adobe building in San Diego; it also is one of the first houses built below Presidio Hill. Presidio Comandante Francisco Maria Ruiz built the house next to his pear garden in 1821 for his close relative and fellow soldier, Joaquin Carrillo, and his large family. Today, Casa de Carrillo is the clubhouse for the Presidio Hills Golf Course.
*Built in 1830, the San Diego House was originally a small adobe saloon and provision store, owned by Richard Freeman and Allen Light, the first two African-Americans to settle in Old Town. Set along Plaza De Las Armas, the house allows guests to step back into the 1800s and an old-school general store featuring rows and rows of jars filled with teas, herbs, and spices. Today, the San Diego House is the setting for American House Coffee & Tea.
Information on events and activities related to the 250th commemoration of Old Town San Diego appear at www.oldtownsandiego.org/250th. For more information about San Diego’s offerings, visit the San Diego Tourism Authority’s website, www.sandiego.org.
Food
The Vidalia Onion Museum, Vidalia, Georgia
Why does Georgia honor an onion? Check out the Vidalia Onion Museum in Vidalia, Georgia, to find out.
The Vidalia Onion Museum in Vidalia, Georgia, honors one of the state’s top crops.
Vidalia onions rank among Georgia’s top cash crops. In the early 1930s, the first farmers to grow them discovered that southeast Georgia soil creates a gentler onion — milder, sweeter. Turns out, the unique combination of seed, soil, and climate is found nowhere else.
Today a region around the town of Vidalia is the onion’s only official growing spot. A mere 90 official Vidalia onion growers exist, and some of those farms have been carefully passed down through generations of the same family.
FMCA members traveling in Georgia toward the March 2019 convention in Perry may see the onions still growing in the fields. The 2019 crop is expected to be harvested around late April, with sales continuing through about September. “It’s a short season. We only plant one crop, on only about 12,000 acres,” said Alexa Britton, executive director of the Vidalia Convention & Visitors Bureau.
Vidalia, Georgia, lies in the heart of the Vidalia onion’s official growing area, with harvesting occurring in April.
At the Vidalia Onion Museum, you’ll see historical photos and hear stories and facts galore. It has a fun hands-on activity for kids, too: They get to see how a mechanical onion size-sorter works. The museum has free admission and ample, free parking.
For overnighting, check out Sweet Onion RV Park, within walking distance of the museum. It has full hookups (50-amp electric, water, and sewer). No reservations are taken; first come, first served. It’s run by the city. Call (912) 537-7661 for details.
And while you’re in Vidalia, you might as well stroll around town to see the illuminated onion-shaped fountain, which makes a fun spot to take a photo. The town also has a refurbished movie theater. And be on the lookout for Vidalia-onion-filled sauces and condiments sold in gift shops. That way, you can enjoy a taste of Vidalia before the new crop arrives.
Details:
Vidalia Onion Museum
100 Vidalia Sweet Onion Drive
Vidalia, GA 30474
(912) 538-8687
www.vidaliaga.gov/cvb/page/onion-museum
Vidalia’s Favorite Onion Dip
3 cups chopped Vidalia onions
3 cups shredded Swiss cheese
2 1/2 cups mayonnaise
Pinch garlic salt
Mix all ingredients and pour into a greased 1 1/2-quart baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 45 minutes until lightly brown. Serve with corn chips.