Inspire Wanderlust Co.

June 6-7 2020

Saturday morning we loaded up the car and headed to Asheville NC for a mini weekend trip. We had been fostering a dog Todd since the shelter shutdown and we finally found him a home and was meeting his adopter there Sunday so why not camp and make a mini weekend trip out of it. It was so nice to get out of the house finally and get to explore a new area since that’s what we love doing.

We got near the Ashville area around 1 we stopped at a winery since we couldn’t check into camp until 3pm. Point lookout winery was very nice, dog. Friendly and had amazing veiws. We sat outside and enjoyed some wine and beer taking in the mountain views until it randomly rained. But they had a very nice inside pavilion so we sat in there . After we finished our drinks we headed to the campsite which we found on airbnb. I’ll make sure to list it at the end of this post. There was an amazing mountain view, a creek and you could explore the farm if you wanted too. Also, there was a farm dog Ginger who loved to play with our dogs and they all got along well. The dogs also enjoyed the creek I wish I would have gotten some pictures but I didn’t want to fall in the creek with my phone.

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Sunday morning we packed up and head d to this rest stop we were meeting Todd’s new owners at. After, handing Todd off we decided to grab lunch and then we headed to the Blue Ridge Parkway. We were going to hike to some waterfalls but the trail I thought was easy turned out not a good idea for my bad knees. Brandy and Mike were bummed but we ended up on another senic highway and stopped at another waterfall easier to get too. Their was alot of people swimming at this one and it looked like a great swimming hole but there was too many people even without covid it was packed so we’ll save that for another day. We stopped at some looks outs and took in the views too. After our mountain adventure we headed home.

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I feel like this little mini weekend trip was exactly what I needed after being cooped up for 3 months. I know you can’t travel like normal right now but at least getting out of the house is nice. Just keep your distance from others and sanitize more often. That’s the great thing about nature it is never going to close and it’s large enough that you don’t have to be around tons of people. I say take this opportunity to get outside and explore nature more. 🙂

Campsite we stayed at : https://abnb.me/vAbgk5Prg7
Point lookout vineyard: https://pointlookoutvineyards.com/

Couldn’t decide what blog post to write this week. I was originally going to post about my trip to Magic Kingdom (MK) last year but after finishing my certification as a Disney travel specialist I decided to write about my top favorite things to do so we’re starting with Magic Kingdom my favorite park.

1. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad

Welcome to the wildest ride in the wilderness! This coaster has small drops but is very thrilling. Take a journey through the abandoned mineshaft through all the twist, turns, and drops. One of my favorite rides at MK I was especially looking forward to this one last year! You are definitely going to need a Fastpass+ for this one the line can get super long with long wait times. Maximize your time at the park by getting a Fastpass+.

2. Space Mountain

Zoom through the galaxy on a roaring rocket blasting off into outer space. Pass by all the shooting stars and satellites. This coaster is in the dark. It’s also very popular so having a Fastpass+ would also be a good idea for this one. It’s a fan favorite!

3. Haunted Mansion

A spiritual ghost voice invites you inside and becomes your host of the tour of the Mansion. You’ll glide pass caskets filled, graveyard filled with singing ghost, as you try to find your way out. Be aware they may try to follow you home! This ride is in the dark and may contain slightly scary themes but there is no gore, and the ride moves slowly.

4. Small World

The fan favorite Small World. Celebrates how it really is a small world after all. Sing along and you take a musical boat ride through all 7 countries by the end I’m sure you’ll have the song stuck in your head all day! This classic rides line tends to be a long wait so unless you ride it super early in the morning a Fastpass+ would be ideal.

5. Peter Pan’s Flight

Sail across the sky in your own ship. Let Tinkerbell share some pixie dust and go on an adventure from London to Neverland. This classic is perfect for all ages it’s be of my favorites. This one gets really popular so a Fastpass+ would be ideal unless your their before 10am.

6. Main Street U.S.A.

When you walk into Disney World you enter on Main Street U.S.A. . Themed after the 20th century it’s just something about this land the magic of it. Say how do you do and listen to the Main Street choir. Pose for some pictures.

7. Many Adventures of Winnie The Pooh

Climb aboard Pooh’s honey pot for an adventure through the hunderacherwoods just watch out for those heffalumps. Bounce like Tiger and help Pooh find his honey.

8. Meet Characters

One of the most popular things to do in MK is meet classic characters. You can meet Mickey and friends all day. If your not into it I’d at least do one character meet n greet. But if your into it there’s plenty of characters to meet in MK.

9. Visit the Castle

One of the most popular pictures in MK is the castle you can’t miss it! If your lucky enough there is a princess buffet inside the castle but better book months in advance it fills up quick. Just visiting the castle and getting pictures with it or of it is magical enough too. Who wouldn’t want to visit Cinderella’s castle?

10. Happily Ever After

End the day with the amazing firework and projection show in front of the castle. Sing along to all your favorite Disney classics. Watch as the castle lights up and fireworks go off right behind it. Watch as the Cinderella Castle becomes part of the story magically transforming through favorite Disney animated films.

I got lucky this year most years I do when my birthday normally seems to follow if not over around President’s day weekend February 16th. For the past 2 years my boyfriend has let me pick where we go for my birthday weekend. We live in the Augusta, GA aera now and we’re not too far from a lot of fun places to explore. Last year we went all the way to Orlando, FL and went to Disney Springs but I’ll save the rest of that trip for a different post. This year I chose Charleston, SC. I’ve been wanting to go there we just haven’t gotten there yet. I’m originally from Pennsylvania and the idea of being able to be on the beach in decent weather on my birthday weekend was the perfect scenario for me. Considering it usually was always freezing cold, snowing or raining growing up in the North. Plus, it’s such a good place to travel to with your dog. Most of the downtown shops are dog friendly, a lot of bras, and restaurants patios are too. This was the first trip I got to take my pup on since I got her back in July her name is Brandy.

On Saturday morning we got up early and headed out. I made sure to pack the car and get everything pretty much ready on friday evening. Before every trip I use Pinterest and I Google where we’re going to find what’s around that we can do. I happened to stumble on a winery, Deepwater Vineyard. I love wine and winery’s so this sounded perfect for my weekend. The winery openned at about 10am and there was going to be a good truck there around lunchtime. Charleston SC, is about a 3hr drive from us but the winery was on Wadmalaw island so it was a little over 3hrs from us. Not a bad drive at all. We stopped at McDonald’s on the island for breakfast before heading to the winery. Once we got to the winery they had a table set up to get your ticket for the tasting and wine slushies to try ( for free) and or get a glass (extra cost). We sampled their wine slushies and signed up for the first wine tasting, tickets were $10 per person and includes a souvenir glass. You get to sample 6 of their wines, you also get a sheet of all the wines there offering you and a pencil. I suggest marking down the ones you enjoyed that’s how I keep track during the tasting I attend. After, our wine tasting we decided to each get a glass and explore their 48 acres. They have chicken, pigs, and a cow that roams the vineyard and loves attention espically from men. When we visited the animals our dog wasn’t so sure about them but at least the roaming cow was dog friendly all the other animals are in pens. The vineyard is beautiful even though we visited in February and there were no green vines yet. There also, very family friendly there’s so much room for kids to run around and even a swing. One of my favorite wines there is the Magnolia it’s a very sweet wine perfect for summer!

After having a blast at the vineyard we went to go check into our hotel in Charleston. We stayed at the Hotel Indigo in Mount Pleasant. Once we checked in we changed because we decided we wanted to go to the beach it would be Brandy’s first time at the beach and there was a dog friendly beach not too far away. Therefore we headed over to Folly Beach ( dogs are allowed on the beach on a leash all hours during February for other months you’d have to check the website for the rules). Brandy had a blast she loved jumping through the waves and rolling in the sand. I didn’t get in the water it was still cold but I sat and watched. After the beach on the way back we spotted this dog friendly bar that was like a dog park with a bar. The Barrel is a closed off area where dogs can run free and it also had a bar with tons of beer and wine to choose from. We hung out there for a while and we all had a blast.

Once we were done at The Barrel we headed back to the hotel. We got changed for dinner and then I tried to set up my Futbo camera to watch the dog while we were at dinner. Sadly Furbo wouldn’t connect to the hotels internet but Brandy did fine. I’m pretty sure she was asleep the whole time because when we got back she was in the same place we left her. I left the tv on for her which I never do but she’s easily confused by some of the noise you can hear from the hallway and such (our house is only one floor so she’s not use to hearing other noise). We went to Red’s Ice House which was in Mount Pleasant not far from our hotel. I had a poke bowl it was so good and some lemonade with some Firefly. Firefly is a distillery that was right next to Deepwater Vineyard but unfortunately, the weekend we went they we’re currently moving to there new location. I was bummed because I’ve been wanting to go there and it would have been able to go to both since they were right next to each other. But I’m looking forward to checking out their new location the next time I’m in Charleston. After, dinner as were going to go back to the hotel and get an Uber and go check out the downtown night scene but I ended up being too wore out so we just stayed in and snuggled with our pup. Brandy enjoyed having her own bed.

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Sunday morning was our last day but since we don’t work on Monday we could stay all day and go home weather depending of course this was the one day it was suppose to rain. Sunday was also my birthday I decided I wanted to do birthday brunch at Poogan’s Porch in downtown Charleston. After packing and loading up the car we headed over there. Poogan’s was packed so we put our name on the list and decided to explore the shops near by. Most all of the shops were dog friendly and I swear Brandy’s checked out all of them as we walked pass to see if we were going in or not. She just wanted to meet everyone and get all the attention she loves meeting new people. Finally, our table was ready at Poogan’s Porch. I got the seafood omelette with bacon and a mimosa it was delicious. Brandy had a blast sitting on the porch getting pets from anyone who noticed her and thought she was the cutest and watching the horse drawn carriages go by. After, brunch we went around the shops that we had not gotten to yet like Woof Gang Bakery which is one of Brandy’s favorites. We have one at home and she loves to go there and pick out a new cookie and check out what they have. So we obviously had to go check this one out and they even gave Brandy a cookie! Next, we decided we would walk to the Battery a historical site and walk around there for a while. Rain was coming so our last place to check out was Rainbow Row which is the name of a series of thirteen historical houses it’s a beautiful site to see. Then, a lot of rain ended up coming so it was time to head back to the car and start our journey home. It was raining off and on all day but we kind of just dealt with it but this is when it was just going to rain the rest of the day sadly so we headed home we had a really good weekend. Can’t wait to go back and explore more of it I really enjoyed Charleston!