Weekend suggestions

ScottM

ScottM

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iBazinga!
Going to take a long weekend trip in early May and am looking for suggestions of places to go. I am based at 10C (NW of Chicago) and would go as far as Memphis, TN. about 500NM. I was just visiting Memphis a few months ago so I would like to avoid that trip if at all possible, but would happily go back if I come up with nothing better. I have been thinking of visiting Nashville, TN. What is the music/bar seen like there? Basically what I would like to do is spend a long weekend relaxing, listening to music, spending time downtown or somewhere I do not require a car.

Another idea is to head up to Sheyboygen, WI and hit the Kohler spa again.

All ideas welcome.
 
Chattanooga. Nice aquarium and other touristy things. How about Asheville, NC Grove Park Inn and other nice things to see.
 
EppyGA said:
How about Asheville, NC Grove Park Inn and other nice things to see.
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Yeah, Asheville is a nice place. The Biltmore Estate is worth seeing, especially the gardens. It's pretty amazing when you consider what it took to build a place like that, which at the time, was pretty much in the middle of nowhere.
 
Trapper John said:
Yeah, Asheville is a nice place. The Biltmore Estate is worth seeing, especially the gardens. It's pretty amazing when you consider what it took to build a place like that, which at the time, was pretty much in the middle of nowhere.
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Yep... and it's neat to view from the air as well. :yesnod:

Just brush up on your approaches if it's IMC - real cu-granite up to 6,000 around there!
 
Trapper John said:
Yeah, Asheville is a nice place. The Biltmore Estate is worth seeing, especially the gardens. It's pretty amazing when you consider what it took to build a place like that, which at the time, was pretty much in the middle of nowhere.
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Gotta go with this one! They have a pricy but decent inn and the winery isn't all that bad either!

Gary
 
EppyGA said:
Forgot to mention the spa.
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Whoops!! Right you arel! Ahhh... a long day admiring the fruits of a robber baron (son of!), good dinner, good wine, hot tub... I kinda lost track of the details. :redface:

Gary
 
Trapper John said:
Yeah, Asheville is a nice place. The Biltmore Estate is worth seeing, especially the gardens. It's pretty amazing when you consider what it took to build a place like that, which at the time, was pretty much in the middle of nowhere.
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The behind the scenes tour of the Biltmore is really great.
 
Trapper John said:
Yeah, Asheville is a nice place. The Biltmore Estate is worth seeing, especially the gardens. It's pretty amazing when you consider what it took to build a place like that, which at the time, was pretty much in the middle of nowhere.
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Yea that sounds like a neat trip. Probably still nice and cool up in the mountains there. Of course only about 100 more miles and you can come to the FlyBQ:D. Seriously Asheville is on my list of destinations.
 
AdamZ said:
Of course only about 100 more miles and you can come to the FlyBQ:D.
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That has been discussed and as this supposed to a be weekend together the idea of me and a bunch of pilots was deemed a little too one sided. Asheville sounds neat, I am not sure I really even want to fly that far. I thinking at best I would like this to be a one tank trip. Even Memphis requires a fueling stop.
 
Trapper John said:
I guess we must have just had the regular one - what's the difference?
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Takes you into non-public areas. You can see where the help stayed and areas like that. We saw down in the basement where they had a generator I think for backup. Things like that.
 
ScottM said:
That has been discussed and as this supposed to a be weekend together the idea of me and a bunch of pilots was deemed a little too one sided. Asheville sounds neat, I am not sure I really even want to fly that far. I thinking at best I would like this to be a one tank trip. Even Memphis requires a fueling stop.
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Hey, it's 499 miles. One mile inside your target :D
 
ScottM said:
That has been discussed and as this supposed to a be weekend together the idea of me and a bunch of pilots was deemed a little too one sided. Asheville sounds neat, I am not sure I really even want to fly that far. I thinking at best I would like this to be a one tank trip. Even Memphis requires a fueling stop.
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That's what Mrs. S. thought about the Windwood shindig we did back in October. But she wanted to come with, if for no other reason she thought the place would be really pretty. She brought knitting, and even brought the manual for the knitting machine I bought for her birthday.

She had such a good time that she didn't even look at the manual, and while she spent lots of time knitting most of that was spent chatting as well. You really should reconsider, I'm not being facetious. You can rent a car and head downtown one day as there's tons to do. But I doubt the event will be as intimidating to your SO as you fear.
 
EppyGA said:
Takes you into non-public areas. You can see where the help stayed and areas like that. We saw down in the basement where they had a generator I think for backup. Things like that.
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OK, I guess we did see that. There was something from the tour guide about the estate being the first air-conditioned residence in the U.S. Maybe it was the first building air-conditioned. Something like that, anyway.

The indoor pool was pretty impressive, that's for sure.
 
Cleveland. Rock & Roll HOF. Walking distance from Lakefront. There are bars & music around downtown - don't have specifics as it's been a few years.
 
There is always Horse Sh err, Mackinac Island. Fresh air, unpolluted with automobile exhaust.:D

Get the planked whitefish at the Village Inn if you go.
 
Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe said:
There is always Horse Sh err, Mackinac Island. Fresh air, unpolluted with automobile exhaust.:D

Get the planked whitefish at the Village Inn if you go.
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I am thinking of that as well. I will also not do what an aquaintence did when he went there. That is lad with min fuel expecting to get a refill at the airport.
 
I would second Asheville as well. It is a neat city, and of course, Biltmore is a really cool place. We flew to Greeneville, TN (GCY) and rented a car so that we could enjoy the drive through the mountains on the way to Asheville.

If you are into hiking/nature-ish type things... We've enjoyed trips to:

  • Natural Bridge State Park (fly into Lexington, KY)
  • Giant City State Park (fly into Carbondale or Marion, IL)
  • Rib Mt (Wausau, WI)
This time of year, I try not to go too far North, but Madeline Island, Door County, and Mackinac are cool places too.

I've been wanting to make it to Wright-Patterson (Dayton, OH) for the museum, but haven't done it yet.

Niagara Falls (IAG) isn't that far either. Even going around the lake, it is less than 500nm. If you do that, when leaving IAG, go South around Lake Erie and land at Cleveland/Burke Lakefront for a Meigs-like experience.

If you're just looking for a lunch/dinner trip, Rick's Cafe Boatyard is a neat place and is pretty much located at Eagle Creek (EYE) at Indianapolis.
 
I love AVL- especially wandering downtown in the evening. Lots of counter-culture-gone-mainstream, ethnic restaurants, and funny people-watching. Gorgeous drives along the Blue Ridge Parkway, beautiful wildflowers this time of year. We have stayed at both Grove Park Inn and the Inn at Biltmore- prefer the Grove Park, mainly because of the historic ambience. Oh, and if you're into spas, Grove Park's is fantastic. I'll not return to the Biltmore Inn, because they irked me with their silly extra charges on top of their exhorbitant rates; also the Biltmore restaurants seem to place a high value on overly-peculiar nouvelle cuisine. But the house and gardens are totally wonderful. If you want to avoid the fancy inns, there are a zillion B&Bs and nice hotels, fairly close in.

Cleveland's Burke Lakefront is a nice airport, and although last time we were there, the downtown had fallen on rather hard times, there are still some interesting things within walking distance. If you're into arts, a cab ride gets you to Severence Hall, home of the Cleveland Orchestra, and the excellent Cleveland Museum of Art. Although we spent many years nearby, I don't think it's the most visitor-friendly city within 500 miles of you, though.

Only ~240 nm to the south is St. Louis, a marvelous city full of fun things to do. Lots of ethnic and upscale restaurants, museums, parks, the zoo, Mississippi River waterfront, and my now-local kids' favorite, The City Museum. Google it; it's a remarkable testament to the welder's art and an all-day amusement, especially if you can find a kid or two to take along.
 
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Within your range -- America's first "Western" city: Pittsburgh, PA.

North Shore hosts the best baseball park in America (for the least capable team), the Carnegie Science Center, and a Riverwalk, with rentable kayaks.

Point State park has the Fort Pitt museum and a big fountain and great views.

Downtown isn't much (except the art side along the north side, with various concert halls, theaters, and galleries)

Station Square on the Monongahela south shore has restauarants, various shops, and two Inclide trams up to Mt Washington.

Getting around is a bit of a chore, but getting lost is part of the experience. Head uphill and you'll run into the University of Pittsburgh and more Carnegie museums.

KAGC is within spitting distance of downtown. Ask for "a few orbits over the city" from PITT App and they will surely oblige.
 
Oh, yeah! Pittsburgh- one of the country's most underrated cities. Great museums, architecture, food and drink-- Really a fine place, especially if you can find a native guide. And if you rent a car, Frank Lloyd Wright's famed Falling Water is a nice morning's drive away, and the woodland flowers will be spectacular just then.
 
Amelia said:
Oh, yeah! Pittsburgh- one of the country's most underrated cities. Great museums, architecture, food and drink-- Really a fine place, especially if you can find a native guide. And if you rent a car, Frank Lloyd Wright's famed Falling Water is a nice morning's drive away, and the woodland flowers will be spectacular just then.
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..and Falling water is close to Kentuck Knob and Ohiopyle.
 
I suppose a lot of it really depends on what you want to do on the trip. Leaving Chicago for another city doesn't seem like my idea of fun, but then again I'm sick of big cities. All the suggestions sound good. I also like Knoxville.

If you wanted to go a bit further you could go to Texas and enjoy the beaches around Corpus (or Jay's new hotel), but that may or may not be in line with what you want to do. I can also suggest Williamsport - beautiful country if you like to just enjoy the scenery, although there's not much to do here.
 
Scott -

If you make the trek to Nashville you can hang here and I'll even let you have the spare car and act as tour guide if you'd like. The night life is great and the music scene is like nowhere else. If you don't have my number shoot me a PM.
 
kevin47881 said:
Scott -

If you make the trek to Nashville you can hang here and I'll even let you have the spare car and act as tour guide if you'd like. The night life is great and the music scene is like nowhere else. If you don't have my number shoot me a PM.
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Where is a good place to stay downtown that is in walking distance to a lot of stuff? Is there a country music "Beale St." at all?
 
Ted, you're right- the scenery around IPT is spectacular. I'll never forget climbing over the mountains there, and looking over to our right, finding a hang-glider ridge-soaring in the updrafts just above our own wing-- at 9500, and climbing. Surprising, to say the least.
I love big cities-- for about 48 hours. Then I'm thrilled to return here to the back of Beyond, to perch on the back porch swing overlooking the bay to watch the Ospreys fish by day, and listen to the Great Horned Owls hoot all night. Works for me.
 
ScottM said:
Where is a good place to stay downtown that is in walking distance to a lot of stuff? Is there a country music "Beale St." at all?
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Here's a newer (5 years old?) Hilton just off lower Broad (the old honky tonks): http://www.nashvillehilton.com/
If you're partial to a specific change let me know.

The more "new country" stuff is down on 2nd Ave S which is just 2 blocks away.
 
In addition to Mackinac Island, which we do annually, how about Put-in-Bay (3W2)? Or head down to Kentucky Dam (M34) and rent a houseboat. Or head over to Alexis Park Inn! :)
 
gprellwitz said:
In addition to Mackinac Island, which we do annually, how about Put-in-Bay (3W2)? Or head down to Kentucky Dam (M34) and rent a houseboat. Or head over to Alexis Park Inn! :)
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Mac island is a possibility although we have been talking about Nashville for a couple of years. We were just at Kentucky dam a couple of years ago.
 
ScottM said:
Mac island is a possibility although we have been talking about Nashville for a couple of years. We were just at Kentucky dam a couple of years ago.
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Well, the North Central Section of the 99's is going to have their semi-annual meeting in Nashville the first weekend in October, so we may fly down there then. Let me know if you do that and give me a PIREP! Unfortunately, she has a business meeting in San Diego ending that Saturday, and I have a meeting in San Antonio starting that Sunday! It'll be interesting to see how it all works out!
 
I must admit I am surprised at how many people know that we have a Wegman's in Williamsport. In case you didn't know, we also have a Starbucks. I am a customer of both establishments. :)
 
I vote for Mackinac. May 15 will be perfect weather and the tourist will not be there- but most of the stuff will be open! Rates will be really cheap.

Quiet, sit on a bench, and enjoy.
 
dmccormack said:
Especially when the Williamsport Wegmans doesn't show up on the store locator.

Maybe it's a Wagmens in Williamsport?
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We're MacDougals, they're McDonalds. We have the golden Arcs, they have the golden Arches. Totally different.
 
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