2008 Mountain Stream News

"The Prettiest Little Park This Side Of Heaven"

6954 Buck Creek Road---Marion, NC 28752
Phone: 828-724-9013

Toll Free: 877-724-9013
Owners: Ron and Becky Johnston

2008 News

Lots of pictures - may take a while to load!

November 2008

The way the calendar worked out this year, we had an entertainment program in the month of November. Up here in the mountains, it really gets chilly after the sun goes down in November - chilly is probably a bit of an understatement. However, the Brothers Redeemed Quartet withstood the cold and put on a great show for us. Hats off to these guys.

November 1st - Brothers Redeemed Quartet (from Hickory, NC)

Brothers Redeemed is a spirit-filled quartet based out of Hickory, NC and have been singing together since 2001. It's members are: Rusty Townsend (tenor), Cameron Woods (lead), Keith Hendrix (baritone), and Doyle Hopper (bass).

This was our 4th Thanksgiving dinner at Mountain Stream and once again the temperature was in the 60's. We enclose the pavilion for the Thanksgiving meal and this really helps ward of any cold winds, but if it is cold outside it will be cold inside the pavilion. As in the past three years, the temperature dropped below freezing a few days before Thanksgiving. Every year we've worried that it would turn out to be too cold for folks to enjoy their meal, but each year it has warmed up just in time making it feel more like September.

October 2008

This month was a mix of new and returning groups. These guys deserve special recognition for their performances because this time of year it really gets chilly once the sun goes down - and this time of year the sun goes down before the entertainment begins!

October 11th - The Songsmen (from Piedmont, SC)

This is the 5th year the Songsmen have come to Mountain Stream and we hope to have them back for the next five years as well.

October 18th - Fresh Anointing (from Andalusia, AL)

David Wiggins, Michael Frank and CaseyWilliams Matthews (missing from this performance).

October 25th - In His Glory (from Forest City, NC)

As a group, the members of In His Glory bring over 100 years of collective musical experience to Gospel Music. The members of In His Glory are Jim Bishop, Howard Gordon, Thad Harrill, Dianne Harrill, and David Roach at the keyboard. This was their first time here. We hope to get them back again, but I'll bet they won't want to back in October again. It was really cold this night. we felt so sorry for them and they really put on a fine show in spite of the cold.

This Halloween was a little strange. Maybe it's just me, but the trick-or-treaters seemed a little hairier than in the past.

September 2008

September was the month for return engagements for groups who performed at Mountain Stream for the first time earlier in the year.

September 6th - Truly Blessed (from Clover, SC)

After their first performance here in July, we knew we had to get them back again - and we've already booked them for a couple more dates in 2009.

September 20th - ReignSong (from Chattanooga, TN)

ReignSong was here for the first time in May and we're really pleased to have them back for another performance

Meaggan Cochran

September 27th - Meaggan Cochran (from Gastonia, NC)

Meaggan was here for the first time in July. She's only 16 but she can really sing!

August 2008

August was another busy month - a lot of stuff going on. Our hummingbirds are back in full force. Once one hummingbird finds a feeder, it's only a minute or two before there are a bunch of them fighting for a place at the feeder.

We had our second ice cream social in August. We almost ran out of ice cream this time! No one was bashful about coming back for seconds (or thirds).

No matter how many or how few show up for the covered dish, there's always more than enough to eat - even when we feed our entetainers.



The English Family enjoying the meal	The Golden Valley Crusaders digging in

Although we haven't been able to have church services every Sunday, we have services whenever we have a minister in the park. If you are a member of the clergy, please let us know when you make your reservations - you can be sure we'll ask if you would do a Sunday service for the campground!

The 12th annual Labor Day weekend duck race was held on August 30th this year. We were really worried that we might not be able to have the duck race this year because the stream had been so low that the ducks were going to have to walk to the finish line. However, a few days before the big day, the remnants of hurricane Fay brought several inches of rain to the mountains. This was enough to raise the level of Buck Creek a god bit. Not up to it's normal level and flow, but sufficient for the duck race.

Speaking of the duck race - this year Polly Caldwell took first place and her husband Calvin took 2nd place. Even though these were experienced ducks that had raced in previous years, some of the other contestants thought this was just a little too coincidental and wanted these ducks impounded and tested for steroids.

Once again this month we had several groups performing for the first time at Mountain Stream as well as returning groups.

August 9th - The English Family (from Eidson, TN)

Jim English, Wendy English, Loressa English, Jerramy English, Megan English and Mike Willis. 2008 Sunrise Group of the Year top ten nominee.

August 16th - Mountain Joy (from Waynesville, NC)

Carroll Muse, Linda Rhinehart, June Rhinehart and Rick Caldwell

August 23rd - Master Praise (from Shelby, NC)

Ron Epley, Angela Epley and Keith Candrell

August 30th - The Golden Valley Crusaders (from Golden Valley, NC)

The Golden Valley Crusaders are a bluegrass gospel band formed in 1970 and based out of Golden Valley, NC. The group was established in 1970.

July 2008

In July, we had three more groups coming to Mountain Stream for the first time. All three were truly great and are real "keepers"!

July 5th - Cross Reference (from Kings Mountain, NC)

Cross Reference consists of husband and wife Curt and Joy Hollifield, their daughter Christen Blanton, and Joy's sister Cindi Welch.

July 12th - Truly Blessed (from Clover, SC)

Another family group - Thomas & Nell Britt and their daughter Cynthia Sims. Good people, great singers. They'll be back again later in the year and we hope to see have them back often in the future.

July 26th - Meaggan Cochran (from Gastonia, NC)

Yet another family group - a truly remarkable 16 year old and her parents. Also booked again for later this year.

June 2008

A drought has currently plagued most of the Southeast for the past couple of years and Western North Carolina is one of the hardest hit areas. Last year, nearby Lake James had all but disappeared because it's water had been drawn down to maintain the water levels in some of the downstream lakes around Charlotte. This year Lake James has nearly recovered, but Buck Creek, the stream that runs around the campground, is at the lowest level we've ever seen it.

We had our first ice cream social of the year this month. Quite a few bowls of ice cream (as well as a few calories) were served up.

June was another month for groups performing for the first time at Mountain Stream. Three of the four groups were first-timers.


*June 7th - Vessels of Praise* (from Laurens, SC)**

June 14th - Glory Bound (from Marion, NC)

Glory Bound does bluegrass gospel and has been performing at Mountain Stream for 5 years!


*June 21st - Tony Burchette* (from Rutherfordton, NC)**


*June 28th - His Ministry* (from Conover, NC)**

May 2008

We started out May by hosting our first T@B rally. T@Bbers came from 12 states (Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia) to attend. Tom Johnson, a large local RV dealer, set up a hospitality tent and had a new T@B and the new, larger T@DA on display.

For those of you not familiar with T@Bs, they are a modern version of the smaller teardrop trailers that were popular in the 1930 -1940 era. There are a number of other manufactures producing either traditional or modernized teardrops, but the T@Bs are the most popular.

In May, we had a number of groups performing at Mountain Stream for the first time:


*May 3rd - Men of Praise* (from Hickory, NC)**

May 24th - ReignSong (from Chattanooga, TN)

This was ReignSong's first time at Mountain Stream, but we already have them booked for a return performance later in the year. They really put on a good show and we look forward to having them back many more times.

May 31st - Ron Brewer (from Summerville, GA)

Ron travels throughout the United States appearing in churches, auditoriums, revivals, campgrounds and various other venues. He sings at the National Quartet Convention. and has appeared on many syndicated Television and radio programs. He was nominated in the 2008 Top Five Diamond Awards for Soloist of the Year.

April 2008

In late April the early morning quiet was broken by a large white oak that lost its grip on the rocky mountainside on the north side of the creek. This was a very healthy mature oak tree that grew on the steep mountainside for years. However, most of its branches were all on one side of the tree, stretching out over the creek. All this weight hanging off one side of the tree overcame the grip the roots had on the rocky mountainside and the tree fell across the creek behind site 4. Even though this was a large tree, only the uppermost branches landed beyond the creek and onto the site. But there certainly was a big pile of wood on the site by the time everything was pulled across the creek and cut up.

March 2008

For years the curve at the west end of the park near site 20 has been a source of aggravation because of "Igor", an RV eating rock living there. Part of Igor poked up out of the ground right where the roadway should be, so the road had to narrow there making the curve sharper and cutting down maneuvering room for backing into a couple of sites.

Now Igor was usually pretty docile - he just sat there getting in the way. However, if you weren't paying attention and got too close to him, Igor would take a bite out of your camper just to remind you that he was there.

A few years ago, Igor was defanged somewhat with a jack hammer, but occasionally he still managed to gnaw on someone's camper. So this winter we brought in some heavy equipment and evicted Igor from his long time home. He now lives completely exposed about 15 feet from his previous below ground dwelling.

In the pictures below, you see Igor in his new location as well as the new wider road. There's still more work to be done on the railings and landscaping, but Igor will no longer be snacking on RVs.

This year work weekend was cut short by the weather. Cleanup work started around 9:00 in the morning under gray, cloudy skies. The sun peeked through the clouds a couple of times, just enough to make you think that the rain might hold off. By noon, all of the leaves, sticks and other debris throughout the park had been cleared out, the bath house reopened, and all of the outdoor deck tables and chairs cleaned.

The skies had lightened somewhat when we broke for lunch and it looked like we would be able to get a full day's work in. This was great because the afternoon project was shoveling dirt - a lot of dirt. One part of reworking the sites at the west end of the park was creating a raised terrace on the berm at the rear of the sites. Doing this involved placing lots of railroad cross ties, tons of gravel, and moving of a lot of rocks and dirt. Sites 24 & 25 had been completed and the cross ties were in place on site 26. So only the grunt work of moving the dirt and rocks on site 26 remained.

With six or eight folks shoveling, most of the heavy work remaining on site 26 could be finished up that afternoon. This was great because otherwise it would be just one person shoveling. The six or eight person alternative sounded much, much better. But, alas, it was not to be. It started raining as we were finishing up lunch - and continued all afternoon. So, it's back to one person and one shovel. Ah well, best laid plans and all that.

This project this winter was reworking sites at the west end of the park. Sites 24 - 27 were our focus this time. We raised the road and the front of the sites about a foot to make the sites level. Sites 26 and 27 were combined creating another super site, raised terraces overlooking the stream were added to the rear of the three remaining sites and the sites were angled to make them easier to get into. There is still a good bit of work remaining on site 26, but it's coming along nicely and we're really pleased with how these sites have turned out.

It looks like they are going to be popular with our campers as well. Even though the landscaping hasn't been completed, two families arriving in the past week have asked for site 25. Hopefully this is a sign that other folks are going to like them as well.

Easter was a big hit with the children again this year. They created a lot of colorful eggs (thank goodness for disposable plastic tablecloths).

Last Easter it turned bitterly cold and we had a hard freeze that killed off the new blossoms on nearly everything. Easter came much earlier this year but the weather was much warmer. At least the children didn't have to wear winter coats for the egg hunt.

The kids found all of the hidden prize eggs as well as most of the other eggs. However, there appears to be a dozen or so plastic eggs still out there for the lawn mower to find.

January 2008

This will be another busy winter. Our big project last winter was upgrading sites 14 - 22 and creating three new super sites. This winter we're working on sites 24 - 27 and creating another super site. Once these are finished we'll be making upgrades to sites 28 - 31. Expectations are to have this completed sometime in the spring.

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