Cape Point Campground Hatteras National Seashore NC
Happy Halloween!
I began my day with a walk over the dunes and down to the beach.
We packed up the RV and headed south on Route 12 to Cape Point Campground. While the Oregon Inlet Campground was almost full last night, this place is fairly deserted. There are a few Canadian geese and a couple of deer and a couple of other campers but it is very quiet here. There is a beach access ramp directly off the camping loop. We took the Jeep for a ride this afternoon.
When we drove to the actual point, the waves were tumultuous, crashing and splashing as high as 20 feet. There were lots of fisherman here…not sure if they were catching anything.
We drove around the bend where the wind and water were much calmer. The sunshine felt wonderful.
This evening, during the golden hour, deer were feeding on grass at sites across the way.
The sky was lovely at sunset.
Later, we took another ride out to the beach to see the Blue Moon. I wish I knew how to adjust my camera to get better moon pictures!
Oregon Inlet Campground Hatteras National Seashore NC
The weather we were supposed to get during the night, terrific “red” thunderstorms and wicked wind, thankfully, never materialized. We woke up to calmer breezes and mist. A call to the bridge information hotline told us that there were o wind restrictions today. We got busy and packed up and left before anything could change! By 10:00 we were at Morris Farms where we got some preserves and produce. By 11:30 we were camped at Oregon Inlet. We aired down the tires after grabbing a quick lunch and headed for the beach. The sky was beginning to clear and though it was windy, it was warm. We enjoyed at walk at the inlet and then a second walk at Pea Island Wildlife Refuge. We drove down to Rodanthe and stopped in the market there for a couple of groceries.
We had delicious Maryland crab cakes from Santoni’s for our dinner as we watched the sunset over the sound.
After dark, we took the Jeep for a drive along the beach. It was still very windy. The fast moving clouds and the almost full moon made for stunning pictures.
When we left Reisterstown, it was raining. It was not a very nice driving day, but it wouldn’t have been a nice day for much else either. We had the intention of staying at Cherrystone, one of our very favorite campgrounds but it was raining and unpleasant and we decided that instead we would just keep moving. We did stop in the town of Cape Charles just for a quick lunch break and walk on the pier.
We had made arrangements to stay at a Harvest Host Campground. Harvest Host is new to us. For a yearly fee, members are allowed to camp in over 1,100 locations. These sites are farms, orchards, breweries, wineries, museums, and other similar attractions. Our first time was in Virginia at a brewery and we really enjoyed having this different kind of experience. Today, we had hoped to make it to Morris Farms in NC but that didn’t work out! We got to the toll booth at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel and we were directed to turn around. There were wind restrictions due to 47 mph wind gusts and so we were not able to cross.
We went back a couple of miles to Kiptopeke State Park and set up camp. I had forgotten how lovely it was. We went for a nice hike from the campground to the beach and then through the woods.
On the 18th of September we dropped the RV at Camping World in Oakwood, Georgia. While we visited with David and his family, the RV was scheduled for some repairs and maintenance. We got to David’s in midafternoon and everyone was home for dinner. Oliver recognized us right away and we got giant hugs. Austin was a little more hesitant and it took him a couple of minutes to warm up. From that moment and for the next four weeks, we had an amazing visit. The boys are growing like weeds and we hadn’t seen them since Christmas and so we had missed a lot! We certainly tried to make up for all that lost time. We played and played and played…playdoh and puzzles and games and kitchen and bubbles and bikes and made up games too! We had so much fun! When the boys were at school, David had a list of things that we could do to occupy our time…yardwork and painting and fixing stuff, and cleaning the garage and making dinners…we had fun doing that too! Andrea took a week off at the end of our stay and it was nice to have extra time with her as well. It was hard for us to leave.
We had an appointment October 20, 2020 in Red Bay, Alabama to get some new furniture for the coach. We drove home through Tennessee and got to do some leaf peeping.
We got to Reisterstown on October 23rd. I had fun helping Allison prepare for Kyle’s 30th birthday party. The four of us also enjoyed some dinners together.
I am really glad that we made the decision to go home. It was nice to spend time with the kids. It was also nice to see my mom. She is now cancer free and doing well!
I walked this morning in the campground before we left. It was humid and balmy but not raining. We thought we might be riding into part of hurricane Sally as we traveled toward Atlanta. But we were very fortunate and although we had periods of light rain, we had no gusty winds. Our ride took us through bands of clouds.
We arrived at Jones RV Park in the early afternoon. We spent the day cleaning the RV and getting it ready to take to Camping World, where it will stay for some maintenance while we visit David and Andrea and the boys. We plan to be with them for several weeks. We won’t write the blog while we are there but will resume when we begin moving again…so stay tuned!
We have very much enjoyed this trip. We have seen lots of things that we had never seen before. We were eager to leave Baltimore and we chose well…cooler temperatures and beautiful scenery, lots of time outdoors…all good!!
Lookout Mountain Chattanooga West KOA Trenton, Georgia
I decided to take my morning walk a mile or more down the steep hill from the campground. It was cloudy and cool and perfect for walking. The return trip up the hill was a little challenge but easier than I thought it might be…all my walking is working!!
We took the jeep to the Tennessee Riverpark Wheland Foundry Trailhead. This section of the trail is new and we have never ridden it before. The bike rental was right there (our bikes have been in Atlanta since Christmas and we really miss them!) We hopped on and began to ride. It felt sooo good!
The trail wound through a revitalized industrial area. There was lots to look at.
Then the trail ran along the Tennessee River into Chattanooga.
We took the pedestrian/bike bridge across to North Shore.
We have eaten at Blue Plate the last two times we have been here. They had outdoor seating and salads for a nice light lunch before the trek back to the Jeep.
There was lots of art in the park as well…its hard to take pictures while you are riding an bike!
Lookout Mountain Chattanooga West KOA Trenton, Georgia
A nice morning walk along the marina. When the weather is perfectly pleasant and the scenery is gorgeous, it is easy to walk 2 ½ miles!
We spent the whole day driving from Paris landing to Chattanooga, mostly on major highways. We were able to stop at a BestBuy and exchange my camera which was really wonderful. We had the most polite, professional and kind people helping us!
We arrived at our campsite and did some planning for our adventure tomorrow and for the end of this week. We took a short walk after dinner and started to get organized for our stay in Atlanta.
This morning I walked through the entire park, along the bluffs and back to the campground. It was peaceful and quiet and I walked alone except for the squirrels.
We drove most of the day into Tennessee. The beauty of Kentucky and Tennessee is the lush greenness of the rolling hills. Manicured lawns and big old shade trees resemble home. The dew on the grass and the humidity in the air were absent in the western states.
We stopped in Paris, a small town for a few supplies and we found barbeque for our dinner.
We stayed at Paris Landing and spent time this afternoon making plans for the remainder of the week. This squirrel was just hanging out on a limb by the RV. The first picture was taken through the screen. When I opened the screen for a better picture, he scurried up the trunk a ways.
We took our picnic to Kentucky Lake. We saw a bald eagle as we were getting out of the Jeep. He was circling, hunting, while a bunch of buzzards soared above on an air thermal. It was remarkable how much larger the eagle was. Buzzards have a wingspan of 4-5 feet but bald eagles have a 7 1/2 foot wingspan. The eagle dove into the water but missed his prey and then he flew off.
We explored the park for a little while this evening.
My morning walk took me through the part of the park that we had not yet seen. When the Mississippi River flooded in 1881 , the original town of Kaskaskia was obliterated. There were 3 cemeteries that were destroyed by the water. The townspeople gathered 3,000 boxes and carried them here to Garrison Hill and created a new cemetery.
There was going to be a fort here to protect the river. It was never completed though.
Chester is the home of the creator of Popeye.
We followed Route 3, The Great River Road, through Illinois. There were lots of places to stop and look.
Our original plan was to camp at Fort defiance in Illinois at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. This was a neat place to get out and walk around. The Ohio River.
The Mississippi River.
The meeting of the two.
When we went to look for the campground, we could not find it. It may have once been in the high, overgrown grass, though we never found the electric boxes or a solid road in. We had a plan B and that first involved crossing the Ohio River into Kentucky. The bridge is under construction and no vehicles wider than 9’6” are permitted…no worries…we are 8”6”. When the light turned green and it was our turn to go, Tim said: “time to focus.” We made it just fine, though it might have been more helpful if cars on the other side were all the way in their own lanes!
Fort Jefferson Memorial Cross was designed by area churches and paid for by citizen donations.
We traveled on to Columbus-Belmont State Park in Kentucky. We got a great site with a view of the Mighty Mississippi.
This park was on the Trail of Tears. In 1838, when more than 15,000 Cherokee Indians were forced to leave their homes and lands in the east, they were marched through Columbus and then ferried across the river and then the marched through marshes on the way to Oklahoma.
We took a great walk along the bluffs.
Then among the Civil War exhibits. Kentucky was originally a neutral state but that changed during the course of the war. A Confederate general put this chain across the river to ensnare passing boats, while cannons fired from land.
The soldiers created these earthworks to protect the 17,000 troops and the weapons, including 140 cannons from the Union forces.
After dinner, we sat on the swing, drinking wine, watching a couple of barges pass on the river.
Fort Kaskaskia State Historic Site Ellis Grove, Illinois
My morning walk…loops through the campground because there were some showers lingering.
A farmers market along the way with delicious pink heirloom tomatoes!
We drove east through the remainder of Missouri and across the Mississippi River into Illinois.
We found a nice site at Fort Kaskaskia. The overlook of the Mississippi River. Is that rain falling in Missouri??
We sat under the awning watching the rain and drinking wine…no complaints!
Rudiloria trimaculata a type of flat-backed millipede with no common name
Sunset on the Mississippi River.
We were able to fill in several states on this trip…North Dakota, Wyoming, Kansas, and Nebraska. Idaho is on the agenda for next summer! This does NOT mean we are finished traveling, there is still a lot to see that we haven’t seen before and some things are worth seeing again!
