Day 46 - Granite Falls to Chamberlain, SD

I'm finally writing about today.... whew!

We crossed into South Dakota today, which is our last new state of this journey.  Makes me sad to think there are only two decals left to put on the map (sigh...).

Anyway, we saw our first Wall Drug road-side sign today so that was a milestone (ha ha!).  We also crossed the Missouri River which was amazing.  It looks more like a lake than a river.  Other than that, we basically spent today viewing corn... miles and miles of corn... I've never seen so much corn. 

The good news is that the weather cleared up for a brief time period so we were thrilled to have temps in the low 70s.  How pathetic.

We got set up at camp Oasis.  Jim is anal, as you all know, so he got the truck and trailer washed while the boys and I went to the pool.  They swam, I did not... the weather was too fickle.  I went in to the office to ask about the laundry facilities and the woman wanted to be sure we knew about the storm shelter.  Oh geeze!

Jim came up to the pool just as the boys were getting out so we went back to the trailer to have a quick dinner and I got some more laundry going.  At that point the electrical storm came through and our old friend Rain was back.  Ugh.

After dinner, the rain let up a bit so we walked across the street to see the Oasis shops.  We goofed around taking picures with some buffalo statues (see below).  After that, we walked back to the trailer and got the laundry finished.  Tomorrow will be an early day since we have lots to see on this next leg of our journey!

This was my view from the truck as we crossed the Missouri River:

You missed a spot, Honey (lol!):

Ride 'em Cowboys!

Day 45 - Cass Lake to Granite Falls

We left Cass Lake and took the scenic route (or should I say several scenic routes) to Granite Falls.  We have a rule that unless the trailer actually travels in a particular state, we do not apply that decal to our US map. Sooooo we decided to drive to Fargo just so we could put ND on our map... lol! 

We first traveled over to Bemidji so we could see the mouth of the Mississippi River. When we stopped for lunch in Fargo, I happened to notice a boat dealership next door so I walked over to see if I could get a brochure for pontoon boats.  I was able to look at a few in the showroom and get a brochure so Jim decided to come back with me to have a look.  After lunch and a fuel stop for the big black butt truck, we headed for Granite Falls.

Along the way, Jim happened to see a sign for another boat dealership so we stopped there too and got another brochure.  Of course, we had to look at the boats in their show room as well.  We are really infatuated with these pontoon boats... we just can't figure out if we'd get enough use out of it where we live.

Anyway, we hopped back in the truck and headed for our campground.  This was a tricky one, since the directons on their website were not too clear.  After turning onto a dirt road by accident (try turning around the truck and trailer at 55' in length... better Jim than me!) and missing a turn, we finally arrived.  The RV park is next to a casino and across from a corn field (we've seen a lot of corn!)

After setting up camp, we walked over to the casino restaurant for dinner, which was delicious.  Judging from the looks we got from other diners, they don't see many kids in that restaurant.  We came back to take care of some laundry and then settled the kids in for the night.  After that, we walked back over to the casino to make a small donation. I am not used to people smoking around me anymore (especially inside a building) so we didn't last too long.

The pictures below were taken from our campground.

Days 43 & 44 Cass Lake, MN

When we left Iron River, Jim realized that we were running low on wine (horror) so we decided to stop at a wine store in Duluth.  No offense to anyone from Duluth, but we had no idea how large a city it is.  So here I am navigating Jim (with trailer in tow...) through downtown Duluth in search of this specifc wine store that I found online.  We could not have gotten luckier with regard to finding the shop and parking the monstrosity trailer nearly in front of Fitzger's, which was a hotel, restaurant and wine shop.  The bonus was that they make their own beer too so, of course, Jim had to get some of that too:)

We got ourselves out of Duluth with relative ease and headed for Cass Lake.  On the way we bought Power Ball tickets but we have no idea whatsoever if we won (dang, if so, we could just keep on traveling!).

We arrived at Cass Lake, which was an interesting area.  We camped at Stony Point, which is an RV/Campground, a restaurant and a marina... they have loads of pontoon boats so our infatuation with those boats continues!!  Our particular camp spot was nothing to write home about (mostly dirt...) but the entire campground was very nice.  The lake is pretty large and they have fishing as well as a nice swimming area with large inflatable toys and a water slide for the kids to play with. Too bad it wasn't very warm... grr..

After we set up camp, the boys immediately headed for the playground area. Jim and I toured the campground.  We had to pry the boys out of the playground to get them to come back for dinner!  They were having a blast.  It was pretty cold that night so we hung out inside the trailer.

The next day dawned sunny (yay!) so we decided to head out on our bikes. We ended up taking a 14 mile ride which was wonderful.  The scenery was beautiful.  We came back to have lunch at the restaurant, which was delicious, and then Jim took the boys fishing.  Faith and I took a ride in the truck.  I was hoping to get it washed but that didn't work out so we just explored the local area.  I haven't driven at all so I wanted to make sure I still remembered how:)

I got back around the same time as Jim and the boys so we headed down to the lake so they could swim.  Of course, Faith was totally on board with this plan!  We hung out down there until the fickle sun decided to hide behind the clouds and it cooled off.  Fortunately it was nice enough to eat outside.  The boys and Jim built us a fire, which was a welcome change from being cooped up inside due to the weather.

Day 42 - Ishpeming to Iron River, WI

During our drive from Ishpeming, our run of bad weather continued.  However we stopped at Bayfield, WI, which is another charming port town, and walked around.  The rain continued as we arrived at our campground.  We set up as quickly as possible and then took refuge in the trailer.  I cooked pasta.. no barbecue action for Jim:)  Fortunately the weather let up so we ventured outside and took a walk down to the lake.  On our way, the boys jumped on the swings so it was fun to see them goofing around like that... lots of laughing!

What a beautiful area this was... green rolling grass and a lovely lakefront area. We walked out on a few piers to have a look in the water.  I think the boys were secretly hoping for some turtles... no luck but we did see some small fish that were nearly transparent.

After checking out the lakefront, we went into the office, which was really a combination gameroom, bar and restaurant.  The owners were very friendly so Jim and I chatted with them while the boys played foos-ball.  During our ride to WI, Greg kept referring to cheese-heads so I think maybe he expected everyone to be wearing cheese-heads in WI???  In any case, Jim mentioned this to the owners and the next thing we knew, we were all wearing or holding onto Green Bay cheese-head stuff! We actually had our picture taken wearing/holding this stuff (sacreligious for a die-hard Niners fan!!).  It was all in great fun.

 

 

Day 41 - St. Ignace to Ishpeming, MI

As Jim mentioned in the previous post, this stage of our trip is about exploration during the drive, vs. arriving somewhere to do the sightseeing.  We packed up the trailer in St. Ignace but before we hitched up, we drove across the highway to a lookout point called Castle Rock.  It was a hokey roadside attraction but we wanted to check it out anyway.  Basically there was an elaborate souvenir shop at the base and then we walked up 100+ stairs to a lookout point.  Great views of Lake Huron from up top, well worth all of the stairs! The proprietor of the shop was a super nice guy too so we were glad we went.

We took our time heading up to Ishpeming, stopping to have lunch along the shore of Lake Michigan.  We were surprised at how Michigan looks like an ocean with waves coming into the shore.  It was also much darker in color than Huron, which we thought looked like Caribbean water.

We stopping in Muinsing which was a very charming port city.  We had seen signs for a boat tour to see painted rocks so we decided to check it out.  We thought the boat ride would be about an hour so we put Faithy and Rio in the trailer and went for it.  Turns out it was a 2 1/2 hour trip!  Fortunately it was well worth it.  We saw beautiful rock formations and "paintings" courtesy of Mother Nature.  We were very pleased that we decided to stop and check this out.

We arrived in Ishpeming later that afternoon/evening and the RV park had very nice, spacious grass sites.  Since it was somewhat late, we decided to go out for dinner rather than cook. I checked Yelp for Mexican food (no luck...) so I decided to check for the highest rated restaurant in the area.  That turned out to be Congress Pizza so we decided to give it a try.  If any of you have been to this area, you've probably heard of Congress Pizza. It's a long-standing tradition in the area and it definitely lived up to it's reputation.  Delicious pizza!  They have a special recipe sausage called Cudighi, which Jim loved.  Very warm and friendly people in this area.  We got to put a pin for Beaverton on the map at Congress Pizza as well as the map at the campground:)

It's interesting that during a trip like this, being so far from home, we are more inclined to chat with total strangers and tell them about our trip.  I guess maybe it's the camping aspect of it, vs. staying in a hotel room...? 

This is a lighthouse on Lake Michigan:

These are pictures from our boat tour of the painted rocks:

Day 40 - St. Ignace (Michigan UP)

Nice drive up to the UP.  We decided to take the senic route along Lake Huron vs. following the interstate highway up the middle of lower Michigan.  Good decision.  We had lunch at a nice rest area right next to the lake.  The rest of the drive along Lake Huron was very pretty.  Lots of homes right along the lake.  We took notice of how each driveway had a sign with a unique name, or different structures (i.e. lighhouse, anchor, etc.) in an effort to uniquely identify their entrance.  Some were better than others.  We also saw a lot of "For Sale" signs too.

Going over the Mackinaw Bridge was very cool.  The crossing is approximately 5 miles and the bridge is similar in design to the Golden Gate bridge in San Francisco.  The crossing is where Lake Michigan connects to Lake Huron.

Our campground was right along Lake Huron.  A little rustic but nice location.  We ended up with a site set a bit apart from the others, which was nice.  Once we got setup, we headed down to beach.  The water there was very shallow and we were able to walk out quite a ways.  Faithy had fun in the water too.  We saw afterwards that dogs were not allowed on the beach.  Oh well.  Greg and I went out the farthest and I took a dip in Lake Huron.  My first great lake swim!  We then headed back to our site for dinner and then a campfire afterwards.  I taught the boys the correct was to roast a marshmellow to the nice golden brown vs. their "let's light it on fire" method.  I'm sure they still prefer their method!

Tomorrow we head further up the UP.  We're going to keep on taking the scenic routes.  Today and the next number of days are more about the drive vs. our previous destination focus, so our mindset needs to change.

Mackinaw Bridge

Boys in Lake Huron

Day 39 - Port Huron, MI

We decide to take a chance and cut through Ontario to get to Michigan.  I was worried we'd run into issues since the RV is full of food, meat, veggies, dog food, milk, eggs, etc. and they would make us dump it all out.  I did speak with both Canadian and US border agents the day before and both indicated it should not be an issue.  Going through Ontario would save us a couple of hours, so I decided to give it a shot.  Fortunately both crossings were without issue.

The drive through Ontario was very pretty.  We learned that Ontario has a large wine industry near Niagra Falls.  Not sure what kind of wine they produce or what the quality is, so I'll have to do some research.

We got to Port Huron, MI in the middle of the afternoon and headed to the Port Huron KOA.  Good suggestion by Mike Stroven.  Nice campground with lots of activities and things to do.  We were treated to a big thunderstorm not long after we arrived but it cleared up quickly and we were able to have dinner outside and a campfire afterwards.

Our friends Mike and Bonnie Stroven came up to see and and spend the night camping too.  It was great to get caught up with them.  We hadn't seen them in quite some time.  Mike and I used to work together at Phoenix in OR and they moved back to MI in 1999.

Fun sitting around the campfire and of course S'mores were included!

Mike and Bonnie were our guest decal installers for MI.

Tomorrow we head up to the UP of Michigan.  Looking forward to that area of the country.

Here are a few pics.

Bonnie adding the "mitten"

Mike adding the UP

Martin and Stroven kids

Port Huron crossing

Days 37 & 38 - Niagara Falls

On Sunday, we drove from VT to the Buffalo, NY area to see Niagara Falls.  It was a very long ride.  We left VT at 7:30 and arrived in NY at 5.  Since we got there so late, we decided to stay two days instead of one.

As soon as we got camp set up, we headed over to the state park.  The woman at the campground suggested that we drive over to the park and then use our bikes to get around.  This was an excellent suggestion and worked perfectly.  Since it was late in the day, we did not have to pay for parking at the park.  We hopped on our bikes and quickly headed for the Falls.  The boys and I were really looking forward to seeing them and we were not disappointed... not by a long shot.. they truly are breathtaking.  We explored the US side and then thought we'd take the bikes over to Canada.  Turns out the bikes were only permitted on the roadway with the cars so we decided against it, and walked over.

We had a "Fisherman's Wharf Dinner" at Hard Rock because it was convenient.  Expensive dinner, for sure!  There were supposed to be fireworks at 10 but they got cancelled due to wind... that was a big disappointment.  In any case, the view from Canada is much more spectacular than the US side, so we are definitely glad we took the time to go over.

On Monday, the kids swam in the campground pool, we had lunch and then headed back to the Falls area.  Jim wanted to speak to a border agent about the difficulties of taking the trailer through Canada.  We also decided to take a ride on the Maid of the Mist.  Wow, that sure was something.  You really can't appreciate the amount of "mist" the Falls generate until you are on the front of a boat pushed right up against them.  I tried to capture it in pictures, but they really don't do it justice!  We all loved it, even though we got soaked.  Thank goodness for the lovely blue ponchos they provided:)

One observation... the US area around the Falls is kind of an embarassment compared to the Canadian side. Nothing but trashy stores and other vendor carts on our side, compared with gorgeous gardens and hotels on the Canadian side.  The US area is pretty depressed... lots of really downtrodden structures, etc.  Too bad some money isn't injected into the area to bring more visitors to stay in our country. The state park is beautiful but the area around it... no thanks.

This first picture is American and Bridal Veil Falls:

I took the next two pictures from the deck of Maid of the Mist:

Day 33, 34, 35, 36 - Lake Champlain, VT

A break in the action is upon us, almost.  First we have a very long day in front of us (~9 hrs) as we leave Philadelphia and head to my niece's camp on Lake Champlain in St. Albans, VT.

The drive had its moments.  Heading up the NJ Turnpike, near NYC, we needed to take 3 different roads to head to upstate NY vs. heading up 95 to New England.  Well, we missed the first one and had to scramble.  The miss added some additional time to an already long drive.  Just beyond Glens Falls, NY we turned off and headed towards VT.  Lake George is along the way and is just beautiful.  After heading through Shelburne and Burlington we finally got to St. Albans.  Cindy and Jeremy met us at the entrance to the road heading to their camp.  The road has a couple of tight turns and one location where the power line hangs pretty low over the road.  No problem with the turns but Jeremy had to use a long stick to hold up the power line while I drove underneath.  Parked and rig and setup camp.  They have a great location on the lake, looking East.  We had power and water but no sewer connection so we needed to be careful in our use of the toilet, sink, etc.  The power was only good for lights and such but not the AC, so sleeping was a bit uncomfortable given the heat and humidity.  BUT, given the location and company, no one was complaining.  The first couple of days it was bascially us but as the weekend approached more of their friends and neighbors arrived.  The group dynamics were fun to watch.  Everyone pitches in to do something (i.e. cook, clean, mow the lawn, watch kids & dogs, etc.).  All of this happens without any direction either.  It just happens.  They definitely have their act together.  Cindy and Jeremy have a great group of friends.

We pretty much just hung out the day we arrived (Wed).  The boys and the dog were in the water almost instantly.  Heck, they pretty much were in the water the entire time we were there!  Thursday morning was more of the same. My friends Dale and Sally arrived from MA.  Very nice of them to take the time to drive up and spend a couple of days with us.  We hadn't seen them for a few years so it was great to get caught up.  Jeremy cooked us a couple of great meals both Wednesday and Thursday evenings.  I washed the truck and trailer Thursday morning.  Let's just say, both needed it badly.  Joey, one of Cindy and Jeremy's neighbors, took the boys and I out fishing Thursday night.  Pretty fun.  Initially, I didn't think I'd get my rod in the water since I was running back and forth between the boys either taking off a fish or putting on a new worm.  Nothing to keep but the boys had a blast.  They hadn't caught that many fish before so it was something new and different for them.

I had my truck serviced on Friday.  I needed to have the oil changed and have them look at a couple of things under the hood.  No issues and I got the truck back later that afternoon.  Dale, Cathy and I rode our bikes to a small store on Friday to get ice.  Nice little ride.  The bags of ice were only 5lbs and I'm pretty sure given the heat and humidty they only weighed 2.5 lbs by the time we got back!  Friday night was interesting.  A severe thunderstorm came through in the late afternoon / early evening.  The sky was purple just before it hit us.  Funny watching all us batten down the hatches before the storm arrived.  Pretty strong winds and heavy rain.  Fortunately it didn't last too long but long enough to do some damage.  A big tree came down across the road and separately, a big branch fell and hit Dale and Sally's car, which put a few dents and scratches on the top.  Fortunately nothing too big hit the trailer or my truck.

My sister-in-law (Jean) arrived on Saturday.  Nice to see her and get caught up with her as well.  She was sporting a new ride (SUV).  Took another ride on the pontoon boat across the bay to a marina on one of the islands.  Fairly big swells when we crossed the bay as the winds were blowing pretty good.
The boys got out on a speed boat late in the day.  The boat was pulling a big tube and all the other kids were heading out to have some fun.  Both boys were reluctant at first.  Connor rode in the boat for one of rides and then headed to the tube after watching everyone else.  Greg then got in the boat but never made it to the tube.  They both had a blast.  Dale and Sally left Saturday morning.  Looks like we might do a ski trip with them, maybe next winter.  I hooked up the truck Saturday night and packed most things up as we need to leave early Sunday morning.  We decided to stay an extra day in VT and make the long drive to Niagra Falls on Sunday vs. making a layover in Syracuse.

The time in VT was great.  It was great to see my niece Cindy and her husband Jeremy.  Great people.  Their friends were fantastic as well.  Faithy jumped off the dock and swam more times there than all the other times in her life combined.  She'll be sleeping for days!

Here are a few pictures.

Faithy off the dock.

Sunset photos after Friday storm

 

 

 Cousins

Under the wire (you can't see Jeremy behind the trailer holding up the wire)

Lake George

Day 32 - Philadelphia

Fairly short travel day.  We decided to head up through Baltimore vs. going up through DE.  At first we were wondering if we'd go through DE (so we could put another sticker on our trailer :-)), but a quick glance at the map confirmed we'd go through DE anyway.  I also didn't think we hit PA (with the trailer) but again the map proved that to be incorrect as well.

We got to the campground and setup camp quickly.  After a quick snap we headed into Philadelphia.  First stop was to a vendor for a Philly cheese steak.  I love those and no way was I going to miss having one where they were created.  I did a search on Yelp and found a couple of the highest rated shops.  We ended up going to Ishkabibble's Eatery vs. Jim's Steaks.  I was going to go to Jim's but a few comments on Yelp changed my mind.  I was not disappointed!  I did try it with cheese whiz vs. provolone as that is how they were originally created.  It was good, but I'll stick with provolone next time.  The neighborhood where the shops were was very cool.  I'd like to go back there some day.

From there we headed up to Independence Park for a tour of the Liberty Bell and the old state house (Independence Hall) where the Independence of Declaration and the Constitution were signed.  Very cool seeing the hall where the 13 tables were arranged.  You could easily imagine the delegates walking around and discussing the issues.  The Liberty Bell was pretty cool to see as well.

It was a very hot day be we decided to run over to the Museum of Fine Art where Rocky ran up the steps and finally danced at the top.  There is a bronze statue of him, with his arms raised, just off to the side of the stairs.  The boys had no idea what we were talking about when we mentioned Rocky!

We they headed back to the campground, which was just across the river in NJ.  The boys and I took a dip in the pool.  There was another family there, from Germany, who had 14 yr old twin boys.  Fun talking to them.

That night I was walking the dog and came across a bunch of fire flies (lightning bugs).  I hadn't seen them since I was a kid.  I quickly went and got Cathy.  She had never seen them before so she was pretty excited.  We decided to wake the boys so they would have a chance to see them as well.  They loved it too!

Looking forward to some down time in VT.  The weather has been extremely hot and humid.  Combined with our pace the past few days we're ready for a break.  Not lookingi forward to the long drive (~9 hrs) though.

Here are some photos from Philly.......

Delegate's tables

Independence Hall

Liberty Bell

Rocky (note Connor's Red Sox shirt)

Day 31 - Annapolis and Baltimore

Today is July 15th (right???). We left home one month ago and I will tell you that I love this time that we have spent together in our home away from home.  All we need is a second bathroom... lol!

We got up and out early and headed back to Annapolis... a tour of the  Naval Academy was the priority today.  As it turns out, there was a presentation on the admissions criteria so we figured, why not!  A graduate from the class of 2013 was our delightful presenter and it was very interesting to hear about the school and his experiences there.  Food for thought when we are contemplating college for the 12 (soon to be 13) year olds.  The Academy gets 17,000 applicants for their 1,200 incoming freshmen class so I don't think we have a snowball's chance... anyway... lol!

The tour guide was AMAZING... he went to the Academy and continued on with a full military career.  Sat on the admissions board for the Academy as well as Johns Hopkins so he was a wealth of information.

Jim should be writing this post since I'm sure he recalls way more of the tour than I do.  We saw a sports building (swimming and wrestling), the building where they hold dances, the chapel, the largest dormitory in the world (all 4.500 students live in one building... amazing... ). We got to see the noon ceremony where all of the students march into lunch. 

I cannot express how wonderful this experience was.  Amazing campus, programs, etc.  Our guide says the classes are 20 students to one instructor... can you even imagine???  50% of the faculty is Navy and 50% is civilian.  Anyway, maybe Jim will edit this post so he can give you more details.

After our tour, we hopped into the big butt and headed for Baltimore.  It was so hot today and we had spent so much time walking around the Academy that we were pretty low energy for the Baltimore scene.  Lovely city, inner harbor is beautiful. We walked around and checked out the view from the 27th floor of the Trade Center, where they had a 9/11 exhibit.  It was a nice afternoon:)

 

Day 30 - VA Beach to Annapolis

Can it really be day 30???  Wow!!

Yesterday we traveled from VA Beach to the Annapolis area.  Jim has been chomping at the bit to get to the Naval Academy... :)

Once we got our camp set up, we debated about going into Baltimore or going to Annapolis.  After consulting with the KOA folks, they convinced us that we we would want more time in Baltimore than Annapolis so we saved Baltimore for today.

Headed into Annapolis for dinner last night.  Always amusing to find a place to park the big butt truck but Jim has a way every time:)  We grabbed a Fisherman's Wharf dinner (see earlier postings and you'll know what I mean...).  Dang if I didn't have to eat my Caesar Salad with a photo of Ray Lewis staring at me... yes, still  bitter from the Super Bowl... lol!

Annapolis is charming, lovely old buildings and brick streets... lots of boats.  We loved it.  Surprised to find a Black Dog store there.  Apparently they've branched off from the Cape.

Day 29 - Outer Banks to Virginia Beach

On 7/13, we reluctantly left the Outer Banks (I should have gotten an OBX t-shirt... lol!) and headed for Virginia Beach.  We stayed at a KOA, which we normally have been very happy with, but they had a bunch of rain, so our spot was basically a swamp.  Of course, they were full so there were no other spots available... dang.

They had two pools and one of the pools had two slides... this was a hit with the boys.  So we spent the afternoon at the pool enjoying the water as a break from the oppressive heat.. (will we ever get used to the humidity???).

After dinner we took the shuttle into VA Beach.  We enjoyed a walk along the boardwalk, particularly when we stopped to watch an acrobatic demonstration.  The boys ran around while Jim and I strolled and enjoyed the sights.  We stopped at an outoor restaurant for a margarita (sub-par by our standards...) but the live music was great.

We walked back toward the harbor one block off the beach and it felt like we were in a different country.  Very edgy...lots of clubs and junky stores (we could have had our share of body piercings and tattoos!!).  At one point, a guy threw up.. lovely... and another guy threw his backpack to the ground yelling that he had had enough (plenty of F-bombs in his tirade). Connor, who was walking next to me at the time, had his eyes wide open during this whole time.

I was glad when we were tired and decided to head back to the shuttle.  The boys must have been too, since they turned down our offer of ice cream... yes true story!  Here they are messing around on the boardwalk.

 

 

Day 28 - Outer Banks

On the 12th, we headed to Kitty Hawk.  I have to admit that I haven't really given the accomplishments of the Wright Brothers much thought but I'm glad that we took the time to visit their historic monument.  The weather wasn't too cooperative but we were able to get around the grounds of the Wright Field and their monument without getting too drenched.  There was much to look at, including replicas of the glider and the flyer (built to the Wrights' exact specifications), as well as their airfield and markers notating the results of their exact flights on December 17th, 1903. 

One of the things that really struck me was a display showing the first flight in 1903 all the way up to the moon walk in 1969.... amazing accomplishment in such a short period of time!

This first photo is Jim and the boys on the flight field.  The second photo is the glider and the flyer. The last photo is the Bodie Island Light Station.  We also visited the Hatteras Light Station.  The boys are intrigued by these light stations... apparently some of them are haunted!!

 

 

 

 

Day 27 - Emerald Isle to the Outer Banks

On 7/11, we traveled from Emerald Isle to the Outer Banks.  When we saw ourselves on a map, we were pretty amazed at how far out into the Atlantic Ocean we were... that strip of land we were on was pretty slim.  I was amazed at how many buildings are at risk on the Outer Banks.  Lots of bridges and roads that were built over water.  These people must be pretty resiliant to live in the direct path of a hurricane potentially on a yearly basis.  Regardless, the area is breathtakingly beautiful.

Ater setting up camp, we headed out on the bikes.  I was determined to visit one of the many roadside produce stands.  We've had some delicious peaches and melons in this part of the country!  Anyway, we rode for short way and ended up seeing a deer with a fawn. Suffice it to say that she was not intending to lead the baby so close to the road.  The mother and baby got separated and the fawn ended up running right in front of us.  I didn't realize that deer could cry out but this baby did.  Mother and child were fine, other than being separated on either side of the highway.  We hope that they were able to find each other, since the fawn was pretty small.

We got some produce at the fruit stand and then explored a few shops.  We ended up at a kite board "resort" so it was fun to watch them navigate the wind/waves. 

Here are my men enjoying a "cocktail" on the deck of the resort.

Day 26 - Emerald Isle

OK, so we are behind... making an effort to get caught up:)

On the second day of Emerald Isle, we went for a bike ride.  We rode down the island on the beach side and then back up on the inland side.  During our ride, we stopped and walked out on a fishing pier (where this photo was taken)... I sense a Christmas card in its future:)  We planned our white shirts nicely, didn't we??

We rode back to the campground and the kids crashed (if you can't run with the big dogs...!!) while Jim and I took Faith to the beach.

After that, we dragged the kids out of their stupor with the offer of pizza, which got them back on their bikes:)  We rode into town for pizza, candy and another round of miniature golf (Mom is still 0-for as far as holes in one.... hanging my head in shame.

Day 25 - Myrtle Beach to Emerald Isle

Yay, I'm typing about today... today!

We left the crowded sandy madness of Myrtle Beach and continued north to Emerald Isle.  This was a short trip as well, which was nice for Jim.  It was kind of a funny day since we made a couple of stops at Home Depot and the auto parts store.. housekeeping type stuff. We are silly... we all get excited when we cross into a new state as well.... :) I didn't take many photos today so I just included a scenic shot below of the area right before we came onto the Isle.

The campground at Emerald Isle is beautiful!  Similar to Myrtle Beach, we are essentially adjacent to the beach, but these lots are all grass and they are spaced out nicely!  It's a great location too, so we are going to see if we can leave the truck parked and just use our bikes while we are here.

After we got the trailer all set up, we had lunch and then headed for the water park.  I can't tell you the last time I was on a water slide, but it was a blast!  The boys never came out of the water.  Fun stuff!

After the water slides, we came back and had dinner.  The weather is somewhat cooler here (low 80s) so we ate outside.  We haven't been able to do that much during this trip.  We then took a walk down to the beach to check things out.  Faith wasn't too anixous to get into the water which was strange... perhaps she's still pooped from yesterday.  It curious that we are able to find so many more sea shells on these beaches than we find at home.  

We dropped Faith off at the trailer and then headed for miniature golfing.  It's getting competitive as the boys are getting older...  I think Greg had 3 holes in one!  Jim had two and Connor had one.  I was the loser who didn't have any.  Oh well... we still had fun.  It was getting dark at this point, so I'm glad I have a light on my bike.

 

 

Day 24 - Myrtle Beach

Yesterday, we unfortunately started our day at the urgent care clinic... too much swimming for G who ended up with an ear infection.  Luckily the clinic took our insurance and he was seen by the doctor quickly.  Then we headed to CVS to pick up his prescription.  Done deal and he is fine so nobody needs to worry:)

Oh, I forgot to mention, we are in the land of Dunkin Donuts so Jim is on cloud 9.  We stopped in yesterday morning so he could get a chocolate donut... of course, the boys and I had to partake as well!

After that, we headed back to the campground for an early lunch.  We wanted to explore more of Myrtle Beach but not do too extensive of a bike ride, so Jim put the bikes in the back of his truck so we could drive part of the way in.  We ended up in the area where the big sky wheel is (adjacent to Jimmy Buffett's LandShark Bar and Grill....).  Tons of people watching in this area and again, zillions of stores advertising discount beachwear.  Oh, don't let me forget... several Ripley's Believe it or Not establishments.  Tourist mecca for sure!

Connor and I rode the sky wheel and loved it.  Jim and G hung out and had a snack at LandShark while C and I rode the wheel. We strolled down the boardwalk and checked out all of the junk stores before hopping on the bikes and heading back to the truck.

Once back at the campground, we put on our suits and headed for the beach.  It was late afternoon at this point, which is our favorite time to be on the beach.  Faithy loved it too:)  Jim and the boys built a sand castle so we could watch the tide come in and destroy it.  Fun times!

This first picture is Connor in the sky wheel.  The second shot is Jim and the boys engineering their sand structure and the third photo is Greg with the finished product:)

 

 

 

Day 23 - Hilton Head to Myrtle Beach

On Sunday we started our day with another decal ceremony. Our map is looking very different than it did when we left Oregon! 

We then packed up and headed for Myrtle Beach.  This was a relatively short travel day so we decided to take a peek at Charleston along the way.  I quickly made up bingo cards for the boys so that helped again to get us around their sightseeing objections:)

Charleston is a beautiful city, we especially loved seeing the old buildings.  We walked along the waterfront as well as through some of the residential streets.. very charming, for sure!

The first picture is the boys in front of what we called the Pineapple Fountain:).  The second picture is of a seating area in one of the city parks... I particularly liked the beauty and serenity of that area.

We hopped back in the truck and continued our journey to Myrtle Beach... which was another 2 or so hours.  Myrtle Beach is a very interesting area.  It's all about the beach action.  We must have seen dozens of stores advertising beach stuff "Everything in the store is $5.99 or less" (yeah, right...).

Our campground was right on the beach and it was surrounded by highrise hotels.  The area we were located in was the cheaper accommodation options as far as the hotels were concerned.  I would use the term "resort" loosely... lol!  I would need a whole other post to try and describe this campground.  Soup to nuts as far as RVs, Park Models, permanent residences that used to be 5th wheel trailers, etc.  We could not imagine what this place was like for the 4th of July... crazy I'm sure:)

After we got settled in, the boys and I took a walk on the pier, which is adjacent to the campground, while Jim took Faithy to the beach.  The last picture below is actually of Faith headed into the surf!

Last but not least, Jim and I spent a couple of hours doing laundry.  Fun times!