Still in Maine – a few stops to share before we hit the road!
This was a scenic pull off that intrigued us. The mountain in the far distance is Mount Katadin, “Great Mountain”. This is the highest point in Maine at 5,269 ft. – just shy of a mile high. Which reminded us of home in Colorado, so a bit of reminiscing took place. Then we looked down and saw a heart carved into the fence were we leaning on. So of course we got a bit lovey and HAD to take our picture with the “heart”. After all this is our 50th year anniversary excursion. Lets go see what our next adventure is all about!
On our way we discovered the 3D model of our Solar System established by the University of Maine in Presque Isle. This model extends for nearly 100 miles along U.S. Route 1.
So much to consider – the immense expanse of space and the relative size of “our little world”. The Sun is depicted at the U. of M. as a 50 foot diameter arch (that would be approximately 8 stories high). The planets extend out from that location along highway 1, each one made to scale (93 million miles to 1) based on the size of this sun. Wow!
We found the “Earth” as we left the camp, it was located 1 mile away from the “Sun” and was only 5 1/2 inches in diameter! We still cannot overcome the sense of awe of the vastness of our solar system and how microscopic we are as we live on this amazing beautiful planet. And our solar system is just a small speck in the vastness of the universe! To consider all of this and GOD knows us intimately by name and works out all the details of our lives. He came to this little globe filled with His special creation out of pure unconditional LOVE to save us – “for the joy set before Him He endured the cross”. It’s too fathomable to comprehend!
One more stop while still in Maine – there were sunflower fields! We had to stop and try to get a great picture, but it’s hard to really capture on camera what we are seeing! “…for the beauty of the Earth, for the beauty of the skies….” Beautiful flowers, clouds, and skies!
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Here we go! We need to sleep in the state for it to count and get colored in. In these next six nights before our next work project, we need to sleep in: Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, Delaware, and Pennsylvania. The reservations are made, lets’ go!
Night ONE / State ONE – Massachusetts
Wait – What??! All of a sudden there was a message on our dash board – “Check Tire Pressure”. As we drove the pressure in one of the tires kept descending. We pulled over to check it and learned that we had picked up a nail in the sidewall of a back tire. UGH! We asked if there was a tire shop nearby and Yes, there was! We put more air in the tire and found the tire shop. They could order a new tire for us but it would take 4 – 6 hours delivery from nearby town which would put us past the check in at our campsite. We chose to just put on the spare and keep traveling. Thankful for a friendly place to take care of us – and at “no charge”!
We had a pretty nice spot at Black Bear Campground in Salisbury, MA. – but had VERY CLOSE neighbors. The back bumper of our rig was only three feet from the neighbors behind us! For them, it was a multiple family weekend with kiddos, campfires, and dogs. But they were friendly, very respectful and responsible – we had no issues. We had a good visit with them after we got settled.
Night TWO / State TWO – Rhode Island
We hit the road mid-morning expecting about a 2 1/2 hour drive to our camp spot in Rhode Island.
But of course there was the traffic to deal with, it takes lots of concentration pulling a trailer through the crowded highway. We went around Boston and through Providence and kept heading South. Our check-in time at the campground was 3:00 pm – so we had a few hours ahead to do something. The map showed we would be near Narragansett, RI.
This great little resort town is known for their fantastic beaches with great surf conditions year-round, its close proximity to the University of Rhode Island, and the Towers (a castle like structure built in 1883-1886 for the pier casino).
We decided to take a beach stop and enjoy the surf for a few hours. This is Scarborough Beach on the Narragansett Bay. We were able to drive right in and park our truck and rig right on the grass parking just a few steps away from the beach. What a blessing!
We changed into our suits, took our chairs, and relaxed. It was a beautiful day and not real crowded where we were. The water was spectacular, the sand was soft and clean, lots of people walking, swimming, and plenty of sunshine. It was relaxing after the drive through traffic all day.
The only issue….was the smell! We stayed until we couldn’t any longer. What was it? We googled, “why does Scarborough Beach stink?” It was the Red Asian Algae that was in the water a ways from shore. It is a seasonal thing that lasts a few weeks and we timed it just right – ugh!
When we arrived at Wawaloam Family Campground, we didn’t realize it was a destination resort campground. They had a huge pool, waterslides, splash pad, and so many family activities going on – very impressive! We again changed into our suits, grabbed our towels and enjoyed the rest of our day poolside! When we set out this morning we had no idea (or plans) to have an afternoon filled with scenic sights, beach time and a resort pool – so FUN!
Night THREE / State THREE – Connecticut
On our way we crossed several rivers including the Mystic, Thames and Nordic Bay. There is a lot to see and do in this area. On the Thames in and around New London, there is Fort Griswold, Fort Trumble, The Coast Guard Academy, the USS Nautilus submarine, museums, and more. We’ll have to come back – we just didn’t have the time to take it all in.
Our first drawbridge on our trip – had to wait just a bit for the bridge to lower.
This colorful dragonfly decided to pay us a visit – its wings were so interesting! The colors are just starting to change here. We are seeing more and more color in the trees every day.
We arrived at our Connecticut campsite around mid afternoon. We were feeling tired so we just rested at our campsite nested in these beautiful woods. This site really reminded us of home in the mountains! So woodsy, calm, and relaxing. We even enjoyed the rain that day!
Night FOUR / State FOUR – New Jersey
Today was planning to be about a 3-4 hour drive – around New York City of course!
We made a comment that this six day trip could be a “Groundhog Day Movie”. Get up and going, hit the highway, drive, park and setup for the night. Driving in Eastern U.S. is almost always with trees on both sides and you can’t tell where you are. We didn’t even know we drove around New York city! We crossed the Hudson River – but with the guard rails and girders, all we could see was the road ahead. This was also a rainy day – so we just cranked up the tunes on the radio and enjoyed each others company.
Mountain View Campground was a little different for us. It had great reviews and a good price so we booked it. When we arrived we met the owner who was very pleasant and conversational, nice guy. He said, “follow me to your spot!” We literally drove through an open grass field making turns wherever, then up a slight hill and landed between two bushes/trees. They did have a kids playground available and the sites were well spaced apart for privacy. It had rained all day until we arrived, so I put us in 4-wheel drive just in case. We got parked and level then the rain just poured for the next few hours. Perfect timing! Everything is so green. (Hmmm, we never did see a view of mountains?)
Night FIVE / State FIVE – Delaware
These six states that Dennis had booked campsites in were a bit difficult to find a nice place for one night. The campgrounds were very seasonal and/or had a two night minimum. We were thankful Dennis booked these last April! Being a small state, Delaware was a challenge, but they had some great State Parks!
Were seeing more and more colors changing as we drive – we can only imagine what the days ahead will bring.
No rain today! This was a big blue sky, fluffy clouds and sunshine day! We skirted around Philadelphia and headed south into Delaware.
We’ve decided we really like State Park and/or National Park campgrounds and will defer to them when we have a choice. This was a quiet, beautiful camping spot nestled in the trees with lots of small wildlife. It is amazing to see how effective the squirrel is camouflaged on the forest flour amongst the fallen leaves. We had a nice restful evening/night in Delaware.
Night SIX / State SIX – Pennsylvania
We decided to take a route between Washington and Baltimore rather than retrace our path back the way we came yesterday. Look what was up ahead…the Chesapeake Bay Bridge! (Not to be confused with the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel). This is part of Highway 50 which crosses the United States – and right through our home stomping grounds in Colorado!
We learned that the Bay Bridge is one of America’s scariest! The Bay Bridge over the Chesapeake, takes drivers nearly 200 feet into the air! As we drove the approximately 5 miles across, we also felt a bit uneasy – very similar to our trip over Red Mountain Pass in the Colorado mountains. What makes the bridge so terrifying? The lanes are very narrow, there’s no shoulder and there’s nowhere to go if you need/want to stop. For some it’s the height and there are frequent high winds. We talked about all of these things as we drove.
A lot of drivers don’t like the low railings, which offer views of the water 200 feet below! There’s even a service provided to transport people from one side to the other because of their fear of driving across, lots of people just cannot do it!
We made it without incident and without any traffic delays which we learned is nearly an everyday occurrence. This is a major commute to Washington DC for hundreds of people.
Back on land, we passed this sign and realized we were so close to our Nation’s Capitol. It reminded us to pray for our leaders – that they would receive wisdom from God and lead our nation with strength, love, and humbleness.
We made it to Pennsylvania and our campsite for the night. Another State Park – Shawnee State Park was a great spot, hardly any other campers, and had a huge lake in the middle of the park.
One of our highlights this trip was meeting up with Ron and Linda Hoffman (cousins) who live only 25 minutes away. We met and ate at the historic Jean Bonnet Tavern. We were introduced to a “Pennsylvania salad…same as other salads but with French fries thrown on top – very different, but not bad!
A bit of the history includes: George Washington and his troops passed here, as did countless settlers in wooden wagons heading to our nation’s great western territories. So too did thousands of travelers in new newfangled motor cars driving the Lincoln Highway. The Lincoln (Route 30) was the first road across America, stretching from New York to San Francisco. Several weeks ago, we had listened to an audio book titled “The Lincoln Highway” so this was very interesting to us!
WOW – we did it! Six States in Six Nights! We had a blast and enjoyed each day’s adventure. There are many areas and places that we could come back to visit and spend so much more time at. We are thankful for the safety and the adventure of life that God has blessed us with! Now, on to our next SOWER Project in upper/western Pennsylvania!
