Red Tail RV Trips

Tour day of the Norfolk Navy Yard. Went to downtown Norfolk and saw all the very old houses in the original section. Most were built by ships captains after they retired. The streets are still cobble stone and very narrow.
Wanted to tour the Nauticus, a new museum of Navy History, but being Monday, it was closed. However we were able to see the USS Wisconsin, the largest battleship in the Iowa class. It was comissioned in 1944 and earned several ribbons in WWII, Korea, Vietnam and Desert Storm.

We took a tour boat that explained the various areas of the harbor and then went to the Navy Yard area. There we saw several types of ships belonging to the navy. One of the supple ship was able to attain speeds of 45 knots, which is astounding with a diesel. Another fueler carried 9 million gallons of fuel to ships at sea, again astounding.

On the road again, this time leaving the Ocean City area and driving South towards Norfolk, VA. This route takes us thru farm country of Maryland. Large fields of tomatos, peanuts and corn are abundant along the road. The most interesting part of the drive was the BRIDGE-TUNNEL. This is a means to cross the mouth of Chesapeake Bay. It measures 17.6 miles from entry to exit. It has two mile long tunnels, two bridges, four man made islands and over 100 miles of pilings holding up the trestle. In the center of the bridge there is a parking area with a large fishing pier, restuarant and gift shop. This was out second time to use the Bridge-Tunnel and just as interesting. After crossing the bay we headed to our campground in Norfolk. Once parked we drove to the boardwalk area. This was the last day of King Neptune Days. Lots of booths of food, arts, crafts and music were offered all along the water front.

Day to explore the area. First went to the small town of Berlin, about 6 miles west of Ocean City. For a town of 3,000, they have over 20 houses and buildings on the National Historical List. The houses are huge and full of bric-brac. Would like to go back when the have the open house tours. Then off to Ocean City and the Boardwalk. Their boardwalk extends for over 3 miles. The storm of the day was passing thru so the surf was extremely high. Warning were out for no one to enter the water because of rip tides. At several places along the walk you could see where the sand actually covered the walk and went into the street.

On the road again. Left the campground to catch the 1100 ferry from Cape May. They had already called and canceled our earlier ferry because of weather. The tail of a low was passing thru and winds and rains were forcast to be heavy. Our ferry was on time and fully loaded. It was not required to leave the vehicle, however we did go upstairs to see better. The crossing from Cape May, NJ to Lewes, DE took just over an hour. The seas were moderate and the boat rocked a little, but nothing serious. Exit at Lewes was easy as it was sheltered. Our drive on down to Ocean City, MD was interesting. Route 1 goes on the center of a sand bar. Both sides of the road have been built on, but the ocean and the bay were visible thru the houses on both sides. Our RV park in Ocean is just out of town. Explored the area some, but will do more tomorrow.

Cloudy day as we left Egg Harbor and headed toward Cape May. Took the back roads towards Atlantic City until we reached the Garden State Parkway. This parkway runs the entire length of New Jersey along to coastal side. Took us just over an hour to reach Cape May, thus giving us time to explore the area after setting up the coach. Unfortunately the wind was blowing, about 25mph and a few sprinkles were coming down, so could not do as much walking as we had planned. Cape May is a summer resort area for the entire region. Large houses, many motels and hotels and of course T-shirt shops. With the storm coming in the surf was fun to watch. Warnings were up for flooding and undercurrents, but people were still out there surfing. Sat in the coach that night and listened to the storm pass with heavy rain and winds.

Sorry no entrys for a short while. We have been at Egg Harbor, NJ for a week. We came here from Liberty Harbor NJ to spend time while Barbara and Gayla flew to Santa Fe for a wedding. Myron and I searched out my old haunts where I used to live an go while based at McGuire AFB. The house was still there and in very good condition, and with lots of childrens play things in the back yard. Felt tempted to knock on the door but didn't.

When the girls got back we spent a day in Atlantic City, looking at the casinos and walking the Boardwalk. It has not changed much, only bigger. Still the same T-shirt shops and other miscellany. The casinos were all nice, but held no comparison to those in Vegas. Now you cannot just drop a quarter in the slots, have to buy a ticket worth at least $5 to play.

We head out tomorrow, Thur for points south. Will be updating the blog daily then.

Hopefully the hurricane season is over as we are taking coastal roads all the way down to Key West.

On the road again, this time a short drive, relatively. We left the Liberty Harbor RV Park, right on the Hudson River and headed down the Jersey Turnpike to Egg Harbor. We plan to stay here some time as Barbara has to fly back to Santa Fe for a wedding. In the meantime I will explore the old haunts I knew while based at McGuire, if they are still there. Fall has arrived and the temps are great, only 73 during the day and a cool 40+ at night.