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| Mabry's Mill - Blue Ridge Parkway - Virginia |
So…here we are one week away from
our 2014 Fall Madventure and I haven’t finished last year’s postings.
Sigh.
I may well be the worst Blogger
on the face of the planet.
What to do.
Finish? Synopsize? Just say the heck with it.
Not the last. Nor the first methinks.
Synopsize it is then.
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| Cape May - New Jersey |
An hour’s drive from Assateague
one can hitch a ride on the Cape May – Lewes Ferry. The trip across the bay to
Cape May was made on a brilliant sunny day with a few swells just to make
things interesting. As the village comes to view it almost feels as if time
travel is truly possible. Cape May is an enchanting, nostalgic little Victorian
seaside village (lighthouse included) that having survived Hurricane Sandy
(after our visit) is on our return to list for the future.
Learn more here: http://www.visitnj.org/cape-may
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| Fire Station - Cape May |
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| Cape May Lighthouse |
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| Hereford Inlet Lighthouse - NJ |
Up the coast a bit Hereford Inlet Lighthouse was near impossible to find...we passed the road to the light at least 3 times. It was, howsumever, well worth the effort once we did. The grounds are tiny, but carefully and beautifully landscaped by one of the volunteers. He has managed to work within the small space to make it feel larger than it is.
It’s a strikingly colorful little Victorian garden enhanced by the Victorian build of the lighthouse itself. Though not spectacular in height (it sits almost hidden behind the Coast Guard rescue station), Hereford Inlet is, to date, my favorite light.
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| Coast Guard Station - Note Lighthouse behind the Station. |
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| Lighthouse Garden - Hereford Inlet, NJ |
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| Barnegat Light - Long Beach Island, NJ |
We were on a mission to make Long
Beach Island, NJ before nightfall and we were running out of daylight. Our
hostess for the evening was himself’s vivacious 80 + year old Aunt at home on
the island. After a delicious evening meal at Kubel’s Restaurant near Barnegat
Light I crashed early and missed the arrival of her daughter Nancy. Waking to
the smell of coffee I stumbled into the kitchen and smack into the smiling face
of himself’s cousin. Over coffee and breakfast, that included my new fave Taylor
Ham (pork roll), Nancy and I proceeded to yak and bond through our shared path
through widowhood…though she is much younger and years earlier into the journey.
More coffee, a quick walk on the beach and playtime with her effervescent pooch
later and we were on the road to our last stop on the upward bound portion of
our madventure.
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| Our Campsite along the river - New Jersey |
Through the grace of the
Y-membership of my step-son we snagged an awesome campsite right on the river
not too many miles distant from their home. Waking to the smell of fresh coffee
through the soul satisfying sounds of the river rushing directly outside our
door is my idea of a slice of heaven right here on this little blue marble
spinning wildly in the vast unknowns of space. Ahhhhh…."Calgon take me away"
(for those of you old enough to remember those commercials).
Our grandson turned 7 on this
trip. I found myself thinking back to the pictures sent to us on the day of his
birth and how grown he seems now. Being included in the round of Laser Tag with
his friends and the later family birthday gathering was the true highlight of
this journey.
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| Laser Tag Center |
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| Happy 7th Birthday to our Grandson |
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| Mayberry, Virginia |
The trip home through the Shenandoah
Valley and along the Blue Ridge Parkway was leisurely, cool and sometimes colorful
in mid-October. Taking our time from NJ to SC we stopped and smelled the roses in
many spots along the way. Finding Mayberry on a back road in VA was an
unexpected bit of serendipity taking us back in time to where General Stores
were really…well…general. It was not at all hard to imagine that at any moment
Andy, Opie, Deputy Barney Fife and/or Aunt Bea would walk into the store
looking for some thing or another needed for the day.
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| Camping on the Blue Ridge Parkway |
Safe to say that our little adventure was
exactly as we hoped…and more…especially since our Grandson made me smile by
telling me in a quiet moment that he was glad we had come and would be happy to
see us again. Expected? Not exactly.
This NJ grandchild has gotten the short end of the grandparent deal with us
seeing him only at Second Christmas gatherings in NC, 2 christenings, 2
birthdays and 2 funerals in NJ. Now that I have retired, we hope to correct
that by spending as many birthdays with him until he thinks he’s too old for
it. (which I hope, quite frankly, is not ever.)
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| Beach Chairs on the bay at Cape May |
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