Update Archive

Archive 11/9 - 11/15/2005:
11/9/2005 - (229 miles – 8 hours - L:54F – H:79F) The day dawned mostly clear so we hooked up and headed out. We ran into some fog as we drove over the top of the Blue Ridge Mountains, but other than that, it was smooth sailing. I’m getting great gas mileage so didn’t have to stop for gas during our trip to Virginia Beach, VA. We arrived at the KOA (I only had to make one U-turn), checked in and unhooked. I’m getting a weird vibe from the campground. There seem to be a lot of somewhat scruffy, longhaired, jeans and wife-beater wearing hoodlum types camped here. And they seem unduly interested in my arrival. Some of the sites look permanent…but not like normal. More like the trailers/cars up on blocks kind of permanent. Not what I was expecting, especially from a KOA. Maybe it’s just a bad first impression.
After unhooking we drove to the beach. We’re two miles from the beach and about 6 from the Boardwalk, and what a place it is. Again, since the season is over, a lot of the places along the beach are closed – at least during the week. The beach is nearly deserted but the weather is fantastic. It’s perfect, just the way I like it. I walked from 31st St down the beach to the 15th St Pier and then back up the Boardwalk. It’s spectacular.
On my walk back up the Boardwalk a man approached and said that he and his family had been robed and were now stranded and needed help in order to get back to Fayetteville, NC. I didn’t believe him, but I gave him money just in case he was telling the truth. He offered to take me over to meet his wife and two kids…yeah, like I’m gonna go anywhere with a complete stranger. I walked away feeling like a chump, but hoping this would go toward my good-karma points. I hope it counts even when you feel like you’ve been had.
I stopped at one of the few restaurants that’s still open and had a fried oyster po-boy sandwich. I’d never had one before and it wasn’t what I thought it would be… but it was good. We drove back to camp and called it a day.
11/10/2005 - (L:60F – H:64F) The KOA we’re staying at is nestled between the Oceana Naval Air Station and Camp Pendleton. There are a lot of jets flying overhead.
The thunderstorm hit around 5AM and didn’t stop until after 9AM. My roof didn’t leak!! Lots of standing water outside. We stayed at camp today, just bumming around.
11/11/2005 - (319 miles – 10.5 hours - L:46F – H:56F) I started out with a plan, and quickly abandoned it in favor of spontaneity. Also, I got lost. I couldn’t find the Cape Henry Lighthouse, hopefully it’s easier to see from the water. Continuing on, we crossed the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, which opened in April, 1964 and costs $12 to cross (the return trip is only $5 if you make it within 24-hours). From shore to shore it measures 17.6 miles, and was listed as one of the Seven Engineering Wonders of the Modern World in 1965. It has more than 12 miles of low-level trestle, two one-mile tunnels, two bridges, almost 2 miles of causeway, four manmade islands and 5-1/2 miles of approach roads, totaling 23 miles. In April, 1999 a second span was added to provide four lanes of traffic. We stopped at the Sea Gull Pier for some pictures, postcards and a stroll along the pier. The guys on the pier were catching these funny looking fish (?) that looked a lot like small sting-rays and that they said taste like scallops. The strange thing was that they just threw them on the pier, letting them sit out in the sun.
After crossing the CBBT we stopped at the scenic overlook for more pictures and then headed to the Eastern Shore of Virginia NWR (National Wildlife Refuge). I went into the Visitors Center to pick up a map and then we headed into the NWR hoping to get a glimpse of the Cape Charles lighthouse. I don’t know where it was, but we wound around the refuge for a while and then continued north toward the Assateague National Seashore. One the way we stopped in Cape Charles at a pier that stretches out into Chesapeake Bay. I hadn’t realized there was an impact crater here – 6th largest in the world. What a gorgeous day! It’s chilly and windy, but sunny and bright.
Up the road I saw a sign for Assateague Island and so turned. We became completely lost in a town called Chincoteague but eventually found our way to the Chincoteague NWR / Assateague National Seashore. It turns out that dogs are not allowed in the NWR, even is they stay in your vehicle. I ignored the sign because I was intent on reaching the National Seashore. When I stopped at the Visitor Center, which was along side a road the ran into the beach, to ask where the National Seashore was they totally freaked out that I had a dog with me. I was told to leave and if I was lucky they wouldn’t fine me. Oh, and the Assateague National Seashore is down the main road another 1-1/2 hours. Great. So I couldn’t stop at the Assateague lighthouse, or anywhere in the NWR because I have a dog. That really irks me. Whatever.
We drove further north and found the Assateague NS. Finally. They don’t care if you have a dog as long as you keep it on a leash. Cool. We drove in, spotting a number of the wild horses that roam the grounds, and took a stroll along the beach. We’re in Maryland now and can see the Ocean City Ferris Wheel in the distance. It’s a beautiful day on an equally beautiful beach. This is fantastic!
We enjoyed the scenery for a while and then headed back to Virginia. On the way back there was an accident and we sat in traffic for almost an hour, watched a helicopter drop down onto the highway and then lift off, then watched a badly smashed car being hauled away on a tow-truck. Yikes. I’ve seen more ambulances on this road in one day than I have in the last six months. This is me driving very carefully. I was hoping to catch the sunset from the pier in Cape Charles, but the accident put us behind schedule. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel is lit up at night and it looks magical against the water. We arrived back at camp after dark. Great day!
11/12/2005 - (166 miles – 6.5 hours - L:40F – H:59F) We drove down the coast to Kill Devil Hills, NC – on the Outer Banks!!! – to visit the Wright Brothers National Memorial. There are several replicas of the 1903 plane that was the first ever to fly. The Wright Brothers camp and hangar have been replicated and boulders mark the original take off and landing sites from the December 17, 1903 flights. It was the first time a manned, heavier-than-air machine left the ground by its own power, moved forward under control without losing speed, and landed on a point as high as that from which it started. They made four flights that day, the first lasted only 12 seconds and covered about 120 feet, the fourth flight lasted 59 seconds and covered 852 feet. The exhibits are a collection of letters and experiments from the Wright Brothers struggle to conquer flight and are impressive. Usually when you hear the story all the hard work is glossed over, but these guys spent years failing before they succeeded. The Monument on top of 90-foot Kill Devil Hill rises 60-feet above the ground and is constructed of gray granite from Mount Airy, NC. From the base of the monument you can see the Atlantic Ocean and the first landing strip. There are some additional exhibit halls, which display the huge strides that have been made in aeronautics. Within two generations of the Wright Brothers discovery we had taken to the air for routine travel, seen an aircraft break the sound barrier, and watched a man walk on the moon.
After our visit in Kill Devil Hills we drove further down the coast to the Whalebone Junction Information Station, the north entrance to Bodie Island (pronounced Body), Pea Island, Hatteras Island and Ocracoke Island. I stopped and talked to the information guy about what to see, where to eat, and picked up some maps. I think we’re going to camp down here somewhere in a week or so, and we’ll do the bulk of our exploring then. I drove back into Nags Head and stopped at The Dunes for lunch. It was good, the clam chowder here is Hatteras style, which means there isn’t any cream, it’s a clear broth soup with potatoes, clams, celery…all the stuff usually found in clam chowder. The crab cake sandwich was pretty good. It could have been tuna, didn’t really taste like crab, but it was good. After lunch we headed back to camp.
11/13/2005 - (153 miles – 9.5 hours - L:45F – H:67F) We finally found the lighthouses this morning. They are both on the grounds of the Fort Story Army Base and I had to go through a vehicle inspection before being allowed onto the Base. No big deal, the five guys that took a surprisingly cursory look at my truck were real nice. I paid the $3 lighthouse admission fee and took the stairs to the top. It was another beautiful, sunny day here and the views were spectacular. The original Cape Henry lighthouse is 90-foot tall and was first lit in 1792. It was an active aid to navigation until it was deactivated in 1881. The ‘new’ lighthouse isn’t open to the public, is 163-feet tall and has been an active aid to navigation since it was first lit in 1881. The distinctive pattern painted on a lighthouse is known as the “daymark”. From the deck of a ship at sea, it can be very difficult to tell one lighthouse from another. Daymarks help to distinguish one lighthouse from another during daylight hours. Likewise, variations in the patter and color of the actual light allow mariners to tell lighthouses apart at night.
Our next stop was at the Jamestown Colonial National Historical Park. History class was a long time ago, and I know I didn’t always pay close attention, but it’s become apparent that a lot of what I remember is wrong… or wrongly remembered. That whole story about Plymouth Rock, I always had the impression that was the start of it all. Not so. The first permanent settlement was on the James River in May of 1607, which was over 10 years prior to the Plymouth Rock landing. Even earlier, in 1585, was the short-lived colony on Roanoke Island in what is now North Carolina. My visit to Jamestown was really educational. I feel like I’m learning some of our history for the first time…so of course I’m going to pass it on, just as if it were ‘news’.
The first 104 colonists anchored in the James River on May 13, 1607 after a 144-day journey from England. They established the colony of Virginia under a charter granted by James I to the Virginia Company of London. It was a commercial venture, with the Virginia Company hoping to cash in on the many reports of riches in the New World. By the first summer colonists were dying from disease and starvation. The leadership of Capt. John Smith and help from the Powhatan tribes preserved the colony. Several additional groups of colonists arrived from England over the next few years. By 1610 only 90 of nearly 300 colonists were still alive. It turns out that 1609–1610 were the worst drought years in over 700 years – tree ring evidence supports this. The colonists were on their way back to England when Lord de la Warr arrived, meeting the departing colonists before they had even left the James River, forcing the colonists to go back. He had new settlers and supplies on his ships. Around 1613 John Rolfe, who married Pocahontas in 1614, started cultivating tobacco. Tobacco turned out to be the saving grace for the colony, on a commercial level. The hardwood trees were cut down and shipped back to England, but until they started cultivating tobacco, the colony wasn’t earning the Virginia Company any money. The year 1619 marked the beginning of representative government in the western hemisphere. Africans first arrived in 1619 and 90 unmarried women arrived a year later. In 1622 members of the Powhatan chiefdom attached the English settlers, killing 347 settlers – a third of the population. The Virginia Company’s charter was revoked in 1624, turning the settlement into a royal colony. As the inflow of indentured servants dropped off around the late 1660’s, the legal status of Africans eroded and slavery was established. By 1690 there were 9,300 African slaves among a white population of 53,000. By the early 18th century Virginia was dependent on slave labor. Around 1676 backcountry settlers led by Nathaniel Bacon began their own military campaign to stop Indian attacks. Governor Berkeley gathered troops to contain Bacon, but Bacon burned down many of the town buildings during Berkeley’s absence. The rebellion ended with Bacon’s death, but the town never really recovered. The Statehouse burned down in 1698 and the colony’s government moved to Williamsburg in 1699. Of course, this is a very brief and sparsely detailed synopsis. The book by Martha W. McCartney titled “Jamestown, An American Legacy” gives more background on the early exploration efforts by other nations, in addition to England, as well as more detail on the colonists experiences.
We took the loop road around the island, all the while imagining what it must have been like during those years. It’s a beautiful area, and it must have been so much more so back then. Our next stop was the visitors center and then on to the original town site. I was in time to catch a ranger-guided tour, which was fantastic. The ranger was very enthusiastic about his subject and full of interesting facts and anecdotes. We toured portions of the original fort area and walked through the Church Tower, which is the only 17th century structure still standing. The Memorial Church covers the foundations of the 1639 brick church and the 1617 frame church. After the guided tour ended I ambled around the grounds. The original foundations have been excavated and then reburied to protect them from the elements. The ones visible now are reconstructions. An exception to that are the ruins of the 1753 Ambler Mansion, which was also the site of the first brick house in Virginia, built in 1639.
We drove over to the Jamestown Settlement Museum but didn’t get there until an hour before it closed. That wasn’t enough time to see everything, not to mention it was getting dark, so we’ll go back tomorrow. I spent the hour exploring the gallery exhibits and watching the short orientation video. The movie was a reenactment and covered the same information that the ranger did at the National Park yesterday. The gallery was absolutely fantastic. Artifacts, maps, journals, pictures and portraits…the collection is extensive. We left as the Museum closed, heading back to camp.
11/14/2005 - (191 miles – 8 hours - L:60F – H:72F) We went back to the Jamestown Settlement Museum. We walked through the re-created Powhatan Indian village, the re-created James Fort and re-creations of the three ships that brought the first colonists to the James River. The ships are actually sailing ships that make short voyages during the summer months. I watched a guy fire a matchlock gun, using a paper plug instead of a ball, and strolled through the re-created fort. All the guides and interpreters are in historical costume, which is cool, but for some reason makes me uncomfortable. I don’t really like talking to people in costume.
After touring the Museum grounds we headed over to The Berkeley Hundred Plantation. On December 4th, 1619, early settlers from England came ashore here and observed the first official Thanksgiving in America. The original plantation was built in 1726 of brick fired on the plantation. It’s said to be the oldest 3-story brick house in Virginia that can prove its date and the first with a pediment roof. The first Bourbon Whiskey in America was distilled here from 1621-1622. Benjamin Harrison, son of the builder of Berkeley, and its second owner, was a signer of the Declaration of Independence and three times Governor of Virginia. William Henry Harrison, Benjamin’s third son, born at Berkeley, was the famous Indian fighter known as Tippecanoe, who in 1841 became the 9th President of the US. His grandson, Benjamin Harrison, was the 23rd President. In 1862, President Lincoln visited Berkeley and reviewed Gen. McClellan’s Army. Taps was composed here in 1862 while Civil War Union Forces were encamped at the plantation. George Washing, and later the succeeding nine Presidents of the United States, enjoyed the hospitality of Berkeley. I guess politicians have always been a tight knit group.
We toured the extensive gardens, although there wasn’t much to see. This time of year isn’t really the time to tour gardens. At any rate, I walked around, down to the memorial that has been erected for the first Thanksgiving and the monument commemorating the composition of “Taps”. After that there was the guided tour through the house. The house had fallen into disrepair (being used as a barn at one point) and has been restored and furnished with period pieces. The place is amazing and the tour guide was very well informed. You aren’t allowed to take pictures inside the house, but I took a number of them from the outside.
As we were leaving I realized I was almost out of gas. I went back in and asked the lady in the gift shop where I could find the nearest gas station with diesel. I had passed a number of them but they didn’t sell diesel. She assured me there was one close, but just in case, Richmond wasn’t that far away and there would for sure be one in Richmond. Here’s hoping. I did find diesel relatively closely and filled the tank. Ironically, out there in the boondocks the diesel was 40-cents cheaper than in Virginia Beach. We headed home with a full tank.
11/15/2005 - (L:60F – H:72F) We bummed around, getting ready to leave tomorrow.


New Pictures: VA, MD, NC