Road Trip 2011 - Heading Up the Coast

After the gorgeous sunrise we packed up our things and hit the road again.  The plan was to cross the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel and follow the coast up the Delmarva Peninsula.

We were really looking forward to stopping at the restaurant and visitor's center along the Tunnel.  Unfortunately, since neither Earl nor myself had traveled this way in well over a decade and a half, our memories of the stopping point being far out into the bay was incorrect.

Or we had always came from the other direction.

In any case, unbeknownest to us, as I snapped this picture we were passing right under our designated stop.

Once over the bridges we seriously considered turning around....

...but, with a promise to the girls to stop "next time"  we continued our trek.

After stopping for a great view, of course!

We also made a quick stop at the visitor's center just north of the bay, on the peninsula.  They had a great setup with many hands-on things for the kids to get into!

Next stop was one of my family's regular vacation destinations - Assateague Island, Maryland.  Assateague and Chincoteague are barrier islands lying along the coast of Maryland and Virginia (going south, the barrier islands become the Outer Banks - another excellent place to visit!).  The islands are known for their wild pony populations.  Chincoteague, to the south,  is more settled, and is also the site of the annual pony round up.  Which happened to be happening while we were there.

Needless to say, venturing on to a small island along with 50,000 or so other people is not my idea of a good time.  So we passed up Chincoteague and hit the more wild Assateague.

Even it was crowded!  Considering the relative obscurity of the little island, we had a hard time finding a beach that wasn't blanket to blanket.

And we did find ponies!  Not all of them had been rounded up for sale to fund Chincoteague's fire department.

The beach was fantastic, with soft white sand, gentle waves, and lots of seashells and beachy creatures.

Of course, we dug another hole...

And got our clothes soaked (again)....mental note - wear/bring/make accessible swimsuits.

I met my goal to catch another crab - this time a blue crab! 

We did not eat him.

The girls enjoyed checking him out and them we watched him scurry back into the ocean.

After an hour or so of sun, sand, and surf we rinsed off, changed clothes, and continued our journey.......

Road Trip 2011 - Sunrise

Is

there

anything

better

than

being

the

only

people

on

the

beach

to

see

the

sunrise?

Road Trip 2011 - Fort Monroe and a Sailboat

Fort Monroe is located at the entrance to Chesapeake Bay.  It was built to protect the area from sea invasions, and fortifications at the site date back to the early 1600's. 

The fort was beautifully built into the ground, surrounded by a moat.

Inside the walls were houses (still occupied - although not by their original inhabitants!) and gardens.

Jefferson Davis spent time here after the Civil War, in a cell designed for him.

Lee also lived here before the war...

Later that day we drove down to Norfolk and hopped aboard a sailboat.

I love sailing, so it has become a bit of a tradition to go sailing at least once during every ocean vacation.

Libby was not enamored of being cooped up on a boat for over an hour.

Hopefully she will grow to appreciate the rock of a boat, the laugh of seagulls, and the flap of sails filling with wind....

Someday...

=)

Road Trip 2011 - First Landing Beach

So named for its historical significance, First Landing Beach was the first landing point of the Virginia Company when they reached the New World in 1607.  They eventually sailed up the James River to found the infamous Jamestown settlement.

As much as I love history, I love a nice, empty, peaceful beach even more.

We found that here.

The sea grass swayed in the salty ocean breeze

Ahhhhhh....

It was truly beautiful

For the kids, they enjoyed collecting seashells

And running in the sand

Barges waiting to travel into the Chesapeake Bay were anchored far beyond the waves, and sea birds perched on what was left of an old pier.

It was here we caught sand crabs

And Libby shed her outer clothing to take a dip in the waters

We dug more holes

(Because, really, its fun!)

Then we sat around and waited for the sun to sink below the horizon

Before that happened a storm rolled in (a nightly occurrance during our trip), so we watched lightening for awhile instead.  The lights of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel lit up the stormy sky, and by the time we gathered our towels and left, the boats and barges began to light up one by one as well.

A beautiful night!

Road Trip 2011 Getting There

Nine days and 2000 miles in a Camry.  With two kids.

And we survived!

This was our first major road trip with two talking, walking kids.  Sure, Anna hit the road at 4 weeks old, and by the time Libby was 3 months old she had visited 4 states - 7 by the time she turned half a year.  But somehow, the thought of two demanding KIDS (which is different than a demanding infant) was scary.

Nevertheless, we persevered in our goal to get to the beach with the girls.

I'm so glad we did!  Anna, a seasoned traveller, did fantastic.  Libby was the cause of much anxiety for me before we left.  Potty-training toddlers (is she still a toddler?) and many hours in the car don't really go together.

We left around 4am Saturday morning, hoping to reach the beach by suppertime.  I had tracked down a McDonald's with a play yard in Charleston, WV - just in time for a quick breakfast and a romp around their jungle-themed room.

The girls happily hopped back into the car for another 3 hours, when we hit our next destination...

Humpback Bridge in Virginia.

We got out, stretched little (and long) legs, tossed rocks into the water, ran across the old bridge, then jumped back into the car, headed for....

Crabtree Falls!

Now, Google neglected to inform me that the road to the falls was a narrow, winding road with switchbacks that would put some mountain roads in Colorado to shame.

However, things got really quiet in the backseat with Libby asleep, so we enjoyed the forested view and arrived at the park just in time for our planned picnic lunch.

After we chowed down on road trip sammies, we took the short hike to see the falls.

And play with bugs.

By the time we herded the kids back to the car they had full bellies, and were ready for a break from the sticky heat.

I am amazed that we got from the falls to the beach without making another stop!

We arrived at our beachy vintage motel with plenty of time to stick our toes in the water before going out in search of supper.

We ate breakfast and one other meal in our room every day, saving the headache of subduing the terrortot at the nicer restaurants, and the bellyache of eating fat fast food all the time.

Our first full day at the beach (and by beach, I mean Chesapeake Bay) we went to the Virginia Living Museum so the girls could learn some history and see and touch some critters native to the area.

Anna found this little toad she shared with Libby.

The girls loved climbing on this giant turtle sculpture!

Libby had to touch everything in the touch tank!

The aquariums with local fish and other wildlife were amazing!

We spent the rest of the day lounging around on the beach and building sand castles.  We chose to stay farther inland to avoid the blanket-to-blanket crowds we'd find at Virginia Beach, and also because the waves were gentler for the kids.

Anna isn't overly impressed by the beach - she doesn't like the water, and she tires of the sand.  Toss her into the pool and she's a happy little mermaid.  Libby, on the other hand, loved the sand, the water, and the wide open spaces.  Visiting the pool to make big sister happy put Libby in a whiney mood.

Unfortunately, Anna's opinion of the great blue is not likely to change anytime soon.  We noticed pretty quickly that the bay waters were full of jellyfish.  Big ones, little ones, dead ones, living ones....

Far too many living ones.

Luckily, most often they swim at the surface, and since the waves were gentle we could easily avoid them.

Until.

I was in elbow-deep water holding Libby and felt something sting my arm.  I took a step back and felt searing pain in my leg.  Little (big?!?!) jelly fish bugger got me good. 

As much as it hurt (and it HUUUURRRRRRRT!!!!!!!) I was so very thankful - albeit befuddled - that Libby wasn't touched by the obviously massive tentacles of that nasty sea creature.

Lesson learned - always bring a spray bottle of vinegar to the beach.

You may thank me for that some day. ;-)