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What we're doing...
Saturday, 5/20/2023 – We departed Shreveport, Louisiana as planned on Sunday, the 7th. This was the longest planned day of driving for our entire 2023 trip at just under six hours. The timing was perfect because after her recent RV drivers training, I was able to pass the driver’s seat over to Claudia for a couple of hours. She did great and I was able to relax for a bit mid trip. After enjoying a down day of doing very little in Toomsuba, Mississippi, we headed back out to continue our trip towards Raleigh, North Carolina.
Over the next three days we travelled almost seven hundred miles covering five states before settling in at the North Carolina Fairgrounds Campground on Thursday. This has been our home base for the past four years as we spend time visiting our daughter, her husband and three of our grandkids who live in Fuquay-Varina, just south of Raleigh. The fairgrounds campground is a first come first serve camping area but we have always been able to secure a spot.
As always, we had a fun filled and extremely busy visit that included a soccer practice, a baseball game, a soccer game, and lots of running around playing catch. We also participated in a couple of car pool runs to pick the kids up at school, something they had each requested. Add to that a visit to Harris Lake County Park on Friday night for a picnic dinner and some games and you can truly say we were beginning to run out of gas. Following the soccer game on Saturday morning, Claudia enjoyed her birthday by treating herself, our daughter and granddaughter to a girl’s day out getting pedicures while the boys played a board game. On Sunday, Mother’s Day, and our final day with everyone, we took about a 30-minute drive over to Raven Rock State Park for a day of hiking followed by a dinner out. The weather was beautiful, the 3-mile scenic hike was awesome, the dinner was delicious and we were able to enjoy it all with some very special people.
Over the next three days we travelled almost seven hundred miles covering five states before settling in at the North Carolina Fairgrounds Campground on Thursday. This has been our home base for the past four years as we spend time visiting our daughter, her husband and three of our grandkids who live in Fuquay-Varina, just south of Raleigh. The fairgrounds campground is a first come first serve camping area but we have always been able to secure a spot.
As always, we had a fun filled and extremely busy visit that included a soccer practice, a baseball game, a soccer game, and lots of running around playing catch. We also participated in a couple of car pool runs to pick the kids up at school, something they had each requested. Add to that a visit to Harris Lake County Park on Friday night for a picnic dinner and some games and you can truly say we were beginning to run out of gas. Following the soccer game on Saturday morning, Claudia enjoyed her birthday by treating herself, our daughter and granddaughter to a girl’s day out getting pedicures while the boys played a board game. On Sunday, Mother’s Day, and our final day with everyone, we took about a 30-minute drive over to Raven Rock State Park for a day of hiking followed by a dinner out. The weather was beautiful, the 3-mile scenic hike was awesome, the dinner was delicious and we were able to enjoy it all with some very special people.
Following our visit to North Carolina and a one-night layover in Winchester, Virginia we arrived at Liberty Harbor RV Park in Jersey City New Jersey. It’s a pricey park and you have to fight New Jersey traffic to get here but it’s located right on Liberty Harbor, just across a narrow canal from Liberty State Park, home to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.
With two days set aside to be tourists, we spent the first day traveling by train into New York City for a tour of the 911 Memorial and Museum. It was a sobering reminder of the events that happened on September 11, 2001 and well worth the visit. Following our tour, we walked some of the streets in the area and enjoyed meandering along a stretch of blocks overflowing with venders of all kinds where we grabbed some lunch and dessert. It was such a unique experience to us “outsiders” to just sit along a city street, grab a bite to eat and people watch. And there were a whole lot of people to watch.
Our second day in New Jersey & New York City started out with a half mile hike to a ferry that took us across a canal so we could then walk some more over to Liberty State Park. This is the New Jersey embarkation spot to pick up a ferry to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. We spent the next several hours touring and learning about Ellis Island followed by a visit to the Statue of Liberty and its museum. We had reserved tickets for the pedestal at the statue and we decided to walk the stairs rather than take the elevator. This was the first time Claudia or I had been to Ellis Island and my first time to the statue. Both stops were so informative and we were so glad we finally got to visit them. By the time we returned to our motor home we had walked six miles and climbed up and down the equivalent of twelve flights of stairs. These two old folks were glad to get back.
On Friday morning we packed up the motor home and once again hit the road, leaving New Jersey and New York behind as we headed back to our old home turf in Massachusetts. We’re staying at our usual camping spot at Camp Sawash (my sister’s driveway) and will be enjoying our time here for a month. We’re excited and looking forward to seeing family and friends again and will have lots of chances to see everyone. We will also be honoring Claudia’s brother who passed away a few months ago with a memorial service. The month will go by fast but we plan to savor every moment.
It will be a few weeks before our next post. In the meantime, please enjoy looking through our latest photo album that covers this year’s trip so far including our visit with family in North Carolina as well as our time in New York City.
Stay safe everyone!!
With two days set aside to be tourists, we spent the first day traveling by train into New York City for a tour of the 911 Memorial and Museum. It was a sobering reminder of the events that happened on September 11, 2001 and well worth the visit. Following our tour, we walked some of the streets in the area and enjoyed meandering along a stretch of blocks overflowing with venders of all kinds where we grabbed some lunch and dessert. It was such a unique experience to us “outsiders” to just sit along a city street, grab a bite to eat and people watch. And there were a whole lot of people to watch.
Our second day in New Jersey & New York City started out with a half mile hike to a ferry that took us across a canal so we could then walk some more over to Liberty State Park. This is the New Jersey embarkation spot to pick up a ferry to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. We spent the next several hours touring and learning about Ellis Island followed by a visit to the Statue of Liberty and its museum. We had reserved tickets for the pedestal at the statue and we decided to walk the stairs rather than take the elevator. This was the first time Claudia or I had been to Ellis Island and my first time to the statue. Both stops were so informative and we were so glad we finally got to visit them. By the time we returned to our motor home we had walked six miles and climbed up and down the equivalent of twelve flights of stairs. These two old folks were glad to get back.
On Friday morning we packed up the motor home and once again hit the road, leaving New Jersey and New York behind as we headed back to our old home turf in Massachusetts. We’re staying at our usual camping spot at Camp Sawash (my sister’s driveway) and will be enjoying our time here for a month. We’re excited and looking forward to seeing family and friends again and will have lots of chances to see everyone. We will also be honoring Claudia’s brother who passed away a few months ago with a memorial service. The month will go by fast but we plan to savor every moment.
It will be a few weeks before our next post. In the meantime, please enjoy looking through our latest photo album that covers this year’s trip so far including our visit with family in North Carolina as well as our time in New York City.
Stay safe everyone!!
The Full Itinerary for our 2023 Roadtrip
The Full Route for our 2023 Roadtrip
The Maritime portion of our route for our 2023 Roadtrip
Weather Forecast for Uxbridge, Massachusetts
Next destination...
Once we head out from Massachusetts on June 19th, we’ll be making a couple of stops in Maine before heading off to the Maritimes where we’ll be spending about two months in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland.
Recent Updates:
5/20/2023 We've added a new album to our PHOTOS page. It contains some pictures we've taken since hitting the road on May 1st. We've also added pictures to both our "Just Us" and "Wildlife" albums. We hope you enjoy them.
4/9/2023 We've added another album to our PHOTOS page. It contains some pictures we've taken over the past few months. We also added a couple of new pics to our "Just Us" album.
12/23/2022 We've added another album to our PHOTOS page. This one contains all the pictures we took on our Panama Canal Cruise. We also added a few new pics to our "Just Us" album.
5/20/2023 We've added a new album to our PHOTOS page. It contains some pictures we've taken since hitting the road on May 1st. We've also added pictures to both our "Just Us" and "Wildlife" albums. We hope you enjoy them.
4/9/2023 We've added another album to our PHOTOS page. It contains some pictures we've taken over the past few months. We also added a couple of new pics to our "Just Us" album.
12/23/2022 We've added another album to our PHOTOS page. This one contains all the pictures we took on our Panama Canal Cruise. We also added a few new pics to our "Just Us" album.