Finally a Beautiful Day on Parris Island

   For the first time since John's retirement I had to wake him up at 7:45 am.  I think he's finally getting the hang of it!  We woke up to sunshine and the sound of gunfire!  The 2nd part of the recruit's training is on the shooting range and you can hear it all over the base starting at 7 am every weekday morning.  We had breakfast, got dressed and decided to take a bike ride into "town" to mail a card.  We noticed that there are different sizes of dirt mounds in the grass all over the island and found out that they are ant hills.  Unfortunately the guy we asked didn't know what kind of ants.  We'll have to research that further.



We did find out that these hills house fire ants!

 

  We also found a car wash on base that has a bay for an RV, so Harvey will finally get a good bath before we leave!   After lunch we headed to Sand Beach just 5 minutes from the base.  We were told that you can find a lot of sharks teeth there, but we only found 1.  It was a tiny beach but very peaceful and clean with the water slowly lapping onto the shore.  And there was a pod of dolphins that swam around the inlet the whole 2 &1/2 hrs we were there.

Dolphins playing off of Sand Beach

  Shortly after we came back to Harvey while we were sitting outside a fellow camper stopped by with her dog to talk.  Amy and her husband, Rich are full timing with a Fleetwood Expedition that they bought at Lazy Days in August.  However, they are just using it until they find a 100 Ft boat to live on full time.  Rich is a retired Air Force pararescue (rescuing people by helicopter), so we're going to try to get together with them in the next few days.  John cooked steaks on the grill for supper.  I watched The Voice and Chicago Fire while John did some reading and then we turned in for the night (actually John was reading in bed and fell asleep long before I came in).

Another Rainy Day on Parris Island

   John got up early and took a long walk while I slept in until 9:15!!  What's up with that??  Had breakfast and because the weather was still pretty yucky decided to drive around the base and check things out.  Most of the trees are draped with Spanish moss and it's beautiful.  It's obvious that the moss doesn't like to inhabit some trees, like pines and palms.  We'll have to research why.  It's graduating week for the new Marine recruits who have successfully made it through boot camp, so we got to see a lot of groups of soldiers practicing their marching/parading skills.  The one group was marching in sneakers!  John explained to me that they were brand new recruits and they start their marching maneuvers in sneakers because that's what their feet are used to.  After their feet are "toughened up" they are switched to hard soled boots.  Wow!  The Marines do have a sensitive side after all.  Then we spent about 90 minutes in the Marine museum.  It was wonderful!  The best part was watching the boot camp video.  It was pretty brutal!  I couldn't help but imagine what it was like for my father who was here for basic training back in 1942.  At 90 he is still a proud Marine!!

A real life re-enactment of the Marine insignia!

 

Lt. General "Chesty" Puller-my Dad's favorite commander!!



   We had lunch at the PX and decided to come back to Harvey and watch a DVD-The Legend of the Fall.  We turned on the fireplace and enjoyed the next 3 hrs curled up on the sofa.  John wanted to treat me to ice cream and we needed a few things for Harvey, so we headed into Beaufort to Kmart first then to a mom and pop soda fountain he found on the internet.  When we got there, it was closed!  We looked for a Dairy Queen and settled for blizzards.  We laughed about the fact that we came all the way to South Carolina to go to Kmart and Dairy Queen.  We made some hot dogs for supper and I ate mine while watching The Voice.  John played on the computer.  We were both very tired so we "hit the hay" at 10:15.  The weather gal is promising sunshine tomorrow so maybe we will finally be able to ride our bikes and go to the beach.

 

It's Raining, It's Pouring

   Spending the night at Cracker Barrel worked out great!  We would highly recommend it!!  We ate breakfast at Cracker Barrel about 7:30 am and were on the road by 8:30 am.  It was nice to know that we only had a 4&1/2 to 5 hr drive today plus the stops along the way.  We arrived at Parris Island, SC at 1:30 pm.  YEA!!  John had some trouble getting the coach leveled but after about 45 minutes he got it!  John got Harvey all hooked up and I organized the inside.  Then we headed out to the PX and commissary on base to pick up a Marine hat for Dad and get groceries.  Just as we were ready to leave the PX at 5:15 pm it started to pour and now at 7:00 pm it's still pouring!!!  Oh, well, I guess I'll just have to beat John at some cards tonight (probably Nerts or Hand and Foot).  Tomorrow doesn't look too promising either, but then the rest of the week looks good. Our trip through 6 states in the last 2 days was very enjoyable.  Taking 81 to 77 to 95 (in SC) might have added a bit of extra time to the trip, but it sure beats that stop and go traffic on 95 in MD and was very scenic, too!!

We're Headed to Parris Island, SC

   We left Mount Joy, PA at 9:05 am and planned to stop in Jonesville, NC at a Cracker Barrel.  But because of how well the trip was going we decided to drive another 50 miles to the Cracker Barrel in Mooresville, NC to spend the night.  It seems so weird to not have our pug, Kylie, with us, but because we will be leaving Harvey, the RV in GA for Nov and Dec and be driving the Jeep back to PA we decided to leave her with our daughter, Heather (Kylie doesn't ride in the car very well). The only glitch in the trip was a wrong turn at the Pilot gas station.  We couldn't turn the RV sharp enough so we had to unhitch the Jeep and back up.  But John handled it like a pro and we were back on the road in no time.  And besides that we got gas there for $2.88/gallon!!  Our Good Sam membership card got us a $.03 discount.  Hey, every little bit counts!!  We pulled into Cracker Barrel about 6:30 pm., had supper, and decided to work on the blog before turning in after a long day on the road.  The saga will continue tomorrow with a shorter drive than originally anticipated...YIPPEE!  Good night.

We are in Sea Pines CG near Avalon, NJ

   We arrived on Thursday, Sept 4 to gorgeous weather and a beautiful shaded campground full of pine trees.  Doloris and Fred, friends of my sister were already there.  My sister, Bonnie and her husband, Ken arrived later that evening.  John and I grilled hot dogs for supper and ate in our RV, but got scolded later by my sister for not joining the 4 of them.  Guess we just don't have the system down yet!!  We all played "Cue Me," "Tip of the Tongue," and "Up and Down the River" and the women won them all!!
   Friday we all had breakfast together then headed to Avalon beach for a few hrs.  We played KUBB on the beach with the women winning 1 game and the men winning the other.  We never did get a "bully" played, but I'm sure the women would have been victorious because the men were too preoccupied with making fun of us.

The victorious KUBB team!

  Doloris and Fred recommended Mike's Seafood restaurant in Sea Isle City so we all went and enjoyed the Friday night lobster special-lobster tail and claws, whole ear of corn, red potatoes, coleslaw and French bread for $15.95!  It was BYOB so Ken made Sex on the Beach drinks for the women and the men           brought beer and wine.  The restaurant even supplied an ice bucket for the wine and cups filled with ice.  It was quite a delicious deal!!  We all went back to our RV and played cards.                                                                                    

   Saturday we had our first dilemma... the sewer drainage hose broke while John was emptying the tank.  Luckily he didn't have it draining full force or we would have had to "hose" him down.  We bought a new one at a local RV dealership, had ice cream on the way back, then went to the pool.  The others went to the beach.  It was a very hot day... in the 90's!  Ken cooked ribs for supper.  Played games again that evening.                                                                              

   Sunday started out with John making his famous banana and banana/choc chip pancakes on the grill for everyone.  Had bacon and sausage, too and the other couples brought fruit to share.  It was delicious!!  Then we all drove into Cape May with bikes in tow and then rode to Sunset Beach on the point.

Sunken "cement" ship

Adorable pup in sidecar

Bonnie and I looking for pretty pebbles, quartz and sea glass

  The beach is covered with pebbles and quartz instead of shells.  We ate lunch at "The Grill."  It was absolutely delicious!!  We strolled around Cape May on our bikes and on foot for about an hour.  John and I went back to the campground and watched the end of the US Open Women's tennis match. The others went wine tasting.
   Monday, John and I biked around the campground then headed to Walmart and Ross's in Rio Grande to get some bike accessories then had some of the best pizza ever at "Rio Pizza."  It was about 75 degrees and overcast with a few sprinkles so we went back and watched the end of the US Open Men's tennis match.  Bonnie came over later to help me get this blog set up.  Played games again later that evening.
   Slept in Tuesday because Kylie, (the pug) had ear issues and kept us awake.  Not a good beach day so we biked around the CG.  Bonnie showed me how to add pix to my blog then she and Ken left for the Hershey RV show.  Fred and Doloris went to another winery (they love their wine!) and John and I planned
our January thru March trip in preparation for the Hershey RV show on Sunday.  Doloris and Fred joined us for "Pass the Pigs" and cards.
   Wednesday John and I hung around "Harvey," our RV, and played some cards then spent the afternoon at the pool.  Bonnie and Ken returned after supper and we all played games.   
   Thursday Ken and Bonnie joined John and I in our jeep on a trip down the road to a nearby zoo.  It was unbelievable!  It was situated on about 200 acres in a county park... no admission, just donation.  There were ornate playgrounds, picnic pavilions and the grounds of the zoo were immaculate!  There were potted palms all along the fences(which were chain link and all laced with tree garland) and beautiful flower beds.  Just about every animal and bird you can think of was represented there.

 

 

 

The 4 of us being silly!

 

 

Does this pot bellied pig remind you of anyone... Kylie(our pug), maybe?

 

 

What a great shot John got!

 

Giraffes are my favorite!!

  It was a fun morning!  Then all 6 of headed for the beach in Avalon and spent most of the afternoon there.  It was a perfect  beach day!  Played games in the evening.
   Friday John and I rode around the CG and down the rode about 2 miles to take a peek at the Avalon CG.  We also checked out the little "shopped" adjacent to the Avalon CG... we were not impressed.  Then we hung out at the pool but it was just a bit too chilly and we didn't stay long.  We loaded up the Jeep for the craft show on the boardwalk in Sea Isle City that Bonnie and I are doing tomorrow.  Unfortunately, the weather doesn't look too promising... windy, overcast and possible showers, but we're still hoping for the best.
   Got up at 6am on Saturday in order to be at the craft show by 7:30 to set up.  It was very windy, cool, and overcast.  John helped me set up then left to get Harvey ready to leave.  We had a brief shower around 11:30 and it warmed up a bit.  John came back about 2:00.  Then it got real cloudy again so we decided to start packing up about 3:00.  Just before we began taking things to the car it started to pour.  We got soaked!  But all in all Bonnie and I had a good day!!  We got back to the CG and poor John had to unload the Jeep and hook it up to Harvey in the pouring rain.  He wouldn't let me help... he's so valiant!!  We changed our clothes and headed home.  We had a wonderful 10 days in New Jersey with family and friends.  We can hardly wait for our month long trip to Parris Island, SC and Jekyll Island, GA at the end of September after John's retirement from the Mechanicsburg Naval Depot on September 19th!