Day 13-October 8, 2020

We’re heading home today.  Up at 6:30 AM, showered and completing packing up our gear, then pulled out of the campground at 7:20 AM.  Stopped at the “Daily Bread” bakery for coffee and pastries, arrived at the ferry terminal at 8:00 AM.  

 The ferry takes 85 minutes to make the 17 mile crossing across Delaware Bay between Cape May and Lewes.

 

The ferry departed at 8:45 AM and we remained in our van for most of the trip other than getting out for a few photos.  Our van was in the third row, so we right in the front, with great views.

looking east toward Cape Henlopen

seagulls following the ferry

The ferry arrived in Cape May right on schedule at 10:10 AM.  Our next destination was Beach Haven on Long Beach Island.  We planned to buy some donuts at Marvels Bakery and have lunch at the Holiday Snack Bar, both sentimental favorites from my childhood.  Disappointingly, both were closed, only open on weekends at this point. 

Stephanie Ruhl's favorite restaurant on Long Beach Island

 Leaving Beach Haven we drove straight home to East Sandwich, arriving around 8:30 PM.  The traffic around NYC was terrible, especially on the Cross Bronx Expressway.  Our mileage for day was 456 and our total for the trip was 1381.

 

This was a great trip, we continue to have a lot of fun with Wendy and Carl, and I would definitely return to the Delaware coast again.  Great beaches, and great food…what more could you ask for?

 

…and on a final note, after spending 13 days and nights living in van, our house seems huge.

Day 12-October 7, 2020

Woke up to another beautiful day at Cape Henlopen.  We’ve really lucked out weather wise.  The last day that we had any rain was Tuesday, September 29.

Today’s high was around 75°, and not a cloud in the sky.

 

We made bacon, egg, and cheese bagel sandwich for breakfast and then headed for the beach.  The waves were small, but it was still a thrill to be able to swim in the Atlantic in October.  The water was still warm…I don’t think it was ever this warm at Nauset Beach all summer!

Practicing social distancing in the water!

After two hours of sun and surf, we returned to the campground, got cleaned up and drove to nearby Rehoboth Beach for a delicious lunch of oysters and soft shell crabs at the Henlopen Oyster House.  This was our second time there, and it was still fabulous.  Again, I had the oyster sampler which featured 8 oysters from all over North America including Thatch Island in Barnstable!  We really indulged at this meal and ordered Delaware apple fritters with a buttermilk glaze and a salted caramel sauce.  

 

After lunch we returned to Lewes where Joni shopped and I blogged.  Then we returned to the campground, took a brief walk and started packing up our gear since we are taking an 8:45 AM ferry to Cape May tomorrow.

 

Peanut butter, apples, and crackers were our dinner for this evening as we enjoyed the warm night air as we sat by the campfire.  

Day 11-October 6, 2020

Today was supposed to be our day to head home to Cape Cod, but we’re enjoying this area so much that we’ve decided to stay two more nights. The weather is perfect, the beaches are empty, the water is warm, the waves are clean and tubular, and there are some good bike trials along Assateague Island National Seashore that need to be ridden…and oh yeah, I need more crab too!

 

So we started the day by packing up our campsite in Maryland since we’ll be returning to Cape Henlopen for the next two nights.  Saying our goodbyes to Wendy and Carl, we were on the road by 10:15 AM. 

 

Our first stop was in Snow Hill where we picked up a muffin and a sticky bun at the local bakeries.  Next we headed back to Assateague Island National Seashore where took a ten mile ride along the path, checking out future campsites in both the national and state parks, and searching for wild ponies…we saw a bunch!

Ponies on the beach!

Leaving Assateague we headed north through Ocean City, Maryland, which is way overbuilt and commercialized beyond my liking, and stopped for lunch at the Cottage Café in Bethany Beach, Delaware.  Lunch was so-so, so I’ll skip the details.  

We then headed to the North Shore section of Rehoboth Beach, where Joe Biden has a beach front summer home.  Not knowing his exact address, we simply drove along the road closest to the beach that was lined with many beautiful three story perfectly landscaped homes.  

 We continued onward to Cape Henlopen, stopping in nearby Lewes, where Joni browsed the shops while I took advantage of the strong and free WiFi and updated this blog.   We ultimately arrived at our campsite in the state park around 4:30 PM.

 

For dinner we returned to “Striper Bites” in Lewes and had a wonderful meal. Linguini with homemade sausage and a blended Cote du Rhone for Joni, and shrimp with jalapeno cheddar grits with Dogfish 60 IPA for me.  

Lewes Marina

Returning to the campground around 8:15 PM, we were both too tired to make a fire, so we just turned in for the night.

 

For those who are wondering this was a crabless day for me, but I have no complaints.

Day 10-October 5, 2020

This was our last full day with Wendy and Carl and our last full day in Maryland.

 

We started today on a very slow pace. Breakfast was simple:  OJ, coffee, cereal, and scones from a local bakery. 

 

We reconnected with our friends Bill & Mila around noon, getting some goodies from the Daily Brew bakery in Snow Hill, and then had a leisurely lunch in a park along the Pocomoke River.  

 

Around 2 PM, we said goodbye to B&M who were returning to their home in Arlington, Va. and we returned to Chincoteaque Island to further explore the National Seashore where we walked the four-mile Wildlife Loop.  

 

Before we found the Loop, I needed to answer a call of nature.  While I was in the privy, I heard quite a commotion, and assumed it was just a group of fellow tourists, who were also anxious to use the facilities.  When I came out, I was startled to see that several wild ponies were in the process of passing through the parking lot, passing right past our van and right next to the privy.  What a thrill.

Moving on from the privy and parking lot, we drove to the Wildlife Loop trail which circled a huge tidal marsh.  Along the walk we were spotted a variety of shorebirds, ducks, a deer, and the highlight of the trip, a bald eagle!

 Leaving the park, we met up with Wendy and Carl who spent the day at the beach on Chincoteague.  

After striking out on our first three restaurant choices for dinner, two were closed and one had no free tables, we settled for “The Ropewalk” where we sat outdoors overlooking the water.  

In addition to a beautiful sunset, our meals were equally spectacular:  oysters, cream of crab soup, sesame encrusted tuna tacos, day boat scallops on a bed of orzo with lump crab eat, and the “deadliest steampot” a boil that included snow crab, Andouille sausage, shrimp, corn on the cob, and potatoes.

 

Leaving Chincoteague around 7 pm, we closed the night around our campfire.

Day 9-October 4, 2020

When you’re camping you are much more aware of the daily time changes for sunrise and sunset.  Today’s sunrise was 7:00 AM and sunset was 6:36 PM…so different from late June!

 A very leisurely morning for us today.  Breakfast at our campsite included:  bacon, egg, and cheese bagel sandwiches with leftover veggies and potatoes!

By the time we cleaned up all the pots, pans, dishes, and ourselves and were ready to head out it was 11:45 AM.  Our destination for today was the western shore of Maryland’s Eastern Shore, and more specifically the towns of Cambridge, the home of Harriet Tubman....

...Easton, the home of Frederick Douglas; & old seaport of St. Michaels, which was established in 1677.

We also visited a National Wildlife Refuge on the Atlantic flyway for migratory birds, close to Bucktown, where we took a driving tour. We saw egrets, herrings, and bald eagles.

 In Easton, we had a very late lunch, or early dinner, at Hunter’s Tavern which is attached to Tidewater Inn.  Joni had meatloaf, Carl & Wendy had turtle soup, and I returned to my crab diet of cream of crab soup w/sherry, and softshell crabs.  All of us loved our choices.

Leaving Easton we moved on to St. Micheals, a charming village, surrounded by water, filled with gorgeous homes, and very reminiscent of Chatham, MA.

 

Our drive home was uneventful and mostly in the dark and we pulled into our campsite at 8:00 PM.