The Garden State Here We Come

 We got on the road early for our drive to New Jersey. A valuable lesson was learned on this drive... sometimes tolls should be an option.

We fought traffic all the way through Connecticut and New York. Here is a view of the road leading to the George Washington Bridge: 

BEAUTIFUL ROADS THROUGH NYC

(This is pot hole correction)

This was the important lesson about tolls, traveling through New York added another hour to our travel time. Getting over the bridge put us closer to New Jersey though.

ALMOST MISSED IT

The sign was nearly a mile passed the state line. After the crummy roads in New York, it was nice to drive some that were not filled with bouncing time bombs.

OUR SITE

The site was a little small, but workable. After we got set up I paid more attention to the site and noticed that there was broken window glass on half of the site, probably from a shattered RV window.

SHINY STUFF IS SHATTERED GLASS

When I went to pay the second half of our bill, I informed them so that they could put down more gravel after we left, in the mean time I swept as much as possible into a pile.

The campground is medium sized with a lot of seasonal folks, and some permanent residents.

A FEW STEPS ACROSS THE ROAD

The creek was fed from one of the ponds in the park:

LILY PAD FILLED POND

When the pond is filled from rain, there is a waterfall under the bridge, and obviously the creek would be a little higher too.

THE MAIN POND YOU CAN FISH IN

Touristy stuff was not going to happen, except for our traditional trip to the local Walmart for minor necessities.

One of those necessities was a new air fryer... that's a lie, but we did buy a smaller one with less functions.

Carol put it to the test after we got back home.

CHICKEN CHEESE HASHBROWNS

These were made with canned chicken, cheese, and Italian spices. One of our friends thought they were hashbrowns, that's why it was named the way it was.

I chose another path... stop the bathroom door from denting the refrigerator door anymore, and that took a Lowes visit.

Get that shocked look off your face, the bumper was put on with double-sided tape.

Something new, Polar sparkling water, in square cans... NOT. This can did not get its shot of carbonation and went from round to square while chilling down in the refrigerator.

The final run of this stay was to a Walgreens and gas. We will see you in southern New Jersey next.

HA HA Moment:

Bubba walked into a doctor’s office and the nurse asked him what he had, he replied, shingles. The nurse had him sit down and fill out paperwork. A different nurse came up to him and looked at his paperwork, and asked him what was wrong, he replied, shingles. 

The nurse took him to an exam room.  A half hour later another nurse came into the room and asked him what’s wrong, and Bubba replied, shingles. She ran a bunch of tests, told him to undress. 

An hour passes by and the doctor came in, and saw Bubba sitting there naked, asked why he was there...

Bubba explained he had shingles out front for delivery.

Our second and last stop in New Jersey was in Dorothy, NJ, about a half hour drive from Atlantic City.

NOTHIN' LIKE COLOR COORDINATION

BACK-IN UNDER THE TREES

It was one of multiple campgrounds in the Spacious Sky corporation, and was definitely oriented to families, lots of activities were planned. The first night we were there was a "glow " party, everyone wore an item that either glowed, or glittered.

We did make a trip to Cape May despite the forecasted rain, and it did rain as we got closer to Cape May.

The first spot we hit was the Cape May Lighthouse, which was at the southern most point of New Jersey.

The climb to the top was 199 steps, with a landing every 31, and here is how it went...

LANDING #1

LANDING #2

LANDING #3

LANDING #4

LANDING #5

LANDING #6

SOME MORE OF THE PORT HOLES

UNDER FRESNEL LENS LEVEL

Back in the door... I do not enjoy heights.

I did walk around the catwalk, with great trepidation.

The original lens would have been on top of the green structure, but has long since been removed for more modern equipment. The present day lens consists of 6 acrylic focusing panels around a tungsten/halogen bulb.

That bulb is only 110W, but can be seen 22 miles away on a clear night. The design of the panels is also unique to this lighthouse. The way the panels are setup provides a flash of light every 15 seconds.

REGISTER

Are you finding yourself asking what the five registers were for... they controlled the air flow to the original oil lamp. Without these registers functioning properly, smoke could build up and reduce the light intensity.

I still had to climb the 199 steps back down to safe, flat ground, where I, make that Carol bought my pin.

The museum portion of the park was not open so we took the walk to the beach overlook. I noticed while at the top of the lighthouse, a structure in the sand, and was curious what it was.

While Carol stayed at the overlook I ventured to the structure.

That single fat blob out there was me moving ever closer to the object of my interest. That walk from the overlook to the structure was a mere 1/4 mile in the sand... that's tough on a fat guy, but I made it.

WWII BUNKER

And proof I was there...

Ok, one more shot of the bunker..

THE BUNKER AND LIGHTHOUSE

I know that wasn't what you were waiting for, it was probably something like this...

THE JERSY SHORE

I felt like I was a part of "Dirty Dancing" after seeing the shore of New Jersey. Don't fool yourself, you enjoyed that movie too. It was time to trek the 1/4 mile back, and hook up with Carol.

This day was the day Carol's coffee pot would abandon her, so we figured we would hit Walmart on the way home. On the way to Walmart we found another place to venture to, but only after Walmart and lunch.

We got through Walmart without adding a mortgage for items purchased, so off to lunch we went. The place was just down the street, Jester's Dive Bar.

The food was very good. I ordered a double burger, and some brisket mac & cheese, Carol had a double burger too. When the food came I was wow'd by the size of the mac & cheese:

Carol and I both ate some of it, but I still had over 2/3 to put in a to-go container for later. 

With lunch done we headed back to the attraction we found on the way to Walmart, Cold Spring Village. It was a town made up of buildings from the 17th and 18th centuries, and is considered a living museum. On the weekends they have artisans in some of the building plying their trades.

We started out at the brewery first to seek information, just like the early times.

The barkeep told us that the museum closed before the brewery, so we headed to the museum before settling down for refreshments.

The museum was only the first floor, so it was quick to tour.

LAYOUT OF THE VILLAGE

A lot of the buildings were updated with current comfort items, this building was no different. Entering the building and turning to the left, visitors saw a model of the USS Constitution.

OLD IRONSIDES

The USS Constitution was first launched in 1797, which fits in the era of the village. Interestingly, she was rebuilt in 1833, and again in 1897. She was a 44-gun frigate. Today she resides in the Boston Naval Yard as the oldest commissioned Navy ship. This model was built by a bank employee years ago, and left it at the bank for display. When the bank was sold to PNC Banks, the new owners donated to the museum.

This was one side of the museum, the other had a few exhibits, but was predominantly a video area.

SOME OF THE EXHIBITS

The farmers in the village formed a "Grange". The foundation of a Grange was the improvement and protection of agricultural land. The badges in the upper right portion of the photo were worn by officers of the Grange at special events. The Grange Hall was not only for their meetings, but served as a place for community dances, banquets, concerts, and even voting.

The lands around the village were farms, some were owned by black farmers, some were white farmers, some of the farms had slaves. Visitors can learn a little about Harriet Tubman too. (There is a Harriet Tubman Museum in Cape May).

Each panel tells a story about New Jersey, from the first rotary (roundabout), to Lucy the elephant, to the discovery of dinosaur bones in the state. This quilt won "Best in Show" some years ago at a Historic Cold Spring Quilt and Fiber Show.

I came up with a brilliant idea... Carol take the truck back to the brewery and I would walk the village, take pictures, and meet her at the brewery... so off I went.

MARSHALLVILLE SCHOOL

WILLIS BARN 

PRINT SHOP

WOODWORKING SHOP

POTTERY SHOP

SPICER-LEARNING HOUSE

CORSON-HAND HOUSE

COXE HALL COTTAGE

ICE CREAM SHOP

BAKERY

WATER HOLE FOR THE ANIMALS

IN FRONT OF THE INN (A WARNING TO TRAVELERS)

DENNISVILLE INN

CAPE MAY POINT JAIL

GENERAL STORE

TAYLOR POULTRY HOUSE

D. TAYLOR SHOP

J. FINLEY BLACKSMITH SHOP

BOOK BINDING

TIN SHOP

COLD SPRING GRANGE RESTAURANT

(ONLY ORIGINAL BUILDING FROM AREA)

COLD SPRING BREWERY

... and this is where Carol and I met back up. The brewery only sells the beers and sodas they made. They are a non-profit brewery because they are part of the historic village. Most of the buildings have some type of trade in them, and are open during the weekend with people portraying the villagers. Not weekend, no people, no stories about the village life. After our cold drinks we headed home to relax.

With the weekend gone, the campground cleaned out, with the exception of the workers, seasonals, and a couple of us hanger-on's. It was now time to prepare for our departure as well. Next stop will be in Delaware.