Maps of travel routes and campgrounds.
We visited Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia, which could be described as Disneyland for history buffs.
An interactive map:
Another interactive map on their website.
Historic Triangle:
Williamsburg sign:
Visitor center:
Relief map:
Model:
Path by a stream under a bridge:
Governer’s Palace:
Kitchen:
Horse and cart:
Lunch at The King’s Arms:
Capitol guided tour:
Raleigh Bakery:
Shops:
Sheep:
Cows:
Pond and a pointy building:
Bridge back to the visitor center:
An interesting experience.
We visited a couple of areas of the Colonial National Historical Park in Virginia, including Yorktown and Jamestown Island. This post is about Jamestown.
Jamestown is in multiple parts; a touristy Jamestown Settlement, that we didn’t visit (this time), and Jamestown Island, which is partly NPS, and partly a Preservation Virginia area.
The NPS map; click or tap to interact:
An interactive map of the Jamestown Island area:
Historic Jamestowne:
Glasshouse ruins:
A replica Glasshouse, that does glassblowing demonstrations:
Jamestowne visitor center:
Auditorium:
Exhibits:
Monument:
Pocahontas:
Relief map:
Captain John Smith:
Cannon:
The Barracks:
Indian tools; this guy showed and handed around various tool components, and told of their manufacture:
Church:
Cellar kitchen:
Blacksmith workshop:
This recreator talked Jenn’s ear off with old-timey tales:
The Statehouse:
Museum:
Ancient foundations under the floor:
Gift store:
Fascinating stuff.
We visited a couple of areas of the Colonial National Historical Park in Virginia, including Yorktown and Jamestown Island. This post is about Yorktown.
The NPS map; click or tap to interact:
An interactive map of the Yorktown area:
Historic Yorktown:
Visitor center:
Yorktown:
We stayed at Cape Charles / Chesapeake Bay KOA Resort in Cape Charles, Virginia. (Campground Reviews listing.)
A decent RV park with a private beach and restaurant. This was a last-minute change to avoid traveling on the Memorial Day weekend; amazingly, we were able to get a reservation just a few days before the holiday, despite it being packed with holiday campers.
Dates:
Weather:
Noise:
Site:
Utilities:
Internet (in usage priority order):
Amenities:
Our review on Campground Reviews:
Like being in the Keys on the Chesapeake
This was a last-minute change for Memorial Day weekend. We were surprised there was availability the week before the holiday, and there were even a few empty sites all weekend. The campsites themselves were pretty basic (bare grass with a fire ring and picnic table), but the amenities were top-notch. We had dinner a couple of times at the beachside restaurant and enjoyed it both times. With a rum drink in hand and a salt breeze off the water, it was very relaxing after a long day of driving and the stress of getting over/through the bridge tunnel. Being a holiday weekend, it was pretty rambunctious in the campground, but it really cleared out on Monday, and it was pretty much just us and the long-term residents. We camped at Cape Charles / Chesapeake Bay KOA Resort in a Motorhome.
Campground map:
An interactive map:
Our site:
The sites were fairly tight back-to-back:
A large gathering on our driver side:
Other sites:
Tight roads, with everyone parked on the edge of the road:
Pool area:
We appreciate it when there’s an onsite restaurant, especially on travel days, so we don’t have to cook. This park has the Sunset Beach Bar & Grille:
Private beach:
A nice KOA. We’d be happy to stay here again, but probably won’t, since access via tunnels under the bay is a bit harrowing in our big rig.
We drove our coach 156 miles, about two hours of driving, from Chocowinity, North Carolina to Cape Charles, Virginia. Another new state.
This was a late change in our plans. We were originally going to head more directly north, but we realized that we’d be traveling over the Memorial Day weekend, which is one of the busiest camper weekends. And checking in to a first-come-first-served Thousand Trails park during that weekend, so would probably struggle to find a good site. So we decided to add a stop elsewhere between the two, to avoid both issues. In retrospect, we chose poorly (okay, I chose poorly), since we didn’t realize that the route would involve some narrow tunnels.
Here’s a map showing our route, heading northeast:
An interactive map:
Washington, North Carolina:
13 / 17 North:
Not a lot of stopping opportunities on this route. I found a nice big parking lot that worked well, also a convenient walk to a McDonald’s for lunch:
Paladin sat in his nest on the dash as we headed out again, until we got back on the highway:
Roanoke River:
Chowan River:
Future I-87:
Paladin asleep:
Perquimans River:
Exit to Chesapeake:
Future I-87 again:
A break at the Dismal Swamp Canal Visitor Center rest area:
Snuggling with Paladin:
Paladin on the dash:
As we left this rest area, we had a strange wobble — it felt like the wheels of the coach were loose or something, but on looking at the 360 camera footage from the truck later, it looks like the front truck tires possibly weren’t pointing in the right direction as we made a turn out of the rest area, and they hopped a few times. We pulled over, then resumed while keeping any eye on things; it was fine after that. Rather disconcerting, but no harm done as far as we can tell.
That issue did occur again on a subsequent trip. But we have since replaced our truck tires, as the front ones were getting a bit bald on the outer edges, so hopefully it won’t occur again.
“Welcome to Virginia”:
Exit:
Bainbridge?! To us, Bainbridge is an island in the Puget Sound, across from Seattle:
Southern Branch Elizabeth River:
Exit:
We hadn’t seen a “Signal Red Ahead” warning before:
I wonder what was on “Pleasure House Road”?
Toll plaza:
A bridge-tunnel across the mouth of Chesapeake Bay; part bridges, part two tunnels under the water:
13’ 6” height restriction. Our coach is 12’ 7”. 11 inches of clearance is totally fine, not at all concerning!
They’re working on adding a second tunnel for opposing traffic, but for now both ways goes through the same tunnel:
A couple of snapshots from the 360 camera on the truck; look at all those inches of clearance (remember too that our AC units stick up a little higher than the roof rail):
An animated GIF:
`
A ship going over the second tunnel:
Our destination:
Guided to our site:
We originally were going to go back through those tunnels, and a third tunnel and roadworks north of Virginia Beach, but decided to change our plans again to avoid those; more on that next week.
And check out the video today; it includes views from the truck, and lots of interesting bits including an instant replay of the truck wobble thing, and the truck and coach views of going through the two tunnels, and more.
While staying across the river in Chocowinity, North Carolina, we visited the larger city of Washington a couple of times. According to that Wikipedia article, it is commonly known as “Original Washington”; it was established in 1776, and is the first city named after President George Washington. (Washington, DC was founded in 1791.)
An interactive map:
View from bridge:
“Washington Square Mall” — a small strip mall here, not at all like the big Washington Square Mall in Portland, Oregon:
We had dinner at Boss Hog’s Chicken & BBQ:
Waterfront:
Main Street:
Crab sculptures:
We went to the Blu Farm to Table restaurant for my birthday, dining on their rooftop patio:
Unfortunately, we didn’t particularly enjoy the food. Oh well.
Waterfront:
A fairly cute little town.
We briefly visited Fort Raleigh National Historic Site in North Carolina. This is the site of the “Lost Colony”, that arrived in 1584 and vanished; their fate is still unknown.
Here’s the NPS map; click or tap to interact:
An interactive map:
We had lunch in the picnic area:
We took a long drive out to and along the Cape Hatteras National Seashore in North Carolina.
The NPS map; click or tap to interact on their site:
An interactive map of our route to visit Fort Raleigh National Historic Site (post coming tomorrow), Wright Brothers National Memorial, Cape Hatteras National Seashore, and Sugar Creek Seafood Restaurant for dinner on the way home:
A replica of the Cape Hatteras lighthouse at a gas station on the way:
Alligator River:
Cape Hatteras National Seashore sign:
Whalebone Junction Info Center:
Bodie Island Light Station:
Bridge:
Ocean view:
Sand blowing over the road:
Cape Hatteras Light Station. It is currently undergoing repairs and restoration; they had just finished adding the scaffolding when we visited:
Park Store:
Museum:
The lighthouse was moved half a mile inland from the coast:
Saving the Light Station:
Cape Hatteras Light Station:
A long Sunday drive, but we enjoyed it.
We visited the Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil Hills, south of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, where Wilbur and Orville Wright achieved the first successful powered airplane flights.
Here’s the NPS map; click or tap to interact:
An interactive map:
Entrance:
Visitor Center:
Relief map:
Exhibits:
A full-sized reproduction of the first plane:
Home away from home:
First flights:
First flights launch marker:
Looking along flight path:
First flight marker; 12 seconds, 120 feet, December 17, 1903:
Second flight marker:
Third flight marker:
Fourth flight marker:
First flight markers, and info sign about the launch rail:
Monument:
Plane sculpture:
Impressive how we’ve come so far since then.
We stayed at Twin Lakes RV & Camping Resort in Chocowinity, North Carolina. (Campground Reviews listing.)
An Encore park, mostly full of full-timers and seasonal sites, but with a section for transients.
Dates:
Weather:
Noise:
Site:
Utilities:
Internet (in usage priority order):
Amenities:
Our review on Campground Reviews:
Water, water everywhere, but not a beach in sight
If you’re looking for a place to stay so you can visit the Outer Banks, keep looking. If you’re looking for a place to stay with nice waterways and fishing but not an actual beach, this place is good for that. It’s a nice campground with water all around and lots of seasonal/annual residents. There’s one main area where they place the “transients,” and it’s okay. Our site was not huge, but it was large enough for our 40′ motorhome and tow vehicle, with room for our table and chairs on the side. We camped at Twin Lakes RV & Camping Resort in a Motorhome.
Campground map:
An interactive map:
Our site:
The utilities were at the back of the site, and we parked at the front, so I used two 25 foot water hoses and three 10 foot sewer hoses (it’s good to have extras):
The sewer was actually a holding tank, periodically pumped out:
Trash collected from around the site; worse than typical:
A bunch of aerial photos of the campground and environs, via my drone:
Entrance:
The gate requires a magnetic card for access (which is more convenient than a code, as most places do):
Dumpsters near the entrance:
Office:
They had some flooding a while back, so were stil working on restocking the store:
Swimming pool:
Playground:
Bathrooms:
Dog park:
Clubhouse:
Ice and water machine:
Other sites:
Another playground:
Boat storage:
Another pool:
Geese:
There were lots of squirrels roaming around:
We’d be happy to stay here again.