New Jersey Summer of 2015

August 11 – September 11, 2015

Finally I am writing a new blog post!  We were just so busy in NJ this time I didn’t have time to write one.  Also, I really just like to do a new post when we move, way too much going on to write while having fun!

Our driveway moochdocking site at Cindy and Rob's house in Keyport NJ.

Anyway, we just ended our summer time in NJ for the 2015 year.  We had great weather, in fact I think this was one of the best seasons NJ has had for a long time.  We got to the beach 4 times while we were here which is about right for us at once a week.  We even made it out to the beach on Labor Day!  

Our beach in NJ on Sandy Hook

Lower Manhattan NY in Background with WTC 1 in center.

It’s always hard to leave a place with so many friends.  Such is life though, we all have our “thing” to do and we have ours right now, living as large as we can.  And we can’t thank our camp hosts enough.  We stay each year while in NJ at our friends house, Rob and Cindy, in Keyport.  We actually stay in their driveway with 50A full hook-ups!

Keyport is the gateway to the Jersey shore so this is really a perfect place to stay for us here.  Keyport is also halfway between my daughter’s place in Budd Lake and Patty’s son in Cherry Hill NJ.  It’s sort of just like we are neighbors with Rob and Cindy while being in their driveway.  We even text each other to invite for dinner or for going out.  Anyway, many, many thanks Rob and Cindy!!!!!!!

While parked in NJ I got a couple of the long term maintenance items taken care of.  First up was to wash the rig including the roof.  I try to get the roof washed at least 2 times and this is one of the places I can do it.  It also gives me a chance to inspect the roof for any issues and this time, none found.  Next, I got the oil and filter changed on the rig generator.  

Before cleaning the roof.  Last time I cleaned the roof it was in Texas back in February.

After cleaning picture.

Friday the 14th I got together with a few of my former work mates for a game of golf.  We try to get together when I am in the area.  We like to call ourselves the “Old Bastards Club”. Thanks to those who could make it (John, Tom V., Danny).

Tom Vinson (retiree from NJT) in center and a friend of his.

Left to right: John S., Danny M.

One of the par 3 holes.  The hole is down by the buildings!

Friday evening we had Patty’s son Chas and his girlfriend Lisa over for the evening.  We went to Keyport’s waterfront park for dinner at Nemo’s.  Is was a nice night of catching up.

Our first weekend the 15th, Cindy and Rob had their annual luau party in their backyard.  The front of our rig became the entrance to the party.  It worked out great with our new LED lights marking the entrance.  Rob and Cindy’s luau is always a blast with loads of food and of course karaoke.   Patty and I stayed up with the party until midnight where we called it a night.  Not sure when the party ended but it was still going at 1:30am when I got up to use the bathroom!

Then on Sunday the 16th my daughter Jennifer and her husband Christian came to our rig for the evening and dinner out.  We had a nice evening eating out at Burlew’s on the Keyport waterfront front.  After, we walked the waterfront and then headed back to the rig to relax and catch up some.   

Jennifer and Christian.  They are fixing someones fishing gear.

Picture from the waterfront up to where had dinner on the right.

Sunset from our table at dinner.

OK, that was the first week and we had 3 more to go!  Over the next few weeks I got together again for golf with the OBC and I had a day into Newark NJ for a retirement of another work mate, Cecilia.  

The train I came into Newark on to Cecilia's retirement get together. 

The locomotive pushing us was the one I managed the build of for NJ TRANSIT.  It is a dual powered locomotive (Electric Overhead and Diesel).

It came into Newark from the NJ sea shore via overhead electric and then changed to Diesel to continue to Hoboken NJ.  Pretty cool to see it and that it is working as intended!

We also spent the weekend in Cherry Hill NJ with Chas and his girlfriend.  Then, while in Cherry Hill, we took a day and went to South East Philly to meet up with Patty’s brother Tom.  Add in some beach time, karaoke events, and house parties, the time went by pretty quick!

Diesel fuel is the cheapest I have seen in our 3 years of RV traveling right in Cherry Hill.

The sign says that we should not eat ice cream in front of the other establishments here.  Well........

You guessed it,  we all were now eating in front of where we were not supposed to and we were led by the rule breaker Patty.  Left to right: Chas (Patty's son), his girlfriend Lisa, and Patty.

A couple random pictures from NJ this summer:

Our favorite bartender at Bahr's had a birthday while we were there for Karaoke.

Entrance to a really good farmers market near Keyport, Samaha's. 

My running trail, the Hudson trail.  It's an old railroad converted to a trail.  It's somewhere around 15 miles long.  I only used 4 miles of it one way.

We had originally decided to get new recliners while in North Carolina in a few weeks.  We were tired of the RV recliners we had and wanted something better made and more comfortable.  We were thinking we could maybe get something for less where most of the furniture is made in North Carolina.  

Well, we decided to start looking in NJ.  We first looked near Keyport and found recliners at Lay Z Boy but to get them in leather we would need to wait 6-8 weeks!  That was just not happening!  So, again, we decided we would just wait and see if we could find something when we headed south later in the month.

Patty trying out the recliners.

Well we found what we were looking for south alright, just not as far south as we had originally thought.  We took a chance while in Cherry Hill to visit a Lay Z Boy there to see if they may have the recliners we wanted in stock.  They didn’t but they could get them within the week and deliver them to Keyport!  Who knows why the Lay Z Boy up in the Keyport area couldn’t do this.  Of course they were having a Labor Day sale and a “just because you are here sale” to make sure we purchased the chairs sale.  We bought the recliners and they were delivered the next Saturday to Keyport as promised.  

On the Saturday of the recliner delivery, we packed up the old recliners and headed down to Cherry Hill (75 miles) to deliver them to Chas and Lisa.  The delivery of the new ones was to be between 1:30 and 4:30 pm.  We got back to Keyport just at 1:30 and then waited till 4 pm for the delivery. We knew if we were late past 1:30 the delivery would be at 1 pm and that since we were on time the delivery would be near 4:30 and it was!  

Truck delivering the recliners.

The new recliners set up in our RV.

Did we spend too much, maybe, but we wanted them and we had home for our old ones from the RV, Chas and Lisa. Anyway, the recliners are here and we are enjoying them!

Chas in one of the original RV recliners.

That night we went to a house party held by Joyce and John.  It was John's birthday we were celebrating.  We had a lot of fun playing frisbee and then playing the card game Cards Against Humanity.

Playing frisbee. Left to right: Yan, Nick, Cindy.

Left to right: Rob, Nick

Our last Sunday, the 6th of September, we went to the horse races at Monmouth Race Track.  We went with a whole gang of friends to the BBQ and Brew festival at the track.  The group included Leigh, Cindy and Rob, Mandy and Mike, Shannon and Matt (Cindy’s daughter and fiancée), Yan and Karl.  It was a good time even though Patty and I didn’t win anything this time.

Then, on Labor Day, we went to the beach for the last time this year.  It was a great time with the weather making it a number 10 day.  We joined Diana and Nick on the beach which just put the day over the top!  What a great way to end our summer in NJ!

One of our favorite restaurants in Highlands NJ, Havana's had a pig roast.  The roast also served as a celebration of one of the shore bands lead singers birthday (Anthony of the band Dreamer).

Friends Nick and Diana at Havana's.

Havana's has a coy pond.  Nick, Diana and Patty looking at the fish.

On the 9th we slowly packed up and headed to Cape May for 2 nights.  We didn’t get on the road until around 2:30, 2 hours past when we originally planned to leave.  It always seems to take us longer when we have been sitting for a while.  We were only traveling a little over 100 miles so we arrived at our new site at the King Nummy Trail Campground around 4 pm.  

Our site at King Nummy in the Cape May area of NJ

Wildwood boardwalk post season.

One of the amusement piers on the Wildwood boardwalk.

Walkway to the beach from the boardwalk at Wildwood

One of the many shopping areas of Cape May.

Had lunch here in Cape May.

Beach at Cape May.

We took a trolley tour of the historic district in Cape May

Our tour guide.

A couple of the many, many old homes here from the 1800's.

We are just staying a couple of nights in the Cape May area. We are then heading to Delaware on the ferry for one night so we can say we have camped in Delaware.  

Waiting to board the ferry to Lewes Delaware.

Here we go!

Up the ramp.  Hoping that nothing drags as we crest the ramp!

Hope we fit!  Note there is no height clearance on this side as you go in.

I am guessing that we fit.  The guy on the left is watching my clearance on that side.

Getting guided in for the last few feet.

There we are, on board!  The clearance states on this side 13 foot 6 inches.  We are 12 foot 10 inches so we had a whole 8 inch clearance!

Heading out into the Delaware Bay.

A little choppy as a storm was coming in.  We are out far enough we can't see land.

Arriving Lewes Delaware after about an hour and a half cruise.

Can't get into the state park campground until 2pm so we stop for lunch to kill some time.  This seemed a good place to park behind a church that was just behind our restaurant.

Our site at the Delaware Beach State Park.  The state park is located just south of Rehoboth Beach on the barrier island off of the Delaware coast.

After this stay, we will continue our 2 month long crawl down the east coast before heading back to Texas for the winter.

Next stop will be Whaleyville near Ocean City MD.

Stay Tuned!