Today we bid farewell to the Outer Banks. If the truth be told we would be very happy to have another week or two here. Just to smell the salt air,,,,even if the fish weren't biting!
We were pretty well ready to travel this morning so it didn't take us long to get on the road.
Just before we took off these pelicans flew overhead.
When I first came here, years ago, I bought some corn relish from a farm market just outside of the Outer Banks. I haven't been able to find it anywhere since. Yes, I've seen corn relish but I know it isn't the same as what I had that time just by looking at it. Today, I wanted to find that corn relish! On our way out we stopped at farm market and they had corn relish and it kinda, sorta looked liked it so I took a chance and plunked down the $6.50 for the jar. Of course a couple miles up the road I saw another farm market and I'm pretty sure THAT ONE was the one I went to before. I just didn't have the heart to ask Walt to turn around. Next time. While I was at the farm market I was drawn to the fence out in front. Pumpkins, pretty as you please, all lined up.
When we pulled out of Kitty Hawk RV Park we had every intention of stopping for the night in Fort Story, an Army base, in Virginia Beach. We had reservations in place but we arrived at 10:30 in the morning. Walt asked how much farther to Delaware and when I told him 4 hours he looked at me and just said, "Babe, let's just go home." That was fine with me!
Let me say now that I am not a fan of tunnels. Ones that go through a mountain and especially not ones that go under water. Well today we were crossing the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. Had I been through this before? Yep. Was I white knuckled and praying that a ship wouldn't hit the tunnel and spring a leak with us in it? You better believe it!
Nope, I don't like underwater tunnels. I look for trickles of water every inch of the way.
So Walt paid the $24 fee to cross this 17.5 mile bridge and tunnel combination and the white knuckle journey began.
In 1964 it was named “one of the seven engineering wonders of the modern world.” After all, it isn't too often that you have a bridge/tunnel combo and certainly not one this length. It runs across a large water expanse with the Chesapeake Bay on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other. Without it, it would take hundreds of miles and several hours to get from Virginia’s Eastern Shore to the Norfolk-Virginia Beach area.
This massive bridge/tunnel cost $200,000,000.00 back in '64. More than 100 million cars and trucks have passed over this bridge and through the tunnels in the past 50+ years. Between 1995 and 1999, more roadway was added, making the bridge two lanes in each direction. A new tunnel will be built beside one of the originals; a second new tunnel is planned for 2030 or later. The new tunnel is being built now I believe. There was a lot of construction and I'm assuming that is what is going on there. I was watching for oncoming ships to pay too much attention.
So we made it home to Delaware! We are parked in Walt's sister-in-law's driveway and have electric and water. We are set! We have lots planned for these next days!
No comments:
Post a Comment