Cedar Point-Raleigh-Murrells Inlet

Wednesday 10/31/2012

Huntington Beach State Park

Murrells Inlet, SC

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

We left Wilson, NC’s Kampers Lodge Campground on Wednesday, 10/24, and headed southeast to Cedar Point Campground located in the Croatan National Forest about 20 miles west of Morehead City, NC.  We had site #35 reserved for Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday nights.  Cedar Point was on my list to visit, and it made sense to stop there on the way to Murrells Inlet.  Our friends Rick and Gail, the Gypsy Turtles, just happened to be staying there also, another serendipity moment!  We arrived late afternoon and headed straight to the dump station to take on water.  While I was tending to that, Terri went and checked out the shower house.  I was greeted by the very friendly camp host, and soon Rick and Gail also stopped by to greet us.  After getting setup up in our site, we went over to Rick and Gail’s for “happy hour” and then had a very delicious chili supper that they provided.

Thursday, the four of us headed in to Beaufort to do some exploring.  We took a long walk along the very scenic Front Street.

Terri, Gail, and Rick

We stopped at Clawson’s for lunch.

The food was delicious. Rick had a bacon cheeseburger, and Gail had a Reuben.

Terri had clam chowder and a salad, and I had a chicken wrap and onion soup.

After lunch we walked down the street to the Maritime Museum.  The highlight of the museum was the Blackbeard exhibit.  It’s quite extensive with a lot of information about his flagship, Queen Anne’s Revenge.  After we got back to the campground, Rick and Gail came over for a cookout.  I grilled up some brats and brat patties which we served with baked beans, Watergate salad, and chips.  We had a great day!

All of us had been keeping an eye on tropical storm Sandy, which was looming south of us near Florida.  It was growing, and the status would soon change to a hurricane.  The plan for Friday was for the four of us to take the ferry out to Bear Island and the Hammocks Beach State Park.  However, Terri started to have some floaters and flashing lights appear in her right eye.  For those that don’t know or don’t remember, she had a similar issue with her left eye three weeks ago which resulted in a laser treatment to repair a tear in the retina.  She called her retina specialist in Richmond and talked to his assistant who recommended she have that checked out right away due to her history with the other eye.  Terri got online and searched for a retina specialist in the area close by, but the closest one was in Raleigh.  She called and got a 2 P.M. appointment.  We decided to just drive up and back in the car since we had paid for our site through Friday night.  Sadly, we had to cancel our plans with Rick and Gail, and we scrambled to get ready to go.  We were just about ready to leave, I actually had my keys in hand ready to go, when Rick stopped by to tell us that he was just informed the park was being evacuated due to the hurricane and everyone had to be out by noon Saturday!!!  After talking with Rick, we decided to pack up and take the rig with us to Raleigh.  Terri called and tried to get her appointment changed to 4 P.M. but was told the latest available time was 3 P.M. and anything after that would be referred to the emergency room.  Luckily, we were able to get packed up and on the road in about 45 minutes!  Rick gave us directions to the N.C. State Fairgrounds Campground in Raleigh.  Usually I study Google Maps before a travel day.  Unfortunately I didn’t have time, though, and relied on the GPS to guide us.  We took a route that I would NOT have taken under normal circumstances, but we did make it to the fairgrounds by about 2:30.  I backed the rig into a site, and we jumped in the car to head to Terri’s appointment.  We had a bit of trouble finding the place so Terri called and got directions.  We got there right at 3 P.M. !!!  The good news is that Terri’s eyes are doing fine, and she did NOT have a tear this time.  She does have to go back for a follow-up in 4-6 weeks.

Back at the fairgrounds, we saw Rick and Gail’s rig parked a few rows back.  We started to get unhooked and set up, and they stopped over to see how Terri was doing.  They said they were parked right next to friends and fellow RV-Dreamers Gary and Peggy!  None of us knew they were at the fairgrounds. Terri and I were parked right next to Jim and Dee, also friends and RV-Dreamers.  I knew Jim and Dee were there, so I had called Dee earlier to let them know we were coming in.  They weren’t home when we arrived earlier and wouldn’t be back until later.  She had told me their site number and given me some directions too.  A bit later Rick and Gail came back over with the left-over chili, and the four of us had another great meal together.  Later Jim and Dee got home and came over, and not long after that Gary and Peggy got home and also came over for a visit.

Terri, Gail, and Rick

Gary and Jim

Jim, Dee, and Peggy

We all had a nice time visiting.

The next day, Saturday, we went out to eat at Amedeo’s.

Jim, Dee, Rick, Gail, Terri, and I were joined by Hank and Selene.  Hank and Selene are good friends of Jim and Dee and are RVers too.  Gary and Peggy had family plans and weren’t able to attend.  The food was very delicious, and it was great visiting with everyone.  We had a very good waiter who graciously took our picture.

Mike, Terri, Hank, Selene, Dee, Jim, Rick, and Gail

Sunday was a quiet day.  Jim came over and we watched the Martinsville race,  while Terri went next door and spent some time with Dee.  Our visit to Raleigh was certainly unplanned, but it really worked out great.  We had a really nice mini-rally with great people.

Monday, the 29th, was a travel day for us.  We headed down to Murrells Inlet, SC, for the Carolina Clan gathering.  Jim and Dee, Rick and Gail, and Hank and Selene would all travel the next day, Tuesday, to Murrells Inlet.  Gary and Peggy are due to arrive on Thursday.  We had an uneventful travel day.  There were already a half a dozen or so couples here with many more to come.  After we got all set-up we took a walk.  We talked a few minutes with Bill and Nancy and then Neil and Nancy.  We then continued on to John and Ginny’s.  They invited us inside, and we spent some time visiting with them.

Tuesday, the 30th, more couples arrived, and we spent most of the day visiting and greeting them as they arrived.  In the evening we all met at Bill and Nancy’s for “happy hour.”

There are already a lot of people here with even more to arrive within the next couple of days.

Today, Wednesday, the 31st, was another great day.  Just walk outside and soon you have a group.

Terri, Dee, Jill, and I decided to check out the beach and the Atlantic Ocean.  We took one of the access trails

and soon we were there.

We walked north on the beach

and then stood and visited for a while.  We decided to go get chairs and sit on the beach, and on our way back

we passed George and Laurie who were also headed for the beach.

George and Laurie

We went back to get our chairs, gathered up Paul and Jim, and came back to join George and Laurie.

Paul isn’t in the picture because he was checking out the water, and YES, he’s wearing shorts!

Soon Dan and Tricia and Neil and Nancy joined us.

Neil and Nancy’s little Tatum loved the beach.

Rick and Gail and Bruce and Laura also joined us.

The wind was picking up, and it was getting chilly on the beach.

Soon we all headed back to the campground.  This man was walking his dog and his bird.

Just a short while later we all met behind Jim and Dee’s RV next door to us for “happy hour.”

Then after the sun went down we crossed the street to Gin and Syl’s for a campfire by Bill.

So far we’ve had a great time.  The weather has been a bit chilly, but that certainly hasn’t put a damper on all the fun!