We went down to Assateague Island for Thanksgiving, like we did last year.  This was our second trip with the new RV.  We arrived at Assateague around midnight on Wednesday night.

Thursday morning was like the whole weekend, sunny and in the 60s.  The campground was pretty empty on Thursday, but it did fill up a bit over the weekend.

Not many people on the beach.  We spent the whole day wandering the beach and collecting shells:

Friday morning:

We went to the visitor center on the way back from going into town to buy a hatchet and firewood:

Low tide:

B in the distance:

I taught M to split wood:

I taught M a stance that maximized the likelihood of having the same number of legs at the end of the exercise.  Safety first!

We had a great campfire on the beach Saturday night.  I won’t forget B’s wide eyes as I recited Jabberwocky, which we used to do at Hancock.  We also sang Ghost Riders and Paradise.  Of course, we had s’mores as well.

Sunday started with a beautiful sunrise:

M’s mining operation:

We left Sunday morning and drove the hour or so to the southern end of Assateague, in Virginia.  The Virginia side of the island is a wildlife refuge.

There’s an old lighthouse there, which is still operational, albeit with modern optics:

We collected quite a few shells, and I flew my kite for a bit.  It’s quite a birder’s destination; we saw many people with ridiculously large lenses photographing far-off birds.

Next to Assateague is Wallops Island, home of NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility.  They have a great little visitor center which we enjoyed. 

Here’s a Little Joe, used at Wallops to test the Mercury capsule’s LES (launch escape system):

This past summer we saw its successor, Little Joe II, which was launched at White Sands.

We were home by Sunday evening.  The new RV is great!  It’s very nice to be able to pull over and have a meal or use the bathroom without having to fold up or down the RV.  Crosswinds were an issue at times, especially coming over the Delaware bridge, but we managed.

As always, we are looking forward to our next trip!

We managed to get the same campsite as last time.  Here’s Trish practicing her cast:

The new RV at Mongaup:

We didn’t bring bicycles this time, but we did get in some kayaking:

The fishing wasn’t as good this time, but I did catch an 18” Chain Pickerel.

A little hike:

I think they’re trying to trick us:

It’s always fun at Mongaup!

Shabbos (Day 18) was wonderful.  It was odd to be back in civilization again.

Sunday (Day 19) we left Denver and spent the night at the Walmart of Warrenton, MO.  We stopped at the Sternberg Museum in Hays, KS.  I slept in the car while Trish and the kids poked around.  We drove 790 miles, and managed to pick up kosher sandwiches at a supermarket in Kansas City:

Here we are in the parking lot on Monday morning:

Monday (Day 20) we drove 765 miles, and stayed at the Walmart in Clearfield, PA.  We were supposed to get all the way home, but the truck blew a tire due to road debris on the Interstate in Indianapolis.  The shoulder was narrow, so changing the tire was a little scary.  We picked up a new spare at a local Pep Boys.

Early morning at the Clearfield Walmart:

Tuesday (Day 21) we drove 270 miles from Clearfield, PA to home:

So ends our second summer mega road trip.  Can’t wait to see what 2012 brings!

We got up early to walk out to Landscape Arch, since we had to be in Denver by sunset.  The morning light was great:

Landscape Arch, the world’s longest natural arch with a span of 290 feet, is amazing.  It has lost significant amounts of material in the last 20 years, so go see it while it’s still standing:

Pine Tree Arch and Tunnel Arch:

“Race ya to the bottom!”

Really, it’s not as bad as it looks:

Skyline Arch:

Our campsite wasn’t much to look at, but just getting into Arches’ only campground was quite an achievement:

More arches in the Windows Section of the park:

Looking North towards the Fiery Furnace:

We left Arches shortly before noon.  When the kids were having their Junior Ranger books stamped, the ranger mentioned that she grew up in Oregon.  I asked her if she had heard of Hancock, and it turned out that she had been a camper there, though years after I was done staffing there.

We drove to Denver for Shabbos.  The drive through the Rockies was scenic, though it’s much more pretty in the winter.  We stayed with a wonderful family (name withheld for privacy), and had the pleasure of experiencing the Aish Denver community:

We drove 370 miles today:

We continued on the dirt road through Valley of the gods as we pulled out in the morning:

Our next stop was Natural Bridges National Monument.  It would have been 40 miles shorter to get there via the Moki Dugway, but signs like this convinced us to go the long way around:

Even the long way around had some pretty significant grades.  After checking out the visitor center, we decided to hike down to Sipapu Bridge.  Sipapu is 220 feet high, with a span of 268 feet and a thickness of 53 feet:

Sipapu in the distance:

Trish and the kids are in the lower right corner of the frame:

Three frame panorama (click for full view):

Long way up:

Fun with the sun:

Trish caught me working the bridge.  It’s all about the angle!

The stream that carved (and continues to carve) Sipapu:

Next we drove to the trailhead for Owachomo Bridge.  It’s smaller (106ft high, 180ft span), but it’s only 9 feet thick!

On the way out of the park we met some folks doing the “Bike the US for MS” tour.  I found one of the rider’s blog posts for that day.

We headed North about 100 miles to Arches National Park:

Fin structure in the Fiery Furnace area: 

Delicate Arch at sunset.  As shown below, we were across the valley from the arch:

Moonrise:

Trish draws Delicate Arch:

After dinner, we did a night hike to Sand Dune Arch.  The moon casts light on the sandstone above:

Moon through the rocks:

Big dipper:

We drove 230 miles today.  Natural Bridges NM (B), Arches NP (C):