Our assignment with Roving Volunteers in Christ's Service (RVICS) at the Sandy Cove Ministries Camp and Conference Center in North East, Maryland would start on September 5, so we left Muddy Run Campground on Friday, September 1, during the Labor Day weekend to arrive before this scheduled project. It was a short one hour drive across the Pennsylvania border into Maryland to the campground where we will spend the next three weeks working. The Sandy Cove Ministries' mission is to help people connect with God and each other in order to be transformed into the image of Christ, through His Word, His creation, and community. Their goal is to deliver the message of hope that JESUS NEVER FAILS by providing opportunities for rest, refuge, retreat, renewal and recreation. The organization we are associated with is RVICS, a volunteer non-denominational Christian ministry with a heart to serve the Lord during the years leading up to retirement and beyond. The missionary teams provide a wide variety of maintenance, service, and construction assistance to needy non-profit Christian organizations. RVICS missionaries live in their own self-contained RV's, serving on teams typically consisting of 4-6 couples. Project hosts commit to providing RV parking sites with electricity, water, and sewer, free of charge. The project work schedule allows generous time for recreation and relaxation. Sandy Cove's History: During the Great Depression of the 1930s, God provided an unusual opportunity for Dr. George Palmer, pastor of Haddon Heights Baptist Church in Haddon Heights, NJ, to host one of the earliest Christian radio broadcasts. During this time when businesses, banks, and government were failing, the daily Morning Cheer broadcast brought good news and hope. Dr. George Palmer's biblical teaching stressed God's omniscience and control, and the show's theme song reminded all that “Jesus Never Fails.” The response was overwhelming and provided further ministry opportunities for this young visionary preacher in 1946. Property was acquired on the North East River in Cecil County, MD, for establishing a summer tent revival and camp meeting facility. Camps were built for children, numerous mission projects were accomplished around the world, and Sandy Cove Bible Conference was born. Summer after summer, guests flocked to Sandy Cove to hear some of the most prominent speakers and preachers teach the Word of God and listen to inspiring concerts performed by top Christian musicians. A new vision for Sandy Cove was cast with the addition of the majestic Chesapeake Lodge & Conference Center during the late 1980s which allowed for year-round ministry opportunities. This spacious facility continues to serve as a focal point of the ministry, offering comfort and hospitality to multitudes of men, women and children each year at one of many Sandy Cove programmed events or as part of a church retreat. On our arrival at Sandy Cove Ministries we were met by our team leaders, Frank and Melissa Varaso. They are originally from Pennsylvania but now live in the RVICS Village established in Smithville, Texas. The Village is "a place to call home" between projects, or when age or health issues make it difficult to serve on a regular basis. Any present or former RVICS member who has served at least three projects may purchase a Village membership, and select a lot with full utility hook-ups for parking their RV or placing a more permanent home. This is the Varaso's 14th project since joining RVICS. Here's the neighboring cabin next to the one we painted for comparison. As the "newbies" we are learning the ropes; both Frank and Melissa have been awesome mentor/leaders. Karen and Melissa have been working at the dining facilities in the main building deep cleaning tables, chairs and floors. Frank and I have been painting one of the cabins in the Pioneer campground where we are parked for the duration. The temperatures have been very hot in the low 90ºF range so Frank and I take rehabilitation breaks inside the air conditioned cabin and drink water or Gatorade to stay hydrated. Our morning starts at 8:00 AM with prayer, devotions and a song before we head off to work at 8:30. The ladies finish at noon and the guys break for lunch at 12:30 until 1:30. We wrap up work around 4:00 PM. We started our painting project on Tuesday after the Labor Day holiday and have it almost completed on Wednesday afternoon. Thursday we will probably wrap up in the first two hours of the morning. Our camp supervisor has told up to take the rest of the week off, so we must have made him happy with our progress in the somewhat challenging conditions. Here's the near completed cabin we've been painting for the last two days.

After returning from Gettysburg we moved to a new campground that wasn't originally on our course. Since we were able to secure two tickets for the Sight & Sound Theater production of Moses, we decided on Tuesday to see if we could get into the Muddy Run Campground which is closer to the show's venue in Lancaster. We discovered the campground on our return trip back from Lancaster the prior day. Muddy Run had room available so we booked two nights there starting on Wednesday, August 30, one day earlier then we planned on leaving Codorus Park. On Wednesday late afternoon, we moved to Muddy Run to stay for 2 nights before driving south to North East, Maryland.. We arrived at Muddy Run Campground around 6 PM and set up for the evening before it got too dark. The campground is only 30 minutes from the theater, making it easy to get there by 10:15 AM for the 11 AM matinee. On Thursday morning we drove to the theater and parked the truck only, leaving the RV back at the campground. We had incredible seats in the eighth row, center section, theater level. We didn't know what to expect. My parents got season tickets for broadway musical shows at the Curran Theater in San Francisco while my sister and I were in high school, so I grew up with a real love for live theater. Years ago on a trip to New York City with my daughter Elisa and son Erik, I made a point of taking them to see Cats and Le Miserable so they could have the same experience I had growing up. This would be the standard I would measure any production by and my expectations were measured. Frankly, Karen and I were both blown away by the excellent quality of Moses! The musical score, the on-stage talent, the sets, live animals and special effects were no less than first rate Broadway quality. The production was throughly first class and we loved it. Throughout the show I was moved to tears because I couldn't help thinking of my mom and dad and how much they would have enjoyed this whole experience. Karen was also moved to tears with the beautiful way the story of Moses and God's faithfulness was presented. At the end of the performance I had to literally stay seated just to catch my breath. Once we left the theater complex, we drove to another Lancaster landmark for lunch. The Shady Maple Smorgasbord, Lancaster County's premiere smorgasbord buffet, is the largest in the USA and features the founder's favorite family recipes prepared fresh daily in the traditional, Pennsylvania Dutch way! It has 1,200 seats in its main dining area plus an additional 1,000 seats in a banquet room. The family opened the now-famous Shady Maple Smorgasbord and gift shop in 1983. What started as a 300-seat restaurant now seats nearly 2,000 and boasts almost 200 feet of authentically delicious Pennsylvania Dutch cooking. All you could eat for $17.95 each less the senior discount of 10% made the lunch a bargain. The food quality was quite exceptional with an amazing variety of items to select from. Don't come here unless you're prepared to chow down! We skipped breakfast and didn't arrive until 3:00 PM so we were ready to get to it. After checking out the downstairs gift shop we drove back to Muddy Run with full bellies and some wonderful memories of our time in the Amish Country of Pennsylvania..

This small hamlet in Pennsylvania is where a decisive battle of the American Civil War took place on July 1 to July 3, 1863. The Battle of Gettysburg was a turning point in the Civil War, the Union victory that ended General Robert E. Lee's second and most ambitious invasion of the North. Often referred to as the "High Water Mark of the Rebellion", Gettysburg was the Civil War's bloodiest battle and was also the inspiration for President Abraham Lincoln's immortal "Gettysburg Address". Today it is a national military park that you can tour, which we did on Wednesday, August 30. In preparation, we watched the movie Gettysburg (directors cut 1993) which is 4 1/2 hours long during the three nights prior to our visit. Filmed at actual battle locations and full of authentic details, the movie plunges you into the heat of the bloodiest battle fought on American soil and gave us some context to the circumstances and characters that played a role in this famous historical event. Wednesday morning started with a 40 minute drive to the town of Gettysburg from Codorus State Park. While in town, we stopped for coffee then headed to the Gettysburg Diorama & History Center on 241 Steinwehr Avenue to experience "The Battle of Gettysburg", in a fully narrated truly unique diorama with an original light and sound experience! The diorama battlefield can be viewed for 15 minutes before the program from 360*. Gettysburg Diorama put the battle into perspective as it appeared in 1863 and illustrated the troop movements for ALL three days of battle. The actual battlefield covers 6,000 acres, an area too large to visualize without this diorama birds eye view. It appeared to be carefully researched and meticulously assembled; the Diorama contains over 20,000 hand-painted soldiers, horses, cannons and buildings. A self-guided auto tour of Gettysburg covers all areas of the battlefield in more or less chronological order, from beginning to end of the battle. So we started at the National Park Visitor Center to pick up a free map with the driving tour directions clearly marked. There are sixteen stops on the Gettysburg Auto tour. The tour works chronologically with the events of the battle. Driving through the park, after seeing the movie and the diorama, was so much more meaningful and impactful for us. Driving the 24 miles through this National Military Park was a solemn experience. It is heart breaking to realize there were over 52,000 casualties (killed and wounded) from the Union and Confederate armies during the 3 day battle of Gettysburg. Once again, we have come to appreciate the opportunity to visit many of fascinating historical places on the East Coast of our country as we travel.

Our journey to Hanover, Pennsylvania took closer to six hours to complete rather than five, but we finally arrived at Codorus State Park, site #145 on the edge of the tree line bordering a large open field. The space was a challenge because the back-in paved site was not level. We had to raise the front of the RV over 5% to clear the hitching ball so it was imperative we have our tire's chocked correctly. The auto leveling system in the RV didn't like the angle we went to, but we managed to get the trailer off the ball, the truck out and Trinity leveled. The site is quite spacious and we have very few neighbors. Just look at how low the goose-neck hitch is to the ground relative to the truck. After arriving in the late afternoon on Saturday, we stayed close to home for the evening. Our plans for Sunday, August 27 included attending a local gathering of fellow brothers and sisters in Christ in the morning with the rest of the day spending time with Karen's second cousin Kristyn and her husband Lloyd. They were driving from their home in Greencastle, PA a hour and half away to visit us at our campground. We enjoyed meeting Lloyd, hearing their story about how they met, their passion for Christian missions and their trips to the Dominican Republic and Jordan. Our time together lasted from lunch to the evening after dinner and "parting was sweet sorrow". We have all of the appropriate contact information now so we can keep in touch with this delightful couple. Monday, August 28 we spent exploring the border between Pennsylvania and Maryland just 16 miles south of our location. Diesel fuel was 40 cents cheaper in Maryland so we got fuel at Sunoco and groceries at the Walmart in Maryland before driving back into Pennsylvania to stop at the Camping World. For dinner at camp, Karen had made a casserole with the leftover rotisserie chicken and Penne pasta that turned out marvelous. We spent the remainder of the evening watching half of the 4 plus hour Director's Cut of the movie, Gettysburg. Tuesday was our day to explore Amish country in York and Lancaster Counties. We drove to the city of Lancaster and visited the Central Market in the downtown. There I met a Amish farmer selling fresh vegetables and we had a wonderful conversation talking about his farm and our travels. We then drove some of the back roads through the corn and soybean farmland looking for signs of the Amish inhabitants. The farmlands of the Pennsylvania Dutch Country are among the most productive in the nation. Many of the farmers here are different from most Americans – different by choice. They are Amish and Mennonites, also known as the Plain People. Amish people have been using horses since the days when only horses made horsepower. In comparison to our fast-paced society, the simpler, family-centered Amish culture holds a special fascination for many of us. The Amish trace their heritage back hundreds of years, and yet, despite all the time that has passed and the many changes that have taken place in society, they still live and work much as their forefathers did. For the Amish people, family, farm and faith are top priorities. The Amish are devout in their faith, believing in a literal interpretation and application of Scripture as the Word of God. They take seriously the Biblical commands to separate themselves from the things of the world. They believe worldliness can keep them from being close to God, and can introduce influences that could be destructive to their communities and to their way of life. Today, there are over 25 different Amish, Mennonite, and Brethren church groups in Lancaster County, all holding to slightly different traditions and their own interpretations of the Bible. The more traditional groups are called ‘old-order Amish.’ They do not permit electricity or telephones in their homes. Every now and then we'd spot the classic black Amish horse drawn carriage traveling down the road with yellow flashers. Near the end of the day we drove to a large farmers market facility called the Brown Cow where we met a larger group of Amish shopping and speaking their Pennsylvanian Dutch language. I picked out some unique grocery items like Cheddar Horseradish cream cheese spread, Molasses cookies and a carrot roll cake. We paid with a check because they don't use credit cards. We also stopped to see if we could get some last minute tickets at the Sight and Sound Theater near Lancaster where, nearly 50 years ago in rural Pennsylvania, a dairy farmer went from producing milk to producing live entertainment with a purpose. Now with two state-of-the-art theater locations, an online streaming platform and a film studio, Sight & Sound brings powerful stories from the pages of Scripture and history to life on stage and screen. Each year, their locations in Lancaster, PA and Branson, MO draw nearly 1.5 million audience members to experience the Bible coming to life on stage with massive sets, live animals, and spectacular special effects. Still family-owned, the heart of Sight & Sound is to see loved ones come together for a shared experience that leaves them with a lifetime memory. We were fortunate to secure two tickets for the 11 AM production of Moses on Thursday, August 31.

Traveling in a RV of any size can be a real adventure when you have to traverse a major metropolitan region. Heavy traffic made up of semi-trucks and automobiles, complex highway interchanges, bridges and tunnels make for a potentially stressful driving day. On Friday, August 25 we needed to leave Battle Row Campground on Long Island around 10 AM to allow enough time to cross the George Washington Bridge from the Bronx to New Jersey. We got our campsite broken down in a light rain and hit the road on our scheduled departure time. We crossed the "island" via the northern expressway from Nassau County into Queens to the Bronx. The added rain variable to the already heavy traffic made vehicle travel slow which was a blessing in disguise. I had more time to react to the route on our Trip Wizard Navigation System. It took two hours to go 35 miles, but we made it to New Jersey unscathed; thank you Jesus! The highway road surface conditions in both New York and New Jersey are the worst we've experienced since starting our journey. We have made it a habit of opening cabinets in the RV slowly after traveling these types of roads. These types of road conditions can loosen your dental fillings! The remaining 30 miles to Randolph, NJ were thankfully uneventful and we arrived at our friends, Bob and Jeffri Dumas's home after taking a lunch break enroute. Bob and Jeffri moved from Santa Rosa, CA in 2019 to be closer to their married son Nathan who lives and works in the region. We spent the afternoon reconnecting with these dear friends whom we have shared life with back in California. They live with Jeffri's sister, Lisa in a two-story home in a beautiful suburban neighborhood. We had received permission to park on the street by their property for the night, so we left the rig attached to the truck and we manually leveled the passenger side with some shoring boards we carry with us in the storage compartment of the trailer. We enjoyed a barbecued Salmon dinner with fresh corn on the cob and kale/quinoa salad. Dessert finished off the meal with a fresh fruit pie and vanilla ice cream. We spent the evening telling stories about our RV adventures and learning about their experiences living in New Jersey. Even though we hadn't seen each other in 4 years, we picked up right where we left off like it was yesterday. We are so blessed to have such good friends! Saturday morning, after a good night sleeping in our RV, we shared breakfast together before getting back on the road around 11 AM on our way to Codorus State Park in Hanover, Pennsylvania, about 190 miles to the west and 5 hours of driving. It was great spending time with the Dumas's and ned and look forward to a longer visit next time we get together.

We have enjoyed a busy and wonderful week on Long Island. Our activities have included a beach day on Tuesday, August 22 with our nephew Kevin sunbathing and surf fishing. Gilgo Beach was Kevin's beach of choice. Gilgo State Park is located on a barrier island on the south shore of Long Island, with Atlantic Ocean and Great South Bay frontage. Access to the park is via 4 wheel drive only and requires a permit. Even on a day of near-record summer heat and humidity, Gilgo Beach is sparsely populated – a few sunbathers, swimmers and surfers here and there but certainly not as crowded as Jones Beach to the west or the posh Hampton beaches farther east. After a day at the beach we returned to Kevin's house so he could pick up his kids from camp. Later that evening, along with Nicole and the kids, he came to our campsite for barbecued hot dogs and hamburgers. This was the first time Kevin and Nicole had seen our home on wheels. My sister and Kyle were committed to an appointment, so they had to pass on dinner out at Battle Row Campground, but our brother-in-law Jeff came out to hang with the gang. Wednesday morning we drove out to watch Dillon's hockey practice along with Kevin helping out with the coaching. From the ice rink Karen and I headed for lunch at Ben's Kosher Deli and Restaurant for a "legitimate" Pastrami with mustard on Jewish Rye sandwich and pickles on the side. It was delicious! Our last stop that afternoon was at an amazing German butcher shop in Huntington Station called Forest Pork Store. Kevin told us about it's selection of German delicacies, including many different kinds of wurst, We walked out with the evening's dinner and then some! We had dinner that evening with Karen's cousin Lynn. The German dinner theme was a way to honor the memory of their grandfather Karl Saur. He was a German immigrant who lived and owned a butcher shop in Greenlawn on Long Island, New York. We caught up with cousin Lynn and shared happy memories celebrating family who we miss having around. Thursday morning we drove to my sister's house but had to stop along the way for a New York classic... an onion bagel with scallion cream cheese and coffee. Karen stayed to visit with Susie, but Brendan, Jeff and I got on the Long Island Railroad headed to Yankee Stadium for an afternoon baseball game. We arrived at Grand Central Station in Manhattan and took the Hudson Line up to 152nd Street station in the Bronx. We walked to Yankee Stadium where I purchased a ticket in the same section with Brendan and Jeff. Unfortunately the Yankees lost the game but it was a great opportunity to visit another ballpark and hang out with my nephew and brother-in-law. Following the game, we returned to Rockville Centre just in time for dinner. My sister Susan had ordered 4 New York style pizzas to feed the whole family. We had most of the gang there, including all 6 grandkids! It was the perfect way to end our last day on Long Island. Many thanks to all the Sheehan clan for their hospitality! We would have liked to stay longer but had to check out of Battle Row Campground the next morning. We plan on returning and will allow more time during our next visit; tentatively, September/October 2025 so we can experience the changing Fall colors. From Long Island, we are on our way to visit good friends in New Jersey.

Navigating large metropolitan areas in a car can be a problematic adventure but doing it with a 35 foot long fifth wheel trailer behind your one ton truck takes this endeavor to a whole new level! Now I've driven in congested cities with the rig before, so traffic and confusing interstate exchanges I can deal with, but what the New York city area adds to the mix is their parkway system. The Long Island Parkway System was envisioned as great ribbon parks, stretching east-west and north-south across Long Island, providing scenic access and linkage between the state parks then under development, such as Jones Beach, Bethpage and Sunken Meadow. The Long Island Parkway System followed the same design characteristics as the parks themselves; the two visually linked through common design. The system employed stone-faced arched bridges, turf shoulders, bracketed-arm wood light posts, post-and-rail fences and guide rails, naturalistic road alignments and plantings, and unobtrusive black-faced signs. When New York State’s picturesque parkway system was built early in the twentieth century, it was designed for automobiles. Some bridges on the parkway system have posted vertical clearances as low as 6’11”. Commercial vehicles often strike low bridges causing serious accidents and long delays while they are removed as well as damage to property. Taking into account our height of 12" 8", we drove with a hyper-conscious level of awareness to avoid the parkway system's on ramps as we navigated from Croton on the Hudson to Battle Row Campground in Bethpage, Long Island. We arrived in the afternoon on Friday, August 18 and set up in site 51. The campground sites are spacious with water and 30 amp electrical services. We invited my sister's family over for a picnic dinner that evening so they could see our rig and hang out in the park. We drove over to the Costco nearby to pick up a couple of rotisserie chickens, corn on the cob and salad, then we got together for a lovely visit and started making plans for the remainder of the week. Saturday, we visited the Old Bethpage Village Restoration near our campgroun for a few hours in the early afternoon. The Old Bethpage Village Restoration is a 209-acre recreated living museum village in Old Bethpage, New York. The village opened in 1970 with dozens of historic structures that had been saved from demolition by Nassau County. Costumed actors provide demonstrations of 19th-century life. There are currently 51 preserved and seven reconstructed buildings arranged to simulate a typical mid-19th-century Long Island farming village. From there we headed over to my sister's home for more visiting and a steak barbecue with all the fixings. Sunday, we went to Calvary Chapel Hope in Amityville and then met my brother-in-law Jeff Sheehan for a bike ride on a section of the Bethpage/Massapequa Preserve bikeway. We finished our ride around 4 PM and proceeded to my nephew Kevin's for dinner and a visit. Kevin pulled out the stops, like his mother, and prepared a lobster bake feast for the whole family. Lobster, clams, mussels, shrimp, sausage, potatoes, mushrooms, corn on the cob... I mean it covered the table from north to south! We stood around the table and feasted until we could consume no more. What a treat and a great way to experience this culinary experience with the ones we love, just awesome!

Tuesday, August 15 we traveled up to the Double O Grill in Wappingers Falls to meet Heidi Sheehan for lunch. It was great to have an opportunity to visit again. We left the restaurant and proceeded south to United States Military Academy at West Point. We visited the museum, learned about the historical significance of West Point and some of the institution's traditions. We drove around the campus to see some of the incredible vistas of the Hudson Valley. The United States Military Academy was established in 1802, but West Point had a major role in our nation’s history during the American Revolution. Both the American patriots and the British realized the strategic importance of the prominent plateau on the west bank of the Hudson River. General George Washington considered West Point to be the most important strategic location in America and in 1778 selected Taddeus Kosciuszko, a Polish engineer, to design the fortifications for West Point. Washington later transferred his headquarters near West Point in 1779. American Continental Line soldiers constructed forts, gun batteries, redoubts and installed a 65-ton iron chain across the Hudson to block British invasions along the river. Fortress West Point was never captured by the British, despite Major General Benedict Arnold’s treasonous attempt to turn-over the garrison to the British in 1780. Today, West Point is the oldest continuously occupied regular army post in the United States. Wednesday, August 16 was our day to venture into the New York City to visit another baseball park. We boarded the 9;26 AM Express train from Croton-Harmon Station to Grand Central Station. The senior round-trip fare was $14.50 each. From Grand Central Station it was $2.75 each to ride on to the #7 Metro Subway to Mets-Willets Station. We arrived at Citi Field about two hours before the Mets baseball game and got our 1/2 price senior discounted tickets for $24 each at field level on first base. We entered Citi Field and explored the facility looking for a place to eat lunch before the game. We found Caesars Sportsbook at the Metropolitan Grille located in the left field corner of the Excelsior Level; it features a welcoming dining and hospitality experience for all guests. We got a table overlooking the view of LaGuardia Airport and enjoyed a lovely brunch. We finished brunch about 30 minutes before game time. We walked around the stadium from the restaurant by the "big apple" in centerfield over the bridge to section 106, row 15, seats 5 and 6. I have to admit, this is one of the best baseball stadiums I've ever seen and experienced. The staff was extremely friendly and helpful, the venue and facilities were clean and well appointed. The experience really impressed both Karen and I. We enjoyed cheering on the Mets as they went on to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-3. After the game we decided to wait on boarding the subway back to Grand Central and walked over to Flushing Meadows, site of the U.S. Tennis Tournament next week and the 1964–1965 New York World's Fair. New York City was left with a much-improved Flushing Meadows–Corona Park following the fair, taking possession of the park from the Fair Corporation in June 1967. Today, the paths and their names remain almost unchanged from the days of the fair. The Unisphere stands at the center of the park as a symbol of "Man's Achievements on a Shrinking Globe in an Expanding Universe". The Unisphere has become the iconic sculptural feature of the park, as well as a symbol of the borough of Queens in general. It stands on the site formerly occupied by the Perisphere during the earlier 1939–1940 Fair. We returned to the metro station and took the #7 Subway back to Grand Central. There we enjoyed an Italian dinner at the Cipriano Restaurant inside Grand Central before taking the Hudson Line Express train back to Croton Station at 7:21 PM. It was another full day of exploring new sights and and having new experiences. We walked over 6 miles and climbed 12 flights of stairs during the days adventures, which explained the level of fatigue we were both feeling after boarding the train. We retreated back to our campsite at Croton Point Park to enjoy the rest of the evening. The park's spacious surroundings with large expanses of greenery make it incredibly quiet. Despite being a large park with many attractions, including a beautiful riverfront beach, it is designed so that the more energetic area of the park is remote from the campground. We have enjoyed our stay at this campground; the proximity to the Hudson Line of the MTA railroad system make this site certainly convenient if you want to visit NYC.

Two hours and 45 minutes to drive 92 miles west on Highway 95 through New Haven, Bridgeport and Stamford, Connecticut before heading northwest towards White Plains, New York. Because many of the parkways have a ten foot high vehicle limit we had to navigate through narrow, two lane streets to get here; but we did it! Croton Point Park is a gem of a facility and worth the trouble getting here. We are staying here for a week for $270 ($38.57/day). Our site #9 is in partial shade and near the restrooms. It includes 30 amp service and full hookups. The sites are large and spacious for a RV park. We we arrived at around 12;30 PM during the week when the park was quiet. The first evening we rode the E-bikes around the park to get our bearings. What a beautiful setting! We hope to take the MTA Hudson Line train into NYC during the week. The train station is 5 minutes from the park; simple and safe. An express train can take us to Grand Central Station in about 52 minutes. Cornelius Van Bursum was the first to purchase Croton Point from the Indians in 1682. A few years later William and Sara Teller were given permission to live on the point and operate an Indian trading post. In the 18th century the area came to be known as Teller’s Point. It is not surprising that this prominent site played a role in the American War for Independence. Although several military actions took place here, many involving invasions by the British, the most notorious was connected with the attempted betrayal of West Point, just up the river, by Benedict Arnold and the capture of his British confederate, Major John Andre. Andre had conspired to meet with Arnold on board the British frigate, Vulture, which had anchored off the western end of Teller’s Point in September of 1780. Fearing for his safety, Arnold sent word for Andre to meet him on the western shore of the Hudson River at Haverstraw. While they were meeting on the opposite side of the river, American militiamen on Verplanck’s Point fired upon the Vulture with a small cannon, forcing her to move downstream. Major Andre, separated from his means of escape, crossed the river at King’s Crossing. Andre was clad in an American uniform and carrying a pass stating he was on official business for General Arnold. He was captured in Tarrytown and subsequently hung as a spy. On Saturday, August 12 we went into town to replenish one of our two 30 pound propane tanks, checked out the train station and purchased some groceries in Croton on Hudson. The weather was stormy and unpredictable so we stayed in camp relaxing the rest of the day. On Sunday we attended service at the Calvary Chapel of Westchester and drove up to Pleasant Valley to spend the day with our nephew Brendan Sheehan's family. We got to meet for the first time our great-nephews Patrick, Ryan and Scott. We have never been to their home until now and the visit was great! We hung out and had dinner together; it was really great to see them and get to know this part of my family better. We hated leaving but it was getting late and the boys had camp the next day. I hope we can visit again the next time we're in this part of New York.

When we arrived in Connecticut on Sunday we expected a Rhode Island feel. But we found that Connecticut didn't seem as easy going and friendly as Rhode Island. The towns on the coast are quaint and there are plenty of shops, restaurants and grocery stores along our travel path. We even found a Costco for shopping, but the overall feeling is more uptight and not as welcoming. Maybe it's a vibe across the Long Island Sound from New York. On Wednesday, August 9th we finally got a day without rain but the wind all day was intense. We rode our bikes out to the beach and attempted to set up our sun shelter. This of course is a challenge in the wind and provides the other sunbathers at the beach some entertainment value watching us struggle. It took a while but we succeeded, set up our beach chairs and took out our books and beverages. We lasted about two hours before a microburst of wind unearthed the buried sandbags holding the structure to terra firma and ended the beach day. We returned to our campsite to continue relaxing, reading and enjoying the warm weather. We barbecued a Ribeye steak and corn on the cob accompanied by broccoli and spinach. We spent the evening looking at flights to California for the holidays and got them booked. I renewed our DAN membership and scuba diving insurance in preparation for our dive trip to Fiji in December 2023. Thursday, August 10 the weather was overcast again with rain predicted later in the afternoon. Karen prepared lox and bagels for breakfast before doing some work related to Total Concepts.. I spent the morning reading until noon. I then called the VA Medical Clinic back in Santa Rosa to schedule a number of appointments for November and December when we will be back in California for the holidays. Because this is our last day at Hammonassett I started the process of packing some of the outside items including getting the E-bikes back on the front hitch of the truck. Before dinner we did some grocery shopping in Clinton. Tomorrow it is off to Croton Point Park Campground at 1 Croton Point Ave, Croton on the Hudson in New York. Croton Point Park is a 508-acre park situated on a peninsula on the east shore of the Hudson River. This park offers year-round events and activities and has facilities for camping, hiking and swimming. This location will put us an hour away from our nephew Brendan Sheehan, his wife Heidi and our three great-nephews, Patrick (9), Ryan and Scott(7).

August 6, 2023 was moving day and also our 28th wedding anniversary. Our plan was to drive to Hammonassett State Park in Connecticut, get checked in and set up before doing anything else. As it turned out, Sunday was a full day and neither of us had the energy to celebrate so we postponed our special dinner out for a day or two. On reflection, this chapter of our life is special every day. We are spending more time together than any other time in our marriage and so our anniversary isn't just one day set aside to spend together. We are celebrating our marriage 7 days a week, 12 months out of the year right now which is pretty amazing. What I can't believe is how fast the 28 years has gone! We're spending all this time together and we still like each other! We are having the time of our life living the adventure traveling our great country and meeting many people who make it great. Monday was a stormy day. We had some trailer issues to deal with after setting up on Sunday. First of all, the self-leveling system wasn't working and needed to be reset. I was able to manually level so it wasn't a big priority for me. The issue that was getting my attention was our power usage and lack of solar. Our campsite in the partial shade limits our solar input to the later afternoon hours IF we have sun. During the first two days at Hammonassett we were using more power than we were generating. So after a year and a half of only using our solar system for power, I had to resort to employing the Honda EU2000 inverter/generator from the back of the truck. After sitting idle for over a year, the generator fired up just fine and ran like a champ. I plugged in the 50A cable with the 110V adapter and voila, no power! What?! I checked the Power Watchdog Surge Protector and, low and behold, there was an E7 error message which translates to the power coming to the EPS device was ungrounded. OK, now it was time to go to YouTube to solve this mystery. Here's what I learned. When plugging your RV into power from a building (your garage outlet) or a campground (pedestal outlet), your RV has its Ground and Neutral buses “bonded” (connected) together externally as part of the service panel’s earthed safety ground system. There are lots of reasons for this, but the fact is you can only have a single G-N bonding point according to the National Electrical Code and RVIA building codes. However, many portable inverter generators from companies such as Yamaha and Honda have floated Neutrals (no internal Neutral-Ground bond) since they expect an external N-G bond to happen somewhere else. And while RV-approved generators may have an internal N-G bond, it seems that many of the most popular portable inverter generators from Honda and Yamaha have floating neutrals. Inverter generators have floated Neutrals so the generator isn’t providing the Ground-Neutral bond that my RV requires to think it’s getting properly grounded power. The solution is simple, get a "Neutral-Ground bond" jumper plug. The most expedient solution was to go to Ace Hardware and buy the parts to make my own. It’s pretty simple to wire a special “Neutral-Ground bond” jumper plug for your Honda or Yamaha generator which will allow you to power your RV through its voltage protection device. You can obtain or make a dummy 15-amp “Edison” plug with the Neutral (white) and Ground (green) screws jumped together with a piece of 12- or 14-gauge wire. This G-N jumper plug can be plugged into one of the generator’s unused 15- or 20-amp outlets, and the entire generator’s electrical system will then be N-G bonded. After some minor modifications to an orange 15 amp grounded plug, I plugged it into the Honda's second 110 plug. With the generator running, the Watch Dog EPS device was very happy and we were getting 13.8 Amps (1490 W) coming into the electrical system recharging the battery bank back to 100%. Eureka! Looks like we will keep the generator as our backup power supply for the future. Tuesday, August 8 we took a road trip to New London and Groton traveling on Highway 1 most of the way. While in New London we stopped at the United States Coast Guard Academy to see the museum and pick up some souvenirs. I was hoping to see the Barque USCGC EAGLE, but she was out on a training cruise with cadets. The United States Coast Guard Academy is a top military college granting Bachelor of Science degrees in one of nine engineering or professional majors. Graduates earn a commission as an Ensign in the Coast Guard to serve their nation. The 295-foot Barque EAGLE is the flagship of the U.S. Coast Guard. She serves as a training vessel for cadets at the Coast Guard Academy and candidates from the Officer Candidate School. The EAGLE is the only active-duty sailing vessel in America’s military, and one of only two commissioned sailing vessels, along with the USS Constitution. So, why train Coast Guard cadets on a tall ship when most will spend their careers on state-of-the-art ships and aircraft? Because the ways of old still have much to teach. The conditions and situations that you face under sail can’t be replicated either in a classroom or aboard today’s modern ships. On board EAGLE, cadets find themselves suddenly out of their element. Totally dependent on wind, waves and currents, they quickly learn how these forces of nature affect a vessel. They become skilled in ship-handling, decision-making and meeting unexpected challenges. They learn the importance of crew members working together to handle the ship safely. After our self-guided tour of the academy we drove along the Connecticut coast looking for a anniversary dinner venue. We found Luigi's in Old Saybrook, Connecticut right on the highway back to the campground. We had another wonderful and delicious dinner together celebrating God's goodness and faithfulness to us!

Rhode Island is a state in New England known for sandy shores and seaside Colonial towns. It's home to several large cities including Newport which is famed for sailing and Gilded Age mansions, such as The Breakers. Rhode Island is the smallest state in size in the United States. It covers an area of 1,214 square miles. It's distance North to South is 48 miles and East to West is 37 miles. Rhode Island was the last of the original thirteen colonies to become a state. From Plymouth, Massachusetts we drove on Thursday, August 3rd to the American Baptist Churches of Rhode Island Canonicus Camp & Conference Center in Exeter where we met Michael, our contact through Harvest Host. This campground has 7 electric and water hook-ups and we arranged with them in advance to use their services for a modest fee. We also asked if we could stay longer than the typical one day and he graciously offered us three days. This was a real find given the scarcity of RV campgrounds with availability during the summer months. Indeed a God-sent provision for us in Rhode Island! The land of Rhode Island was also a God-sent provision for founder Roger Williams in 1636 who was banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony for his radical views. Roger Williams purchased land from the Narragansett Indians and founded the first permanent white settlement in Providence in 1636. His firm belief in religious freedom, tolerance and the separation between church and state governed the colony of Rhode Island and inspired the future founders of the United States. On Friday, August 4 we drove the truck to Newport, RI with our bikes so we could tour the area. Unfortunately, the Newport Jazz Festival was just starting that day, so the traffic was very heavy in the downtown area; we had to navigate around the congestion driving out to Brenton Point State Park. We had no problem finding a place to park out there. We ate lunch before unloading the E-bikes to began our Newport adventure. We rode east on Ocean Avenue along the coast line towards the "Cliff Walk". This area of Newport is known for some of the most pretentious "cottages" in America. The Rough Point House and Breakers are just two of a number of these stately manors. Rough Point is one of the Gilded Age mansions of Newport, Rhode Island, now open to the public as a museum. It is an English Manorial style home designed by architectural firm Peabody & Stearns for Frederick William Vanderbilt. Construction on the red sandstone and granite began in 1887 and was completed 1892. It is located on Bellevue Avenue, borders the Cliff Walk and overlooks the Atlantic Ocean. The home's last owner was Doris Duke and it is currently owned and operated by the Newport Restoration Foundation. In 1894, the Vanderbilts began renting Rough Point to summer guests. William Bateman Leeds Sr., known as the ‘Tinplate King’, rented the home in 1904 and 1905. He was one of the owners of American Tin Plate Company, a tin plate trust. He purchased the 10-acre estate in 1906. After he died in 1908, his wife, Nancy Leeds, used John Russell Pope to make some exterior alterations to the home. She remained the owner until 1922. Their son, William Bateman Leeds Jr., married Princess Xenia Georgievna of Russia. In 1922, James Buchanan Duke, the founder of fortunes in electric power and tobacco, and benefactor of Duke University, along with his second wife Nanaline bought the house. They used architect Horace Trumbauer of Philadelphia to assist in renovating the house; two new wings were added to the home. James died at his Fifth Avenue and 78th Street, New York City, white-limestone mansion in 1925, bequeathing his enormous fortune, along with its several residences, to his only child, 12-year-old Doris Duke. Rough Point, which came close to being sold twice at Nanaline's insistence nonetheless eventually became one of Doris' most prized properties, replete with its spectacular rocky coastal setting. Doris's memorable debutante ball was held at the estate in 1929. Doris Duke continued to spend her summers at Rough Point; but, after the New England Hurricane of 1938 that devastated Rhode Island, and with the advent of World War II, Doris Duke's visits became less frequent. In the early 1950s, Doris Duke took up permanent residence in New York City and emptied Rough Point of all its furnishings. From Rough Point we headed for The Breakers. The Breakers is a Gilded Age mansion located at 44 Ochre Point Avenue, Newport, Rhode Island. It was built between 1893 and 1895 as a summer residence for Cornelius Vanderbilt II, a member of the wealthy Vanderbilt family. The 70-room mansion, with a gross area of 138,300 square feet and 62,482 square feet of living area on five floors. Cornelius Vanderbilt II purchased the grounds in 1885 for $450,000 ($14.7 million today). The previous mansion on the property was owned by Pierre Lorillard IV; it burned on November 25, 1892, and Vanderbilt commissioned famed architect Richard Morris Hunt to rebuild it in splendor. Vanderbilt insisted that the building be made as fireproof as possible, so the structure of the building used steel trusses and no wooden parts. He even required that the boiler be located away from the house in an underground space below the front lawn. The Ochre Point Avenue entrance is marked by sculpted iron gates, and the 30-foot-high walkway gates are part of a 12-foot-high limestone-and-iron fence that borders the property on all but the ocean side. The footprint of the house covers approximately 1 acre or 43,000 square feet of the 14 acre estate on the cliffs overlooking Easton Bay of the Atlantic Ocean. This ostentatious neighborhood reminded me of a description I once heard of the upper crust of society. "Just a bunch of crumbs held together by their own dough"! As we rode around both of us realized just how hard it is to even relate to this kind of opulence. We rode about 12 miles throughout Newport taking back roads to avoid traffic and returned to the truck. We drove around the Newport town traffic and back to the Claiborne Pell Bridge, commonly known as the Newport Bridge, that spans the East Passage of the Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island. The bridge connects the city of Newport on Aquidneck Island and the Town of Jamestown, our next stop on Conanicut Island. We drove through Jamestown on our way to Beavertail State Park to see the lighthouse and the view. On our way we had to "stop at the sign of the lemon" at Mackeral Cove Beach for a world famous Del's iced lemonade. Um, um good... really enjoyed this Rhode Island refreshing treat. Records of the town of Jamestown from 1712 make reference to a beacon, and they mention a watch house in 1705. A wooden tower was built in 1749 (attributed to architect Peter Harrison), and the light became the third lighthouse established in the Thirteen Colonies, known at the time as "Newport Light". A fire was lit at the top of the tower, as was common for the time. Four years later it burned down and was replaced by a stone tower. British sailors retreating from Newport near the end of the American Revolutionary War left a trail of destruction behind them in 1779. This included burning the lighthouse and removing the optics, which left the light dark for the rest of the war. In 1856, the tower was replaced with the current tower, made of granite which is 10 ft square and 64 feet from ground to beacon. A 3rd order Fresnel lens was placed in service, and it became the site of numerous fog-signal tests over the next 40 years under the supervision of the United States Lighthouse board. In 1898, quarters were added to the keeper's house for an assistant keeper; the assistant helped with fog-signaling, among other things. In all we spent three days exploring Rhode Island enjoying the scenery, people, food and especially the ice cream. Before leaving Canonicus Camp & Conference Center on Sunday, August 6th we attend an encouraging Calvary Chapel service in North Kingston. With a full tank of diesel fuel in the truck and the trailer all hooked back onboard, it was on to Hammonassett State Park in Madison, Connecticut.