START: Winding River Campground, Exeter, NH
END: Carr Point Recreation Area, Portsmouth, RI
Miles traveled:
Travel time: 1100-1430
Went for a run through the campground, 2 miles. Otherwise started the morning with some coffee and my laptop, sitting outside with Michael while Ruby slept. She used to have a 1930 bedtime, but since we’ve doing things in the evenings like family bike rides or going for walks, 1930 is a bit early. So we’re fine with pushing her bedtime back a bit, however she needs to sleep a bit more in the mornings to make up for it. She has been consistently getting up around 0630, regardless of what time she goes to sleep. So we cut a deal with her last night, told her if she doesn’t stay asleep until 0730 then we’ll have to go back to 1930 bedtime. She managed to stay asleep until 0730 this morning - success! (so far)
Our drive today was 2.5 hours, but we stopped at a Costco to pick up some things, so it took us a little longer. We got lots of stares in the Costco parking lot, people seemed offended that we were bringing a trailer through their parking lot.
We have noticed some things about drivers out here: overall, they suck. Merging isn’t a thing to these people. Seriously, they come to a dead stop on the onramp to wait for traffic to clear. I guess technically if there is a yield sign that is correct, but it’s extremely dangerous. Far safer to step on the gas and get up to speed! It also seems that many people don’t actually look before they merge. The existence of our trailer has surprised people. We are guessing they aren’t used to large vehicles out here, since we don’t see nearly as many big trucks on these highways as we did on I-70 or I-75 in Ohio.
Carr Point Recreation Area is not a nice campground. That’s not an insult, it’s just as basic as you can get. There’s a pad with water and electric hookups. No trees, no fire pits, no trails - no frills. However, it’s cheap, and it’s close to places to go. It’s also right along the water, but there is a thick line of brush in between you and the shore. There was a small trail to the shore, which we explored, and Miss Ruby collected a whole bunch of seashells. The shoreline was thick with them.
We went down to Newport and walked on a couple of wharfs and got some seafood dinner. We also picked up a few treats - some toffee and some fudge - yum! Dinner was pleasant, the weather was super nice, with the sun coming out from clouds then getting covered up again, making for a nice meal outdoors.
The bottom picture: as we're walking we pass by this shop with glass/crystal/ceramic art - mostly items in the shapes of desserts and treats. This catches someone's eye and she wants to go inside. Hmm, let the 5-year-old into a shop full of breakables in the shapes and colors of cupcakes and candies, and expect her not to touch anything? Nope!
