Charlestown, Rhode Island

We have been staying at the Burlingame State Park here in Rhode Island. For all you working folks out there who dream of getting away from it all, this would be the place to come (provided it is not a holiday weekend). The place is huge, with 755 sites, all situated in a forest with tall trees. The first couple of nights were great. There was absolutely no one anywhere near us, it was pitch black at night and so quiet, all we heard all night was the chirping of the crickets. We thought we found a piece of heaven.

See what I mean?

But, this is a holiday weekend (Columbus Day) and before we knew it, we were surrounded by tents, campers and families. So much for the peace and quiet.  

This park also has a Zero Tolerance for Alcohol rule -- you can't bring it into the park, nor drink it in your coach. Well, guess what? The dumpsters are full of empty alcohol bottles - beer and hard liquor. And, the people purposely stack them right on top of the other trash so that the park rangers can see them. We are sure that they do this on their way out as they are leaving.

Because we are the only motorhome in this park that we've seen, we stand out a bit. One little boy, probably no more than 8 years old rode past us while I was out with Chanti. He stopped and said: "Wow! It looks like a bus. Does your dad own it?" How young did he think I was?

Each day that we were here, we drove around the place to see the Rhode Island coastline. Here is what we saw.

They have some of the largest sea side homes that we

have ever seen. One sign in a real estate office that listed

homes for sale showed the prices to be between

$1.5 and $12 million dollars.

There are marinas in bays all over this coastline.

 With unique boats.

And beautiful cruisers.

And fishermen everywhere who actually are catching fish.

Lobster crates sitting on the dock 

in Jamestown, Rhode Island.

We stopped to eat in Jamestown and asked the owner of the restaurant what Jamestown was noted for because we both remembered that it played a part in our history. He told us that we were confusing this little town with Jamestown, Virginia. However, he said that George Washington did actually march through this area during the Revolutionary War. So, it does have some history.

And large bridges connecting some of the islands.

As you can see, some of the days were rainy and overcast, and

others were clear and autumn crisp with blue skies.

And then there were the various lighthouses along

the Rhode Island coastline. This is the Castle Hill Lighthouse

over in Newport, Rhode Island. (The little guy in the

far right of the picture is Jerry.)

And this is the Point Judith Lighthouse

in Narragansett, Rhode Island.

 Another picture of the eastern coastline.

This has got to be one of the largest cemeteries 

we've seen with tombstones dating back to the 1700s. 

Even my wide angle lens was not able to capture but a piece of it.

Got to mention this also. Jerry has been eating a lot of clam chowder since we've been on the East Coast. Yesterday, he had Rhode Island clam chowder. It was different because they make it without milk and butter -- just clams and a fish broth. Sounds much healthier to me. He said it was delicious.

Now, for an update on the changing of the leaves. It is still progressing slowly. But, here is one tree we saw along a side street yesterday. Better than nothing to report.

I really don't understand why the picture I upload

to the blog mutes down the actual colors on the photo.

The people are all pulling out of the park today, so we 

will have this empty park to ourselves for one more night.

We leave tomorrow for New Jersey. Will everyone who reads this blog before tomorrow stop and say a little prayer for us because we have to drive through New York City to get there and we don't want to take a wrong turn.

Have a great week everyone!