|
        |
After departing New York, we originally were looking for a place to roost in Connecticut for only a night or two. However, we had been so busy, and Kevin's induction so emotional, that we literally needed a vacation from our vacation. So we took it at Hammonasset State Park, on the Long Island Sound in South-central Connecticut. Hammonasset appears to be this state's well kept secret -- mostly it was full of natives who had been coming here for years, often since childhood, and understandably so. It was tranquil beach camping at its near best. Since there were no hookups of any kind, it discouraged the gigantic motor home set we often encountered. At over 500 campsites, it is huge -- but it is incredibly kid-friendly, and there were a lot of them to be friendly with, so it was very good for the girls. Kids on skateboards, scooters, roller blades, pogo sticks -- everything that rolled or bounced. Even kids on motorized scooters called "Mosquitoes", or on mopeds. Aiding this rolling frenzy was the fact that the roads were all extremely smooth, and the rangers did not really care what anyone did inside the park. It was kid-heaven. The weather was perfect -- Connecticut was having unseasonably cool temperatures, down in the 70s and 80s -- and sunny nearly every afternoon, with occasional showers. Perhaps you can understand why our original 1 night stay turned into a total of 8 nights... Jody or I snapped this one night shortly after sunset.
Fires were allowed, but we had no kindling and it had rained on our wood. So, I made kindling -- without a hatchet or axe -- by splitting some dry wood with a hammer and cold chisel. Everyone (but me) thought this was fascinating and camera-worthy, so this Kodak moment is now enshrined here for your enjoyment as well. Let me know what you think.
One gimmick that State Parks seem to pull quite a lot is to allow fires, but fail to include fire pits or rings with the campsite -- they must be rented separately. We foiled them, however, by finding an old wagon and using it as our "fire pit". It worked really well, and was quite the conversation piece when folks strolled by or visited.
Evenings we either hung out by the campfire or watched the thrice-weekly moving offering at "the amphitheater". We saw "Miss Congeniality", and the girls went to see "The Santa Claus" in celebration of Christmas in July (really). I even got out my cedar flute and practiced a bit. I must admit that the flute is much more convenient a campfire-side instrument than is a Cello.
The ladies of my household had been complaining that my hair was unruly. I insisted that it was simply "lively", as Bill Bryson described his own, but in the end I acceded to a new 'do, featured below. After a half day of consideration, we all decided we liked it.
The girls went to the beach nearly every day. The water temperature was around 70, and there were lifeguards every hundred yards or so -- good swimming conditions! They also managed to get quite brown, even though they did not lay out in the sun much.
Frisbee was a daily activity. Jordan was getting very good after only a short time of practicing. She was considerably better than her sister, who was having some...troubles... but who was also mostly being a good sport about the whole thing. The girls made friends with a 15 year old boy named Mike, a Connecticut local. He seemed very nice, although he was quiet. He accompanied me and the girls on a meandering scooter ride one afternoon all over the campground. Reading was something we all did a lot of that week. I finished a gigantic book: the 4th volume in the "Otherland" series by Tad Williams, if you are interested -- highly recommended, if you like cyberpunk/science fiction. Jody finished reading "The All True Adventures of Liddy Newton". Jordan (with some help from Jody) finished Bill Bryson's "I'm a Stranger Here Myself". Joya put about 100 miles on her scooter and started the 2nd book in the "Amazons and Swallows" series. Ah, but all good things come to and end. The bloom was a bit off by about our 7th day there. The girls had heard that the water in Long Island Sound was frequently polluted by all the petrochemical processing, although we could not confirm that and there were no obvious signs. Also, a truly twisted 14 year old heavy smoker/drinker named Erin who said she had multiple personalities had adopted the girls. She apparently nattered on non-stop about her various illegal, immoral or self-abusive pursuits, all in desperate attempts to get some clearly badly needed attention. The girls politely tolerated her, but she was disturbed, and disturbing. So, after our 8th night at Hammonasset, we left. Besides, it was Friday, and all of the good beach camping spots are full across July weekends, including at Hammonasset. So, follow us now into our next state: July 20 to 22 - Hope Valley, RI
|
