Pete, Betsy and Annabelle moved this weekend into a smaller house in the Triangle, VA area.  Trying to be a smart dad, I made reservations in the Prince William Forest Park (Map) that we wouldn’t get in the way.  We had a terrific time with them, and the park was a great place to visit.  I’m looking forward to getting there again so that we can do more exploring.

I didn’t pay attention to my schedule so I was Dad double booked.  We were scheduled to be arriving at the campground at Friday 9 PM and Kitt was scheduled to fly out to the West Coast on Saturday at 5 AM.  we stayed in NJ on Friday, left at 2:30 AM to get Kitt, got her to the airport on time, and headed South on the NJ Turnpike.I was wide awake initially, but as 4:30 rolled around, it was time to stop, but we were on that section of the Turnpike with no rest stops.  Finally, at 5 AM, we arrived at the Walt Whitman rest stop, drove to the right hand portion of the parking lot under some beautiful old oak trees that blocked the light from the parking lot lights, and went to sleep in the bunk until 7:30 AM.

We live near Route 80, so sometimes, during the summer when the house windows are open, the noise from 80 is pretty loud.  The surprising part about sleeping near the Turnpike (we had the coach windows closed) was that it seemed quieter.  Got some coffee and breakfast sandwiches (too tired to cook or prepare) ate them at out table admiring the green of the rest stop.  It was a really nice place to spend the night.  

The rest of the ride down was uneventful. We now take I 695 to the East of Baltimore since there is propane on board.  The harbor tunnels are off limits.  What a great route.  We’ve been through there three times and so far, there has been little traffic.  There’s lots of commerce, but the views are great.  salt marshes, sunken wooden bats whose skeletons are poking out of the bay, birds, islands, it’s all beautiful scenery.  I wish that the segment of the trip was closer to the center of our route.

We arrived at the park about 11:00 Am.  The camp hosts were Mr & Mrs Kelly, what a pleasant surprise.  we found our site, leveled the unit, popped out the slide and called Betsy to pick us up.

The park is Federal property, so if you have a Senior Pass, admission is free and the rate for camping is 50% of the going rate.  For those parks with amenities, the amenities are not discounted.  Two nights cost us $20 to stay.  They have very nice shower and restrooms.  There are no dumping facilities  and the water spigots are removed from the road, but there is a hydrant closer to the road near the campground hosts location at the entrance.  There are lots of hardwood trees, so most of the sites are in shade and many of the sites are level.  We made a list of level sites that look good for next time we’re there.  You should visit so that you have a list too.