We left Bluffton at 630 and headed north on Interstate 95. It was an easy ride and when we got to Bucee's in Florence we got a text from Lauren asking us if we were involved or stuck in the big accident that happened on the bridge over Lake Marion in Santee, South Carolina. The accident involved about 40 vehicles, including 15 tractor trailers.
Amazingly no one was seriously injured and there were no fatalities. We were trying to figure out where we were when the accident happened and I was able to check the lone picture, below, that I took as we drove through that area.
That picture was taken at 757 am and the accident occurred, at that spot, a little after 9 o'clock. Interestingly, the fog must have got worse which probably was a factor due to visibility in the area. You just never know where and when stuff like this is going to happen. Lucky for us the entire ride was uneventful, and actually enjoyable. We decided to head to Cape May and made plans to drive to Lewes, Delaware, and reservations to take the ferry over to Cape May.
The directions said it would take 10 hours and 45 minutes and it was pretty much spot on, plus the hour and half for the ferry ride over to New Jersey. This route took us off 95 as soon as we crossed over into Virginia. It was there we both first saw our first cotton field.
We got to Norfolk and then made a left and headed north towards the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. It would be another first for both of us. The bridge-tunnel-bridge-tunnel-bridge is an engineering marvel. It's located at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay and is 17 miles long and takes about a half and hour to cross.
I was amazed when we approached the first, of I think three, tunnels, which have long spans between them. You can see below how one of the tunnels sits between two bridge spans.
As many times as I've looked at the map I never realized how wide the entrance to the CB was. I shouldn't have been surprised as the opening of the Delaware Bay is 23 miles wide. When we hit the other side we went looking for food. There was nothing around Cape Charles but we did find a local fish market and kitchen. It was crab cakes, shrimp, hushpuppies, fries for us but what the lady ordered after me made me do a double take, "Two pounds of toads please".
"Toads, like frogs?", I asked. No these are a Virginian-Eastern Shore delicacy and are called the "chicken wings of the sea". They are actually called Sugar Toads, because they taste sweet like sugar and are as ugly as toads. They are actually fish, the northern pufferfish.
I know we have them in New Jersey but down here it's a thing. I've never tasted them but if they had them on the menu I would have tried some.
We dined as we drove not wanting to miss the ferry at 745. Taking this route was like taking a tour across the heartland of America, not that I've ever been. Long, flat roads, with minimal lights or traffic, that takes you through farmlands and small towns. And while it was scenic after 11 hours of driving we were ready to be back in Cape May. So we were happy when we rolled into the ferry terminal.
Taking the ferry over reminded me of the ride out of Woods Hole over to Martha's Vineyard. It's pretty much run the same way as the Steamship Authority does it. I guess a ferry is a ferry. We drove on and seemed to have been loaded by car color as they were all white on the one side, but overall the ferry was pretty empty.
It felt good to roll into Cape Island and get into the house. It was about a 13 hour day but again luckily we missed the accident, had an easy and stress free drive, and saw some pretty cool things. We'll have a day and a half before the weddings begin, but I can say it's nice to be back in New Jersey.
