31Jul06 - 4Aug06Every summer since I was about 10 years old, we've been going to
Cherrystone. We usually go for 2 weeks, but this year we went to Connecticut for one of those two weeks, and we went south for the other. Most years, our week coincides with a hurricane or some other form of endless rain and wind. Our week coincided with a heat wave this year. The bay temperature right off the beach w
as probably between 85 and 90 degrees. The water in the pools was 88 degrees. Staying cool was difficult, but dealing with the heat going to and from the cooler sure beat dealing with the heat while going to and from work.
My brother and I did a lot of biking and running, laying around by the pool, reading in the shade. We went on a dolphin tour, kayaked the new marina they're
putting in across the
inlet in Cape Charles, took the dogs swimming, sat on the dock and drank into the night. We took a long bike ride down to Rt 13. My brand new bike's pedal fell off at the furthest point. We couldn't get it back on without a wrench. So I rode the bike with one pedal all the way back, looking like a special olympics biker.
Dad and Walt schooled the locals in the art of horseshoes. Nick and Elvis came from a small town in south western VA and they were known as horseshoes heros among their crowd. They'd never played with nationally ranked pitchers before. They said that they would practice for next year.
On the way home from Cherrystone, we stopped in Assateague for a night. It was a great time. The bugs were a little much earlier in the day, but about 4pm, the winds shifted and we were in
an ocean breeze, which kept the bugs at bay. The sun was relentless, and I had a full week of dealing with heat indices of 110 degrees F or higher. By the morning, I was hungover and not looking forward to another day of sun, so we headed home. I had to meet Dad and Marianne to pick up the girls, so I waited in Berlin at the Food Lion for 2 hours so that we could do a dog
swap on their way through to Jersey. I continued to the western shore. Despite the heat and bugs, I had a relaxing time and it was nice to spend time with the fam. I'm not looking forward to the start of the semester. I hope I'll get out to the mountains one weekend before then.
Marianne - I don't know why I don't have any pictures of you in my camera. You have to stop hiding!
Football season has begun. Go Steelers!!
Meet Jada and Kisses, my hiking partners.
We stay pretty busy.
I hope to keep this updated with the details of our hiking and riding experiences.
Saturday, 19Aug06
l - Ropewalk and Drifters. On the ride: Mike, Kim, Robert, Renee, Carrol, Carrie - I had a blast, met a lot of fun people, and we raised a lot of money for a good cause. On the i
nner harbor: Lauren, Lance, Walt, Megan, Doug, Travis - I had a great time guys. Great weekend to finish up my summer. Now my life is over because classes start back up tomorrow. See you all next summer!
