On The Road Again: Visiting Friends and then Home Sweet Home
By: John Kumiski
Even though the weather was approaching wretched, it was my last day in Winthrop. I had to give beach fishing one more chance.
At the point on the beach closest to our lodging, the wind blew right into my face. At the point where the shoreline jogged, a current flowed over a bar into that cove. The current might hold fish. I could cast here, and the wind would help a little. But no bites came.
A fish broke right in front of me! I cast the jig and worked it through the area again and again, but surprisingly, nothing. There were several more splashes, but no bites. Maybe if I ran the jig along the surface.
I tried it, using the wind to kite my line and help keep the jig up. Bam! Right at my feet! It was a schoolie striper, five or six pounds, beautiful. I had figured out the riddle, getting several more bites and landing two more fish before the water got too low and the biting stopped. Still, quite satisfying, after a week of trying unsuccessfully.
The next morning found us in the van, leaving Massachusetts, heading to East Hampton, Connecticut. Bill and Heather Embacher, old friends from Alaska, live there. The last time I saw them, they were childless. Now they have a beautiful nine-year old daughter. It had certainly been too long.
We had a reservation at the Bevin House, a bed and breakfast, housed in a building built in 1872. From the outside it reminded me of the house in the original Addams Family TV show. Inside it was lovely, with a sitting room, and a library, and lots of antique furniture and books, very cool. And no cobwebs, or Lurch!
The Bevin House.
Bill and Heather came the next morning. Bill and I had wanted to fish, first for stripers, then for anything. Wind, overcast, temperatures in the 40s, and a threat of rain caused a change of plan. After exploring the Bevin House, we'd all go to Gillette Castle.
Susan and I didn't know what it was, but Bill and Heather had gotten married there. William Gillette, the stage actor who made Sherlock Holmes famous, had the place built. Construction started in 1914 and finished in 1919. It's a grand old place. Unfortunately, it was closed for renovation, so we could not go inside. Instead, we walked the grounds, foraging for mushrooms as we strolled. We found nothing fantastic, but got enough fungi that Heather could add it to our dinner.
Gillette Castle.
After our walk we lunched at a unique eatery called Two Wrasslin' Cats. All the wonderful food had names that followed the cat theme, and outside I photographed Bill and Heather "wrasslin'." We have two cats, and the sandwiches were real good, so we loved the place.
The Embachers had invited us for dinner- roasted, home-grown chicken, freshly baked bread, freshly picked wild mushrooms, and spinach, and roasted broccoli, and rice. It was all delicious! After dinner, Bill showed me his shop. He's well known in the northeast in duck- and bird-hunting circles. He's a bird taxidermist and a decoy carver by trade, and because his work is exquisite, he stays busy. Search the internet for "Bill Embacher", and all sorts of pages come up.
The next morning it was still cold, windy, and overcast. On top of that, rain fell, sometimes harder, sometimes softer. We were leaving New England today and heading home. I hoped to make the 21-hour trip in three segments. Our goal this first day, traveling the interstate, was Winchester, Virginia.
Two Wrasslin' Cats, an eatery.
There were several times I thought it would be impossible. When we got into the mountains, the rain worsened and there was fog, too, reducing visibility to nearly zero. But then we lost elevation and the fog lifted. We pressed on.
There was an RV park in Winchester at which we were considering staying. One night's stay? Eighty dollars!!! To sleep in our van! We ended up at a Motel 6, not a lap of luxury, but it was dry and had heat and running water, some of it hot. And it was less than eighty dollars, too.
The morning was again cold and overcast, but the rain had stopped. It would be another long day in the van if we were to make our next goal, Home Stay Campground, outside of Orangeburg, South Carolina. Back on the interstate, and away we went!
Bill Embacher with one of the decoys he made.
We got on I-81, taking it to I-77, right down to Orangeburg. I'm not saying that the eight hours went fast, but it was fairly stress-free, as much as one could ask when driving on the interstate.
Hope, our host at Home Stay, invited me to fish in their pond, told us the best place to eat, and where we could buy groceries. I didn't fish, but we went to Clark's Inn in Santee for an outstanding dinner. We stopped at the grocery store for travel supplies, and then headed back to camp. The campfire was beautiful, mesmerizing, a nearly full moon and Jupiter added to the ambiance. We went to bed early, though- another long driving day lay ahead.
Dawn broke with a brilliant sunrise, a bluebird day, perfect for the last piece of the drive. No decided against the interstate. Instead of I-95, we took US 301, which goes through rural South Carolina and Georgia. Few folks use it. The highest speed limit is 60 MPH, which is a lot faster than I-95 when it's gridlocked. We kicked off at 9 AM, stopped for lunch at the Okefenokee NWR Visitor Center at 2 PM, and pulled into our yard, fairly well spent, at 7 PM.
Home, sweet home. After nearly three months away, we'd sleep in our own bed this night, with our cats, and the dog, and my sister nearby. Travel is enlightening, and the trip had been great, but there's no place like home.
Have you had a great out experience? Join Global Outdoors and write a review to tell everyone about it! We’re building the home for trusted reviews of outdoor experiences, outfitters, and guides.
