'21/#45 Crazy Travel Day

Our schedule had us leaving Wilmington NC on Sunday and arriving near Charleston SC later that day. It is not much over 200 miles and should be an easy trip. Once in Charleston the two things we wanted to do is roam around Charleston's historic district and visit The Friends of The Hunley Museum. After that we would move on down the road. Easy, right? Not the way we do it.  Checking the hours at the museum we found out that they are only open on Saturday and Sunday, and Sunday only until 3pm. This is something we really wanted to see since we saw it about ten years ago and wanted to see the progress made in the last decade of restoration. The only way we could do this was by leaving Wilmington before dawn and driving straight to the musem with the RV and then going to our campground.  Everything was all hooked up the night before and we were able to get on the road by 6am. We don't usually travel in the dark and Mary is not really a morning person but we decided it was worth the disruption to our travel routine. We usually hit the road after breakfast and get settled in before dinner. This works well for us but sometimes you've got to shake the jello.

The Hunley is a civil war submarine and the first submarine successfully used in combat. The Confederate sub sank a Union ship that was part of the blockade of Charleston Harbor. After the attack the Hunley was lost at sea on February 17, 1864 not to be found for over a century. It was found in 1995 and finally raised in 2000 and the museum and restoration project has been in operation since then.  When we last saw it in 2012 it was still an encrusted hulk and leaning on it's side 40 degrees as it was found. Since then it has been righted, descaled, and examined for for artifacts and historical data. It is amazing to see what was accomplished in 1864 and compare it to the technological advancements of 90 years that gave us the USS Nautilus that we saw in Connecticut.

Ok, after an early start, an uneventful drive, and spending time at the Hunley it was still only 1pm. Check in at the campground is 2pm so we decided to have some lunch in the RV since we had a great spot to park  almost 60' of RV right there at the museum. We then went on to the campground, checked in, set up, and decided it was time for a nap. Some dinner, some TV, and a good nights sleep and today we will head into Charleston. This time we will start our day at a reasonable hour from our home near Charleston SC because....

Home is where we park it,,

Frank and Mary