"Fall 2004 Migrating by Mercedes - Road trip south" Kilmarnock Travelogue by grandmaR

My mom (age 95) at Thanksgiving dinner

After we got back from Thanksgiving dinner at our oldest daughter's (which was very good and a lot of fun), we started to pack and get ready. We had taken my car up to her house in Ellicott City, and when we got back we filled the fuel tank (178 miles total for the round trip and took us 2 hours on the way up and an hour and a half on the way back) and, Bob serviced it for the winter.

Bob periodically complained that we only had a car and we needed a moving van, but I tried really hard to wean down to just a couple of suitcases. I have actually three (carryon sized) small bags, plus a bag of travel materials, and two computers. Bob has his night blooming jasmine in a large pot, a cooler of stuff from the refrigerator, plus supplies like toilet paper for the condos, a hanging bag for his suits, and two or three small bags. Plus we had the Xmas presents for two families.

Bridge over the Potomac

Friday morning, Bob serviced the furnace (found a dead mouse), ran the dishwasher and clothes washer and dryer one last time, turned off the water and put antifreeze in the toilets, turned the furnace down, unplugged the TVs, and packed the cooler and the car. He also made a final run to the dump.

What have we forgotten? Bob again forgot something in the refrigerator - this time bacon, which won't go bad right away but will be inedible when we get back. I can't find my keys to the Mercedes - they may turn up in a pocket somewhere. I also forgot to pack a pair of black trousers (I only have blue) or a skirt or a long dress.

We shoved off from the dock (left the driveway) at 12:17. We were across the Potomac by 12:55..

Our Burger King Lunch

and decided to eat lunch at Dahlgren where there was a choice of Mickey D's, Pizza Hut, KFC/Taco Bell and Burger King or we could have gone down to Port Royal and eaten at Hornes. There's also an Arby's being built. We picked Burger King...

Road into Port Royal from the bridge

and were back on the road and down to Port Royal to turn onto US 17 by 1:35 p.m.

Tappahannock

Bob had observed that fuel in the Tappahannock area was cheaper than in Leonardtown (where diesel was $2.19/gal) when we were there on the trip to Great Bridge, so he wanted to fill up there. We eventually got fuel across the Rappahannock in Warsaw for $1.99/gal.

Front of Steptoe's Ordinary

We've never been able to get to the Kilmarnock Museum (in the old Steptoe's Ordinary and which apparently has a film taken in 1952 when the town almost burned down) when we came to Chesapeake Bay Boat Basin by boat (Indian Creek off Fleet's Bay) so we were going down VA Route 3 to Kilmarnock. But we couldn't do that this time either.

The sign says it is open Thursday to Saturday 10-4 and it is only about 3 p.m. on Friday But it was closed.

Additional pictures under Off the Beaten Track

Crossing the Rappahannock

So I took pictures and we drove on towards Yorktown