Grey Nomads in USA: Heading South

On 3 October we left Wassamski Springs Campground. We returned the hire car to the Portland airport. There was a bit of a problem getting in and out of the airport! We couldn't find anywhere to park the RV. Think of a big bus 'hovering' in the drop off area of Perth airport. I drove the hire car behind the RV then Trevor took it to the rental car area, leaving Coralie and I standing beside the RV, trying to look as if we weren't there and watching a sheriff slowly walking toward us. "This is a no standing area - you have to move". Hurry back Trevor! I got into the drivers seat as if to move ... and prayed. There was no way I was going to take the RV through the tight turns ahead. My prayers were answered and we were off on Highway 1 south. Although it was a rainy and miserable looking day, the roadsides are still bordered with the beautiful colours of Fall.

We stopped at York for coffee and cake - at Stonewall Kitchen, a fabulous store with everything for kitchens including sample pots of every conceivable condiment that you could want in a kitchen - and a great place to get out of the rain! A lot of people had the same idea! A brief stop at Kittery, Maine and then we crossed the border into New Hampshire. Where are we going? - and then we were across the border into Massachusetts and headed for Salisbury, a traditional New England coastal town but this day it is closed in by the weather. We missed most of it!

A helping hand ...!

We are finding that RV parks are booking out on
weekends. A lot of them close for the winter in mid October. Prior to closing they hold special events weekends for Fall and Halloween. Columbus Day which is held on the second Monday in October is a national public holiday and another reason for the RV parks to be full. Columbus Day is the anniversary of the day of Christopher Columbus' arrival in the Americas on 12 October 1492.
We are unable to get a second night in Salisbury so move on the next day.

Now there are decisions to be made. We want to stay near the coast a little longer but have to get around/through Boston!
We decide to give Boston a wide berth - driving wise - and head off on Hway 101 to 495South. If you look at that route on a map it is a large circle with almost double the number of miles we probably needed to do. We have heard that you can't take propane through some tunnels; there were also toll bridges and expressways on I 95 that alarmed us somewhat so we opted for the scenic route! At one point we went off 495 onto country roads to cut some miles off the drive but we had to find our way back onto the bigger highway as it was just too difficult driving the RV through such small towns.

About 2.30pm we turned off 495 toward the coast onto Hwy 44 E heading for Plymouth. We have booked into the Pinewood Lodge Campground for the long weekend and it looks good.
The next day we did the washing and then headed into town in a rental car to explore.

Plymouth holds a place of prominence in American history as one of the first settlements in America. It was the site of the colony founded in 1620 by the pilgrims, passengers on the ship the Mayflower. The Mayflower departed Plymouth, England in September 1620 with 102 passengers and about 30 crew. After 66 days at sea they first sighted land off Cape Cod but finally settled ashore further north in Plymouth which is where New England was first established. Half the passengers and crew died in the first winter.
Plymouth is the location of the first Thanksgiving feast in 1621. President Lincoln would proclaim a National Thanksgiving Day in 1863, to be celebrated on the last Thursday in November.
The Plymouth Rock is the traditional site of disembarkation of the Mayflower pilgrims.