Beautiful Lighthouse

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Geo: 39.7403, -75.5508

We made it through the night in this haunted lighthouse. (What lighthouse worth its salt isn't haunted by at least a few ghosts.) After we were in for the night, the wind picked up and rattled the windows and kept the bell on one of the buoys ringing late into the night. I closed the curtains in the bedroom and bathroom, but they are thin and there are no curtains in the living area so the light came in early. I was awake by 6:30 before the sun dawned completely but ready to get up for the day. We had finished breakfast and had the apartment cleaned and everything packed by 9:00.

Guests at the lighthouse are asked to clean up before they leave. We changed the sheets, collected them with the used towels, and bagged the trash. We had it all ready to give to Chris when he picked us up. A little before 10:00, I saw a boat nearing the island and thought it was our ride so we gathered everything quickly to take down to the pier. As it turned it, it wasn't our boat; he was due a bit later. We loaded our things with Keith and Mel into the wagon that Chris used yesterday to bring the bags up.

Leaving Newport, we started back on the same small roads at first, but rather than joining the interstate, we went a few more miles north to drive the Merritt Parkway. It was busy, but no 18-wheelers are allowed so it was a bit easier driving. The scenery on both roads was beautiful. Chris suggested it when I asked about the best way to get past NYC. Google's route included going through some of the busiest parts of the city including taking the George Washington bridge. We ended up taking the Tappan Zee bridge as we had on the way to Rose Island. Traffic was heavy, but we did not experience any significant slow-down until we approached the toll plaza on the Delaware Memorial bridge.

After negotiating the traffic in Wilmington -- a complete surprise -- we opted for dinner in the hotel restaurant which was fine.

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