Last we left you on our journey north we had just completed a delightful stay at Little Pee Dee State Park in South Carolina. Egads, that seems like eons ago, even though it’s been less then 3 weeks.
As we’re approaching the northeast, we were hesitant about the usual low clearance spots, tight roads and of course toll costs.
Toll roads are much more prevalent in this part of the country than we’re used to – and if you’re not careful, a motorhome pulling a toad can sometimes rack up some ridiculously expensive fares.
We’ve been playing around with two mobile apps – TollSmart and Toll Calculator – to assist with route planning.
Both allow us to input the number of axles (we have a total of four – two for the bus, two for the MINI). The apps then show us what the tolls will be up ahead on different routes.
Super handy, and we’ll share more later after we’ve successfully navigated the northeast as to which is working better (but at only a couple bucks each, don’t wait on us.. download away!).
At any rate, we plugged in our next destination of Vineland, NJ (for our bus maintenance stop) and routing via the Delmarva Peninsula via the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel was more miles but a bit cheaper in tolls.
Since we love tunnels and bridges and have enjoyed the route before, we rather whimsically selected that route. And score, less city traffic too!
Sleeping on a Bridge Tunnel
As temperatures were increasing, we were really on a mission to get to open window weather as soon as possible. Which meant we wouldn’t have time to spend in North Carolina, despite having Charlotte & Asheville on our list of cities we’d like to explore.
We left the morning of the Orlando shootings, a community near and dear to our hearts (my old stomping grounds). It was an easy decision to just bypass North Carolina this time around and aim to get to Virginia (figuring we’d just Walmart overnight it.)
By the time we made it that far, we still had a couple hours of daylight left, Chris was feeling good to continue driving and I started scouting ahead for overnight options.
His ears perked when I asked: ‘Hey, want to sleep on the Bridge-Tunnel??’
I use several resources to find overnight parking & camping options (all detailed in our ‘Finding RV Camping’ Guide).
When I logged onto OvernightRVParking.com, they had a green dot in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay – noting that the fishing pier on South Timble Island allows 18 hour parking.
How cool would that be?
(The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel is a network of 20 miles of long bridges crossing the bay. However, due to fear that a collapsed bridge could shut down the shipping lanes, two sections of the bridge were constructed as tunnels to allow ships to pass over it.)
Some quick calculations, and we could make it out there just in time for sunset. Perfect! And if it didn’t work out for whatever reason, there was a Welcome Center just on the other end of the bridge tunnel that allows 48-hour parking too as a back-up option.
We turned off all our propane (as required to go through tunnels), paid our $31 toll and drove to the South Thimble Island bridge to tunnel transition. Which is a man made island about 3 miles out. Sure enough, signs showing 18-hour parking and RV spots provided.
On this little island, there is a fishing pier, gift shop and restaurant if you wanted to grab a bite.
But the island is small, and not exactly big rig friendly as a stopping point. Had it been busy, we could have been in quite the pickle. Here’s some tips if you want to try this:
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We drove the rest of the bridge/tunnel unhitched. Which means I got pics of the bus. The RV pull up spots are on the edge of the parking lot, and terribly unlevel. Not ideal for overnighting. But if it’s not busy, there is plenty of regular parking spaces next to the tunnel that are level. We opted to go down pretty far to the end so we wouldn’t be taking up needed parking space in the morning.
- To continue on in the same direction, you’ll have to re-enter the bridge tunnel on the same side you exited. And there is not a large enough turn around provided. We had to unhitch our toad and do a 3-point turn. Again, had the lot been busy, this would have been extra challenging – thankfully, it was pretty deserted for our entire stay. (Thanks to readers, we just learned if you call traffic control for the bridge-tunnel, they’ll stop traffic to make the otherwise illegal left turn back onto the tunnel.)
- The re-entry turn into the tunnel is pretty tight. We opted to just remain unhitched so Chris could back up if he needed to (and he did). And bonus, I got to take pictures of the bus going into a tunnel.
I can’t say it was the most restful night we’ve ever had. Sleeping next to a tunnel entry/exit is pretty loud.
But it was pretty awesome to sleep on a little tiny island in the middle of the bay. And since I was up anyway, I enjoyed a spectacular sunrise in the wee hours of the morning!
Mid-morning, we made the final dozen or so miles north to the southern tip of the Delmarva Peninsula (Delmarva = Delaware, Maryland & Virginia). We pulled into the welcome center, figuring we’d catch a nap, maybe some lunch and get some work done before deciding where to next.
When we walked into the welcome center, we were given permission to park in the back corner of the lot – away from the truck parking where we’d have a grassy lawn. We decided it was so nice, we’d just stay the night there!
The welcome center backs up to a wildlife refuge, with hiking trails, visitor center, dune overlook and historical sites. Pretty amazing for a rest stop. They do officially allow 48 hours of parking and welcome overnight RVers with open arms.
We ventured out for dinner in Cape Charles to Little Shanty on the water, and serendipitously arrived when the historical replica tall ship Kalmar Nyckel had just pulled in for the evening too. We had an amazing time talking with the volunteer crew (and quite tempted ourselves!) about this lovely vessel.
So, for our $31 toll – we got two free nights of camping, a few amazing experiences, entertainment, less traffic than routing through Baltimore and gorgeous views.
Yeah, we’ll take it!
What’s Up Next?
I started out intending this post to also cover our next stop at Pocomoke River State Park, but this one got long enough as is. So I’ll save that story for the next post.
We’re currently in northern Pennsylvania and will head later this week up into New York. We’re eyeing some HarvestHosts stays and then driveway surfing with some kind blog readers in the Utica area over 4th of July.
From there? We haven’t a clue. We’re really making this up as we go.
We are taking a trip up the coastal hwy 17 to chesapeake va and cross the bridge. We did this year’s ago and somehow took back rds to Amish country,not sure if it was Pa. Or Ohio…Could you help me out with this. Have you traveled that area?and if so please let me know where that route is,,I really would appreciate it. ..Hope yall have fun
Oh gosh.. Amish country is all over those parts. It could be anywhere. We tend to trust in serendipity and just follow the road. Enjoy!
In all the years I lived in that area, and as many times as I’ve been over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, I had NO idea there was a restaurant and gift shop on that island with the parking!
Thank you for the helpful tips. We plan to go to Washington D.C. in fall 2017 and we need all the help we can get with roads, tolls, camping sites. We are West Coasters and, like you, think the East Coast is quite foreign. Especially liked the tip for camping at the Delmarva Visitor Center. Thank you.
We’ve only RVd in the DC area once before, and remember it being difficult to find ideal camping spots. But so much to see there.
Looking at your future itinerary… I was just back in the Northeast in May. So much interesting countryside and history. New Hampshire is my home state, though I have lived in the West for all of my adult life. Can’t wait to be full-timing next year when I will have all the time for exploring and hanging out. The summer is a busy time in New England. The White Mountains may seem humble but have their own majesty, and lakes and rivers are plentiful throughout the state.Such as Lake Winnipesaukee. I have a friend who lives in Chatham surrounded by national forest on the Maine border. Northern Maine has lots of forests and lakes. Much of the land is owned by timber companies but they have provided (or used to) camping sites. Moosehead Lake and Baxter State Park might be worthwhile destinations. Looking forward to see what you find and how you like it. Happy and safe travels.
It’s all new territory for us and we’re so looking forward to seeing where we end up. So far though, loving it. So lovely here.
Great post! Love the details. Selling my home right now, and looking for an RV in the future. I will DEFINITELY purchase & download your apps when I get to that point of starting to move about. Cheers.
What a cool stop! And great tip in the toll calculator too.
Nina
We travel that route frequently, often with our camper. Great tip for an overnight! Thank you.
Love the article and the lead on the toll apps. Keep us posted which one you find more beneficial.
The toll apps definitely are coming in quite handy!
Perfect timing! We are also meandering up the east coast, albeit more slowly than you. We went thru Asheville (tubing down the French Broad River), drove the Blue Ridge Parkway to Blowing Rock, and have spent the last few weeks in VA exploring President’s homes and Civil War history (and working).
Today we leave our last spot in VA, heading to Delmarva (didn’t know it was called that). When I woke up this morning I still didn’t have a plan for the night … now I do … thanks for the overnight tips!
Hope your overnight was a success!
The east coast is like a foreign country to us – and we’re headed there this fall! Love the adventure of staying on the bridge-tunnel – just saying you did it is very cool 🙂 What a beautiful sunrise.
It is kinda like exploring a foreign land for us… it’s kinda nice to have new challenges 🙂 Hope you enjoy your adventures here too.
Been a cross the bridge many times, a beautiful drive. While up in Utica area you might want to stop at the finger lakes winery area which is very nice and on way back south there are couple cool little towns to stop, “Woodstock” and “Phoenicia” OR, the original Woodstock concert site in Bethel Woods NY. Fun fact- it was originally suppose to be held in Woodstock ( hence the name) but at the last minute when word was getting out that the crowd would be more than the 50,000 people that the promoters said would be there, they had to move it to Jagger’s farm in Bethel Woods.
Keep us posted and safe trip
Eddie
Thanks for the tips. Who knows were we might end up exploring.
Serendipity rewards you again!
New York State has so many gorgeous places. The Catskills, Ashokan Reservoir, then the Adirondacks, the Adirondack museum, Lake Placid and the Olympic venues. Their ski jump (they jump in summer, too) is fun. The Hudson Valley has many charming small towns, especially along the Hudson River. Enjoy!
So many options.. I have a feeling this summer is going to fly by, and we’ll have only seen a small portion of this area.
Awesome! Had no idea either of those parking spots was an option. We’ll definitely take advantage of this when we’re in Virginia this fall. Thanks guys & safe travels!
Awesome.. enjoy!
Thanks so much for sharing! We’ve driven that route many times on the way to my wife’s family in Vineland. We’ve always been focused on getting there, and I never realized we could overnight on the bridge or at the welcome center. But thanks to you, I can add a couple of morespots to the bucket list!
Glad we could help with some potential overnight stops! I’m super glad we had the Welcome Center the next night, as the night on the bridge really was pretty unrestful.
Interesting adventure! Thanks for sharing!
Awww. We are at the beach in beautiful Rhode Island, not far…relatively speaking….lol
We are full-time but still locally employed so we chose a seasonal stay at Ashaway RV Resort near Misquamicut beach. Lovely area with lots to do and see.! We are nestled between Mystic, CT and Newport, RI.
Come explore!
Awesome.. we’re still trying to figure out how we make it out that way. It is so close looking relative to the rest of the map, but yet so far away!
Come up to NH in the White Mtn Area…We are new RV-ers, got an old Holiday Rambler for our 1st class A. Just did a N. Carolina trip and back up through Tenn. We are hooked. I found your site while I was looking for a wifi booster / repeater setup, and have been checking out (jealous) your “on the road” lifestyle. We are in the process of selling everything and hitting the road!
Have room for your old bus, up in the back country on a dirt road on 15 acres…Have high speed cable internet!
Awesome guys.. so glad the lifestyle struck a chord with you. Send us an e-mail at contact@technomadia.com with info on your lovely sounding invite, and we’ll see if we can route your way later this summer (and thanks!)
Hello – I grew up in NW Pennsylvania, and many summers as a kid were spent traveling the NE US. I remember the CBBT fondly. We just closed on the sale of our s&b yesterday and are ever closer to lif eon the road in our 5er! Happy travels!
Congrats on the closing of your house.. and cheers to the adventures ahead of you!
Aw man! Drive right by me. I’m an organizer of a mini burn here in South Central PA July 8th thru 10th. We have RV spots. 😉
https://m.facebook.com/events/958022284247213?acontext=%7B“ref”%3A3%2C”action_history”%3A”null”%7D&aref=3
Bummer… wish we had known sooner. Just yesterday I was telling Chris it has been too long since we’ve been to a burn.