Live the Life at Virginia Beach

Rain last night, but clearing up in the morning. Departed for Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad State Park and Visitor Center in Church Creek, about 25 min. drive. Through informative and evocative exhibits this center is a good place to get oriented on byway sites where Tubman’s life unfolded.  She was a heroic leader in the fight against slavery. Her selfless efforts helped more than 70 enslaved people break the bonds of slavery via flight on the Underground Railroad. The Harriet Tubman Scenic Byway follows a pathway leading northward across a landscape that has changed little in the 150 years since Tubman and others risked their lives for freedom. 

 Next stop: Blackwater Wildlife Refuge, a nature center with an observation deck and trails. We even spotted Bald Eagles, besides this butterfly on the photo:

 

 

Drove part of the Tubman Heritage Trail before we made our way towards Virginia Beach via the Eastern Shore, from Cambridge through Salisbury South, on "Delmarva" (short for "Delaware-Maryland-Virginia") Peninsula, and entered Virginia.

Unfortunately, the shores of the Southern tip of the peninsula aren't well accessible, there is only Hwy 13 - bordered by woods, corn and sorghum fields, running through. Wish, we would have had more time to explore the remote beaches and the islands!

Grand finalé of the trip was the drive on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel (above), which connects the Virginia mainland at Virginia Beach near Norfolk with Virginia's Eastern Shore. This 17.6 mile long road - which costs $ 14 toll - is an engineering marvel and  considered one of the seven man-made wonders of the world. It took us about 25 min. to get over it and to reach Virginia Beach, a huge area of predominantly beach hotels and endless beaches at the point where Chesapeake Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean. 

 

 

Our first stop in the area were the  two lighthouses located at Cape Henry (above) within Fort Story military base near the northern end of Virginia Beach. Being on military training grounds, there were controls and security checks taking place before we could climb the original Cape Henry Lighthouse (photo right), the 4th oldest lighthouse in the country, and the first lighthouse authorized by the U.S. government, dating from 1792. authorized by President George Washington after the Revolutionary War. In 1881, a newer lighthouse (left photo) was constructed 350 feet from the original, but this one can't be visited.

Checked into our Hyatt Place Hotel - first row oceanfront and really nice! Photo shows view from our balcony. 

Despite our comfy room, we still walked the boardwalk (currently, midweek and a bit out-off season, pretty convenient and not crowded at all) with its famous Neptune sculpture, and ended in one of about a dozen breweries in the area - Smartmouth - for Happy Hour at sunset.