The campground at Naval Weapons Station, Joint Base Charleston – Foster Creek Campground – is a lovely place to stay.  We truly enjoyed our time there.

Saturday was a leisurely start and we planned to take care of a few errands.  Preventive maintenance is always high on our list – so the truck received a much-needed exchange of bodily fluids – oil change.  After that, we explored the commissary.  It was a little (okay, a lot) disappointing to find that they did not have fresh seafood…and not a whole lot in the way of frozen.  Seafood boil was still on my list – and I was determined to acquire the necessary ingredients to create the feast.  We came away with shrimp and cod, (the Andouille sausage was already in the freezer at home) corn on the cob and baby red potatoes.  I was also on the hunt for blueberries, blackberries, jalapenos, sugar, Sure Jell, and jelly jars for a jam recipe that I discovered by way of a friend.  Left the commissary with Sure Jell and sugar – was missing the rest of the ingredients.  Fortunately, we found a local grocery store that was refreshingly well stocked!  Not only did I get my jelly jars, berries, jalapenos, and Jujy Fruits (for Bill) – I found crab legs for the boil.

Returning home, we commenced cooking.  The Kentucky Bar Fight Jam was quick to put together and very tasty!  You might not want it on your morning toast, but it is fabulous on crackers (and with a little cream cheese).  I’m pretty sure it has a bunch of other great possibilities.  It is made with blueberries, blackberries, jalapenos, apple cider vinegar, and bourbon.  Apple Butter was next.  I wanted to use the Ashmead’s Kernel apples from Virginia, so prepped the apples and started the slow simmering process.  The scent of apples, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and ginger was really pleasant; and the end result was delicious!  Last, but not least – the seafood boil.  It was everything I hoped for – and in the comfortable setting of home – at the picnic table, in a lovely sunset.

One thing about South Carolina…No See-ums.  My arms and lower legs look like I have Chicken Pox.  The itching is intense and insane.  Joy.  Not.  This may be why none of the other people in the campground venture outside of their rigs.

Sunday dawned another beautiful day.  We went to the Base Chapel and thoroughly enjoyed the friendly welcome we received, the beautiful music we heard, and the message.  Excellent start to the day.  After a short trip back home to let Piper stretch her legs, we set off for Patriots Point in Mount Pleasant.  We toured the USS Yorktown – first time for both of us being on an aircraft carrier.  We were impressed!  The hangar deck and flight deck were well-stocked with aircraft.  The flight deck held a display of Viet Nam Era aircraft.  Part of the tour included crew’s quarters, kitchen, bakery, and all the other amenities you need to have a complete floating community.  Even found a recipe to make chocolate chip cookies for 10,000!

They had a submarine as well – we didn’t tour that:

And a lovely bridge that we crossed a couple times:

Monday was most interesting, and not because it was Columbus Day (or Indigenous Peoples Day).  We were preparing to leave for Savannah, anticipating leaving about 1100 hrs. since it was a short trip, and we couldn’t check in until after 1400 hrs. at the next campground.  Bill was getting ready for the day and discovered he couldn’t find his wallet.  Talk about a real sinking feeling!  We were able to trace it back to knowing that he had it at a gas station – one of our last stops on Sunday.  We started backtracking, visiting our stops, and making phone calls to locate the wallet.  Considerable searching was conducted in the truck and the house to no avail.  Finally, we just hooked up and headed out after putting credit cards in blocked status….to be continued…

Patriots Point:  https://www.patriotspoint.org/