Welcome to my 14-day series on our East Coast Road Trip where I share our adventures along the way, how we're doing this on a budget, honest reviews of attractions & restaurants we visit, and money-saving tips and ideas. If you missed it, read Day 1 here, Day 2 here, Day 3 here, Day 4 here, Day 5 here, Day 6 here, and Day 7 here.
Well, we had planned to get to Boston by late afternoon, but the day didn’t quite pan out like that…
We were just going to drive through Connecticut (our first time to visit the state!), but we stopped to buy a case of water (it’s SO much cheaper to buy water by the case than to buy individual bottles!) and 2 $6 footlongs to split at the Subway in Madison.
(Need an inexpensive but somewhat healthy meal option? We love to split footlongs — especially whatever is the special of the day priced at just $6 per footlong.)
We wanted to eat outside, but there was no place to eat outside at the rest stop. So we drove to the sign that said Hammonasset State Park and were going to pull in and eat at a picnic table there. Only it was $22 to park in the park — which we didn’t want to pay (of course!) since we were just planning to make it a quick 20-minute stop to eat our lunch!!
We found a nearby (free!) parking spot at the Shoreline Trail. There were signs about the beach and I just couldn’t really bear the thought that we were so close to a beach and couldn’t see it because of the trees. (If you know me well, you know that the beach is my happy place!)
I figured the beach must be super close so I asked Jesse if I could take the Shoreline Trail for a bit and go find it. Kaitlynn wanted to come with me. So off we went!
And I’m so glad we did — even if it ended up being a much longer walk than we had anticipated, because the beach was absolutely gorgeous!!! And the weather was perfect.
I called Jesse (who was still back at the trail head with Kathrynne and Silas) and was like, “I know we were only planning to stay here for 20 minutes, but this beach is AMAZING! Is there any way that you could walk here and meet us? I don’t think you’ll regret it!”
Always one for adventure, he walked to meet us at the beach and we all had fun playing in the water (well, as much as the kids could since they didn’t want to get completely drenched!) and just enjoying the beautiful view!
So much for the 20 minute pit stop! We were probably there at least an hour and half! But it was worth it!
We then drove on through Rhode Island (our first time to be there!) and made it to Massachusetts (another new state for us!) We stopped at Cape Cod for a short while (it was beautiful!) and then headed to Plymouth.
Plymouth was quite the hopping place, which somewhat surprised us — especially since it was past 8 pm on a Saturday evening. We got dinner at a total tourist-y place (Pebbles Restaurant) because it was the only place close and we were so hungry! But it ended up being great food and I got to try Fried Dough for the first time (yum!!)
We pulled into our hotel in Boston only to discover Jesse had booked it for the wrong night on accident and they were sold out. So 11 pm found us sitting in our car searching online for a hotel in a good area that was a good rate that didn’t charge $40 for parking! We finally found one and crashed there around midnight!
Have you been to Connecticut or Rhode Island before? Any suggestions for the best free or inexpensive places to visit there?
