Neuseway Campground - Kinston, NC

By the time my Mom reads this, she will know that I have told her a few fibs these past few weeks (more like months)!  But there was a very good reason for it....more on this in my next post!  Sherry - you saw this header before I actually posted it and can only assume it was a quirk with blogger!  Sorry for any confusion!

We needed to spend a few days somewhere before heading back to Cedar Point and had heard good things about Neuseway Campground.   The campground was easy to get to and, at $12 a night for full hook-ups, we figured we couldn't go wrong!    We pulled in and got settled quickly and then it was off on the pedal bikes to explore the area.  In addition to the campground, there are a few trails, three stocked ponds, a nature center, planetarium and museum.   The nature center, planetarium and museum are FREE.

Site 21

Both Monday and Tuesday mornings, we took the kayak out for a paddle (okay - we did use the trolling motor some!) on the Neuse.  The scenery was spectacular and we had the river to ourselves both days!  I was on the hunt for birds and we saw several red-tailed hawks, herons and a woodpecker. 

Captain of our vessel!



There's a teepee in the campground too!



Trolling up the Neuse - lunch is packed (see nose of boat)!

Our RV from the river.

Love those Cypress trees - this pic is for our Carolina Clan buddies!

Relaxing on the Neuse - such a great day!

There wasn't a good place for us to stop along the way for lunch so we ended up at the boat dock where 70 crosses the river.  Again, we had the place to ourselves (should we be wondering why we never see people out and about?!!) until one lone kayaker (from our campground) showed up about 5 minutes before we were getting ready to head back out on the water.  For those of you that are from the area, check out the water line markings from Hurricane Fran and Hurricane Floyd.  This really put the power of mother nature into perspective. 

We were thrilled that we were able to kayak both days and commented about how nice the weather was for November!

Dan and I both wanted to check out the Nature Center and I really wanted to go to the planetarium.  There was a school bus in the parking lot so we were a bit hesitant to go as we were afraid that the crowds would be crazy.  But, as luck would have it, we had both places all to ourselves (kids were at the playground)!  The guide put on a really nice show for us at the planetarium and I'm anxious to see if we can remember what we learned next time we are exploring the night sky!  Before the show started at the planetarium, being the big kids that we are, Dan and I played around in the museum.

Dan was much better at this life-sized Operation game than I was!

Woman on the Moon!

 It was then on to the Nature Center....

18 lb crab - this one is for you Elaine!

Sorry for the glare but the message is important!

Iguana looking at me.

Gar fish

Hmm.....sorry Artina but this guy is just not pretty!

More water markings from Hurricane Fran and Floyd. 

The Nature Center had quite a few more live animals including a snake exhibit and an underground cave that housed nocturnal animals and a few aquariums.  They also have a really cool cockatiel named Oliver.  We had the best time trying to get him to talk to us.  As soon as we moved away from him, he would chatter to us.  It was like he wouldn't perform in front of us but when we weren't paying attention to him, he would call out to us. 

We had a nice time at Neuseway and would definitely go back if we were in the area again.