Heading Back to Myrtle Beach

Well we left Kim and Sean's at about 7:30 this morning to head back to Myrtle Beach. We stopped at Dunkin Donuts and picked up some caffeine for the ride through NJ and PA. Things went fine until we got almost to the Rt 78 and Rt 81 connection and then we stuck in traffic for about 25 minutes due to a tractor trailer/car accident, and we are pretty sure the car came out second best by the looks of it. The rest of the trip wasn't bad until we got to the Rt 17 and Rt 95 interchange as we sat in a 3 mile traffic jam for 30 minutes due to traffic getting onto Rt 95 S. We stopped in Ashland for the night as we had had enough heavy traffic and traffic jams for the day. Of course we cached along the way and found 8 caches. We found 5 in the rest stops along Rt 81, 1 in an Exxon gas station, 1 in a Quality Inn and 2 other very interesting ones.
The first is Burning and Hangings in Stephens City, VA. The story goes that as the Federal Army attempted to conquer and hold the Valley in 1864, its lines of supply and communication were extended and became susceptible to attacks by bands of Confederate partisans. On May 24, 1864 under orders from Union General David Hunter, three residences in Newtown (now Stephen City) were burned in retaliation for shots fired at a wagon train the night before. Five days later Confederate Major Harry Gilmore's 2nd Maryland Battalion attacked 16 wagons and their guards at the north end of the village and captured the entire train and 40 prisoners. Two wagons were overturned at the crossing of Stephen's Run just south of here. The following day Col. John S. Mosby's Rangers ambushed another heavily guarded Union wagon train just south of Newtown causing a general flight back through the village. One Federal soldier captured during this rout was brought to Newtown and given his final breakfast on horseback and executed. The words "shot for barn burning" were written with a piece of charred wood on the plaster wall above his head. On May 31st, Hunter ordered a detachment of the 1st New York (Lincoln) Cavalry back to Newtown to " burn every house, store and outbuilding in the place". While enroute, Union Major Joesph K. Stearns and his fellow officers discussed whether to carry out the order in light of Gilmour's posted notice at Hull's store in Newtown that prisoners held by him would be hanged if Hunter's orders were followed. Many citizens of the community took the oath of allegiance to the United States hoping to save their homes. Stearns decided not to carry out Hunters order and the town was spared.
The other cache we found very interesting was Mama Zuma's Revenge in Middletown, VA. This town was established in 1794 by the VA General Assembly and the Great Wagon Road ran through here. This road was established in 1735 and ran from Philadelphia, PA to Augusta, GA. Well anyway the cache was located next to a old fashioned potato chip company called Route 11 Chips. It has been there for only 10 years and was sprouted in an old feed store in Middletown. The only purpose they had when they opened was to produce the best potato chip on the planet. Everything they make is hand made and you can go in 6 days a week and watch them as they make the chips and sample them. They make Lightly Salted, BBQ, Dill Pickle, Sour Cream and Chives, Chesapeake Crab, Salt and Vinegar, Garlic and Herb, Sweet Potato, Sweet Potato Cinnamon and Sugar, Mixed Vegetable, Yukon Gold, Hayman Chips, Mama Zumas Revenge Habanero and Mama Zuma's Revenge Green Chile Enchilada Chips hence the name of the cache. If your interested you can visit their website at www.rt11.com. I will post pictures on all our trip as soon as we get back to MB. Well time to close for the day....LOVE to everyone.