The Adventures of Asher & Journey: Sleeping in Driveways of Strangers {Rhode Island}

We've been living in the RV for almost four years, but here comes a new "first"- sleeping in strangers' driveways! Yes, I'm serious. But it's not quite as weird as it sounds. We are members of a website called Boondockers Welcome which is a matchmaking site of sorts. It's matches people who have RV parking at their home with those who need a place to park their RV for the night. You must be fully self-contained (have a toilet and water, etc) so you don't need to bother the home owners. Some hosts offer amenities like power, water, wifi, even a rare dump station, while others simply a safe place to park. We've had this membership for years, but haven't actually used it until now.

Upon our arrival, the homeowner directed us into our spot for the night and plugged us in. Asher and Journey got out to meet the owners' children. A couple minutes later, the four of them were laughing while giving the trampoline a workout! My kids didn't want to leave, but now that we had arrived in Rhode Island we were anxious to check out Newport's magnificent Cliff Walk before dark.

The Cliff Walk, designated a National Recreation Trail, is a 3.5 mile walkway with mansions on one side and cliffs overlooking the ocean on the other. We chose to begin our walk from Forty Steps.

Salve Regina University's McAuley Hall sits along the cliff walk. Such a fabulous piece of architecture!

Thru these gates were mansions so regal, they have their own names. The Breakers is just one of the homes along this trail owned by the Vanderbuilts. The paved trail turns rocks at the Rosecliff mansion (featured in the Great Gatsby movie). This is where we stopped and turned back.

By the time we reached Forty Steps again, the fog was so thick, we couldn't see the water. We headed back to our spot for the night. The family invited us in to chat for a bit. They had recently taken an extended trip out west to some of our favorite places, so we enjoyed looking at photos and sharing stories while the kids played ping pong and LEGO. Our first experience with Boondockers Welcome was a smashing success! Good thing, because our second experience would be with a new host the very next night! But first we drove back to Newport to take a tour of Fort Adams. After arriving early, we ventured out onto the docks in the dense fog. It was eerie to spot only the top sail of a boat in the water not far from us, and fortunately the fog did burn off before we reached the top of the fort.

This Army base opened in 1799 but the fort was rebuilt three times. What you see here wasn't finished until nearly 50 years later. The third and final build was designed by Brigadier General Simon Bernard, a Frenchman who served under Napoleon. He knew all the ways the fort could come under attack and as a result built the most defensible fort in the western hemisphere. In service from 1841 to 1950, thru five major wars, it's amazing that its soldiers never fired a shot in anger. Our tour guide called it the most expensive insurance policy ever!

At 871,200 sqft, the fort is so large, you could fit Fort McHenry, Fort Sumter, AND Fort Ticonderoga inside with plenty of space left over.

This bunk room is reservable to groups like Boy Scouts.

View of the Newport Bridge from the top of the Fort.

The fort was armed with 468 cannons, 32 and 24 pounder seacoast guns, as well as 24 pounder flank howitzers!

Here we enter the dark, narrow listening tunnels where soldiers would be able to detect the sound of the enemy digging under the perimeter walls. If they did, they could easily pack that particular tunnel with explosives to solve that problem.