Happy Hour c/o Fin's, Night Times c/o Cape Henlopen State Park

As is my wont, last week marked my first camping excursion to Delaware. I took Thursday and Friday off, which allowed me to get down there without too much terrible beach traffic. I arrived a little after 1 on Thursday, put together my tent, blew up the air mattress, got ice to keep my strange collection of snacks and drinks cool, and then headed on out to try Fin's Happy Hour. I read that sometimes there is a line to get in the door at 4. And I hate lines, so I got there at 3:45 and wouldn't you know it other folks had the same idea and when the door opened exactly at four, it took about six minutes for all the bar stools to be full in the bar area. When it was my turn to order I immediately went with a dozen of the happy hour oysters - six of the Hog Island variety and six of the Chincoteague. This worked out to $5.75 a half dozen. I found the Hog Islands to have that super salty with a touch of fish pucker, while the Chincoteagues were a wee bit mellower with a nice sweet finish. I went with a Troeg's Pale Ale, which was refreshing and not too hoppy.

I I also took advantage of the 1/2 pound of shrimp for something like $5. Nicely steamed and seasoned, I was well satisfied and full within 45 minutes of sitting down. The bar is run well. Bartenders and shuckers communicating effectively, doing the dance of moving around one another without the clatter of a fallen tray or shatter of a breaking glass.

Though I knew I would be hungry again before the night was done, I did feel like I couldn't possibly eat any more so after about an hour or so at Fin's I paid my bill (which came to just a little less than $25 (the bartender comped me one of my two beers, which was a nice thing) and made my way back to the camp. This year I chose a site on one of the outer rings, which meant that I only had neighbors to the left and right of me, and across the road....but that in one direction it was just woods and sand. This allowed me a little more sense of privacy and lovely sky views.

I spent the rest of my evening sipping on beers and reading the third Game of Thrones book. My goodness, once you get sucked in, you're in.