Located in Columbia, NJ, the Lakota Wolf Preserve is home to some two dozens animals, including wolves, bobcats, and foxes.  Part wildlife sanctuary, part education center, the preserve offers tours twice a day at 10:30 and 4:00.  Reservations are required for weekday tours but not weekend tours.  The reservation process seemed a bit antiquated and overly complicated, but after a few back and forth phone calls we were able to reserve a morning tour on a Friday. Located on the property of the Camp Taylor Campground, the preserve sits on the border of New Jersey and Pennsylvania.  Centuries ago, wolves …

On all of our previous visits to NYC from Central NJ, we have taken the train.  NJ Transit is easy and affordable.  It is also incredible boring.  It functions primarily as a commuter train system and therefore caters to commuters more than families or vacationers.  Even when my kids were train-loving pre-schoolers, they didn’t enjoy the long and boring ride.  The trip from Red Bank to New York Penn Station (not to be confused with Newark Penn Station, which is the stop right before and sounds pretty much the same on garbled train announcements), takes almost an hour and a …

Visible from Harbour Town, Daufuskie Island sits across the Calibogue Sound from Hilton Head.  It is an island with a fascinating history and an equally fascinating present.  With no bridge connecting it to the mainland, it is a place where time has seemingly stood still.  Golf carts and bicycles are the main mode of transportation.  There is no hospital, no police, no grocery store.  The small country store has a sign in the front window stating “If we don’t have it, you don’t need it!”  Life is simple here by choice and its roughly 400 residents love it that way. …

During our most recent stay in Hilton Head, we decided that we wanted to visit Daufuskie Island.  Visible from the Harbour Town Lighthouse, Daufuskie Island sits across the Calibogue Sound and is only accessible by boat.  There are several ferry or water taxi options, but once we decided to take a tour through Tour Daufuskie, we were left with two choices: the Daufuskie Island Ferry or May River Excursions. The Daufuskie Island Ferry leaves from Buckingham Landing at the foot of the Hilton Head Bridge.  (It is across the bridge so actually off the island.)  Round-trip tickets cost $35 (children …

Harbour Town has a little bit of everything – shops, restaurants, boats, water activities, a playground, a lighthouse, a golf course.  There is something for everyone there.  Over the years we have been there to eat, shop, play, and even take a super fun pirate cruise with Pirates of Hilton Head back when the boys were younger. Located in Sea Pines, one of the largest plantations on Hilton Head, Harbour Town is a top destination for visitors to Hilton Head.  If you are not staying in Sea Pines, there is a fee to get in – as well as a long …

Hilton Head is a barrier island featuring twelve miles of beautiful beachfront in Beaufort County, South Carolina.  Located close to both Savannah and Charleston, the island offers pristine white sand beaches, more than a dozen championship golf courses, 64 miles of bike trails, and over 250 restaurants.  That’s a lot to pack in to a 5 by 12 mile island! Hilton Head Island is divided into 11 gated communities known as plantations.  Some of these communities are private (year-round residents only), but many are public or semi-private and offer resorts and activities for vacationers.  We have been coming to Hilton …