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| Okeechobee sunset |
It was just fog droplets that were collecting on the
windshield as we pulled out of Collier Seminole that morning – right?? It was just an overload of humidity coming
in off of the Gulf of Mexico that was barely a half-mile away in that creek by
the boat launch - right?? Things were going to dry out and we were
going to camp at Midway, the National Park campground half way across the
Tamiami Trail and we were finally going to get to ride our bikes the whole 15
mile length of the road in Shark Valley - right? Wrong! As soon as we
rounded the curve and passed Everglade City – the low hanging clouds let loose
and released their pent up moisture.
All the blasted way across the glades it rained. As we passed the casino on the eastern edge
of the glades (where we have parked for the night in years past) and turned
from Rt 41 to go north on Rt 997 it rained!
It did let up as we passed by the spread out sugar cane fields in
various stages of growth or burnt out blackness. It waited long enough for us to park the big blue truck and
attached “condo” on the still damp concrete parking pad in the Palm Beach
County Campground in South Bay. Then
it let loose again! The grassy areas
were saturated and the lovely big pond in the center of the park was full! The screened in laundry/shower room building
was just across a small turn around area next to us so we took advantage of the
time and got our laundry done, dancing around puddles and splashing thru soggy
grass to get to and from the protection of our out stretched awning. The next day was either overcast and gray
or raining again. We made the best of
the situation by heading out and exploring some of H’s old haunts and hangouts
from his past when he spent time during his “single days” of long ago! Drove thru “little Haiti” in Belle Glade and
revisited the campground to see if it was worth moving to instead of signing up
for more days at South Bay. NO – it wasn’t!
Farther up the eastern side of Lake Okeechobee in Pahokee was another
campground, right on the banks of the lake itself. Way too steep of a price and way too steep of a climb to get
over the levee pulling the trailer.
Let me explain about Lake Okeechobee, the nations 2nd
largest natural lake. Water from
farther north in Florida flows to the south and ends up filtering thru the
everglades before reaching the ocean.
Years ago men in authority thought it would be best to hold up the flow
when it reached Lake Okeechobee. So they built a tall levee around the entire
lake. On the outside of the levee they
dug canals. To gain access to the lake
they built large locks for boat to pass thru but still hold water in the
lake. To make a shortcut for other
vessels – they dug an even larger canal/river from Port Lucie on the Atlantic
side and exiting to the west and out to Ft Myers and the Gulf of Mexico via the
Caloosahatchee River. The lake is
famous for its fishing. It stands to
reason then that it would be surrounded by marinas and fishing camps that pass
themselves off as “RV Resorts”.
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| lock into the lake |
Zachary Taylor RV Resort is a Passport America resort at the
north end of the lake and is planted on the banks of a canal that just so
happens to lead to one of the many locks whose long wooden protecting arms
stretch out into the lake. Near
downtown Okeechobee city is a new fishing pier that has replaced one destroyed
by a hurricane. After a lovely fish
dinner at one of the local restaurants, the pier was a nice way to walk off
supper and enjoy the last view of the sun as it disappeared behind the next batch
of storm clouds that was rolling in.
