Have trailer will travel

Palm Beach Area

2012-02-12T18:12:00.001-08:00

Palm Beach Area

2012-02-12T18:11:00.000-08:00

It was a long day, moving from the Glades up the edge of Fort Lauderdale, past Delray Beach where H’s Aunt Ruth used to live and up to Lake Worth. LOTS of traffic, a roll over auto accident, road construction and H’s CB radio that wasn’t working, didn’t help the stress. John Prince County Park has a golf course, soccer fields, fitness trails and miles and miles of paved bike trails. Lake Osborne and the attached canals that connect it to a half dozen other small lakes take up 2 sides of the campground. The third side is a VERY active county airport and a state college campus is across the road. The 14-day, short-term campsites are right along the lake and the two traveling brothers were assigned 2 close by spots in a small circular area. The other five of the seven sites had Quebec license plates on their vehicles. On the first day we were too tired to care. H and R needed their “Happy Hour – right away! On the 2nd day we took off to go explore the area – we needed to be sure of where the Tri Rail Train station was for the following day! H directed and Ron, obediently drove down to Delray Beach past the home where their Aunt and Uncle used to live and then out and up A1A along the narrow winding road, lined with 10 foot tall manicured hedges that protected and hid the mansions and estates of the “rich and famous” in Palm Beach. Since we had already attended the 100th Anniversary of the completion of the Flagler Railroad down on Pigeon Key, we used R&N’s GPS and located the Museum and Mansion of Henry Flagler. R parked the truck and the 4 of us approached the intricate black wrought iron gate that adorned the front fence to find out the museum was closed on Mondays. Go figure. Disappointment didn’t linger long after we climbed back into the truck and set the GPS to find the zoo in West Palm Beach – we were out exploring and now we were hunting for wild animals! The biggest wild animals there were a fat fuzzy lazy black bear, 3 half grown tiger cubs, a huge black Tapir and a young Jaguar whose coat was soft and spotted but his teeth said he wasn’t in the mood to be petted. The number of monkeys, brightly feathered ducks and long legged tropical birds was unreal! And did you know that if you rattle the animal feed handle they will all come a flapping! Great way to get up close pictures! In the Glades we watched Spoonbills while they swooshed their beaks thru the water, sifting for food. At the zoo we watched bright coral Flamingos with their entire heads upside down under water looking for bits of seafood for dinner!

Next day was our train trip to Miami. The Tri Rail Train is a double decker passenger train that runs from West Palm Beach south to Miami and back. Of course – SPFB! H prefers to play train tour guide on the weekend when us old folks get a reduced rate but we weren’t going to be there on the weekend. Ron and Nancy had wanted to do this trip! On our last trip, I didn’t remember how creepy the bus ride was from the train out to Miami Beach. The city map shows the area as “Little Havana”. Lunch was out on Lincoln Mall – just like the last time. The Panini and pizza was good but the people watching was even better!! N mentioned the “Art Deco” area so H led the way, via the boardwalk that followed the edge of the beach. Eventually we climbed back on another bus that took us back over the turquoise water. Up the steps and onto the people mover thru town to the Government Center where we climbed another set of steps to the Metro rail. Back to the Tri Rail station and we finished up our transportation chase with a northbound trip back to Lake Worth. We were exhausted!

South Florida

2012-02-01T19:25:00.001-08:00

South Florida

2012-02-01T19:24:00.000-08:00

Long Key State Park – SPFB!! The days were sunny and WARM! We donned our water shoes, grabbed the snorkel bucket (the white bucket with the glass bottom!) and have gone out exploring the ocean bottom for “treasures”! I have some new ones to bring home! This year I found a Sea Urchin. It looks like a Sand Dollar on steroids! Last year we saw a Batfish and we’ve seen one twice this year along with Manta Rays, Puffer fish and Boxfish! It was so easy to get the orange bubbles into the calm sea since last year the canoe never left the top of the Jeep the entire time we were here. Our new underwater discovery was the Flower Pot Sponges that looked just like the big black plastic pots that bushes and trees come in from the tree nursery and Barrel Sponges that look just like a big squatty barrels! Showing Nancy the world of under water sea treasures (via the snorkel bucket!) was fun! Most of the seashells we picked up had to be returned to the exiting tide area because they had hermit crabs in residence! One evening I gave a big yell and N came to my rescue to help corral and then take pictures of a big Blue Land Crab that was side stepping across our patio rug trying to get to the protective cover of the Mangrove jungle on the other side of our “condo” before being discovered! And the sunsets behind our “condo” were phenomenal, especially when the peach and coral colors reflected off of Ron’s trailer!

Our next moving day was stressful - - - 3 miles up Highway 1 to Fiesta Key Resort. Last year we parked along the canal but this year they gave us the “cheap seats” closer to the road and up against the mangroves. We were scheduled to park right next to R&N, however – the sites were SO narrow and there was a palm tree planted too close to where the trailer was to sit so we moved over one spot – leaving an empty site between us and R&N making the neighborhood more spacious! Thankfully the park did not fill up and no one was crammed in between us! No cell service and no wifi still but the swimming pool was great and the little store had a good supply of ice cream cones! H was happy in spite of it all!

Up the road and out of the Keys, past the fields of strawberries and sweet corn where the irrigation sprinklers were spewing long lines of wet spray over the young tender plants. Over and down to the end of the southern most road in the Everglades – Flamingo, so we could park for a few more days before we started our eventual slow trip north. The objective for these few days was to rent a boat and venture out into the dark waters of the glades. Now, a 16ft skiff with a 40 horsepower motor should have moved us along with no problem. Should have! As long as we were traveling in a “no wake” length of the long narrow channel, we did ok. We passed the pontoon tour boat when they stopped to see a Crocodile. They passed us when we stopped to get shots of the next motionless croc! They passed us several times after that because once we were out in the larger lake area, and the boys threw the throttle wide open, the water logged vessel sludged up to a whopping 6 mph. We plowed across the choppy waters to the next channel and regretfully turned around to head back to the marina because we were running out of rental time. “Exploring the Glades” was not to be. The young man who assigned us this abused tub told us to just call the marina IF we had problems and he would come right out and get us. Yeah, right. Both attempts to reach him ended up in a never-ending circle of recorded nonsense messages. But – we made it back and our attempts to explain the woeful quality of the vessel fell on deaf ears.

Time to move on again came too quickly but we still had time to stop at one of the turnouts on the road back out of the glade and watched several Roseate Spoonbills swish their long spoon shaped bills back and forth in the water looking for a fishy tidbit for lunch. The dark water of the pond, surrounded by pines, palms and mangroves was so peaceful and calm but H was ready to be on our way. There was plenty of time before we were to park one more at the casino for the night, so we headed to Biscayne Bay National Park for a picnic lunch. Nancy got another stamp for her National Park Passport Book! The afternoon was way nicer than the night we spent parked in the expressway lane of the parking lot at the casino. It was the weekend! The casino was packed with people and smoke from all the cigarettes they puffed on. The parking lot was also crowded and got more so as the night progressed. Some dummies even parked within 3 feet of the front bumper of the truck. Two “good old boys” with their big trucks and trailers carrying airboats! H was tempted to just unhook their unlocked trailers and roll them back so we could pull forward. Good thing it was Ron who was parked behind us so when he pulled out – we could back up and get out.

Keeping to the outskirts of Miami and Fort Lauderdale we edged our way up Rt 27 and then Rt 441 thru all the traffic congestion and traffic lights. It seemed like an all day task but we finally made it to John Prince Park Campground in Lake Worth. We have electricity, and cell phone service, and wifi!

To The Keys

2012-01-20T13:53:00.001-08:00

To The Keys

2012-01-20T13:51:00.000-08:00

Route 27 is a long, long road that leads from Highlands Hammocks State Park in Sebring, down thru Lake Placid, around the bottom corner of Lake Okeechobee and then down towards Miami. We started out driving thru grove after grove, row after row of square topped dark green trees, laden with bright orange fruit! By the time we rounded the corner of the lake we were driving thru extensive fields of various stages of sugar cane - from its earliest young grassy shoots to the fields of tall thick and shaggy cane ready for harvest. Not missing – again – was the accompanying clouds of dark gray smoke that burns off the residue from the fields. From Rt 27 and south on Rt 997 the fields went from cane to truck farms of tomatoes, strawberries and sweet corn. Then the tropical plants and flowers came next.

Near the corner of Rt 997 and Rt 41 we stopped at a gun club for the “boys” to blow off some steam and shoot some rounds of skeet. Both said they had fun but didn’t shoot their best. Oh, well. Nancy and I took a break from sitting on the hard cold picnic bench, where we had perched to knit and to watch the guys point, yell “PULL” and then shoot at those innocent orange clay “pigeons”, by investigating the collection of multi colored empty plastic shell casings in the nearby trash barrel. The bright colors are now on N’s cell phone as her screen saver!

The Miccosukee Bingo and Gaming Casino offers free overnight parking for RVer’s and there were several besides us that were taking advantage of it. We were also told about a pretty good meal of steak and lobster tail for less than $10 that we also took advantage of! When H and I park at a casino overnight, we usually make our “donation” of $1 to one of their machines and then leave. This time it was the poker machines that we all 4 ended up sitting in front of. H made his usual donation. My donation kept working it’s way from $1.12 up to $2.80 and back down several times before bottoming out. Nancy’s disappeared also. Ron on the other hand took home $10 to replace his “donation”. AND we had each signed up for a “Players Card” which gave each player a coupon for a Buy One, Get One Free Meal”! Breakfast was going to be from their buffet line in the morning! Back out in the blacktop parking lot we settled in for the night with the lights on the casino acting as a glowing green and blue nightlight, along with all the sparkling stars above. The following morning the grackles woke us up with their raucous chatter and line dancing on the roof of the condo! A custom made omelet and fresh fruit breakfast from the buffet really got our day started and soon we were headed for the KEYS!

Route ONE can be as long as I 75 and the mile markers that run the length of this chain of islands, which are joined by causeways and 42 bridges, start out at 112 and end at “0” in Key West! The island of Marathon is at MM 50 and we parked at MM 58 in the Jolly Roger Travel Park. The park is old and the rigs are parked as close to each other as cereal boxes on a grocery shelf – especially in the two rows closest to the highway which are the “Passport America” sites! The folks parked in our row have been very nice - to our left they are from BC and the folks on the right were from Oregon The new folks behind us are from BG, OHIO! Interspersed throughout the park are gnarly, smooth red barked “Gumbo Limbo” trees. The locals call them “Tourist Trees” because they turn red and then peel!

Flagler’s Overseas Railway Centennial Celebration was held on Saturday, January 14th. Free boat rides, free entertainment and educational demonstrations were held out on Pigeon Key, a small island just off of the Seven Mile Bridge! The boat/ferry rides were poorly organized but it was still a nice ride out on the sparkling turquoise colored water! And we did get a feel for how life was back in 1908 when the Flagler’s railroad was begun and in January of 1912 when it was finally completed and he took his first train ride from the mainland of Florida, over the narrow bridges, all the way to Key West. We had all hoped to ride on the big catamaran ferry but when we saw how low in the water the 2 powerful outboard engines sat once the vessel was loaded and underway, we had second thoughts. The clincher was when we watched it get stuck on a sand bar and the passengers had to move to the far end of the boat to remove themselves from the shallow area! The young, CUTE, First Mate on the boat we did ride on, is from Michigan and we all had fun teasing him.

On Sunday afternoon, N and I attended a free craft class and made the cutest little wire and stone trees that look like weathered trees with exposed roots clinging to huge boulders. My petite 8-inch tree is anchored on a sparkly white and blue rock. The wire roots, trunk and branches are silver. The leaves are blue tiger-eyes! N’s rock is brownish gold sparkly with pieces of garnet and mica imbedded in it. Her wires are both copper and gold! Her leaves are brown/gold tiger-eyes! Each is unique!

On Wednesday evening, N and I were treated to a seafood dinner at “The Fisheries Seafood Restaurant and Market” an open air glorified wooden shack right on the Gulf. Long sturdy picnic tables and paper towels for napkins were lined against the outside retaining walls! Our orders were announced ‘ready” with song titles instead of our names! My choice for my entrée was “ LOBSTER REUBIN”. Sounds rather strange but the sandwich was layered with a good supply of lobster, mellow kraut and Swiss cheese. I spiced it up with cocktail sauce, which gave it just the right twang! Yummy fries even came with that huge grilled sandwich! H chose scallops because he was not able to get his mind wrapped around lobster AND Reuben in the same phrase!

As we pulled back into our little parking spot, I spoke to our new neighbors and welcomed them to the “neighborhood”. Pleasantries exchanged, I asked where he was from. Would you believe – Toledo and he has family still there! Rick and Traci were brand new “full timers” so H and R were sharing their vast wealth of camping/traveling knowledge. In the morning, as we were preparing to pull out, I went to say my goodbyes and H had offered our back yard if he came to Toledo to visit his family. Rick mentioned his favorite aunt so I asked her name. When he gave her last name, I immediately thought of a dear friend from my State Farm days! It is Lou Ann!!!!! I must email her as soon as I can but now we need to be on the road. It’s a long way to our next “home” for a few days - probably all of 10 miles - Long Key State Park!

Ruskin to Sebring

2012-01-14T18:26:00.001-08:00

Ruskin to Sebring

2012-01-14T18:25:00.000-08:00

Bud F. went to school with H and Bud S. Last summer at their 50th class reunion we found out that Bud and Nancy live down here in Apollo Beach. The town proper is about 5 miles north of Ruskin and is home to the power plant AND the manatees that keep warm in the discharged water from the plant. H called Bud and found out they live in a gated community just up the road from where EG Simmons Park is located. Like Rauch Rd in Michigan – the south side of the road is in Bedford and the north side is in Petersburg – the north side of 19th Street is Apollo Beach and the south side is Ruskin! Bud, H and Ron laughed, chatted and enjoyed their “Happy Hour” while we ladies got to know each other. Both Nancy’s are into genealogy and all 3 of us know our way around fabric and yarn. Florida Nancy’s sister was my favorite claims adjuster back when I worked for State Farm! It was fun trying to find out when and where else our paths almost crossed during our pasts.

R&N moved out of Ruskin on Thursday morning and H and I headed to Tampa’s Lawry Park Zoo! SPFB! The price of admission has really gone up but it was still a great place to visit again. The day was sunny with a touch of cool so the animals were pretty active. The baby elephant that we saw on our last visit is now all grown up! This time they had a baby rhino but we were on the wrong side of the train ride so didn’t get a very good picture. But we did of the giraffe! I love the big brown doe eyes! We saw bunches of apes, monkeys, a red wild pig and some really weird birds.

Friday we spent out on the road again – breakfast with B&N, picked up our mail from the local post office, met with dear friends from Toledo who have a winter home in Sun City Center. When our kids were growing up, Danny, Traudy and I attended the same church together. We all go to different churches now and it was fun to hear Traudy’s VERY German accent again! The Big Red Barn Flea Market was our next stop and H even spent some money! $1.25! We made a stop at Morgan’s Strawberry Farm to have our annual Strawberry Shortcake. Five miles on the bikes worked off part of those delicious calories!

Saturday, it was my turn to spend the money at a flea market – I AM a big spender – I spent $1.50. Five more miles on the bikes followed by H having to fix a flat in his tire caused by a sand burr. And an hour and a half in the kayaks followed that! The park has a canoe/kayak launch so instead of using the open spot in the mangrove jungle behind our “condo” – we tried it out. A big fiberglass dock with a shallow “v” slot for the boats to fit into and once in your boat – just slide sort of gracefully into the quiet calm water of the mangrove islands and out along the channels to the open bay that surrounds the west side of the park. Besides the fun of kayaking in Tampa Bay the highlight of the venture was seeing the Manta Rays that scurried under us in the shallow water. At the boat launch dock a big old steel boat from Pittsburgh Pennsylvania was moored overnight. This solid old lady had been trailered to Buffalo and then motored down to Florida. Her journey was not over yet – she was headed farther south to the Intracoastal and then across and back up home. I believe the gentleman that owned her said the hull was from the 1920’s and he built her from there up.

Moving day this time was Sunday and Highlands Hammock State Park in Sebring was the next stop on our migration path south. Our condo was finally parked in one of the parks bigger spots and H was restless to go visit his brother at their new parking spot in Buttonwood Bay Resort just north of Lake Placid. On Monday we headed south from Sebring to just the other side of Lake Placid to visit B&C from home who are wintering in Camp Florida RV Resort. We’ve not seen them since we were at home in Michigan – last year! Their swimming pool was heated to 89 degrees and we made the best of it until it was time to get out and the cool air hit our warm wet bodies! Burrrrr! Our choice of meals on the menu that night started out to be Mexican but since that restaurant was closed – Thai was chosen. We’ve all decided that it was not our best choice!

One afternoon at the campground, I heard the soft melody from a flute and it reminded me of the new friends we had met last year at Moss Park. While doing laundry the next morning, I was yelled at by a fella passing by on his bike. This guy was bellowing that he’d recognize that behind (mine?) anywhere!!! It WAS Ron from Moss Park!!! And he and his sweet wife were parked right across the sandy dusty road from us!! Too bad we were leaving soon and heading for the Keys! Alas, so were they, but a day later and they were going further down the long chain of islands! Thursday morning arrived and the condo was packed and headed to meet R&N to caravan to the Keys!

Ocala to Ruskin

2012-01-07T05:58:00.001-08:00

Ocala to Ruskin

2012-01-07T05:54:00.000-08:00

They broke! And I am heartbroken with them! What you say has caused such sad emotions? My beautiful, fabulous, but obvious delicate Amaryllis with her TWO buxom, frilly, obviously very top-heavy multilayer blooms! Was that enough adjectives?

Before we left Michigan, I bought 2 Amaryllis bulbs - a bright red one for a gift and a white and coral one for me. Over the years, I had already gathered several bulbs that have multiplied and now live in one big pot that spend the winter in the basement under a dark cool table. When we return home in the spring the pot is brought out and within a month we have a big splash of giant red flowers that grace our enclosed front porch. I planted this new bulb and both H and I watched her sprout a thick round stem that was topped with what promised to be a future dinner plate sized bloom. At Salt Springs she grew from a stub to over 10 inches in less than a week! As the days progressed, we watched her reach for the sky and in the warm sunshine at Ross Prairie she produced not one but 4 buds, 2 of which were branching out and showing color. Each evening we would bring her inside for protection from the cool night air and possible varmints. By New Years day, her 2 ruffled blooms were wide open like a Spanish dancer’s wide flowing brightly colored skirt in full dance mode! She was BEAUTIFUL! Then we moved. Big-busted women do not travel well in the back of a bouncing buckboard – if you know what I mean. These Florida roads are not as bad as our Michigan roads, but even in the back corner of this condo – it’s bouncy. I should have known better. Both blooms were on the floor when we arrived in Ruskin. Each is now resting comfortably in a dish of water on the dinette in front of the big window where the Christmas tree had been sitting. We will still enjoy their beauty while we can. The other 2 buds are just now showing color and when we must move again this weekend – she will get protected better in a less bouncy area of the condo!

During our stay at Ross Prairie, we were lucky enough to visit and get to know friends from Toledo who had moved to a new, gated community in Ocala, not far from D&S’s, Oak Run. John and Nora welcomed us into their home - once we finally found the right street and the right lovely home! I am looking forward to visiting again - now that we know how to find them! In the campground we made more new friends also! Donna and Wendell, originally “Uppers” are now from down in this area and love to mountain bike the trails in Ross Prairie! Their trailer is new to them also, so the guys chatted and discussed trucks and trailers! New Year’s Eve, D&S joined us one last time for steaks on the grill! It felt good to be able to provide a meal for them after all they have done for us when we’re in their neighborhood!

On New Year’s Day, H and I headed for K.P. Hole Park – the county park where we launched the canoe last year. On Christmas AND New Year’s day the park is officially closed but the launch areas are open and minus the $5 per person charge! The kayaks slipped into the water more gracefully than we did “slipping” into them! Paddling upstream in those bright orange bubbles was a lot easier than H had expected, especially since the currant is quite strong in some areas due to all the springs that flow along the way. We made the mile and a half to the headsprings and when the time came to come back downstream, the going was much easier. We saw a Bald Eagle, along with the neat assortment of wading birds and various ducks. On the list were also turtles and a water snake slithering by H’s bubble. With the kayaks it was fun to pivot quick and then almost catch up to it! When we came to a small shallow cove amongst the jungle trees on the shoreline, the wetsuits were yanked on and the kayaks tied together so we could finish up our adventure viewing it from under the crystal clear water. Bass of all sizes, curious bluegills, mullet, catfish and others swam ahead of us thru the waving sea grasses or darted away as we crossed the top of their water filled canyons! However, even with the wetsuits on – we were way cold by the time we paddled up to the launch area! That big towel that had grown warm in the back of the parked truck sure felt good around my shivering shoulders!

E.G. Simmons in Ruskin is now our home for the week. We pulled in and parked about noon on Monday and R&N arrived about 4 30pm. They FINALLY came and parked next to us when the Michigan State football game reached its final fevered finish! They had been watching the last nail biting minutes at the entry gate to the park but managed to get just barely parked and plugged in before joining us for the exciting overtimes and the joyous outcome of the game!

The brothers are being brothers and Nancy and I are enjoying some female conversations and such! Of course, H and I are blaming them for bringing down the cold air with them! When it’s cold tho, the manatees are up in the channel at the Power Plant in Apollo Beach! Last year it was warm when R&N were here with us and there were no manatees! Manatees got viewed and we hustled back to the truck for warmth and the next stop was for groceries. We did NOT need them because in the afternoon, we headed for Ellenton and H’s FAVORITE seafood eatery – Anna Marie’s Oyster Bar. Shop till you drop – we hit the outlet mall next for good measure!

Tuesday night was supposed to be the coldest night and this day is now sunny and getting warmer with very calm winds! Monday night none of us slept well due to the 50 mph winds that howled and raged thru the palm trees and around the corners of this 3 story tall condo and R’s trailer sitting next door. Sunny and warmer days are promised for our future!

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year

2011-12-29T16:08:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year

2011-12-29T16:06:00.000-08:00

Our sweet little Christmas tree is decorated with its glittered seashells, blue shiny ornaments, a real starfish, several small birds and blue and silver garlands. It stands proudly on the dinette in front of that big window. From the outside it looks way bigger than it is! The back picture window is dressed in blue and white lights with white poinsettias in each corner of the cornice boards. The bathroom vanity even has red poinsettias! H is thrilled. Not really. But he does like Christmas lights as you can tell from some of the past blog pictures!

Ocala Sun RV Resort on Hwy 484 is in the Passport America discount book and was our plug in to wifi and cable for three nights. As in a lot of RV resorts, the transients get relegated to an open field and are parked wall to wall. Even though we now have a “condo” we were still the smallest unit in the entire park! The folks were very hospitable and made us feel welcomed at their Christmas potluck dinner.

Dick and Sharon live in a gated community just 8 miles down the road from Ocala Sun and we knocked on their door more than once in those 3 days! My sister and I had a lot of catching up to do! The 4 of us shared some great eating times and as always, each Christmas season, S invites some of her good friends in for an evening of good food and great chatter! R&N, T &CJ, E&R- Thanks for including us! Neal’s mom sat in on the party this year! Neither H nor I have ever met someone who is 105!!

Christmas Day we joined D&S at the Maranantha Baptist Church and then back to their gorgeous home for the afternoon. Dick’s kids ( SPFB!) - son Rick, daughter Terri - the JUDGE and son in law John kept the afternoon in stitches, telling stories on their dad and on each other! Siblings! For a change – Sharon and I behaved! The dinner was scrumptious and we all ate wayyyyyyyyyyyy too much!

Our hope and prayer is that all our friends and family have a very Merry and Blessed Christmas Season this year and for your futures – peace and health!

Spring Time in the Forest

2011-12-27T10:43:00.001-08:00

Spring Time in the Forest

2011-12-27T10:42:00.000-08:00

It’s “Spring” time in the Ocala National Forest! This was a kickback, take it easy week so we’ve only seen this spring here at Salt Springs Recreation Area in this - one of favorite forests. The view as you come over the crest of the hill – the sparkling, forever dancing blue water that races out of the deep crevices and the tannic flavored river that lays beyond, still is a thrill after all these years. We, and everyone else except the engineers who designed this unnatural retaining wall, feel the ambiance of the natural spring has been compromised. In years past, mothers and little ones could just walk down into the shallow water at the far side of the spring and not worry about their small charges. Even us older grandmothers with their silly looking wet suits on, felt way more comfortable entering the water at a slower speed! SPFB to see me returning out of that spring! Now entry is confined to one slippery set of steps leading down into a much deeper colder amount of water that is definitely NOT suitable for little ones. And old ladies and slippery don’t mix well either! The spring itself is 72 degrees as it gushes up out of the rocks but when the air is cool, it doesn’t stay warm for very long as it passes from the spring area out into the pond and then the run to the river beyond. The weather has been very nice this week but it has reached mid 70’s during the day and then cools back down quickly as the sun starts to set. We missed the dip in the spring on Monday because it turned gray and cool early.

I’ve started walking a mile each morning and each afternoon we go for a bike ride around the park or out to investigate the mobile home park or the RV resort across the road to see how many homes and park spots are empty or for sale this year. H is positive that the number of signs is growing more each year. The grocery store is just down from the park as is the Sunoco gas station that houses the local Subway. We’ve made several trips to both! Milk is $4.29 a gallon if you need to know. A half-gallon is $2.99.

We’ve met some nice folks, too! Judy and Tommy, a retired Roadway driver, live in Burlington Kentucky. Since they’ve lived several places during his truck-driving career, he’s also driven to Toledo and remembers a friend of mine who also retired from Roadway! He and H got along just fine since they both have Ford trucks and tools and boats and . . . . . .

This past Monday, we actually managed to dig the kayaks out of their secure nest in the back of the truck. Here in the campground, all was peaceful and calm but once we got to the river’s edge – we felt the brisk cool wind and H had second thoughts about struggling with the tiny orange oblong buckets we call kayaks. Once out on the water and bouncing along with the choppy little waves we noticed a lot of areas that were all stirred up as if boats had just dug into the mucky bottom. MANATEES!! At least a half dozen of the big bulbous nosed creatures were pulling seaweed up from the river bottom and leisurely trying to enjoy lunch. Seemingly not sure of the bobbing orange shapes that resembled their own shapes, minus the huge mudflap tails, they came over to investigate! Can you only imagine the thrill of being captive in a very small 8 foot plastic bucket and having a 9-foot manatee nudge it with her nose?!! Like a small whale, one would come up out of the water and either rolled or dove again, flipping their broad tail up and out of the water.

Manatees are not the only neat creatures that we’ve been fortunate to see. One day while off exploring the back roads in the forest we encountered a magnificent bald eagle that flew in a zigzag manor up the sand road ahead of us and then perched in a tree across a field. As we crested one small hill, H exclaimed there was a bear ahead just over the next small hill! Sure enough – a rather LARGE black bear was lumbering across the road. Neither the eagle nor the bear wanted his picture taken and each moved just fast enough and stayed just out of good picture range. In the top of the tree next to our campspot, a Red Breasted Woodpecker was hammering out his nesting hole in a dead limb. As he ratcheted out the chips from his growing cavity, he splayed the mess down onto the neighbor’s awning and patio rug. We got the great view and they got to clean up his mess each day!

And folks here in Salt Springs campground have gotten into the holiday spirit, too! Some have their lampposts decorated; some have lights strung along their awnings. We have our tree sparkling atop our “dining room table” and from the outside looks like a full sized tree. One of the campground hosts has his entire motor home outlined in lights and has twinkle lights surrounding each wheel, making it look like the wheels are going round!

It’s been over a week now since we’ve parked in the forest and it’s time to move on to Ocala. Christmas is coming!

Tomoka State Park

2011-12-16T14:06:00.001-08:00

Tomoka State Park

2011-12-16T14:05:00.000-08:00

Tomoka State Park is wedged between Route 1 and the Halifax River, which is also the Intercoastal Waterway. This 2000-acre “hammock” – thick THICK forest - is listed as one of the oldest in eastern Florida. Obviously, by the picture of the road on the way here, you can tell that it’s true! Here in the campground the sites are carved out of the woods and are surrounded by thick palmetto shrubs and covered with a canopy of live oaks and Spanish moss. The road thru the campground is narrow, winding and sand! But – the facilities are new and very nice! It’s our first time here – but they do not have any patches for my jacket. The “Outpost” is the general store/restaurant and the view of the lake is very peaceful – even on a gray rainy day. We had breakfast there on Monday morning. Pretty good biscuits and gravy!
Sunday afternoon we headed out to explore the local area as we normally do and ended up on the beach in Daytona Beach. H just has to get sand in those shiny new wheels! We found a spot to park and headed up and over the main street walkway to the Oceanside Mall. We finished up our stroll along the boardwalk and seawall between the fancy hotels and the pounding, roaring waves of the ocean. The beaches were pretty much void of pedestrians and instead were dotted with shorebirds and splattered with dead smelly seaweed.

While enjoying our “Buy One Get One” Whoppers it started to rain. It rained all afternoon. It rained ALL night! It rained all day Monday! According to the news, it has set a new record! Reminds me of the amounts of rain that Toledo and vicinity received during November! Even part of the seawall in Daytona Beach was to have been washed out – the only thing holding it together is the wooden steps over it.

Last evening we met out neighbors from the site next to us. Brenda and Jim left Alberta Canada last October and are touring the coastal states for 6 months! Of course – H shared some of his knowledge of his favorite parks and other places to see in Florida! Brenda’s accent was not nearly as defined as Barbee from British Columbia but still distinctive and brought back a slew of great memories of the times we spent with her, both here in Florida and in her native BC!!!

Tuesday morning we’ll hook up and pull back out onto the long road west to the Ocala National Forest! 56 miles – it’ll be a long day on the road, eh???

Florida Part 1

2011-12-13T11:44:00.002-08:00

Florida Part 1

2011-12-13T11:44:00.001-08:00

We’re off again! It took 6 days to get to Florida this year!

H’s surgery was for a hernia and his surgeon released him on Friday December 2nd. On December 3rd we pulled out of the drive and settled in on I 75, heading south. After a 1-hour traffic delay in Cincinnati Ohio we finally moved on and arrived in Clinton Tennessee just before dark. Our annual breakfast at “Golden Girls” restaurant with Steve’s family was even at our same old table. Saturday evening Steve let us know that he had to work on Sunday but Melissa, Jessie and Kayla and Kayla’s 7-month-old son would be there! Dressed in denim cargo pocket jeans, green plaid shirt and camo cowboy boots that refused to stay on his feet, Ethan was the spitting image of Charlie Brown, only in miniature! After breakfast, we all drove over to Aisin Industries to visit with Steve for a few minutes before H and I unloaded Christmas gifts and then pointed the big blue truck south once more.

Route 441 is a great, picturesque alternative to driving thru Atlanta and our second night out we parked at Cross Creek Campground in Mountain City. A nice little campground – but the bathroom facilities were closed for the winter. Helen Georgia is a little town back in the hills that fell on hard times and remade itself into an alpine village – just like Frankenmuth Michigan. The road there would have been a great motorcycle ride but the dizzying narrow curves thru the deep woods was causing some concern about the return trip that would be in the dark. The town was aglow with twinkling lights and the scene was complete with several fancy carriages. Our concern about the return trip was solved when we checked the map and took a different path back to the highway and back to the campground. “Lily” (the GPS) was given the rest of the evening off!

Our next stop was Savannah and back to Skidaway Island State Park – here it is - - - SPFB! Historic Savannah was as charming as ever but not much in the way of historic Christmas lights. Jeykll Island, just down the coast a bit, was the next parking spot for our “condo”. We unloaded the new fold up bikes and attempted a ride to the historic downtown but the winds came up, the temps dropped and the ominous dark charcoal clouds moved in. Wisely, we turned around and got the bikes back in their nest in the truck before the sky opened up and the moisture came down.

Finally Florida! Old St Augustine did not disappoint with its magical display of a million sparkling white lights! All the commotion of traffic and lights didn’t seem to bother the placid carriage horses that dutifully pulled their master’s fares thru the congested town. We returned several times to stroll the old cobbled streets and peek into the eclectic selection of shops and boutiques. Saturday night was the 18th annual lighted boat parade. Lots and lots of blanket wrapped folks guarded the coquina stone walls lining the river to watch the several dozen vessels decked out with Christmas displays and lights strung gaily up their masts. The weather turned cold and damp once the sun had set and the winds were quite strong, causing choppy waters making it extremely difficult to control the boats and keep them in parade formation.

Onward again on Sunday morning! Tomoka State Park is just outside Ormond Beach and we have never been there. Neither had Lily and she took us down some back county roads with HUGE yellow signs warning of low tree limbs of 8 foot and a handful of inches. The “condo” is over 10ft tall! Nervously, H did not turn down the last road with that sign but turned the opposite way. As soon as possible H called the campground to see if we were indeed in trouble height wise and if we were even on the correct road. Deftly, H backed his “train” into a nearby driveway and turned around and headed back up the narrow, low, canopied road. No problem – the hurricane had taken out the low limbs on the live oaks that clung to the sides of the roadway but the signs had not be removed. We’ll be here for 2 nights. We’ve got some exploring to do!

Fall Trip

2011-12-07T17:22:00.001-08:00

Fall Trip

2011-12-07T17:20:00.000-08:00

The fall is such a pretty time to pack up and go camping! It can be a scary time IF you have a new truck and new trailer to adjust to! There was quite a bit of “adjusting” to do on this trip.

When we returned home from our trip down to Cumberland Lake, H chose to not repair our beloved, yet aged 1994 Ford pickup but instead gave it a bath and put it out front with a for sale sign in the window. 15 minutes later it was sold. Since I would NOT give up my minivan, he had no choice but to trade in his Jeep Liberty. After test-driving the new Ford F150 4X4 with the ecoboost system – he had no trouble at all parting with his trusty green off road vehicle. And since the new BRIGHT BLUE truck will pull 9800 lbs, he also chose to go back out and find a bigger trailer. We no longer have a “mobile motel” – we now have a “rolling condo”! Compared to the Aerolite, this Rockwood Ultra Lite 2604 is HUGE!!

R&N also have gone to a bigger trailer this year and agreed to join us for our initial shake-down excursion. Their adjustment period is done because they have just returned from a gorgeous trip out west. We all met at the lovely campground at Sauder’s Village out in Archbold Ohio
Sitting side by side in the parking lot, the boys circled their respective new purchases to compare the differences and discuss the similarities like two teenage boys and their first hotrods. We went from a 7ft wide trailer to an 8ft wide: R’s is 7 ½ ft wide. His trailer box is 24ft long and H’s is 26. Ron went so far as to find his tape measure and checked heights, lengths and even the depths of the slides. Nancy and I sat and laughed at them both! Their new trailer is decorated in light tans and our “condo” has a 3ft slide equipped with a posh thick dark brown couch and matching dinette. I think H wanted this trailer because of the large windows that fill the back of the trailer wall and the two rocking easy chairs nestled in front of them!

Sauder’s Village is a collection of authentically restored pioneer homes and stores that over the years were discovered in the surrounding countryside and reassembled to form a model town that our ancestors could have, would have lived in. There is a pottery shop, a yarn shop, an herb store, a mercantile and even a train station. There’s a covered bridge on the lane that leads to the farm. Down another path is an Indian settlement complete with an interesting garden set-up called 3 sisters - plantings of corn, squash that grew to cover the base of the corn and beans to grow up the stalks.

Several “adjustments” to the condo have now been completed with a list of a few more to be addressed from the warmer weather of Florida when Harry will be fully recovered from his latest November surgery.

Summer 2011

2011-10-17T15:26:00.000-07:00

Summer 2011

2011-10-17T15:06:00.000-07:00

Where did the summer of 2011 go??? In June we drug the mobile motel behind the 1994 Ford pickup along Rt 66 to St Louis and followed the Mighty (still flooded and muddy) Mississippi River down to Cairo Illinois where the Ohio River joins it.

In July, Bud and Carol raced ahead of us to visit friends in Wisconsin and we lingered at home for H to go visit one of his growing collection of doctors. We pulled out on Friday and stopped overnight at the Otsego Lake State Park just SW of Gaylord Michigan. We were able to enjoy breakfast and a nice - but not nearly long enough – visit with Glenn and Beth before we pressed on and over the Mackinac Bridge and across the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to meet up with B&C. Munising Michigan has wonderful pasties (yummy hot stew baked in tender flaky pie type crust sandwiches), great views of Lake Superior and IF you’re lucky – weather nice enough to enjoy a boat tour out to the colorful Pictured Rocks! Well, 2 outta 3 ain’t bad. But the day that B&C were to take their boat tour was a day full of thick blanketing fog that kept rolling in and out ALL day long! H and I were out exploring in the Jeep but talked to them via walkie-talkies right before the boat turned around and headed back to the dock. The next day we took them to see Miners Castle, one of the rock formations that they would have seen IF the ride had continued. On this trip, H had no off road competition going so he never got stuck and hence, never needed his brother to rescue him. Bud had to ride co-pilot and did seem a bit nervous whenever H sloshed down, around and thru some of those vehicle devouring, massive mud puddles! Especially when the Jeep was at a sideways tilt entering some of those dark brown, seemingly bottomless “ponds”!!

The month of August was a stay near home month so the grass was kept mowed and the garden was tended. Lots of sewing got done and lots of tomatoes canned Even managed a few leisurely bike rides!

September – school was back in session and the wanderlust hit hard! This time we headed south to Kentucky. B&C drove their motorhome and pulled our big boat, just as they have in the past. H pulled the truck out of storage and chose to put miles on it since he was going to use the Jeep again this winter when we head to Florida. There are hills in Kentucky! Some bigger than others! In the Lexington area, whenever pressure was applied to get the truck and trailer up or down a “hill”, the back of the truck began rattling and clanging and clunking. Do we go on or do we turn around? At each place we stayed, the guys lined up a transmission mechanic – just incase his services would be needed. Each time H backed the truck down the lonnnnnnnnnnng STEEP boat ramp, the question was – will it make it back up? And of course, the boat ramps were steeper than some of those other “hills” the truck had to strain to get up. Lake Cumberland was created back in the early 1950’s by damning up the Cumberland River, which caused it to fill up all the valleys and made a meandering snake of a lake, 100 miles long with over 1200 miles of shoreline, that wandered along sheer cliffs and snuck into a multitude of tree lined nooks and crannies. The weather held out and we enjoyed taking B&C on their first visit to the lake. In the two days on the lake we put on at least 80 miles! The Friday evening that we camped at Cumberland Lake State Park we lucked out and arrived in time to THOUROUGHLY enjoy to our VERY fullest, the seafood laden evening buffet! Oh My!! Crab legs, shrimp, catfish, more shrimp & crab legs, scallops, and yes, even those slimy oysters! And as the sun set over the peaceful lake, Carol and I tried to memorize the entire view from our high perch on the deck of the lodge.

From Jamestown and Somerset, we headed north to Frankfort, the capitol of the state. For H and I it was a case of SPB, but it was great to show our dear friends the views and sights of that neat town. We also decided to take them on a distillery tour because we had raved about our tour of Woodford Reserve several years ago. Our mistake was that we took them to a distillery that was closer to the campground where we were staying. H was hoping to get the truck back home before it quit all together yah know! Buffalo Trace Distillery was only a few miles away and is the oldest continually operating distillery from prohibition days. On the outside of the plant was the coolest painting. If you approach it from the right (see the picture) the angle of the picture faces you. As you pass it to the left – the picture angle follows with you! However - - the inside of the plant itself is loud, smelly and has 3 floors of open grated floors. Carol and I were both glad to get that tour over with. The guys weren’t even impressed with the bourbon that was offered as samples. Going out to dinner with Steve and Rachel made up for the bad taste in our noses and mouths! Now, hook onto this for a common thread - H, B and Mel (H’s buddy up in Michigan) all grew up together out in Swanton. H, Mel and Steve all went to Ohio University together! Anyway, it was wonderful to spend time with and introduce B&C to S&R!!

Between Frankfort KY and Madison Ind, the GPS took us north on some very narrow, up and down, winding 2 lane roads that had a lot of yellow paint down the middle. The scenery that was flashing by was full of red barns and colorful fall foliage but the guys did not get to enjoy much of it. H started going faster down hills so the truck would have a better running start up the next hill and would not rattle so much. Bud’s knuckles got pretty white, having to manhandle that milelong motorhome and boat around those curves. Ask Carol about crossing over the Ohio River on that extremely narrow old rickety bridge! She likes bridges about as much as she and I like open grated, 3 story high floors. NOT!! We all needed a break so we stopped for breakfast and a walking tour of that historic river town!

Once out of the “hills”, the truck quit clanking and just growled whenever pressure was applied. Yes, we did make it home! Three days later the truck was clean again and parked out in the front yard. 15 minutes later it was sold - - - bad differential and all.

H’s new love is a 2011 BRIGHT BLUE Ford F150, 4X4, complete with the new EcoBoost Engine. He traded in his beloved 2008 Jeep Liberty so our stable is down to only 2 vehicles. The new truck has a towing capacity of 9800lbs. Guess what he’s shopping for next! And the next trip will probably be to the sand dunes and/or the off road trails up north!

RT 66

2011-07-14T09:05:00.000-07:00

RT 66

2011-07-14T09:04:00.000-07:00

No - we haven’t really been staying home since our return from Florida this past March. Come on – you should know H better than that by now. In Mid May we took a long weekend jaunt up to Holland Michigan, accompanied by H’s brother Ron and wife Nancy. The multitude of beautiful tulips in my own yard rivaled the gorgeous blooms we saw during our stay in Holland, but we HAD to go see the parade – and thankfully it quit raining about an hour before the costumed teens clomped their big wooden shoes, showing their well practiced talents at performing the many Dutch dances. Following the parade the 2 camping units hustled up the road to Silver Lake Sand Dunes. If I had written this back then, I would have said SPB (See Previous Blogs). The new thing on that trip was our “discovery” of SP Hoffmaster State Park, just south of Muskegon Michigan. It’s very easily one of our favorite state parks!

Now, it’s mid June and once again we are “going places we have never been”. Last year we followed the famous Lincoln Highway (RT 30) from mid-Ohio to the New Jersey border when we went to Cape May. Get ready – SPB!! Now we have driven west on route 20 from Toledo to South Bend Indiana. The Kankakee River runs right thru downtown South Bend and used to be the source of waterpower for several factories and mills along its banks. The river has been given a new life by building a fish ladder along the side of the dam and on another section a kayak racecourse, originally done for the Olympic training teams. I would love to show you beautiful pictures of it all, but the batteries in the camera were dead and the replacements were in the charger back at home. The Potato Creek State Park just south of town was our home for the night. On Tuesday morning we finally connected with the Lincoln Highway heading west to Joliet Illinois where it crossed the Historic RT 66. After stopping at the Welcome Center and Museum we walked around the city. From the city of Joliet we followed the old Rt. 66 southwest to St. Louis, stopping at many of the quaint old little towns that were the stopping points when Rt. 66 was the main road from Chicago to Los Angeles. Some of the old towns are still preserved as they were then and many of them have museums that show what the road was like when it was the “ mother road to the west”. Traveling thru Illinois one has to stop in Springfield. There we toured the Lincoln museum and library and the city checking out the state capitol and the old state capitol building and the law office where Lincoln practiced law.

Moving on from the St. Louis area we traveled south following the Mississippi River to where it joins up with the Ohio River. From there we followed the Ohio to central Indiana and headed northeast stopping in Knoxville, In. and Santa Claus, In. then back home to Michigan for awhile to plan for our next trip.

Florida 2010 - 2011 The last Chapter

2011-04-03T11:32:00.001-07:00

Florida 2010 - 2011 The last Chapter

2011-04-03T11:30:00.000-07:00

Yep, Savannah was on his mind and the “no see ums” at Skidaway Island State Park had our tender tanned flesh on theirs! Not to worry- we didn’t stay in the park very long since we only took time to get the trailer set up and then off to see Tybee Island to see if it had changed much since our last visit. We were going to stop on our way there to also see Ft Pulaski again but we were distracted by two monstrous ocean freighters that were passing each other in the waterway that led to the harbor of Savannah. What a sight and what a deep rolling wake they each presented to the rocky shoreline! It was a sunny, warm day in the high 80’s – and it was the start of Spring Break! The island traffic was maddening at times and the parking was ridiculous! The restaurants, streets and beaches were mobbed with scantily clad young women and tattoo adorned young men, some carrying their coolers, laden, no doubt, with the afternoon’s supply of beer.

Friday and Saturday was the St Patrick’s Day celebration in Savannah! Parking was free and we found a spot to park the appropriately colored green Jeep and walked thru the quaint old neighborhood to the bustling waterfront. The residential areas were relatively quiet except for those of us looking for a parking spot for our vehicles. The front of the houses lined the stone sidewalks just as they did all those many years ago. The backyards were enclosed with the head high walls of rustic old red bricks and one in particular caught my attention. It’s gas lamp was burning brightly in the cool shadow of the wall but cascading over the top was a beautiful flowing bush covered with a multitude of soft yellow mum like blooms! The sun was shining from the other side and through it, causing it to glow! Nah, H didn’t see it and would not have been as impressed as I was anyway! On the waterfront the big nautical themed fountain had been turned green during a special ceremony. The shops were all busy trying to sell their remaining supply of Shamrocks, silly green hats and even goofier green tee shirts! Most of the people wandering in and out and up and down the walkways were wearing green! The beer tents and restrants were doing a thriving business and the big tour boats, full of passengers, were on the move up and down the river. I imagine those folks were trying to cool off from the 93-degree temperature that hovered on shore! We grew tired of the crowds and the noise of the blaring sound systems so we drove away from the hustle and bustle and found a nice family restaurant called Hilliard’s for our quiet dinner.

Sunday morning arrived and we were up early, anxious to be on the road. And we were on that road all day long! When it’s time to go north – it’s time to go north. I don’t remember too much about that day except we ended up north of where my son and his family live. I was saddened that we would not be able to see them on this return leg of our journey but it was not to be. It was late in the day when we parked in Cove Lake State Park just off I75 and north of Clinton Tennessee. A good nights rest and we were on our way again on Monday morning.

Now, spring had arrived in Florida and the robins were flocking in Georgia. Things were turning green and trees and shrubs were blooming in South Carolina. Tennessee was still pretty brown – except for the daffodils that were blooming profusely in the median’s of the expressway and at all the rest areas. Kentucky was brown. Ohio was brown. Cincinnati was a nightmare! Four and five lanes of bumper-to-bumper traffic, most of it being semis and other large vehicles! Then there were all the potholes! At one spot a rather large box truck, following an even larger semi truck, decided to change lanes - without noticing that we were in the lane he chose to move to! H laid on the horn and locked the brakes and the truck driver swerved violently and then careened back into his own lane, just missing our front bumper. My heart raced and my chest pounded for many moments and several miles after that! Yes, I did offer several silent prayers of Thanks that we were able to avoid the collision with that truck or the looming cement wall in the next lane over. We made it to Michigan safely after that and H easily backed his rig into the driveway where it sat for the next several days.

Our Winter 2010-2011 Journey has come to an end; however, H is planning our next adventure already! I am happy just to get our yard cleaned up from all the ice and snow damage and to get our vegetable garden ready for planting! Snow Drops and Crocus are blooming and the tulips and daffodils are budding! I’ve even decorated the little maple tree out in the flowerbed with colorful Easter eggs!

See you all on the next trip!

NE Florida

2011-03-28T17:11:00.000-07:00

NE Florida

2011-03-28T17:10:00.000-07:00

Another new Florida State Park patch for my bright blue jacket! Favre-Dyke State Park has only 23 campsites and is at the end of a very long, very sandy, very winding, very narrow tree lined single lane forest road right off of Rt 1, 17 miles south of St Augustine. Once settled in, it was time to go explore the beaches! From Anastasia State Park, south to the inlet you can still drive your 4x4 vehicle on the wide flat sandy beach. During the day the charge is $7 but after 5pm the drive is free! The really nice lady at the guard desk said to come back after 4:30pm and she would look the other way! 40 minutes of shopping and we were back, waving to her as she left her post, her shift for the day being done. The speed limit on the beach is 10 mph and is one way – south. In the distance we saw a colorful semi circular kite weaving back and forth across the beach. As we approached, we found, anchored to the bottom of the kite lines, a young man whose feet looked buckled to a rather large skateboard with oversized wheels. It was like watching the Olympic snowboarders zinging from one side to the other and flipping up and around, grabbing their boards as they hung in mid air. So was this young man as he wove across the sand and back, leaning into the kite lines to change his direction.

Sunday was Flea Market Day in St Augustine! What a bunch of “stuff”! And we didn’t buy any of it, but it was fun to look. Instead we donated some funds to Wal-Mart and got the oil changed in the Jeep since there was no trailer attached and the change was overdue.

On Monday we had a very long road trip ahead of us – 50 miles from St Augustine to Jacksonville - but H still took his time and enjoyed his morning pot of fresh brewed coffee and the Good Morning America show on TV. Up Rt 1 we went and over to A1A, then north to Jacksonville along the Atlantic coast sometimes lined with dunes and tall sea oats and sometimes the view was completely blocked by ritzy homes with fancy landscaping and steep cement driveways. Ron had told H about a very nice city park that was right on the ocean and we headed there!

Kathryn Abbey Hanna Park has a full hook up campground of 293 sites, a nature preserve, 3 levels of off road bike trails, hiking trails, a 33 acre fresh water lake and a mile of Atlantic coast beaches. The wooden boardwalks that led to the beach were lined with the Live Oak trees, whose dark limbs stretched out like knarly witch’s fingers entwined and dripping with silvery Spanish moss, so reminiscent of many Northern Florida/ Southern Georgia back roads.
Our next stopover on our slow trip north was Ft Clinch State Park on Amelia Island in the extreme northeast corner of Florida. The 3 miles from A1A to the campground amazed me at each of our entering and exiting! When the sun was shining, only a portion of the sunny rays managed to make it thru the under-canopy of mossy doilies being held aloft by those knarly fingers! While at Ft Clinch we toured the old fort again but this time without the really neat young corporal tour guide. The fort is in a constant state of being restored but it still was familiar and brought back fond memories of when we were there with R&N! We walked the beach and strolled all the way out on the lengthy fishing pier that extended out into the ocean. I took more pictures and gathered more seashells! And of course we HAD to check out the touristy little town of Fernandina! See our Previous Florida Blogs to see the fort and more details of the area! And double click the photos to enlarge them!

From Amelia Island it was back to the mainland and, sadly, north out of Florida. Savannah is on H’s mind!

Ocala National Forest

2011-03-16T09:53:00.001-07:00

Ocala National Forest

2011-03-16T09:51:00.000-07:00

The Ocala National Forest is home to Florida’s biggest and prettiest natural springs! Alexander Springs is one of the top 2! 72 million gallons of crystal clear water a day!! The large dark blue basin is a magnet for snorkel and scuba divers alike! And we were drawn to it each of the 3 days we stayed in the campground. The edges are lined with waving sea grasses teeming with curious varieties of sunfish and ones that look almost like a perch! Even with my bright blue snorkel mask and big long fins – if I just floated quietly – they would come right up and peck at my outstretched wiggling fingers. On one of our swims, we followed 3 scuba divers out and marveled at the sight of them heading deeper and deeper into the blue water while the tiny air bubbles from their oxygen tanks floated back up to the sunshine at the top.

The park has a nifty nature boardwalk that follows around the spring and has 2 fishing piers /resting areas along the way. The birds were singing and the sun was sparkling down thru the newly green leaves of the forest. No snakes and no alligators were seen on this visit! SPFB!! We even took time one afternoon to go find some “two-tracks” to go explore! One of them actually ended up at a very primitive boat launch of sorts. Across the river were several tire and rope swings strung up over the slow chugging river run that originally started at Alexander Springs. Would you believe it – there was another guy out there who didn’t know where the road was going either! H had to get out his Florida Gazetteer to make sure of where we were and where to go from there. . From there we trudged thru or maneuvered around a lot of deep rutted mud holes and puddles! We know of another certain Jeep owner who would like to navigate those mud tracks

The campgrounds in most of the national forests have no electricity and no water at each site. “Dry camping” is no problem – as long as the weather is warm!! The “mobile motel” has a gas furnace for a quick warm up in the morning and a tank of fresh running water with the flick of the pump switch and a turn of the faucet! For TV watching and lights there are 2 mega batteries under the couch! AND – H was sure glad that he invested in his latest prized possession – his 2000-watt Honda Generator, which insures that he can have his fresh brewed coffee in the mornings while we were in the forest.

We were hoping to move up to Salt Springs, which has lots of electricity at each campsite to solve the colder weather problem, but they were full so we moved instead to Juniper Springs Campground to continue our “dry camping” trend. Juniper Springs is the closest National Park campground to Ocala so H made a phone call to set up a breakfast date for the next morning at Bob Evans. We enjoyed a great breakfast with D&S and followed it with boring grocery shopping!

Not wanting to leave the forest right away, and since Salt Springs was full we headed north to the edge of the forest and stopped for one night at the Rodman Dam Reservoir Campground. The campground is actually part of the Florida Greenway, just like Ross Prairie is on the south west side of Ocala where we stayed on the beginning of our winter journey as we headed south. Rodman is located right on the Cross Florida Barge Canal, which was originally dug to run from each side of Florida. The east section starts on the St John’s River but quits just west of Dunnellon. Like the Erie Canal up in Ohio – did progress move too fast or did the funds to complete the project too slow? Now the Canal is a freeway for pleasure boats, including the fast moving bass boats that sprayed wide spreading white water as they sped upstream in an early morning Bass Tournament.

Once out of the forest, it will really be official – we’re heading north – to North Florida!

Wekiwa & Rock Springs

2011-03-06T08:55:00.000-08:00

Wekiwa & Rock Springs

2011-03-06T08:53:00.000-08:00

If anyone has been watching the national news, by now you have heard about the “Iron Horse Wildfire” that had been burning out of control in east/central Florida for almost the last week. Parts of I95 and Rt 1 have been closed on and off several times. Since everyone knows where Orlando is in Florida and where the Kennedy Space Center/ Cape Canaveral is, I will use those two well known places as points of reference. The fire started north of Kennedy and Merritt Island, where H and I went to explore, while staying in Moss Park. I95 and Rt 1 run north /south, parallel to each other, from Miami and all along the Atlantic side of the state. Orlando is in the center of the state and the town of Opopka is just north of it. The fire is about 50 miles east of where we are. The news reports today have been stating that we should be seeing smoke and ashes but it has rained on and off all afternoon so we have seen nothing. We are in no danger and finally the fires are getting under control. No lives lost and only one young fireman was injured.

Wekiwa Springs State Park is just on the outer limits of Apopka and is the headsprings for the Wekiwa River. The drive from the main gate to the campsites is a combination of pine and oak woods, dispersed with fields of waving grasses. The campsites are good sized and most are secluded niches carved out of the Palmetto jungle. The spring itself is down in a fairly good-sized “valley” with a great view of the run that leads to the Wekiwa River just around the bend. Lots of canoe’ers rent boats and paddle up to the bridge at the edge of the swimming area. The swimming area is on average about 4-5 ft deep and on the weekend, full of kids and families. On Sunday we assisted in the crowding of the cool waters and on Monday the “pond” was a lot quieter and just a few adults took turns at cooling off! 42 million gallons per day of crystal clear water flow out from the deep dark blue crevice where brave teenage boys show off by diving down into its dark depths. We stayed for 2 nights before moving 7 miles, up and around the corner to Kelly Springs, which is an Orange County Park, just like Moss Park. The price for camping is much more affordable in the county parks!

Kelly Park was donated to the county in 1927 as a park and wildlife sanctuary, and is the location of Rock Springs, a natural free-flowing 37.5 million gallon a day spring which meanders a winding 9 miles to the Wekiwa River. On our last visit here, we floated/ snorkeled down the ¾ mile run within the park proper but since the temps have cooled down just a bit, we felt the 68 degree water was just a bit chilly, so instead, H and I watched an otter frolic in the stream and then watched as a few boisterous groups floated on down scaring him back into the lily pads! We’ve been exploring the small neighboring towns and exercising our bikes around the roads and paths in the park. We’ve walked some of the trails, spotted a few deer and even tried to sneak close enough to some strutting turkeys to get their picture. We were hoping that this one pompous Tom would pay more attention to his “ladies” and not see us. No such luck

Another week has come and now gone. The locals have now filled the campground for the weekend and the parking lots down by the spring are full of vehicles, packed with ice chests and inner tubes. For us it was off to the flea markets up in Mt Dora and then over to Sanford where we found a good sized RV show that filled a whole section of a mall parking lot and then a Red Lobster for lunch. H even got to go thru a hobby store and I shopped at a Joann’s. Too bad their sale starts tomorrow.
When Sunday gets here – we’ll leave Kelly Springs and move 35 miles north to Alexander Springs in the Ocala National Forest. (Sigh) It must be “SPRING” time! (Sorry)

Sebastian Inlet To Melbourne

2011-03-02T10:06:00.005-08:00

Sebastian Inlet To Melbourne

2011-03-02T10:04:00.000-08:00

The road from Moss Park to Sebastian Inlet weaves from St Cloud, to I 95 in Melbourne, south to Sebastian and over the bridge to the barrier islands that protect the mainland and back north to the Sebastian Inlet State Park and it’s distinctive two jetties that reach far out into the crashing Atlantic Ocean waves. Every day, each jetty is lined with hopeful folks hoping to successfully hook and reel in the great catch of the day. The longer jetty on the north side is braced with cement and has huge (at least 8 ft across), scary, OPEN grates that taunt those folks who walk over them (well, me anyway!) with the possibility of falling down thru any one of the 2 inch wide openings into the crashing surf below. The Inlet itself is a great place to watch boats drifting and fishing to whichever way the tide is going and also the glistening white charter fishing craft with their tall flying bridges and vertical stacked fishing equipment, heading for the deep blue open water of the Atlantic. Each day, H and I walked from the campground, along the winding sidewalk, past the fishing pier and the patiently waiting pelicans and wood storks, up past all the benches, lined up and facing the waterway, to the jetties and the stately bridge that rises elegantly up and over the blue water.

Thursday, February 24th was the long anticipated launching of the Discovery Space Shuttle. The day started clear and the sky was blue with only a 20% chance of rain later that afternoon. H decided we should drive the 20 miles north and join R&N at the Melbourne Beach and watch the lift off from there instead of from the break-wall at the state park. Unfortunately, it was hazy up along those crashing waves of salt water and a lot of other folks had decided to join R&N on the beach also! Then the gray clouds started rolling in from the west. The later the hour, the more cloudy the sky got, and more crowded the beach became. N was watching her cell phone for the official Nasa countdown when we almost missed the whole launch!! Someone in the standing room only crowd yelled, “ There it is!” I was standing behind a broad shouldered man and didn’t see where the fast rising shuttle was coming from, so H grabbed my shoulders and yanked me to the left and said “ There!” Just in time, I clicked a picture before the small but bright glow disappeared into the dark clouds. Disappointed a bit – but at least we saw it! From there we made a quick escape from the parking lot and met R&N at a really good Mexican restaurant down A1A. I don’t think I’ve ever had spinach in any enchilada before!

From Sebastian Inlet, back up A1A to Melbourne and across town to Wickham Park – one of H’s favorite campgrounds, was Friday’s project. SPFB – again! This large county park has 2 lakes for swimming and for model boat sailing races, an equestrian center, plenty of picnic and playground areas, and a Frisbee golf course, besides the two camping loops. The politics of the campground have not improved over the last few years and it upset H tremendously. There were several empty spots in both “electrical” loops and still we were stuck in the overflow area – a big bare field with lots of tenters (homeless?) and weekend partiers. In spite of all that, the one bright spot out in the field was the Gopher Tortoise that H found trying to make a “quick run” from the anthill dotted field to the woods on the opposite side of the fence. H interrupted his bid for freedom and held him while I snapped his picture several times.

Thankfully, we spent the whole day Saturday out of the park! Breakfast at Subway, then, off to the flea market where the boys went their way and we two girls got to shop without any male pressure! The guys headed off to the nearby gun club to try their skill at the skeet range while N and I headed for our favorite drapery/upholstery store that just happens to have fantastic prices. Dinner that night was at Fishbone Willy’s – more seafood, of course!

Sunday morning we said our good-byes to R&N over another good Subway breakfast sub. Ohhhhhh, they are tasty! We’re heading north to Apopka and Wekiwa Springs State Park.

Moss Park Orlando, Fl

2011-02-22T16:10:00.000-08:00

Moss Park Orlando, Fl

2011-02-22T16:03:00.000-08:00

MOSS PARK! A Florida Favorite! SPFB for the pictures of the long lanky gray sandhill cranes and big tall swaying pine trees and the huge sprawling live oak trees! These last 2 weeks have just flown by - - - like the cranes and hawks have been doing! It’s nesting/mating time for all the creatures that live here so there’s been A LOT of squawking, and courting and chasing – including the Jurassic Park sounding sandhill cranes and the frisky little fox squirrels that zing around and around the tree trunks! One of the tom turkeys has been busy strutting and gobbling and pecking at the shiny bumpers on George’s SUV!! George is the resident camp host and wildlife photographer here in Moss Park and has put together a really good movie with narration of all the birds and animals that call the park home. On last years blog we talked about the baby cranes and G has them featured in his movie presentation! They were SO cute!

The canoe made it off its home on top of the Jeep for several days! We bought fishing licenses at Walmart but unfortunately we got the ones that didn’t work. Never the less, it was great to be able to drag that lure around the lake and enjoy the wonderful 70-80 degree weather, taking in the serenity of the peaceful 2 lakes and the small cypress lined river that joins them. Most of the time the surface of lakes and river was like a dark tinted sheet of glass with an occasional ribbon of baby rickrack ripples disturbing the calm. The rushes would whisper in the gentle wind and the red-winged blackbirds would sing to each other - - - BUT THE FISH WOULD NOT BITE!! Oh well – there’s always next time.

Bobbie and Gene arrived and were joined by their friends, Ron and Ginny – who soon became our friends too! Twice we enjoyed a meal together and got to know each other better around a perfect campfire, which included the making of blueberry or cherry pies! Those 4 folks are musically inclined so H and I were treated to several interludes of dulcimer, lap harp, metal drum and even Indian flute music! This old blind lady can play the lap harp and I couldn’t even see the strings!

R&N moved from Davenport to Melbourne and had to pass thru St Cloud, about 20 miles south of here. We met them for lunch at the Catfish Place and indulged in yet another good seafood meal! Another fun side trip was last Saturday when we joined G&B at a surprise birthday party for B at their daughter’s home in St Cloud! We met so many of their friends and family!

As most of you now realize – the Space Shuttle is set to launch for it’s historic final trip on Thursday Feb 24th. H decided we should drive over to Titusville and Merritt Island’s Canaveral National Seashore to see if we could see the shuttle on it’s launch pad at the adjoining Kennedy Space Center. We stopped at the Merritt Island visitor center and then drove out to the beaches but unfortunately the day was hazy and the view was not very clear. You could see the assembly building and the two launch pads but the shuttle itself was on the furthest away pad and the shuttle was on the wrong side. We did walk the white sandy beach and took in the sand and white rolling surf. All along the beach were signs about nudity and how it was not permitted on the beaches. HOWEVER – at the north end of the National Seashore beach – were more than just a few folks who had on little more than just a hat! I wanted to post on this blog the picture I took of an older couple walking in front of us up the beach, but H said NO! The shorter, rounder lady was fully clothed – her taller, thinner gentleman had on - - - YEP – a hat!! Nice buns tho, for an old guy!

Our stay here at Moss Park is just about done. Our two weeks are up. We’ve taken attendance of all the animals, we’ve drug those beetle spins up and down the shorelines, we’ve given our bikes a good workout, we’ve enjoyed the company of good friends and breathed in the WARM fresh air of Central Florida so now it’s time to pack up the sewing machine, roll up the carpet, put away the chairs and hang the bikes on the rack. Time to go to Sebastian Inlet and hopefully see the shuttle launch!

Central Florida--------- Double Click on Pic to enlarge

2011-02-10T07:29:00.001-08:00

Central Florida

2011-02-10T07:27:00.000-08:00

Our last free breakfast with our hosts, George and Brenda was fun! Pretty good food, but when G&B asked what was some good spots to see in Michigan – things took off!!! The other couple with us – Rose and Dana joined in! From Holland to Houghton; Michigan International to Mackinaw; Sleeping Bear to Greenfield Village; the vacation ideas just flowed!

R&N headed to Buttonwood Bay Resort and H and I headed up to Highland Hammock for a few days. We cannot stay at the Hammock without riding our bikes around the “loop” and walking out on the Cypress Boardwalk. Such a narrow, winding string of boards, slung like a tightrope, just over the dark mysterious water of the swamp! AND - - - low and behold, Gene and Bobbie were parked the next row over from us so I got to “catch up” a bit with these dear friends! My sewing machine did its job again, too! In a very short time, the folks next to us came to investigate. Linda and Jerry are from Davenport Iowa but we discovered that Jerry grew up in Toledo and went to Libbey High School. When I found out that Fran and Charles – the folks parked between H and I and B&G, were from “North Georgia” - I had to introduce them! They all had dulcimers and deer hunting in common!

On then to EG Simmons! R&N arrived the day before we did and parked in site #3 and finagled to keep #5 open for us! SPFB-yet again! R drove but we drug he and Nancy to The Red Barn Flea Market down in Bradenton and then out to Anna Marie Island and the pier and beaches. You guessed it – dinner was at Anna Marie Oyster Bar. On Saturday we all climbed back into R’s big gray truck and headed north to see if the guys could find Silver Dollar Shooting Club. It took 2 GPS’s, a cell phone and the Florida map but – Mission accomplished -and the fellas got to shoot a few rounds in the rain. On Sunday it rained most of the day again. However, no amount of rain was going to keep us from indulging in strawberry shortcake for lunch. The sun managed to come out for a while after we returned home with our tummies full of yummy sweet red berries so I went for a bike ride while the others kicked back and read the paper we had picked up. In my journey along the horseshoe crab beach, I found a good-sized shell, and then another for Nancy. Back at the campsite, I rinsed them off and worked at getting the heavy metal grate on the fire ring flipped over and level to dry the shells on. It’s too bad I didn’t see the fire ants before they crawled up and over my left hand and up and over my left foot. Good thing I had on socks and tennis shoes or I’d have more than just those few red itching welts on my leg.

H’s birthday was Monday but R&N were scheduled to move then so we celebrated on Sunday evening. H still had to grill his own supper! We did sing to him and then forced him to blow out his candles on the red velvet cake that I baked for him. Our entertainment for the evening was a bunch of rousing games of “Left, Right, Center” a dice game that takes even fewer brain cells than playing Bunco!

R&N did pull out on Monday and within a few hours a huge motorhome was ready to back in to the tiny, narrow spot where their 18ft trailer had been. The driver of the motorhome came over to chat with H and told him the rangers were going to cut down the tree so they could have room to park there. Can you imagine? Luckily, only several larger limbs were sacrificed. Our ire was not calming so we were glad it was time for us to move. We did – on Tuesday. Time for Moss Park! But on the way we stopped at Brandon Farms for a FANTASTIC quart of huge red sweet strawberries! Close your eyes – can you smell them? Can you imagine the taste?

Back to the Glades

2011-02-01T05:39:00.001-08:00

Back to the Glades

2011-01-31T19:27:00.000-08:00

Back to the Glades! Sounds like Back to the Future, doesn’t it! Off the Keys to Homestead and then southwest back into the Glades but this time we headed for Long Pine Key – no electricity, no showers NO WIFI! The Everglades are known as a “River of Grass” and this “Key” is a high spot with trees! There’s even a sign on the road about a spot with an Elevation of 3!! The campground had nice big campsites and Ron and Nancy joined us on Monday. The evening program at the amphitheater that night was all about the Nike Missile Base there in the Glades. The young man in charge was very knowledgeable about World War II, the Cold War and how this secret base ended up in the middle of south Florida. Some said he was a bit “dramatic” but he sure made that part of history come alive and interesting. We were in high school when all of it was happening and most of us never paid any attention!

Tuesday we investigated the remaining National Park Visitor Center at Royal Palm. H and I took a quick walk on the Gumbo Limbo Trail and learned that the Gumbo Limbo tree is a smooth barked tree sometimes called the “tourist tree” because it’s red and peels! It’s used to make baseball bats, toothpicks, and fence posts – that usually end up growing! And then, we all took a guided tour of the old Nike facilities. Our guide on this tour was older – our era -and filled in even more details of how the missile parts arrived; how the 41 foot missiles were built in a 42 ft building, about the cement block garages where they were stored and even the underground bunkers where the men went for safety. Lead paint and all! Once the tour was over we hooked up our trailers and hit the road – further down the road - to the end! Flamingo! Still no electricity, but nice warm showers! Then the rains came. All night and half the next morning as we moved out and back up to the Tamiami Trail. We missed getting to park again at Midway but parked at yet another National Park campground at Monument Lake – like Midway with a large alligator in residence in the small calm lake with campsites encircling it. The sunset over the “pond” was yet another pretty one! Needing a place to settle for one night, we ended up back at Collier Seminole State Park. H lucked out again and got the last two sites but only for that night! He deftly backed that 7 - foot wide trailer between several trees that were only 8 feet apart! And I finally got out my sewing machine! Before I even got one potholder completed – the lady in the neighboring trailer came over and promptly bought 5 from my bag of wares!

So, now we are done with the Glades and have headed north – but just a bit! Ron found us a deal at Whispering Creek RV Resort in Labelle, for 4 nights. We’re parked in their new area called “The Glenn” – aka The Big Field! The deal came with 2 free breakfasts, a free lunch and a free boat ride! On Saturday we shopped at the Fleamasters Flea Market in Ft Myers. We have taken advantage of the HEATED outdoor swimming pool, ridden our bikes, and enjoyed our deck-boat ride up the dark river lined with all kinds of old working boats, houseboats and interesting elderly sailing craft. We especially enjoyed the ride back down the river when R had his hat blow off and Captain Dan had to circle around and around to get close enough to nab the slowly sinking straw shappo! At coffee and donut time this morning in the recreation hall, I even sold over a dozen potholders! Now I’ve got room to make some more!

Tuesday is our last free breakfast and then we’ll be off again!

Still in the Keys

2011-01-26T07:21:00.000-08:00

Still in the Keys

2011-01-26T07:20:00.001-08:00

It’s now Saturday, January 22nd. We’ve moved, and then moved and now moved again! I’ll try to get caught up this afternoon since the weather has turned windy and cloudy. The laundry is done and H is outside enjoying his “happy hour”!

We moved from Long Key to Bahia Honda State Park closer to Key West in time for a storm to move in and invite the “no see ums” to come out! In the morning the sun came out and the small harbor (where the wifi tower is located) was once again calm and the sky blue. We drove the rest of the way into Key West and found a bicycle rental place to park the Jeep and rent 2 bikes for the day. I dutifully followed H as he wound thru and across town looking for the old familiar sights. He found the new cruise line docks and the infamous Duval Street. I remember passing Hemingway’s Home and Sloppy Joe’s but they are kind of a blur due to the increasing amount of bike and vehicle traffic, water puddles, parked trucks and just trying to follow H. More than once he took a SHARP turn at the very last moment – but I quickly adjusted and kept up with him! We found the beaches and then even found an old 1860 Civil War Fort that was also right along the beach. The West Martello Tower was turned into a secluded, tropical garden where bougainvillea and orchids bloom. Shaded pathways and arched courtyards finally open up to colorful foliage and a nestled white gazebo with a beautiful view of the ocean. What you don’t see in this picture is the minutely clad woman, sunbathing in the white sand, just below the fort’s crumbling red brick outer wall!! H didn’t see her at first either! On our way back to Bahia Honda we stopped at the Resort where B&B were staying and R&N were spending the day with them at the pool. They were getting ready to take the bus down to Key West but we declined the invitation to join them and chose instead the peace and quiet of the state park. On our way, H did give in and located the Visitor Center at the National Key Deer Refuge for directions and a map to try and locate Key Deer. A few miles back into the refuge a sweet young deer was idly munching his way along the roadside. We stopped to snap his picture but he ignored our pleas, finger snapping and rapping on the side of the Jeep, and just kept on munching. Further along, we saw a small herd of deer being fed by some folks in a big pickup truck. While the other 4 folks were downtown in the midst of a busy Key West evening, we were enjoying our own coral colored sunset, nestled at the foot of the bridge that runs thru the state park, and goes from one key to the next.

Long Key State Park had an opening for us and we moved back in for 2 more days! This time our spot was further along the beach, just past all the rocks! R&N had moved back up also to the Jolly Roger Resort and after they came to check out our new home, we all went out to dinner at “The Wreck” a well-known seafood restaurant. N and I got the “house special” – mahi with chopped tomatoes, basil and feta cheese. Very tasty but the portions were not up to the price! H chose a blackened fish sandwich and it was huge!

And I made a new friend. Soon after we parked, we were welcomed by this half grown tan tiger/ocelot marked kitten with a sweet face that reminded me of a cougar! I know you’re not supposed to feed strays or wild creatures but . . .. I did! Oh – if he were younger and less wild – H and I might have snuck him home! He’d eat and then nap but would not let me touch him other than his front paws.

Our outing for the day was to don our water shoes and venture out across that wide space in the ocean where the tide had evacuated. We took along a 5-gallon bucket that H had cut the bottom out of and had glued in a Centre Market scanner glass. It made a perfect underwater viewing- machine! We shuffled our feet most of the time thru the sand because Manta Rays are known for hiding just under the top layer of sand! Sure nuff - H had a ray pass right between he and I!
Even in just knee/thigh deep water we saw a variety of orange, purple, and crème colored coral and other sea plants! AND - get out your nature books and look these up – we saw a 10-inch Batfish – the ugliest fish we have ever seen! It looked like a cross between a plecostamos and a toad! We also saw several Scrawled Cowfish – triangular striped fish that have eyes up high on their heads! I think they are in the Finding Nemo movie!

Fiesta Key Resort is an old KOA campground that was destroyed in hurricane Wilma in 2005 and has now been bought and given new life. It’s got a way to go but to entice new clients they have a good rate and a good pool! Our spot here backs up to a swift moving walled channel that runs from the gulf, past a small mangrove island and thru a small harbor complete with a boat launch. R&N came over to see the park and joined us at the pool. The guys made the choice to go out for seafood (again!) instead of having me fix burgers for us all. Habanos Cuban Café is just over the next bridge north (east) and we were seated at a booth with a great view of the Caloosa Harbor and the ocean beyond it. Yes – the beer battered Key West Pink Shrimp was great! And sweet fried plantains!

The wifi hotspot is way over by the pool on the other side of the resort but the wind has really come up causing the “mobile motel” to rock a bit so we may not post this tonight. Luckily we’re protected enough by the mangroves across the way so we are not getting the full brunt of the wind. We’ve been in the Keys for a week so this Sunday we move up to the Glade again.

Going down the Keys

2011-01-19T05:54:00.001-08:00

Going down the Keys

2011-01-19T05:46:00.000-08:00

The brochure for Long Key State Park has the statement on the front: “Your Home in the Florida Sun”. Our mobile motel home looks just like the one that we’ve been in for the last several weeks but when we open the door here – the view is way better than most and the sun IS shining! SPFB!! When we drove down here about 5 years ago when H’s dear Aunt Ruth passed away, we stopped here at the park and had a picnic lunch. Back then, I took a picture of the brightly colored kayaks and the wonderful view of the ocean. The kayaks are still here and we are definitely enjoying the ocean views still. There are 60 campsites in the park and each one backs up to the ocean. Talk about pretty sunrises! Each site is separated by thick green walls of mangrove, palmetto bushes and even morning glory vines in bloom and finished off with a low split rail fence. To the east side of the fence is a low dune – and then the gentle lapping waves on the small beach – when the tide is in! When the tide is out – the beach is 20 feet wider and spattered with rocks and bobbing little shore birds. Today, H even saw an Osprey fly over with a fish clasped in his talons.

Once we were parked and all set up last Friday, H called B&B who were parked in an RV Resort down the road a few mile markers. On the highway from the beginning of the Keys the miles are marked by “mm” and count down. Key Largo starts at 100; Key West is 0 at the other end. We are at mile marker 67.5. We invited B&B to go out for seafood and of course, B had to drive and H navigated. We found our favorite “hole in the wall”, back road restaurant/fish market, Castaways. We were seated on their enclosed patio, right by the boat dock for our dinner. The seafood was still good but the prices – not so much anymore.

These last two days have gone by quickly. We’ve kept busy by exploring the rest of the park, reading, me knitting, H napping and both of us walking the long narrow beach – ALL done in the warm sun and ocean breezes. Saturday we rode our bikes north a couple of miles and investigated a few small residential streets, all of which had boat channels as back yards. Today we rode them south to, over and back over the Marathon Bridge, a 3-mile long bridge that gently arches as a divider over the turquoise blue waters of the ocean and Gulf of Mexico. The “old” bridge, intact and right next to the one for auto traffic, is now for fishing, pedestrian and bike traffic, as well as being perches for big gray pelicans and long graceful white herons.

Monday morning, on the way down a few more Keys, we stopped for breakfast at The Stuffed Pig before pulling into Bahia Honda State Park between mm 36 & 37 and is divided by hwy 1. SPFB for pictures of the Flagler Bridge and the minivan going under the highway showing that the bridge height was 6 ft 8 inches! A beautiful day to walk the beach, however – since there have been several storms in the area lately – the shores were lined with thick blankets of shredded seaweed that had been washed up, wave after wave onto the beach. No snorkeling here either. Since R&N were on their way to a KOA park that was down at mm 20 – H decided we should go see if they were there yet. We were just getting nicely caught up when the sky grew charcoal gray and the lightening started flashing. We took refuge in the Laundromat area, along with several campers who had the misfortune of being tent campers! When the deluge let up, we ran to our vehicles and went out to dinner at Mangrove Mama’s – just up on the highway. Have you gotten the drift of the restaurant names down here? Tomorrow we’ll drive down to Key West.

The Everglades

2011-01-16T14:46:00.001-08:00

The Everglades

2011-01-16T14:44:00.001-08:00

On the road - again - across the Tamiami Trail, that thin, forever long ribbon of cement that cuts thru the Big Cypress National Preserve and the Everglades National Park, from west to east. On either side are marshes and tall swamp grass lined canals – no doubt, dug with that metal monster – the Bay City Dredge!! Even on this cold morning there were alligators trying to warm their armored backs in the hopeful rays of the sun. And throngs of wading birds, out looking for their first meals of the day! Our first stop was the Visitor Center where we walked the boardwalk and joined the rest of the tourists watching for more “gators” and long graceful Great White Herons. On down the road we stopped again at Shark Valley Visitor Center. It was way too cold and windy to even think of getting the bikes down from their rack on the back of the trailer even tho the blacktop road was inviting as it lead along yet another canal, decorated with more egrets, green herons and what ever else the rest of those birds were! H and I bundled up and managed to walk a ways into the park before our ears were froze and ready to break off. Maybe on our next trip across the Glades we’ll make it to the observation tower at the end of that road.

As cold and windy as it was in the middle of the day, we K N E W we needed to find some electricity for the coming colder night! (We have become very attached to our heated mattress pad and chilled at the thought of having to go without it!) Thank You, LORD - - it was provided when we came across the Midway Campground! A very clean, well-groomed National Park Campground that has electricity, and nice facilities but no showers. We will survive! Once settled in, we had the afternoon to go exploring . . . again. We all know that H cannot stay at rest for too long if there is new territory to conquer! The Glades map showed a “scenic” loop road but the folks at the visitor center said it was really rough and that folks had trouble even with 4wheel drive and skid plates. If you know H – you don’t tell him that! It was rough – and it had a lot of sharp rocks and big muddy potholes and it went on forever because in spite of the posted 25 mph speed limit signs – nobody could ever go that fast! The area was partially Indian Reservation homes and then wilderness – mangrove forest, Cypress swamp and pinewoods. We drove it, so you don’t have to!

On H’s return from his evening trip to the men’s room, he insisted that I come see this huge moth that was clinging to the outside wall of the cement block building. What a beautiful dark brown creature he was, about 6 inches from wing tip to wing tip, with dark blue spots on those velvet wings. I looked in my “Readers Digest Wildlife” book that travels everywhere with us but to no avail – I cannot find out what this moth is. If anyone can tell me – please email me and let me know!

We left the Glades on Tuesday morning and turned south to Homestead and Florida City – the towns that are the gateways to the Florida Keys and to the Biscayne National Park. We parked in a “vintage” midtown campground in the middle of Florida City. Once again – we did it so you don’t have to! And we won’t again either!

Beautiful blue Biscayne Bay is just south of Miami and the National Park is comprised of 95% water, which provides sanctuary for many birds and marine animals. We watched a movie about the area and the devastation it endured from the direct hit of hurricane Andrew in 1992. The visitor center was just being built then and is one of the few buildings that sustained those 200 mph winds. We walked the balconies of the center, enjoying the grand view of the snug harbor and the vast water that lay outside its protective walls. We also walked its wide walkways that rimmed the waters edge and led to a long narrow peninsula that jetted out along the entry to the quiet harbor. Out on the choppy waters, churned by the ever present winds, several wind surfers were racing - flying along at 35mph - darting back and forth, throwing spray as they went.

Thursday morning meant it was time to find the Keys!! As H always says: At one end of 75 is a Lock (the Soo!) and at the other end is a Key! It was time we got there! We had breakfast in Key Largo and then a stop to check out the Fiesta Resort that was recommended by B&B. H decided to take a chance and stop at Long Key State Park to see if they had any openings for first come first serve folks. One! We’re here!

Collier-Seminole State Park

2011-01-13T15:15:00.000-08:00

Collier-Seminole State Park

2011-01-13T15:14:00.000-08:00

Monday was moving day, alright - - moved to Wal-Mart in Sun City Center to purchase a portable air compressor and some “Slime” because one of the trailer tires was losing air again! That problem fixed, H vacillated between staying on Rt 301 or getting on I75 and fighting the growing volume of wind and the growing number of vehicles on the highway Rt 301 won for awhile but the stop and go traffic in Bradenton got on his nerves so he grabbed the steering wheel tightly and got on the expressway to do battle with the force of the winds as they beat on us from 3 different sides – and of course never a tail wind!

Collier-Seminole State Park is nestled on the edge of the Everglades and just south of Naples and east of Marco Island. I’m not sure if you would call it a woods, a forest, a hammock, or a JUNGLE! We rode our bikes on some of the paths and ended up on a really rickety, rotting old boardwalk that rattled and clanked when my tires went over them. It felt like that movie where the fishing pier was being blown up behind them and falling in as they drove over it. I wasn’t sure whether it was falling apart behind me or falling in UNDER me! Whew! I did make it. The park is named for the Seminole Indians who used to live in this area and for Barron Gift Collier who was instrumental in building the roadway from Tampa to Miami and is know as the Tamiami Trail today. The park has on display The Bay City Walking Dredge, built in Bay City Michigan in the 1920’s. This monstrous big black metal creature was operated 10 hours a day, 6 days a week through the swamp to dig up limestone and mud which was piled into a bank to form the road bed, after the fill was compacted. Can you only imagine working in that sweltering heat with swarms of hungry angry mosquitoes and stinking slimy muck with no Avon bug spray or Skin So Soft?

We are listening to a rather fun novel entitled “ Nature Girl” which takes place in the Everglades and the 10000 Islands that border it. The main character is a rather goofy lady who lives in a trailer park in Everglade City. We HAD to go see that town. H said when he was there last it was just a hole in the wall spot where they built the Welcome Center for the Everglades. Now it is a classy collection of beautiful homes and condo’s each complete with it’s own boat channel behind it. At the end of the road is another small island, Chokoloskee, also mentioned in this book. We found the “Smallwood Store” a historic old Indian Trading Post and Museum, established in 1906 by Ted Smallwood. In 1982 when it finally closed, 90% of the original goods were still in the store. Ted’s granddaughter has reopened the store and has turned it into a most interesting museum. From there we went to explore another island – Marco Island – also a very upscale island. We found some free parking at the beachside Marriott Hotel and put our feet in the white sand and the gentle gulf waves. The beach was dotted with all kinds of shells and brightly colored sales on sailboats, patiently waiting to go for an afternoon sail. I even managed to grab up a few of those pretty shells before H got sand in his shoes and gave in to the urge to move on to find the next beach. In Naples the parking was not free but the beach was just as pretty and the view from the Naples Pier was of milky blue green waves washing up on white sand and colorful, grand old cottages snuggled down behind shrub-covered dunes.

We’ll be moving on again – across the vast alligator infested area called “ The Everglades” on Rt 41- the Tamiami Trail. The weather is to turn cold so we need to find a campground with electricity.

Tampa Area

2011-01-09T07:56:00.000-08:00

Tampa Area

2011-01-09T07:54:00.000-08:00

It’s really fun being able to show all the sights to the new kids in town! Bruce and Barbee didn’t seem to mind either! Bruce drove and headed north to Tampa and Ybor (ee-bor) City, per directions from his co-pilot, H. Ybor City was founded in 1886 and is a restored old Cuban section of North Tampa, which is now full of quaint shops, restaurants and cigar stores where you can watch them hand roll cigars. To us northern tourists, it reminded us of New Orleans with all the wrought iron railings above the covered walkways of the old brick buildings. H saw a yellow trolley go by and we chased after him to climb aboard it and ride the beautifully crafted electric trolley all the way from Ybor to downtown Tampa, past the Tampa Aquarium, the convention center where the Ringling Circus was performing and the Cruise Line docks. While the trolley driver was busy changing the signs on the front of the trolley and switching the wires it was running on, H took a shot at pretending he was the man in charge! Poor B – he had 2 and a half back seat drivers (I tried to stay out of all the “direction giving”!) but we did make it to St Petersburg and “The Pier”. SPFB!!! This is the upside down pyramid building out on the long pier on the shore of downtown. Miss B and I had fun in the hat shop and then up on the 5th level to take pictures of the marina’s, airports, St Petersburg skyline and Tampa Bay. You could see the stacks from the power plant in Apollo Beach from there! Back in the big white tour “truck” we stopped for a view of the Sunshine Skyway Toll Bridge before venturing out over it. The clouds had been gathering and the sun was starting to set in the west but was pushing thru and acting as a spotlight reflecting off the vast waterway as we were coming over the bridge. That piercing ray of sun light cast quite a dancing reflection against the stark black shadow of the fishing pier and the many shades of gray clouds. Our day’s journey ended with a scrumptious “supper” of strawberry shortcake complete with a big scoop of ice cream and dollop of whip cream. Yes – since it was cold by then – we ate quickly and got back in the still warm truck and headed home!

Friday was laundry day and our BC friends had a travel day ahead of them. Hugs and goodbyes were given and we parted ways again. Laundry done, a yummy breakfast enjoyed and errands run, H parked himself in his lawn chair in the sun for “Happy Hour” that afternoon. A passing pickup stopped and asked him if he saw the pig that was behind him! This rather large black boar had wandered right thru the spot where B&B’s 5th wheel had been parked, munching acorns as he sauntered along. He went right behind our trailer and casually went the length of the campground looking for his afternoon snack. We told you there were pigs!

Today was the Red Barn Flea Market day where we bought a small box of big red strawberries intended for our supper. Fresh, warm Bisquick shortcakes and a new squirt can of Rediwhip made it complete!

Sunday is a stay close to “home” day with just a run to McD’s to borrow their wifi. Time to pack up and move south on Monday!

First of January 2011

2011-01-06T07:23:00.001-08:00

First of January 2011

2011-01-06T07:22:00.000-08:00

SEE PREVIOUS FLORIDA BLOGS

“SPFB” is going to be the new set of initials that you’ll be seeing on our blogs this winter! Every winter in Florida we MUST make a trip to Ross Prairie Campground and to Rainbow River. This year is no exception! While at Ross Prairie we get to visit with my sister Sharon and her hubby Dick who just celebrated his 85th birthday at a party given in his honor. Rainbow is mentioned in every one of our Florida blogs, whether we are camping and meeting new (now very good) friends, Jerry and Ruth or “dragging” Bud and Carol OR Ron and Nancy up and/or down this deep winding sparkling clear river. Last year I blathered on about snorkeling all the way from the head springs back to KP Hole County Park. So, if you want to see pictures of the river - - SPFB!! This year you just get to see H and his canoe tied up at the short dock at the headsprings. See the motor on the back?! See the color of the water behind him? When the depth of the river is deep – the clear sparkling water picks up that beautiful blue hue. The deeper the water – the darker the blue! We motored back down this time about half way and put to shore so we could slip into our wet suits, secure the bright orange “diver down” flag that every diver /snorkeler is required to have and we finished the trip down river. On this years venture we were lucky enough to see an otter besides the many kinds of fish. Since it was New Years Day and we went swimming – are we now official “Polar Bears” like the crazy guys up north who jump in the freezing river on the 1st day of the year??

EG Simmons is another SPFB. We are parked in the section that was closed for remodeling last winter. We arrived before noon and B&B arrived later that afternoon! B is enjoying all this personalized service of H arriving first at a campground and selecting the best spots. These campsites are big enough for 4 trailers!

Tuesday the 4 of us climbed up into B’s big white Chevy truck and H played co pilot for the day. Our first stop was the power plant just north of Ruskin where a large group of manatees spend their winters. SPFB! Barbee was like a preteen on her first shopping trip to the mall. We were not laughing at her – we were enjoying her enthusiasm! Manatees, sharks, manta rays and a multitude of fish all had their pictures taken. Southbound again, we went thru Bradenton and out across the bridge to Anna Marie Island. SPFB - because we HAD to take them to the historic fishing pier. Further down the island we parked again and walked the white sandy beach. Our final stop was Anna Marie’s Oyster Bar, even after Bruce kept saying he didn’t like oysters! He was impressed!!

And there are pigs here too! Several were right outside the trailer at 3am this morning and woke me up with their rooting around for all the acorns that had fallen. The guys saw a group of 5 later this morning. This was a stay at home day to ride our bikes for our daily inventory of the campground, as H calls it. We had discovered several horseshoe crab shells for Barbee the other day but this time the tide was way out and we found several live Whelks, some big snails and a million little bitty crabs. We did make a run to the grocery store and a side trip to MickeyD’s for wifi and ice cream, tho!

Happy New Year 2011

2011-01-01T07:57:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year 2011

2011-01-01T07:56:00.000-08:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR ALL!

Our first night in Florida was Otter Springs Campground, which we discovered after checking out Suwannee River State Park up near Live Oak Florida. Suwannee River was a nice woodsy campground with nice facilities but - - - no heat. Temps were to be in the low 20’s again and H wanted a HOT shower!

On a previous winter in Florida we met and enjoyed the company of Barbee from British Columbia. If you remember, a year ago September when we drove the minivan out to Vancouver, we visited with Barbee and Terry. This year, Barbee and her new gentleman friend, Bruce were on a 3-month venture from BC all the way down to Florida. Yep! You guessed it – we were going to get to meet up with them. They were going to be in the Manatee Springs State Park on the 29th. We had one night to spend somewhere before then. Out in the saw grass swamp before you get to Cedar Key is the peninsula of Shell Mound, named that because the ancient folks ate so many shelled fish then dumped all their shells in huge mounds! There are probably pictures in a past blog when Bud and Carol and H and I walked thru it and “borrowed” a shell or two. We had driven thru the small, quiet county park campground several times and had always wanted to camp there. The price was right - $10. The open field camping area was polka dotted with small piles of animal droppings and according to the fella’s that ran the park, they were pig droppings! Just a week ago, they had captured 2 large mother hogs and had shipped them to another part of the Suwannee forest. Their 16 offspring were given to the neighbors near the park to raise and then eat. Imagine – 18 hogs running thru a campground- no wonder there were “piles” all over! And - - - Cedar Key is the same as always – a miniature Key West.

H picked out 2 camp spots next to each other in Manatee Springs and it was great visiting with Barbee and getting to know Bruce! Barbee was having a great time trying to get pictures of the multitude of deer and armadillos that wandered thru each evening. Most of her pictures of those nine-banded little fat creatures were of their backsides! While H and I were waiting for B&B to arrive, one cute fella wandered right next to H while he was sitting at the picnic table. Of course, H had to give Bruce all the great pointers on where to camp and how to get there in Florida. We all shared a long walk down to the Suwannee River to see the 2 manatee that were trying to keep warm at the mouth of the spring and sat down to a few good meals before sharing hugs and promises of meeting again. They were heading down to Homosassa Springs to see the manatee up close before heading to the Everglades and the Keys and we were heading east to Dunellen to see Jerry and Ruth and then on to Ocala

The Jeep has been on the road for one week. In the last week we’ve gone thru snow and freezing rain, potholed expressways and gravel back roads; bumper to bumper metro roads and long black ribbons of blacktop weaving thru dense pine and oak forests void of all traffic. Down here in Florida we’ve had temps down in the low 20’s and finally, yesterday it was a balmy 50 degrees. Today the Jeep and the “mobile motel” got a good bath and got a good cleaning inside! The windows were opened and a warm sunny breeze blew thru!! 78 degrees!

Now it’s New Year’s Eve. Last year and the year ago at this same time we were parked in this exact spot!

Merry Christmas 2010

2011-01-01T07:52:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas 2010

2011-01-01T07:50:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas 2010, One and All! While each of you were nestled all snug in your beds with visions of sugar plums dancing in your heads, H and I were tossing and turning and wondering if it was time to get on the road again!! Alas! It took 2 (count them – 2!) false starts before the “Mobile Motel” reached that long ribbon of road that reaches all the way from Michigan to Florida. First there was the almost dead, too dead to start, battery in the Jeep. Then, once that problem was recharged and we pulled out of the driveway, we were half way to the expressway when H remembered that he forgot to attach the stabilizer bar that was still at home in the garage!! We were finally out of Michigan about 8am.

Now, here are some interesting data on some great reasons to travel on Christmas Day - - Between the Ohio/Michigan border and the Ohio River there were a TOTAL of 47 semi trucks. 15 of those were north of Dayton! Only 3 of the 47 were going south and passed us. Only 1 other camper was seen north of Cincinnati. One boat and one motorcycle (dirt bike!) on a trailer!

Snow was on the ground all the way down to Atlanta Georgia but we did not drive thru any until southern Kentucky and it changed to rain as we climbed Jellico Mountain and on down the other side to Clinton Tennessee. During the night it changed back to snow and Sunday morning was as pretty as a Christmas card picture taken in Northern Michigan! The main roads were treated and clear, so Steve and Melissa had no trouble meeting us for breakfast at my favorite breakfast spot- Golden Girls. We were the first, and for a while, the only customers so we were seated in the perfect spot – right next to the beautifully decorated ORANGE Christmas tree!! After all, we were in Tennessee Volunteer Football territory! Since the side roads were slicker than snot on a doorknob, neither Kayla nor Jessie was able to join us I missed them but gave Melissa plenty of hugs to share with them!!

The shiny, wet road that stretched out in front of us was clear of snow but, unlike the day before, was now full of cars, trucks and semis all in a BIG hurry to get someplace It was not surprising that a big number of vehicles had Ohio and Michigan license plates - all heading to Florida, along with all those Floridians that passed us also! There was snow down into Georgia but by Atlanta it was dry. Getting to the center of busy Atlanta on I75 was no problem but getting out the other end was! It was not even a weekday! There should not have been 7 lanes of 5 mph traffic but it was the Sunday after Christmas!

We parked overnight just west of Macon Georgia at Tobesofkee Recreation Area Since it was getting dark and getting colder and even more windy – we really didn’t know what the campground looked like but what we saw of the lake as we arrived looked very pretty. And a side note here – the “facilities” looked new and clean but are the MOST wasted use of space and heat energy that I have ever seen.

The End of Summer 2010

2010-10-02T09:56:00.001-07:00

The End of Summer 2010

2010-10-02T09:53:00.000-07:00

The end of summer is here and we haven’t posted any blogs since spring and the Chicago trip. Just because we haven’t posted any blogs doesn’t mean we haven’t been on the move. The fact is, this summer has been to fast to sit down at the old computer and write about our adventures. Now that it is almost October the pace has slowed just a little.
After the Chicago trip we spent a week at the lake Michigan shore playing at one of Harry’s favorite places the Silver Lake sand dunes. Harry likes the big open white sand beaches and playing out on the dunes with the Jeep.
Another trip was back to the upper part of Michigan to East Jordan on Lake Charlevoix. This time we had the great company of Bud and Carol on this trip. Being the good friend that Bud is, he towed our boat behind his motor home as we towed our trailer behind the Jeep. We stayed at the East Jordan Tourist Park. We have camped here with Bud and Carol a couple of years ago. It is a great place to use as a home base to explore the surrounding area, which we did by car and boat. After about ten days together Bud and Carol had to head for home. We hooked up the trailer and moved over to Interlochen state park, which is just across the road from the Interlochen Center of the Arts. At the center of the arts we had third row seats to see Garrison Keillor with the “A Prairie Home Companion Summer Road Show”. He is the guy who has the Sunday PBS radio show and talks about his hometown of Lake Wobegon. This was one very funny and entertaining two and one half hour show.
A couple of weeks ago Bobbi and her friend Susie took a two-day trip to go shopping at the giant flea market and the town of Shipshewana Ind. While Bobbi was shopping and spending money Harry packed a duffel on the motorcycle and headed up to the Mackinaw City Mi. area to visit with his friend Mel and do some biking around the northern part of Michigan for a couple of days. Almost 800 miles in two days, is just about too much for this not so young rider.
We are almost caught up ! This week, the last week of September we hooked up the trailer and set out for one of our favorite places this time of year, the Jersey Shore.
We traveled the Lincoln Highway (route 30) from Ohio thru Pennsylvania. Not a route to travel, pulling a trailer. The mountains sure put a strain on the truck and braking system. All things considered, the scenery and historic buildings and towns made this route worth it. Two days of travel later we arrived in New Jersey. The next morning we set out for the beach at Ocean City and unload the bicycles to tour the boardwalk and the town. Six miles on the bikes this day. We had some very nice weather for September, and a lot of people were taking advantage of it at the beach, clear in the 90s and a nice breeze. After our day at the beach we go north to Margate NJ. to see the worlds largest elephant Lucy, which was built in the 1800 as a tourist attraction
The next day we go to Wildwoods NJ. to ride the bikes on their three miles of boardwalk and check out the town of Wildwoods. Eight miles on the bikes this day. The bikes are loaded up in the truck and we travel on down the coast to check out the old Victorian houses in Cape May.
Next morning hook the trailer up, and head back west to home.

Chicago June 2010

2010-06-09T14:50:00.001-07:00

Chicago June 2010

2010-06-09T14:47:00.000-07:00

Tuesday the day after Memorial Day when most people have to go back to work and the kids have to go back to school before their summer break, we are on the road crossing the farm lands of Ohio and Indiana toward our destination of Chicago.
Before we get to Chicago we have to set up camp at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, which is on the south shore of Lake Michigan in Indiana. We have camped here several times in the past. One of the nice things about this campground is that across from the entrance is the train station where we get on the train to head to midtown Chicago. When we arrive at the campground it is mostly empty, the weekend holiday campers have left and we have our pick of campsites. This year we need three sites, one for us, one for Roy and Carol (Dolphin36.blogspot.com) and one for Ron and Nancy (Graciesgreatadenture.blogspot.com) who have accompanied us this year. We find three sites in the shade that are near to each other and setup camp. Now it is time to relax and plan our travels for tomorrow.
Wednesday morning the weather is nice after a rainy night the day is perfect, partly cloudy and in the mid 70s. We board the train and head to Chicago for breakfast, however upon arriving at our favorite breakfast restaurant we find that it has closed. A slight change of plans and we find a restaurant overlooking the Chicago River for breakfast. After breakfast we check out some of the stores on Michigan Ave. also known as the Magnificent Mile. Shopping done we hop the bus and we are on our way to the Lincoln Park Zoo. This zoo is huge, and with many of the grade schools field trips scheduled on this day it is a tiring experience for us old people. After the zoo adventure we should have called it quits and headed back to the train station and the campground. Ron and Nancy haven’t seen the Chicago Navy Pier, so back on the bus and off we go to the Navy Pier for some more sight seeing. It is now time to beat the rush hour outbound traffic and make it back to the train station at Millennium Park in midtown, a bus ride and five block walk and we are back on the train heading for our homes away from home and dinner around the campfire and a good nights rest.
Thursday morning out to breakfast in Michigan City Indiana and then on the train to the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago. This is located in the museum campus right on the shore of lake Michigan. The aquarium was built in 1933 for the Chicago world fair, A Century of Progress. Beautiful aquarium with many new exhibits added since we were there years ago. One of the many interesting displays was a fish that was put on display in 1933 and is still living and on display now. After a long day touring the aquarium the group is ready to head back to the campground for dinner and a time to sit back and relax. We now say goodbye to Chicago for this trip and board the train back to our homes away from home.

Mesick Michigan

2010-05-09T16:21:00.001-07:00

Mesick Michigan

2010-05-09T16:20:00.000-07:00

Well here it is our first trip out with the mobile motel of the 2010 summer season. May 8th, and what do we get? SNOW ! That’s right I said snow. After several days in the 70s near 80 at home, we decided to head north to Mesick Michigan for their annual morel mushroom festival. We knew the weather forecast called for cool weather and rain, but we didn’t expect the snow. In Mesick we had no accumulation of snow, however in nearby towns they had accumulations of 3 ½ to 2 ½ inches of snow. Needless to say the crowd for the parade Saturday noon was a little sparse also both venders and customers sparsely attended the carnival and huge flea market. Several of the venders that were set up on Friday decided to close up shop and leave early and forfeit their spots for Saturday and Sunday because of the cold weather and few people.
We did get in a lot of exploring of the Manistee National Forest. The Jeep functioned well, with the heater and windshield wipers working so that it was comfy and we could see to find our way through the forest on the snowmobile trails that we were following. The four-wheel drive was needed on a few occasions to transverse these trails. Many miles of exploring and several stops to check for mushrooms resulted in no mushrooms in our basket.
Something good did come from the foul weather, it gave us an excuse to hop in the Jeep and explore the surrounding towns. One of the towns was Interlochen, Michigan. In Interlochen we stopped at the Interlochen Center for the Arts to check on tickets for the N P R radio show, A Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keilor, scheduled to play there in August. It was a good thing we stopped, according to the N P R web site these tickets are not on sale yet, however at the Arts box office the lady there said the 4,000 seats were just about all sold out. We were able to buy two of the few remaining tickets. We now have seats in Row 2, seats 1 and 2. We were also able to reserve a campsite at the state park across the road from the arts center. That means that we should be able to walk from our trailer over to the show.

Heading North

2010-03-20T16:59:00.001-07:00

Heading North

2010-03-20T16:58:00.000-07:00

Moving on. A lot has happened since we left the Orlando area. First stop was Wickham park in Melbourne Fl. for two plus weeks with some long walks on the beach when it was warm, and checking out the Melbourne zoo. There where some very nice days intermixed with the cool ones. Over all it was a very nice stay with Ron and Nancy at the campground. From there we moved north to the Ocala National Forest again for a stay at Salt Springs and a visit with Dick and Sharon in Ocala. A few days after leaving the Ocala National Forest we ended up in Pigeon Forge Tn. We followed Rt. 441 the old Orange Blossom trail form Florida into the Smoky Mountains.The snow we had in the higher elevations of the Smokies was the last we hope to see untill next year.
It was nice to have the slower pace of the back roads compared to the interstates. Some of our warmer weather was in the states of Georgia and Tennessee, in the 70s the last few days. Once in Pigeon Forge we had to take the trolley ride back to Gatlinburg to take the ski lift up to a lookout spot to overlook downtown Gatlinburg.
Today is Sat. March 20th and we spent the afternoon at the Knoxville Zoo. Temps in the mid 70s, which made it a very nice day at the zoo. We sure had some beautiful days for site seeing along the way. Tomorrow is planned for a cook out at son Steve’s home and then it is time to hook up the mobile motel and take it home.

Orlando Area

2010-03-01T06:47:00.001-08:00

Orlando Area

2010-03-01T06:46:00.000-08:00

February is almost a memory. Her last week and a half have come and gone too quickly. Moss Park is one of my favorite camp spots in Florida. This year, as last, we parked next to George the camp host/resident park photographer and he shared both his knowledge of the park and it’s wildlife and his wonderful film presentation of Moss Park’s creatures. And the Sandhill Cranes that had laid 2 eggs? Their nest was just off shore at the edge of a grassy area and they even allowed George to venture out the small watery path and keep watch over them and their soon to be hatched children. (Zoom in on that picture to see Momma sitting on the nest!) Last Monday the first baby pecked his way thru his shell and the second sibling followed thru on Tuesday. George was a VERY PROUD Grampa indeed! By Thursday the youngster’s parents had them up on shore and pecking their way thru the campground looking for little tidbits of something to eat. Whenever someone ventured too close, the babies flattened themselves down and blended right in with the brown/tan winter grasses. We lucked out and snapped a several good shots of the adorable fuzzy babies and their tall long legged folks keeping watch over them. And the big black headed squirrels that I didn’t know the name of? Per George, they are Sherman Fox Squirrels and George promises to get me a photo of one of them.

Last year when we were parked here, we also met a wonderful couple – Bobbie (!) and Gene from up Georgia way. Gene had had surgery and was confined to a wheelchair. Ofcourse, Bobbie and I clicked right off the bat and we have corresponded throughout the last year. We parked several days with them at Highland Hammock last month and the arrived at Moss Park last Monday. Gene is now MUCH better and is enjoying getting out and around and even rides his 2-wheel bike! Bobbie gave us some great pointers on playing the dulcimer, which has given us a renewed urge to learn to play it better. 2 of their grandchildren came to visit and we enjoyed meeting them.

Our Moss Park stay has ended and we’ve moved on to Melbourne and Wickham Park, which will now be our home for 2 more weeks. I am NOT going to bring up the cold, WET weather that we’ve endured yet AGAIN in this state that used to be known for its warm SUNNY wonderful weather - because this afternoon the sun was shining and the temps made it up to “take off the sweatshirt” temperature. . We are parked just down the way from Ron and Nancy so will be spending some fun time with them. The canoe never made it off the Jeep while we were in Moss Park but it sure did make it easy to find the Jeep in a parking lot whenever we went anywhere!! I should make it to the beach at least once while we are here tho.

East Central Florida

2010-02-19T07:35:00.002-08:00

East Central Florida

2010-02-19T07:35:00.001-08:00

No moss under our feet this past week! Saturday, February 13th we pulled out of WP Franklin and the winds were STILL blowing strong. All across the state of Florida we fought the winds. Since the Lake Okeechobee area has always been one of H’s favorite camping areas in the past, we pulled thru several and then drove up on the high ridge of the lake in the town of Pahokee to see what the lake was doing. Its water was dark and the winds were antagonizing the waves that were crashing into the few boats that were trying to stay secured in the small harbor. In the surrounding farmlands the winds were causing the sugarcane field fires to darken up the highways that crossed their path. Talk about pollution! It sure would not be allowed to happen up North, would it? We had lucked out and had secured a spot in Port St Lucie Lock and Dam Campground for 2 nights so our day’s journey ended early.

The winds were still blowing on Sunday and it was still “cool” but we found a big flea market to wander thru. We found the beach but – yep – too windy and cold to even enjoy a beach walk. Monday we moved again - up the outer barrier island on A1A and parked again - in Sebastian State Park. It was a sunny day and we walked out on the fisherman-lined jetties on both sides of the inlet and watched all the pelicans diving for food over and over again. Tuesday we moved again!

Moss Park is an Orange County Park that is just SE of Orlando. It is one of our favorites because it’s in the middle of a tall piney woods and surrounded by two pretty lakes – Lake Mary Jane and Hart Lake. A small channel that is lined on one side by park and the other side by thick jungle joins the two lakes together. This is the park where I caught those huge crappie last year! Yeah – check last year’s blog!

The greeting committee was there to see us within 5 minutes of our arrival! Sandhill Cranes are all over the place! According to George, the parks official photographer, there is a pair that is sitting on eggs again this year. I am hoping to go see her before we leave! The winds have settled down finally and we were able to sit outside and enjoy the afternoon. Yet another Sandhill Crane came to say Welcome Back! Each morning, deer wander just outside our campsite perimeter looking for some morsel to browse on! The trees are often full of unseen birds calling to each other. Crumbs spread on the ground draw down the chickadees and other small birds. This morning a strange looking squirrel came to say Hi by climbing on top of the picnic table that is only 6 feet from our door. Around here, the squirrels are huge creatures almost the size of a cat – bushy long gray tails and dark black heads. I put out a few crackers to lure him back but the only thing the crackers “lured” back was another Sandhill Crane! Oh well. I must ask George what those squirrels are called.

The weather is warming. Imagine – 60’s today and up into the 70’s in just 2 more days. Hopefully the canoe will be taken off the roof of the Jeep again and the fishing lures can be cast into the water – finally.

Fort Myers Area

2010-02-11T09:17:00.001-08:00

Fort Myers Area

2010-02-11T09:15:00.000-08:00

Wow – how long has it been?? February 10th – we are the furthest south as we will get this winter. The “mobile motel” has been parked at the WP Franklin Lock and Dam Corp of Engr’s Campground on the Caloosahatchee River just east of Fort Myers. One of our favorite campgrounds, this park is on an island in the middle of the river and has only 29 sites, each facing the water. Last year we were on the lock side of the island and this year we face a small cove. Across the water is a huge big live oak tree and 2 eagles roost there every morning and evening!

The weather has been cool (COLD), windy (VERY) and more rain than we would have liked to have endured. Thankfully when it rains – the winds die down some. But – when we watch the national news on TV and see ALL the blizzards and snow and bad weather up across the states – we realize “it ain’t so bad down here”. The “mobile motel” just gets a bit small after awhile tho!

I did get to have my “Girlfriend Fix”! H took me up to Punta Gorda and Em came down from Port Charlotte and we had a delightful day of shopping, eating and girl talking! The only frustrating part of the day was trying to reach H via his new cell phone that was to have kept the original number - - and didn’t.

B & C came down from Lake Placid to spend a day and we hit the flea market before using up our tickets to the Edison/Ford Estates that we toured last year. Since the Ford winter home was closed then, we were all issued return tickets to visit the estates again. We were looking forward to enjoying the antique car show of over 100 Fords that was to be held on the property. HOWEVER - - when we arrived, all of the beautiful old vehicles were preparing to leave because they too had had enough of the cold and wind! It was even too cold to walk the estate grounds because the strong winds were coming right off the Gulf.

Sunday, February 7th was H’s birthday and his brother R and wife N came over from their parking spot in LaBelle to celebrate the day. Again – cool and breezy. The Fleamaster Flea Market is the biggest in the area and N and I made it thru 3/4th of it before the “boys” called! We sang Happy Birthday to both boys (R’s big day is the 11th!) and then enjoyed another great BBQ dinner at Rib City.

In the 2 months that we’ve been gone the canoe had only been off the roof of the Jeep twice. Now the count has risen to 3! And the tiny craft has made it into this brackish water twice – one venture was uphill and INTO the wind BOTH ways!! It was close but we made it back!

My sewing machine has managed to make it out of its case on a couple of the warmer and less windy days. Up in Highland Hammock State Park I sold a few of my heart shaped potholders and a purse. While here I’ve even sold a few more potholders! I’m working on another purse and a whole bunch more potholders but the weather is not looking to promising to be sewing outdoors.

Today we went exploring over near LaBelle and Ortona and on the way back we passed this pasture with cows and horses - and a huge shaggy camel! H had to turn around so we could take a picture of it! This area is all grazing and groves - - - grazing cows and horses and groves of oranges! One pasture even has llamas! But a camel?!!

Saturday, the 13th we are moving east for 2 days at the St Lucie Lock and Dam campground, just southwest of Stuart. From there we’ll start working our way north to Moss Park.

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY, EVERYONE!

Southwest Florida

2010-01-29T16:55:00.001-08:00

Southwest Florida

2010-01-29T16:52:00.000-08:00

Two busy weeks in EG Simmons has come and gone. If you want to see pictures – see last year’s blog! Although, I could not resist snapping this beautiful, mellow sunset from our campsite this year! One day, B&C came “up” to visit us and even tho it was too cool of a day to ride bikes, we drove them on a tour of “our” park and then up to Apollo Beach Power Plant to share the amazing sight of all the manatees that were squeezed into the canal. Both cars then traveled down to Ellenton to run errands and enjoy a front row table at the Roaring Twenties Pizza Place. (again – see last year’s blog when we were treated to the Roaring Twenties Theater Wurlitzer Organ with D&S!) Yes, The Phantom was played and it was better than last year! Another trip back down to Ellenton came on Sunday when we met D&S, and Nancy from up home, for dinner at our other favorite – Oyster Bar! One warm day we did make it to the Big Red Barn Flea Market, then Joann’s for supplies and on out to Holmes Beach on Anna Marie Island.

From EG Simmons, our next move was further east and south to Sebring and a few days in Highland Hammock State Park – one of, if not the oldest state park in Florida. Since this park is only 20 miles north of Lake Placid where B&C are staying, they came up for a day and all 4 of us climbed on board the tram ride for a back woods tour provided by the very knowledgeable park ranger. As Kevin, drove and repeatedly stopped, he explained about the diverse ecological areas and the animals that we might (and did) see! He pointed out ALL the big mama alligators and the clutches of last July’s babies that were not too far away. We startled several mammoth turtles, two of which had been nestled within inches of the snout of one of the “mama’s”! We saw deer, herons, egrets, buzzards AND a beautiful soaring bald eagle. Last year while camped up in Moss Park, we met Bobbie and Gene from Georgia and it was a joy for me to renew our long distance friendship since they were camped right down the row from us! A special treat for me was to get to enjoy a girl’s only lunch and a bit of shopping with her! Then, Thursday evening there was a Sunset Tram ride that I did not get to sign up for because of a communication glitch in the front office. Thanks to B&G, the ranger who was leading this ride was actually going to drive to our campsite to get me!! Luckily, H had told me to go see if there was any room on the tram for me and I was on my way when I heard them call to me and hollar: “RUN!!” What a lovely sunset ride thru a different portion of the hammock (forest) it was. Again, this ranger would stop and explain the types of trees and why they grow where, along with the types of animals we might see. An eagle’s nest was pointed out and we were advised that we might see bats. He said we might see deer but it was very observant lady in front of me who spotted the big eyes and broad pointed rack on the buck white tail deer standing just on the other side of a clump of tall broom grasses! The truck was slowly angled towards the deer so the headlights shone on him and the rest of the passengers enjoyed the special view also.

Friday, January 29th, I said goodbye again to B&G and we pulled out to meet B&C for breakfast on our way south. Now, I must tell you that we never double-checked our reservations for WP Franklin until last night. All this time, we thought we were to move there today! Nope! Tomorrow!! We were homeless! Not to fear – H knew that there were several campgrounds between Sebring and Ft Myers. But, Bud had a coupon for 3 “free” camping nights at a RV resort in LaBelle! For tonight we are nestled in next to a nice couple from northern Indiana and a 5th wheel from Illinois. The Jeep has even been washed without being unhooked from the trailer. Whispering Creeks has minimal trees, full hookups, cable, really friendly people and - - - fire ants.

H’s ankle is swollen and itchy but he’ll survive. Now, for sure – tomorrow we’ll be in WP Franklin!

Tampa Bay Area

2010-01-19T10:25:00.001-08:00

Tampa Bay Area

2010-01-19T10:23:00.000-08:00

Lithia Springs County Park SE of Brandon and now EG Simmons County Park in Ruskin on Tampa Bay. 25-degree weather and now 70-degree weather. Just like Michigan – give it time- it all changes.

While parked in Lithia Springs, a “must do” was to enjoy our annual strawberry shortcake lunch from the Brandon Farms Roadside Market. Surprisingly the cost has not gone up, in spite of the cold weather devastation they have endured in the last 2 weeks. The portions were still good and the taste was still DELICIOUS. For almost 2 weeks, the temperatures have dropped below 30 degrees each night and to save the acres and acres of half ripened berries and the blossoms for the coming promise of berries, the farmers turned on the sprinklers and literally covered the entire field with frozen water. Then - the aftermath of all that constant, county wide irrigation – the water levels fell, both in neighboring household wells and in the ground “levels” causing monstrous sinkholes in front yards, driveways and even in the middle of I 4, the cross state highway. The radio reports said that one sinkhole took 400 cubic yards – 80 truckloads - of cement to fill in just that one void.

Tampa Bay and EG Simmon’s wildlife has suffered from the cold also. As we walked the beach, the fishing areas, the sandy peninsulas and the boat areas, the other day, the shorelines were mottled with all sorts of dead fish from 2-inch fingerlings to large catfish that were over a foot long, porcupine fish and several cownosed rays. The resident raccoons have dined in style each night after a fresh batch of seafood is washed ashore when the tide comes in.

Not all the wildlife is lifeless tho! In Lithia Springs we were visited one chilly afternoon by this Red-shouldered Hawk that perched right above our campsite. The other day we checked in on the power plant that is 5 miles north of here in Apollo Beach. The canal and lagoon are fed with the heated water from the plant and were “mammal to mammal” full of various sizes of manatees and even some rays that were leaping out of the water. Today, Saturday, January 17th we visited the Mote Aquarium and Marine Laboratory out on Longboat Key, just west of Sarasota. Rays, different kinds and sizes of sharks, and several kinds of large sea fish occupied the outside tanks and inside were many more unique displays of interesting sea creatures including a preserved 37 ft long squid. Across the way in a second large structure of more large tanks were the bottlenose dolphins, the green sea turtles and another large sea turtle that came right up to face H thru the thick window. We stood for a long time, watching Hugh and Buffet the resident manatees. Several times they would swim right across their very large, temperature controlled, water filled enclosure and face H on the other side of the 3-inch thick clear acrylic window. Here’s lookin’ at you!

We’ve driven down to Ellenton and met Bud and Carol and their friends at the Ellenton Outlet Mall. The guys spent a boring afternoon waiting for their female shoppers, but were rewarded with a wonderful seafood dinner at another area favorite – Anna Marie’s Oyster Bar. Monday, B and C are coming up to visit us here in the campground and then we plan on taking them out to the beaches and another yummy seafood lunch!

Chasshowitzka

2010-01-10T08:34:00.001-08:00

Chasshowitzka

2010-01-10T08:31:00.000-08:00

Today is Sunday, January 10th. It’s COLD in Lithia Springs Florida. 28 degrees when I awoke this morning. Both heaters have been called into duty. We moved down from Chassahowitzka Wildlife Refuge Campground just south of Homosassa Springs yesterday and it’s a good thing we have because the temperatures there are in the teens this morning!

While camped in Chassawowitzka we revisited Homosassa Wildlife Park, found the ruins of the 1850 Yulee Sugar Mill, visited with friends whom I went to high school with, got the canoe off the roof of the Jeep and canoed/motored almost out to the Gulf on the warmest day of the week and on Friday, the coldest day of the week, finally got to go see the famous mermaids and see their shows at Weeki Wachee State Park. In Homosassa we ate at Riverview Seafood Café which was right ON the water and overlooked Monkey Island which was the home to 6 monkeys.

Homosassa Springs Fla.

2010-01-05T08:31:00.000-08:00

Homosassa Springs Fla.

2010-01-05T08:30:00.000-08:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR! May this New Year be better for you than the last one! Our 2009 ended when the 11 o’clock news was over and H turned out the lights. The new year of 2010 looked just like how the last year ended – cold and wet! I thought we were in Florida to get warm and stay out of the cold damp weather! Silly me! The week between Christmas and New Years passed quickly – and other than a royal hassle with State Farm Bank over my “compromised” credit card – our week was pleasant, with me shopping with Sharon, dinners out with them and over to their home while H got to watch Ohio State win the Rose Bowl. We visited several times with Ruth and Jerry, which is always great!

We’ve moved west and south from Ocala to just south of Homosassa Springs Florida. We are in the Chassahowitzka Wildlife Reserve at a county park, which is woodsy and kinda like a fishing camp on the river. It’s still COLD! For the last several nights we’ve unplugged the water hose so it wouldn’t freeze. It never made it up past 45 degrees Sunday and just barely 50 on Monday! Next to us is a couple in a tent who, until Sunday, didn’t even have a heater! They spent most of that night in their truck with the engine running. They finally went to Walmart for an electric heater. They have no air mattress - just 2 sleeping bags and we instructed them to zip them together to better keep the warmth in. H has also helped cover the tent with a tarp.

As we always do when we move to a new neighborhood where we’ve not been in a while, we go exploring. Saturday when we moved here, we found the grocery store and the closest wifi location. Sunday, after I baked some cookies (to help warm up the trailer?) we found Beale’s Outlet and Walmart and in spite of the cold – we returned to Homosassa Springs Wildlife Park.
Winter coats, sweatshirts and hats helped but after a slow ride on an open pontoon boat we were chilled to the bone. Walking fast and ducking into different buildings helped! The zoo has been updated and remodeled since our last visit and the raised boardwalks guided our paths past the enclosures for the owls, bald eagles, the tiny Key Deer, the 3 red wolves, the BIG black bear and the slinky pacing cougar! The path went out and around the waterfowl displays, complete with beautiful wood ducks, whooping cranes, swans and the ever-squawking sand hill cranes! The Homosassa River actually starts there at the springs which is home to 6 VERY large 3000 lb female manatees and a kazillion swarming shiny fish, swimming round and round the under water observation area. Back at the campground the native birds were also putting on a late afternoon concert and we were treated to a great view of an enormous owl in the tree above us!

Monday’s journey led us south to Weeki Wachee State Park in hopes of seeing if the Mermaids had frozen. When we arrived we found out they have Mondays off. Rather than waste the trip we found Big Lots so H could replace the laptops mouse, lunch and a visit to Joann’s!! I needed my fabric fix! Back at the park, we invited our tenting neighbors, Ricky and Robin over for dinner and a respite from the cold, even if it was just for a few hours

Central Florida

2009-12-28T09:02:00.001-08:00

Central Florida

2009-12-28T09:01:00.000-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS ONE AND ALL! We hope that your day was half as much fun as ours was! We’ve been here in Ross Prairie Campground for a week now and H says I need to blog.

The weather has been cool (50’s and 60’s during the day) and the heater has run all night on most nights. Wednesday, the 23rd, was projected to be the warmest and sunniest day of the week so we joined Jim and Nancy – you know - the folks from NC – and went canoeing up the Silver River which is one of our favorite rivers to venture up and back on. We strapped the two sturdy vessels together and had the little 2 horsepower motor in between. Picture a tiny but mighty tug boat pushing two passenger barges up the Ohio River! Since Nancy and I didn’t have to paddle, our cameras were busy – trying to capture for memory sake all the neat things and animals that we saw. Jim and H were busy navigating and spotting all the creatures for us - otters, pileated woodpeckers, kingfishers, herons (white, great blue, green, little blue and the one with the tuff on top!), egrets, coots, wood storks, lots of turtles, bunches of really big fish, MONKEYS and, of course, alligators!! Check out the baby one sitting proudly on top of Momma’s head!! There are otters actually under the roots of the tree in the one picture that H has posted! We tried to follow the glass bottom boat and listen to the tour driver tell about each spring that they went over but we were too far and it was harder to do with 2 canoes involved. But the springs are still deep blue and still amazing! On our way back down river, we each drifted and paddled on our own with a stop at the State Park canoe entrance. That’s when it happened. J & N’s canoe flipped over as they tried to re-enter it. Poor Nancy was drenched from top to bottom. Instead of finishing up the ride, she wisely chose to walk the half-mile back up the canoe path and return to their campsite in the Silver River State Park while Jim finished paddling back to the launch site with us. Yes, we have heard from them since and she is fine. We’ll canoe again someday!

Christmas Eve we went to worship with D&S at the church they attend and then joined a group of their friends to enjoy snacks and fun conversation afterwards. One of the couples is from Long Island NY so they were fun to chat with since we were just there in May! Wish I could have written with her accent when I wrote about eating hotdogs at Nathan’s last spring!

Christmas Day we were graciously invited to join Dick’s family at his daughter’s home again. And again we were treated as family! I didn’t get the coal this year - Dick did! Yee hah! H got his “Beer of the World” and the 4 guys all shared the Blueberry one and one of the Orange and Honeybee ones. That is - after we all had toasted each other with the Champaign and orange juice mixed drinks that Terry served in the large “Reindeer Juice” styrofoam cups! Before we all sat down to a wonderful dinner the poppers were passed out and all “popped”! Inside each was a paper crown and a small horn/whistle/kazoo kinda thing. H took the prestigious place of the conductor and between all the guffaws and giggles we each attempted to toot our whistle when our distinguished mystro pointed his baton our way. H plays a better dulcimer than we played our whistles but we had way more fun!

We’ll be staying here in Ross Prairie till the end of the year (?!) and then we will move over towards the Gulf. We have only visited with Jerry and Ruth twice and I hope to see them yet again before we leave. Monday is laundry day and hopefully Sharon and I will get some “Girl’s Only” shopping in.

Central Florida

2009-12-18T14:09:00.001-08:00

Central Florida

2009-12-18T14:07:00.000-08:00

Time to do laundry and time to move! Both accomplished and we moved the “motel” to another one of our favorite spots in the forest – Juniper Springs! Look back at last December’s blogs to read all about the springs and the campground itself!

H treated us to a wonderful bacon and eggs with cheese breakfast on Thursday and off we went to find the sinkhole that he had been told about when we were parked in Salt Springs. By the forest maps, it was way closer to Juniper Springs so cross country we went. Now, I suppose that if you had never seen Hocking Hills or the Red River Gorge that this phenomenon would be something to see. The half-mile hike was interesting and H kept me amused by his incessant fussings about bears and how far it was! The actual “hole” was 120 some feet deep, which by Florida standards is pretty deep, however in the last 100 years it has become overgrown with trees and scrub. There was a wide, well spaced set of stairs going down to the bottom and we went part way down and had no trouble getting back to the top. Also on that exploration venture we parked and watched a gorgeous bald eagle soar overhead and then land in the top of a dead tree! Sweet! At one point of our wanderings, it looked as though the yellow sand road just disappeared into the dark green trees in front of us and then in the distance you could see it reappear and climb the far hill! As we got close the road made a sharp left turn and took us around an isolated little lake and surrounding prairie land. Then up the far hill we went! H even dared to turn onto a couple of two track roads but soon turned back when they got too “scratchy” for the sides of his “still almost new” Jeep.

Back in camp we walked the grounds and trails to see if we could see any changes from last year when the campground was closed due to forest fires. At the beginning of the camping circle we were parked in was an older couple in a motorhome from Holland Michigan. They had a flagpole made out of pvc pipe – sorta like the neat one that Bud had made for us several years ago. It drove me nuts because it was put together backwards! We HAD to stop and ask the man if it had come in a kit and he replied that his niece had made it for them. The next time we went by their site and they were not there - - we HAD to fix it! Was it a “random act of kindness” on our part or did it just plain drive us nuts to see it that way?

Friday morning started out with rain and it continued all the way as we drove to Ocala. We are now parked in Ross Prairie on Rt 200, just south of Ocala, for the next week. We’ve put 1500 miles on the Jeep since we left home and H has already had its oil changed since we’ve been in Florida. We’ve been eating from the stash of goods we brought in the freezer, refrigerator and cupboards so next we need to go find some groceries. And we’ll be meeting Dick and Sharon for burgers tonight! It seems like forever since I got to see my sister! It was last March when we bid them fond goodbye and started our trek home! Dick’s birthday is Monday and I MUST sing to him - again!

Central Florida

2009-12-15T13:32:00.002-08:00

Central Florida

2009-12-15T13:32:00.001-08:00

We’ve turned lazy since we’ve settled in at Salt Springs! We’ve gone out exploring forest back roads a few times. Lots of signs about bears! We’ve heard there is one in the camp but have not seen it. Last night we heard the call of an owl and this afternoon we watched a hawk soaring high over the trees. We’ve ridden the bikes out and around a few times.

We’ve met some great folks! We’re sad that they have moved on to their next location but after Christmas we’ll be in the same area again and are hoping to get the canoes in the same river at the same time! Jim and Nancy are from North Carolina so of course have that wonderful southern accent and all the cool “isms” that go with it! Nancy is a crafter like me and we spent an afternoon sharing “projects”. I now have a sweet crocheted angel and she has a Christmas potholder. We’ve shared a campfire and a bag of marshmallows. Jim and H found plenty to gab about – boats, guns, planes, cars and travel stories!

Across the way from us is an older fella, Joe who is a novice camper. I mean NOVICE! H had to help him finish setting up his tent because he didn’t know that the poles go into the little pockets at the bottom of the tent and he wondered why his tent wouldn’t stay standing up straight. He has a laptop but was having trouble getting the wifi that’s across the way. He didn’t realize you had to scroll down to see them when there are more than 3 on his screen.

Monday has come and gone. The temps were in the mid 80’s and again – mostly sunny! Our big adventure was to venture down the highway to go snorkeling at Silver Glen Springs. Thankfully they have not “improved” that beautiful spring! Silver Glen is rustic and still the way it was a long time ago. Even the split rail fence that encompasses the deep area is RUSTIC! A large oval spring with plenty of swimming and snorkeling areas!! And fish!!! We thought they were mullet but a gentleman there said they were “lady fish”. He was out there swimming and caught a catfish with his bare hands! He called out whenever he saw a different fish – catfish, gar, ladyfish, mullet, tilapia and even a ray! We started to follow a hiking trail thru the “jungle” and forest near the springs but once H saw the FRESH pile of bear scat – we didn’t walk much further. As we walked we played kindergarten kids and clapped our hands till we were back at the picnic area!

Tuesday had a VERY froggy start. The fog was so wet it was dripping off the awning. Five miles on the bikes with a run to the grocery store and then another run to the post office and thru the resort across the road. After a light lunch we finally donned our snorkel stuff and counted fish in the springs here in this park. Since the springs have been closed to the public for the last 2 years, it is now clogged with all kinds of grasses and weeds making it difficult to get around. Luckily there were a couple of folks down there who were pulling up weeds by the handfuls, thus creating “paths” to paddle from one rock clustered deep spring to the other. One of the new “improvements” to the swimming area was to remove the picnic tables so there was no place to sit and soak up some sun so we climbed back on our trusty 2 wheels and came back home so we could soak up the sun in our own easy chairs. But a pleasant surprise greeted us!. While at Silver Glen we chatted with a delightful couple from Ontario who are circling the states in their compact size motorhome. We ran into them while on our bike ride and they came over to investigate the park and visit with us!

Northern Florida

2009-12-14T08:27:00.001-08:00

Northern Florida

2009-12-14T08:26:00.000-08:00

It’s pouring down rain and 52 degrees! This morning, Friday the 11th, we joined the rest of the campers in Salt Springs National Forest Campground for a pancake breakfast in the “barn”. Pretty good fixin’s! This afternoon we went out exploring more backwoods when a young VERY black bear loped across the roadway! We were looking for a large sinkhole that someone told H about but we never found any. The “lakes” we saw on the maps were actually just overgrown water spots in vast wild swamps. By the time we returned to the trailer it was pouring down rain, which was a perfect time to get out the sewing machine and work on some Christmas potholders. 4 are done so now I can get you caught up on what’s been going on since our last visit.

From Blythe Island Georgia, we moved on down to Amelia Island, Florida and got a nice spot in Little Talbot State Park for the night. Of course, before we parked at the State Park, we had to make a stop and do some shopping in the touristy town of Ferdindina at the north end of the island. Nothing has changed there!! Even the shark is still hanging high on the dock in the harbor. (H had his picture taken with it several years ago!) On our way early Monday morning, the schedule for the day included (finally) a stop at the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens. Our Toledo Zoo membership didn’t get us in free but even half price was well worth the experience. African elephants, a small herd of giraffes, Bongo’s, a pretty neat reptile building with ACTIVE inhabitants, a pair of cougars and several domed aviaries were among our favorites there. NO polar bears and only one nervously pacing cheetah! In one of the jungle aviaries there was a pair of extremely colorful ducks who took turns preening themselves whenever I attempted to take their pictures. Snap – one duck was swiveling his neck. Snap- the other one was! Oh well! Our feet and legs were soon wore out and after a sandwich in the trailer we were back on the road south to St Augustine and 2 nights at Anastasia State Park. This time we parked in the loop that was nearest to the beach but STILL never made it out to walk on it. Way too windy! Tuesday morning we headed to the beach - to drive on it! It was a bit foggy and still windy. The waves were rolling in hard and the beach was fairly empty of vehicles or foot traffic but there were plenty of bobbing little shorebirds. And plenty of gulls and “bad hair” terns! After going slow for nearly 10 miles we turned inland and found ourselves across from the Fort Matanzas National Historic Site. We HAD to visit! Our free boat ride took us out onto an island down river from St Augustine. The island originally was only an acre and the size of the tiny restored fort matched that island in size! The 8 soldiers who once manned the fort never saw any battles but spent 30 days at a time serving as lookouts – protecting the city of St Augustine from the mouth of the river to the south. The Jeep was parked next at the “Castillo De San Marcos “ near historic downtown St Augustine and we spent an hour going in and out of the shops that lined the pedestrian mall. Since we STILL had time on the meter we entered the fort and took our own private tour there. Up on the walls of the fort, the view of the harbor below offered moored pleasure sailboats instead of Spanish war ships. The roads buzzed with vehicle traffic instead of marching soldiers or civilians going about their business in the nearby town.

Wednesday morning the road before us led us inland to the Ocala National Forest and here in Salt Springs we parked in the same site as last year. This will be our home for the next week. The awning is out and Christmas lights are hung on it. Our American flag is flying on our pole that Bud made for us! The Christmas tree is on the dining room table and our two little blue velvet stockings are hung. The radio station is called “The River” and Christmas Carols play all day. The wifi is still across the road in the small strip mall there! The temperature on Thursday was 84 degrees and today it only made it up to 52. Then there is the rain – it’s now gone and the temps are to be back up in the 70’s and 80’s for the weekend.

Georgia

2009-12-05T12:00:00.000-08:00

Georgia

2009-12-05T11:59:00.000-08:00

Saturday, December 5 – we have moved south from the wet, swampy state park just outside Savannah to a wet county park on Blythe Island, just SW from Brunswick Ga. The sun has finally come out for a while this afternoon and the temps are above 50 degrees. It poured down ALL night long and the “mobile motel” should now be called the “Aerolite Ark” because we woke up this morning parked in the middle of a HUGE puddle! H had to pull out onto the roadway before he could finish the chore of hooking up and putting everything away. It has rained everyday since we left Michigan and twice was an all night, steady downpour of rain. Last night the sound of the rain on the roof was like being inside of a popcorn popper that never ran out of exploding kernels.

Historic Savannah was decorated for Christmas and we walked thru the shops, both down on the riverfront and on the upper street level. Poinsettias were plentiful and festive wreaths were hung on most doors! The cobblestone streets and the gas lamps flickering on the various storefronts easily took us back in time. All that was needed were the ladies in their long dresses and the gentlemen in their waistcoats! Christmas music floated on the air from different areas and at one small waterside park there was an elderly gentleman playing carols on his clarinet. I spoke a “Good Morning” to a man who was weaving roses and intricate crosses from reeds and he handed me one and said it was a gift. I tried to decline and teased him that it was one way to make a sale! He said – no- it was a gift because I was nice to him. Yeah, I gave him a dollar. I’m a softy and H fussed that I am. Two brightly decorated paddlewheel boats were secured to the seawall and just up from them was a grand dame of a tall ship named Peacemaker. The sign at the boarding ramp said “free tours” and up we went! She was 150 ft long and stood 126 ft tall. A big girl – she weighed 380 tons! A beautiful lady! As we visited with a gentleman who seemed to be in charge, we watched 2 mammoth ocean freighters cross by each other – one coming down river and the other – one of the largest ocean going cargo container ships from China going up river. The upriver vessel was guided by a tugboat that was bigger than any we see on the Maumee! As they passed close by the moored tall ship, we felt the power of their engines.

From downtown Savannah we crossed over to Tybee Island and had to stop for a side trip to Cockspur Island to visit Fort Pulaski National Monument. We arrived just in time for a guided tour and learned all about her 18 year building process and the short Civil War battle that ended her short career as a fort. We continued out onto Tybee Island, hoping to be present for their lighted Christmas parade but the rains came and we went - - back to the campground and out of the downpour.

This morning we followed Rt 17 past several plantations and thru swamps and mixed forests of both hardwoods and tall skinny pines. All along the way the roads were lined with fall colors of bright yellows, reds, oranges and dark greens of the live oaks. Oh yeah - - - palm trees and Spanish moss, too!!! Northern Georgia has snow and this area still has fall colors!

At 2 30pm, H says its now 55 degrees and the sun is STILL shining! He’s had his nap and we’ll be heading to Historic Downtown to find some more Christmas decorations! May visit another island while we’re out!

Heading South Again

2009-12-05T09:38:00.000-08:00

December 2nd - we’re on the road again! Going places that we’ve never been!!! Our “mobile motel” pulled out on Wednesday morning just before 8am and got in the long line of vehicles who had to go to work that morning. HA! We kept going and ended up at a rustic little campground just after 5 o’clock in Camp Creek State Park on Rt 77, just south of Beckley W Va. Glad to be off the windy and wet road, we really didn’t mind that it rained all night – we were safe and dry -- and slept well, inspite of our colds.

Back up on the road again, thru Virginia and into North Carolina. Our 1st stop for the morning was breakfast in Elkins. On the menu was something that neither of us had ever seen, so I HAD to try it. Livermush! A molded mixture of ground liver and cornmeal fried to a crispy brown– so said the waitress. And whatever else was in it, I will never know! It was interesting but will never force bacon off my list of favorite pork items. We left the 4-lane expressway in Columbia, South Carolina and drove the rest of the way thru the state on 2 laned Rt 321, past several cotton growing areas and slowed down for the many small towns complete with cop cars sitting at the 1st speed sign of each town. 5 o’clock traffic in Savannah, Georgia is just like 5 o’clock traffic in ANY city!! Stop. Go. Stop again! But what a good way to see the restored old southern buildings and neighborhoods! Ok, so H didn’t think so either. We are parked at Skidaway Island State Park just SE of Savannah for the next day or so. Just enough time to see the town decorated for Christmas. All the local parades and festivals are tonight and tomorrow. We have a lot of things to cover in the next day so we’ll chat again later. Wifi is up at the park office!

October Colors

2009-11-02T11:38:00.001-08:00

October Colors

2009-11-02T11:37:00.000-08:00

Ah, that elusive Wifi! After traveling the dark roads of the State Park, looking for the Lodge where there SHOULD HAVE BEEN Wifi - - - we discovered that the “Lodge” was just a restaurant/meeting room/ swimming pool structure with NO lodging for the night and NO Wifi! Obviously to the most casual observer – our next Wifi encounter was at home - - where we now are.

Sunday morning was cool and partly cloudy and the campground was emptying fast so we thought the trails to Old Man’s Cave would be fairly quiet. We parked in the campground entrance parking lot and walked from the very beginning of the trail, across the old arched bridge and then down into the damp, deep gorge that was blanketed with newly fallen golden leaves. We criss-crossed numerous bridges over the narrow ribbon of cold water that was trickling down along the valley floor after falling from under the arched old bridge that we had previously crossed over. We trekked up and across the new pedestal bridge – an addition since the last flood removed several other old bridges. Neat bridge! Individual platforms/pedestals at various heights, which stepped up and over the stream. And I marveled at the Devils Bathtub – a swirl of a basin in the shape of an oval tub! The further we walked, the more crowded the paths became - with both pedestrians and their assortment of yapping dogs. I love dogs – but NOT in crowded public places – especially if the animals have not been taught how to behave. Old Man’s Cave is always an amazing sight with its deep-set cave and its own set of bridges and the multitude of climbing and then descending steps!

Back at the campground, it was time to finish packing the trailer for travel and be on our way. Sunday afternoon was a pleasant ride as we meandered north, up thru Mount Vernon to park for the evening in Mt Gilead at the state park there. No facilities to speak of except electricity but for one night we were just fine. What the park lacked in amenities it made up for in the rich orange views overlooking the small lake at the bottom of the hill. On Monday morning the reflections on the still water were quiet glowing!

Lily, H’s handheld GPS (Lola is the GPS in the minivan) took us right to the driveway of a friend of H’s who used to live in Swanton and now lives just north of Mt Gilead. Jerry was out working in his garage and welcomed us in to sit and chat awhile with he and his wife Barb. The conversation varied from living in Swanton Ohio to living down in Florida and working vs retirement! On the road again, H HAD to take a side trip up to Shelby for a stop at the local sporting goods store there. It’s a good thing I was there to help him carry him carry his purchases to the car! From there it was on up Rt 20 to US 23 and finally home.

It is now just about one week later. The trailer is spit shined once more and tucked back under its protective covering of silver gray tarp. We’ve had rain and wind since we’ve been back in Michigan so the yard has been mowed and the leaves are either raked into the flowerbeds or hauled off to the vegetable garden to be tilled in once spring arrives in 5 more months. My newly purchased tulip and daffodil bulbs have been deposited deep in their new resting places in the various flowerbeds out in the yard - also awaiting warmer, sunnier weather. Doctor and dentist appointments have been made and preparations for our next departure have begun. Reservations for favorite campgrounds have been secured. The packing has started. The Christmas cards are even down out of the attic – stacked and ready for addresses. After Thanksgiving the push will be on! Soon after that, we’ll be “On the Road Again”! Be sure to come with us!

October Colors

2009-10-26T14:38:00.001-07:00

October Colors

2009-10-26T14:36:00.000-07:00

COLORS! Fall colors of reds, oranges, golds, electric yellow, Girl Scout green and deep fir tree green! Bright beige fields of field corn with mammoth green combines chasing up and down the rows, chewing up the rows of corn and spitting out huge clouds of dust, trying to beat the time clock of the approaching rain. They are all out this weekend!! Bud, Carol, H and I are down in Circleville Ohio to soak up all the bright hues before they are all gone till next year!

Thursday morning we hooked up the “mobile motel” behind the Jeep and the guys played leapfrog down I75 then Rt 68 thru the rolling hills and valleys of Ohio. As we went along we watched the racing combines, knowing the weather forecast that was to come would cut short their hurried harvest attempts. The rains arrived that night and stayed in Central Ohio for the days to come. Thursday afternoon we were parked side by side in AW Marion State Park, just a few miles east of Circleville and “The Greatest Free Show on Earth”! The renowned Circleville Pumpkin Show started in 1903 and was just the storefront pumpkin display put on by the Mayor of the city. It has grown to cover blocks and blocks of downtown streets. There are 2 parades a day from Wednesday thru Saturday each with a different theme. Several streets are totally blocked off from vehicle traffic and are filled with food vendors of anything and everything pumpkin - from burgers, pancakes, and donuts to cheesecake, fudge and ice cream! You’ll find games, rides, crafts, and pumpkin souvenirs. H took us all out to dinner that evening – out to the picnic table and the fire ring behind our trailer! The menu included baby back ribs finished there on the fire, mashed potatoes and green beans brought from our garden. We were too full to enjoy them so the Applesauce spice cupcakes had to wait for another day! We mellowed out and settled in to watch the mesmerizing fire of the campfire until it dwindled to just red coals before we each bid the other a good night and good rest.

That night the rains did come and pattered on the roofs of our shelters most of the time. And it rained on and off all Friday, sometimes quite hard. There were no farmers in the fields today. We had breakfast out and then went exploring the area, including Deer Creek State Park, 20 miles west of Circleville. Back in town we donned our rain jackets and sloshed thru a now and again puddle to see what was going on at the Pumpkin Show. Inspite of the drizzle and dampness – the streets were still full of festival goers. The streets were full but the rides were not! Enough was enough and we headed back to the quietness of our “mobile homes”. Drinks and hor ‘doovers were shared in the patch of dryness under the canopy of the trailer until it was time to go in for dinner at Bud and Carol’s motorhome. Then it was Bud’s turn to win at dominos!

Saturday morning was still wet and the ground is now covered with golden leaves that just yesterday all looked securely glued to the tops of the trees. We hugged our dear friends goodbye and waved them on their way back home and we slowly finished packing up. We moved on southeast towards Hocking Hills State Park via another one of H’s shortcuts - cross country and around back fields and colorful woods. Not too many trailers wander thru those winding, curvy, narrow roads but we did find a good place for breakfast. Just don’t ask where! We don’t have a clue! On our way thru the forest and the hills of the park, we stopped at several points and walked the rims of several deep wet gorges. Way too slippery with inches of newly fallen leaves covering slimy brown mud to attempt any ventures for us old folks to go down the myriad of steep steps to view the caves and cliffs from the bottom. Then there would have been the return climb back up those trails!

There is no wifi in the campground so we are now off again to find the Lodge and will borrow some of their wifi to send emails and to post this! We’ll chat again soon!

Westward Ho - Home

2009-10-11T15:08:00.002-07:00

Westward Ho - Home

2009-10-11T15:08:00.001-07:00

A little slow getting this chapter of the west trip posted. In fact Bobbi is still busy and I have to try my hand at writing this final chapter of Westward Ho.
We made it home Tuesday Sept.29th 10:45 p.m. We pushed it from Wisconsin to make it home and sleep in our comfortable waterbed. It sure seemed like a treat to sleep in our own bed for a change. One of our few stops on our push was in the Upper Peninsula for home made pasties (pronounced pah stees) for lunch near the city of Escanaba. We passed thru the state of Michigan in rain from morning till we got home.
Now that we are home, and winter feels like it is fast approaching, we have a lot of work to catch up. Bobbi has been busy with closing down her gardens, picking the vegetables, trimming back plants and storing her flowers bulbs for the winter. She also had a lot of inside work to do like washing curtains and drapes after we had new windows installed in the three bedrooms. With that project completed the whole house now has updated windows. I started on my projects, winterizing the boats and motorcycles, closing down the hot tub and yard work.
We have a long weekend trip planned to central Ohio for Oct. 22nd. This will be like a little pre check of the trailer, then it is time to get serious about packing it up and getting ready to close the house up for the winter so we can head to Florida. The time is approaching fast; it looks like it is about six weeks from now.
Will keep you posted

Westward Ho Eastbound

2009-09-27T20:14:00.002-07:00

Westward Ho Eastbound

2009-09-27T20:14:00.001-07:00

When we were up in Glacier National Park, Lola (the GPS) got so dizzy that she quit talking to H and the compass was so disoriented that it took till Saturday to unwind itself. So, Saturday, the cruise was set and the automatic pilot was on. It must have been set, because the road was straight as an arrow, due east thru brownish gray grasslands of north central and northeast Montana on Rt 2. It took us a week to get across the state that afternoon! We were following an east/west railroad track that had more traffic on it than the road we were on! Long, long trains with 2 and 3 engines pulling miles and miles of grain cars or cars stacked 2 high with semi truck boxes! There was very little truck traffic on Rt 2 which was a relief after being on all those 2 lane winding roads in Washington state, crossing traffic with all those double trailered semis and log trucks! Down Rt 13 to pick up the intrastate Rt 94 and North Dakota was our only change in direction.

North Dakota faired just a bit better - the grasslands changed to sunflower fields and grain fields, some harvested and some still waiting. Only at the oasis of a small town were there any green trees. Bismarck is the state capital but the only part we explored was the Select Inn Motel and the American Steak Buffet across the highway!

Sunday morning and not only has the time changed but the season certainly has also! Yesterday was capri and short sleeve, sunny summer weather. This morning is heavy gray clouds, wet pavement and STRONG tailwinds. It’s definitely fall. No worries about sun in the eyes as we headed on our way - just ahead of the next storm! Due east we flew again and with the tailwind the gas mileage improved, too. H’s navigation system is pointed towards home now! He wants to sleep in his own bed – SOON! Rt 94 in Minnesota changed direction to southeast once we rounded the curve in the road just past Fargo. The colors at the edge of the road, out to the horizon changed to green grass and darker green trees and red barns! Yellow aspen changed to deep red sumac. The occasional vehicle or truck changed to a steady stream of traffic and then heavy traffic as we reached Minneapolis. The Mall of America just south of Minneapolis was the intended port of call for the afternoon. The bypass around to the south of Minneapolis itself was lined with shopping centers and we were heading for the BIGGIE! One of the parking garages was even bigger than the entire Franklin Park Mall in Toledo. We entered the mall at the Bloomingdale entrance on the 4th level of the mall but never did find Bloomingdale’s! We saw it from the pedestrian walkway tho!! We’ve been told that there was an amusement park on the lower level of the mall. Since it was a Sunday afternoon the Nickelodeon, Dora the Explorer, Blues Clues, SpongeBob Squarepants themed mega park was a cacophony of noise, electric colors, amazing rides and KIDS! Talk about sensory overload! There were roller coasters in orange, yellows, purples and lime green. A Demon Drop ride for bigger kids and one for the little ones also! ( I thought about Raegan!) A merry-go-round like the one at the Toledo Zoo and a ferris wheel almost as big as at Cedar Point! There was a swinging ride that was a mammoth skateboard where the passengers were in rotating seats that twirled around and around on top of the skateboard as the giant board swung high like a huge pendulum. AND – the Cedar Point ride that takes you straight up and then zooms straight down - - - it was there too! In bright turquoise! It reached almost to the glass windows in the ceiling! The food court was up on the 3rd level and we ate our Orange Chicken with chow mein from Panda Express at a table right by the railing overlooking the “park”, so we could watch the action below. We did not ‘shop” but we did walk some of the many levels, amazed at all the stairs, escalators and cross over walkways. The Mall of America needs a girlfriend to shop with – not H! We did go into Sears - does that count? Lola was confused with all the layers of the parking garage but she did catch up once we were back out on the street and we quickly wove thru traffic and back up onto the interstate. We made it over the Mississippi River into Wisconsin with fond memories about the start of our journey and our stay downriver in LaCrosse. Menomonie is one town west of Eau Claire and thanks to yet another traveler’s coupon we’ve got a place to “camp” for the night at one more Econo Lodge for a reasonable price. Monday we will see Michigan once more!

Westward Ho Eastbound

2009-09-25T19:51:00.001-07:00

Westward Ho Eastbound

2009-09-25T19:48:00.000-07:00

Our room at the Crown Motel was very nice and clean with pretty hardwood floors! The outside was a sunny yellow and the ½ dozen units on either side in the front all had cute little cement front porches with plastic chairs and a small table. Before we left town we took a few pictures of the lake with the road to Summerland and the yellow cliffs that we had gone by the evening before. Barbee and Terry live in such a gorgeous area! The orchards south of Penticton take up the entire valley and stretch out like Midwest cornfields! While we headed south to the US border, anticipating the stern, stoic customs agent demeanor that we had been warned about, I “strongly suggested” that H keep his sometimes sarcastic humor in check and JUST answer the agent’s questions. Did he, you ask? If you know H, you already know that answer. We were the 10th vehicle in line. One or two of them took a bit longer than the 2 or 3 normal questions. A small motorhome was even pulled over. Those nine vehicles took 10 minutes. It took us 5 minutes to get thru! Luckily, as she opened things, she left them strewn over the back interior of the van and nothing was removed to the pavement. Thankfully, we/I endured and off we drove south, safely back in the US of A. From British Columbia, across the corner of Washington, across the panhandle of Idaho and into Montana we drove. Libbey Montana is the Eagle City of Montana and I did see a lot of high nesting perches all along the way. The center of town has a hugh big statue of an eagle that hangs above the street! The time had changed but I was still tired!

Friday the 25th we passed thru the foothills and “Native American” areas before entering the gate at West Glacier National Park only to find out that the Road to the Sun was closed 16 miles up the road. We turned around and took the long route around the entire south end of the park on Rt 2. Another delightful road that we have never been on and it gave new beautiful views of the peaks and rivers and the ribbon of railroad track that clung to the side of the mountain or nestled in the valley next to the ever present babbling brook. Up the other side and we finally entered into East Glacier. The last time we were in the park was in 1997 on our way to Alaska and nothing that we saw on our way up this time looked familiar. Last time, the world there was much greener - this time the southeast area just across the lake was totally destroyed by fire and the devastation looked fairly recent. We had driven miles and miles thru acres and acres of tall, thin, gray and black sentinels waiting forlornly to be blown over. Once up at Logan’s Pass, the parking lot had a long row of porta johns lined up like toy soldiers, as the visitor center was just as closed as the road at its feet! Coming back down from the top, the memories of our past trips, finally came back to us - the square chunks of boulders at the edge of the roadway instead of guardrails, the trickling waterfalls that dribbled under the roadway before seeping down the valley below, the magnificent deep dark blue St Mary’s Lake and her dainty island in the middle! The receding glaciers on the far jagged peaks! This time we passed thru big patches of yellow golden aspens with faded white or soft pink wildflowers at their feet or waving at us from the sides of the road as we sped downhill. There was less water in the streams now and more curves in the narrow almost 2 lane road. This time we (almost) ran into cattle on the roadway and several tourists taking pictures of some grazing horses next to the roadway! 50 miles east of the park the land is flat and mostly golden or tan, but you can still see the rise of the majestic mountain range behind us! I remember that view from years past! Just east of a “Native American” area and we are parked at another unusual “out west” motel! Saturday morning will be into the sun again!

Westward Ho British Columbia

2009-09-24T07:14:00.001-07:00