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!
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Happy New Year 2011
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!
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
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.
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.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
The End of Summer 2010
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.
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.
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