Almost Back In Pa.

    We left Florida on April 25th and traveled to a Georgia state park just across the Florida line. We still had 5 nights free coming to us from Camp Hosting a while ago and since we were not in a hurry we decided to explore that area. We were parked on the Crooked River and the campground was a very relaxing place. The town of St Marys was nice to walk around and since it was near a huge submarine base they had a great sub museum. Another day we spent on Jekyll island. We had read somewhere that if you have ever visited Jekyll island you would return and for us it was true as this was our return trip. We had been there in 2005 or so. We had never camped there so one of the things we wanted to do was check out the campground. After checking with the office, we wandered around the camp. We know now we will return and this time to camp. Next year we are going to winter in Tx but the plan is now to stay on Jekyll on our next trip to Florida. On the day we were leaving the camp our living room slide decided not to close. I checked the book to see if there was a manual   way to get it in but no such luck. I took some stuff out from underneath and once I got under I found a bolt that had broken. Lucky Lucky Lucky as there was no close by mobile rv repair. We traveled 300 miles that day which was long for us and 200 miles the next 2 days. Along the way we crossed the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. Its a   20-mile-long combination bridge & 2 tunnels  crossing of the lower Chesapeake Bay. The toll was $28 for the motorhome pulling the CRV. WOW. We reached out destination for the next 5 days, Virginia Landing Thousand Trails.  It’s a beautiful, 800-acre preserve which lies on the eastern shore of Hog Island Bay on the Atlantic Ocean. We spent the next 5 days clamming, taking pictures, sitting outside reading and watching the water and the birds and walking around the preserve. Next we moved up to the state of Delaware. Besides Hawaii & Rhode Island it was the only state we had not been in with an RV. We got to the campground at 12:30 and was informed we could not enter until 2pm. We have traveled all around this country and that has never happened before. If I had another option I would have taken it. We disconnected the car and backed the MH off the road, ate lunch then drove around the campground. It is a beautiful campground with sections for folks that live here year around, a section for seasonal and a section for travelers and lots of boat slips. Waiting with us for 2pm were some folks from Australia who were spending 12 months touring the USA. After we all got parked and settled in we got together for Happy Hour that lasted until after 7. The time flew by with each of us talking about our travel experiences. Yesterday we spent the day at Rehoboth Beach. It is nice little resort area to bring the grandkids back to. On the way back we saw a local restaurant with a lot of cars. The kind of place we like to stop at and we were not disappointed. Today I had planned to walk around the camp and take pictures but we’re having an all day rain event. We can’t remember the last time we have had one. Oh Well I guess we’re back in the wet Northeast. Tomorrow we travel around 230 miles and park in our daughters driveway. We’ll be in Pa. & upsate NY until August when we head to explore some of the Great Lakes and then South Dakota to redo our drivers licenses. Paula’s licenses has expired but SD gave her a 6 month extension. Time to back off for a bit.

Working our way slowly north

  When I wrote last we were going to a jazz concert in the park. The music was great and what a crowd. A lot of folks brought food with them or there was a few vendors. The local American Legion used it as a fund raiser by selling pop corn. It had a real small town community feel. At the campground we played another round of shuffleboard with the folks and my beginners luck held out and I came in 1st. We did enjoy our time at this park. From here we moved southwest to Labelle where we had a few nights of free camping. They were suppose to try and sell us a campsite but they never did. The folks were friendly but we just never felt comfortable there. From there we moved south to Big Cypress National Preserve which borders the Everglades. We stayed at a national park that with our America the Beautiful pass  it was only $10. We had a pond in front of the motorhome with a resident alligator. He was back and forth between the water and the woods. We did a lot of driving loops and walks in the area and there is no shortage of gators in south Florida. The only bad thing about the area is we had no phone or internet service for the week. From there we began our slow trek north. Next we moved up to Peace River Thousand Trails. When we had been there in Feb. the place was packed but at this time of year it was really thinned out. On Easter we went to church in the campground. The Pastor had been all year and we enjoyed his messages. He announced he would not be back next year. When we ran into him while we were out for a walk he said he would be preaching next year at a campground up the road and invited us to join them next year. After church we went to Nicholas’s, one of our favorite restaurants. On Monday we went over to Lake Placid Fl. the town of murals. We stopped 1st at the Chamber of Commerce and picked up a books telling about the murals and where they were located. We spent the next several hours walking around town. We were not only impressed with the murals but also how clean and well kept the town was. We are now at the Orlando Thousand Trails for the next 2 weeks. This will be our last stop in Florida. We have really enjoyed Florida this year and the weather has been perfect. We moved around quite a bit and never stayed longer than 2 weeks anywhere. Next year we have reservations in Tx. for 3 months at the same park. We have never stayed that long at a park before but we decided to try it.

Vero Beach Fl

   We moved about 25 miles north to Vero Beach a week ago. The 1st day we were here we went for a walk around the park. Folks in cars passing by didn’t wave and people walking by didn’t seem very friendly. We figured we were in for a long 2 weeks. We spend most of our time in Thousand Trails & SKP parks and they are always very friendly parks. The big difference in the parks are the folks in this park are almost all here for the entire winter and the TT & SKP parks have mostly folks that stay a few weeks and move to another park. The longest we have been in the same park this winter was 2 weeks. We were wrong about most of the folks here and it’s be an enjoyable week. Besides getting my fill of basketball we’ve kept as busy as we like. On St. Patty’s day we went to a restaurant that advertised as a Florida Cracker Cowboy restaurant.  Instead of green beer I had green fried tomatoes along with cajun catfish and grilled broccoli. Every thing was great. We went up to bingo on Monday evening. Besides regular bingo they had several specials that continued from 1 game into another game and everyone was very helpful in explaining it all to us. I won the big game of the night splitting $75 with 1 other player. On Tuesday we went up to watch league shuffleboard to see if we were playing the game right. They invited us to come up and watch and ask any questions. They were there to have fun and didn’t take the game to serious. They also encouraged us to come back on Thursday and play. After lunch we went to the beach for a few hours. Today we went and played shuffleboard with the regulars and had a great time. I had some beginners luck and came in 3rd and won $3. Everyone puts in $1 and there was 12 of us playing. After lunch we went back over to the beach. Tomorrow I’m going to give the car a bath. Early evening we’ll go out to eat then the local high school is going to do a jazz concert in the park up in Sebastian. I love when the young kids have an interest in jazz.

Moving North

  Our 2 weeks are up here in Fort Pierce Fl at the Savanna’'s county park. This is a great park and I’m sure we’ll be back. We’re backed up to a wetlands that has all kinds of birds. There are also frogs, turtles and folks down the road had a gator sighting. After our bear encounter this summer in Alaska that was toooo close. We enjoyed our time in this area. Since we spent time in this area when Paula’s mom & dad lived here there was some places we wanted to go back to. We drove by where they used to live and the house was gone replaced by a huge Gererac generator. That was sad. We also went to White City to see if the big dead oak tree was still there and it was. Nelsons farm market was still there and busy as ever. We made several trips there. We made several trips to the Saturday market on the riverwalk in Fort Pierce. they have such good food vendors there. Last week we had breakfast in a bowl there. Eggs,onion,peppers and sausage on top of delicious home fries. At our favorite bread vendor I got a blueberry scone & Paula had chocolate croissant. In early afternoon they were going to have a Mardi Gras celebration so we walked around town to kill some time. Up on 1 of the street corners a blues band had set up so we stopped to enjoy the music for a while. At 1 o'clock the parade began. It was a small parade but everyone had a good time. Down back on the river walk area a Dixieland band had begun to play and thats where we headed. They were very good. Before we say down to listen we bought a bowl of gumbo which hit the spot. Next to where we were sitting vendors were making a Jamaican chicken on a stick that smelled so good. When we were leaving I told Paula I had to have one and it was excellent. There are 2 reasons I enjoy this area. 1 The New York Mets have there spring training here and we got to a few games & 2 They have a very active Jazz & Blues society and I got to listen to several live Jazz & Blues bands. We have had some very windy days here so we only got to the beach once. One evening we went over to the county fair and the 1st thing I spotted was a vendor selling green fried tomatoes. Those along with Texas style BBQ were dinner. Even if we weren’t off doing anything just sitting in this park watching the wildlife was enough. Tomorrow we head North but only about 20 miles and we settle into Vero Beach area. We have never spent any time there so it will be a new experience. We’ll be there for 2 weeks and then head south again. They may be having a mild winter up north but it’s still to early to be to far north.

We are officially Senior Citizens

  We had not been at Peace River TT a day  when the phone rang and it was Bob & Linda. They were wondering what part of Fl. we were in and when I said Peace River they said they were coming in the next day. Over the course of the next 10 days  we played Mexican train several times, went out to eat, Paula fixed haluski with Johnnies Kielbasa,Linda fixed spaghetti & meatballs, and we sat around and talked about where we have been and where we were headed, over  a glass or 2 of wine. One day we were walking up for ice cream sundaes on the back porch and as we were walking by the outdoor shuffle board I asked  Bob if they played and he said no but they would  like to and we also wanted to learn. After the sundaes we went into the camp store and the lady there gave us a quick rundown. Off the 4 of us went to play our 1st of many games of shuffleboard and to officially become senior citizens. We played every day after that. The last day we were playing we were invited to come back the next day to play with the group but they were leaving then and for me it was Tax day. We had a lot of fun with Bob & Linda and it was sad to see them go. We won’t see them for a while as they are going north and we are heading east. We moved over to Fort Pierce Fl to a county campground that is a nice change from the normal Fl camps. We are backed up to wetlands with all kinds of birds flying around including eagles. Paula’s mom & dad lived in this area for a while so we know our way around here. The NY Mets have their training camp here and we have tickets for a few games. Yesterday we went to one of our favorite farmers markets on the river walk in Fort Pierce. Last time we were in this area was 2005 and there was about 10 vendors. Now there is probably over a 100. Last time we were there there was a baker who had the most delicious bread and we were hoping he was still there and he was. After getting our bread ( they sell out early) we spotted a fish or Shrimp taco stand. The only place we have ever found shrimp tacos was Algodones Mx.  below Yuma Az. These were a little different as they used shredded cabbage instead of lettuce and they also put black beans on them. They were sooo  good. We sat to eat them on the wall for the intercoastal waterway watching the pelicans and listening to a live jazz band. Just doesn’t get much better. This area has a very active jazz & Blues society. Next Saturday they have Mardi Gras and I can’t wait. In the afternoon we took our chairs, water & books over to the ocean for a few relaxing hours. This morning when I got up (around 6:30) it was in the 70s. Soon after the weather radio started going off advising of a cold front coming through with rain and very high winds. It appears to be just ending but the temp has dropped into the 50’s. Good day for a down day only have to go up the road to Winn Dixie for some corned beef to go with my fresh rye bread.

‘

Moving Around Florida

   We can only stay 2 weeks in a Thousand Trails park and that is usually long enough for us. Before we left the Orlando area we went back to one of our favorite Hispanic restaurants El Cerro. We love the food there. We had a short ride of 60 miles over to the Tampa area to Lazydays. They have a nice campground where you get the Tampa paper everyday and free WiFi. Over at the dealership they have a free breakfast and lunch everyday except Sunday. And because of a mess up with there service department last year the week was free. While we were there the local Escapee Chapter was having a rally there and it was nice chatting with those folks. We checked out the motor homes there but we didn’t find anything we like more than ours. Not even close. We got to go for dinner to one of our favorite restaurants Plummers. It’s not a fancy place but it’s good comfort food and their soup the best I have had. This time it was a kielbasa stew and it was to die for. We also went over to Plant City and picked up some strawberries. Florida has the best strawberries and this year they are plentiful. I think we’re on our 4th 1/2 flat. Paula likes to go to a casino occasionally so we also went over to Tampa to the casino. Our next trip was a little longer. 70 some miles down to the SKP park in Wauchula. We were going to stay there 10 days and then move over to the Peace River Thousand  for 6. The SKP parks are all 1st come 1st served. They never turn a member away but some times you have to camp in a no facilities area until a full hook up spot opens. When I called the SKP park the day before we left to find out if they were full they told me there would probably be at least 8 rv’s ahead of us for a full hookup site. I checked the Thousand Trails web site and they had availability for 2 weeks so we decided to go to the SKP park for 2 Nights and then move. We did go to BINGO at the the SKP park and I had a rare BINGO but had to share it with 2 other folks. We did hate leaving there as everyone was so friendly but we are now at the Peace River Thousand Trails. We are parked in a water & electric site. We could have moved to a full hook up site but there was only 1 full hook up site when it was our turn and we didn’t want that site. We have a satellite dome on out roof for Directv and we try and get a site with a clear view of the southern sky. We’re here for 2 weeks and probably won’t be doing much. Time for some down time. There is a restaurant that some folks we were talking to yesterday  recommended and that is in our future. Tonight we’re having shrimp tacos. The only place we have ever found them is Algodones Mx. We mentioned shrimp tacos to a Spanish lady who was checking us out and she said she never heard of them. They are great.

Florida

  We entered Florida on January 3,2012. We had reservations a 3 Flags in Wildwood about 70 miles north of Tampa. We were crossing paths with Bob & Linda for a few days so soon as we set up we went over to say hello. We chatted & caught up with then for quite a while and made plans to play cards the next night. The next evening they called and told us their dog Blazer had passed away. What sad news. There are dogs and there are special dogs and Blazer was up at the top in the special dog category. He will  surely be missed.

  After a busy 4 months in Pa. we went into super slowdown in Wildwood. We went to the farmers market and bought some strawberries and tomatoes but not to much as we planned  on going to the Webster flea market and that's where we load up on fresh fruit & veggies and we did. We especially like Florida strawberries and we have gone through several flats. On a rainy day we went over to the Villages to see the movie War Horse which was excellent. The Villages is a huge retirement area with separate roads for golf carts, nice downtown common areas with restaurants, shops, movie theaters and nightly entertainment. After our 2 weeks were up in 3 Flags we decided to go to the Escapee park in Bushnell. It was a tough long 25 mile ride but we made it. We enjoy SKP parks as everyone is always so friendly but at Sumpter Oaks we always seem to have problems with our site and this time was no different. We had a 50amp site but the pedestal was over in the next door site so we had to use our extension which is only 30amp. Also the sewer was uphill even with us staying up on the air bags, the water pressure was low and we couldn’t get a signal with our roof top satellite dish. One big plus was our friends Cindy & Phil were there. We hadn’t seen them since we were broke down up in Dease Lake BC and is was good to catch up with them. We also sat down with a couple at the ice cream social and them or us couldn’t remember where we met until bingo up in Alaska at Denali NP at a small SKP happy hour. 2 couples at this small park who we had been with in Alaska. Wow small world. Since this was the 1st park we were in since leaving Pa. that allowed us to wash the rv and Emily was quite dirty so we made this a work week. Paula worked on the inside and I got the outside washed and waxed. Paula also went to the club house daily to chat with other ladies doing crafts and Phil taught her how to make spinners using soda cans. When our week was up we again hitched up the CRV and began our 60 mile trek over to the Orlando Thousand Trails. This is a nice spacious (for Florida) park. We enjoy this area  and will probably stop back on our way out of Florida. We went to a campground (Bee’s) up the road that has a great all you can eat fish fry. There’s also a winery (Lakeridge) that makes several wines that we love. We went there on Saturday to a festival and they were having a buy 1 case get a 2nd free and we took advantage.  There’s also a little Cuban restaurant ( El Cerro) that we love. We also drove over to a Disney Resort Port Orleans the French Quarter and then from there we took the boat down to Downtown Disney and spent the day there. Today we got our Golden Coral fix. We met up with about 50 other Escapee’s for Chapter 57’s monthly luncheon.

  It’s 6:25 PM  and 76 degrees and as I’m writing this I occasionally look out our front window and several people are out walking  and bike riding with coats & hooded sweatshirts on. Oh well they must know something we don’t know. Now for what it’s worth we’re all caught up and it’s time to get into the mind frame of those folks walking around with coats on and have a cup of green tea.