2012-6 Back on the Road, Inverness to Destin Florida

2012-6

DREAM CATCHER

Campground: Econfina River Resort: 4705 Econfina River Road, Lamont FL, 32336
Local: (850) 584-2135,PA rate: $12.50, Normal Price: $25.00.  Full hookups, couple of pull-thrus for short timers.  8 over air TV stations.  Great location for fishing.

Campground: Geronimo RV Resort, 75 Arnett Lane, Destin / Miramar Beach , Florida - 32550 Local: (850) 424-6801, PA rate: $22.00 - $24.50, Normal Price: $44.00 - $49.00  Full hookups w/cable Tv approx. 75 channels.  I was put in the overflow/pull thru sites which are kind of on the edge of the Rv park, but for half off I can’t complain.  One and a half blocks to the beaches of the Gulf of Mexico.
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I’d like to say I’ve been running around in a flurry getting ready to head out, but truth be told, I’m so organized that I’m ready to leave without hardly any effort what so ever.  I’ve even had time to order a new sign for my camper since I have officially christened it The Dream Catcher.  I’m sure most of you know what a dream catcher is.  Indians create these webbed designs out of string, usually with feathers and beads around the outside boarders.  They are then hung overhead to catch bad dreams and only let good ones through.  Since my camper is affording me the ability to make my dreams come true, it’s like I’m catching all those dreams of travel and adventure throughout the years and making them come to life.  I think it’s a pretty good name for the camper.

We had our last Travel Adventure club meeting yesterday, sharing tips and thoughts about traveling all over the U.S.  Jumping all over the map from  Washington to Wyoming, Colorado and Montana to Pennsylvania.  Everyone sharing their favorite places to visit.   It’s been a fun club to create and I’m hoping for the chance to refine the format and do it again at another park next year.  My maps are now highlighted and covered with lots of new places to explore.

Retirement is as much fun as a person decides to make it and I’ve found that learning and doing something new each day really adds to the experience.  The second component is being able to share all those things I’ve learned along the way with others, the travel club being a good example.  And of course writing this Blog is part of sharing those experiences and having you along on the adventure for another year of travel is all the more fun.

And during my last few days at 1,000 Palms, it’s been eventful with lots of snake sightings… including a large striped rat snake near my truck today.  Got one of the workers to come over and carry it off into the woods.  The park is bordered by swamp land and the Withlacoochee River so I’d have to say it’s a pretty good breeding ground for snakes.

The rest of my time has been spent at the swimming pool, where they’ve added a nice shade cabana… table and chairs have been added so far though the owners are concentrating more on the new fun park they’re installing for the summer months. From what I gather a bunch of blow up slides and oversized games will be installed along with a large store up front.

So my last day finally arrived in the park and I was able to get the park staff to bring more firewood to the bonfire for one last night around the campfire with some of the park residences.  Originally I’d mentioned my desire for one last campfire to Carol and Don.  Carol works the front office and manages the park and their just two of the nicest people in the whole park.  They thought it a wonderful idea and said they would make it happen and even suggested Wed., my last day in the park for the campfire.  But alas, wouldn’t you know it, they changed their plans and went out to dinner instead.  I was still able to have a wonderful campfire with the other park residences and we all enjoyed one last evening together.  As I reflected on the way things turned out, I realized it was just another indication of the way the personnel handle things around the park.  Going part way, but usually not showing up “metaphorically speaking” in the end.

Thursday morning found me packed up and ready to go.  I checked my tires and filled them with air as needed then had to go next door to a big motor home that had moved in the previous day and ask them to move their coach forward so I could hook up my truck and pull out of my campsite.  They seemed a bit miffed that I was knocking on their door, even though I’d ask them the previous day if they would mind moving their camper in the morning, even providing them with the time frame of when I planned to leave.  Initially they said it was no problem, but when morning came around they were barely out of bed at 9:15am… a bit grumpy I might add, but they did move their coach and within minutes I was out on the road again.

And what a great feeling it is, heading over to the west coast of Florida and up hwy 19/98.  A great ride along one of the least traveled roads in Florida. The camper being towed behind my Chevy truck, rolling mile after mile down the smooth black pavement.  Miles of straight as an arrow roadway boardered by tall pine trees and a mix of native Palms.  Occasionally hitting a one or two light town along the way.  All is right with the world.

My first stop is at Ecofina Rv Resort for a couple of days and then onto Destin Florida where I’ll dip my toes in the Gulf of Mexico’s waters and walk along pristine white beaches.

St Marks is just a hop and a skip down the road from Ecofina, so I drove down to take a few more pictures of the St Marks lighthouse.  Well ok about 75 pictures.  Wish I could have gotten up early enough to catch the sunrise, but early morning light turned out really well for picture taking.  Then it was off to the small hamlet of St Marks for lunch at The Riverside Café where I had an awesome blackened grouper and some really great coleslaw.  A Miller Light and the meal was perfection.  Oh and St Marks is the start of one of the rails to trails for bikes.  It heads north to Tallahassee and is approx. 16 miles long of perfectly paved blacktop through rustic country settings.

St Marks Lighthouse

Miramar/Destin Florida.

It took me about 4 hours to drive to Miramar/Destin area for my week at the beach.  I’ve got a great location that’s only about a block from the beach.  The weather appears to be spring perfect with temps in the low 80’s and 60’s at night.  I’ll be driving into Pensacola tomorrow and doing a bit of site seeing along the way.  The gulf coast is crowed with people and cars so I’ll need a little bit of patients to handle it all.  But how cool to say I’m living at the beach for a week.  Walking along the beach today sure felt good.  The breeze, the sun, the sound of the surf washing on shore.  Well before I get sand all over this report I’ll send it on out.

More photo's on Picasa...

Till next weeks adventure…. Enjoy life

2012-5 Moving on.... Florida

2012-05

Old Florida

How exciting, I’m counting down the days till I head back out on the open road.  Doing all those things required before heading out.  Checking tires, oil levels, fluids to make sure their in good condition.  Added a second battery to my camper for those dry camping excursions.

along roadside to Floral City

And I’ve been working on my Blog, cleaning it up and making a few changes.  The most noticeable one will be when a person does a search on my blog (in the upper left hand corner of the blog page).  Now if you do a search by “state”, it will show all the blog articles I’ve written about that state.  I went back through hundreds of postings and edited the Titles to include the State so the search would be more effective.  I’ve also added a favorite new link to a site called Roadside America.  It lists all those really quirky and fun places to visit in each state.  Check it out if your one of those folks that like to see the unusual and fun site seeing places.  It’s very comprehensive and I just know I’ll be using it a lot this year.

As of today, March 3rd, it’s been 3 weeks since I had my hernia surgery and I feel great.  It’s nice to finally get back into the groove and not have to be concerned about what exercise I do, how much I walk or worry about over straining myself.  And of course with my impending travels, I’ll be able to enjoy exploring our country all that much more.

At a clubhouse meeting the other day, the owner of the park introduced some new campers to the group and then reminded them to make their reservations if they were planning on coming back for next years winter season.  The wife responded, “when your over 70 you don’t buy green bananas and you definitely don’t make reservations 6 months out”.  They got a whooping response from the rest of the crowd.

Best strawberry shortcake I've ever had

Today I went to the Floral City Strawberry Festival and had the best strawberry shortcake I’ve ever had.  Homemade shortcake, real whipped cream and of course the very freshest strawberries.  They shuttle people in on school busses and it only cost $1 round trip.  Saves having to put up with heavy traffic and limited parking.

We all do projects to keep busy each day.  I have a policy of trying to do only one project a day…. That adds up to 365 projects a year. Whew, I’m exhausted just thinking about it.  My friend Ron decided to update his carpeting and mats in his older car.  He filled a spray bottle with a mixture of RIT dye and sprayed the carpeting and mats to bring back the color.  His car doors were wide open and the mats were sitting on the back hood drying.  Hope it works Ron.

What's in style in Florida

I’m in my final 11 days before heading back out on the open road.  My first two stops will be in North Florida.  Lamont Florida and Destin Florida.  With a 5 day stay in the Destin area, I’ll be able to enjoy the beaches before exiting Florida.

The Journey begins:  22 March 2012.

2012-4 A campfire story

Bonfire stories:

Anyone who goes camping knows that one of the most fun activities is sitting around a campfire telling stories, singing songs and maybe roasting a marshmallow or two.  Well last night was just one of those nights.  Here at 1,000 Palms they have the bonfire on the “great lawn”.  The sky has turned black with a couple of stars shining through and a planet showing pretty brightly too.  About 15 people are around the campfire.  A number of old logs stand on end for tables in between the chairs.  Dogs are laying at their masters feet or sitting in the laps or their caretakers, looking as spoiled rotten as can be.

A sip of red wine, popcorn and the evenings entertainment begins.  The campfire now roaring to life, with bright blues and greens from the old Christmas lights that were thrown in with the fire.

One camper from the Massachusetts area begins the evening with a song he wrote about the plight of the rivers and bays in the area having been polluted over many years.  His song is heartfelt and well received as he tells the story of how the rivers we finally cleaned up after locals gathered together and made a difference.   The other members of his party told of going into Boston and having a rally at Faneuil Hall and how their actions helped save the bay and rivers.

After that the guitar and banjo players began with Madeline leading the singing, everything from Oh Susanna to other old time songs.  Then I thought it was time for a good Norwegian/ Swedish story. This story followed:

One Sunday morning

One Sunday morning, the Lutheran pastor noticed Ole standing in the foyer of the church staring up at a large plaque. It was covered with names and small American flags mounted on either side of it. The old Norwegian had been staring at the plaque for some time, so the pastor walked up, stood beside Ole, and said quietly, 'Good morning Ole.'

'Good morning Pastor,' he replied, still focused on the plaque. 'Pastor, vat is dis?' The pastor said, 'Well, it's a memorial to all the men and women who died in the service. Soberly, they just stood together, staring at the large plaque.

Finally, Ole's voice, barely audible and trembling with fear
asked, 'Vich service, da 8:30 or da 10:45? 

Someone suggested a good ole Johnny Cash tune and after doing Folsom Prison, I suggested Ring of Fire.  I told the story of how June Carter Cash and Johnny Cash were married to different partners at the time.  Their marriages were breaking up and during that time  June and Johnny started to fall in love with each other.  Even after they were divorced from their previous partners, June didn’t accept Johnny’s proposal of marriage right away, as Johnny was quite a wild guy back in those days.  But during that time, their love grew stronger and stronger.  June Carter finally wrote the Ring of Fire about that all consuming love they had for each other.  Johnny Cash of course made it into a huge hit eventually, but it was their song about their love for each other.

Tried to get them to sing "Just a bowl of butter Beans"  but no one knew the tune so we went onto other songs.

After a few more songs and more  Ole and Lena jokes were told, the gal next to me once again said we need a good ghost story.  So I told of the two ghosts that hovered around the ceiling in my bedroom when I was growing up in Northern Mich.  And how my niece had mentioned that years later when she was going to college and would occasionally stay in my parents home, that she immediately knew their were spirits in my old bedroom where she’d stay overnight.  On the other side of the campfire a guy piped up and told the story of the old farm house he had bought and how the neighbors started to ask if he’d seen the ghost in the upper window waving?  He hadn’t seen it yet, but out of curiosity, started to ask some of the previous owners if they had ever experienced such sightings.  All  said yes, including the last owner who said, “why do you think I moved!”.

A few more songs, a few more stories are told and gradually folks start heading back to their campers.  A warm gentle breeze blowing the palm fronds to and fro against the dark sky as the fire slowly fades out.

2012-3 DAY TRIPS from Inverness Fla

DAY TRIPS


Listed below are some of the day trips available from the Inverness Fla area where I'm wintering this year.

1.  Crystal River Archaeological State Park.
29 miles (43 minutes)  Thursday-Monday $3.00

A National Historic Landmark, this 61-acre, pre-Columbian, Native American site has burial mounds, temple/platform mounds, a plaza area and a substantial midden. The six-mound complex is one of the longest continuously occupied sites in Florida. For 1,600 years the site served as an imposing ceremonial center for Native Americans. People traveled to the complex from great distances to bury their dead and conduct trade. It is estimated that as many as 7,500 Native Americans may have visited the complex every year. Although primarily an archaeological site, the park sits on the edge of an expansive coastal marsh. Anglers may catch saltwater and freshwater fish. As part of the Great Florida Birding Trail, the park offers bird-watchers the chance to observe a variety of birds.

Pontoon Ride:  $10.00,  (352)563-0450.  check for days, currently m/w/f

2.  Crystal River Preserve State Park.
29 miles (43 minutes)

BICYCLING

The main trailhead is located at the intersection of North Tallahassee Road and Curtis Tool Road. Curtis Tool Road is one block south of 7 Rivers Hospital off US Hwy 19 north of Crystal River. The bicycle trail is a 9-mile loop that can be accessed either at the trailhead on Tallahassee Road or at the end of State Park Drive. This bike trail offers varied habitats from the Hardwood Hammock to Pinewoods and fringes a salt marsh. This is a trail for the experienced biker or hiker.

3.  Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park:
 24 miles (33 minutes) $13.  Groups:  $9 ea.

Visitors can see West Indian manatees every day of the year from the park's underwater observatory in the main spring. The park showcases native Florida wildlife, including manatees, black bears, bobcats, white-tailed deer, American alligators, American crocodiles, and river otters. Manatee programs are offered three times daily

4.  MK Rowlings State Historical Site:
Thursday- Sunday.  $3.00  55 miles (1 hour 2 minutes)

Visitors to this Florida homestead can walk back in time to 1930s farm life where Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings lived and worked in the tiny community of Cross Creek. Her cracker style home and farm, where she lived for 25 years and wrote her Pulitzer prize-winning novel The Yearling, has been restored and is preserved as it was when she lived here.

5.  Micanopy.
57 miles (10 minutes) from Cross Creek (MK Rowlings)

As Florida's oldest inland settlement, Micanopy (pronounced Mick-can-oh'-pee) has a well-established tradition of charm and Southern hospitality. Micanopy sometimes called "the little town that time forgot" possesses warmth and charm as well as eclectic shopping.

6.  Silver Springs State Park, Ocala.
43 miles (57 minutes)

Cost:  $47 Special rate yearly, includes concerts
Cost:  $32 general admission, one day pass

 Festival of Lights December 16 – 24 & December 26 – 31
 18th Annual Ford/Mustang Roundup Car Show January 7 & 8, 2012
 Merle Haggard January 14, 2012
 REO Speedwagon January 28, 2012
 Thompson Square February 11, 2012
  James Otto February 18, 2012
 Travis Tritt February 25, 2012
 Steel Magnolia March 3, 2012
 Styx March 10, 2012
 Glen Campbell March 24, 2012
 Eddie Money

No matter what your age, there are plenty of rides and attractions at Silver Springs that will make you laugh, fill you with wonder, and provide a glimpse into what life was like here more than 10,000 years ago. Just as they did then, the springs pump out 550 million gallons of sparkling-clear water a day—enough to supply the entire city of New York.

Surrounding the springs is a marvelous diversity of animals and nature you simply won’t find anywhere else. Come and explore the stunning beauty of Florida in its natural state.

7.  Weeki-Wachee State Park
41 miles (47 minutes)

A great place to experience the old road side attractions back in the 50's.  Florida has taken over the park and has maintained it's quaint nostalgic character, right down to the swimming mermaids.

Adult:                         $13.00
Child (Ages 6 - 12):      $8.00

Current show times
The Little Mermaid
11 a.m. & 3 p.m.
Fish Tails Mermaid Show
1:30 p.m.
Animal Show
10:30 a.m., 12 p.m. & 2:15 p.m.
River Boat Cruise
First cruise departs at 10:15 a.m.

2012-2 Inverness Florida

February.  Winter camping in Florida continues....

Florida Sunsets

Well another month has gone by and the activities at 1,000 Palms have increased a bit.  They’ve added a painting class which runs between $35-$45 a session, where you complete a painting within the 3 hour span of time.  They also continue to have the casino tours for around $39.  Neither of which I’m inclined to attend since I have painted in the past and don’t need to join a beginners class and I go to enough casinos while traveling the country to get in on any good deals they may have.

Art Class for beginners

They did have a guy who does impersonations of various music artists and performs in Branson Mo.  It was moderately entertaining.  Oh they also have a monthly jam session in the clubhouse, but it looks like mostly outsiders come to the park to support it.  Very few residences attend.  Not sure why.

I’ve started an Adventure club that took just forever to get a timeslot on the parks calendar (like two months), as it’s usually filled up with line dance classes almost daily.  We finally got a Sunday afternoon time slot.  Our first meeting went fairly well, sharing tips, campgrounds and things to do in each state we covered.

The Adventure Club I've set up

 The park overall is just on the slightly disorganized side.  It’s as if they go only so far and then just drop the ball.  As an example, they have a meet and greet every couple of weeks.  This last one was scheduled at 10am and the line dancing group was doing their thing right up until 10am… with park visitors coming in for the meet and greet wondering what was going on.  Only after the line dancing group was finished did they start setting up tables, making the large pot of coffee and setting out the (by donation) breakfast rolls and donuts.  Needless to say the meeting was delayed.

After introducing the new campers that had arrived, announcements were made for all the pay as you go activities, a few Park messages like don’t throw non-disposable things down the drain, but not a word was brought up about any of the newly formed clubs and other activities that didn’t bring in money.

The weekly caravans to go out to dinner continue, but no one knows where the group is going until the last minute.  Same with the weekly movie night which could be outside (see if you can figure out where they’ll set it up) or in the clubhouse, but they never announce what the movie will be, supposedly they’re concerned the government will swoop in and get them for showing a movie commercially or some such nonsense.

Another example is their karaoke night.  They set up the music D.J and video prompter way off in a far corner of the large room, a huge blank space (maybe for dancing if there was a crowd) and all the tables for guests are set up on the opposite side of the room up against the wall.   There’s no encouragement to bring snacks or drinks and enjoy the show.  So usually about a dozen people show up and sit and watch across the far end of the room as two or three people perform throughout the evening. The first couple nights they had karaoke they didn’t even bother to turn on the outside lights, so one didn’t even know anything was going on inside the clubhouse.

The basic comments I hear are, “the people are just wonderful here“, “I‘ve come back here because I really like the other campers“.  But after that is said, each person seems to have their own minor disappointments or gripes about how the place is run and it’s a shame because it would take very little to make things right.  But there just doesn’t seem to be the desire to do that.

The owners are rarely in sight as they are concentrating on their new summer adventure program to get more business during those hot steamy summer months.

This park has been a good lesson for me in that it is too small to really enjoy the limited activities that are sponsored or set up by the residences especially for an extended stay.  At least for me.  So basically my days are spent going for walks, swimming if the weathers nice, shopping and eating out for lunch and reading.  I’m just a tad too far away to just pop in and visit with friends or relatives from the Orlando area and they must feel the same as I’ve not had anyone visit me here at the park so far this season.

It’s not a total disaster as I do enjoy the residences here at the park, but the limited activities just have me bored, bored, bored.  In the mean time I’ll plan on my coming summer adventures, less than 60 days away.

2012-01 New Year at 1,000 Palms

A New Year Arrives at 1,000 Palms Rv

Campground:  1,000 Palms Rv Resort.  Smaller Florida Rv park.  95 Rv sites with some park models as well. (campground previously reviewed)

Elmo rests up before the New Year begins

I’ve been here at my winter destination for a little over a month.  Thanksgiving dinner, Christmas breakfast and dinner’s have come and gone with the finally being a sit down (served) New Year dinner and dance.  These folks, like most Rv-ers know how to eat well.

Their winter clubs (writing, photography, crafts) haven’t yet begun and those that have have barely started as the park doesn’t fill up until the 1st of the year.  Line dancing continues, but with my having a possible second hernia (I’m trying to find a good Dr. in the area) I’ve not been doing any dancing.  The computer club is anemic to say the least, so not much interest there.   I have gone on a number of weekly diner nights out and have discovered some great places to dine and enjoyed great conversations.  Some looking like shacks on the outside but with great food being served inside.

Michael (owner) on the right

I had a most wonderful visit on Christmas Day with my niece Kelly/Rusty and family with a super great dinner being served.  Kelly wasn’t sure she could compete with her sister who is also a great cook and whom I had visited on my way through St Louis.  But I told her that she was 10 points ahead of Kim since Kim’s kids gave be the dreaded “Bug” while I was there.  And after tasting their “pickle soup”  Kelly and Rusty gained another 5 points.  Kim got  4 points for having taken a most awesome picture of Luke and Brooke, but in the end Kelly was way ahead on the point scale.  What ever will Kim do to raise her point score?  (giggle)

A week or so later I had the opportunity to visit with some good friends, Debbie and Eddie and one of their dogs, “Nickie”…. notice everyone’s name ends in ie.  Hmmmm.  Nickie is a German Sheppard and is being trained to become a service dog.  Less than a year old Nickie is the most precious excited dog I’ve ever met.  They live in Williston Fl and we found the best restaurant called the Ivy House.  True gourmet Florida cooking at it’s best.  And nice to see yet again, another small Florida town I’d never visited before.

They love to line-dance at 1,000 Palms

I’m eager to join some of those “hopefully” good clubs that will be forming in the next week or so.  As I love to share what I’ve learned along the way and can’t wait to learn new tips and tricks from my fellow Rv-ers.  I’m just concerned I’ll end up leading half of them.

Of course we do have a weekly cocktail hour at one of the campers sites, but I miss the smaller get-togethers that I enjoyed so much at Desert Trails (my former winter residence).

It’s January 1st,  2012.  We expect the temp. to reach a sunny 75 today and I may be able to get another day of swimming in before we have a cool down with a cold front heading towards us on Monday.  Just a note:  could all you Northerners keep your cold weather up North.  Thanks.

Wishing everyone many adventures in the new year.

and of course, more pictures of the New Year celebration on Picasa.