April 10-May 2, 2008
It’s Friday evening and a good time to tackle this blog. Yesterday we entered our fourth week of being on the road and it’s high time that we get serious about documenting our trip…after all we have people who are concerned about where we are! If that includes you, then read on…if not, that’s OK too! …we’ll never know!
So, it’s May 2, 2008 and we are still in Florida! Our intent was to exit the state slowly, exploring areas that we have not visited and just enjoy the last of the ‘Sunshine State.’ We figure that we may never have an opportunity, time or transportation to make a trip such as this and with the rising cost of fuel, the possibility becomes an absolute!
Our first camp site was at the San Carlos RV Resort in Ft Myers Beach. We initially made reservations for four nights and ended up being there for 18! Although it was a lovely place along the Back Bay waters of the Gulf of Mexico, I think Bruce and I were clearly exhausted from the moving events of the prior month and needed to take a breather.
Maizy, our yellow lab was very sick for the first week. She actually lost 13 pounds and couldn’t seem to keep anything in her stomach. After visiting a local Vet, getting a shot and some medicine, she’s on the mend and ready to play Frisbee at any opportunity! The vet told us that the move had a stressful affect on her, just as it does for humans.
Bruce had some luck angling from his kayak and provided fresh fish dinner for us a number of times. Then he hit a string of bad luck, being stung twice by catfish barbs! The first time shot a paralyzing rush of venom up his arm, which made it tough to row his kayak back to camp. He now carriers his walkie-talkie, as if I would be able to rescue him from shore!??
While in Ft Myers we were able to connect with friends that we knew from both Washington and Rhode Island. It was fun catching up and seeing how they are spending their retirements. One day we ventured out to see the Thomas Edison Museum. Although we all remember his great discovery of light, we became well educated on all of the other interesting facts about his lifetime. The house that he had in Ft. Myers was his summer home, where he and his next door neighbor, Henry Ford enjoyed vacationing. He chose the location because of the many plants including bamboo which he used for filaments in some his early light bulbs! The property is also home to the largest Banyan tree in the US. It has become so invasive that they have to eliminate one of the main parking lots so that the tree can continue to grow! Incredible sight!
Before leaving Ft Myers, we had neighbors move into the camp site next to ours. Ironically they were from San Francisco, so we had a few days to swop stories about growing up in the Bay Area and enjoy their company. The wife and I left at 6:30 one morning to go ‘shelling’ at Sanibel Island. Returning 6 hours later, I had collected quite a variety which is now identified in baggies. I never knew that many of the most beautiful shells are nothing more than common snails!!!
On our last day at the campsite, we cleaned out sand and more sand from the trailer and somehow got everything packed up in a more organized fashion. After a long day and feeling quite tired, we stopped for a hamburger. I told Bruce to locate a park on the GSP so that we could picnic and run the dog. “Gypsy” as we refer our talking GPS, sounded out the directions to the closest park, which I obediently followed. As I made the last turn, we realized that she was guiding us into a cemetery!!! We were tired, but NOT that tired, so we found another one!
The second move that we made was to the asphalt parking lot of Camping World…still in Ft Myers. We had some trailer brake concerns and set up an 8 am appointment so that we could get in and out and on our way. Unfortunately, the person making the reservations neglected to inform us that the 8 am appointment was being given to everyone that called and that it was something like Southwest Airlines, where it was first come first served! Ten hours later and a $1,300 bill, we were on our way. Thank God it was overcast all day and not too hot. They needed our truck to haul the trailer into the work bay, so we spent the day out under a tree with our dog! …Although the site was free, I can’t recommend the campground!!!
Because we were leaving so late in the day, we drove a short 20 mile distance and chose another asphalt parking lot. This time it was Cracker Barrel Restaurant... which had its dining benefits!
The next morning we took off early to Crystal River, about ¾ of the way up the west coast of Florida. Although there was a nuclear power plant lurking somewhere in the area, we were tucked into a river tributary and out of view.
I felt like we were in some southern bayou with cypress trees and hanging veils of Spanish moss. It was incredibly peaceful and beautiful with lots of trees for shade. The weather had been pleasant and the people very friendly. Most of the seasonal visitors from up north had cleared out. The vacant campsites had been replaced by Floridians who parked their trailers in the sites for the entire summer. They were then guaranteed a spot to bring their families to on weekends to be near water and get relief from the heat and humidity of the inland areas.
Bruce ventured out for a short fishing trip the first night, but returned motivated to take out and blow up the inflatable the next day. Seeing the head of a small alligator disappearing into the quiet water near his kayak was a bit unsettling!
This morning we took off in the inflatable to the “Three Sister’s springs.” It’s an interesting preserve and a destination for snorkelers and divers who want to chance swim with manatees. At this particular place there are three clear, fresh water springs that emerge from the earth. Bruce and I wore our skins which are light weight nylon and helped insulate a little from the cooler waters. Just as we got back into the boat a huge manatee came swimming toward the preserve. Wasting no time, I quietly re-entered the water and paddled toward it. Because it was a week day, no one else was around and the experience of swimming with one in the wild has to be a highlight of my Florida experience. They are so large yet so gentle and trusting. I observed it until it turned a bend and disappeared. Very COOL!
It’s Friday evening and a good time to tackle this blog. Yesterday we entered our fourth week of being on the road and it’s high time that we get serious about documenting our trip…after all we have people who are concerned about where we are! If that includes you, then read on…if not, that’s OK too! …we’ll never know!
So, it’s May 2, 2008 and we are still in Florida! Our intent was to exit the state slowly, exploring areas that we have not visited and just enjoy the last of the ‘Sunshine State.’ We figure that we may never have an opportunity, time or transportation to make a trip such as this and with the rising cost of fuel, the possibility becomes an absolute!
Our first camp site was at the San Carlos RV Resort in Ft Myers Beach. We initially made reservations for four nights and ended up being there for 18! Although it was a lovely place along the Back Bay waters of the Gulf of Mexico, I think Bruce and I were clearly exhausted from the moving events of the prior month and needed to take a breather.
Maizy, our yellow lab was very sick for the first week. She actually lost 13 pounds and couldn’t seem to keep anything in her stomach. After visiting a local Vet, getting a shot and some medicine, she’s on the mend and ready to play Frisbee at any opportunity! The vet told us that the move had a stressful affect on her, just as it does for humans.
Bruce had some luck angling from his kayak and provided fresh fish dinner for us a number of times. Then he hit a string of bad luck, being stung twice by catfish barbs! The first time shot a paralyzing rush of venom up his arm, which made it tough to row his kayak back to camp. He now carriers his walkie-talkie, as if I would be able to rescue him from shore!??
While in Ft Myers we were able to connect with friends that we knew from both Washington and Rhode Island. It was fun catching up and seeing how they are spending their retirements. One day we ventured out to see the Thomas Edison Museum. Although we all remember his great discovery of light, we became well educated on all of the other interesting facts about his lifetime. The house that he had in Ft. Myers was his summer home, where he and his next door neighbor, Henry Ford enjoyed vacationing. He chose the location because of the many plants including bamboo which he used for filaments in some his early light bulbs! The property is also home to the largest Banyan tree in the US. It has become so invasive that they have to eliminate one of the main parking lots so that the tree can continue to grow! Incredible sight!
Before leaving Ft Myers, we had neighbors move into the camp site next to ours. Ironically they were from San Francisco, so we had a few days to swop stories about growing up in the Bay Area and enjoy their company. The wife and I left at 6:30 one morning to go ‘shelling’ at Sanibel Island. Returning 6 hours later, I had collected quite a variety which is now identified in baggies. I never knew that many of the most beautiful shells are nothing more than common snails!!!
On our last day at the campsite, we cleaned out sand and more sand from the trailer and somehow got everything packed up in a more organized fashion. After a long day and feeling quite tired, we stopped for a hamburger. I told Bruce to locate a park on the GSP so that we could picnic and run the dog. “Gypsy” as we refer our talking GPS, sounded out the directions to the closest park, which I obediently followed. As I made the last turn, we realized that she was guiding us into a cemetery!!! We were tired, but NOT that tired, so we found another one!
The second move that we made was to the asphalt parking lot of Camping World…still in Ft Myers. We had some trailer brake concerns and set up an 8 am appointment so that we could get in and out and on our way. Unfortunately, the person making the reservations neglected to inform us that the 8 am appointment was being given to everyone that called and that it was something like Southwest Airlines, where it was first come first served! Ten hours later and a $1,300 bill, we were on our way. Thank God it was overcast all day and not too hot. They needed our truck to haul the trailer into the work bay, so we spent the day out under a tree with our dog! …Although the site was free, I can’t recommend the campground!!!
Because we were leaving so late in the day, we drove a short 20 mile distance and chose another asphalt parking lot. This time it was Cracker Barrel Restaurant... which had its dining benefits!
The next morning we took off early to Crystal River, about ¾ of the way up the west coast of Florida. Although there was a nuclear power plant lurking somewhere in the area, we were tucked into a river tributary and out of view.
I felt like we were in some southern bayou with cypress trees and hanging veils of Spanish moss. It was incredibly peaceful and beautiful with lots of trees for shade. The weather had been pleasant and the people very friendly. Most of the seasonal visitors from up north had cleared out. The vacant campsites had been replaced by Floridians who parked their trailers in the sites for the entire summer. They were then guaranteed a spot to bring their families to on weekends to be near water and get relief from the heat and humidity of the inland areas.
Bruce ventured out for a short fishing trip the first night, but returned motivated to take out and blow up the inflatable the next day. Seeing the head of a small alligator disappearing into the quiet water near his kayak was a bit unsettling!
This morning we took off in the inflatable to the “Three Sister’s springs.” It’s an interesting preserve and a destination for snorkelers and divers who want to chance swim with manatees. At this particular place there are three clear, fresh water springs that emerge from the earth. Bruce and I wore our skins which are light weight nylon and helped insulate a little from the cooler waters. Just as we got back into the boat a huge manatee came swimming toward the preserve. Wasting no time, I quietly re-entered the water and paddled toward it. Because it was a week day, no one else was around and the experience of swimming with one in the wild has to be a highlight of my Florida experience. They are so large yet so gentle and trusting. I observed it until it turned a bend and disappeared. Very COOL!