Tuesday, July 22 - Sunday, July 27, 2008: Trip 55

Michael and I headed to the Florida Keys on a men only trip. Linda doesn't like the ocean, sand, fish, hot weather or mosquitos, so she opted out. After a layover Tuesday night in Mims, Fl., we arrived at Bahia Honda State Park around 3 PM. The park, located 35 miles from Key West, encompasses the entire key and has miles of beaches, camping facilities and a marina.

We saw some unusual wildlife on our first day.There was a very large Iguanna that lived on the old Bahia Honda bridge. Michael and I went for a short hike in the Key Deer National Refuge on Big Pine Key and spotted a Key Deer.

Late Wednesday afternoon, we went to Key West to view historic architecture, wierdos and bars. We had dinner at Sloppy Joe's.

Thursday morning, we took the park's dive trip Looe Key National Marine Santcuary, about a 45 minute boat ride. The reefs and sealife were OK but did not live up to their glowing reputation. There were large shoals of fish and a gaint barracuda under our boat. We had fun.

We ate lunch at Porky's BBQ and Seafood Tiki Bar. It was a neat little place. The couch fritters, catfish and shrimp were tasty but the place won't win any awards for service or hygiene.

We left the RV around 5:30 PM to go night fishing on the Marathon Lady. Through experimentation we learned that if you take the straps off the kayaks they will fly off the roof of the truck at approximately 42 miles per hour. Luckily no was was injured and the kayaks, although scratched up, are still sea worthy.

The night fishing was great and we caught eight snappers big enough to keep plus a dozen or so smaller ones. We caught most of the fish in about 200 feet of water. The boat provided all the bait and tackle and the crew helped us "beginners".

After a good four hours of sleep, we drove to Key West and went to Ft. Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas National Park aboard the Yankee Freedom II, a 2 1/2 hour ride. The snorkeling was excellent and we saw a wide variety of sealife including barracudas, tarpon, one large nurse shark, scuttle fish (squid-like thingies) and colorful reef fish. The fort, which covered most of the island, was built in the early 1800's and consists of more than 16 million bricks. (We lost count at 537.) This trip is a must do.

Our dinner at the Conch Republic Seafood Company at the historic Key West harbor was probably the best seafood meal I have ever eaten. We ate fried conch, jumbo shrimp over lobster tortelini and fried key lime pie.

Saturday morning we kayaked to the north end of the park.The beaches were busier than during the week. We had lunch at Fish Tales Fish Market and Eatery who cooked our snappers for $8.95, including fries and slaw. We had the fish fried, broiled and blackened and they were delicious. For dinner, we made our second visit to the Island Fish Company in Marathon.

We headed home on Sunday morning and got fleeced for $30 in tolls on the Florida turnpike. We arrived home safetly with 50 pounds of dirty laundry and were greeted by a broken washing machine.

Note: 192 nights in the RV to date.

Thursday, July 3 - Sunday, July 13, 2008: Trip 54

We spent the Fourth of July holiday at Anastasia State Park in St Augustine.

On July 4th, we enjoyed grilled chicken courtesy of Longhorn Steakhouse. (It was too hot to grill outdoors.) We watched the fireworks from lawnchairs on the side of A1A, on the park side of the bridge, but left one minute early to avoid traffic. (It's a small town.)

Malcompra County Park is about 2 miles south of Washington Oak Garden State Park and has cool tidal pools at low tide. While there, I saw dolphins swimming offshore. On the way back to the camper, I stopped at the Marineland boardwalk and took pictures of the local resident rats.

The excitement never ends as we visit the Flea Market and Dairy Queen in the same day. We bought fresh fruit and vegetables and some counterfeit Uno cards for a buck. There were kaaroke singers at the flea market with more talent than the tone deaf blues singer at an unnamed restaurant in St Augustine.

On Thursday, the RV had a nasty sewer smell which Linda immediately blamed on me. I denied responsibility and blamed the cat. The cat neither admitted or denied guilt. After some holding tank maintenance, things improved.

We visited Princess Place Preserve, located on the southern side of Pellicer Creek and west of the Matanzas River.The entrance to the park is off of US-1, just south of I-95. Princess Place was built in the mid 1800's and was later the home of an exiled Russian prince, whose wife lived there until the 1950's, hence the name. The park has equestrian trails, and what we would call "primitive" camping, with some sites right on the creek. We were able to drive the loop road and enjoyed seeing a deer run by. The palace is actually a very large home and tours are given at 2:00pm on Saturday and Sunday. We missed the tour, but we had a pretty good view peeking through the windows.

I had a good time taking photos. I went to Washington Oaks to look for butterflies but I had to settle for dragonflies. I did get a nice picture of a white egret in flight and a juvenile yellow crested night-heron. Thank goodness for digital photography because I also got a couple hundred pictures that weren't so good.

We found a great new restaurant that features a "tropical" menu. On our first visit we had nachos, terriyaki chicken kabobs and key lime pie. We returned the next night for nachos, sweet corn cakes and key lime pie.

Tuesday night we drove around in the southern part of historic St. Augustine and found some interesting places we had not seen before, including a military cemetery and site called Villa Rosa that was undergoing restoration. The site included two houses built in the mid 1800s. fountains and lion statues. Wednesday morning we packed up and headed home. Overall, we had a roaring good time.

Friday, June 13 - Friday June 20, 2008: Trip 53

Friday, June 13

We began our trip to Tennessee after work on Friday. We drove about 250 miles and spent the night at the Cordele Georgia KOA.

Saturday, June 14

With the help of Windy, our trusted co-pilot, we arrived at Fall Creek Falls State Park around 3 PM.

This park is a real jewel and, unlike Florida, the Tennessee State Park System keeps the grass mowed and grounds maintained. (Florida goes for the natural, untouched look).

Sunday, June 15

Michael and I went whitewater rafting on the upper and middle sections of the Ocoee River. The rafting outpost was 75 miles from our campground but the ride took over two hours on a mountainous road with heavy fog.

The Ocoee River is dam controlled so rapids are guaranteed . It's kind of like a theme park. Water on at 9 AM; off at 8 PM. On the bus ride to the launch site, we passed parts of the river that were almost dry and would later be covered by the water flow. Michael fell out of the raft on the third ledge of Roach Motel Rapids. A fellow rafter pulled him back in the boat.

Monday, June 16

Michael and I went caving with a small group led by a park guide. I saw my first cave cricket. Michael slipped and fell about twenty times. His shoes got stuck in the mud and came off his feet twice. He wore his cool skate shoes with the laces that don't actually tie. Not practical but really cool. The family that went with us was a fun group. Every time we had to back-up, they would all beep.

After hiking, we took Linda to McMinnville to see Falcon Rest, a historic home. Our tour guide led us through the 45 minute tour in 22 minutes, 45 seconds. Quite enough history. We braved Wal-Mart without a guide and got lost once between groceries and outdoor items.

We visited Rock Island State Park and I took some great pictures of the Caney Fork River Gorge and Twin Falls. The Falls originate from caves on the side of the gorge. The falls were an unexpected result of the daming of the Caney Fork and Collins Rivers. We arrived at the Park too late in the day to hike into the main section of the gorge. I would like to return and spend more time here.

Tuesday, June 17

Michael and I had planned on going hang gliding near Lookout Mountain. Linda wanted no part of hang gliding but she did ride in the little green towtruck. Unfortunately, the winds picked-up and our flight was put on hold. I was a little nervous anyway because our flight instructor couldn't find an extension cord so we could watch the saftey video. Hoping that the weather would improve, we stayed in Chattanooga and saw the movie; "You Don't Mess with the Zohan." The windy weather continued so we scrubbed our mission and went back to the campground.

Wednesday, June 18

It was 51 degrees on Wednesday morning when Michael and I hiked the Cable Trail into Canes Creek Gorge. The terrain is extremely steep and you really need to hold onto the cable. After we returned to the top, Michael noticed a sign that said 90% of all search and rescue operations are conducted on this trail. Maybe we should read the warnings before we hike.

We all hiked the trail from the Nature Center to Fall Creek Falls. Michael learned to identify various trees such as red oak, white oak and red maple. Linda is our tree expect but we think that sometimes she makes things up.

We packed up and moved to High Falls State Park near Forsyth, Georgia.

Thursday, June 19

We went to the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta to see the whale sharks.They were awesome. The tank also had giant groupers, sharks and other miscellaneous fish. We had lunch at the cafe and Michael was disappointed to learn that they didn't have fish sticks. Go figure. Michael enjoyed the touch tanks and washed his hands more times at the aquarium than the entire rest of the trip. Michael got a tattoo of a grouper on his ankel (non-permanent).

We then went next door to the World of Coke and paid $15 each to watch Coca Cola advertisements. We tasted Coke products from around the world. Beverly from Italy was the nastiest and Bibo from South Africa was our favorite.

We had dinner, curbside, at the Varsity, the world's largest drive-in restaurant, per their website. Our car hop provided excellent service and I had the famous Frosted Orange Shake.

After returning to the campground, Linda and I hiked to High Falls. It was an interesting series of falls but the local drought had taken away a lot of its beauty and power. We were out of firewood so Linda made smores in the mircrowave.Caution: Marshmallows will blow up if microwaved for more than 25 seconds.

Friday, June 20

We packed up and began our trek home. You could feel the temperature rise as we approached Floirda. It was great to be back home without any major RV damage or personal injuries.

Note: We replaced both camper batteries on June 13, 2008.

Friday, May 9 - Sunday May 11, 2008: Trip 52

We made the short trip to St. Augustine and stayed at the KOA (Anasatasia State Park was full). It was our first stay at this campground. Amenties included full hook-ups, cable and a small lake complete with ducks. At $58 per night, the park is pricey and I would rather stay at nearby Anastasia State Park for $21 per night and skip the cable and sewer hook-ups.

On Saturday, we had a pre-Mother's Day gathering at the St. Augustine Alligator Farm. Allen took over 400 pictures with my camera while Linda and I enjoyed being with our granddaughter. The weather was perfect and the rookery was in full swing. The first group of wood storks and white egrets had already hatched; the snowny egrets were building nests and the tri-colored herons were tending their eggs.

We woke up Sunday morning to windy weather and a prediction for strong late morning thunderstorms. I made a quick trip to Washington Oak Gardens State Park but there was little to photograph. It seems like most of the animals and insects saw the same weather forcast and were not out and about. I did see a water snake and an osprey. We checked out early and headed home to avoid the bad weather. NOTE: No rain on Sunday.

Friday, April 18- Monday, April 21, 2008: Trip 51

We left for Pensacola after work on Friday and spent the night at the East Tallahassee KOA. Our first stop on Saturday was at Falling Waters State Park near Chipley. The park's main attraction is a waterfall that pluges 90 feet to the bottom of a sinkhole. It's an easy walk for the parking area and worth seeing. Our next stop was site 31 in Big Lagoon State Park in Pensacola.

We ate dinner at McGuire's Irish Pub, a local favorite. The food was very good and the bread pudding with whiskey sauce was killer. The restaurant was decorated with one dollar bills signed by customers, currently more than 500,000 and counting. The sign on the women's rest room said "Men's Room" in large letters with an arrow pointing to the adjacent door. I didn't understand the sign and three young ladies in the women's restroom got a real laugh from the confused look on this old man's face.

After dinner we went to the Pensacola Beach Pier and planned to go to Fort Picken at the tip of Santa Rosa Island. As it turned out, this part of the Gulf Island National Seashore is still closed because the roads were washed out in the 2004 hurricanes and have not been rebuilt.

Early Sunday morning, I went to Tarklin Bayou State Park and attempted to safely approach and photograph a carnivorous pitcher plant. It feeds primarily on insects, but you never know. The park had a 1.2 mile handicapped accessible hiking trail from the parking area to the bayou and back.

I then drove to Perdido Key State Park for a view of the Gulf. I took a short ride down the coast to Alabama where I encountered a strong urge to buy a six pack of Budweiser and go huntin'.

Linda and I went to Blackwater River State Park which is one of the best canoeing rivers in Florida. We toured the area and thought that Coldwater Creek looked best for kayaking. On the way back to Big Lagoon, we returned to McGuire's for burgers, beer and bread pudding.

During our weekend visit, we saw the Blue Angles fly over our campground, a nesting bald eagle, one deer, two red-headed woodpeckers, some beautiful butterflies and a rat. We had a safe and uneventful, although boring, trip home on I-10.

Friday March 28- Sunday, March 30, 2008: Trip 50

For our 50th trip in our Montana, we visited Ichetucknee Family Canoe and Cabin Campground. Our neighbors, Fred & Pat, a nice couple of snowbirds returning to Ohio, also had a Montana. We taught them how to play Rummikub and they won 3 out of 4 games. (beginner's luck!).

On Saturday, we saw four deer, several large Pileated Woodpeckers, some wild turkeys, and about 50 old-timers on a Harley charity ride. The river levels were higher than normal. Troy springs was closed because the boardwalks were underwater due to the Suwannee River being 14 feet above normal levels.

Due to the high water, I was able to kayak on the Santa Fe River from the I-75 bridge to O'leno State Park. That part of the river is scenic with cypress trees. I have hiked on parts of the river bed in this area before. There was an Old Time Dance meeting at one of the O'leno pavillons and we enjoyed watching the square dancing. Everyone seemed to being having fun and getting a lot of exercise.

I kayaked the Ichetucknee River on Sunday morning. It was very peaceful without tubers. I saw several owls and an otter. Before lunch, Linda and I attempted to play badminton. We left for home after lunch. It was a great relaxing get-away weekend.

Saturday, March 8, 2008

Linda, Michael and I had planned on camping at Long Point Park on the Indian River so that we could visit family. It is a nice time of year and none of our loved ones were in jail or on the lam. The weather turned nasty on Friday with high winds and hail so Michael and I turned our planned weekend adventure into a day trip on Saturday without the RV.

We visited St Lucie Inlet State Park on Saturday morning. It is a small park with limited facilities and no camping. Sebastian Inlet State Park, about 30 miles north, is much nicer. We also made brief visits to Jack Island Park (pictured), Avalon State Park and the Navy Seal Museum.

We had lunch at my Dad's house and he took us to visit a local hog farm. The farmer had some turkeys and cows, but his prize possessions were his hogs. (My shoes still stink). Later we bought some fruit at a packing house.

We enjoyed our visit and on the way home we stopped at Ron Jon Surf Shop in Cocoa Beach. I got a t-shirt. Life is good!

Friday January 25- Sunday, January 27, 2008: Trip 49

Linda, Michael, the cat and I headed to Paynes Prairie State Preserve for our first camping trip of the year. It has been five weeks since our last outing.

Michael and I went hiking on Saturday morning in a chilly rain. We saw a flock of more 100 Sandhill Cranes together on the prairie. We tried to sneak up on them but before we got within camera range they flew the coop. You could tell that it was winter because of the bleak brown colors.

Later, we found a four-point deer antler. We put it on the kitchen counter in the RV but Linda made us put it outside. Her rules are: no bait in the refrigerator, no biologicals on the counter.

The main purpose of our trip was the Stargazing Event sponsored by the local astrology club on Saturday night. No Go. It was completely overcast with on and off light rain. We stayed in the RV and watched a video.

Just before sunset on Saturday, Michael and I went hiking on the La Chula trail and saw several very large alligators and Sunday morning we went for a short hike and saw deer and wild turkeys. We checked-out before noon and headed home.

Note: We dropped RV off at Suncoast on January 2 for repairs to siding damaged by flat tire on trip 32. Picked up on January 17, ready to go.

Note: 164 nights in the RV to date.

Saturday - Tuesday, December 22 - 26, 2007: Trip 48

We stayed at Anastasia State Park for our third consecutive Christmas holiday. We arrived on Saturday morning and had the rare pleasure of backing into our site during daylight. We had dinner at our favorite local mexican restaurant.

On Sunday, we went home to enjoy a holiday dinner with our family. We returned to the campground after dark and saw the moon rising above the lighthouse.

On Monday, I went to the St. Augustine Alligator Farm to take wildlife pictures. There were a large number of yellow-crowned night herons in the aviary area and some rosette spoonbills.

Monday night we watched the moonrise at the St. Augustine Pier. It was the winter solstice, when the moon is at is most northern point and the sun at its most southern.

Christmas day was cool and overcast. We walked around St. Augustine and enjoyed the historical architecture without the crowds. After our walk, we had the breakfast buffet at the Hilton. That afternoon, I saw a osprey catch a fish at the lagoon. Linda made us a nice dinner.

We returned home on Wednesday.

Friday - Sunday, November 30 - December 2, 2007: Trip 47

We stayed at Ichetucknee Family Canoe and Cabins and enjoyed the fall weather and, since tubing season was over, the quiet and relaxing pace.

On Saturday, we went shopping for a small piece of land that we could use for a weekend get-away. The prices on cleared land and pine highlands were much lower than the hardwood type properties that we wanted. We found a perfect 3 acre lot with gorgeous oak trees for $80,000. We decided that it was a lot cheaper and more sensible to stay at the campground for $42 a weekend.

On Sunday morning, we went to the Mayo Cafe for lunch (in beautiful downtown Mayo). We had a healthy country buffet with lots of vegetables. I had green beans cooked with bacon and extra salt, turnips cooked with bacon and extra salt and black-eyed peas cooked with bacon and extra salt and fried chicken. After lunch we went to Koon Lake which was completely dry. On my last visit, the lake was probably fifty acres and surrounded by towering cypress trees. Our next stop was Mallory Swamp WMA which was swampless.

During our return to the campground, we saw several wild hogs with piglets. We left for home in the late afternoon.

Wednesday – Sunday, November 21 - 25, 2007: Trip 46

We returned to Fort Clinch State Park for the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend and our first stay in the Beach Campground. The campground's few palm trees provided little shade and no wind break. However, television reception was great and we were surprised that our site had 50 amp service.

Thanksgiving evening we ate dinner at Barbara Jean's. The food and service were excellent. We asked the manager if we could buy bottle of mustard, as we were out and the stores were closed. He gave us a free bottle of Grey Poupon. Life is good!

On Friday, I hiked at the Bluffs at Little Talbot Island State Park. The beach has a large amount of driftwood similar to Driftwood Beach on Jekyll Island. That evening, I watched the sunset from under the A1A bridge over the intracoastal. I took a lot of pictures with unique and unusual layouts. The concepts were much better than the products.

The weather turned worse on Saturday with a constant wind from the northeast, with gusts over 20 MPH. The inlet was as rough as I have ever seen it and the waves washed right up to the dunes, covering the beach which is usually at least 40 feet wide. Later that afternoon, we watched the Gators trounce FSU, 45-12.

Sunday morning we awoke to more dismal weather and decided to leave early. It was a miracle that we returned home with all the parts still attached to the RV. All things considered, it was still an enjoyable, long weekend.

Note: 154 nights in the RV to date.

Friday, November 10 – Monday, November 12, 2007: Trip 45

We stayed in site 53 in the River Campground at Fort Clinch State Park for the three day holiday weekend. During our stay, I replaced the TV antenna, but broke a roof vent cover, which I promptly repaired with duct tape.

On Saturday, we toured the Amelia Island Museum of History. It was small but very well done. That evening, we went to the Fort and watched the History of the American Soldier in honor of Veterans Day. They had volunteers in period soldier attire from Revolutionary times to current. Each soldier fired his rifle (some didn't work). It was a very interesting and fun history lesson.

Throughout the weekend, I made several trips to the beach to take photos and look for shells. There were large groups of seabirds, including black skimmers, terns and gulls. The recent nor'easters had washed up a nice variety of shells.

Sunday morning, Linda and I went to the Art Festival in Fernandina Beach. She got some beading ideas and I got some photography tips. I hiked on the Egan's Creek greenway and saw a water mocassin and a large alligator.

We checked-out on Monday afternoon. While leaving the park, we saw three racoons and an armadillo that all seem to know that the weekend was over and it was safe to come out during daylight.

Friday, October 26 – Sunday, October 28, 2007: Trip 44

We stayed in site 35 at Paynes Prairie State Park. The weather was overcast with occasional rain, but the temperatures were in the 60's and 70's. The park was displaying its fall colors which included large patches of yellow flowers, evergreens, and purple sages.

On Saturday, I kayaked the perimeter of Lake Wauburg. There were anhinga (est. 40) and turkey vultures (est. 25) roosting in the trees at the northern part of the lake. I saw several alligators and a bald eagle. We watched part of the Florida-Georgia football game in Micanopy at the Pearl County Store and BBQ (as we still have no tv antenna.)

On Sunday morning I hiked the Cone's Dike trail (almost six miles roundtrip) and saw 4 wild turkeys, 14 deer including one buck and a water mocassin. After lunch, I hiked the La Chula trail (3 miles roundtrip) and saw 16 alligators in the first pond and a bunch more in Alachua sink. The trail from Alachua sink to the observation tower was dryer than normal and I did not see much wildlife.

Friday, September 28 – Sunday, September 30, 2007: Trip 43

After a four week hiatus, we were back on the road again. We diverted from our originally planned destination of Jeykll Island due to a red tide outbreak and related fish kill, and headed inland to the Suwannee River Valley Campground near White Springs.

Friday night we had dinner at B-B Ann's near the Interstate. It seemed to be the only local restuarant open after 7 PM. More importantly, they had satellite TV.

Saturday morning I went hiking to Little Shoals on the Suwannee. Later, I hiked the two mile round trip to Big Shoals. This part of the Suwannee is not navigatable and you must portage your canoe or kayak around the shoals. The water had so much tannic acid that the waves looked brown.

Saturday afternoon, we continued my quest to visit all the Florida County seats with a short trip to Jasper, county seat of Hamilton County (47 of 67). After dinner on Saturday, I took Linda to Diary Queen near Jasper for a butterscotch dipped cone. They were out so we drove to DQ in Live Oak. They were out too. After settling on our second choices, we went to Jai Alai and watched a couple of games.

On Sunday we visited Suwuannee River State Park and I hiked the Lime Sink Trail. This was probably the most scenic state park trail that I have ever hiked. I was impressed by the size and number of cypress trees along the trail and the elevation changes along the trail. I also saw "balanced rock" on the bank of the Suwannee. The campground was under renovation and was projected to open in November.

We visited the Holton Creek Canoe Camp on the Suwannee.

There was a large flowering plant at the campground whose flowers changed from white in the morning to pink in the evening. I sent pictures of the flowers, leaves and bark to a professor of biology and to a state park biologist. Neither could positively identify the plant. Grandma Mary identified it as a Confederate Rose or cotton rosemallow (hibiscus mutabilis). So much for higher education.

We forgot to lower the TV antenna and destroyed it on some low hanging trees near the storage lot. That's our first one, not bad.

Friday, August 31 – Monday, September 5, 2007: Trip 42

We ventured into south Florida for a three night stay in lot 9 of the Grove campground at Johnathan Dickinson State Park. We arrived late and promptly blew out the power when we turned on both air conditioners. Luckily, I found a master panel box and was able to power up.

We awoke the next morning to one of the bleakest campgrounds we have ever seen. According to the park rangers, the trees in this area of the park have been hammered by two hurricanes, a fire and pine beetles. By the looks of things, the pine beetles have long since starved to death. The park has 42,000 acres so I don't understand why they put the grove campground 200 yards from US Highway 1 and 4.9 miles from the park's main attraction, the Loxahatchee River.

Our Saturday adventures began with a trip to Blowing Rock Preserve. The beach is lined with large outcroppings of coquina. Holes in the rock allow the waves to shoot into the air.

We then went to the Elliot Museum which I last visted during a fourth grade field trip. Later, I went snorkeling at Bathtub Reef. Linda wanted no part of the ocean and stayed back at the pavillion. We met my sister-in-law and my older brother for dinner at 5:20, in time for the early bird special. (He's in the AARP crowd.) Note: This picture is the museum, not by brother.

Sunday morning we went to John MacArthur State Park in Juno Beach. It's a nice oceanfront park with a lagoon. I went snorkeling in the ocean and saw a wide varity of fish including the nurse shark pictured here.

We visited the Breakers in Palm Beach (pictured). It can be best described as a study in opulence. We debated having their Sunday brunch, which looked awesome, but decided to leave and find a restaurant with a drive-thru. After lunch, we toured the Henry Flagler Museum which is near the Breakers. The museum is a mansion used by Flager for 6 to 7 weeks a year. We then left opulence and headed back to bleakness.

I went kayaking on the Loxahatchee around sunset. It took about an hour and a half to go from the boat dock to Kitchen Creek and back. I saw two buzzards. How appropriate.

We returned home on Monday.

Friday, August 17 – August 20, 2007:

We cancelled our planned trip to High Falls State Park in central Georgia due to the heat wave.

Friday, August 3 – Sunday, August 5, 2007: Trip 41

We stayed at the Ichetucknee Family Canoe and Campground and arrived just before dark. We backed in and setup without any problems dispite Linda's bizzare hand signals. We didn't bother to level the RV so we were listing from right to left and front to back.

Saturday morning, Linda and I kakayed on the Sante Fe River from the boat ramp up to the Highway 441 Bridge; at distance of at least 250 yards. This was a major improvement over her last try at kayaking (see Trip 38). Afterwards, I kayaked 3 miles to the Highway 27 bridge where Linda picked me up. I had to get out and drag the kayak over 3 dry areas. After lunch, we went to the Butterfly Rainforest at the University of Florida in Gainesville.

On Sunday morning, with great apprehension, I took Linda kayaking on the Itchetucknee River. She made it all the way to Dampier's Landing (2 miles). It was her kind of river: cool temperature, clear water, shade and a steady current. She did great!

Note:The picture to the left is not Linda and not the Itchetucknee.

Friday, July 20 – Sunday, July 22, 2007: Trip 40

We stayed at the Deland-Orange City KOA because of its proximity to Blue Springs, Hontoon Island and DeLeon Springs State Parks and to the Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge. The campground was adequate but not outstanding. TV reception was the pits.

On Saturday morning, we hiked in the Woodruff Refuge. It was hot and buggy and the main attraction was a large group of buzzards. Later, at Deleon Springs, we cooked our own pancake breakfast at the Old Mill Restaurant. Because the parking lots were full, Blue Springs was closed when we arrived there around 11 AM. Then we went to Hontoon Island State Park. After a short ferry ride, we went on a brief hike but left to avoid the incoming thunderstorm.

Sunday morning we hiked on the trail at DeLeon Springs. It was very scenic but the wrong time of year to hike there. (Hot and buggy). We visited Blue Springs and then had a non-memorable lunch at Gran's Kitchen in Orange City. It tasted like Gran traded her oven for a microwave. While we were packing up to leave, I almost stepped on a black snake. I did get a couple of pictures of it.

Friday, June 29 – Sunday, July 8, 2007: Trip 39

Friday We arrived for a ten night stay at Anastasia Park (Site 66) and managed to setup without any damage. We started the AC to cool off the camper and then went to dinner at Beef O'Brady's. The camper was properly chilled when we returned. I planned to commute to work during the week.

Saturday We were up and out early so we could run errands and get back to the camper before my brother and sister-in-law arrived from south Florida. We expected them around 11 AM and they arrived promptly at 2:30 PM. During our wait, Linda and I had breakfast at Cafe Eleven and then I went for a walk on the Beach. Later, we all went to the San Sebastian Winery for free wine tasting. We spent Saturday night at our house.

Sunday We all went to the St. Augustine Alligator Farm. The aviary was in full swing with nesting birds including Snowy Egrets, Green Herons and White Egrets. You could see small chicks and unhatched eggs. We had lunch at Mama Fu's and then Chris and Anne left for home. It rained most of the remainder of the day and we chilled out in the camper.

Monday The sunrise and sunset were obscured by clouds and it was overall a lousy day for taking pictures. I did see two gopher turtles in the park.

Tuesday We awoke to a rainy morning. It seems like the best way to end a drought is for us to go camping. For reasons unknown, the hot water stopped coming out of the spout so I took a cold shower. On the way to work, I saw a Roseate Spoonbill in the lagoon. We returned to the camper after work and found that the electrical outlets in the living room and kitchen didn't work and that the refrigerator would only run on gas. It seems to be the week repairs.

Wednesday, July 4th I went to the Alligator Farm at 8 AM to take pictures in the rookery. I have a photographer's pass that lets me in before the crowds. In the afternoon, I went kayaking in salt run. The winds were gusting off the ocean at 20-25 and the ride was wet and a lot of work. That night we watched the fireworks from the beach parking lot at the campground. The view was good but we were so far away that there was no explosion noises and the only smoke was from the chain-smoking rednecks.

Thursday This was not a real exciting day. I planned to get up early and take pictures of the sunrise. Not. We did manage to replace a safety outlet and restore power to refrigerator and outlets.


Friday Linda reserved us a spot at McKnight's Irish Pub to see an Elvis impersonator. You figure. His name was Peter Alden and we had a blast.

Saturday I spent most of the day out taking pictures. There were a wide variety of flowers blooming at Washing Oak State Gardens. We fixed the hot water heater and were able to avoid the bathhouse.

Sunday We packed up and headed home.

NOTES: We replaced the steps which were damaged when I hit a rock on trip 9 and that fell apart on trip 38. 132 nights in the camper to date.

Wednesday, June 6 – Saturday, June 16, 2007: Trip 38

Day 0: We left Jacksonville around 5 PM and made a short trip to Savannah, arriving before dark. The most difficult part of any trip is loading up and getting out of town.

Day 1: We left Savannah around 8 AM and arrived at Moccasin Creek State Park near Clayton, Georgia around 2. The park is on Lake Burton and our lot shaded by large pine and redbud trees. Our neighbors, Sheryll and Harriet, were from Lake City, Fl.

After we set up, went drove 8 miles down Wildcat Creek Road, an isolated gravel road in the Chattahoochee National Forest. The road dead-ended within a mile of the Appalachian Trail. The road followed the creek most of the way and the scenery was awesome.

Day 2: We went to Tallulah Gorge State Park. Michael and I hiked the path to the bottom of the gorge. The path has 530 steps and a suspension bridge. At the bottom of the gorge we forged the river and took some pictures of the waterfall. The trip back to the top was a killer. Meanwhile, Linda hiked the ramps and stairs in the three story interpretation center (12 trips in the air conditioning). After our hikes we all had a great Lunch at Mama G's Italian Restaurant in Clayton.

After lunch, we drove to South Carolina and visted Stumphouse Tunnel (with our headlamps) and Isagueena Falls. The railroad tunnel was started around 1850 and never finished. It is in solid granite and the workers progressed about 20 feet per month. We hiked to the bottom of the waterfall and took some great photos.

Day 3: Linda dropped Michael and me off at Nantahala Outdoor Center for our whitewater rafting trip on the Chattooga River. I thought I was probably the oldest person on the trip. Michael and Linda disagreed. They said I was definitely the oldest.

Our trip was on Section IV, made famous by the movie Deliverance. Our first major rapid was Seven Foot Falls. (pictured right: Michael and I are on the left side of photo). We stopped and hiked a short distance to Long Creek Falls and walked underneath the freezing cold waterfall. During our lunch break Michael swam from Georgia to South Carolina and back. (100 feet). After lunch, we went through a series of five class five rapids. The river ended in Lake Tugaloo where we were met by a motorboat that towed our group of rafts the last three miles to the take-out.

Day 4: Every morning we were awakened by the sounds of birds chirping. By the third morning, I was ready to get a gun and start blasting. Our first trip of the day was to Minnehaha Falls, a well known but hard to find waterfall. After a quarter of a mile hike, you stand directly in front of the waterfall for a breathtaking view.

After a picnic lunch at Warwoman Dell in a pavilion built by the CCC back in the 1930's, we visited Black Rock Mountain State Park and noted that the campsites were too small for large RV's. Linda wanted to visit Foxfire Museum, a historical mountain village reconstructed by a bunch of hippies in the 70's. Lucky for Michael and me, it was closed on Sundays.

Day 5: Linda and I went to Unicoi State Park and hiked the one-half mile trail to Anna Ruby Falls. The falls are actually two separate creeks converging into a single stream below. On our return, we stopped at the Mark of the Potter, a highly advertised and over-rated collection of junk. Been there, done that.

Onward to the Smokey Mountains. We stayed at the Cherokee KOA and our campsite overlooked the Raven Fork River. The neighbors on both sides of us were from Florida (Venice and Boyton Beach).

After we set-up, I decided to have Michael drive me a couple of miles up river so that I could kayak back to the camper. This trip was later named the Poseidon Adventure. About halfway back, the kayak got pinned against a log and filled up with water. I had a hell of a time trying to turn it over and drain out the water.

After dinner, we went for a drive in the National Park and saw two elk.

Day 6: Linda and I hiked the trail to Mingo Falls, which is a ten on everyone's waterfall list. The hike is about one-half mile each way and has 164 steps.

We all went ruby mining in Franklin and Mike found a one and a half carat ruby. We left the ruby at Linda's favorite rock shop to be cut and polished and mailed to us. We toured the Gem and Mineral Museum in Franklin and had lunch at the Motor Grill. After we ate we found out that the Grill was cash only so I had to walk through a nearby drive-thru ATM to get some cash.

Day 7: Wednesday morning we went shopping for indian trinkets and t-shirts for our loved ones back home. Linda bought some jewelry for herself and Michael and I bought subs at Subway. There seemed to be more Harley stuff than native items.

Michael and I went kayaking in "ducks" on the Nantahala River. This is a dam-controlled river so the rapids are consistent but the water is around 52 degrees. Our pre-trip technical whitewater training consisted of the following facts: 1) a series of waves indicates deep water, good. 2) single white wave indicates submerged rock, not good. 3) brown or gray object above water indicates rock, bad. Once trained, we were issued wetsuits that were at least one size too small. During the trip my feet turned purple. I am not sure if it was because of the cold water or from putting my big extra large butt in a large wetsuit.

During our trip, a fellow ducker hit his head on a tree limb and required professional help. Unfortunately, there was not an attorney in our group so the guide wrapped his head in gauze. Near the end of our trip, the guy with the head wound and no lawyer fell out of his duck going over Nantahala Falls. He made the last part of the trip in the guide's boat.

After our rafting trip, Michael and I had a $20 pizza at the Pizza on the River place. Although pricey, the pizza was humongous and delicious.

Day 8: Today's big scheduled event was a trip to Pigeon Forge to visit Dollywood. On most trips, I avoid theme parks like the plague. Dollywood is an easy going place without the crowds like at Disney. Mike had a great time here but, in retrospect, I could have skipped Dollyhell and gone hiking or rafting. The drive there and back crossed Newfoundland Gap which has some awesome views of the Smokeys. The temperature in the mountains was about 25 degrees cooler than in Pigeon Forge.

Day 9: It rained several inches on Thursday so I decided that the higher water would make kayaking the stream that ran by the camper easier. WRONG! Michael and I kayaked about three miles. Pure torture. The current was very fast and tended to flip the kayaks when we got stuck on the rocks. We tied at 4 sinks each. It turned out to be a real endurance challenge.

We went back to Cherokee for another shopping attempt. Many of the souvenirs were for non-native things such as moose (instead of elk) and Kokopelli, an indian fertility god from the Southwest. It appears that all the Cherokee craftsman relocated to China. I did get two t-shirts, including one with the saying "You don't stop exploring because you get old; you get old because you stop exploring."

After shopping we went to Mingus Mill, a working grist mill that makes corn meal and wheat flour. It was constructed in the 1850's and served the entire valley. We then drove to Deep Creek, just north of Bryson City and hiked to Juney Whank Falls.

Linda made us a nice dinner and then, after a week of taking showers, we went to the campground jacuzzi for the closest thing available to a bath.

Day 10: We read a guide book that said that Chimney trail was an easy .8 mile loop with some of the best views in the Smokeys. Linda and I decided to let Mike sleep in and go for one last hike before we left for home. We arrived at our destination after a 45 minute drive through the Smokeys and Newfoundland Gap and discovered that we had confused the Chimney Trial with the Chimney Tops Trail. Instead of an easy hike, we were looking at a strenuous 4 mile round trip with a 1,700 elevation change. We hiked the first 200 yards and back.

We packed up and left Cherokee at noon for home. The cat didn't stop meowing until South Carolina. We made the 516 mile trip in 10 hrs 46 minutes, averaging a blistering 48 miles per hour. Home safe!

Friday, May 25 – Monday May 20, 2007: Trip 37

We spent Memorial Day weekend at the Ichetucknee Canoe and Family Campground in Lot 3. (Dave and Rose Ann Hudson from Valdosta have life-time first dibs on premier lot 4.) We met Vic and Katrina from Callahan who also have a Montana 5th wheel.

On Saturday, we visited the Dudley Farm Historic State Park located between Gainesville and Newberry. The Park has historic buildings from the late 1800's and volunteers in period clothing. This is an interesting place worth a short visit. Based on a friend's advice, we then went to a used bookstore and cafe in Gainesville called Books, Inc. The Cafe was nice, however, she forgot to tell me it was vegetarian only.

We drove to Cedar Key on Sunday to kayak to Arsena Otie Key. I originally planned to go with Michael but in his absence, Linda volunteered as a substitute. Our trip can be summarized as follows: Drive to Cedar Key, 2 hours; Unload and setup kayaks, 30 minutes; kayak 150 feet out into the Gulf, TURN AROUND AND RETURN TO SHORE, 9 minutes; look of total terror on Linda's face, priceless.

Monday, we went canoeing on the Ichetucknee River. Linda and Rose Ann shared a canoe and I kayaked. We had to weave our way around tubers and swimmers. The wildlife was scarce but the scenery was awesome.

Friday, May 18 – Sunday May 20, 2007: Trip 36

Linda and I made our first trip to Jekyll Island and stayed in lot B-13 at the Jekyll Island Campground. The campground is on the north end of the island near the Clam Creek Picnic area and fishing pier. The weather was unseasonably cool, with highs in the upper 70’s, lows around 60 and plenty of sun.

I went hiking Saturday morning around 7:30. I hiked from the campground to the pier and then to Driftwood Beach, the most fascinating feature of the island. I saw several deer and a fawn from the beach. The round trip took about 2 hours.

Linda and I went to the historic area at the Jekyll Island Club. The Club was formed in the late 1800's and had 53 original members including Kodak, Pulitzer and JP Morgan. We walked the grounds and viewed the cottages which were actually summer homes for the very wealthy. The smaller buildings have been turned into shops. We had lunch at the Cafe at the Club. The sandwiches and deserts were excellent and reasonably priced.

We met Jim and Maureen from Milledgeville, Ga. They gave us some Georgia camping tips and let Linda ride Jim's tricycle. She liked the comfortable seat and the fact that you could stop and look around without falling over.

Saturday evening I hiked the bike path along the southern edge of the salt marsh from the pier to Beachview Road. It was around 8:00 PM and I was hoping to get some picture of the sun setting over the marsh. The sunset pictures were a flop, but I did see several deer including a doe nursing her fawn, a raccoon and some rabbits.

Sunday morning I went out at 7:30 hoping to again see the doe and her fawn. I had hiked a lot on Saturday so I drove the electric scooter. No doe, but I saw a flock of over 80 white Ibis in the marsh. There were adult and immature birds (which are white and brown). I've never seen this many at one time. They were feeding and moving along as a group.

We decided to skip our brunch reservations at the Jekyll Island Club and save some bucks. We drove around the island and visited the 4-H Tidelands Center. It was a neat little exhibit and worth the dollar admission price. We left for home around 2:00 and had a safe and uneventful return trip.

Friday May 4 – Sunday May 6, 2007; Trip 35

Linda and I stayed at the Ichetucknee Family Canoe and Campground, lot 4. While we were setting up, Linda noticed that our site had large ants, so she got out the bug spray and coated the tires and RV feet to keep the ants from getting in the camper. She also sprayed the 50 amp power cord (with flammable aerosol spray) and the fresh water intake hose (with insecticide). We survived, the ants didn't.

Saturday morning, I went hiking at O’Leno State Park and saw five deer: two on the entrance road, two on the 1.5 mile River Trail and one on the .6 mile Limestone Trail. The upper Santa Fe River was as low as I have ever seen it and some sections were completely dry. (This is above the area where it sinks into the ground and rises later with a real flow.)

Saturday after lunch I kayaked on the Santa Fe River from Rum Island to the Highway 47 bridge. The original plan was for Linda to pick me up at Ginnie Springs. However, when she got there she was too cheap to pay the $12 entry fee and she decided go shopping and pick me up later at the bridge. I waited for a while at Ginnie Springs and the called Linda on a borrowed cell phone and was told of the updated pickup point. It took about 2 hours to reach the Hwy 47 bridge from Ginnie Springs. The most difficult part was navigating through the groups of drunken tubers. I got a good photo of a yellow-crowned night-heron. (pretty rare).

While I was kayaking, Linda went shopping in High Springs and walked through the "Sinkhole De Mayo" Festival. The main attraction was a lady selling trees and plants with the name tags all mixed up.

Saturday night we ate a country dinner at Mary Jane's and around sunset went to the sinkhole at the rear of the farm. I wasn't sure whether it felt like an enchanted forest or something from a scarry movie. Magically creepy.

I kayaked on the Ichetucknee River Sunday morning around 8:30 and saw a black-crowned night-heron in the grassy flats area of the river. It’s an unusual bird to see. The river was peaceful and I did not see another human during the entire trip. We returned home early Sunday afternoon.

Saturday April 21 - Sunday April 22, 2007, Trip 34

We stayed Saturday night at Fort Clinch State Park, one of my favorite parks. The weather was windy but otherwise perfect. Cool evenings with highs around 80 and no mosquitoes.

Saturday afternoon I walked out on the jetties past the end of the fishing pier and then I took pictures of some sandpipers, royal terns and laughing gulls. Linda cooked homemade pizza for dinner. Later, I took pictures of the sunset over the Amelia River.

Sunday morning I hiked on the Willow Pond trail in search of the elusive Willow Tree. A tree identification book would have been helpful. I saw an alligator, a blue Ibis and a Kingfisher just before another hiker arrived with a small child and a dog and scared off all the wildlife within ten miles. After that, I went to the jetties to take more bird pictures.

Michael, Angie, Mark, Francesca, Robert and Angee all came up for the afternoon. We had hamburgers on the grill which were not very good. Luckily, Angee brought potato salad and her famous Angelberry Lemon Cake. Francesca got her clothes wet at the river and had to use one of my t-shirts as a dress. We went fishing on the pier later that afternoon and, as usual, caught nothing.

Injuries on this trip were minor. I fell on the rocks at the jetties but luckily, did not hurt the camera. Robert somehow managed to hit himself in the face with the cast net. Angee avoided injury even though she wore high heel flip-flop sandals.

Friday, March 30 - Sunday, April 1, 2007, Trip 33

We experienced an uneventful drive to Tallahassee and stayed in Lot 5 at the Tallahassee RV Park on US 90, just of I-10. The park is small but has all the necessities including cable and wi-fi. Publix is almost across the street.

On Saturday, we went to Thomasville to see the historic houses and then to the Pebble Hill Plantation. This is one of about 71 plantations in the Tallahassee/Thomasville area. It includes a 40 room mansion with the original furnishings. The history and tour focuses on life at this Plantation from the period after the end of the civil war when it was purchased by rich northerners until about 1980 when it became a museum. We spent several hours on the house tour and walking the grounds.

The main purpose of our trip was to visit McClay Gardens State Park in full spring bloom. We were about 2 weeks late but it was still pretty. The historic home at the Park was not open for tours but, after the Plantation, we were toured out.

We drove to Monticello as part of my quest to visit the County Seats of all 67 Florida counties. (Note: due to the price of gas, my quest has been changed from visiting all 50 states.) Not a real exciting place. Interestingly, Jefferson County is the only Florida County to be bordered by both the Gulf of Mexico and Georgia.

Saturday night we watched the NCAA Final Four tournament and UF’s big win over UCLA. It was great to be a Gator even though we were in Seminole territory.

On Sunday, we met my brother and sister-in-law for brunch at Cabos Grille. We got lost trying to find the place but the food was great. The folks who designed Tallahassee’s roads obviously never heard of a grid system.

We returned home safely on Sunday afternoon having avoided the I-10 curse.

NOTE: 112 nights in the camper to date.

Saturday, March 17 - Monday, March 19, 2007, Trip 32

Our trip to the Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park north of Live Oak started out bad and went worse. While hooking up the RV, I got stung by wasps. Linda was thrilled because she finally got to use her anti-sting medicine. On the way to the Park, we stopped at a friend's home and snagged their basketball hoop on our RV and dragged it down the street. We were all concerned that bad things come in 3's.

Later on I-10, we thought that a car passing us was admiring our RV. Michael jokingly said we probably had a door open. I looked in my rear view mirror and saw parts flying off. We had a trailer tire blow completely apart and damage our siding and undercarriage. We changed the tire and proceeded onward.

We discussed whether the tire was our third of three. I thought that the wasp stings on my head counted as one of three. No one else did.

The canoe was strapped to the roof of the truck and one of the straps came loose and was flopping in the wind. We decided to stop at the next exit and check the tie downs. After we exited, the truck ran over the loose tie-down and pulled the canoe off the roof of the truck. The front canoe rack was ruined and the canoe was toast. We left the canoe at a truck stop dumpster, got milkshakes to smooth our nerves and proceeded toward the Park.

We finally arrived at the Park around 3:30, having completed our 100 mile trip in just over 5 1/2 hours. Our campsite was the size of a postage stamp and was wedged between two permanent campers. Linda made a quick stressed-out hormonal RV wife type cell call to the Park office and we were instantly upgraded to a nicer lot.

On Saturday, Michael and I kayaked on the Withlacoochee River. Linda dropped us off at the Highway 6 Bridge and planned to pick us up at the Suwannee River State Park. I estimated that the trip was 8 miles and should take three hours. A more careful estimate would have been 13 miles and six hours. I think “Withlacoochee” is Indian for “river without end”.

The Park was having a bluegrass festival and the campground had groups of campers playing music. Some were quite good. The campers next to us were from Tallahassee and were very nice.

On Monday, Michael and I went kayaking on the Suwannee for about an hour and a half and then we had an uneventful drive home.

Friday, March 2 - Sunday, March 4, 2007, Trip 31

We stayed in Lot 68 at Jetty Park Campground at Port Canaveral. Michael slept in his pup tent and park security was after us for the additional $10 per night tent fee.

On Saturday, Michael and I went to the Merrit Island National Wildlife Refuge and drove on the six mile Black Point Wildlife Drive. We saw some unusual wildlife including nesting bald eagles, kingfishers, rosey spoonbills and a wide variety of migatory ducks. We also went to the Cape Canaveral National Seashore and got some great pictures of the space shuttle on the launch pad.

Around five o'clock we all went to the jetties and watched the cruise ships leave the port. At sunset Michael and I went back to the jetties to watch the lunar eclipse but only saw rain clouds.

The weather was better on Sunday and we all went to the wildlife refuge and then returned so we could check-out by noon. The Tent Police spotted us and we paid the tent fee, under protest.

Friday, February 16 - Sunday, February 18, 2007

I had to cancel our planned trip to Fort Clinch due to complaints from the family. It seems they did not want to spend time at the beach and kayaking when the lows temps are in the upper 20's and highs in the 40's with gusty winds. Wimps!

Friday, February 2 - Sunday, February 4, 2007, Trip 30

We returned to the Campground and found are RV safe and sound. It was nice not to have to park and set-up. It was a cool weekend with lows in the 30's and highs in the 50's. I went kayaking on Saturday and saw some unusual birds including an American Bittern, but no otters. We mostly rested and chilled out.

Friday, January 26 - Sunday, January 28, 2007, Trip 29

We stayed in Lot 4 at the Ichetucknee Family Canoe and Campground near Fort White. We arrived on Friday night around 9 PM and the temperature was already in the upper 30's. Saturday was beautiful with highs in the 60's. Michael and I kayaked the Ichetucknee River around lunchtime on Saturday and Linda and I canoed down the river in mid-afternoon. On the way back from the river, we saw a flock of wild turkeys and a group of deer.

I went kayaking by myself on Sunday morning and saw several otters. Very cool. Later, Linda and Michael kayaked from Daimpers Landing to the South end. It was Linda's first, and probably last, kayak trip. She prefers the canoe. We left the RV at the campground and returned home.

NOTE: 104 nights in the camper to date.

Thursday December 21 – Saturday December 30, 2006, Trip 28

We stayed in Lot 65 at Anatasia State Park in St. Augustine. The weather was not cooperative and it rained during much of our stay. I commuted to work during the week.

Friday: I went hiking on the beach. I saw a dead juvenile leatherback sea turtle. The ranger said it was about six feet long and weighed about 300 pounds. It was killed by a boat. Very sad.

We left the camper at the campground and went home on Saturday afternoon and returned Sunday night.

Monday: We drove around in the morning trying to take pictures for our website. It started to rain around lunchtime so we returned to the camper for naps.

Tuesday, December 26: This was our 100th night in our Montana.

Wednesday: I kakayed in Salt Run and went north to take pictures of the lighthouse during sunset. It was further than I thought and I arrived a little late.

Thurday: I went kayaking in Salt Run and saw some Hooded Mercanser ducks. Very beautiful. The tide was going out and the oysters were spitting out water. Very wierd.

Friday: We went to Fort Matanzas National Monument but didn't take the ferry to the fort, and to the St. Augustine Lighthouse and Museum but didn't climb to the top. Hey, we're on vacation!

Saturday. We checked out early due to heavy rain in the forecast.

NOTE: 95 nights in the camper to date.

Friday December 1 – Sunday December 3, 2006, Trip 27

Linda and I stayed in Lot 40 at Wekiwa Springs State Park. We drove down after work on Friday. It was a lot easier to pack-up and go since the RV was already set-up at the Park. We had a potty stop at the Daytona Harley Davidson Store. It was awesome. (The store, not the bathroom.)

Overnight on Friday, the campsites near us had bears that got into their coolers and ripped a small hole in one of their tents. On Saturday morning, I went kayaking on a 4 mile roundtrip on the Wekiva River. I took Linda to the bead show in Maitland and then to the Audubon Birds of Prey Center. In the afternoon we watched football as the weather was overcast with a drizzle. We received a clear picture on channel 9 (ABC) but no sound on the living room TV. The sound worked in the bedroom. Bizarre.

On Sunday, we went to see Wekiva Falls Campground off Highway 46. It was a sad looking place that was probably the place to go in the 70’s. We found a small county park near Hwy 46 that had a canoe launch. After exploring, we went back to the Bead show.

Wednesday, November 21 – Sunday November 24, 2006, Trip 26

We spent the Thanksgiving Holidays at River Ranch Resort on the Kissimmee River in Central Florida. We stayed in site 284 that had a wooden deck with a fire pit and two wooden swings. Linda’s Mom went with us and stayed at the hotel near the campground. The resort is on Route 60 about 25 miles west of the Florida Turnpike and US 441.

Wednesday: We left around 2:30 PM and traffic was very congested and we averaged about 40 MPH on the interstate. The diesel pump at our first gas stop pumped a little less than a gallon a minute. I gave up after 13 gallons.

Thursday: I went for a two hour hike on the Florida Trail and saw five deer, two armadillos, wild turkeys and a brahma bull. Linda cooked a turkey in our rotisserie oven and we had a great meal. Our TV would not receive cable so we tried to diagnose the problem. Result: No cable, no TV and No DVD.

Friday: I went for another hike on the Florida Trail while Linda and Mom made a emergency trip to Wal-Mart for cable TV parts. In the afternoon, I kayaked on the old Kissimmee River. To reach it, I went across the new Kissimmee River and pulled the kayak for about 100 yards across a cow pasture. That night, we went to a BBQ buffet and to the Rodeo. We also watched line-dancing at the Saloon which, due to the large Holiday crowd, stayed open until 9:00.

Saturday: I went kayaking on Lake Kissimmee. Dad and Sally came over for a visit. We watched football on cable and ate Linda’s famous chili.

Sunday: I went kayaking on Walk-in-the-Water Creek from Route 60 towards Lake Rosaline. I paddled downstream about 30 minutes but I did not reach the Lake. Afterwards, we all went to the petting zoo and then packed up and left around noon. We dropped the RV off at Wekiva Springs State Park and returned home.

Thursday, November 9 – Sunday November 12, 2006. Trip 25

Linda, Michael, Windy and I stayed in Lot 4 at the Ichetucknee Family Campground. We arrived after dark and backed into the electric box. No damage. More seriously, we left our underwear and my medications at home.

On Friday, Michael and I went kayaking on the Sante Fe River while Linda chilled at the RV. We went up river from Rum Island (about 1.5 hours) to Poe Springs. The current was very strong in places and at one point I got out of my kayak and pulled it along the bank. Return trip was about 45 minutes. Later, we put in just below the highway 47 bridge and paddled upstream about 45 minutes. We went to dinner in Alachua at the Conestoga Steak House. Safety tip: Don’t order the marinated steak.

On Saturday, we met my brother Michael and Nikki at Wakulla Springs State Park for lunch and a boat ride. The trees were very colorful and, as always, there was a lot of wildlife. Later, we went canoeing on the Wakulla. It was not very pretty and there was almost no wildlife. We went by Econfina State Park on the way back and saw a flock of wild turkeys. The parks only facility was a boat ramp.

On Sunday, Michael and I each went kayaking on the Ichetucknee River. Michael went first and I went on the second trip. Michael saw three otters. The weather was chilly but the trips were great. After much discussion, we secured the kayak to the ladder on the back of the Montana.

Friday, October 27 – Sunday October 29, 2006 Trip 24

We stayed in Lot 4 at the Ichetucknee Family Campground (Vernis’s place). Wendy went with us and stayed at Mary Jane’s. We were the only RV in the campground. On Saturday, Linda and I had breakfast at the Goose Nest and then we hiked the 1.5 mile river trail at Oleno State Park.

Mark and Grace came over and we all watched the Florida/Georgia game at Mary Jane’s. Linda made us a football feast. On Sunday, Linda and I went canoeing on the Ichetucknee. We saw a deer and a raccoon but no beavers or otters. The weather was wonderful with highs in the low 70’s. Good cell phone service if you’re next to the sink! Forget TV. We watched 4 episodes of Northern Exposure on DVD.

Note: I bought a one person Old Town otter kayak for $319 at Sports Authority. This is our third boat.

Friday, October 20 – Sunday October 22. Trip 23

We stayed in Lot 35 at Paynes Prairie State Park near Gainesville. The temperature and humidity were both unseasonably high. Wildlife, flowers and butterflies were abundant and I hiked the entire La Chua trail (3 miles round trip) which is on the north end of the park. I lost my hat. This trail is only accessible when the water levels are low. I rode the scooter from the parking area about 1.25 miles to the trailhead. I spotted 11 alligators sunning themselves together on the bank of a pond. Linda and I also saw deer and a wild horse. No buffalo. (Note: good cell phone service, ABC good, Fox ok, CBS poor.)

NOTE: Serviced at Camper World in St Augustine the week of October 2, 2006. Repack wheels and replace all wheel bearings. The quoted us $100 for a new set of four bearings but didn’t tell us that each wheel takes two. Fix brake wiring. Looked at new RV’s, Still like ours best.

Friday, September 22 – Sunday, September 24, 2006. Trip 22

Linda and I stayed in Lot 49 at Silver River State Park in Ocala. The park has 50 amp service and large pull-thrus. Sites 8-10 had more shade. On Saturday morning around 8:30, we went canoeing up the Silver River from the park to Silver Springs. We used the motor and the trip took about 2 hours. We had to cart the canoe about ½ mile to the canoe launch. The river was beautiful with abundant wildlife. Sunday morning we canoed up the Silver River from Ray Park. The current was very strong and we had to run the motor at “4” to may any progress. We canoed for about 1.5 hours. The park has an excellent museum.

Friday, September 8 – Sunday September 10, 2006, Trip 21

Linda and I stayed in Lot 5 at Gamble Rogers State Park in Flagler Beach. We had a great view of the ocean from the back picture window. We were surprised that the site had 50 amp service. I took pictures of the sunrise. We saw the space shuttle launch on Saturday morning. It was awesome. We took a nice scenic drive and had lunch out.

In the late afternoon, I went to Flagship Harbor Preserve which has a great boardwalk. I saw a snake, several gopher turtles and a raccoon swimming in a creek. Saturday night we watched a ballgame on ABC. The sound only worked on the bedroom TV. Weird. Sunday we had a nice breakfast at the Pier Restaurant around noon. We never noticed the earthquake that occurred at 10:58 AM.

Friday, September 1 – Monday, September 4, 2006, Trip 20

Linda and I stayed in site 3 at the Ichnetucknee Family Campground. We arrived late and the humidity was unbearable. On Saturday we took a drive to Stienhatchee and then up the Gulf Coast. We stopped at the famous Hot Dog Stand at Keaton Beach. Then back to the campground through Perry.

On Sunday, we visited Blue Springs, a private campground on the Sante Fe River, which looked like a nice place for a day trip. We then visited the county park at Poe Springs and rode the scooters. We visited Mary Jane in the late afternoon. That night we rode the scooters to the Jug Bar for a beer. On the way back, one scooter went dead. I rode the other one back to the campground and came back for Linda with the truck. On Monday, we visited Jim Hollis’s River Rendevous. It has new owners and was in a sad state of repair.

Friday, August 18 – Sunday August 20, 2006, Trip 19

Linda and I stayed in site 45 at Fort Clinch State Park. It a nice site but difficult to back into. The weather was overcast and it rained on and off. We took the scooters out at night to look for animals. We saw possums, raccoons and three deer. We had lunch Sunday afternoon on the deck at The Surf.

Friday July 7– Sunday July 16, 2006, Trip 18

We stayed at Lot 65 in Anatasia State Park in St. Augustine.

Day 1, Friday, July 7: We arrived at the park after work. Linda brought her car.

Day 2, Saturday, July 8: Robert, Michael, Allen and I took windsurfing lessons for 2 hours. It was great fun. Angie came for awhile to watch. Allen and Robert rode the scooters without the seats. Mini-choppers.

Day 3: Sunday, July 9: We went to downtown St. Augustine and went through the shops. Mike did not complain but was bored to death. We had lunch at the Milltop restaurant.

Day 4: Monday, July 10: I dropped Michael off at football camp at Nease at before 7 AM. I got to work on time.

Day 5: Tuesday, July 11: I went to work. That evening we had dinner at the Milltop.

Day 6: Wednesday, July 12: After work, I picked up Momma and we had dinner with Allen, Melissa and her parents and grandparents.

Day 7: Thursday, July 13: I went to work and Linda went to the bead store with Melissa and Elaine.

Day 8: Friday July 14: We chilled out and bought chili at Wendy’s for our hot dogs.

Day 9: Saturday, July 15: I went to Matanza’s inlet for a photo trip and found a pigmy rattler on the beach. We had lunch at the world famous Oasis bar and grill. Grace and Mark came over for dinner and rode the scooters. (Snake turned out to be a young black racer)

Day 10: Sunday July 16: We went “podding” to look for camp sites at fish camps along the east side of the St. Johns south of Palatka. Nada. We then looped by the bead store near Daytona.

Thursday June 29 – Wednesday July 5, 2006, Trip 17

We stayed at Whitey’s Fish Camp in Orange Park for the Holiday weekend. We brought the gheenoe and both cars. I went to work on Friday and Monday. We had full hook-ups and a concrete pad.

Day 1, Thursday June 29: We took the RV to the park during my lunch time and Billy gave us a good spot. The night, we went to the restaurant and watched the guys check in from the bass tournament.

Day 2, Friday, June 30: I took the boat out in the morning before I went to work. That evening, Linda and I took the boat out and she cooked her new hot dog recipe for dinner.

Day 3: Saturday, July1: We took the boat out in the north fork of Black Creek. During the afternoon we went to see the Devil Wears Prada and clothes shopping at the mall. We had dinner at the restaurant at the fish camp.

Day 4: Sunday July 2: We took the boat out in the south fork of Black Creek. We had dinner at Whitey’s.

Day 5: Monday, July 3: I went to work. That evening we ate at Whitey’s.

Day 6: Tuesday, July 4: We sleep in, then cleaned the carpets. We took the boat out in the late afternoon. We left the following afternoon.

May 31-June 18, 2006, Trip 16

Day 0: Thursday, May 31: Drove to Milton, Fl (approx 325 miles) and stayed at a KOA. Easy I-10 on/off.

Day 1: Friday, June 1: We drove out I-10 through Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and into Texas. We stayed at the Schulenburg RV Park in Schulenburg, TX, about one hour west of Houston, arriving late and leaving early.

Day 2: Saturday, June 2: We spent most of the day driving through west Texas and arrived Carlsbad, NM around 3PM. Stayed at Carlsbad KOA. We went to Carlsbad Caverns National Park and watched the bats (400,000) come out of the bat cave at sunset. We returned to the KOA campground which was infested with rabbits. Michael and I went out after dark to find wild animals. We saw lots of animal droppings and then Michael figured out that we were in the dog walk area.

Day 3: Sunday, June 3: Went to Carlsbad Caverns. Michael and I went in through the “natural entrance” and met Linda at the bottom. We toured the caverns. Later, we went to the Living Desert Museum and then back to the campground for a swim. We left the campground around 4 PM and drove to Albuquerque, NM. We stopped along the way for authentic Mexican tomales.

Day 4, Monday, June 4: We drove from Albuquerque to Flagstaff, Az and stopped at the painted desert/petrified forest national park and meteor crater. We had a minor traffic accident in Flagstaff when a truck pulling a boat cut us off and hit the right front of the truck. We would have been killed except for the daring performance by our big rig driver. We lost a hubcap.

Day 5: Tuesday, June 5: We made a day trip to Sedona down scenic highway 89A. The canyons were beautiful. Michael and I went on a 2 hour horseback ride while Linda went beading.

Day 6: Tuesday, June 6: We made a day trip to the Wupatki and Sunset Crater National Monuments. We also went to Snowball Mountain and took the ski lift up to 10,500 feet. We arrived at the peak about the same time as a lightening storm.

Day 7: Wednesday June 7: We drove to the Grand Canyon south entrance. We took our time and stopped at most of the overlooks. We then went on a helicopter ride over the canyon and the north rim. What a trip! Afterwards, we went to Angel Falls Lodge for the best view of the day. We saw condors and ate dinner.

Day 8: Thursday, June 8: We drove from Flagstaff to Bryce Canyon which was the most scenic of our drives. We went through Marble Canyon and up into the mountains. The temperature dropped from about 90 to 55 in an hour or so. There was hail on the ground in the mountains.

About 20 miles from our campground, we encountered a sign that said tunnel ahead, clearance 13 feet 6 inches. Our rig is 13 feet 4 inches. We stopped and measured and we had enough clearance if we stayed in the center. We arrived at Ruby’s Campground before dark.

Day 9: Friday, June 9: Michael and I rented ATV’s. It was a blast. We all then went into Bryce Canyon National Park. It was gorgeous. Later, Michael and I went to Red Canyon and climbed up some of the hills and rocks. At night, Michael went to the pool on his scooter while Linda and I chilled.

Day 10: Saturday, June 10: We drove about 160 miles to Zion National Park. We took the tram and Michael and I hiked up the “Narrows” until the water was over Michael’s head. We then went to the northern part of Zion and took the scenic way back to Bryce through Cedar Breaks National Park. We saw snow on the ground. We stopped at Panquitch to fill a prescription at a drug store that sold lassoes (in various colors) and horseshoes.

Day 11: Sunday June 11: Linda stayed at the RV for R&R. Michael and I drove up scenic highway Utah 12 to Kodachrome State Park and then drove 13 miles down an unimproved road to Governors Arch. The road was gravel and very steep in places. We had to drive across a small stream. Later, we drove about 10 miles down a similar road to Devils Garden which had some unusual rock formations.

Day 12: Monday June 12: We drove from Bryce Canyon to Moab, Ut. One stretch of I-70 went for 108 miles without a gas station or services of any kind. We arrived in early afternoon. Michael and I drove to Dead Horse Canyon State Park and Canyonlands National Park (Eye in the Sky). It was like a smaller version of the Grand Canyon. We then went on a scenic ride up into the mountains and back along the Colorado River.

Day13: Tuesday, June 13: Michael and I went on a half day cayoneering trip. The hike was much more strenuous than I thought. We repelled off two cliffs. The first was 60 feet, the second was 110. Later in the day we all went to Arches National Park. In the evening, we had great dinner and took the “Canyonlands by Night” boat trip.

Day 14: Wednesday, June 14: Michael and I went rafting on the Colorado River through Westwater Canyon. The whitewater portion of the trip was about 1 hour, the bus ride about 4, and flat water about 7 hours. We then left Moab and drove to Cortez, Co.

Day 15: Thursday, June 15: We went to Mesa Verde National Park. The temperature was cooler than we expected. We toured the main cliff dwelling and got to watch Linda climb up and down a bunch of ladders. We left the campground about 3 PM and arrived in Amarillo, TX about 3 a.m.

Day 16: Friday, June 16: We drove from Amarillo, Texas to a remote section of Louisiana, about one hour south of Alexandria. It took forever to get through Houston due to an error by our navigator who was doing algebra problems instead of watching for road signs.

Day 17: Saturday, June 17: We drove to Milton, Fl and stopped in New Orleans. We went to the French quarter and had beignets at Café DuMond, toured a voodoo museum and had a drink at the Cat’s Meow karaoke bar on Bourbon Street. Michael got carded and kicked out. Angie saw us all on the internet.

Day 18: Sunday, June 18: We arrived back home, safe and sound. What a great trip!

May 19-21, 2006, Trip 15

Linda, Michael and I stayed in Lot 53 at Fort Clinch State Park. It is a large lot and easy to back in and out of. We drove the truck on the beach and got stuck. We had to call a 4 wheel drive tow truck. Cost $120. We hit a small limb leaving the campground and cracked a hole in the water closet vent cover (Accident # 4). After that, a surfboard blew out of the back of a pick-up truck and we ran it over. Since no damage was done, this is not considered an accident.

April 28-30, 2006, Trip 14

Linda and I stayed in Lot 4 at the Ichetucknee Family Campground. We rented a canoe and went down the Ichetucknee from the North entrance. We also drove to Williston to see Devils Cave which is spring located in a cave. There is an opening above the spring with hanging ferns, plants and roots. Cool to look at but not really worth the trip. It is mainly a place for scuba divers.

April 18-25, 2006

Camper at Suncoast for warranty work.

March 31-April 2, Trip 13

Linda and I stayed in lot 35 at Paynes Prairie State Park. On Saturday morning I rode my bike to the Prairie and saw a bald eagle, deer and other wildlife, but no buffalo. Later, I saw a group of baby alligators near the observation deck off of 441. Linda went to the bead store. Buffalo spotted on Sunday. I got some great photos.

Note:

March 24, 2006. The tire had a hole in the sidewall and had to be replaced. I bought a comparable Toyo and had it mounted on the spare tire rim and put the spare Tomoka tire on the mag wheel. Per Keystone, they no longer have or carry the Tomoka brand tire.

March 17-21, 2006, Trip 12

Linda and I went to Holiday RV Park in Cortez about one mile east of Bradenton Beach. It is a private park with full hook-ups, cable and wi-fi. Our camper was unlevel and listing like a sinking ship.

On Sunday, we took a day trip to Ft. Meyers to see Edison’s winter home and lab (very cool). His estate also has one of the largest banyan trees in the world. Later, we went to Sanibel and Captiva Islands and Ding Darling State Preserve to view wildlife. The area is overdeveloped and the Preserve had extensive hurricane damage and the lack of trees limited the wildlife.

We really enjoyed the Bradenton Beach area. It is bordered by the Gulf of Mexico on the West and Sarasota Bay on the east./ It had the feel of an old fashion beach resort without condos and shopping centers. Several evenings we watched the sunset over the Gulf.

We also visited nearby Myakka River State Park, home of the world's largest airboat. This is a large park and features the Myakka River and extensive hiking trails including a treetop boardwalk.

We left for home on Tuesday and stopped at Ft. Desoto Park (county park) in St Pete. This is an excellent park with waterfront campsites and a world famous beach. While there we had to change the back right RV tire which appeared very low.

March 3-5, 2006, Trip 11

Linda and I went to Wekiva Springs State Park. We arrived late and someone had crashed our campsite. We had to wait for the camp host to boot them out before we could set-up. We went to the Bead Show and I went to Blue Spring State Park to take pictures.

February 24-26, 2006; Trip 10

Linda and I went to Ellie Ray’s River Landing on the Santa Fe River, near Branford. The campground had no cell service or TV reception. The water was pumped from the river and was, in our opinion, not suitable for drinking or bathing.

Linda went to a Delta Kappa Gamma meeting on Saturday and I explored the area with Mark Wilhelm. We went canoeing up the Santa Fe from the campground, almost to the Ichetucknee. We stayed in Lot 3, which was close to the bar/lounge that had live music until 2 AM. We had electrical problems and fried a 15 amp dc fuse. We drove approximately 475 miles and used 39 gallons of diesel. (Round trip distance to the campground was only 200 miles.)

February 17-19, 2006; Trip 9

Linda, Michael and I stayed at Encore – Crystal River RV Resort.

Michael and I went canoeing on the Chassahowitzka River. The river is fed by several large springs and is very scenic. That evening, we all went to Forst Island Gulf Beach Park (a county park) and watch the sunset. It is a nice park for fishing and relaxing. The beaches in this part of the state do not have white sand.

On Sunday, we went to Homoassa Springs Wildlife State Park to see the manatee which are there year-round. The park also has a large variety of Florida wildlife and a hippopotamus leftover from when it was a private zoo.

As we were leaving the park and heading home, I cut a corner too sharp and hit a large rock, damaging the steps. (Accident # 3).

December 23-27, 2005; Trip 8

Linda and I spent Christmas at Anastasia State Park (Lot ??). The kids (Angie, Michael, Mark and Francesca) stayed overnight with us on Dec 23. Allen visited but did not stay. We used our sewer rat for the first time.

December 8-22, 2005

Camper at Suncoast to replace front driver’s side landing gear. We found out that our camper had two left feet!

November 18-20, 2005; Trip 7

Linda and I stayed Payne’s Prairie State Park (Lot ??). We visited the bead shops in Gainesville and drove through Cross Creek.

October 21-27, 2005; Trip 6

Linda and I stayed at Ft. Clinch State Park (lot ??) and commuted to work, Monday through Thursday.

October 7-9, 2005; Trip 5

Linda, Michael and I went to Wekiwa Springs State Park (Lot ??). Michael and I went kayaking on the Wekiva River and up Rock Springs Run. We also went tubing in Rock Springs County Park.

Sept 9 – Oct. 5, 2005

Camper at Suncoast to replace roof.

September 2 – 5, 2005; Trip 4

Linda and I went to Camp Mack on the Kissimmee River, just east of Lake Wales off off State Road 60. We went for an airboat ride with Captain Fred, (I got to drive) and watched a bass tournament weigh-in. It was alligator season (Sept – mid Oct) and the airboats were going all night.

We went to Bok Tower and went on the historical mansion tour from hell with a long-winded tour guide. We also discovered that we ripped the roof, probably when we came in after dark on the first night (Accident 2). We drove about 625 miles and used 60 gallons of gas.

August 19 – 21, 2005; Trip 3

Linda, Angie, Michael and I went to Sebastian Inlet State Park. We stayed in lot 13, which had a good view of the river. We were almost arrested by the local cops. Linda thinks it was because Michael and I were riding on the truck tailgate. Michael and I think she was speeding. On Saturday, Chris and family, my brother Michael and my Dad (13 people!) met at the camper for Dad’s 83rd (approximate) birthday. It was nice to have everyone together. Angie spent most of the time on her cell phone.

July 29 – 31, 2005: Trip 2

Linda and I went to Salt Springs campground for our first trip with 50 amps and sewer. A kid was practicing casting his fishing pole and hit the side of the camper with a large weight, resulting in a ugly dent on the large slide. We meet some nice neighbors who helped us back-in. Tara and Adam stopped by for a visit. We also went to nearby Silver Glenn Springs (pictured).

July 23 – 25, 2005; Trip 1

For our first trip, Linda and I went to Anastasia State Park in St. Augustine. It took a while to back the camper into our space, but it was accomplished without major damage. The second night we moved to a new site. Allen and Melissa came for a short visit.

July 23, 2005

We picked up the “Monty” from Suncoast RV, dropped off the Zepplin, and transferred our stuff from one to the other. It seemed like we were trading the family camper for a retirement camper. We drove the camper home to show Mom and to pick-up something special she had for Linda. Disaster struck as I cut the corner turning off Philips onto Sunbeam and hit the curb. (Accident # 1) The front right tire of the camper was ruined. We had to wait for a tow truck to change the tire. (Mom gave Linda some special medicine for joint pain she ordered from the TV. Total cost of linament, $350.)