Ahh, Florida!

Sunday – February 5, 2023

Enjoyed our first full day in Florida with a nice walk around the campground giving it a thorough checking out.  I think it has 135 sites with a bathhouse and laundry facility, all which were very clean.  A small swimming pool, clubhouse, outdoor kitchen, and docks.  We prefer pull-through sites as opposed to back-in sites for obvious reasons and the split is 85% back-in, 15% pull-through.  Our site is a Premium Pull-Through which includes a roughly 60+ foot concrete pad, raised metal fire pit, picnic table, grill, water hookup, 50 AMP electrical hookup, cable/satellite TV connection and a sewer connection.  I like the layout of the sites, they are laid out on a road that is at a steep angle so the center of the site next to us it 20′ above our center; it makes for a little more privacy.  There’s also a grassy area and a section of the concrete pad that juts out for a the picnic table, chairs or whatever your preference.  So far, it has been a very quiet place which we really like.  In San Antonio we were not very far from the 1604 Loop which meant we constantly heard traffic sounds all hours of the day and night.  In Lafayette, much less so but we could still hear traffic from route 10.

There is a Clubhouse with an attached Outdoor Kitchen we checked out.  There was a ping pong table inside which we took a few minutes tuning up our skills.  A mother and her son were out in the kitchen, off the clubhouse, it’s covered and screened-in, they were cooking a pizza; the aroma was delicious!  I asked if they needed help but, apparently, they were all set.  We walked along a trail that follows the confluence of Black Creek and Mitchell River that leads to Jolly Bay, then further to Choctawhachee Bay then, out into the Gulf of Mexico.  There are several docks with numerous watercraft of varying types and obligatory signage warning of dangerous snakes and alligators.  I remain very alert to my surroundings when near the water!  Weather today is approaching 70 degrees and not a cloud in the sky; we’re loving it!

Back at the trailer we do a little organizing, setting up some chairs outside, enjoy the sunshine and quiet.  Later we head to St Rita Church for a mass in Spanish, which we enjoyed despite not understanding much of the dialog.  On our return, we make a stop at Publix Grocery Store, fuel up the truck, then back home for a little TV and off to bed.  Tomorrow it will be in the 70s and partly cloudy, we’re thinking maybe a walk by the beach.

Monday – February 6, 2023

I’m up early so I get to my routine while Mag is up a couple hours later.  Laundry has been piling up so that is on the agenda, along with taking a ride down toward the beach.  We had 4 loads of laundry and due to machine availability, we had to split them between the two locations within the campground.  Both locations have an App you can download to pay, so no quarters, thank you!  The app can also let you know when you load is nearing completion.  During laundry duty, we ran into a couple from Ontario, Canada, about 400 miles north of Toronto, maybe Sudbury, can’t remember.  The started RVing a few years ago and got about 20+k miles behind them!  You meet folks from all over and it always fun learning about the travels.

The Air Fryer/Convection Oven has been working great and Mag is dying to cook some veggies.  We sliced up some Russet and Sweet Potatoes for fries and cooked several batches.  They crisp up nicely and we look forward to including them in our meal tonight.  Laundry is done just after lunch and we head toward the beach.  On our way we stopped in at the smallest Walmart I’ve ever seen.  We take an about-face and head down route 30A which runs along the shoreline.  I thought I had seen a parking lot earlier for the bicycle trail on a map but it doesn’t materialize.  We end up pulling into a parking lot on the beach side of the road for access to Dune Allen Beach.  I park the truck, it’s a smallish lot but there are plenty of spaces available, it’s about 4 PM.  Before I shut the engine off, I jump out to ask gentleman about paying for the parking because I don’t see any meters or kiosks.  He says he’s been parking here every day for a week and believes the parking is free.  I was like, “what?”  We took a brief walk along the beach, the weather was fantastic, the water was a beautiful turquoise.  We didn’t come to swim but I did manage to get my toes in the water and it was cold, maybe 60%.

On the return, I stop at a car wash, I see a sign stating, NOW OPEN, and the truck needs a wash.  It’s a nice car wash

but they build it on a plot of land that wasn’t nearly large enough.  Turns to enter and exit are tight and getting into the track I have to jog back and forth to get the truck aligned but it’s not even close.  I’m concerned and I holler to the car wash attendant, “This is a tight fit, am I going to make it?”  He assures me it’ll be fine and the track system will straighten our the truck.  I’m not at all confident until he looks down at the floor of the car wash, at the section of the track that accepts the vehicles and notice several rollers mounted in the ground, parallel to the track and now understand why he is so confident we’ll be aligned.  I’m watching in them side view mirror as the truck hits the rollers and it slides right into position.  I’ve never seen anything like this before but it was quite clever.

Back at the campground we discuss dinner and heat up some of those fries.  The were quite tasty and we look forward to trying other vegetables.  Tomorrow looks like another 70 degree day but some clouds.  Not sure what is on the schedule but I’d like to get on my bike.