Paddle: Homosassa River

We continue to enjoy fine Florida weather. Before daylight this morning it was a brisk 33 degrees, but by 9:00 it was again shirt-sleeves and shorts weather. I cooked a brunch consisting of pancakes and sausage for Dorcas, Bob, Donna and Charlie. This evening Charlie is frying a turkey for the crew. Dorcas and I will break out a bottle of champagne to bring in the New Year, although we will likely be finished celebrating and in bed by 9:30.

Yesterday we paddled on the Homosassa River. The Homosassa is an excellent place to see manatees. We had hoped that with the recent cold snap the manatees would be in the spring. We put in at a public boat ramp about a mile downstream from the spring and paddled upriver. We did see a few manatees, but not as many as last year. Apparently most of the guys stayed out in the Gulf this day. We saw a few bald eagles and a few ospreys, as well as a wide assortment of other common Florida birds. Others in our group spotted some otters and a porpoise. The clear shallow waters also revealed a number of fish, including a small sting ray. After turning around, we paddled a short distance up the Halls River. There we lunched at the Marguerita Grill, which has become a tradition when we paddle this river. Back near the put-in there is a tiny island with some captive monkeys. On the way up the monkeys were rather bashful and stayed hidden in their trees. On the way back, Matilda barked at them and got them riled up. They came down to the water and bared their teeth and made faces at Matilda, while Matilda continued to bark. Great fun!

Paddle Withlacoochee River: 2X

Depending which source you believe Withlacoochee means either "Crooked River" or "Little Big Water". Both terms are accurate descriptions of this river. The Withlacoochee is crooked, and it alternates between narrow banks and larger lakes.

Yesterday afternoon we put in for a short paddle on the Withlacoochee River. We put in on Silver Lake, about 100 yards from our campsite, and paddled south on the lake and upstream into the river. There was little perceptible flow, and we paddled about two miles to the Crooked River campground, where we made a u-turn and returned to camp. It was very pleasant warm-up paddle for our first paddle on this trip.

Today we put in at the same place on Silver Lake but paddled north and downstream about 9 miles to the town of Nobleton. The water was very low in places, but we made it down OK. Wildlife sightings included birds: a red-shouldered hawk, limpkins, white herons, anhingas, and ibises; and reptiles: many turtles and a half-dozen small alligators all on the same log. These were Matilda's first gators, but she didn't even notice them. We lunched at Hog Island, a forest service recreation area about half-way down the run. Matilda only went swimming once. She was perched precariously with her front paws on the gunwales when we bumped a log in the water, and in she went: kerplunk. She was quickly retrieved from the drink before the gators had their chance at her. Another perfect day on the river!

FLORIDA!

We are camped at the Cypress Glen Campground at the Silver Lake Recreation Area in Withlacoochee State Forest, near Brooksville, FL. Whew! That's a mouthful! We have water and 50A electric for $15/night, which is a pretty good deal. There are actually three separate campgrounds here, and currently they are all full up. We would not have had a site at all if some friends hadn't staked us one out. We are with paddling friends and will do a bit of canoeing over the next week or so. The Withlacoochee State Trail also runs by the campground, so we will do some biking too. On January 4 we will move south towards Tampa.

Southbound and Down

Dorcas and I left Ran's house in Angier about 1:00pm. We just enjoyed a traditional Christmas dinner at the Waffle House near Ridgeland, SC. I sincerely enjoy traveling at Christmas. We found a strong wi-fi signal when we parked the coach, so I decided I would make a quick post.

Earlier this afternoon we pumped 116 gallons of $2.19 diesel. That is the least we have ever paid for diesel. Ironically, that was in Lumberton, NC. Fuel prices in South Carolina are usually 10 to 15 cents cheaper than in NC. The cheapest diesel we have seen in South Carolina is $2.31. Go figure.

While pumping fuel I saw an Australian Shepherd running around the fuel islands that looked just like Matilda. She even had a bandanna just like Matilda's. Wait a minute ... it IS Matilda. Apparently Matilda had followed me out of the coach, and I had closed the door behind myself not realizing she had slipped out. I guess I was so excited about the cheap fuel that I wasn't paying enough attention. If I had not seen her we conceivably could have driven off without her and not known where she had gotten to. That's scary! We recovered the pooch before a southbound Yankee got her thus averting a potential disaster: Dorcas would have killed me if I had lost her dog!

We plan to drive about two more hours and park in a rest area just north of the Florida line. The weather is beautiful. Wish you were here!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Merry Christmas!

We spent the night in my brother's driveway in Angier, NC. Before dark we set up a Christmas tree on the dashboard of the coach and hung Christmas lights around the windshield. Cute. This is the first time that I can recall that we have been together with my mother and my brother's entire family for Christmas. My brother Ran has kids ranging from eight to 25 years old. With the kids' hectic schedule (not to mention our own constant wander lust) it may be a long time before it happens again.

This afternoon we will hit I-95 southbound. We will fill up with cheap diesel near Dillon, SC and spend the night on the road somewhere in south Georgia. Tomorrow we will arrive at Withlacoochee State Recreation Area about 60 miles north of Tampa, where we will spend a week or more biking and paddling with friends.

On the Road Again - Finally

Faithful readers may think we perished in Wisconsin. In fact, we safely departed northern Wisconsin and returned via Michigan's UP, arriving safely at home on September 22. Unfortunately I have not updated this journal since September 14. We have heard from many friends, all hoping that we were well and wondering what we have been doing. We certainly have been busy in the last few months. In October we attended two back-to back Country Coach rallies in Chattanooga and Hilton Head. We have been paddling heavily, including two three-day camp outs on the Lumber River in November, and we have hiked a few days. Motor home repairs and upgrades are a constant in our life. The most significant project was the replacement of both TVs. We are now ready for the digital revolution. Dorcas and I both upgraded our driver's licenses to a "Classified Class B license" and are now legal to drive our coach. We each had to take an extensive written test and a road test in our coach with a DMV examiner. Apparently, the NCDMV has confidence in our ability to drive the big rig.

Today we leave home for another extended trip. My mother is coming here this morning and we will take her to my brother's home south of Raleigh for Christmas. This will be the first Christmas in many years that we have all been together. On Thursday afternoon we will head south for Florida. There we will attend several motor home rallies, renew many friendships and paddle as many days as we can. We will return to NC in late March. I hope to post some reports of our adventures a bit more frequently than I have in the past few months.

Merry Christmas!

Myron