Flamingo Area Paddling; Canoe Heaven

Paddling rules in Flamingo. We paddled a different creek every day each of our four full days in Flamingo. Monday was a beautiful day; 75 degrees and sunny. We biked to the Visitor's Center and Marina and attended a "Croc Talk" led by a volunteer naturalist. We saw several crocodiles on the bank across the canal. During the talk a manatee appeared in the canal, and the talk morphed into a manatee talk. We put-in late in the afternoon at the Noble Hammock Canoe Trail. Noble Hammock Trail is a 2-mile loop paddle through a red mangrove forest. It meanders primarily through mangrove islands and tunnels, but also had a few open places. The trail featured very sharp bends and required strong turning skills. Dorcas got to show off her superb bow draw many times. We finished shortly before dusk, and it was a perfect way to end our first full day in the Everglades. We had our only serious bug encounter this evening. Shortly after dark, I was outside grilling dinner. All of a sudden I was swarmed with mosquitoes. I grabbed the meat and quickly retreated to the safety of the coach. But they were inside too! The door and all the windows were closed, but there were tons of mosquitoes in the house. We quickly swatted them and mashed them against the ceiling of the coach, but there were more every minute. Where were they coming from??? We soon realized they were thicker near the edges of the slide room openings, so it appeared like they were coming in there, although the slide seals should prevent this. I sprayed DEET all around the edges of the slides, and this seemed to be effective. After about an hour all the mosquitoes had been executed. I figure we murdered over 500 mosquitoes during that assault, and the white ceiling of the coach looked like a bloody battlefield. Amazingly, that was the only time we really experienced any bugs during our 5 nights in Flamingo. Perhaps they were so thoroughly devastated that night, that they had no further will to attack.

On Tuesday we participated in a ranger-led paddle on the Mud Lake Loop Trail. Flamingo has a ranger-led paddle every morning to a different venue in the area. It is a great program, because they provide the boats and it's free. It's a great opportunity for folks to paddle who don't have a boat of their own. We chose this particular trip because the paddle was being led by Ranger Daniel. We had attended an evening ranger program by Daniel on Sunday, and he was very entertaining and funny. We knew he would be fun to paddle with. We met the group at 7:45 am at Coot Bay Pond, only to find that Daniel had slightly changed the route due to high winds from the north. The paddle across Coot Bay would be difficult with a strong north wind, so Daniel eliminated that leg of the paddle. We ended up putting in on the Homestead Canal, a foul, stagnant, sulphurous and seldom-paddled water course. We paddled this canal for almost an hour before bumping out into Bear Lake, where we briefly experienced the strong winds. We then ducked back into a red mangrove tunnel and paddled into Mud Lake. Another mangrove tunnel led us into Coot Bay, where we again experienced the fierce north wind. Finally we took another mangrove tunnel into the Buttonwood Canal which returned us to our starting point. As expected Daniel was very entertaining and a fountain of knowledge on flora, fauna and local lore. We saw many bromeliads, different varieties of air plants, perched in the mangrove branches. We also saw the infamous Manchineel tree, one of the most toxic plants known. Early natives tied victims to the trunk of this tree to torture them and assure an excruciating and painful death. Explorer Ponce de Leon was killed with an arrow poisoned with Manchineel sap. Dang! Just when we learned to avoid the Poisonwood tree, so common in the Keys, now we have to worry about the Manchineel. I'm starting to miss plain ol' poison ivy.

On Wednesday we paddled the Nine Mile Pond Trail. Nine Mile Pond is particularly interesting because it is at the boundary between fresh water flowing in from the north and the brackish water from Florida Bay to the south. The paddle started with a series of small ponds and mangrove islands and the water was much clearer than other paddles we did. As we paddled further from the road the route became more open and entered a prairie. We encountered one other party who couldn't find the next trail marker and were lost. I think they were glad to see us. This was the only other party we saw all day. Maybe all the others were hopelessly lost, never to be seen again. When we started we were paddling downwind and enjoyed an easy ride. When we made the turn back to the road we paid the price and fought a fierce head wind back to the car. It was a 5-mile paddle, but felt much longer. This is the only paddle where we saw alligators, probably because it was our only paddle in predominantly fresh water.

On Thursday we paddled the route to Hell's Bay our most ambitious paddle in Flamingo. Hell's Bay is so-named because it is "Hell to get into and Hell to get out of." The first mile of the route involves tight and winding mangrove tunnels, reminiscent of the Noble Hammock Loop. Eventually the route opened up into a series of mangrove islands and large ponds. We passed the Lard Can campsite and eventually reached the Pearl Bay Chickee, where we lunched. Pearl Bay Chickee consists of two covered camping platforms connected by a walkway that had an outhouse in the center. Strangely, the left hand platform was designated as a handicapped site, although I could see no difference between the two. After lunch we reversed our route and completed our 11 mile paddle back to our put-in.

While in Flamingo we paddled only interior creeks and ponds. We did not paddle the open waters of Florida Bay. There are certainly good paddles in the bay, but it was fairly windy most days we were there, and we don't particularly enjoy large open waters. Maybe next time we will find a nice calm day and explore Florida Bay.

Everglades National Park: River of Grass

We stretched out our stay at Bahia Honda as long as possible. We checked out at 12:59, while an irate arriving camper hovered over his future site. Our drive up from the lower Keys was pleasant and uneventful. We stopped for groceries in Florida City, then turned west and south down the 40-mile dead-end road to Flamingo. We passed Long Pine Key Campground, which was full. We arrived at Flamingo, at the southern end of the Everglades National Park, just before dusk and checked into the campground. They put us in T-loop which features extremely large pull-through sites. There are no hookups in the campground, however, we fared very well without shore power. There is also no broadcast TV and no Verizon cell service, meaning no internet service. This is tough for internet junkies like Dorcas and me. I read a lot. The sun shown brightly every day and our solar array performed brilliantly. I guess it helped that we couldn't watch TV all night long. We only ran the generator once, mainly so we would fit in with our neighbors.

There are no flamingos in Flamingo. The early settlers ate them all many years ago. In the early 1900s Flamingo was somewhat of a hole-in-the-wall. There was no road to the area, and the population was only about 100 people, mostly wildlife poachers, moonshiners and outlaws hiding from authorities. It was a miserable place; hot, humid and infested with mosquitoes. About that time a deranged real estate developer thought the area would make a fine vacation destination and built a road. After the road was built, the population dropped to about thirty people. Most folks said, "Hey, look, there's a road. Let's get outta here!"

Flamingo was a much more happenin' place than I expected. It was hit very hard by Hurricane Wilma in 2005, when an eight-foot storm surge washed over the area. The lodge and restaurant were destroyed, but there are plans to rebuild using more eco-friendly designs. The marina and store were damaged but have since reopened. The campground has been repaired and has reopened. While we were there they were installing electrical service in T-loop, where the RVs are parked. I guess this will allow idiots crazy enough to visit in the summer to run their air conditioners. More power to them.

Biking and hiking opportunities were very limited in this area. There was only one designated bike trail. The Snake Bight Trail (honestly!) runs from the park road about 2 miles to Snake Bight on Florida Bay along a railroad grade. We biked this trail late one afternoon, just before the bugs came out. Otherwise we biked on the road. It is about a mile from the campground to the marina area, and we biked this stretch a number of times. The primary activity, as far a we were concerned, was the canoeing. We had not paddled during the two weeks we were in the Keys, so we were stoked to paddle the first chance we get.

North to the Everglades

Against our better judgment we are heading north. We have been at Bahia Honda 14 nights, the limit for a Florida state park, and they are throwing us out. This afternoon we depart the Keys and move to Flamingo in the southern corner of the Everglades National Park. Flamingo is about 135 miles away by road, but only 35 miles across Florida Bay, as the pelican flies. We will stay five nights in the park and will be "dry camping" there, meaning we will have no water or power hookups. No problem. We have a full tank of fresh water, empty waste tanks, a capable solar array and a generator with plenty of fuel. If the weather is good we plan to canoe or trike about every day.

According to the Verizon service coverage map we will be well out of Verizon's coverage area. This means no cell service and no internet service at camp. With luck, we may find a wi-fi hotspot in the village, but I'm not counting on it. We also have an external cellular antenna and amp, but we may be too far out to pull in a usable signal.

There Be TRIKES Here!

"Admiral, there be TRIKES here!" With apologies to Scotty in StarTrek IV: The Voyage Home.

Dorcas bought a Catrike Villager in the spring 2009. I tried to talk her out of it, but I failed miserably. First, I felt that she wouldn't use it, and that it would be a waste of money and just take up space in the basement. Second, how the hell would we transport it? Over time, I have perfected a system to haul all our toys when we travel. We can put a canoe and two bicycles on top of the Element. While still keeping the rear seats up, we can put all the support gear (i.e. paddling gear, hiking gear, biking gear, dog stuff, gravity chairs, folding chairs, etc.) behind the seats. No problem. Until now. There was no way to put the trike on the top with the boat and a bike. I had no choice but to put the trike inside the Element. I put the rear seats in the storage position against the side walls, and the trike took up the entire rear portion of the Element. All the miscellaneous support gear was now piled up around and on top of the trike. If we wanted to unload the trike, we had to unload all the other crap and set it on the ground first. We couldn't take any friends out to eat, because the back seat was gone. Matilda had to ride in Dorcas' lap. Not an ideal situation. But Dorcas wanted her trike, and I had to live with it.

Well, it turns out that Dorcas really enjoyed her Catrike, and perhaps it wasn't just a passing fancy after all. I found that I enjoyed riding it too and began to envy her and the comfort and ease with which she was riding. Should I eat crow and get a trike too? If we had trouble hauling one trike, how the heck would we ever manage with two?

Well, I guess there is always a solution to every problem. You just have t0 think it through and do your homework. Also, it doesn't hurt if you throw some $$$ at it. While at Thousand Trails last month we saw some folks with a unique rack designed to haul two trikes, made by Hitch Rider. The rack mounted to a receiver hitch and carried two trikes, one on top of the other. Cool, but we had no receiver hitch on the Element. A little research revealed that most receiver hitches manufactured for the Element had a 1 1/4" receiver, and were not stout enough for the double trike rack. Bummer. Further research revealed that U-Haul made a 2" 2000 lb hitch for the Element, which would be perfect. While on our way to Sam's Club in Tampa, we stumbled upon a U-Haul service center and decided to stop in for a look-see. It turns out that they had our hitch in stock. 30 minutes and $175 later we were on our way with a 2" receiver hitch.

Shortly after arriving at Bahia Honda State Park I pulled the trigger and ordered the Hitch Rider double decked rack and a used Catrike Expedition I found on-line. The rack was scheduled to be delivered this past Monday via FedEx. I had previously alerted the folks at the park entrance station to expect two heavy packages for me. When I went up there early on Monday morning to remind them, the Hitch Rider had already arrived. I spent the next few hours putting it together and adjusting it for the Element and Dorcas' Villager. The Expedition was scheduled to be delivered via UPS on Wednesday. Again I alerted the folks at the entrance station that I had an EXTREMELY LARGE package coming today. No problem, they said. I asked them if they would call me when it arrived, but they said I would need to call them to check on it. OK. I waited on pins and needles all day, checking its progress on the UPS tracking page. Finally, about 2:00, Dorcas looked up and saw the UPS truck coming across the bridge. Five minutes later I got a call from an angry ranger at the gate. She said I had a package, and that it was "too big, and don't ever ship anything that big here again". Fine. She said they were bringing it to my campsite as we spoke. I guess it was so big they didn't want it in the gate house or in the road or wherever it was that the driver left it, any longer than possible.

When the trike arrived I anxiously began unpacking and assembling it. The trike had to be disassembled to be shipped, and the bike shop did an extremely thorough, perhaps excessive, job of taking it apart. It was basically a naked frame with all the various parts in a bag. I am a fair jack-legged bike mechanic, but some trike parts look nothing like bike parts, and the task looked a bit overwhelming. Thankfully I had Dorcas' trike to look at when I got befuddled. With my engineering background, a stout picnic table and my trusty Swiss army knife, I had it all put together in about three hours. By that time it was too late to ride it and to make the fine adjustments. Also one tube had a puncture and would need to be repaired.

On Thursday we spent the day in Key West. Key West has perhaps more bikes and scooters than people, and there are many bike shops. I went to three of the biggest shops with the best parts selections and found exactly one 20" x 1/8 presta style tube. Not exactly a common size where most bikes are fat-tired beach cruisers. They all thought I was crazy wanting such a small skinny tube. When we returned to camp I patched the punctured tube and set aside the new one as a spare, for when the patches failed.

Today we were ready to ride. I made all the final adjustments and the Expedition rode great! I zoomed around the circle in back of our campsite while Dorcas tried not to get run over. We drove to Big Pine Key, the center of the National Key Deer Refuge for a long ride. The Hitch Rider performed flawlessly, and we explored the north end of Big Pine Key. We had a great ride and saw a number of Key deer. We ended up at No Name Pub and had a few brews and split a burrito. By the time we returned to the car we had put in a little more than 15 miles. It was the easiest 15 miles I ever can remember pedaling.



It was great day, but we had a little excitement on the way home. I let a car out onto the highway in front of me. About 15 seconds later a deer bounded into the road and hit that car broadside. The deer bounced off and ran back into the woods, apparently unharmed. The car was not so lucky. The driver's side mirror was smashed and was dangling by its remote cable on the side of the car. I guess it might have been us if I had not been a courteous driver???

We arrived at camp shortly before a significant storm hit with 30-40 mph winds. We were able to bring in the awnings and stow the chairs and tables before the storm hit. The winds were strong, but short lived; it was over in about 20 minutes. I was amazed that my portable satellite dish, which was sitting on the ground un-anchored, never moved.

Our stay at Bahia Honda is winding down, and we will be leaving on Sunday. Tomorrow will be much cooler than it was today, with a high in only the low 60s. Hopefully we can get one more good ride in tomorrow.

Photo of the Week

Everywhere you looked in Key West there was a southernmost something or other. I doubt this was really the southernmost broken cleat, but I admire the gesture.

Touring Key West: The Conch Republic

Bahia Honda is at MP 37 on the overseas highway. That means that we are 37 miles from the southern terminus of US 1 at Old Key West and MP 0. We are certainly not close to Key West, but it's not too far for a few day trips. We made three trips to Key West.

The name Key West is derived from the Spanish "Cayo Hueso", literally "Bone Island". Key West has a population of about 25,000, about the same as it had in the 1890's. At that time Key West was the most populous and wealthiest city in Florida. The wealth came from the shipwrecks off the island and the booty salvaged by the citizens. Legend says that islanders often moved the channel markers so more ships would run aground. It is said that every house in Key West once had a grand piano, shortly after a ship transporting pianos wrecked on the reef. The land area of the island has doubled during the last hundred years due to construction and the use of fill material to build new island. Key West is the southernmost city and the only "frost free" city in the contiguous US.

Old Key West is a very interesting, historic and scenic town. Our first visit was on Groundhog Day. Considering the recent weather in the southeast, the groundhog certainly saw his shadow. I think it scared him so bad, he went so deep back in his burrow, that there will be at least six more months of winter! We first went to Higgs Beach on the Atlantic side of the island, because we knew there was a good dog park there. Matilda got to run for a good while before we went to town. We knew parking would be difficult closer to town, so we left the car here and walked. What we didn't realize was exactly how far it was to town. We ended up walking over 5 miles round trip. Matilda was pooped! Bikes and scooters are very popular on the island. The streets are very narrow and congested in the center of town. Dorcas was intimidated by the narrow streets and the traffic, so we never took our bikes to town. Next time I think I can get her out. Bikes would be particularly nice seeing the old homes and the outlying historic landmarks. We might have to leave Matilda at camp though.

One place I really wanted to visit was Jimmy Buffett's Original Margaritaville Cafe on Duval Street. When we arrived they gave Matilda a biscuit and oogled over her a bit. We ate lunch and, of course, I had the "Cheeseburger in Paradise". It is said that Buffett still has a home on the island, and when he is here he always eats lunch at his cafe. I guess he wasn't in town this week, because we never saw him. Buffett came to the island about 1970 after some hard times and rejection in Nashville. He found himself here and the island and its people has been a great influence on his music and his life. We have been listening to a lot of Buffett music lately (channel 31 "Radio Margaritaville" on Sirus/XM), and I have been reading Buffett's autobiography "A Pirate Looks at Fifty".

There are many other bars on Duval Street and we visited a couple. The most famous are Sloppy Joe's Bar and Captain Tony's Saloon. Sloppy Joe's was a favorite of Ernest Hemingway. It is said that the landlord announced a rent increase from $3 to $4 per week. This so infuriated Joe Russell that he and all the patrons in the bar (including Hemingway) immediately moved all the contents of the bar: liquor, bar stools, tables, cash register and the drinks in their hand, to a vacant building on Duval Street, where the establishment currently resides. Sloppy Joe's sponsors an annual Hemingway look-alike contest, which seems to be a pretty big deal down here. As we have traveled, many folks have told me that I look a lot like Hemingway and should enter the contest. After looking at the photos of past winners I wonder if I might have a shot. However, after hanging around for a while in Sloppy Joe's nobody made any encouraging comments. Who wants to come back down to Key West in late July anyway?

We visited the monument marking the southernmost point in the contiguous US. Actually the monument is not even near the southernmost point. The southernmost point is actually on military property and not accessible to the public. The monument is not even on the southernmost point accessible to the public. I think they just put the marker where it was convenient and easy to find. There used to be just a sign but it kept getting stolen, so they put up the current iron monument. There are many other "southernmost" landmarks: the southernmost hotel, the southernmost restaurant, the southernmost house, the southernmost southernmost house (apparently this owner thought his house was south of the first southernmost house) ad nauseum. One street performer had a sign claiming to be the southernmost bagpipe player.

We also did a few other touristy things. We road the Conch Tour Train, which is a narrated trolley ride which lasts almost 2 hours and goes down practically every single street in town. We also visited the Shipwreck Museum which features live actors and artifacts illustrating Key West's salvage history. It also had a 65' wooden tower we climbed with excellent views of the town and the harbor.

It was fun to watch the feral roosters that roam and roost on the island. It is said that they are descended from fighting cocks brought over from Cuba. They seem to be everywhere you look: rooftops, porches, yards and in the street. It is illegal to feed or care for them, but I suspect some folks do. We were told that hawks snatch many of the chicks, which helps keep the population in check. Unfortunately, we didn't witness this balance of nature in action.

A very popular activity is to view the sunset from the waterfront at Mallory Square. There are also dozens of street performers at Mallory Square and they are pretty pushy if you don't give them money. Several hours before sunset folks were jockeying for a good viewing position. So we decided not to stay and fight the crowds. We just went back to camp to enjoy our own private sunset over Bahia Honda Channel.

Life in the Slow Lane at Bahia Honda State Park

The weather has been unseasonably cool here, but warmer than the rest of Florida and certainly better than the rest of the country, where record low temperatures and record snowfall prevails. Conventional wisdom says to move further south when cold weather threatens. In order for us to do that we would need a large ferry or a very long bridge. We are constantly reminded by the park rangers that this is the dry season, despite the frequent rains. It has been windy almost every day. Several days it blew 20-25 mph most of the day and night. We are right on the water and are catching the brunt of the wind. All in all the weather has been OK, not too cold (lows in the 50's) and not too warm (highs in the low 70's, with a few days in the 80's) and just enough rain to help us appreciate the sunny days.

Each day there is a ranger activity which we enjoy attending. Several programs have focused on the building of the railroad. There was also a live re-enactment of the Henry Flagler railroad experience. In the early 1900s Henry Flagler built a railroad to Key West. Prior to that time Key West was accessible only by boat. Flagler knew that Key West was an important deep water port. The Panama Canal was about to be completed and his railroad would be an important trade link to south Florida, the Caribbean and central America. The building of the railroad provided some difficult challenges. The Bahia Honda Channel was particularly challenging. It was one mile across and had the deepest channel and the strongest currents of any crossing in the Keys. They built a steel truss bridge on concrete piers, using revolutionary techniques, for that time. The railroad was completed in 1912. In 1935 it was destroyed by the infamous Labor Day hurricane, and was not rebuilt. The right of way was sold to the state of Florida which then constructed the overseas highway on the bridges and causeways. At Bahia Honda the highway was built on top of the railroad truss. The roadway on the Bahia Honda bridge was so narrow that trucks and buses would stop before entering the bridge and pull their mirrors in before crossing. My only other trip to the Keys was when I was about 10 years old. One of my most vivid memories from that trip is of crossing these narrow bridges and the terror of meeting oncoming trucks. The Bahia Honda bridge was abandoned in 1972 when a new bridge was opened, but the old bridge still stands and is now a National historic landmark.

We have attended several other ranger programs that talked about the bird life, marine life and shoreline flora and fauna. Ironically, during this "dry season" both Friday night amphitheatre programs were rained out. During January the island experienced a 100-year cold spell and the water temperature dropped into the low 40's for several days. This condition resulted in a major fish kill. I understand that before we arrived, the beach was a little "ripe". While we were here many of the dead fish were still on the beach, but they had dried up to the extent that they no longer smelled.

Even though there is not an area for dogs to play and dogs are not allowed on any of the beaches, the camping areas are spread out enough to allow lots of walking areas. Matilda is, as always, fascinated by the birds. She has also discovered lizards. They are so cute and move so fast! Our neighbors have a Miniature Pinscher/Chihuahua named Molly who barks a lot. Matilda, Miss Socialite, had a talk with Molly and explained that they could be friends and all that barking was absolutely unnecessary. It worked and they've become friends. Now Molly only barks if her "mom" tries to pet Matilda. We've met lots of dogs here, a chocolate lab, two border collies, a Dachshund, Boston Terrier, German Shepherd, Boxer and a number of unidentified breeds. Matilda tries to make friends with them all.

We have made several visits to neighboring islands, particularly Big Pine Key and Marathon Key. Big Pine Key is home to the National Key Deer Refuge. After several trips to the refuge we learned that the deer are common and are not bashful. They are actually a diminutive sub-species of the Virgina Whitetail. Big Pine Key is an excellent place to bike; many roads have bike lanes, and the cars are driving very slowly, scouting for deer. We have also enjoyed several visits to the No Name Pub, located near the bridge connecting Big Pine Key and No Name Key. No Name Pub began as a bait shop and general store in 1931. It briefly served as a brothel and later became famous as a pub. It boasts "great food and lousy service" "If you can find it". Perhaps as much as $100,000 in $1 bills are plastered throughout the interior of the pub. It looked like a fire hazard to me, but when I tried to remove some (for their own safety of course) they vehemently objected. During our visit we enjoyed the pizza, barbecue, grouper and a chicken burrito. Oh, we also enjoyed the house brew, No Name Pub Amber. Good stuff!

On another day we visited Pigeon Key. Pigeon Key is a small island accessible only by the northern end of the old Seven-Mile bridge. The old Seven-Mile bridge has been largely abandoned, replaced by the new Seven-Mile bridge, but the northern two miles are still maintained to provide pedestrian and bike access to Pigeon Key. Pigeon Key served as a work camp during railroad construction. Pigeon Key is now operated by the Pigeon Key Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the history and environment of the Florida Keys through education and research.

The Impossible Just Takes a Little Longer

They said it couldn't be done. To get a two-week reservation at a state park in the Keys during February is like winning the lottery. And don't even think about Bahia Honda, the southernmost park and the most popular. And if you do shoot for Bahia Honda, forget about a waterfront site.

Well we won the jackpot. At the end of February last year I started working on a site in the Florida Keys for this winter. One can make reservations for camping at the four state parks in the Keys starting 11 months out. I got up one morning, went online and picked a site that was coming open exactly eleven months away. The message said "Wait until 8:00 AM". OK. So, at exactly 8:00 I clicked away and the message said "Campsite sold out, try again sucker." OK, so that's the way it's going to be. I tried again over the next several mornings, at various parks with the same results. I would open multiple browser tabs on different camp sites at different parks: "Wait until 8:00 AM", "Wait until 8:00 AM", "Wait until 8:00 AM". Then: "Sold out", "Sold out", "Sold out". Dang. I began to believe they were right; it can't be done. But wait a minute, I'm no quitter. Someone is getting those sites, why can't it be me? Let's keep at it!

Perseverance paid off. On February 28 I hit the jackpot. I figured I had as good a chance at the best sites at the best parks as I did with any other campsites. On this day there were more upcoming vacancies than I had seen in the previous days. I assumed it had something to do with it being February 28. Since there was no February 29, 30 or 31, perhaps more sites were available during this eleven month window due to the difference in the length of the months, and perhaps sites for January 28, 29, 30 and 31 were all released on the same day. In any case, I snagged a prime waterfront site at Bahia Honda for two weeks starting January 31. Sweet! In order to complete the reservation I had to pay in advance for the entire stay. I was a little miffed to have to pay $440.86 ($28.50 per night plus taxes) a year in advance. Later, I was glad we had locked in at that price. When we arrived we learned that the price was now $38.50 plus tax per night. Even with the increase it still beats the private resorts that run upwards of $100 per night. Premium sites at Bluewater Key RV Resort, about half way from here to Key West are $185!!!! The state parks are a deal any way you cut it.

There was only one small hitch: our reservation started January 31 and the TREK rally didn't end until January 31. It was about a 9-hour drive from Tampa to Bahia Honda. This meant we had three choices: change our reservation and give up our first day at Bahia Honda, leave the rally early (which meant we would also skip a day at the Crown Club) or drive all the way to the lower Keys in one long haul. We have had long driving days before, so it was an easy choice. We wanted to arrive at our camp as early as possible, certainly before dark. We also wanted to take our time and enjoy a leisurely drive 100 miles down the Keys to our camp. This led us to depart Lazydays at the ungodly hour of 4:00 AM. When we told one TREKer that this is what we intended to do, he remarked that he did not know another 4:00 even existed. I told him to think about when he stayed up all night drinking and 4:00 rolled around. Oh, that one!

The forecast was for cool, overcast and storms, but the storms probably wouldn't hit until the late afternoon or evening. We enjoyed a leisurely drive south on I-75. About daybreak near Naples, we stopped for a break and bought some groceries. There we exited I-75 and got on US 41, the Tamiami Trail, east towards Miami. The Tamiami Trail is a very pleasant two-lane road that goes through some rural Florida lowlands. We stopped at the Oasis Visitor Center in the Big Cypress National Preserve. There we picked up information on camping and canoeing in the Preserve and in the Everglades National Park, which would be useful to us in a few weeks. We continued towards Miami and turned south towards Homestead, where we picked up US 1. We continued on US 1 to Key Largo and southward until we arrived at Bahia Honda. The trip down US 1 on the Keys was a little disappointing. I don't know what I expected, but I did not expect an endless string of beach stores, motels and liquor stores. We could see that at Myrtle Beach. The bridges between the islands at least were scenic and, all in all, it was a nice drive.

We checked in and got parked on Site #16. We found that the site was wide enough that we could park parallel to the water and had a panoramic view of the two bridges and a commanding view of the sunset. Unfortunately, it was beginning to rain, so we couldn't enjoy the sights this evening. That was fine because were whupped from getting up early and driving all day. It ended up storming and rained hard all night long and most of the next day. We later learned that it had rained almost 6" in some places on the island. That is more precipitation than they usually get during the entire winter, the so-called "dry season" in the Keys.

Winter TREK Rally at Lazydays

We departed Blue Spring State Park about 1:00PM after leisurely packing and long good byes to our friends. We would see our TREK friends again in a few hours, but would not see Wayne and Lynda again until April, when we will do a paddling trip with them in the Missouri Ozarks. We arrived at Lazydays RV Campground (formerly Rally Park) near Tampa a few hours later. We checked in and were quickly parked and settled. We took Matilda to the Mango Dog Park for a romp, then walked over to the Crown Club for happy hour. Life remains good.

This park is a familiar and comfortable home to us. It is clean, pet friendly, has full hookups, includes cable and wi-fi, and they bring you the local newspaper each morning. One can also eat breakfast and lunch at the Cafe (if one is not fortunate enough to belong to the Crown Club). It is close to a good dog park, the Hillsborough River and Busch Gardens. It is adjacent to Lazydays RV Center, the largest single-site RV dealership in the universe, where all the RVs are unlocked and you can browse all day long without ever seeing a salesman. It is here three years ago that we bought our Country Coach and were introduced to the Crown Club. When we bought our coach they gave us 20 coupons for free nights at this park. We still have eight coupons left, so we will certainly be back, at least for eight more nights.

On Thursday the winter rally of the South East TREK Fun Club kicked off. We learned that almost 50 coaches were in attendance. Most attendees still own their TREKs, but a few, like us have traded to SOBs (some other brand). The TREK club is pretty liberal in their policy to let former TREK owners stay in the club even when they now have another coach or even no coach at all. Some clubs will kick you out when you change brands. The Fleetwood MotorHome Association was also having a rally at the park. They had over 200 coaches attending their rally, and the TREK club got stepped on a bit regarding the use of the rally facilities. We were shoved into various corners and did not have full use of the facilities for which we had paid. Our folks were not happy with the situation, and if we come back to this venue next year, I hope we can get assurances that this problem will not occur again. There are just too many good rally venues to put up with this abuse. I was careful not to be too vocal with my criticism lest I be called upon to plan and host the next rally!

We saw many old friends and made a few new friends. It ended all too quickly. But now we are off to the Florida Keys!!!

A TREK Mini-rally at Blue Spring State Park

Blue Spring State Park is one of our favorite Florida state parks. It has a beautiful deep spring and a 1/2 mile spring run that empties into the St. Johns River. Manatees are numerous here in the winter. The spring run is closed to paddling, but you can paddle in the mouth of the run, just before it converges with the St. John's. We usually see more manatees in this area than we do on up towards the head of the spring.

So, we were excited and quickly accepted when Clair invited us to join her in Blue Spring State Park for a Safari TREK mini-pre-rally. Clair recently moved to Orange City, about 5 miles from Blue Spring State Park and invited us and a few other TREK club members to spend a few nights here before going on to Tampa to attend the Southeast TREK Fun Club Winter Rally. We were also excited to learn that Wayne and Lynda, paddling friends from home would also join us here at the park.

This area has many good paddling opportunities. The St. John's River has numerous cuts, canals and "dead" rivers in the vicinity. The river flow is negligible so you can paddle about anywhere you want and return directly to the park. On Monday I planned a trip to head north on the St. Johns River, west around Hontoon Island State Park and return to the St. Johns on the Hontoon Dead River. We did this ten-mile trip two years ago, and it was very enjoyable. TREKers Harry and John declined to paddle, because it was a little chilly, but Wayne and Lynda are always game. Today's paddle was also very nice. It is usually pretty windy here, but not today. It was sunny and clear and pleasantly warm. We saw lots of all the usual birds and many alligators. As we entered Hontoon Dead River, the river became narrow and winding. Eventually the river became clogged with water hyacinth, which made the paddling pretty difficult. These stretches would sometimes go on for several hundred yards and extend out of sight and around the bend, leading us to question our sanity. Why did we follow this crazy trip leader??? Eventually, however, we made it back out onto the St. Johns and back to Blue Spring. Everything was fine again, and everyone agreed it was a grand paddle.

On Tuesday Harry and John joined us. We paddled south on the St. Johns and explored several bays and some old channels that cut across to the old St. Johns channel. We had none of the vegetation problems we had encountered the day before. Alligators were seen by all. That evening Clair invited us to her home and treated us to a wonderful dinner in the dining room at her retirement village.

On Wednesday we will head back to Tampa and Lazydays for the SETFC Winter Rally. Oh yeah, and to the Crown Club!

Give a Day. Get a Disney Day.

Last year we realized too late that Disney gave people free entry into their parks on their birthday. Since Myron's birthday is Jan 7, I wanted to see what we needed to do to benefit this year. I began my research in December and found the birthday program had been discontinued and replaced by a volunteer program. Beginning January 1, 2010 folks can sign up and complete a selected volunteer opportunity and receive a voucher for a one day one Disney Park ticket. The quest began. Everywhere we stayed I put in the zip code and reviewed the opportunities for that area. Many jobs have been filled and some seemed too hard. I finally found "my calling". It was entitled "Golden Girls Cut-Ups" and the description was "Adult volunteers will be cutting fabric and cardstock...for the children's book project...BYOSS - Bring Your Own Sharp Scissors..." The scheduled time was 1:30 - 3:30 p.m. I could do this.

Upon signing up I was given the option to sign up additional family members or friends. I told Myron about it and asked if he was "game". Why not? It's easy and only takes two hours. We're going to Disney!! On volunteer day, we set off for Travares, about 45 minutes away, with our OSS. Myron thought he might be the only guy there, but other fellows were there with their wives. We cut lots of fabric into book cover pieces, and then I switched to the ironing process. Myron later came over to help me with the folding and pressing which made the task go faster. It was a fun experience.

Lake County children will be creating their own books by writing a story, using our handiwork for the covers, then sharing their stories by reading them to other children. They are preparing for about 1200 books. A wonderful project for the children and the adults who get to go to Disney. Go on-line if you want a free ticket to Disney and check out the volunteer opportunities in your area. There will only be one million free tickets, so hurry while supplies last!

Busch Gardens

Dorcas and I really do enjoy Busch Gardens. We don't do the rides so much, but like to see the animals and the shows. In the past several years we have bought a 7-day pass and gone 3-4 times during the week. Today we got in on a rain check from last year. It's just not the same, however, since they stopped giving away complimentary beer and closed the Hospitality House. Folks may remember that InBev, a Belgium brewer, acquired Anheuser-Busch several years ago. InBev has a policy of not giving the product away and quit giving away free beer in Busch Gardens in February last year. We really miss grabbing a cool one every time we passed the SE corner of the park. They have also taken down many of the references and trademark art to Anheuser-Busch throughout the park and closed the A-B souvenir shop. I have also heard that InBev would like to sell all the entertainment holdings of Anheuser-Busch, including Busch Gardens and Sea World. Since we couldn't get free beer at Busch Gardens, we left the park about an hour before closing so we could catch the happy hour at the Crown Club.

Pups at Play at Thousand Trails Orlando

We're at Thousand Trails Orlando for about nine days and have been enjoying the familiar feel of the place. Here we see friends we've met who, like us, return to TTO every year. It's only an hour from Lazydays and the Crown Club, so we can pop down there once in a while for an omelet breakfast and happy hour. The biggest change for us this year is not seeing our friends Audrey and Dave who have returned to the world of working (what's up with that??) and Pat and John who are enjoying the warmth of Arizona. We are parked near Jim and Janice, TREK club friends from NC. Ironically, Jim and Janice now own an SOB (some other brand), as do we, but still are welcome at TREK events.

The weather continues to warm and is now much like we expect it to be in central Florida. Myron hooked up the satellite dish and the DIRECTV receiver. We can now receive over 500 channels, however, the majority of them are either junk or pay-per-view. Unfortunately, due to DIRECTV policy and silly FCC rules, we cannot receive any of the major networks, such as NBC, ABC, etc. This means we cannot receive Jeopardy or NCIS, our favorites, over the dish. Where we are now we have good over-the-air reception , so it's not a problem, but when we are parked in the boonies, we will be limited to syndicated reruns, old movies, news channels and a number of special interest channels. Better than nothing, but we sure will miss Alex, Jethro and Abby.

Matilda has been playing with old friends and has made new friends. Tipper, the Poodle/Border Collie (a poo-der?) and her family are parked on our "street" so they've been having a blast playing and running. We also have short plays with Sunshine who is a 9 year old male Australian Shepherd. Their play has to be brief since Sunshine gets really tired and sore after "Matilda time." Matilda's newest friend is Maija an 11 month old English Shepherd. She is taller and longer than Matilda with a big tail and about 11 pounds heavier. If you didn't know different, you would think Maija was as Aussie. Check out the video of them playing.

They run and tussle like Matilda and her NC Aussie friends. Oh, yeah, Maija is a digger too.

Matilda isn't the only one getting her exercise... Myron's playing pickleball again (Pat and John, we miss you!) and I've been joining a 3 mile walking fit class.

RV Supershow in Tampa

The Florida RV Supershow in Tampa is one of the largest such shows in the country, with about 1000 dealer coaches and hundreds of vendors selling all sorts of what-nots and and gizmos. We have attended the show for several years in a row. This year we decided to spend two nights on-site at the Florida State Fairgrounds, giving us two full days to shop and see what's new in RVing. One thing we are considering buying is a satellite dish; another is a sleep number bed or mattress topper. Also, many resorts have booths and give away vouchers for free camping; we're always looking to score free camping at luxury motor coach resorts.

The weather has warmed a bit, so it is nice walking around the fair grounds and enjoying the festive atmosphere. Near where we are parked is an open grassy area where we can play ball with Matilda. On the first afternoon, we met a couple with a senior blue merle Sheltie and a year old Sheltie who loved playing with Matilda. Any time Matilda finds a playmate it's a good camping spot. We are also parked near some full-timer TREK friends Pete and Jennie. These folks do very interesting volunteer work. They work with the Lipizzaner Stallions near Myakka City FL during the winter and with the elk in Cataloochee valley during the summer.

After comparing all the satellite dishes at the show we decided on portable Winegard model from Camping World that was on sale. We decided not to make the investment in a roof-top dome until we decide if we really enjoy DIRECTV and if we ever want to get HD. We didn't have any luck with mattresses or toppers. While visiting an RV with a huge TV in an outside bay, we saw the Hearthside Grove RV Resort's promotional video playing, featuring none other than the great adventurers Myron and Dorcas. As you may recall from an earlier post, the video was filmed while we were visiting that resort in Michigan last summer. This was our first opportunity to see the finished product. Unfortunately, there was no one near us at the moment to show it to and point out that we were celebrities. We were able to obtain our own copy of the DVD when we visited the Hearthside Grove booth later. Autographs anyone?

Next, we're off to Thousand Trails Orlando.

Photo of the Week

We saw this truck on a frosty morning while driving near Brooksville FL. I don't think it's a vanity plate, but a real, standard issue plate. Most states' DMVs delete certain profane, rude, fowl or otherwise inappropriate words from the word combinations used on their license plates. I guess this one made it through the DMV's censors. In any case it certainly describes our trip to Florida so far this year

Frosty on the Withlacoochee

It's been a cold week here along the Withlacoochee River near Brooksville, but still warmer than back home. We've joined our friends Bob and Donna from NC, who are January fixtures at this park. In past years we've spent about a week canoeing the streams and rivers in the area. This time it has been so cold, no one really wanted to paddle. The campground is also located on the Withlacoochee State Trail, an excellent biking venue, but it was difficult getting motivated to pedal either. We finally got a beautiful, "warm" day to paddle the Weeki Wachee river. Due to the cold weather, the manatees were in the springs, and we played a bit with them. That day also happened to be Myron's birthday, so we enjoyed a nice early dinner at Carrabba's after the paddle. Florida, paddling, Italian food, and birthday. Cool!

Monday is flea market day in Webster, so off we went to find bargains galore with Donna and Bob as our expert guides. Bob does trail maintenance while staying here so we enjoy walking the trails with him. Matilda loves running un-tethered through the woods and hiking with us. I think she really enjoys the cold. We're really glad we brought our down comforter with us, it's keeping us warm and cozy at night. The temperatures are predicted to rise when we depart for Tampa and the RV show tomorrow.

Waking at Wally World

Definition of an RVer: One who owns a $300,000 motor coach, towing a $50,000 car, looking for a free place to camp.

When we are trying to make some serious miles, we will sometimes spend the night in the parking lot at a local Walmart. We prefer Walmarts over truck stops and rest areas, because they are generally quieter and are usually fairly safe and secure. We can also score some necessary supplies. Apparently we are not alone in our inclination for this practice. Click here to view an entertaining video relating to Wally World camping.

Fleeing to Frigid Florida

In years past we have departed for Florida sometime before Christmas. This year it just didn't work out that way. We spent the week between Christmas and New Year's in Morganton working on affairs related to Mom's estate and starting to get some things cleared out at her house. We finally buttoned up the house on Thursday, New Years Eve, and returned to Winston-Salem. Dorcas' family had a family reunion scheduled for Sunday. In the past several years we have missed the reunion because we were in Florida. This year we decided to stay and attend. We would depart for Florida on Sunday afternoon after the reunion.

We spent Friday and Saturday packing the motor home, or at least we tried to. The southeast is experiencing a record cold spell. It was very difficult to tear ourselves away from the comfort of the wood stove in the living room and spend any time in the motor home when the daily high temperatures never got out of the 20s. There were also several outside projects on my list, but that was out of the question.

We finally finished packing and pulled out about 5:00 PM and headed south. We enjoyed watching the coach's outside thermometer. We were going south so it should be warming, but it was getting later in the day and hence colder. In the end, it held steady at about 28 degrees. We spent our first night in a rest area on I-26 near Orangeburg, SC. The temperature dropped to about 20 degrees, but we slept warmly. Thankfully Dorcas decided to pack the down comforter just before we left home. That's a first for our annual Florida trip.

We would be spending our second night at my cousin's house near Middleburg Florida, which was only 5 hours away. Cousin Laura works, so we didn't want to get there too early. We needed a diversion to kill some time! We had passed the Mighty 8th Air Force Museum near Savannah many times, clearly visible from I-95, but had never stopped. Today we had time, so we made the stop. We spent almost three hours there, but we could have spent much more time. The Mighty 8th Air Force is best known for its B-17 fleet and its daytime bombing raids in Europe during WWII. At its peak it could scramble more than 2000 B-17s and 1000 support fighters on a single mission. The airmen on the B-17s were tough. The planes were unheated and uninsulated and temperatures sometimes got down to -30 degrees. Suddenly I didn't feel so cold any more. The centerpiece of the museum is the ongoing restoration of the B-17 "City of Savannah". We departed the museum and continued south on I-95. Suddenly a car pulled up next to us blowing the horn, and the people inside were frantically waving their hands. I assumed the worst and figured the canoe or a bike had flown off the top of the car, and we were dragging it down the highway. Or perhaps we had lost the car altogether, and it was fixing to pass us on the shoulder. I was about to slam on the brakes when the phone rang and our hiking buddies Bob and Laura from NC said they had just passed us on their way to Florida. (For those that don't already know better, never, ever, ever, never pull up beside a motor home towing a car with various toys on top, blowing the horn and waving frantically.) We stopped and talked to Bob and Laura for a bit at the Florida Welcome Center, where we enjoyed some fresh orange and grapefruit juice, and picked up a few brochures. We finally arrived at Cousin Laura's house, where we parked overnight in their yard. We had a nice visit and enjoyed a dinner of pizza and beer. Overnight temperatures were again near 20 degrees. Welcome to Florida! We departed Middleburg early and headed to a campground near Brooksville FL, where we would meet friends from NC.