Ouch!

Not known for my love of medical procedures, especially injections, I was not looking forward to today.  We had signed up for the shot clinic here at the RV park.  But we dutifully arrived at the appointed hour, filled out the two pages of repeating information (how many times on one page do they really need my name, insurance ID number, and my address?), presented our insurance card and then "faced the music."  Since we were just recently eligible for Medicare we had never gotten pneumonia shots....so we each "got it" once in each arm, and we are now hopefully protected from flu as well as pneumonia.

Beyond that, we are still dealing with all sorts of issues trying to become established with new primary care physicians.  The Veteran's Administration may provide wonderful benefits, but they certainly don't provide clear and concise information on how to go about getting them, or telling you exactly what they are in your case.  It would help if they just answered the phone!  Private sector offices in this area don't fare much better for us.  They all are very crowded, seem impersonal and perhaps we'd do better if we spoke Spanish.  Fortunately, we have no great medical needs at this time.

The weather is beautiful and we continue to enjoy this idylic time of year at Palm Creek.

Back home at Palm Creek

We arrived back at Palm Creek a week ago, October 1.  The park is still quite empty, but there are new arrivals every day....none on our street, however.  When we first arrived the temperatures each day were around 105* so we have not started the task of washing and waxing the vehicles.  On Saturday we had a "haboob"...one of Arizona's famous wind/dust storms.  On Tuesday and Wednesday we had a round of wild and windy rainstorms complete with thunder and lightning.  Fortunately we missed the harshest of the storms and tornadoes that hit a bit further north.  We had close to 2" of rain...quite unusual for this part of the country.  Tom has played 18 holes of golf every day but one...hitting off the first tee at morning's first light (somewhere close to 6am).  The rest of the day has found us running various errands - getting settled once again here in Casa Grande - banks, laundry, dry cleaners, groceries, a couple doctor's appointments and a trip to Phoenix to deliver some packages we brought from Toledo for Tricia Lehto.  We're keeping busy!

"Standin' on the corner in Winslow, Arizona..."

We made it to Winslow tonight just as it was getting dark...good planning and a long day of 300 miles in the RV and another 50 or so in the car visiting the "Canyon de Chelly (rhymes with 'play')National Monument" in Chinle, AZ.  Not sure why we had skipped visiting there in the past, but it is a beautiful place!  The canyon was inhabited by Indians thousands of years ago and there are still some that live, work and farm there now...holding on to their ancient culture.  We had to park the RV in a campground and then take the car on the canyon rim drive.  Seeing the natives farming at the bottom really put the whole view into perspective.  After visiting the canyon we made our way to Winslow and put $276 worth of fuel in the tank and are being hosted by WallyWorld tonight.  On to Palm Creek tomorrow.

GOLD in them there hills!

We left Montrose and the Centennial RV park around 10am on Wednesday and headed to Ridgeway and then towards Telluride on the San Juan Skyway.  The aspens are in their glorious fall best colors.  There were all shades of green and gold splashed across the mountainsides as we wound our way along the highway.  Some of the mountains were topped with snowcaps, but we enjoyed temperatures in the 80s along with brilliant sunshine.  We stopped for the night at the Ute Mountain Casino near Towaoc and will head into Arizona tomorrow.

Along the San Juan Skyway, Colorado

A stand of aspens along the San Juan Skyway

Gunsmoke!

Today's jaunt was to the nearby town of Ridgeway.  We had a great pizza lunch at a place called "Panny's" and then stopped at the "Dennis Weaver Memorial Park."  Apparently Dennis Weaver and family had moved to Ridgeway in the late 1980's and loved the area.  They donated 60 acres along the Uncompahgre River for a city park.  After Weaver's death, a beautiful memorial was built...a huge bronze eagle in flight.   The sculpture is in the center of a Ute Indian "Circle of Life." There is also a plaque with one of his poems on it.  All in all, an impressive place.

Eagle in flight at the Dennis Weaver Memorial

A view from the Dennis Weaver Memorial Park

Out and About

After several days of hangin' close to home - thanks to Mary's painful pulled muscle - we ventured out on a road trip today.  First stop was lunch at the "Stone House" in Montrose...quite tasty!  Then, with our friends Art and June as tour guides we drove a little bit east of town to the "Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park."  We had visited here eight years ago, but it was well worth a return trip.  It was sunny and 80+* outside and we enjoyed stopping at the various lookout points.  The canyon is 50 miles long and 2000 feet deep - much smaller than the Grand Canyon - but just as beautiful and majestic.

Tom and Art saw a bear while talking to the park ranger  :-)

That's the Gunnison River down below...a little smaller than the Colorado.

Mountain Rain

True to the weatherman's prediction we awoke this morning to heavy gray clouds hanging down over the mountaintops.  We could watch them move and swirl and float across the valley where our RV park is located....AND they brought us a steady heavy drizzle all day.  The sun did try to come out around 5:00 but it was shrouded once again very quickly.     To give our day a little interest we drove into town (about 8 miles) with our friends Art and June.  We made stops at Walmart, City Market Grocery, Walgreens (where Art and June got their flu shots) and at "Rib City" where we got a tasty lunch.  (We even had the leftovers for dinner tonight.)  Hopefully, tomorrow will bring some sunshine!

The "Million Dollar Highway"

Monday was a day to catch up on chores, laundry and restock the pantry on a drive into Montrose.  Tuesday we took a ride up the "Million Dollar Highway", Route 550, to Silverton.  We drove through the town of Ouray and over Red Mountain Pass.  We're not sure why it's named the Million Dollar Highway, but in the 1800's and early 1900's there were many mines in the area.  The aspen trees have turned to gold and the views along the drive were spectacular.  The quaint towns of Ouray and Silverton are full of shops, boutiques and restaurants along with many restored and abandoned homes.  In Silverton we watched the arrival of the steam train coming from Durango and raced the huge crowd of passengers to get a place for lunch.  It was a great day!

At Red Mountain Pass along the Million Dollar Highway

Tennis Anyone???

We climbed the Rockies on Wed. Sept. 15 and made our way through the Eisenhower Tunnel and on to Frisco and Breckenridge.  We spent a nostalgic evening driving arouind and seeing where Reid used to live, work and play.  It's such a neat area!  Tiger Run RV Resort was as scenic as we remembered it as well.  Then it was on to Grand Junction and a three night visit with our friends Helen and Glenn Arnold.  We parked in the street in front of their home and had a fantastic visit.  We played tennis each morning on the court at their daughter's home and in the afternoons we had a guided tour of the Grand Valley area to include the downtown as well as the fertile Palisade orchards and vineyards.  Most spectacular was our drive through the Coloroado National Monument.  Every turn in the road gave us another spectacular view...and we could also see it from Arnold's home.  What a great place to live!                                  We're now in Montrose, CO, parked next to friends Art and June Nelson and will spend a week or so visiting with them and exploring some more of "Colorful Colorado."

tennis on the court facing the Colorado National Monument

The "Coke Ovens" at the Colorado National Monument

Colorado National Monument

             

Pretty Corny!

We've spent the last several days driving west across the central plains...Illinois, Iowa, Kansas and now eastern Colorado....on interstate highways.  The scenery the whole way seems to have been cornfields and more cornfields dotted here and there with a barn and a grain silo.  Finally when we got close to the Kansas/Colorado state border we saw a field of sunflowers.  We thought Kansas was the "sunflower state" and we hadn't seen any at all.  We also found summer weather again and were happy tonight to have electricity and therefore the air-conditioning to deal with 90* temperatures.  Wednesday we plan to pass through Denver and climb into the gorgeous Rockies...remembering how much Reid enjoyed living here...and spend a night at the Tiger Run Resort in Breckenridge...our favorite scenic RV park.

Reunited!

We had a two generation reunion today....We met Bill and Beth at Cabela's in Dundee, Michigan as they drove north from Perrysburg and we went west from Monroe.  We had a chance to visit in the car as we drove on to Jackson and had a nice reunion with Mom.  We all went to eat at the Texas Roadhouse...a delicious meal in celebration of our reunion and Tom's birthday.  We enjoyed catching up with everyone as we had not been all together at one time in the same place since Christmas.

The five of us at Mom's.

Orange barrels!!

We left our campsite in Monroe, MI around 9:00 this morning heading south into the greater Toledo area.  By the time we returned to the rig around 4:00 we had made a great 100 mile+ circle tour of the area and it seemed no matter where we were going we had to wind our way through a maze of orange construction barrels.  We even found a few freeway exit and entrance ramps that were closed, which only added to our route.  But, we did accomplish a few errands, most importantly getting Tom's driver's license renewed and having our yearly eye exams taken care of.  We picked up our mail in Waterville, did a little research on new cars, stopped by to visit our old neighborhood and made a visit to Costco and to the grocery store...whew!  After dinner we took a walk through the campground...its a busy place here on the weekend.  We discovered that some aquaintances are just a few sites down from us and had a nice visit.  I guess we're getting settled in!

Fore!

We had a great visit in the Newfane, NY area with our buddies, Jim and Paula Jones. Jim and Paula live a 100-year-old house on a small farm and run a greenhouse business in the spring. Their neighbors continue to grow a large vegetable garden and take fresh produce to the community Farmer's Market. Jim and Paula made sure we had plenty of good meals at home and out and showed us around their part of Western New York. We caught views of Lake Ontario and took in a Sunday afternoon concert in the park in Olcott. We crossed the bridge to Grand Island in the middle of the Niagara River and stopped at the beach, visited the market, and met several of their friends and their son, Jimmy. We even had time for a round of golf at the local course…and didn't do too badly considering I hadn't been on a course since we left Arizona. When we gave our final hugs and headed on our way west, our arms were loaded with fresh produce.

                                     

Lions, Tigers and Bears....Oh, my!!!

We had a great trip from Elysburg to New Stanton, PA near Pittsburgh on Wednesday.  On Thursday we drove with all the McCurdy's to the Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium.  We had a great day visiting all the exhibits and watching the Sea Lion show.  The zoo is quite hilly and the layout is in a circle.  I guess you are supposed to start at the gate and go around clockwise.  Our gang, however, had specific goals in mind as "first on the list" so our trip was a little haphazard and we covered a lot of ground a couple times, including a hike to the parking lot for lunch in the van.  We had a great day and enjoyed seeing all the wonderful animals.  It was a fairly hot day, so a stop for ice cream on the way home tasted really good...and we were off to the pool when we got back to the campground.  Dinner was followed by a campfire and S'mores and a surprise visit by some of our old Bounder buddies.  On Friday we met some more Bounder buddies for lunch and then had a family birthday dinner at Dino's in Greensburg...where our friends had told us they serve the best "wings" in Pennsylvania...and they were quite tasty!   Saturday we go our separate ways and will miss and remember or visit in Pennsylvania!

Shop till you drop!

We've had two "girls' day out" adventures this week.  On Monday Tom and I had run errands in Bloomsburg and done some grocery shopping.  As we returned to the RV in mid-afternoon we got a call from the bored McCurdy girls.  They had decided, since Matt would be working late, to go shopping and invited Grandma to go along.  So, we were off to Hershey.  Of course, any trip to Hershey means a stop at Chocolate World...so we took a ride through the "factory", got our chocolate inspiration tasty treat, and then headed to the outlet mall.  We closed the mall down at 9:00 and headed home with a few good bargains.             On Friday we were a bit more organized, had goals in mind, and were on the road earlier in the day headed to the town of Muncy which has a nice Target Store and a mall with an Old Navy, Borders, and JCPenney among others.   Meanwhile, Tom was painting the basement stairwell at the McCurdy house and when Matt called around 2:30 to say he was on his way home and suggested a game of golf, it didn't take much to get Tom to agree.  We were all together again by 7:00...an enjoyable day for all!

Crash, Bang, Boom!!!

It's definitely not something to make light of....we've been up close and luckily not personal to three major traffic accidents this week already.  We had commented earlier this month that the daily paper has large color photos on the front page every day of another accident...and now we've seen it all before it hits the front page.  Not good!  I skipped taking photos, however!   And the problem around here is that there aren't that many "through" roads...and all the roads are curving, winding and hilly (6% to 9% grades)  So, when there is an accident,  traffic is a total mess...for hours!   One on Sunday as we were leaving the amusement park was the most graffic and tragic...it still haunts us.  Wednesday's caused us to turn around and drive about 10 miles back to Elysburg, go south a ways and then take another road  15 miles to Sunbury to get to Coffey's ball game...getting there just in time...and then having the game rained out after three pitches.  Today's was at the intersection just down from the McCurdy's home as we were coming for the day.  One of the crashed vehicles looked just like Ann's and I madly made unanswered phone calls trying to make sure it wasn't her.  It wasn't!!!   And so, life goes on.....multiple ball games and practices, dental appointments, music lessons, flag corp workouts as well as cleaning, cooking, painting and dog walking at home.

The Big Chill

Yep.......the refrigerator seems to be working.  The new cooling unit was installed on Tuesday.  It ran about 36 hours on electric power and then we switched it to gas this morning....and it appears to be maintaining appropriate temperatures.  We made some ice cubes and bought some milk, eggs and ice cream yesterday...and they are all in great condition.  Meanwhile we have continued to participate in the "day to day" at the McCurdy house....today was Coffey's Flag squad practice and Ann had to work.  We gathered for dinner and then took all three girls to evening "day camp" for Girl Scouts.  It's still plenty hot an humid, and the days busy!

The circle is unbroken......

That's the circle we've been driving...round and round from the campground, to the McCurdy's, and back, again and again and again!  On occasion, we make the circle a bit wider with additional stops at the mini-grocery store (near the house), the school (next to the campground), a ball field (several in the area for two girls), a doctor's office (dentist, surgeon, dermatologist, lab in four towns), a library ( two towns), girl scout day camp (held in the evening) and the gas station.  Just today, I think it was 5 circles.  Ann has probably 75% recovered from oral surgery...the surgeon told her today that she was just a few weeks past having had the surgery when she was 18, and thus it was a little more difficult :-)  She went to work today - her usual 4 hour shift - but was glad to get home and rest before a doctor appointment.  Yesterday she had minor surgery at the dermatologist, so that didn't add to any comfort today.  Matt has been working lots of hours, but we all had time to rest and relax over the weekend...and enjoy some pool time.  We're keeping up...more to come!

Whew, it's HOT!!!

It's been 105* the last two days...the granddaughters want to know "Is this how hot it is in Arizona?"  Yes, every day at this time of year.    But, at least, here in Pennsylvania right now, the humidity is cooperating.  We've managed to stay in air-conditioning most of the time, and that helps!  The girls vounteered to wash the cars on Tuesday...so they could play with the hoses!  But Grandpa made sure they did a good job on the cars, too.  Ann even ran over to the Dollar Store and got a new "Slip 'n Slide." 

Today we went to the McCurdy house mid-morning and Tom took Coffey to her oboe lesson and the rest of us waited around for the oral surgeon to call and say that Ann was next up on the list.  After she and Matt went in for the surgery, the rest of us went to the campground pool and then dinner in the RV.  Merrick and Close are having a sleep-over with us tonight, after we all went to say hi to Mom, who is feeling pretty groggy, but had no problems with the wisdom teeth removal.

The car is all repaired...hope it lasts!  They replaced the part that had been repaired in Alabama.  We're still waiting on the refrigerator...and lugging coolers back and forth to Ann's daily.    Life is never dull!

Things come in Threes - Round 2

We thoroughly enjoyed our visit in West Virginia and the adventures with our son, Reid and daughter and son-in-law, Ann and Matt and of course the three granddaughters, Coffey, Close and Merrick.  When our fun there was over, we moved on to Pennsylvania and a campground near Ann and Matt's home.  That's when things begain to fall apart....AGAIN!      1) We'd had the car repaired in Arizona before we left, again in Alabama a month ago and once again it is flashing all sorts of lights indicating trouble.  It has an appointment on July 6 for repairs, Pennsylvania style.     2) The morning after our arrival in PA, our milk for the cereal was pretty chunky.  Not good!  After several calls to repair services and a few experiments with equipment it was decided that we need to replace our cooling unit - which had been replaced in March.  So, we are awaiting arrival of the new unit, under warranty, from Tucson.  Meanwhile, all food is room temperature.     3) On the evening of our second day in PA, Mary's computer froze up and "died."  True to their word, agents at the Geek Squad based in the Selinsgrove, PA precinct of Best Buy, got all data retrieved and the computer all reformatted and operating once again.  A new external hard drive came along with the deal.

We did enjoy a great family 4th of July celebration...going on a picnic to the Bloomsburg, PA Town Park and enjoying the live band concert and fireworks display.  We're getting into our "summer mode" with ball games and trips to the pool with the granddaughters...more fun to come!

Our site at the J&D Campground in Catawissa backs up to the Roaring Creek. 

The girls enjoy exploring in the shallow water

Wild, Wonderful West Viginia

The lake at ACE

The family on horseback

We've had a great time with the family here in West Viginia.  Ace Outdoor Adventures is a fabulous place to visit....with every activity you could ever imagine.  Thanks to the wooded mountains, cell phone and internet service is absolutely lousy, but we managed to coordinate our activities.  The McCurdys especially had some great moments.  On Tuesday Tom and Reid went off to play golf at a beautiful resort while the rest of us tested our horseback riding skills.  Later that evening, the McCurdys went zip-lining through the forest on a "canopy tour."  Wednesday morning we awoke to lots of rain, but the rafters (Ann and Matt) were going to get wet anyway - so off they went!  (Matt won the prize for the most "swims" on the rafting trip!) Grandma and Grandpa took the girls to the National Park Visitor Center at the New River Gorge Bridge and learned a little about the area and took a look at the Western Hemisphere's highest arch bridge.  Luckily, the sun came out and we spent the afternoon at ACE's spring fed lake filled with giant inflatable water toys, a huge water slide and a zip-line into the water.   Uncle Reid treated us to dinner at "Pies and Pints" before the McCurdys had to leave...with three girls begging to stay longer!

What do you mean, no Internet???

We've had a great weekend but had to go without Internet service...but we can live with that on occasion.  We had a fun Saturday in Stanardsville, Virginia with Beth and Geoff...touring part of the Monticello Wine Trail, hitting just three of the 21 wineries on the tour.  We didn't know that Virginia is the 8th producer of wine in the US.  The countryside is beautiful with lots of history as well.  Geoff fixed us his famous enchiladas for dinner and our visit extended into the evening.  We got back to the RV just before the lightning, thunder and rain took out our electricity for the night. 

On Sunday we made a five hour drive up to West Virginia and parked at our favorite campground in Fayetteville...WallyWorld.  We drove out to visit the campground we will move to later today...it will be a challenge to get parked!  We also found where Ann, Matt and the girls will be staying and that, too, is an adventure in driving, but the facilities are going to be fun once they get there.    Reid had been kayaking all afternoon and we met him for dinner at a great restaurant, Diogi's, that we had eaten at last year.  We enjoyed catching up on what Reid ahs been up to and hearing about the challenges ahead in his work.

We're looking forward to the McCurdy's arrival this evening and the adventures ahead for all of us.  Not sure when we'll be able to post again as we'll have to come to McDonald's or to Reid's house to get a connection.

Please, don't feed the bears!

Cousin Beth had called last night around 11:00 to say she had returned from North Carolina and we agreed to meet at her house around 10 this morning.  We spent several hours just visiting and touring their new house.  It's quite a place in a beautiful wooded setting.  Tom, Beth and I went to lunch at the Main Street Cafe in Stanardsville and then took a drive over to the Shenandoah National Park.  Beth and Geoff live just 8 miles from an entrance station to the Skyline Drive.  We drove 15 miles on the drive to the Byrd Visitor Station making several stops at overlooks along the way.  At the Visitor Center we watched a couple films and toured the exhibits, then made the return drive back to Beth and Geoff's house just in time to greet Geoff as he returned from a week's business trip to Florida.  Along the Skyline Drive we noticed something moving in the green growth along the road.  Whoa!!!  That's a bear!  We stopped and backed up to where we thought we'd seen him and he had wandered down to the edge of the road.  If we had opened the window, we could have pet him!  No wonder the sign in the office at the campground says "Please, don't feed the bears!"  Beth and Geoff have also had a bear in their yard as evidenced by the demolished bird feeder at the top of a tall pole.

Green, Green!

It was a shorter day today...driving from Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina to Stanardsville, Virginia.  The rolling countryside, highways lines with green trees and very few signs of commercial life anywhere, were quite pleasant.  We arrived at the Heavenly Acres Campground around 2:30 and were greeted by the very friendly owner.  The campground is more of a real "campground" than a resort or RV park as the sites are carved out of the woods and the place is very "rustic."  But, we have full hookups, minus WiFi so we're happy.  The temperature is much more bearable and we even were able to get the car washed...a month of road grime had changed it from tan to black.  We're looking forward to time with Beth and Geoff and doing a little sightseeing before we leave on Sunday.

Breaker, One, Nine!

All we've done the last two days is just drive!  We left Kingsland, Georgia on Tuesday morning and made it on to South Carolina (Florence) and North Carolina (Roanoke Rapids) just short of Virginia on Wednesday night.  We stopped at a few rest areas and after seeing the many, many billboards for "South of the Border" at the South/North Carolina border we stopped to see what was there...a large collection of gift shops, miniature golf, restaurants, gas stations, carnival rides, and big bright signs.  Later, our entertainment was listening to the CB radio as we inched along in several traffic jams...one for a bad accident and another for construction.  The truckers were checking out the female drivers and telling admittedly bad jokes to entertain us all and they kept tabs on all the vehicles trying to buck the line. It was fun listening to them and watching them go into action from our seats higher off the road and knowing that the cars weren't listening to the CB. The heat and humidity have lowered a degree or two :-)

Movin' on up!

Sunday we spent a second busy day at the Kennedy Space Center.  It's just amazing how many people are involved and how much work goes into getting spacecraft and astronauts into space.  We watched two IMAX 3-D movies, toured a model of the International Space Station and other exhibits and presentations.  We also made a stop at the Astronauts Hall of Fame.

Monday morning we made a stop at an RV repair facility in Titusville hoping to get our shower door back into its proper place, but they did not have the proper parts.  Moving on to Palm Coast, Florida at an Ace Hardware we were able to find a collection of small parts which Tom was able to put together and re-hang the door.  In Palm Coast we went on a search for the house where we lived 32 years ago.  We managed to find it in spite of the changes that have occured.  When we lived there the area was mostly swamp land.  We drove 25 miles to Ormond Beach to go to a grocery and other shopping.  Now, Palm Coast is a thriving city of almost 80,000 people covering 60 square miles with plenty of shopping and traffic.  We managed to find a place for the rig in a Kohl's parking lot.

Our overnight stop in Kingsland, Georgia is just that...an overnight stop...certainly nothing fancy or exciting about the rv park operated at the Econo Lodge Motel :-)

Three, Two, One, and we have liftoff!

Launchpad B at the Kennedy Space Center

We didn't get very far north on today's drive.  From Sebastian we got about 75 miles before we were near the Kennedy Space Center.  We decided that we hadn't been there in 25 or 30 years so we drove about 10 miles off I-95 to check it out.  There wasn't very much traffic or many people considering the size of their parking lot.  We parked the Dutch Star towing the car across a whole line of spaces in a big open lot.  We bought the cheapest admission package at $38 each and discovered several hours later that there was no way we could see everything in one day.  The admission tickets are good for 2 days, so around 3:30 we decided to leave and see if we could find a campground for two nights and come back again on Sunday.  We found a Brevard County Campground, Manatee Hammock, just a few miles away and managed to get the rig into one of only a few sites that aren't completely closed in by large trees.  We do like our satellite TV :-)  So tomorrow we'll back to KSC.

Headin' north!

We reversed direction today, going back up Route 27, stopping for "brunch" at the Miccosukee Casino to take advantage of the 2-for-1 buffet voucher we got the other day on our way south.  Then it was on up towards Lake Okeechobee and aorund it on the east this time.  We can't believe the number of plant and tree nurseries we passed.  We continued over to I-95 and to Sebastian where we are parked behind a McDonalds, but actually in the "overnight pull-throughs" of an RV park.  We can just barely pick up the free WiFi signal.  :-)   Not sure where we'll head on Saturday...just north.

Swamps!

Wednesday found us in the Everglades National Park.  We arrived just in time to participate in the Ranger Led Hike along a half-mile boardwalk into the swamps of the Everglades.  It was a great hike with a great ranger (we've had some pretty lousy ones in the past, on occasion).  It took us about an hour-and-a-half for the tour and that was plenty in the heat and humidity and of course out in the sun!  Apparently, the best time to see all the alligators is in winter dry season.  We saw only one large one and a group of 4 babies at another place.  We did see quite a few different birds, butterflies, bugs and plants.  After the hike, we drove to the very end of the park road and checked out another visitor center and the campgounds where there were just a few brave souls' tents set up.  We hadn't even tried to go there as there are no hookups of any kind.  This section of the park had a great deal of damage in 2005 from Katrina and especially Wilma and they are just beginning to replace buildings and facilities.  On the drive back to the entrance of the park, we stopped at overlooks and boardwalks and walked in the Mahogany and Mangrove forests.

Today's journey was to the Biscayne National Park along Biscayne Bay east of Homestead, FL.  Most of the park is out in the water, but we visited the Museum and marina and again walked a boardwalk trail. (We passed on the $65 boat tour)  After a lunch and shopping break at an outlet mall, we drove Route 1 down into "the Keys" as far as Islamorada, catching glimpses of beautiful homes and big boats along the coast and the Intercoastal waterway.  We found an overlook to park and have a picnic supper.   

The weather these two days was rain-free except for a few drops, but the heat and humidty remain quite high.  (We just carry our "dew rags" with us at all times)  We enjoyed visiting on the phone this evening with friends who are at the other "end of the road" in RVs camped on "The Spit" in Homer, Alaska....a few miles between us all!  We plan to head north once again on Thursday.

Drip, Drip, Drip!

There have been several sources, but we've been dripping constantly the last couple of days.  For starters, there's always the morning shower.  Second, the heat and humidity here in Florida are terrible.  The temperature is always above 90* and the humidity is about the same.  Once we step outside, our whole body begins to "glow," and our clothes are stuck to our body.  And then there's the rain.  Accompanied by lots of thunder and lightning, we've had lots and lots and lots of rain.  The streets flooded, the ground is a big puddle and getting in and out of the stores and car was like taking a heavy shower all over.  Then there's the bugs!  I just love Florida!      

Our campground last night was empty.  Tonight we are in Homestead, Florida sandwiched in to The Boardwalk "manufactured home and RV park."  We drove right past it the first time because there was a big iron gate closing off the entrance and the road was very narrow and lined with tall trees.  As we drove around the block, I called the office on the phone and they said "Oh, yes, that's the place."  So we came back around and were able to drive in on the tail of another vehile without blocking traffic while we tried to enter an access code.  The manager is a big OSU fan (was even wearing an OSU shirt) and was very friendly and helpful.

We stopped at the Miccosukee Casino about an hour north of here around noon today, guessing that we might get some benefits by joining their "player's club."  It was a good move...we each got a 2-for-1 buffet voucher and $25 each in free slot play.  We turned the slot-play vouchers into $22 total, paid $11.50 for two tasty buffet lunches and can use the other voucher (and the other half of our profits) when we leave and head back up north, and I didn't have to cook dinner tonight!

Hoping to get into the Everglades National Park on Wednesday, if the thunderstorms aren't too bad...we know the heat and humidity will be there :-)

Movin’ on south

Sunday was an "at home" day…pretty quiet. We got some laundry and reading done and did some trip planning. For the first time in several weeks, we saw no rain!

Early Monday morning we drove to the Power-Tech facility in Leesburg. It took the tech about an hour to do routine maintenance on the generator…oil change, check the belts and filters, etc. They told us they built the generator right there in that shop. The $101 we paid was less than we have paid other places for less service J . We were on the road again by 9:30, heading south on Route 27. It's a divided highway but does go through several towns, wo we had traffic and stoplights on occasion. We were also able to stop for breaks at several different Walmarts along the way. The M RV Park near Moore Haven in a good size but very empty. We had to make a phone call to get someone to come to the office to register and park us. Thanks to the 90+ temperature and humidity we were soaked before the rains started! We plan to get to the Everglades on Tuesday.

It still rains every day!

On Friday we drove from Quincy on east on I-10 and then south on I-75 to the south side of Ocala.  We drove in and out of rain the whole way.  Luckily we had a break in the showers while we checked in and got hooked up at the Ocala Sun RV Resort on Hwy. 484.  Its a nice enough place and must be pretty busy in the winter with a full list of activities.  We're parked on sand and grass, which is a real nuisance for us.

Our big Saturday adventure was a trip to "The Villages."  We've heard a lot about this place over the years, and have checked out the website.  We spent several hours with a great tour guide/sales rep and had an impressive tour of the many villages that make up the community of about 70,000 people on Route 441.  The list of activities is endless and the facilities are superb.  There are 24 9-hole golf courses you can play for free if you are a resident, and 9 championship courses to choose from if you want to pay greens fees.  Then there is tennis, pickleball and everything else...whew!  You can drive your golf car every place in town, including all kinds of great shopping and restaurants.  Nobody turned off the humidity, though!

We also scouted out the place we'll be taking the RV for service on Monday.  We're not sure what other adventures we'll get into tomorrow or next week.

It’s all about the numbers!

Humidity 95% -- Temperature 87* -- mileage 60,000 -- Eastern Daylight time 9:00pm

That's the story of our day. We woke up at Rainbow Plantation to the usual high humidity as the temperatures were rising. We got hooked up and on the road just in time as the skies turned black and the rains came once again as we were exiting the park. We headed east into Florida and were in and out of rain all day. We didn't tackle too many miles today and stopped near Quincy, FL for the night. We turned over 60,000 miles on the Dutch Star along the way. And, as we neared the campground we lost another hour so we're now in the Eastern Time Zone. I finally reset my watch, so now I don't have to add or subtract hours, but we have to stay up an hour later to watch the news! This campground is nothing more than a big grassy field behind a gas station with some hookups, so it hasn't been an exciting day. We hope to move on to the central portion of the state tomorrow.

Rain, rain and more rain!

We do get to see the sun every once in a while, but it seems to rain every day...usually along with some thunder and lightning.  We had planned on a trip to the beach in Gulf Shores today...but it never happened.  The weather was just too awful.  So, we stayed home and Tom tackled re-stringing the day/night shade over the sofa.  He had started it the other night and replaced only one of the four strings.  When we re-hung the blind and pulled it up and down, a second string broke.  So, today he was back at work on it.  It's quite a complex project of connectors and strings criss-crossing over and inside the pleated shades.  For the time being, its up and working.  Meanwhile I got out the dust rag and vacuum cleaner and tried to get a step or two ahead of all the stuff we seem to be tracking inside now that we are back in the part of the country that has trees, grass and mud in the campgrounds.  In between storms we did manage to get outside for a short walk and also made a trip over to our friends' house to say a final good-by and to give them a new water pump which they are going to deliver to another friend when they get together in Tennessee.  Looks like we'll be heading to Florida on Thursday.

Trouble always comes in threes

That's what we've heard, anyway…and we hope that's true. If so, we're done! It's all been electrical. First, it was the chassis batteries. Second, it was the cable connection from the RV to the car. And our third bit of trouble had appeared when we unhooked the car in Long Beach, Mississippi and was still with us when we arrived at Rainbow Plantation here in Alabama. After driving for just a short distance, the "idiot lights" on the dash would light up saying "check engine" and "trac off." We'd had the same messages in Arizona several months back and it cost us close to $600 to have the left wheel bearing and sensor replaced. So, this morning we drove the car to the Chevy dealer in Foley, Alabama and they checked it out. Supposedly, the wiring harness attached to our recently replaced parts was faulty and once the problem was diagnosed, it took only a few minutes and $100 to repair.

We hadn't driven any place on Memorial Day as we didn't want to drive the car any further than necessary. But, we did have a great visit with our friends Norm and Linda Payne who live here at Rainbow Plantation. We went to their house mid-afternoon and had a tour of their place. It's about 1600 sq. ft. and very simple, but a beautiful place. They designed it and had it custom built with a great room/kitchen, 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms, a laundry room, a screened in porch and a garage. They use the second bedroom for their den/TV room. They park their Dutch Star next to the house and it has full hook-ups so can be used when they have company. They also have hookups for a second RV. They are leaving tomorrow for the summer, so have been busy getting ready to hit the road. They took us to a good Chinese place for dinner last night, and we stopped by tonight to say good-by and let them know they had steered us in the right direction for auto repair today. They had taken their Dutch Star out for a test drive and they are ready to roll.

Besides getting the car repaired today, we went to visit an RV Resort that has been sending us e-mails for about a year. It's one where you buy the lots. The lots are very nice…but very expensive and the park is still under construction and it doesn't look like it will really have very many amenities when its finished. We also spent several hours at an outlet mall…always have to check to make sure I'm not missing any big bargains.

We're thinking that tomorrow we'll go to the beach (we got within two miles or so of it today) and see what's going on in Gulf Shores and then head out on the road again on Thursday.

Sweet Home Alabama

We drove just a couple hours today...from Long Beach, MS to the Escapees "Plantation" in Summerdale, Alabama.  We were in and out of rain, thunder and lightning the whole way.  Luckily we were able to get parked and hooked up without getting soaked, but when we drove into Fairhope to stock up on groceries at Walmart, we weren't as lucky.  We're parked on grass, and puddles/ponds circle the RV and we didn't put down our levelers for fear of sinking in the soft ground.  We went to the clubhouse for the Sunday evening Ice Cream Social and met up with friends Norm and Linda Payne.  We hadn't seen them in person since we camped together in Mexico in 2006, but have emailed them often over the years...especially this week when Tom was seeking advice on the light situation.  We had a chance to catch up on adventures and will meet them tomorrow to go out to eat.  We got a phone call from some former Palm Creek neighbors who are now touring Alaska and it was great to hear about their adventures up there, too.  We'll be here a couple more days and are looking forward to a few days without the white lines along the road.

We've seen the light!

We left Vinton, LA around 9am today, continuing our coast-to-coast tour of I-10 heading east...still without any lights on the tow car.  In Hammond, Louisiana we stopped at another Camping World.  The tech there was kind enough to rewire our electrical cable and it worked - except when we turned on the turn signal, we got a left on the RV and a right on the car - at the same time!  They were extremely busy in the service department, so Tom rewired it again, rechecked a few more things, replaced some fuses and, wow, WE HAD LIGHT!  And they were co-ordinated!  That took another couple of hot humid hours, so we stopped for the day at Long Beach, Mississippi.  We had thunder and lightning and rain off and on all afternoon, so it was pretty dreary out, but we took a drive along the Gulf coast.  The beaches are miles and miles of white sand.  Across the highway from the sand is, for the most part, just empty land dotted with an occasional old foundation, an old parking lot and some scrawny trees.  Every once in a while there is a beautiful home or an apartment building and a shiny Walmart that most likely have been rebuilt since the devastation of Katrina.  There were a few people in the water here and there, but we didn't get close enough to tell if there was any oil in the water.  In Gulfport we stopped at the Island View Casino, joined their players club and used the free slot play to earn enough for one of our seafood buffet dinners.  Driving back home we had fog - not fun in the dark in a strange place...but we found our way.  Tomorrow we plan to be at the Escapees Rainbow Plantation in Summerdale, AL and will stay for a few days.

Exit Texas

We finally crossed the border to exit Texas...but not without some frustration.  We left Happy Oaks a little before nine and drove about 45 minutes to the Camping World in Katy, TX.  We spent almost 3 hours there while Tom worked on the electrical cable that attaches the RV and the tow car.  Our coach running lights still do not work and after he worked on the electrical stuff last night, our right turn signal didn't work.  The techs at Camping World offered suggestions and a few spare parts, but would not have time to work on it for us till Wednesday of next week.  So, Tom worked on it for quite a while.  We finally decided that we needed to get through Houston so we headed east again.  Actually, getting through the city was not too bad.  Traffic was not too heavy and was moving well and there was only a few miles of construction.  We stopped in Vinton, Louisiana at an RV park where we stayed a few years back.  Definitely not the greatest, but certainly convenient.  Several more hours of work on the lights and they are still not working, but we still have lots of heat and humidity.  Tomorrow's another day :-)

Still in Texas.

We didn't sleep all that well last night because of the humidity and then at about 6:25 a large lawn mower went right under our bedroom windows.  What a wake up call!  So, we got up and dressed, ran into Walmart for some fresh apple fritters and were movin' on down the road by 6:45.  We went a whole 11 miles to a rest area, parked and went back to bed for another two hours.  Leaving the Kerrville Walmart in the early light of day we discovered that our coach "running lights" were not operating.  They may have been out for a year or two as we never drive in the dark and didn't think to check them.  The headlights, brake and turn signals all work fine.  At the rest area we fiddled with switches, wires and fuses but nothing helped.  Later on down the road at another rest area we called Spartan and they made a couple suggestions and emailed us a 96 page wiring diagram (gee, thanks!)  So, we're still without the lights...but don't plan on driving in the dark.  We did come through a couple miles of good rain this afternoon and then decided to go for a place with hookups for the night....will enjoy the A/C (thermometer says its 92) and get some laundry done.  We even picked up a WiFi signal from somewhere here at Happy Oaks RV park near Columbus, TX.  We whizzed through San Antonio but will tackle Houston tomorrow.

Texas is a big state!

We've driven across Texas quite a few times in the last ten years...we think it got bigger!  Man, is there a lot of nothing as you drive across I-10.  We did notice the difference in color...it got far greener as we headed east.  And, as we got closer to San Antonio, there were the famous wildflowers along the highway, but they were definitely past their prime - as in mostly brown.  We stopped for the night in Kerrville where we had stayed 4 years ago at Walmart.  We thought of the McCurdy's as we faced our dinner dilema.  Within 100 yards of our parking spot we had McDonald's, Wendy's, Chilli's, Sonic, Starbucks, Quizno's, Culver's and CiCi's.  Big spenders as we are, we ate dinner in the midst of a 12 year old's softball team awards dinner at CiCi's.  It was actually quite tasty.  More of Texas to come on Thursday.

Success

We were waiting at "Casa Decor" when they opened this morning and were successful in getting the piece of furniture that Beth and Geoff want.  Good thing we don't have a home to furnish...I could have bought lots of stuff there!  We were on the road into Texas by 10:30 and arrived in Balmorhea at the Sadleback Mountain RV Park around 5:00 Central Daylight Time.  Looks like we had just missed a nasty rain.  The goal for tomorrow is Boerne, TX.

A few errands to run

On Monday we made several stops in Las Cruces. Most importantly for our stop here, we took on a small stock of "Hatch" brand chilies, salsa and sauces that Geoff and Beth's taste buds are missing. We also met the couple who will be leasing their house as they came to see where the house is and peek in the windows before they meet with the property manager on Tuesday. (From Alabama, they agreed to lease the house on advice from a relative.) They were quite surprised to find us and our rig sitting in the driveway. Today (Tuesday) we will go to run another errand for Beth and then plan to be on our way to Balmorhea, TX. We're not sure what internet access we'll have crossing Texas.

Las Cruces, New Mexico

The house is hiding behind the trees while

our rig and car sit in the driveway.

This morning we moved on from Lordsburg to Las Cruces, New Mexico with a strong wind helping us along. We are settled in for a two night stay at the home of Mary’s cousin, Geoff. Unfortunately, Geoff and his wife Beth have moved to Virginia. Their gorgeous home, where we have enjoyed wonderful visits in the past, will be leased shortly. In the meantime we are grateful for a place to park and will run some errands for Geoff and Beth and enjoy the beautiful mountain and desert views - and their hospitality in spite of their absence.

The view from the patio.

Our life is flexible!

The weather in southern Arizona this May has been absolutely wonderful!!! We were in no rush and had no time sensitive schedule. We enjoyed a get-together with friends who were leaving for Alaska and had worked on our shrinking list of "Things to Do." A few more of our neighbors departed for their summer adventures. We played our daily 18 holes of free golf. Finally we picked Friday, May 21 as our departure day, completed our list of chores and said good-by to our remaining neighbors and golfing buddies. But, departure was not to happen! When we turned the key, the Dutch Star diesel engine burped and fell silent. There were phone calls, a battery boost, alarms and flashing lights, an overnight charging, more attempts at starting, and lastly, after one more early morning round of golf and visiting many of Casa Grande's auto parts stores, a purchase and installation of two new batteries. Hooray! The engine started right up on the first try. So, we put in the slides and unhooked our power once again, hooked up the car and were on our way. It was about 11:15am Saturday, May 22 when we got on I-10 heading towards Tucson. Tom was well aware of the winds that the weatherman had predicted, but we drove on…and with a rest stop in Benson, made it to our first goal of Lordsburg, NM.

Getting Ready!

We've slowly been working our way down the list of "Things to Do" before we hit the road.  The weather here at Palm Creek Golf and RV Resort in Casa Grande, AZ is as perfect as we can ever remember for this time of year...cool evenings and mornings and bright and sunny during the day...allowing for a full complement of outdoor living.  Only about 200 of the almost 1900 sites are actually occupied and we are enjoying the peace and quiet.  There are still friends with whom we can enjoy a round of golf, a set of tennis and some time socializing on the patio.  We're in no hurry, but plan to be back on the road sometime the week of May 17th.