Well, we've started our trip North. Admittedly only a couple of miles, but still! Grassy Key RV Park is a small park with a pool, on the Gulf side. We're here for Christmas and then will head to the Naples area on the 28th.
What have we been doing?
*Kayaking through a mangrove swamp at Curry Hammock. Very tight fit even with a kayak. Mangroves overhead--really dense growth. And big spiders--the body about the size of a loonie!
*Going through the Dolphin Research Center--they have a new baby dolphin that is only 2 weeks old. The Mom is attentive to the new one and they swim around the enclosure together--but the baby is getting independent and starting to swim away from the Mom.
*Going through the Turtle Rescue Hospital. Ocean pollution is causing fibrous growths on the turtles, which they laser off. Also, they eat plastic bags and other floating garbage which causes them to get sick and unable to dive for food. And they get hit by boats. They have an ambulance, operating room, "wards", both private and semi-private, the whole deal.
*Watching their Christmas Boat Parades at 2 sites. They decorate up their boats and drive around. One of the little ones was all made up as Santa's sleigh, and a big one had part of the High School Band playing on deck! There was a pirate one as well, complete with noisy bangs and loud "aarghs".
Its been hot here--they have been beating records just about every day by 2 and 3 degrees. Sunday was 89F, old record 87, normal 76--they are already talking about it being the warmest December on record. So that and the high humidity slows us down a bit--pool time is welcome as is the trailer air conditioning!
We have 2 little battery powered Christmas trees on the go, and the outdoor lights and a couple of LED candy canes as well. Christmas carols on the stereo too. But it is quite different being away from family and cold. We miss you.
bye for now
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Living the Snowbird Life in the Florida Keys
The trip from the Lion Safari was great. We decided to take the road less travelled and avoided freeways. It took us through part of the Everglades where we saw many people on motorcycles! Bet you thought I was going to say Alligators! Not a one.
Our campsite at Curry Hammock State Park is great. Just steps to the beach with nice showers and no distractions like TV or Internet. It has electricity and water so we can stay cool as is about 85 degrees with high humidity. We are planning some snorkel trips out to the coral reef as we got prescription masks so we will be able to see the fish. We tried them out at our beach and they were great!
After some deliberation we have decided to stay down here for a while so hope to find a site nearby. We are going looking today. We spent a day in Key West and enjoyed it but probably will not go back as it was enough. It is a party town and very hot and a bit crowded.
We will update this as soon as we find a campsite with WiFi.
Our campsite at Curry Hammock State Park is great. Just steps to the beach with nice showers and no distractions like TV or Internet. It has electricity and water so we can stay cool as is about 85 degrees with high humidity. We are planning some snorkel trips out to the coral reef as we got prescription masks so we will be able to see the fish. We tried them out at our beach and they were great!
After some deliberation we have decided to stay down here for a while so hope to find a site nearby. We are going looking today. We spent a day in Key West and enjoyed it but probably will not go back as it was enough. It is a party town and very hot and a bit crowded.
We will update this as soon as we find a campsite with WiFi.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Leaving Lion Safari
after a fascinating few days.
The Lion Safari is a drive-through African animal park--we went twice. The animals are outside your vehicle in their home--they have lots of space to run around. They give you a CD to play as you drive through the park which describes the animals. Some thoughts of note:
*Ostriches are big. We're sitting in the truck and looking up at the head of the ostrich.
*rhinos are big. From the truck, we're about level with their backs. And their horns are big too!
*We got to feed giraffes. They are big, graceful, gentle animals with long (30-40 cm) purple tongues and huge eyes. We fed them "crackers" and plum leaves. Their tongues wrap around the food and they have lots of saliva, so we washed our hands afterwards!
*The KOA is just outside the park, so we could hear the lions roar, especially in the night and early morning. Its quite a sound to wake you up at 4AM! You're glad of the fact that there is at least a few fences and the trailer shell between you and them--and you think about sleeping in the open on the Serengeti!
Tomorrow we head down to the Keys. We've been buying Christmas decorations and looking around for zero-gravity beach chairs so we can make the best of a Christmas away from loved ones. Not sure when we'll be able to update the blog because there is no Internet at Curry Hammock State Park, where we are booked for 2 weeks. But there will be hot spots somewhere...
The Lion Safari is a drive-through African animal park--we went twice. The animals are outside your vehicle in their home--they have lots of space to run around. They give you a CD to play as you drive through the park which describes the animals. Some thoughts of note:
*Ostriches are big. We're sitting in the truck and looking up at the head of the ostrich.
*rhinos are big. From the truck, we're about level with their backs. And their horns are big too!
*We got to feed giraffes. They are big, graceful, gentle animals with long (30-40 cm) purple tongues and huge eyes. We fed them "crackers" and plum leaves. Their tongues wrap around the food and they have lots of saliva, so we washed our hands afterwards!
*The KOA is just outside the park, so we could hear the lions roar, especially in the night and early morning. Its quite a sound to wake you up at 4AM! You're glad of the fact that there is at least a few fences and the trailer shell between you and them--and you think about sleeping in the open on the Serengeti!
Tomorrow we head down to the Keys. We've been buying Christmas decorations and looking around for zero-gravity beach chairs so we can make the best of a Christmas away from loved ones. Not sure when we'll be able to update the blog because there is no Internet at Curry Hammock State Park, where we are booked for 2 weeks. But there will be hot spots somewhere...
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Happy US Thanksgiving
from the Lion Safari KOA near West Palm Beach. It has been a week since the last posting, so here's a catch-up!
The stay near Titusville was a nice combination of R&R and sightseeing. The park itself was a bit too close to I-95 noise-wise, but otherwise very nice. At around 5:30 every evening--dusk--about 50 egrets came and landed in a few trees on the other side of the pond and slept there overnight. It was really neat to see all their white figures in the dark as we were walking Abby. We went for a swim in the pool--but only once because we were otherwise too occupied! And, of course, a couple of shopping days...
On one day we went to the Canaveral Seashore National Park and had a tailgate picnic watching the waves rolling in. We had Abby with us and dogs aren't allowed on the beach. It was superb. Another day we went to Merritt Island Wildlife Preserve--just north of and very close to the shuttle launch site. Lots of seacoast and waves there too--we left Abby at home that day so we took a walk along the beach with the shorebirds and the waves rolling in. Laurel got her pants wet by a wave--and reports that the water was *cold*.
We wanted to get a bit further south to cut the length of the trip to the Keys so we travelled yesterday to the above KOA--it was a drizzly day but just after we got set up, it really chucked it down. We have signed on for a Thanksgiving Dinner tonight at the KOA--turkey, etc.! And, because we are right beside/part of the Lion Safari, we can hear all sorts of strange animal noises--baboons, birds, noisy grunts of some description, etc. Wierd, noisy, and somewhat upsetting to Abby!--but better than the road noise at the last place.
We are here for 4 nights, then off on Sunday to Curry Hammock State Park, about half way down the Keys, near Marathon. We won't have internet in the park, so will have the BlackBerry data on. We're there for 13 nights, and will use that time to plan out our next move. It is right on the ocean with a beach, so guess where we will be!
By to all!
The stay near Titusville was a nice combination of R&R and sightseeing. The park itself was a bit too close to I-95 noise-wise, but otherwise very nice. At around 5:30 every evening--dusk--about 50 egrets came and landed in a few trees on the other side of the pond and slept there overnight. It was really neat to see all their white figures in the dark as we were walking Abby. We went for a swim in the pool--but only once because we were otherwise too occupied! And, of course, a couple of shopping days...
On one day we went to the Canaveral Seashore National Park and had a tailgate picnic watching the waves rolling in. We had Abby with us and dogs aren't allowed on the beach. It was superb. Another day we went to Merritt Island Wildlife Preserve--just north of and very close to the shuttle launch site. Lots of seacoast and waves there too--we left Abby at home that day so we took a walk along the beach with the shorebirds and the waves rolling in. Laurel got her pants wet by a wave--and reports that the water was *cold*.
We wanted to get a bit further south to cut the length of the trip to the Keys so we travelled yesterday to the above KOA--it was a drizzly day but just after we got set up, it really chucked it down. We have signed on for a Thanksgiving Dinner tonight at the KOA--turkey, etc.! And, because we are right beside/part of the Lion Safari, we can hear all sorts of strange animal noises--baboons, birds, noisy grunts of some description, etc. Wierd, noisy, and somewhat upsetting to Abby!--but better than the road noise at the last place.
We are here for 4 nights, then off on Sunday to Curry Hammock State Park, about half way down the Keys, near Marathon. We won't have internet in the park, so will have the BlackBerry data on. We're there for 13 nights, and will use that time to plan out our next move. It is right on the ocean with a beach, so guess where we will be!
By to all!
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Disney World to Space Coast Florida
We have been cut off Technology for longer than Mike can stand! Now on Internet for the week...He needs to keep up wiyh the Space Station and NASA. Seeing the Shuttle launch was SPECTACULAR!!! It is so different to seeing it on TV. The sound is the most unique part, it seems to move the air around you. All in all a most worthwhile experience. Mike was totally in his element and can check one more thing off his "bucket list".
Our time with Dena and Jason in Disney World was a blast....we were on the fun run for a week! Our accomodations in Camp Wilderness were very beautiful and relaxing. It truly is a wilderness, with a resident Armadillo, deer, rabbits, ducks, squirrels and the odd Gator! Jay slept in the tent near the lake...I think he had one ear open for any wild creatures. My favourite park this time was Epcot, the crowds were few and the attractions updated and some were most wonderful...the aquarium and Manatee habitat and the greenhouses were very cool.
Pirates of the Carribean is still my all time favourite ride...I loved it even befire Johnny Depp came along! The Magic Kingdom could use some more attractions, or less admissions. there are way too many people for the space. The sel, sell, sell was known to us as the "fleecers" and it worked...I bought our Florida Christmas tree there. It is fibre optic with Mickey ear decorations and is very pretty. We will enjoy it wthout snow.
We have booked into a nice little park near the Space Coast and will stay here for a week. Time to rest and explore the area. Abby is happy to sit in one place and there are some other dogs here for sniffing and greeting.
TTYS
Laurel and Michael
Our time with Dena and Jason in Disney World was a blast....we were on the fun run for a week! Our accomodations in Camp Wilderness were very beautiful and relaxing. It truly is a wilderness, with a resident Armadillo, deer, rabbits, ducks, squirrels and the odd Gator! Jay slept in the tent near the lake...I think he had one ear open for any wild creatures. My favourite park this time was Epcot, the crowds were few and the attractions updated and some were most wonderful...the aquarium and Manatee habitat and the greenhouses were very cool.
Pirates of the Carribean is still my all time favourite ride...I loved it even befire Johnny Depp came along! The Magic Kingdom could use some more attractions, or less admissions. there are way too many people for the space. The sel, sell, sell was known to us as the "fleecers" and it worked...I bought our Florida Christmas tree there. It is fibre optic with Mickey ear decorations and is very pretty. We will enjoy it wthout snow.
We have booked into a nice little park near the Space Coast and will stay here for a week. Time to rest and explore the area. Abby is happy to sit in one place and there are some other dogs here for sniffing and greeting.
TTYS
Laurel and Michael
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Walt Disney World!!!
Some delay in this posting because we didn't have easy internet access--and we still don't, so it will be a short post.
We headed south from Savannah to St. Augustine, FL. It started out as a Spanish settlement, and still has a stone fort. It is quite touristy, but there are Spanish influences everywhere. We stayed in a somewhat dated RV park just south of town, right on the Intracoastal Waterway.
Then, a drive south to Orlando and into WDW Wilderness Park--the RV resort. Nice site, full services including cable, but Internet is an extra $10/day, so we didn't. We have been texting.
Dena and Jason get here tonight. We are all well. May not post again for a week...
We headed south from Savannah to St. Augustine, FL. It started out as a Spanish settlement, and still has a stone fort. It is quite touristy, but there are Spanish influences everywhere. We stayed in a somewhat dated RV park just south of town, right on the Intracoastal Waterway.
Then, a drive south to Orlando and into WDW Wilderness Park--the RV resort. Nice site, full services including cable, but Internet is an extra $10/day, so we didn't. We have been texting.
Dena and Jason get here tonight. We are all well. May not post again for a week...
Friday, November 6, 2009
Savannah, Georgia
is about 2 hours down the road from Charleston. We had a lazy morning and didn't actually arrive here until 1:30. After setting up the trailer, we went downtown to the Visitor Center and picked up a hop-on-hop-off trolly tour of the historical center of Savannah. The city was founded with a geometrical pattern of 24 squares--small parks--of which 22 are left. So, the tour wove in and around the squares and the historical buildings surrounding them. In spite of the Civil War and a number of city-wide fires, there are still lots left, and they are quite impressive. And lots of stone work left near the historical port--the areas where they graded the cotton are still there, as are just about all the original stone buildings, but they have been renovated into shops and restaurants and the like. Very well done.
We hit a WalMart Supercenter on the way back to the trailer. We are parked at a KOA with alligators in the lake right beside us--although we haven't seen them yet. Maybe tomorrow morning!
Tomorrow--Florida, the St. Augustine area.
We hit a WalMart Supercenter on the way back to the trailer. We are parked at a KOA with alligators in the lake right beside us--although we haven't seen them yet. Maybe tomorrow morning!
Tomorrow--Florida, the St. Augustine area.
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