January 18-23, 2016
Southern Florida

After a short trip to the Mayo and several weeks of recuperation we were finally ready and able to get out and check off a few items from our Florida bucket list. We decided to take the car and do a short trip to southern Florida and see the Everglades, Gulf Coast, Atlantic Coast, and the Keys.
The first day we drove south on I-75 to Tampa and took I-275 out over the bay.

We got off the interstate and took Hwy 41 south thru Bradenton, Port Charlotte, Fort Myers, Cape Coral and over to Naples where we stopped for the night. The next day we headed east thru Big Cypress National Preserve and the Everglades. Our plan was to stop at the Everglades Safari Park for an Air Boat ride and see the wildlife (gators!!!!) but unfortunately the weather didn't cooperate. It was very cool, windy, and rainy so we decided to skip it. We stopped for the night at a hotel on the southwest side of Miami. Wednesday we headed south to the Keys. We were surprised that the route wasn't miles of bridges over the ocean as the movies portray, but instead mostly roads over land with short sections of bridges. The longest bridge being Seven Mile Bridge. We guessed that was where the movie True Lies was filmed.

Can't you just see a big van hanging over the that edge waiting for a Pelican to land on it ;>)

The drive thru Key Largo, Islamorada, Marathon, and all the various Keys took about 3 hours. The drive down into the Historic District of Key West was a little tight. The roads are narrow and crowded but very quaint, similar to Charleston and Savannah. We finally reached our destination the Westin Hotel on the northwest side of the island.

We didn't have an ocean view but the view was nice.

The hotel had an upper and lower deck/patio area with full bar and restaurant service on each level. This afforded us a great location to view the nightly sunset celebration (yes, they celebrate that every night).

 

 

 

While we were here we spent a day riding the Old Town Trolley. The driver's are very entertaining and provide a lot of information about the history of the town and people. We also use it as a way to get around town as there are 13 stops and you can get on and off whenever you like. We took the trolley to the "Southernmost" point and took the standard tourist pic.

From this point Cuba is 98 miles away (even though the marker says 90). That is an example of some of the info you get from the trolley. There are a lot of good restaurants, interesting houses, a lot of history, and beautiful views, but the night is all about the bars. There are bars on every corner with live music and entertainers. We were brave enough to go to a well known bar called Sloppy Joe's. We took a table right up front and had a great seat for the raunchy musicians performing there. We ordered their signature Sloppy Joe sandwich and were less than impressed...but it was quite an experience for us.
We had a great time in Key West and loved the hotel and all the facilities. We also enjoyed the cruise ships that docked out front.

Nothing like spending the evening drinking Mai Tai's and watching the sunset celebration and the cruise ships departing....what a great time.

The next day we left Key West and headed back towards Miami. When we hit the mainland a storm front came through and we were in very heavy rain all the way to Port St Lucie, where we stopped for the night. Saturday morning we got up and made the 3 hour drive back to Silver Springs. It was a short trip and it flew by quickly but we will never forget the fantastic time we had in the Keys.

November 29, 2015
Wilderness RV Resort
Silver Springs, FL

Well we made it to our winter home here in Florida. It was a short drive around I-295 to I-10 to SR 301 to Ocala and then east on SR 40 to the RV resort.

This is a nice 55 plus RV park with all the amenities. We are inside the Ocala National Forest just on the outskirts of Silver Springs. We have river access and I hope to get the opportunity to air up the kayak and do some paddling. Marilyn is concerned about alligators. I'm not too worried because I am faster than her :>) . This is a large RV park with over 400 sites, mostly pull thru. We don't have as much living space on our site as I had hoped, but for the price (and location) it's pretty good. Here are a few pictures of our site.

We have already settled in for our 3 month stay and expect to get much more familiar with the surrounding area as well as exploring most of Florida from this location via short trips in the CRV. We are especially looking forward to getting down to the Keys. We have to take care of some business next week but hopefully we will be finding more fun things to post on the blog soon after that....stay tuned.....

November 28, 2015
Pecan Park RV Resort
Jacksonville, FL

We traveled 117 miles south on I-95 to Jacksonville for an overnight stay at Pecan Park. This resort has all paved roads and concrete sites with full hook ups. Unfortunately, the sites are very close together and you get the sardine feeling. Anyhow, since it's just an overnight stay it will do the trick. It's right off I-95 so it is easy on, easy off to get here, which is nice. Here are some pics of our site.

We're off to Silver Springs, FL tomorrow and we are looking forward to staying put for a little while.

November 26, 2015
Skidaway Island State Park
Savannah, SC

Happy Thanksgiving!!!  We spent the day taking a tour of downtown Savannah. The day before we drove out to Tybee Island. It was very windy so we didn't get out of the car much except for lunch and a quick shot of the lighthouse.

On Thanksgiving we made reservations at Lady & Sons restaurant (Paula Deen) and also for an Old Town Trolley tour of the downtown area.

Here is Marilyn pointing at the restaurant sign. And then a shot at our table inside. It was a fantastic buffet and we enjoyed every item they served. The restaurant is three stories tall with a central elevator and they served duplicate buffets on each floor.

After Dinner we jumped on the trolley and took the tour. It took a couple of hours to complete the tour and we had a great time seeing and learning about the history and architecture of old Savannah.
The town is beautifully laid out with "Squares" on every block. Each square is dedicated to either a historic figure or group. Most have statues or fountains and all have beautiful trees with Spanish moss and walkways and benches. Marilyn and I both felt this was one of the most beautiful cities we have seen. Here are some pictures of the "squares".

And here are some pictures of the historic homes. The oldest is the Pirate House built in 1733.

And a final picture from down along the Savannah river which borders the downtown area.

We have had a great time here and will be sad to leave. The town is amazing and the State Park has been one of the best places we've stayed. But it is time to move on. We will be heading to Pecan Park RV Resort in Jacksonville for an overnight stop before moving on to our winter home at Wilderness RV Resort in Silver Springs, FL.

November 24, 2015
Skidaway Island State Park
Savannah, GA

We left Charleston and traveled 114 miles south on Highway 17, and I-95. We are on the south east side of Savannah in a Georgia State Park campground. We have water and 50 amp electric but no sewer and the trees are so dense we don't have satellite TV, just local over the air channels.

Here are some pictures of the park entrance and our campsite.

As you can see the campground is heavily wooded with beautiful Spanish moss. We are in campground #1 on site #5. We are very happy with the site and it was easier than most to maneuver. Most sites are pull-through but the trees make for some very tight spots.

We will be going into Savannah, Hilton Head and Tybee Islands over the next few days and we even have reservations at Lady and Sons for Thanksgiving.

November 21, 2015
Oak Plantation Campground
Charleston, SC


I was able to get a picture of the beautiful house within the campground.

We researched all the things to see and do in Charleston and decided on a horse drawn carriage ride through the downtown historical district, a harbor tour, and a tour of Fort Sumter.

Here are some of the pictures of the carriage tour:

And here are some pictures from the harbor and Fort Sumter tour:

Charleston is a beautiful city with a lot of history. I'm  sure we could have spent several days seeing everything.

Next we're heading down to Savanna, GA. We're planning to have Thanksgiving dinner at Paula Dean's restaurant, Lady and Sons. We leave here on Tuesday and will be staying till Saturday before moving on to Jacksonville.