Day 146. December 30, 2013. Last day camping in Florida

Kind of a cloudy, cool day.  We biked a few miles along the beach highway, snooping at nice houses.  Then for lunch, we biked to Stinky's....a fish camp/wine bar.  They also have a restaurant that was hopping.  We had a surf and turf "po'boy" made with shrimp and New Orleans style pulled pork.  Tasty!     Relaxed in PM.  We are turning into old geezers.....played shuffleboard at campground.  

Then went to a locals place that featured $4/dozen oysters on the half shrill.  Very good!  In the evening we watched a show on the iPad before cleaning.  Suddenly we heard something outside....a raccoon was digging into our garbage sitting on the picnic table.  Some other campers shouted at it.  

Day 145. December 29, 2013. Meredith is engaged!

This is our final day with daughter Meredith and Gautham at Grayton Beach State Park. They woke up early and walked to the beach to watch the sun rise.  They came back engaged!

We are so happy for them.  They plan to marry in Nov or Dec have a reception in India.  We can't wait to go!  We will combine it with a sight-seeing trip.

Here they are in front of our cabin

They got an early start, hearing back to Ann Arbor.  We packed up and drove about 20 miles westward on the beach to another state park called Topsail.  We got the last campsite.  I guess it is busy because of Christmas break...lots of children.  From here we will go to Alabama and Mississippi, then Louisiana.  We are hoping to avoid New Orleans and just visit the bayou area.  

Day 144. December 28, 2013. Last day at Grayton Beach

We spent the day doing chores....storing/freezing the fish we had caught, laundry, etc.  Not sure if everything will fit back in our cars!  

For dinner, we had....what else?....more of our fish.  We had sashimi (see photo) with some champagne, and then fish pasta.  

We listened to a Prairie Home Companion..see radio on table.  It has been a great week, but went by too quickly! 

Day 143. December 27, 2013. Fishin' with Captain Mark

Another nice day at Grayton Beach State Park.  We chartered a fishing boat  trip with a local captain.

 Interesting....the beach really drops off, so the charter boats just drive on the beach, and back the boats into the water.  We spent about five hours out, going to different spots.  At one point, his battery quit working, so we were a bit nervous that we would be stranded 5 miles out.  He got it working, thank goodness.  We caught about 40 fish.  

George caught about 5 really nice big red snapper, but had to throw them back, as it is not the season.  

We did keep about 25 .....pink snapper, mango snapper, lesser amberjack, hogfish, white snapper, and flounder.  I even caught a mother-in-law fish, considered to be the ugliest and trashiest fish around!  

We had to bundle up a lot.  It was 60, but felt cold.  

We had lunch with the captain at a Grayton Beach pub.  For dinner, we ate some of our catch....sashimi, grilled whole stuffed snapper, and baked filets with mustard greens.  

Day 142. December 26, 2013. Relaxing at the beach.

We chilled at the cabin and then went to a fun place for lunch nearby.  We had blackened Mahi Mahi with beans and rice.  Then we went crabbing on one of the bays.  No luck.  

Then we went into the village of Grayton Beach.  This town has a motto "nice dogs; weird people".  We went to a local bar where they have pictures and sketches of dogs everywhere.  At this time of year, there aren't many tourists so it was fun talking with some of the old characters.  We grilled hamburgers  for dinner, as a change of pace.  Meredith's version was delicious.  

Day 141. December 25, 2013. Merry Christmas!

We are enjoying our cabin on the beach in NW Florida.  Staying with chef Meredith means that we are eating very well!  We had a delicious eggbake while opening our gifts.  Santa was very generous!  I am happy with my new laundry tub!  We also got an electric cooler, so that should cut down on ice purchases.  

For a snack, she made a delicious antipasti platter

Then we took a drive along the beach to some darling beach towns.  If we were ever to retire here, I think I found my favorite place....Seaside or Warercolor.  

Meredith tried crabbing, with no luck.

Then we enjoyed a wonderful paella that was a work of art

The westher is still cool...in the 60s, but very pleasant and sunny.

Day 140. December 24, 2013. Christmas Eve!

We are at a cabin in a Florida state park.  We decorated with our gifts, stockings, and a Rosemary Christmas tree that double-duties as our herb garden!

We fished and went crabbing on "our" beach. 

 Meredith and I bought seafood for Christmas dinner.

Here are our sand snowmen

Day 139. December 23, 2013. Christmas prep

We are staying this week at a camping cabin at Grayton Beach State Park with Meredith and Gautham. I guess I got my wish for Christmas-like weather.  It is quite cool...in the 60s.  The cabin is nice.  We took a drive around the Destin area, and had a nice lunch in a waterfront restaurant.  We wrapped presents and decorated a bit.  We took a nice walk on the beach.  There is a little path from our cabin to the beach.  The beach is empty....used by the people in the cabins only.  

We stopped at a great seafood market, and bought a flounder and pink snapper for dinner.  Meredith cooked them superbly.  

Day 138. December 22, 2013. In Grayton Beach for Christmas

We stayed a second night on the Panhandle near Apalachicola. when  we got ready to leave we discovered that our car battery was dead because we had left the new electric cooler on all night and used up all the battery.  A kind person helped us jump the battery and then we are off.  We drove into Apalachicola again and found a really nice restaurant right on the water.  As we knew that we are going to have oysters tonight we ordered clams from the local area instead.  They were steamed in garlic and butter and were delicious!

We drove on Northwest  on the Panhandle  stopping at Walmart for some last-minute Christmas shopping and Publix to stock up the cabin. We arrived at a really nice cabin at Grayton Beach State Park where we will be for one week .  Meredith an Gotham joined us in the evening and we had a wonderful oyster dinner.  We had several oysters on the half shell and then baked some oysters Rockefeller ......Wonderful!.

Day 137. December 21, 2013. Oyster Heaven!

We spent a second night (free) at this campground on the Gulf.  They call this area the "forgotten coast" as it is still pretty rustic and not built up.  This is the sunrise from our campsite 

We drove around St. George Island, a very nice barrier island that we can see from our campground.  Then to Apalachicola for lunch.  This is the oyster capital of Florida.  This area produces 90% of all oysters in Florida and 10% of all produced in USA.  We went to an oyster restaurant where they feature oysters prepared many ways.  We had them raw, Oreiental style...with soy, ginger and wasabi.  I jotted down some of their other preparations so we can broil or bake them if we buy a bunch.  

After driving through the Apalachicola National Forest, we enjoyed our Saturday night ritual...listening to Prairie Home Companion on NPR.  

Day 136. December 20, 2013. Free camping on the Gulf!

We hiked around our campground....Manatee State Park.  Raccoons and deer had visited us in the night.  We took a side trip to Cedar Key on the western coast.  When we lived in Gainesville in the 1980s, we had a boat, and had often used Cedar Key's boat ramp.  It had been a little sleepy fishing village, but now has been "discovered".  They harvest clams there.  We had lunch in a local spot that had won a national clam chowder competition 3 years in a row, beating their New England counterparts.  

Then we drove on to Carabelle, Fl.  We are in a commercial campground, and are right on the beach. When we were in the Keys, a fellow camper gave me a voucher for 2nights' stay here.  They had been here for a few weeks, but had to leave for a family emergency, so got this voucher.  When I told her we would be in this area, she gave me the voucher.  How nice!  

Day 135. December 19, 2013. On the road across Florida

We said good-bye to our friend in Ft. Pierce, FL which is on the SE coast and drove northwest.  We took the back roads.  We saw lots of orange groves where they were harvesting the fruit, huge cattle ranches and sod farms.  We stopped at a roadside stand and bought factor jerky for a snack.    We also drove through miles of retirement communities and strip malls...not too pleasant.  We drove to Manatee Springs State Park.  It is in Northwest Central Florida. The park has a huge spring.  The manatee swim up the Gulf, through the Suwanee Rive,in the winter, to this 

The water in the springs stays at 72 degrees so they migrate here in the winter.  There are huge cypress trees and a boardwalk to the platform to watch the manatees.

There are also beautiful birds.  We grilled steak on the campfire and roasted a sweet potato in aluminu, foil. Nice 

Day 134. December 18, 2013. Ft. Pierce, FL

We are with my aunt's sister another day.  She showed us her boss's yacht that is for sale for $1.3 M. It has 7 heads!  Very luxurious.  Then we toured a Smithsonian aquarium that they moved here from D.C..  Very interesting.  Guided tour.  We went to a biker bar for lunch.  Had a soft shelled crab sandwich.  In the afternoon, we went to the town's weekly craft and farmers' market.  In the evening we went downtown to see the Christmas decorations.  The tall palm trees are strung with lights and there is a light show synchronized with Christmas songs. I can't get used to a tropical Christmas!   We went out to eat at a local rib joint.  

On the property is a sauna and bathroom that we have been using.  Here is George with the kitty in front of it.

There is a huge banyan tree in front of the house

Here is the view of the water looking out from the back yard (gated)

Day 133. December 17, 2013. Ft. Pierce, Florida

We packed up from our last night at the state park.  We went a few miles north to Stuart.  We had to get some maintenance done on our car and camper there.  Then, we went a bit farther north to Ft. Pierce.  We are visiting my aunt's sister for a few days.  She takes care of the estate of a wealthy British fellow who has homes all over the world.  She is caretaker for his house, boat, and 6 cars, including a Rolls Royce and a Bentley convertible.  He lives here about 2 months a year.  Now he is in his home in the Turks and Caicos.   We had our mail delivered here, so it was fun reading Chrustmas cards and getting caught up with business.  We had a nice cook-out with her and her brother and his wife.  We are camping in the backyard.  We are right on the water so there is a very pleasant breeze.   

Day 132. December 16, 2013. Relaxing in SE Florida

We are in our same campground, so have plenty of time to relax.  I think the westher here is perfect.  Highs in the mid 70s; low at night around 60.  George, however, thinks it is cold so he is cowering in the camper while I fix breakfast

We biked around the campground, then went on a nature trail hike.  We drove into Jupiter for some shopping.  We stopped at a wonderful Italian gourmet market.  Incredible delis, meats, cheeses.  We bought Italian bread, pate and cheese, and went to the beach for a picnic.  Then we drove around, gawking at the beautiful mansions, on the inland waterway and/or on the ocean.  

We had leftovers for dinner, as we won't be cooking out for the next few days, as we will be visiting family.  I lightly fried the leftover raviolis on the George Forman grill and served with a cheese sauce with some bits of bacon.  Veg was an avacado that was at a perfect ripeness.

A new rig pulled into the campsite next to ours.  See contrast in our sizes.

 

Day 131. December 15, 2013. Christmas shopping

Second day in this state park, in SE Florida.  We talked with camper neighbors in the AM.  It is common in campgrounds for people to stroll or bike around, stopping to chat with others.  Typically the conversations are about other campgrounds and comparing types of campers.  People are always intrigued by ours, since it about one-tenth the size of theirs.  

The sky was dark, and thunderstorms were predicted, so we decided to use this day for shopping.  We found a mall nearby with typical mall shops, but there were also some very high-end shops there like Jimmy Choo and Ferragamo shoes....for the wealthy people in this area.  

Then, we found a Gander Mountain and bought our own Christmas gift...this screened canopy shelter

We think we will use it a lot.  Gives us a sense of an extra room.  It also keeps away the bugs when we close all sides.  We had a boring, but easy, dinner...tuna and Parmesan/spinach noodles.  

Day130. December 14, 2013. SE Florida

We are at Jonathan Dickenson State  Park, a bit north of West Palm Beach, for 4 days.  Nice to be settled.  

We took a LONG bike ride to a river in the park.  There, we went on a 2-hour park ranger-led pontoon boat tour on the river.  We saw lots of turtles, alligators and even  a manatee.  We stopped at an island to see how an old trader had lived  years ago.  The bike ride back was awful.....facing into the wind with hot temp and high humidity.  My face was beet red and it took me a long time to cool off.  

We needed to do laundry.  George asked at the office, and they gave him directions to a laundromat in the nearest town, Hobe Sound.  He must have had a pained look on his face, as they assured him that there was a bar next door.  Turns out that the bar was having a Customer Appreciation Day and it was packed with locals.  Average age was probably 65!  

We listened to Prairie Home Companion, our Saturday night ritual.  Dinner was ravioli and Italian vegetables.   

Day 129. December 13, 2013. Leaving the Keys

This is our last day here at Long  Key, in the Florida Keys.  Here is the view from our campsite with George eating breakfast.  

Pretty amazing.  

We have been in the Keys for 16 days, staying in all 4 state parks and 3 commercial  campgrounds.  We feel like we have done a lot.  Now moving back north.  

We had to drive through Miami and all the surrounding cities.  Can't believe all the skyscrapers.  It was a stressful drive.  We are now staying near Jupiter, Fl in a state park.  This is a ritzy part of Florida.  Lots of mansions on the inland waterway.  

For dinner, we decided we needed a change from seafood so grilled hamburgers and stuffed with the leftover blue cheese .  Side dish was creamed spinach.  Talked with a lovely couple from Quebec who have an Aliner camper like ours.  

Day 128. December 12, 2013. Fishing trip

We are at Long Key State Park, our last campground in the Keys.  We took a walk on the park's nature trail.  I about wiped out due to heat and humidity.  We are staying in the same park tonight, but have to switch campsites as I reserved the 2 nights separately (getting the 2nd night when someone canceled).  We made the move, then drove into Marathon where we went on the Marathon Lady party fishing boat.  There were about 20 passengers.  We went out about 4miles.  The captain and crew were very helpful.  We fished in about 5 places, trying to find the best.  I caught a sponge, a piece of coral and 2 small fish.  One was a keeper.  George caught about 10 reef fish and threw back some small ones, including tiny grouper.  It was a fun afternoon.  We had them for dinner, grilled with oil and soy sauce, on the George Forman grill.  We watched a Great White Heron parade in front of us in the ocean, irredescent in the moonlight

Day 127. December 11, 2013. Liquid Sunshine

At a state park in the Keys called Curry Hammock.  In all the state parks in the Keys, they are trying to preserve nature so everything is all "woodsy".  Consequently there are a lot of bugs, especially one kind called "no-see-ums".  They are almost invisible.  They love me; not so interested in George.  I  think I have about 10 bites per square inch all over my body.  They itch like the dickens.  It rained during the night so they were particularly bad this AM.  I escaped by sitting in the camper with a good book and my friend, the air conditioner.  George went fishing.  There was a huge downpour around noon.  They call that "liquid sunshine" in Florida.  We were able to pack up between the rains.  We arrived at our next state park in the Keys called Long Key.  All the sites are on the water.  Unfortunately, there are mud puddles all over due to the rain, so it doesn't look so nice.  

This is the view from our camper 

For dinner, I needed to use up some celery, so bought some blue cheese for stuffing.  We had shrimp cocktail and then shrimp 'n grits.  

Day 126. December 10, 2013. Swimming Lunch!

George fished from our private deck.  Caught this little guy...a Jack.  

He threw it back, so no fish for breakfast.  We enjoyed the campsite with the cool breeze.  Then we packed up and drove north to our next campground in the Keys.  We stopped at this restaurant for lunch.  We had blackened scallop sandwich...really good and different.  We were surprised to see that the  restaurant has its own pool.  After lunch, we swam for awhile.  The sun is really hot between noon and 2:00, so it was nice to chill at the pool.  

Then we went to the next state park.  This is about mile marker 60.  We went to the beach and swam for awhile.  Then we went to a nice restaurant.  We had coupons for a free drink and for free Key Lime pie.  Very good!

Day 125. December 9, 2013. Tiki-hut Paradise

We went to a presentation on the vegetation of Bahia Honda Key, where we are camping.  Then fished and swam some.  We packed up and headed south to our next campground.  We were going to have a picnic, but it was too hot.  So, we found an outdoor restaurant on the water.  We had what is called a Cuban Mix.  It is a toasted Cubsn sandwich with various meats and cheese.  Yum.  Then we went to our next campground.  This is a commercial one.  It is the most expensive one we have been to, but worth it.  We are right on the water.  Literally, our camper is about 2 feet from the Atlantic.  

George fished from our site.  We even have a private boat slip to dock our  boat.  Oops, forgot that we don't have a boat!  

We even have our own tiki hut!  There is a strong tropical breeze, so it is very pleasant.  I sat at the table and read.  Super relaxing.  

The campground has its own restaurant, so we ate there.  We had conch fritters.  Just so-so, but the fritters are a Keys favorite, so we thought we should have them at least once.  Talked with a guy from New Hampshire who stays here for 6 months.  

Day 124. December 8, 2013

I

Our campground is right on the water.  This is our view from our site.

We swam some more in the campground's swimming pool (wanted to get our money's worth), then packed up.  We had lunch in a tiki hut restaurant that turned out to be very gourmet.  We shared Cuban pork, with black beans and yellow rice.  We had a coupon (of course) for a free drink, so George got a margarita...our first in the Keys.

We are seeing lots of huge iguana.  They are not native, and we learned that they cause damage

We checked in at another state park in the Keys...about mile marker 30.  We watched the sun set over the water with a couple from Quebec. For dinner, I made chicken salad from the leftover thigh, and served it with a baquette.  We also shucked some oysters and ate raw.  Nice cool meal.  The heat is getting to me.  Embarrassed to complain, though

Day 123. December 7, 2013. 4 month anniversary!

Today marks 4 months on the road.  Doesn't seem possible! 

We packed up and left John Pennekamp State Park.  All addresses here are by mile marker on Highway 1.  Key West is mile marker zero.  We have been in the Key Largo area, about mile marker 100.  

We moved to a commercial campground near Marathon, about mile marker 60.  There weren't any sites in state parks available.  It is more expensive, but quite nice.  It has its own beach, dock, and swimming pool.  

We toured the Turtle Hospital.  Very interesting.  People spot injured turtles and the turtle ambulance brings them in.  

This one had just come in.  It has tumors on it, from pollution.  We saw the operating room where it will have the tumors removed.

Others have swallowed garbage, like fishing hooks and plastic bags, that are removed.  Some are there because they have been hit by a boat.  When the shell is damaged, water enters their body.  They grow a camelback full of air and water and become unbalanced.  So the hospital affixes divers' weights to their shells to balance them.  Then they can swim again

After the hospital, we swam in the sea, and then the pool.  We have our own tiki hut from which to view the sunset.  

We have eaten a lot of seafood, so grilled chicken thighs for dinner.  

Day 122. December 6, 2013. Manatee!

Another day at John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park.  We biked over to a different beach within the park.  Almost empty.  I had the water to myself.  I started snorkeling around, and saw what I thought was a big rock or sunken boat.  Then it moved, and I realized that it was a HUGE manatee!!!  I yelled to George and others on the shore and they watched it surface for air.  I watched it under the water munching on sea grass.  Although I know they are completely harmless, I was still caught off-guard and my heart was pounding.  They are cousins of elephants, and this one was that size.  I went back to the shore, then returned to the manatee several times.  I was just inches from his snout.  It was an experience of a lifetime, especially since it was so unexpected.

We cleaned up and went to a bar to watch the sun set.  This one has a glass bottom floor, so you can watch fish under you while you eat and drink.  They also had a huge Christmas tree-like structure made out of lobster trips.  Just seems surreal. 

For dinner, we grilled a hogfish snapper with onions and leftover cilantro.  Good!

Day 121. December 5, 2013. Kayaking

Still in same Keys state park.  We rented a 2-person kayak.  George took his fishing pole.  The young man who got us set up gave us a map and told George where some good fishing spots were.  George told me to navigate while he fished.  That was our first mistake.  I am terrible with directions.  I could not decipher the map.  We rowed for quite some time in the main channel, and then headed into some smaller channels where supposedly the fishing is better.  Second mistake.  The channel we went into was the wrong one (too tiny to be on a map).  We quickly became ensnarled in mangove tree branches.  We were really stuck.  I had to lie down completely on my back while George shoved us out.  The tree branches scratched my life jacket.  I was just glad there were no salt-water crocodiles lurking around.   Also glad there was no one to see us, as it was very embarrassing.  I'm sure we looked hilarious.   Then we rowed farther, totally lost.  By this time, I'm getting a little panicked and tired of sitting.  We finally came to a sign that said "no canoes beyond this point" as it was the channel out to the ocean.  What did we do?  Of course, we continued!  The current was pulling us out, so we had to row pretty hard to keep toward shore.  Finally made it back, safe and sound, but alas, no fish.

We swam in the PM to cool off.  We met a nice family from South Africa.  They are traveling around the USA for one year.  They bought a camper and will sell it when they go back.  They have 3 children, ages 1, 2, and 4.  I can't imagine doing this with young kids!

We went to a tiki bar on the bayside to watch the sunset.  

They have a tradition that a customer rings a big gong right at sunset

We had some smoked fish dip as we watched the sun set.  We really felt like we were in some Caribbean Island in a swanky resort.

Nothing spectacular for dinner....leftover pork chops with baked potato and spinach.