Having Fun, and Getting Things Done

View from site

We've been here in Key West for almost two weeks and we're really enjoying ourselves. We ended up spending only two nights in the Overflow area before rotating to a full hook-up site. We were lucky to get a site on the end of a row with a clear view of the ocean. Here is a photo of our sunset view.

Shortly after arriving in Key West, I decided to make up a batch of Bajan Rum Punch and introduce Fran and John to the merits of this libation. I do believe they enjoyed it, and I know Lynda certainly did!

The infamous annual Fantasy Fest kicked off right about the time we arrived in Key West. Despite the rainy weather, the festivities were in full swing and so we decided we should at least take a look. So we went into Old Town with Fran and John. I have to be honest and say this just isn't my thing, at least not anymore. 25 years ago, I might have participated (ha!) but now I'm of the opinion that most people should keep their clothes on at all times. In any event, it was still entertaining to watch the spectators' reactions to some of the more outrageous costumes and antics.

Lynda, Fran, John

As we were walking out of town, we went by the Schooner Wharf Bar and happened to hear Raven Cooper belting out a Janis Joplin song. Well that was it for us... we went in, ordered a beer and settled in for a while.

Raven Cooper

Turns out it was Woodstock night, and Raven did an amazing job singing songs by legends such as Janis Joplin, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Jefferson Airplane, Joan Baez, Joe Cocker, and Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young.

Fran and John took us kayaking a few days ago at the Naval Air Station marina on Boca Chica. They have their own double kayak, and Lynda and I rented single kayaks from the marina. It was a fun afternoon, but very breezy and so we kept to sheltered areas. We plan to go again in a couple weeks.

Kayaking at Boca Chica

We wrapped up the afternoon with cold beer and hot food from the Navigator Bar and Grill, all to the sweet sound of Navy FA-18 Super Hornets launching and landing.

We've been enjoying taking the dogs for long walks around the campground, and just love the laid-back pace of the area. We've also been riding our bikes all over the place. For the past few months, both our bikes have been plagued by flat tires and then John showed me some tricks for easily replacing the inner tubes. Viola! No more flat tires!

A few nights ago, Fran and John taught us a complicated but intriguing card game called Hand & Foot. I partnered with Fran and we soundly thrashed John and Lynda! Hmmmm... maybe I shouldn't gloat; we might get destroyed next time.

Lynda and I were excited to make dinner reservations at Bliss Restaurant, just off Duvall Street. We had read excellent reviews that indicated this restaurant served Latin-Caribbean food, which I love love love. Long story short, our meals were OK but there was nothing particularly special on the menu in the way of Latin or Caribbean dishes. I will admit the Sangria was excellent, but would expect nothing less at $10 a glass. I doubt we'll go back to Bliss - there are so many other restaurants in Key West, why bother with just "OK"?

Now that we've been living in the motor home for a couple months, we've been fine-tuning where/how we store things and generally getting more settled in. And I've also been puttering with minor repairs and tweaks - for example, I replaced the bathroom vent's fan motor and blade assembly and it now spins so quietly we hardly notice when the vent fan is running.

We're Here! Key West, FL

We drove down from Marathon to Key West this morning, and made our way onto the Navy Base which occupies most of Dredgers Key. We're checked in at the campground and temporarily camping in the Overflow area, awaiting a spot with full hooks-ups. I think it will only be one or two nights before we rotate into a regular campsite.

Every winter, beginning in October and going until around April, hundreds of retired military snowbird RVers make their way to the Naval Air Station Key West Campground. At a cost of only $23 per day in one of the best winter locations in the Lower 48, Key West is the destination of choice for many of us. But it does get crowded.

To ensure everyone gets a fair shot at enjoying the facilities, this campground has a 14-day rotation policy. This means a camper occupies a full hook-up site for 14 days and then rotates out to the Overflow area until space becomes available so they can rotate back in for another 14 days. This early in the winter, campers usually wait in Overflow for only 2-3 nights before a full hook-up site becomes available. In the peak of the winter, January and February, campers can wait in Overflow as long as 30 days.

The Overflow area is a large meadow on the north side of Dredgers Key, overlooking the ocean. It's nice out here and the fact that we don't have any hook-ups is no big deal. We have plenty of fresh water and holding tank space and two generators at our disposal: the on-board Onan, a 7KW generator that uses close to a gallon of gas per hour, and a portable Honda eu2000i generator that can run on a gallon of gas for up to 8 hours. The Honda generator provides enough power for everything except the AC unit. But, we don't need air conditioning as the temperature is around 75F and it's very breezy. Our Honda eu2000i generator is brand new and so I had to get it ready for first time use. She runs like a boss!

After getting settled in, we went over to the full hook-up area and found Fran and John. They've been here for 3 or 4 days and rotated into a full hook-up site yesterday. We have plans to get together with them tomorrow.

Turtle Hospital and Dolphin Research Center - Marathon, FL

Despite the stressful drive through downtown Miami, we made it safe and sound to Marathon yesterday afternoon.

For several years, we've been interested in visiting the Turtle Hospital and the Dolphin Research Center in Marathon but always managed to miss them because we were either on our way to Key West or making our way back north from Key West. So this time around we decided to stop over in Marathon for a couple nights on our way to Key West.

We've been staying at the Marathon Coast Guard Station and it's OK, but not great. With the clarity of hindsight, it would have made more sense to go on to Key West and then drive back up to Marathon in the car. However to approach it, the bottom line is that we really enjoyed both the the Turtle Hospital and the Dolphin Research Center.

We went to the Turtle Hospital this morning and spent a couple hours there. They did an excellent job taking our group around the facility to visit various sick and recovering turtles, and educating us about various turtle species and man-made environmental impacts that threaten these marine animals.

It was also fascinating to learn how they nurse the turtles back to health, and the various types of tricky surgeries veterinarians and medical technicians routinely perform to save lives.

After the Turtle Hospital, we drove about 15 minutes to the Dolphin Research Center (DRC) on Grassy Key. We enjoyed this experience also. The Center is larger and more commercialized than the Turtle Hospital, but is still very focused on its mission as an education and research facility. In addition to Atlantic Bottlenose dolphins (of Flipper fame), the Center is also home to several California sea lions. These sea lions were either born at the facility, or were rescued and then deemed unreleasable and now have a forever home at the Center.

The Dolphin Research Center is the only state and federal government authorized Manatee Rescue Team in the Florida Keys. In this role, the facility may provide short-term (48 hour) rehabilitation or holding for manatees but they more typically transport injured and distressed manatees to designated rehabilitation facilities.

Visitors to the Dolphin Research Center can sign up for various tours in addition to general admission. We just went with the general admission and still found lots of interesting things to see, such as trainers working with the dolphins and demonstrating their intelligence.

How to Get Through Miami to the Florida Keys

We left Patrick Air Force Base this morning and made our way south to Marathon, Florida.

Since being in Florida, we've been avoiding the Florida Turnpike (toll roads) because they can get expensive when traveling with a motor home pulling a car. Also, the Turnpike can be a hassle since several sections are no longer manned and you must have exact change or a Sunpass. And I find it confusing that some (but not all) parts of the Turnpike allow Toll-by-Plate, whereby you can just drive through without a Sunpass and you'll get a bill in the mail for the tolls you incurred.

Anyway, avoiding the toll roads is generally very easy to do and does not add significant driving time. Except driving though Miami on the way to the Florida Keys. What happens is that I-95 ends and dumps you onto a 15-mile stretch in the middle of Miami. Driving in Miami is not much fun under the best of circumstances, and it is certainly no fun at all in a motor home pulling a car.

In past trips to Key West, we remembered to get onto the Turnpike at Ft Peirce and avoid the madness of Miami. But this time I somehow forgot - what a mistake! I won't let that happen again next time.

Magnets and Norcold Refrigerators

While we were staying at Manatee Cove Campground (Patrick Air Force Base),  it started raining one afternoon. If you've ever spent time in Florida, you know the rain comes down with a vengeance! After a couple hours of this downpour, I noticed our Norcold refrigerator was no longer working. By this time, it was after 7PM.

I verified that power was running, etc., and then checked the outside compartment. This is when I noticed an LED was illuminated on the Norcold  high temperature sensor retrofit, which is intended to prevent fires (it does not).

LED on Retrofit box

After doing some research, I learned this is a common problem. That is, moisture can trigger an error state in the retrofit box, and shut down the 12VDC power to the refrigerator. Regardless of whether the refrigerator is running in the LP or the AC mode, 12VDC must be available for the system to work.

Fortunately, the error can usually be cleared by holding a strong magnet on the retrofit box, to the right of the LED. After 10-30 seconds, the magnet will cause the circuit board relay to reset and clear the error.

But I did not have a magnet and the one I borrowed from a neighbor was not strong enough. So I made a jumper to bypass the retrofit box and get us through the night. This was only a very short term fix, and I do NOT recommend this approach. If a fire does start, the insurance company would likely deny the claim because the Norcold retrofit was bypassed.

The following afternoon, after getting back from boating with our friends, I went to the nearest Ace Hardware and got a magnet. Worked like a charm!

Fun Times on the Florida Spacecoast

After just one night at the Escapees Sumter Oaks RV Park, we made our way east to the Manatee Cove Campground at Patrick Air Force Base.

When I was a young airman, fresh out of technical training in June 1982, my first duty station was Patrick Air Force Base. I really enjoyed the two-plus years I spent in the Cocoa Beach area... what 22-year old would not? I still have friends in the area and whenever we're in Florida we stop and visit.

Sunset from our campsite

Manatee Cove Campground is a nice campground. Depending on what site you get, you may be on the water or not. Worse case, you'll be within a 3-minute walk and so it's all good. This time around we got a site right on the water, two spots away from our friends Fran and John. They are also heading to Key West and we've been trailing a few days behind them since Jacksonville. They got back on the road to continue south the day after we got to Patrick Air Force Base.

Once we were settled in at the campground, we went with Fran and John to eat in one of the base Dining Halls. The food was pretty good and you can't beat the price - $5.00 for a full meal with drink.

The next day, Tuesday, we caught up on chores such as laundry. It rained buckets that afternoon and this is when we experienced the Norcold refrigerator retrofit moisture issue. I explain this in the post Magnets and Norcold Refrigerators.

Raye, Paulie, Denise, Consuelo, Lynda

On Wednesday morning, we met up with friends Raye, Denise and  Paulie to go fishing. Paulie is Denise's 18-year old son and he is an avid fisherman and very competent boater. We had a really good time and it was so nice to be out on the water! Paulie took us out to sea via Sebastian Inlet but the water was a little rougher than we liked, so we headed back to the more sheltered waters of the Indian River. We tooled along and caught and released a few small fish. It was very relaxing, and I am so impressed with the man that Paulie is becoming. Denise has done a great job raising him!

That same evening, we all met up at Tammy and Debbie's house which is on the river in Grant, FL. They recently bought this property and renovations are underway. It will be a lovely home when they're finished. We all went to dinner at the Old Fish House Bar & Grill and enjoyed some good food and great company! I've known Denise and Tammy for over 32 years and we are still the girls we used to be! Life is good.

Next stop: Marathon, FL.

Weighed the Motor Home

We left Jacksonville yesterday and made our way to the Escapees Sumter Oaks RV Park in Bushnell, Florida. We had an appointment to have the Dolphin weighed this morning, through the Escapees Smart Weigh program.

Weighmaster Gaylord Coston did a fine job weighing our Dolphin and car, and going over the information with me. He also measured the height of the motor home, which is good to know.

It turns out that we are 400 pounds under max weight, which is almost exactly what I had calculated! And our tire pressure is right on the money as well, according to Michelin's Load and Inflation chart.

So we're in good shape providing we keep an eye on items we bring on board. We'll probably weigh the coach again in 6 months or so... weight can sneak up on you!

When we first arrived at the Oaks RV Park, we were perplexed by the layout of the campground. Turns out this used to be a mobile home (trailer) park before being converted to an RV park. Anyway, there is plenty of shade around the perimeter but the pull-through sites in the middle of the campground are open to the sun and heat. We would consider staying here for an extended period, provided we could get a shaded site.

Jacksonville and St Augustine, FL

After our brief stop in Charleston, we drove down to Jacksonville, Florida and we're staying at the Naval Air Station's Jacksonville RV Park.

We caught up with friends Fran and John, who were staying at another Naval Air Station campground, Osprey Cove RV Park.

Back in 2009, Lynda and I discovered Beach Road Chicken when we were visiting the Jacksonville Mayo Clinic. They claim to be the oldest restaurant in Jacksonville, and have been at the same location since 1939. Beach Road Chicken serves up very generous portions of family-style dinners of good ole' southern cookin', such as fried chicken, catfish, creamed peas, biscuits... etc. Everything is heart-stoppin' good, and we were determined to go back there again. Anyway, we picked up Fran and John and went to Beach Road Chicken for lunch - it was as good as we remembered!

Fran and John

After lunch, we drove to a so-called historic district which was supposed to offer an interesting area to park and walk around. We could not find it, and  ended up driving around. We came upon some beautiful old homes and so it turned out to be a very pleasant afternoon despite the false start.

Fran and John left the next day for Patrick Air Force Base... we will be just a few days behind them.

Before arriving in Jacksonville, I contacted a long-time friend, Kevin, who had moved to St Augustine about a year ago. We arranged to spend Saturday afternoon and evening with him in St Augustine, and I was really looking forward to seeing him!

Knowing that we would not be home from St Augustine until at least 10PM, we decided to board Sydney and Barley rather than leave them alone for 12 hours in the motor home. We dropped them off Saturday morning at the Jacksonville Airport Pet Paradise boarding kennel. Pet Paradise has facilities around the country at major airports. What makes them so useful is that you can drop off and/or pick up your pets on Sundays... most kennels do not offer Sunday service.

As it turned out, another friend, Bridget, had recently moved to Ponte Vedra Beach and so we met her for brunch at Beach Diner Saturday morning before driving south to St Augustine. We became friends with Bridget online several years ago when we were looking for a housesitter, but had never met her in person. We were so glad to have that time with her!

We met up with Kevin at his apartment in the old part of town around 1:30PM. We met his little dog, Walter, and then spent the next eight hours walking all over St Augustine, seeing both the touristy stuff and the off-the-beaten path things. Kevin's enthusiasm and love for St Augustine is so contagious! And he knows so much about this beautiful old town.

The weather was perfect. We ate a late lunch, popped into taverns for a beer every so often, got some pizza, walked around cemeteries, smoked cigars, visited Flagler College, etc. It was just an amazing time with my dear ole' friend. And, as you can see, Kevin and Lynda hit it off just fine!

We left St Augustine around 10PM and drove back to our Jacksonville campground  - we were exhausted and our feet were sore, but what a fun day we had!

We left Jacksonville this morning, after picking  Sydney and Barley up from Pet Paradise. They were happy to see us. Woof!

Charleston, SC - Angel Oak Tree and Crab Legs

After our week-long stop at Dreher Island State park, we made our way to the Joint Base Charleston RV Park.

As planned, we went to see the Angel Oak Tree, one of the oldest living trees in North America.
According to the web site, The Angel Oak is a Live Oak (Quercus virginiana) that is a native species found throughout the Lowcountry (Coastal Carolina). Believed to be in excess of 1500 years old, its massive, draping limbs and wide spreading canopy present the aura of an angel but the naming of this tree was acquired from the tree's previous owners, Martha and Justin Angel.

I have to admit that the Angel Oak was very impressive!

And we also enjoyed the drive from the base to Johns Island. I had forgotten how pretty the Oaks are in that part of South Carolina, with their scarves of Spanish Moss.

After visiting the Angel Oak Tree, we drove back to the campground and spent some time with the grrr-animals before going out to eat.



We both enjoy low country cooking and found a restaurant not too far from the base that served up some pretty good food!

 


We leave tomorrow for Jacksonville, Florida. We hope to visit an old friend in St Augustine, and catch up with RVing friends, Fran and John Kurz

Dreher Island State Park, SC - Fun with Friends!

We left Cove Lake State Park on September 30th and made our way to Dreher Island State Park, a few miles north of Columbia, South Carolina.

This was our first drive of significant distance in the motor home, and I was very pleased to see how well the Dolphin handled going through the Appalachian mountains between Tennessee and North Carolina. She hauled us and the car up and over with barely a shrug.

We lived in Columbia for many years before moving to Tennessee, and have stayed in touch with several  South Carolina friends who we were hoping to see. As it turned out, this has been a busy and fun-filled week!

We caught up with Sheila and Teresa over lunch at the Mediterranean Tea Room. And we spent a lot of time with Rhonda - she took us out on her boat at sunset, fed us several wonderful meals (and lots of wine), accompanied us to Octoberfest in Newberry, and hosted a dinner get-together with Sylvia  and Jeanie. We also got to visit with Catherine, and have a delicious brunch with Mimi.



Dreher Island State Park is on Lake Murray, and has two campground sections - A and B. We're staying in section A, in a site on the water. This is a lovely setting and we hope to camp here again sometime. The dogs have enjoyed it also - we took them swimming, which they love.

We also put Ursa's ashes into Lake Murray. Ursa, our much loved dog for 18 years, loved to swim in Lake Murray. And so it seemed fitting that her ashes become part of the lake. She passed away in 2009 and we've waited since then to go to Lake Murray.

This week has flown by... We're leaving tomorrow for Charleston, where we'll stay two nights so we can visit the Angel Oak Tree and enjoy some low country food.