January 15 - January 25, 2002

We have never been so ready to start a trip I thought, as the departure day for our return to the RV approached.  However, I was not thinking about the details like driveway plowing to accomodate the house sitter, and the mail forwarding we would need.  The day before departure turned out to be as hectic as any previous departures, filled with last minute details. We did pick up the car on schedule, despite the snow storm the night before, and loaded up in the slippery driveway.  Florida sunshine never seemed more desirable......

Wednesday January 16 we made it back to Florida after a 24.75 hour drive lengthened somewhat by a rush hour passage through New York City, and were reunited with the RV.  The warm sunny weather was a GREAT reward for all the driving.  The cats seemed to look on the RV as quite a step up from the car.  We found it in perfect shape except the aloe plant we had put out under the front bumper so the rain would perform watering chores was missing.  After connecting the batteries, all electrical systems worked, the house battery checked full charge, and the engine started RIGHT UP...vroooom.  Happiness is a running engine!

Later in the afternoon one of the campground regular residents came by with the plant, saying he had taken it to his place when cold weather threatened, for safekeeping;  it was in excellent shape.  It was about then that we were  convinced that this is the place to store next year...if they are concerned about a PLANT ( it does not look like much, but aloe is a nice thing for mosquito bites), they will be quite alert to intrusions or problems on the RV itself.

We moved from the dry storage location to a spot with water and electricity, and caught up on LOTS of missed sleep.  The car we had rented was the most uncomfortable we have EVER experienced for that length of trip.  The contour seats that we thought would be a luxury turned out to confine us to one position that made sleep difficult and put the drivers right leg to sleep after an hour.  Unsafe as it may have been, I was forced to drive on cruise control looking out between my knees, which were pulled up to get my feet flat on the floor to mitigate the pain in my back and legs.  I cannot imagine what the vehicle designers must have been thinking.....

Thursday Jan 17 we arose earlier than desired to return the car, then continued to pack things away and re-familiarize ourselves with "life" on the RV.   We planned to visit old friends Ralph and Reni in Venice, so on Friday January 18 we dumped our waste tanks, checked out of the campground an hour late due to their computer problems, and headed North on I75.  A half hour later we were parked in Ralph & Reni's shady driveway, enjoying their hospitality, delicious water, and electric hookup.  

 We spent a lot of time with Ralph and Reni during our sailing days, when their children were waist high and ours only a dream.  It was nice to see them again, and the kids as adults with their own child.  

Time sure flies when you are having fun....  :-)  We spent three nights in their driveway, enjoying examining Ralph's homebuilt two seat biplane.  This 5 year project involved Ralph's cutting and welding the tubular steel frame, covering the frame with fabric, rebuilding and installing the Ford automobile engine with belt reduction drive for the prop, installing all the controls, and adjusting the aircraft balance so it would fly properly.  He is properly proud of that successful accomplishment.  The plane is stored with the wings removed in his garage/workshop where it was built.  

We made negative progress toward reducing the excess pounds we put on over the holidays here, but the eating was worth it.  The steak & corn feed  Ralph & Reni put out on Sunday was superb.....

On Monday January 21 we reluctantly departed, as we needed to proceed on our schedule.  The only disappointment of the weekend had been our inability to reliably connect with our ISP with the cellphone.  The signal was not strong, but the Verizon direct connection worked every time.  This allowed us to receive email, but not send it thru the ISP's server, nor receive usenet newsgroups from them.  We must look into the problem if it continues; we were still getting back into our RV routine and had little written, hence this report will be uploaded to the website next weekend, and if possible an email will be sent then also. We stopped on the way at Venice Memorial Gardens to pay our respects to Claire's Aunt Doris, and moved quickly South on I 75.  We intended to spend the night at the Cape Coral Walmart, but found signs "No Overnight Parking, vehicles towed at owners expense".  We decided to bike through Cape Coral's Eco Park, and enjoyed the boardwalk through the mangrove forest along the edge of the Caloosahatchee River.  

We continue to marvel at the lack of mosquitoes in such areas, but certainly do not complain....  :-)  After cooking dinner and relaxing, we decided to move to a Cracker Barrel restaurant for the overnight; we mapped the route, and proceeded on the 15 mile journey.  Seven miles along, we came upon a Walmart we did not expect to see, and quickly turned around to look.  The parking lot had 6 RV's, a few trucks, and no sign that we could see.  We happily cozied up alongside the other RVs and went to sleep.  In the morning after a good night's sleep we determined that we were in the North Fort Meyers Walmart;  this one had gone unnoticed in the list, as it was alphabetical under "N". We just gotta be more careful in our planning.......  

Tuesday January 22 we had plans to join Dave and Barb for lunch.  We had known them from our sailing days, and they had gone on to start a sailboat business in Cape Coral.  Over the intervening years we had both raised our families, so we had lots to catch up on.  We had a wish list from Walmart also, so decided to visit our benefactors in North Fort Meyers.  We had avoided purchases in Cape Coral, as we were not welcome overnight.  However, time passed fast and we slept late;  we had to run off to see Barb & Dave at the appointed hour without our Walmart goodies. We renewed our acquaintance of 25 years standing and swapped "kiddie" pictures.  They have a daughter and son, nearly the same age as ours, and quite a sailboat sales and service business now;  it is amazing to see what their first sail on our boat years ago led to...  :-)  

They repaid the favor by introducing Claire to a grouper reubin.  We will be looking for that again!  (Perhaps in vain? But she reports it is DELICIOUS.)  If you would like more information on Gateway Sailing, they have a GREAT website at gatewaysailing.com .  We continued on to Clewiston on the Southwest shore of Lake Okeechobie in the afternoon, stopping in LaBelle along the way.  We had enjoyed LaBelle's hospitality and free boat dock with water and electricity 25 years ago, and were pleasantly surprised that the policy still continues, albeit with a few more published "rules"....stern to docking only, 3 day maximum stay, 8 days off before redocking.  We had usually stayed a few days here and enjoyed the use of the water to wash the boat interior when we passed through the Okeechobee waterway.  It is nice to see that sailing folks can still enjoy this privilege.

In Clewiston we found the Walmart lot CROWDED.  A traveling fishing tournament was using a large portion of the lot for a tent, and secured parking for participants' bass boats and their towing trucks.  We found a closed Big K across the street with plenty of room and trucks for company.  We found most of our desired Walmart goodies here, and slept well.

Wednesday January 23 we decided to bike around Clewiston, and found a dirt truck trail along the levee surrounding the lake.  We asked if we might ride the trail, and were told it was permissible, but to watch out for the water moccasins along the far dirt trail.  It was interesting to ride along the highest point in the area, looking out over sugarcane fields on one side, lake edge vegetation on the other, and in the far distance on the horizon, the lake water itself. The levee was well mowed, so we did not feel threatened by hidden snakes, and saw none.

  We asked a busy RV park/marina whether we could dump our RV there; we were told their dump station was clogged, but to try a State park 10 miles South toward Miami.  Although it was early afternoon when we returned from biking, we decided to stay another night in Clewiston.  After relaxing a bit, Claire started soup for dinner, and I went looking for oil for the generator in Walmart.  It is due for a change, and the oil we have for the RV engine does not meet the generator specifications.  Walmart had ONE brand that met the spec, naturally the most expensive, but it does not use much, so we were happy to find it.  I started the generator maintenance immediately by cleaning the air prefilter.  I did not want to drain the oil in the parking lot;  although I am certain I would not spill a drop on the lot with the drain pan we carry, it might create the wrong impression among observers, and make it harder for us and others to find places allowing RV parking in the future.  That night we found ourselves alone in the Big K lot, so decided to move across to the Walmart lot which now had room.  We always sleep easier in the brightly lit lots of 24 hour Super Walmarts when they have room.  This lot had the added presence of police cars all night long  to secure the fishing tournament equipment.

Thursday January 24 we got an early start (for us) for Miami as the Walmart lot was filling fast.  We found the recommended dump station in John Stretch State Park on the West side of Route 27, eleven miles East of the Clewiston Walmart.  Wonder of wonders, it was even FREE!  We found good tasting water, filled and dumped.  I even took a luxurious shower first, just to get the most value out of the dump...  :-)  We continued toward Miami, and found easy if congested driving on Interstate highways as we closed on Ft Lauderdale, then headed South on I95. Once off I95, however, it became city driving, and we fit in as well as any bus.... :-) Like any city, drivers leave less than a car length between them as they move at 50, parking is scarce, and available lots are well filled and tight for a vehicle of our size.  We located the addresses of friends we would visit, saw one rear end collision ahead of us (YIKES, be careful folks; the life you save could be ours...), then found the Costco in North Miami Beach. We ate lunch, then proceeded to buy those items we find best at Costco; after loading our shopping cart, we asked if we might park our RV in their lot overnight.  We received permission for ONE night's stay only, in the extreme corner of the lot, but it solved the immediate problem.  We then went in search of the Hallandale Walmart.  We found it amongst construction, and on the other side of the divided street from what we expected.  We were forced to cross a congested bridge, turn around (after at least one reverse in traffic) on the beach front road, and return.  I'm grateful for Claire's better city driving instincts; mine are long dormant, and I do not much miss them....but we did finally wind into the Walmart parking lot and found a place to park for dinner.  Rush hour was upon us, so STOPPED was the place to be.  This was not a Super Walmart, but we found some things we needed and asked if overnight parking of RVs was permitted.  We were told that we could contact management by phone, but they were permitting it.  Soon our friend Doris called with news she had talked to a gas station near her condo, and the owner had said we could stay nights there, as long as we parked on the street during the days.  This was all coming together;  it would work, and we even had a backup plan! :-)  Claire drove easily back to Costco after rush hour, tucked the RV tightly into the corner of the parking lot, and Doris joined us for some of Costco's finest wine & cheese :-).  It was fun seeing her again.  

She had Friday to work, so left early, and we walked both cats.  The Costco lot was mostly deserted now, but a security person told us we could not stay overnight.  I explained we had received permission from a manager earlier; after querying for the details, he went to check, then returned to say if we were challenged to say "Al said it was OK".  OK with me....I'm easy!  :-) We were not as easy with the cats' desire to go into the brush and debris at the end on Costco's lot however, so we finally picked them up and returned to the RV for the night.  

The following morning we also found beyond the debris was SWAMP! The lot was relatively quiet as parking lots go, and we slept well.

Friday January 25 we awoke relatively early again; we must be recovering from the lost sleep of the trip South....  We intend to shop further at Costco, so must wait for opening time, then join Doris when she gets off work.

We have scheduled ourselves closely the first part of this trip, with a campground booked in New Orleans starting Friday February 8.  We must be there then, as Mardi Gras will not wait....  :-))