Southbound to Mar, NC - 41-01

December 29, 2003 (Mon) Salem, VA - Heavy frost last night but not all that cold. 32 degrees at 6:45 when we started out. We had some concerns about black ice but there was no problem. The temperature went down to 28 as we went inland before it started back up again. (It got up to 61 by lunch time.) there were lots of police cars on the road. We counted 13 between Red Bank and the Delaware Memorial Bridge. We usually see only 1 or 2 if any at all. We got gas at the Flying J at exit 2C off I-295 ($1.33/gal) but couldn't take on needed fresh water. They have it shut off for the winter.

As we drove south down I-95 then west on I-70 out of Baltimore, we became aware a vibration that Mark attributed to a possible out of balance wheel. We'll have to get that checked when we get home. Is it getting worse? Maybe we should do it while we're in Florida. It is getting worse. We'd better check it out now. Butler Tire is in the boonies outside of Frederick, MD. A two bay shop in the wooded front yard of a once well kept ranch house. Strange situation but the old fella was doing a good business. When we finally got in he found that the inside left rear tire was "separating". Scary! Since dual tires should be "matched" or close to it, we went on and bought two. Even though there looked to be plenty of tread after nearly 60,000 miles they probably needed replacing anyway. The duals on the other side were replaced last year. We'll be keeping a close eye on the other two!

The young lady who checked out our Golden Age card at the gate into the Harper's Ferry National Historic Site did such a good job of explaining where the parking lot and visitor center were and how buses would be available every 10 minutes to take us down to the site that we didn't have the heart to tell her that we were only there to eat a late lunch in the parking lot. We've been there and didn't really have time to see it again today.

Most campgrounds are closed for the winter. We finally found this one open in Salem, Va. It is actually a mobil home park, very neat and well kept, with a transient section down near the river. Salem is on the outskirts of Roanoke. What a relief to find it, we were beginning to think we'd have to go another 100 miles to the Flying J truck stop at the bottom of Virginia.

Q055574 (480mi) Salem Village MH/RV Park #? w/e/s $12.00 B

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December 30, 2003 (Tue) Mars Hill, NC - 42 degrees overnight. When we came into the campground last night, there was no one in the reservation office but there was a telephone number posted. When we called the number the woman told us to pick out a site and someone would come around in the morning. No one did so we stopped at the office on the way out at 9:00 and paid the $12 fee. Very trusting folks!

It was a beautiful drive through the mountains on I-81 and I-26 (I-181 on the maps). The frost on the trees on the top of some mountains sparkled in the sun. There were patches of snow here and there along the road. They had less snow in the December storm than we did but the mountain typography kept the sun from melting it away.

We found Bob and Pat's new house without any problems following their directions and arrived at about 2:30.

Q055803 (229 mi) Bob and Pat's driveway

Church Raffle Quilt 2003

From Kaffe Fassett's book

PnP Wedding Quilt

Wedding gift for Pat and Paula

Homeward Bound - #34-03

September 19, 2003 (Fri)
Bernard, ME to Windham, ME (178/863 miles)

We started for home today. It was 46 degrees when we woke up but Q's furnace quickly warmed things up, so getting dressed wasn't too uncomfortable. We said good bye to Dick and Ruth after breakfast and headed off the island. We stopped in Ellsworth to replenish our supplies and began to retrace our trip up by turning south on US-1.

A road side stand was selling wild blueberries so we stopped and bought a 5 pound box for $10 - no where near the price we'd paid in Canada last year but a whole lot better than what they are going for in the stores in New Jersey. On the way through Freeport we stopped again at L.L.Bean so that Joy could exchange a pair of jeans she'd bought on the way north.

This campground is unique to say the least. We got here at about 3:30. It looked a little junkie as we pulled in to register and we almost left to go somewhere else. Why we didn't may never be answered. The proprietors were what might be described as the typical elderly Maine couple who've struggled all their lives to make ends meet - probably by collecting and selling junk. They seemed nice enough though - even walked Mark down to the campground to show him the site we'd be assigned. In other campsites we've had mountains, lakes, rivers, or nicely manicured lawns out our living room window. Here we have the rusting hulk of an old junk car. The more obviously occupied sites across the way are mostly travel trailers or small fifth wheels that have "been there a while" so have their occupant's lifestyle necessities scattered around. This is not a place where we're likely to stay again.

Q053940 Highland Lake Camping w/e/s $21.40p D

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September 20, 2003 (Sat)
Windham, ME to Wilmington, VT (205/1041 miles)

In the past we've made an effort to seek out state parks somewhere near our route and use private campgrounds only as last resort. For some reason we've gotten away from that recently. Our experience last night has realigned our priorities. Not only was the ambiance rather less than desirable, we awoke this morning to the sound of gunfire. It was probably duck hunters but it was unnerving. So we decided to find a more appealing place to eat breakfast.

It was a foggy trip down US-1. We wondered if it as well as the rain last night were tailings of Isabel. We stopped at a McDonalds for coffee (1/2 reg & 1/2 decaf) and for gas ($1.59/gal - the lowest we've seen anywhere this trip) and finally found a nice little rest area where we could enjoy some breakfast.

As we passed through Kennebunk we discussed calling George and Barbara and making a swing through Kennebunkport for a visit the Bush's but decided against it. Coming into Wells we began to see folding lawn chairs along the road - few people but many chairs. In town we saw signs advertising the huge 350th anniversary party and parade. We were glad to have missed it.

Some businesses along the way:

YUM MEE - Chinese restaurant

Brenda's Bloomers - a flower shop

Bullshirt - a T-shirt shop (we think)

Glad Wags - Dog grooming

Molly Stark was a prominent revolutionary war heroine who lived and did her good deeds in this area. SR-9 across lower Vermont is called the Molly Stark Trail. This state park is named for her. We camped here - in the overflow area - some years ago but we have a nice wooded site this time. After setting up, we hiked up to the summit of Mt. Olga where there is a fire tower, which we also climbed. The trail was quit wet and muddy in places but it was good to get the exercise. Our climbing muscles are going to be sore for a few days.

Q054145 Molly Stark State Park #16 dry $14.00 B

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September 21, 2003 (Sun)
Wilmington, VT to Home (269/1310 miles)

We love driving through the mountains in the early morning. We awoke as soon as it got light, 6:15 or so, and got off soon after. The sky was clear and sunny with only patches of clouds. But fog lay in the valleys accenting the contours of the landscape. Beautiful! It was cool, 47° when we got up, but the sun warmed things quickly. By the time we found a McDonalds (in Bennington) for our last-day-on-the-road breakfast, the shorts we'd put on were more appropriate attire - barely.

Our route south was US-7 out of Bennington, through Massachusetts, and into Connecticut. Then US-44 west to Poughkeepsie and south on US-9w and the New York State Thruway at Newburg, NY. The traffic on the Thruway was unusually light - too early for people to be headed home, I guess - but the Garden State Parkway was a nightmare. There was far more traffic than usual and much faster. We had our cruise control set at 5 mph over the speed limit and we were still in people's way. There were a lot of cowboys out today too - fast little cars weaving through the heavy traffic as if late for something important. Two accidents and a stalled car interrupted the fast pace but slowing for them was almost fun as we knew that the cowboys were being slowed down as well.

One of the accidents had just happened and looked pretty serious. One car, on an approach ramp, was pretty badly damaged and there seemed to be an injury in the rear seat of another. As we approached, a girl who had been leaning into this second car suddenly straightened up and pealed off her t-shirt - perhaps to use as a bandage? She was wearing nothing under it! Someone apparently convinced her to put it back on because she did. It was well that she did because the distraction might well have caused more accidents.

We got home about 1:30

Q054414 Home

To Bernard, ME - #34-02

September 15, 2003 (Mon)
Hedges Lake to Freeport, ME (251/493 miles)

Gordy, Ruth, Leslie, and Elaine got home from NYC at about 9:00 last night. So we got to spend some time with them then and again this morning before we left. It was good to see Leslie again and to meet Elaine. And it's always great fun to be with Gordy and Ruth. Thanks again for the use of your driveway (and bathroom).

We got off at about 10:00 am and headed for Bennington, VT where we filled up our gas tank. Unfortunately we picked a station where we couldn't get our 5% discount. Stations need to be "pay-at-the-pump" types to get the discount. This one wasn't. Oh well!

Driving East out of Bennington on SR-9 took us over the Green Mountains into New Hampshire. Road construction slowed us down here and there and there was one 1/2 mile stretch of single lane but we made pretty good time for mountain driving. US-202 through NH and into Maine was a frustration though because we ended up following a slow moving truck carrying a carnival ride. We gave up the back roads when we hit I-95.

If we'd known that the Blueberry Pond campground was so far out a washboard dirt road we would have picked a different one. We were quite rattled when we got here. Except for the cost and a slightly unkempt appearance, it's reminiscent of a state park camp ground - winding dirt roads and widely spaced sites. We'd have done better going to the near by State Park but it doesn't have a dump station which we really needed.

Isabel has weakened to a category 3 hurricane and looks to be coming ashore somewhat south of NJ. Tomorrow we need to decide whether to head North or South.

Some of you will recognize the name "Freeport" as being the home of L.L.Bean. We'll be stopping in there tomorrow regardless of which way we go.

Q053597 Blueberry Pond campground #22 w/a $25.68 C+

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September 16, 2003 (Tue)
Freeport, ME to Bernard, ME (165/658 miles)

We both awoke this morning at about 5:00. There was no reason to get up so early so we lounged in bed and listened to the beginnings of rain on the roof. We finally got up at about 6:00, showered, ate breakfast, and were off for L.L.Bean by 8:00. By the time we were out of there and ready to travel again, it was raining hard.

The weather forecast was "showers likely" throughout the day. If what we experienced over the next few hours was showers, we can't imagine what Maine considers heavy rain. It rained hard - interspersed with occasional downpours - all the way to Ellsworth. In Ellsworth there is another L.L.Bean. This one was a "factory store" with some items deeply discounted so, of course, we had to stop there also. Two L.L.Bean stores in one day!

We got to Dick and Ruth's at about 3:30. We'll be here for a couple of days.

Q053762 Dick and Ruth's driveway.
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September 17, 2003 (Wed) Bernard, ME (2) - It got chilly last night - 60 degrees by Q's inside/outside thermometer - but we were comfortable and slept well. We watched the Weather Channel before breakfast to get the latest on Hurricane Isabel. It is a category 2 hurricane now and seems to be following its predicted course toward Cape Hatteras, NC. We're not wishing ill on anyone else but we're glad it'll be coming ashore well south of New Jersey. They'll know at home that a hurricane is near by but damage should be minimal.

After lunch with Dick and Ruth at the West Side Grill - large sandwiches with chips and a pesto macaroni salad - we toured the Wendell Gilley Museum of Bird Carving. Wendell Gilley was a plumber in Southwest Harbor here on Mt Desert Island. He carved birds as a hobby and began to sell them to Abercrombie & Fitch in New York. When his orders became too much handle part time, he sold his plumbing business and carved birds full time. The museum displays many excellent examples of his work.

Jordan Pond House is an upscale restaurant within Acadia National Park that has become known for its popovers. We had a mid afternoon reservation there for tea and popovers. Wonderful eating in a beautiful setting!

Dinner tonight was very light. We didn't need much.
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September 18, 2003 (Thu) Bernard, ME (3) - We "shopped" in an interesting shop in Bass Harbor this morning. It started out years ago as a source for ship models and ship model kits and parts. Now it has a little bit of everything - I guess you'd call it a curiosity shop - with the ship model theme blended in. The proprietor, friendly and talkative, was busy working on a model of a two mast square rigger which Mark found interesting.

After lunch we headed to Bar Harbor with Dick and Ruth. The Abbe Museum, where Dick has volunteered as docent, had an excellent display of Native American made baskets that we all enjoyed seeing. After dinner - Cafe Delight (seafood morsels in white sauce over linguine) at the West Street Cafe, Dick took us on what he calls his nickel tour of Acadia National Park. The highlight of today's tour was Thunder Hole. The surf, enhanced by Hurricane Isabel hundreds of miles to the south, was pounding into the natural rock formation with explosive "thunder" and appropriate bursts of spray and foam. Wonderful!

Back in Bernard we checked in on Isabel. She came ashore as a category 1 hurricane this afternoon just south of Cape Hatteras, NC and quickly lost enough power to be down graded to a tropical storm. Word from Jennifer, our daughter back home, was that they are having a lot of wind and rain but nothing to worry about. So we stopped worrying.

On Hedges Lake - #34-01

September 12, 2003 (Fri)
Home to Hedges Lake (242/242 miles)

Well here we are again looking out on Hedges Lake (in NY near Bennington, VT). Gordy and Ruth have offered the use of their driveway for the weekend even though they are in New York City. Q is parked facing the lake so that we'll be able to watch the sunrise over the lake from bed in the morning. In the mean time we're enjoying the deck and the very pleasant weather.

We got off at about 10:00 this morning - actually 9:55 - and headed for the Garden State Parkway, northbound. 66 degrees, windy, partly cloudy. We think we did quite well - did most of our packing this morning. I guess we're getting used to it. It leaves us with the feeling that we've forgotten something though. We hope it's only Joy's extra pair of reading glasses and a roll of quarters for tolls.

There seem to be a lot of police on the roads. It must be because yesterday was the anniversary (2nd) of the attack on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. Spent some travel time listening to Johnny Cash (who died this morning) and remembering. We kind of "grew up" with him. We both had listened to and liked his music even before he became a star.

We're glad we didn't have to buy gas on the way here. Prices were running as high as $1.87/gal for regular in New York State. Vermont should be much better so we'll get some there.

Q053346 Gordy and Ruth's driveway
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September 13, 2003 (Sat) Hedges Lake (2) - The sunrise this morning was spectacular. What luxury it was to lie in bed watching the brilliant red sky slowly fade to pink then to pale yellow just as the sun itself peeked over the hill across the lake. What a treat!

We headed for Bennington (VT) Quiltfest as soon as breakfast and showers were taken care of. On the way, we swung by the cemetery in North Bennington where we buried Mark's mother three weeks ago. The flowers (mostly mums) that Gordy and Ruth put there for the interment service were still blooming brightly, again bringing beauty to a solemn occasion. We gave them a drink of water although we're sure Gordy and Ruth had done it not too long ago.

The quilt show was very nice, somewhat crowded. Joy actually got away without spending any money!!

After a stop at Bennington Potters to shop and the Bennington Cider Mill for lunch, we went to the Bennington Center for the Arts - an interesting place. We particularly enjoyed an exhibition of animal sculpture. This was a collection of bird carvings in wood so well done that it was hard to tell that they weren't real. The native American art collection - painting, sculpture, and modern crafts - was excellent. There is also a Covered Bridge Museum there (the only one in the world) that tells the history of covered bridges and something of their romance and impact on life in simpler times.

Now we are vegging out on the deck, watching the sky and clouds and water. It's very peaceful, a little cool, and mostly quiet.

September 14, 2003 (Sun) Hedges Lake (3) - Not such a great sunrise this morning. In fact it looked a lot like rain - and it has, off and on, all day. Too bad because we had planned today to sit on the deck and relax. Well we did get in some deck sitting to read or just look at the lake but it wasn't what we'd planned what with running for cover every so often and all. We have made good progress in our books though. Joy also napped and worked some crossword puzzles and Mark worked on website maintenance.

In the late afternoon there was a beautiful double rainbow across the lake. Wow!

Tomorrow we're off to Maine. We're watching hurricane Isabel - category 5 by last reports - pretty closely though. If it looks like it might come ashore somewhere near New Jersey, we may decide to cut our trip short and get home. We really don't want to do that!

North and Home - #33-03

July 13, 2003 (Sun)
Darien, GA to Rock Ridge, NC (386/2208 mi)

Up at 5:30, showered, had apple pancakes for breakfast, and were off at 7:30. The weather was a cool 75.6 degrees, sky was cloudy, and the air a bit humid and tending toward sprinkles. All in all not a bad day to travel after yesterday's 94 degrees. The temperature was only up to 83 degrees when we pulled into the Flying J station - where we spent the night on the way down - for gas and an on board lunch. The traffic continually increased as we traveled north - we speculated that was everyone headed home to start another grueling work week - and the weather deteriorated to heavy rain through South Carolina.

Rock Ridge is a lovely, wooded' uncrowded, quiet campground. Our site overlooks a pasture with a small pond which is home for a sizable herd of goats, white with brown heads, and two ostriches (or emus). - - - Well, so much for quiet and uncrowded! As I write this we got a neighbor on one side close enough touch of we stick our arm out our living room window and another outside our dining room window whose awning will overlap ours if they open it. Only three of four other units in the whole campground and these folks were assigned so close to us!!! When Mark asked to be assign a less crowded area, the owner said there won't be any. The whole campground is going to fill up. We've eliminated this place from our list of possible stops in the future.

Q051946 - Rock Ridge Campground #22 w/e/s $17.00 D
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July 14, 2003 (Mon)
Rockridge, NC to Home (468 mi)

The whole campground didn't fill up! Far from it. In our section, full hook up, there were more empty sites this morning - twenty or so in a row - than occupied ones. In the other area, water and electric only - but not as scenic, there were only a few units packed as closely together as we were. Some day I'm going to write a dissertation speculating on the psychology of campground owners. It will probably be based on the theory that they don't and never have camped. It was quiet last night, though, in spite of our being able to hear every word of our neighbor's dinner conversation while they sat in their motor home and we sat in ours

We were up at 6:00 and at 7:00, headed off to find a McDonalds for breakfast (72 degrees and heavy clouds). There were periods of heavy rain as we traveled north but the traffic was tolerable - fast but tolerable. We circumvented Richmond on I-295 and jumped off I-95 on to SR-207 and headed for US-301. We wanted to avoid the traffic around Washington and Baltimore. It almost worked flawlessly. Construction on the bridge across the Chesapeake Bay at Annapolis backed us down some. Southbound was much worse.

Company name on the side of a truck - "J & H Bentnel & Sons & Granddaughter"

I-295 up through New Jersey was the worst road of our trip - stair-step rough all the way. We wondered if there'd be anything left of the cargo in our trailer.

Q052432 Home

Back to Penney Farms - #33-02

July 11, 2003 (Fri)
Englewood, FL to Penney Farms, FL (338/1665 miles)

Our time with Joy's mother (6 days) was very relaxing and restful. We hadn't realized how much we needed that time to unwind after the events of the last week. We started each morning with a long bicycle ride and a swim. In the evening Mark retreated to the bedroom to practice his guitar while Joy and her mother played SkipBo - a card game. In between there were a few errands but it was mostly naps and reading. It was a lot like a vacation.

This morning, instead of our morning bike ride, we packed up Q for the trip home. After a swim and breakfast we were ready to hit the road - well almost, we had to make a stop at Bealls Outlet and Walmart. At 9:38 we were on our way for real - 85 degrees and breezy. We had a relatively uneventful trip up to Starke with only stops for lunch and for gas. Gas prices have jumped 4 to 6 cents over the last week!! The summer travel season must have begun.

In Starke we stopped to pick up a U-Haul trailer and learned that we need an adapter for the electrical connection. The nice young lady at U-Haul sent us back across Starke (horrendous traffic) to Auto Zone, an auto discount store, to buy one. (Why doesn't U-Haul carry items like that to sell themselves?). Back at U-Haul (horrendous traffic) we found out it was the wrong part. Back to Auto Zone (horrendous traffic) to exchange it. But found they don't carry the part we need and they didn't know where we could get one. Back to U-Haul (horrendous traffic) to cancel our contract. The nice young lady - it turns out she's really not so young, she has a son who looked to be in his mid twenties - made a few phone calls and found a place that knew just what we needed and presumably had one in stock. So again we battled the traffic back across Starke to a Napa store. They didn't have the part after all! Back at U-Haul we finally managed to cancel the contract. As they did the paper work, the young lady's son reluctantly told us about the U-Haul Service center quite near Penney Farms that should have the part and if not they could "wire it direct" for us. Two and a half hours shot and we barely made it to the funeral home in Green Cove Springs in time to pick up Mother B's ashes.

The day ended well though. We met David, Judy, and Jake (Mark's brother and his wife and son) in St. Augustine and shared a delicious seafood dinner at the Santa Maria Restaurant on the water. Since parking is scare in this tourist laden city we were subjected to walking through several blocks of the beautiful alley ways with their most interesting and fascinating old buildings and gardens. It was well worth the walk - and getting lost trying to find the car again. It was good to have some time together with some of Mark's family during this tough time

Q051403 PRC RV area w/e $7.50
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July 12, 2003 (Sat)
Penney Farms, FL to Darien, GA (157/1822 mi)

Another eventful day started at 6:00 am - when we got up. Mark caught up on the email and checked phone messages at home while Joy cleaned up from breakfast. Then together we cleaned dead ants out of the basement compartment!

While parked in Englewood a large contingent of ants moved in, set up house keeping and began to generate and nurture the next generation. Mark sprayed ant poison into the compartment before we started out yesterday and it was enough to lay down a fair pad of carcasses but some ants survived. It turned out that many survived. We took everything out of the compartment - discovering a huge cache of eggs in the back corner - hosed it out and washed ants and ant poison off everything. We think we got them all!

We found the U-Haul service center on Orange Park's infamous (and dreaded) Blanding Avenue and an hour and a half later we pulled out with a trailer tagging behind. A nice young man, after a thorough search, discovered they didn't have a compatible adapter either and offered to replace our unique connector with one more willing to accept electrical connection. We said "Do it!!" He then proceeded to hook up no less then five of the six small trailers they had until he found one with working lights. In the process he checked out all of Q's fuses and traced wire integrity all the way back to the connector. I guess he couldn't believe that they were stocking so many nonfunctioning units. Neither could we! They were. It wasn't Q's fault.

Back at Penney Farms we ate lunch and loaded up the trailer. At 1:10 we were on our way. Other than a three mile parking lot on I-95 - CB radio chatter reported an accident with helicopter evacuation at milepost 12 but there was no evidence of problems when we got there - the first leg of our trip went smoothly. This "pack um in" campground - across I-95 from our favorite fudge store - is very clean and, so far, uncrowded. Our air conditioner is drowning out any noise that there might be outside but it seems to be quiet. The temperature got up to 111.5 degrees on the sunny side of Q before starting back down. It would be that inside too without A/C.

Q051560 Tall Pines Campground #4 w/e/s $10.00p B

Sad News - #33-01

July 2, 2003 (Wed)
Home to Latta, SC (636/636 miles)

Beautiful sunrise this morning promising a good day for travel. It was 70 degrees and sunny when we got off at 6:15. We got bagels at Bagel Masters and headed for the Garden State Parkway, south. We turned west on I-195 then south on I-295. All relatively uninspiring interstate travel except for the "stair step quality of the concrete paving on I-295. (I wonder if they have special machines that insure just the right amount of drop at each expansion joint.)

New Jersey gas prices aren't the lowest these days but they are best we'd find for a while so we stopped at the flying J before going over the Delaware Memorial Bridge into Delaware ($1.29). We also balanced up the air in all the tires. The powers that be in Baltimore decreed that no hazardous material was to enter their tunnels. Carrying over 10 pounds of propane is considered hazardous so we have to leave I-95 and follow I-695 over the Francis Scott Key Bridge before getting back on I-95. This is normally not a problem but this time we missed a turn and ended up on local streets to get back to it.

Getting around Washington on I-495 wasn't the problem we'd expected but construction at the southern intersection to I-95 produced a 2 mile long parking lot. It took us nearly an hour to go those two miles.

The rain - Hurricane Bill we think - started a few miles later and continued, off and on, until we got well into North Carolina. It was so heavy at times that we could hardly see the road in front of us much less the traffic in front and behind. At one point we went from a few sprinkles to water hitting the windshield like the splash of a passing truck in an instant. It was like hitting a wall of water miles thick. Afraid of hitting something or getting hit, we had to get completely off the highway a couple of times to wait it out. We were treated to a brilliant full arc rainbow in Lumberton. That was a special sight.

We pulled into the Flying J parking lot (our campground for the night) at about 8:00 and took advantage of their gourmet (yeah sure) buffet.

Q050375 Flying J parking lot dry $0
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July 3, 2003 (Thu)
Latta, SC to Penney Farms, FL (426/1062 miles)

Camping in a truck stop parking lot is an experience like no other. Bright lights, 18 wheeler jack brakes, and periodic public address announcements informing us that one of the showers was ready aren't conducive to much sound sleep especially with a full stomach. But when you're tired enough sleep does come. Some. We gave it up at about 4:15 and by 5:00 we were southbound on I-95 again.

At 7:15 our cell phone rang. It was Diane from the Pavilion at Penney Retirement Community to tell us that Mother B had had a bad night and that we needed to get there as quickly as possible. We were 100 miles north of Savannah, GA, 5 hours away. An hour later Carol from the Pavilion called to tell us that Mother B had died. Knowing that we were so close to being with her was devastating.

The next several hours were very difficult. Along with the emotional struggles Mark had to make phone calls to his siblings and Mother B's sister and we continued to battle periodic heavy rain.

We got lost trying to find the last Flying J in Georgia - gas prices in Florida are very high - got gas and dumped our holding tanks. At about noon we stopped at a rest stop for lunch and continued on to the funeral home where Mother had been taken. At Penney Farms we learned from Carol that Mother had died peacefully, without pain, and someone had been with her - holding her hand. Knowing this helped a lot. One of the assistant pastors here (Rex Lindemood) met us at the funeral home and later invited us to join him and his wife, Verna for dinner. We went to a seafood restaurant in Middleburg - very good. His being here for us was a real comfort.

For the next few days we'll be here at Penney Farms cleaning up Mother's room and tying up loose ends.

Q050801 PRC RV area w/e $7.50
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July 5, 2003 (Sat)
Penney Farms, FL to Englewood, FL (265/1327 miles)

We finished sorting and packing the things in Mother B's room about 11:30 - sooner than we thought we would - and fixed a sandwich for lunch in Q. Then we unhooked and started south to visit Joy's mother. It's 94 degrees and it feels all of that and more. Thank heaven for air conditioning!

We stopped in Stark to inquire about renting a trailer to take Mother B's things north. Although Q has a receiver hitch, we've never used it, so along with prices we found out what accessories we needed for the hitch. At Camping World in I-4 we bought a bar and ball. It turned out that the bar wouldn't fit into the receiver. But it was close enough so that Mark tried to force it with a hammer, thinking that the rust build up needed to be scraped off. All this did was destroy any option of returning it for exchange - it still wouldn't go in.

Otherwise the trip was uneventful. We got to Englewood, FL about 5:00, unloaded Q and shipped him off the the bank parking lot :-(

Q051066 SunTrust Bank parking lot
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July 7, 2003 (Mon) Englewood, FL (3) - No travel today but we did hunt up a Walmart where we could get another trailer hitch bar. Like Camping World, they had a selection. We could not detect any difference in the size of the bars among those available, either by physical comparison or information on the label, so we took a chance and bought another one - different brand, different configuration - vowing not to ruin this one. If it didn't fit we'd take it back and get some expert advice somewhere. It fit fine! Apparently there are different size 2" receivers (bars anyway). Who'd a thought?

Adventures on Long Island

June 27, 2003 (Fri.)
Home to Wading River, NY (135/135 miles)

It's been a while but we're on the road again. Not a long trip this time but it promises to be unique. Today's entry might be titled "The Adventures of a High Clearance Vehicle on a Low Clearance Road". Every morning in the traffic reports we hear about 18 wheelers wandering onto highways there they don't belong and getting hung up under low overpasses. Now we can understand why it happens. But first some housekeeping.

We got up at 5:15 this morning and took our usual 12 mile bike ride out to the Rumson/Sea Bright Bridge. After three days of hot humid weather, the cool morning air felt wonderful. There were many others out there this morning too - walkers, joggers, and bikers. When we got back, we finished packing up Q and finally got off at about 10:30.

Our aim was to miss the heavy commuter traffic around New York City. Well, if we missed it, we can't imagine what the commuter traffic would have been like. The GSP wasn't bad. Nor were the Outerbridge Crossing and the West Shore Expressway up to the Staten Island Expressway. But on the Staten Island Expressway we came to a virtual standstill - 5 MPH may as well be a standstill - until we got almost to the Verrazano Narrows Bridge.

Shortly after getting on to the Shore Belt Parkway we saw a sign directing all vehicles over 11 feet high to "Exit Immediately". Q is 10' 6'' tall so no problem - we thought. The second underpass showed a clearance of 10' 6" in the outside lane. And it looked like it had been hit many, many times. There were many clearances under 11' even in the high point but luckily all over our 10' 6" - until we saw a sigh warning of a 9' 6'' underpass. We risked several accidents and exited onto local streets. After a while we made our way back to the Beltway. There was no height warning on the ramp but the next underpass showed a clearance of 8' 6". We got off at the next exit. It would have been nice to have known before getting on the highway that it was a low clearance road. That 11' foot warning we saw was meaningless.

We learned something interesting about the Long Island traffic code as we made our way through city streets on our way to the LI Expressway (I-495). Red lights are only suggestions here. If you can make it across the intersection without hitting something or getting hit, go for it. We never saw so many people running red lights - even when it had been red for quite some time.

As New York State Park campgrounds go this is not the greatest. Although I remember seeing on their website that all the sites have electricity, they don't and we don't. Our neighbors on both sides seem to have a friendship thing going and are using our site as their pathway back and forth. They pass so close to our door that we're afraid they might trip on our mat! Lots to watch though. The young teenager next door appears to be practice driving the family car, a concern because the people across the way have many small children riding scooters, bikes and roller blades. One little kid who can't be more than three has a tiny scooter that he hasn't quite got the hang of. Funny to watch.

It never ceases to amaze us that people go camping and then drive their cars to the bathroom and showers!!

Q049559 Wildwood State Park #A16 dry $17.38 C
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June 28, 2003 (Sat.)
Wading River, NY to Quogue, NY & back (56/191 miles

Today was for Jerry and Margo - the celebration of their 50th wedding anniversary - and a great time was had by all.

But first we spent the morning here at the campsite still decompressing from yesterday's drive out here. Since we'd wandered all over the campground yesterday trying to find our assigned site, we had only the vaguest idea of which direction was "out". More importantly we needed to know how to get back to it easily in case we came in after dark tonight.

We set out on foot and had a good walk easily finding the entrance gate and then the beach on Long Island Sound. After a light lunch we showered and headed South to Quogue in the midst of the Hamptons.

Jerry and Margo's son Geoffrey and his wife have a wonderful house in a sparsely populated area that easily accommodated the 85 or so guests. It started life as a large carriage house and was beautifully converted into a home by Jerry and Margo's architect daughter Jennifer.

The celebration was a wonderful tribute to Jerry and Margo's energy, love, and generosity. Guests included family, of course, and friends going back to childhood. Among them were couples they knew from their work with Marriage Encounter whom we also know - Darwin & Grace, Roger & Marty, and John & Nancy. It was so good to see them all again. Many of the guests stood at dinner time and spoke about their relationship to the honored couple bringing both laughter and tears. Jerry ended the formalities by singing 2 love songs to his wife. He's not a singer which made the experience all the more moving for all of us.

Our drive back to the campground was at sunset and a magnificent one it was!! It was a beautiful way to end a beautiful day. We stayed off the highways, and only got lost once when we missed a turn.

Wildwood State Park #A16 dry $17.38 C
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June 29, 2003 (Sun.) Wildwood State Park (2) - We thought this would be a relaxing day around camp. Not so. First the people across the road, three families, were up having a good time until 5:00 this morning. They weren't overly loud as parties can be but they were too loud for what should be quiet time in the campground and loud enough to keep us, and probably others, awake.

After lunch, when it looked as if they would be staying another night - check out time is 11 am - we took a walk to see if we could find a new site for our selves. But when we got back it looked as if they were getting ready to leave so we decided to stay put. They did finally leave.

Just as we were beginning to relax, we got a phone call from the nursing home in Penney Farms, Florida to inform us that Mark's mother was having a very bad weekend. She'd either had another stroke or was "giving up". We decided to cut our Long Island adventure short and head for Florida. But we didn't want to try getting back across New York City on a late Sunday afternoon after the first sunny weekend in two months so we settled in for one more night. This was about when our neighbors, the ones who'd been nearly tripping over our step as they trudged back and forth, decided they'd play a little Frisbee (not so bad) with their radio playing salsa so loud that the speakers were badly distorting the sound (very bad!). We went to the registration booth and got ourselves a new site. It's a good one, up on a hill with no one nearby. And it's quiet!!

What has happened to the respect campers used to have for each other, the environment, and safety? Our experience here wasn't the first bad one, nor was it the worst but it was typical of what we are seeing more and more. Besides the noise and intrusion on our space, someone, our neighbors we think, was burning styrofoam instead of wood in their fire ring - tends to spoil the camping ambiance! The guys across the way kept a good big fire going all night by squirting lighter fluid on it - they used up two big bottles of the stuff by the time they left - and got it going "good" again this morning. They had a nice smoldering bed of coals when they were ready to leave so they dumped them out on the ground, poured water on the fire ring to cool it down so they could put it into their pickup. Then they just drove away. The coals were still smoldering with an occasional small flame when we moved our new campsite several hours later.

I guess this is the time to mention the incident of a couple of years ago when we watched a man let his dog pee on water spigot in an empty campsite near by and walk away unmoved. We now always spray water spigots with disinfectant before hooking up!!

Q049615 Wildwood State Park #C19 dry $17.38 C
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Monday, June 30, 2003 (Mon.)
Wading River, NY to Home (144/335 miles)

Nice restful sleep last night. No noise! We got up at 6:00 and went for a 2.5 mile walk, breakfasted, showered, dumped and were on the road for home by 8:30. We wanted to miss the commuter traffic going into New York City so we weren't hurrying. The Long Island Expressway (I-495) was crowded but the traffic was moving along fairly well. But getting to the Verrazano Narrows Bridge on I-278 was a nightmare. It might have been better to have tried dodging the low underpasses on the other road again. We never got up over 5 MPH anywhere in that 18 mile leg. It was more often 2 MPH if we weren't stopped altogether. We could have walked it faster. The crowded Garden State Parkway with its heavy footed maniac drivers was a welcomed respite.

We got home - averaging 28 MPH for the trip today - at about 1:30 and immediately began to prepare for our trip south. We plan to leave early Wednesday morning.

Q049739 - Home

Frannie's Quilt

My own design based on Texas Star. Frannie wanted bright colors on a black background. I based the star design with flowers on several old quilts I loved.

Craig's Quilt

I started this quilt as an exercise from the book "Blooming ninepatch" and then played with the colors and pattern.

A Hazardous Trip Home - #31-05

March 5, 2003 (Wed)
New Bern, NC to Chincoteague, VA (347/3199)

We awoke to the sound of a slow train going by blowing its horn every 50 feet then a loud diesel engine starting up and sitting at idle for 15 minutes. This was about 5:00. We decided to go on and get up and get an early start. Showered, breakfasted, and broke camp in the rain. Dumping was an interesting experience. The dump station input pipe was higher than Q's holding tank output valve. The tank drained into the connecting hose which lay on the ground but nothing would flow up hill into the sewer. It made for an interesting problem and a lengthy solution made even more enjoyable by the rain. Finally got on the road just before 8:00. Continued on up US17 to US64 then east to The Outer Banks - the long string of barrier islands along the North Carolina coast.

A sign approaching the causeway over the Alligator River: "Watch for Bear". We did. Didn't see any. Part of the sign announcing Bob's Grill: "Eat and get the hell out." Direct and to the point.

We stopped and toured the Wright Brothers National Memorial in Kitty Hawk. The visitor's Center was closed for renovation and there was a lot of other construction going on in preparation for the 100th anniversary of the world's first powered air flight. We got a brief overview from the guide in the temporary visitor's center and were sent on our way to explore the grounds. Interesting contrast looking at the original 852 foot flight path under a sky filled with contrails from modern jet airplanes.

We crossed the 21 mile long bridge interrupted by two tunnels - The Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel - crossing Chesapeake Bay into VA at about 2:15 and moseyed on up US13 on the Delmarva Peninsula to the Chincoteague turn off. The campground we usually stay at here wouldn't let us rent a site for the night because the campground had too much standing water from too much rain. They didn't want us to get stuck! Many of our friends have camped at Tom's Cove so we decided to give it a try. There was no one in the office but a sign said "Pick a site tonight and pay tomorrow". We picked a good one right on the edge of the water. Beautiful!

Q049094 Tom's Cove Campground #D-7 e $29.79 A
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March 6, 2003 (Thur)
Chincoteague, VA to Home (285/3484 miles)

Awoke at 4:30 to the sound of rain on the roof and lay in bed worrying about what the driving conditions in New Jersey were going to be. It was 60 degrees when we finally got up at 7. It was hard to believe there would be anything to have worried about.

On the way to our traditional last day on the road fast food breakfast we stopped at the campground office to pay our bill. It was still closed. We took our Sausage McMuffins out to the Assateague Wildlife Refuge and parked overlooking one of our favorite ponds. Unfortunately it was very foggy and the wildlife was all pretty much still on migration south. We enjoyed our breakfast anyway.

On the way out of Chincoteague we stopped at the campground office again and let them rob us for our campsite. We think that campsites begin to get overpriced at $20. Since we'd chosen a prime site, we might have expected to pay a bit more - but the water hadn't been turned on for the season yet. $20 might have been reasonable - they charged us almost $30!

It rained all the way up US13 and the temperature dropped until it hovered around 29 and 30. We saw our first snow, a dirty pile of it, in Seaford, Delaware. Then we began to see more and more on the ground as we traveled north and listened to the news on the radio warning of the dangerous conditions in the New York area. Snow began to mix with the rain about the time we crossed the Delaware Memorial Bridge into New Jersey. That was as good as it was going to be for the rest of the trip. Conditions grew increasingly hazardous as the snow increased. There were cars and trucks off the road into trees, bushes, guardrails, and each other all along the way. On I-195 an 18 wheeler lay on its side surrounded by a dozen police cars and a couple of ambulances. We're glad to be safely home!

Q049379 Home

Starting North - #31-04

March 1, 2003 (Sat)
Penney Farms, FL to Richmond Hill, GA (205/2422 miles)

Woke up to another severe thunderstorm this morning. Mark watched the solar panel monitor to see if the light from the lightning produced any electricity for our batteries. He couldn't tell. The TV news weather report from Jacksonville, as we ate breakfast, predicted more to storms to come. In fact Penney Farms, population a only few hundred, was specifically named as being in the path of a big one with possible tornadoes. When it did come through it brought hail as well as thunder, lightning, and rain - but no tornadoes. We and Q survived in tact.

An accident on I-95 north of Jacksonville had traffic all backed up on I-295. We debated passing the ramp to I-95, if we ever got to it, and taking US17 north but the the traffic began to move faster as we got there so we took the chance. Normally we would have preferred the smaller road but we thought I-95 would be better in the heavy rain. The congestion let up (some) but the rain didn't. It was a horrible drive.

The price of gas was running around $1.67 in Florida. We knew Georgia would be better so we coaxed Q to run on fumes for a while and he came through for us again. What a guy! The first station in GA was selling gas for $1.48 and everyone from FL was there to take advantage of it - including a big fifth wheel pulling a boat. The layout of the pump area made getting in and out a challenge - even for Q. The fifth wheel had himself a real problem and we had entertainment while we waited in line. We saw gas a few miles later for $1.45 but we were happy with our $6.40 saving. We're here at Fort McAllister for a couple of days. We hope to do some bicycling tomorrow if the rain lets up.

Q048317 Fort McAllister State Historic Park #12 e/w $15.64s A
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March 2, 2003 (Sun) Fort McAllister State Historic Park (2) - It rained most of the night last night and by the looks of Q's tires (mud splattered) it must have rained quit hard at times. The morning was dreary - dark and threatening but not much in the way of rain - so we hung out inside and read. The afternoon cleared some to allow the sun to peek through now and then. We took advantage by taking a bicycle ride. The campground is small for bicycling so we ventured outside the park into the community and thoroughly explored what goes for a development in these parts. The houses were quite interesting and the dogs friendly. The street names were interesting too - NY/NJ oriented - Montauk, Passiac, etc.

There is hardly anyone in the campground. We can see several sites from where we are but, after two trailers left this morning, can only see one other camping unit. It sure is quiet!
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March 3, 2003 (Mon)
Richmond Hill, GA to Buck Hall, SC (189/2611 miles)

We saw someone on the TODAY show this morning holding up a sign that said "03 03 03". It took a while to realize that it was today's date. While we watched the show - several experts were discussing the Iraq situation - the temperature up there in New York went from 12 degrees down to 10. We're not ready to go back to that!

It was mostly sunny with a few clouds and a sweltering 56 degrees when we left Fort McAllister this morning. A beautiful day for traveling. We headed north on US17 (parallel to I-95) and got lost in Savannah. It was kind of fun driving around though. It is really a very pretty city - most places. The cool weather seemed a little out of place as it's always been hot when we've been here. But the huge Live Oak trees hung with Spanish Moss were as beautiful as ever.

The Lowland Visitors Center and Museum looked like an interesting place to stop, so we did. They would have liked us to buy something but settled for giving us a guide book and South Carolina road map. Joy called it a rather nice tourist trap. A little further on we saw a sign for "Old Sheldon Church" so we took a side trip there. It turned out to be the ruins of a large, for the time and area, church that had been burned down twice - once by the British and again by the Federalists. Nothing but brick walls now. Sad!

Q048506 Buck Hall Campground, Francis Marion NF #14 e $7.50s A
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March 4, 2003 (Tue)
Buck Hall, SC to New Bern, NC (241/2852 miles)

We woke up this morning fully expecting to stay another day. We lounged in bed a while then got up to a leisurely breakfast. We watched a flock of 14 or so cardinals scrounging for tidbits in the next camp site (empty) and discussed how we would spend the day. It was quiet, we were only one of 4 units in the park and 2 of them were getting ready to pull out, and the view was great, the inland waterway with empty marshes beyond.

But it wasn't the kind of day to sit around camp and nap or read. It was a chilly 56 degrees and dreary, threatening to rain. We agreed that we'd rather spend the day moseying along the back roads than to be cooped up inside and pushing for home on I-95 later. So we backed up and took off.

The Myrtle Beach bypass has become one LONG "strip". There must be 25 miles of miniature golf, fast food, and tourist traps. How can it all possibly be supported? And it's not even the main drag! Amazing! Except for that stretch and a few small cites to wind through, US 17 was quite a pleasant drive. We pulled in here about 4:30.

Any port in a storm. This is one of those kinds of campgrounds that we would, and have, rejected. It's very strange - junky and run down looking from the road and no better from our camp site. We appear to be the only transients, all the other rigs look to have been here for years. Diesel pickups are the vehicle of choice -a confederate flag bumper sticker on one bumper. Our only other choice is a National Forest Campground some distance out of our way that may or may not be open this time of year. Our curtains are down and the doors are locked although we don't really expect problems.

Actually, it isn't as bad as it sounds. There are ducks wandering around, and a small, homemade toy train for the kids. No kids though!

Q048747 Neuse River Campground #26 e/w $20.00 D

Back to Penny Farms - #31-03

February 26, 2003 (Wed)
Flamingo, FL to Okeechobee, FL (218/1942 miles)

It got down to 70 degrees last night. It was so cold that we had to put on a light blanket :-) Actually getting up in the middle of the night let us figure out what the noise we've been hearing in the night was - birds. There must hundreds, if not thousands, fussing and complaining over on Eco Pond. The sound was not unlike a waterfall off in the distance. Joy found the night difficult because of the gnats, Mark because of his sunburn. It was good to see morning even though it was too foggy for the bike ride we had planned.

On the way out of the park we took a side trip to the Pa-hay-okee (River of grass) Overlook. More wildlife (bird) sightings. Mark was able to get within 5 feet of a Turkey Vulture - close enough to get a nice glamor shot. We also checked out the other campground in the park - Longboat Key - for future reference.

After leaving the park we made our way almost due north to the Claude Pepper Memorial Highway (US27). This and route US98/441 along the east side of Lake Okeechobee took us through many of Florida's sugar cane fields. We were surprised how unlike "Florida" this area is. It seems much more like rural Alabama and Mississippi - very depressed. But there was beauty too. The streets of Pahokee are lined with giant royal palms. Wonderful!

The campgrounds along the road as we approached Okeechobee were plentiful, small, crowded, rundown and expensive. The Zachary Taylor Camping Resort just south of town is one of the better ones. It's expensive, probably over $30 without our Passport America discount, and tightly packed, but clean and apparently very well run. The help (owners?) is very friendly and helpful as are the residents. A nice place! After setting up we walked over to the lake where a lock was helping boaters move between the canal and the lake. Another lock to add to our growing list.

Q047837 Zachary Taylor Camping Resort #75 $15.95p e/w/s B
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February 27, 2003 (Thur)
Okeechobee, FL to Penney Farms, FL (275/2217 miles)

Since we did some climbing yesterday (up onto the levee surrounding Lake Okeechobee) a couple of times and worked up a sweat (Temperature was in the mid to upper 80s) we decided to take showers this morning - warm ones this time. The showers in the Everglades had no hot water! During and after breakfast we took care of some housekeeping chores - Joy did the laundry (beautiful campground Laundromat), Mark got the messages from our home answering machine and "did" the email (sent and received). And we dumped and flushed the holding tanks and took on water. It was 75 degrees when we got off at 10:05 under partly sunny skies headed for northern Florida - where there was a tornado watch in effect.

Since the last time we got gas we haven't seen the price under $1.74 at any station we passed. So when we saw it at $1.67, we stopped even though we didn't really need it. Well, a few more miles up US441 we could have gotten it for $1.61 and later we saw it for $1.55. Sometimes we make bad decisions!

Yeehaw Junction couldn't have had a population of more than 3 or 4. It was a four way stop crossroad - thus "junction" in its name, I guess - in the middle of flat grasslands - with the Desert Inn on one corner. There must have been ranches out there somewhere because every so often we saw herds of cattle standing or sitting around under what looked like large dining flys. (We didn't see any sitting and waving though, Jennifer.) Actually this part of Florida is a lot like the West - great expanses of flat for as far as the eye can see. The road was two lanes dead flat and as straight as an arrow with very little traffic and that was mostly 18 wheelers. It's greener though and there are groupings of trees to break the immensity.

At Holopaw we turned East on US192 and headed for I-95 aiming to avoid the congestion in the Orlando/Kissimmee area. We lunched in a KFC parking lot on US1 south of Titusville, then passed a beautiful little park overlooking the Banana River and the Kennedy Space Center just a mile up the road where we could have taken our Triple Zinger chicken sandwiches. Next time!

Back on I-95 the traffic got heavier and heavier and construction made matters worse. We celebrated making it to St. Augustine without mishap by stopping at the huge discount mall (96 stores) - at least Joy celebrated. We bought 2 cereal bowls for Q.

A billboard on I-95 read "Thank the Lord for George and Jeb Bush"

Dorcas (Mark's sister) and Mike were in the PRC RV area to greet us when we got there. They had just been in to see MotherB and found her so groggy that she was hardly aware she had visitors and didn't recognize them. Apparently she'd been awake a lot the last couple of nights and was sleeping so soundly when they got there that she couldn't wake up. We decided not to see her until tomorrow, but had a good visit with Dorcas and Mike.

Q048112 Penny Retirement Community RV area #1 $7.50 e/w C
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February 28, 2003 (Fri) Penney Farms, FL (2) - We got a severe thunderstorm this morning about 5:00. Luckily it had passed by the time we were ready to walk up the Pavilion to visit MotherB. And what a surprise. We found her up, dressed and sitting in a wheelchair. She had apparently recently come from her weekly shower - her hair was still wet - and the staff fixed her up for our visit.

After feeding her and having a short visit, we took off to meet Dorcas and Mike for lunch. We went to a new barbecue place they'd found in Orange Park. We had a good lunch and another good visit. Back here at PRC we went to the community rummage shop, famous in these parts, and looked for some bargains. We bought a book and a ball of yarn. We had another visit with MotherB then came back to Q for a quiet evening. Tomorrow we are back on the road.

To the Everglades - #31-02

February 24, 2003 (Mon)
Englewood, FL to Flamingo, FL (297/1724 miles)

Well here we are at the very southern tip of Florida (except for the Keys) deep in the Everglades. It's hard to believe as we sit here barefoot and in shorts, with the temperature at 78 degrees, that back home there are still several feet of snow on the ground and an ice storm expected tonight (so we hear). It was a longer trip than we expected so we haven't had much chance to see the everglades except what passed by our windows along the way. We'll do some exploring tomorrow.

We had a peaceful and relaxing 6 days with Joy's mother and sister Frannie. It was hard to say good bye this morning. We had a great time visiting, playing cards, reading, doing crossword puzzles, and playing the guitar. Friday morning Joy taught a quilting class to the Quail's Run Craft Group. She had a good turnout and they seemed to appreciate her being there for them. We ate more than we should have but a couple of long bicycle rides helped burn up some of the extra calories. Joy also went swimming with her mother most mornings. Even so it's got to be slim pickings for the rest of the trip if Mark's weight is to be low enough to keep the doctor from commenting on it when we get back.

We got off this morning at about 9:30. We stopped at the grocery store to replenish the cupboard, at a gas station to fill up that tank ($1.63/gal), and a hardware store to get propane. We're now ready for a few days in the sticks. After getting our fill of the stop and go traffic on The Tamiami Trail (US41) southbound, we jumped onto I-75 to make a little time around Fort Myers and Naples.

Back on US41 we found the road completely shut down about 25 miles across Florida with a very serious accident somewhere up ahead. We had to take a 75 mile detour around it - back up to I-75 across and down. There are very few roads in this part of Florida! But on the detour we went through what was called a "Panther Habitat" - 13 miles of it - complete with road signs with the warning "Caution Panther Crossing next x miles" WOW! We looked but didn't see any panthers.

This is quite a nice campground even with no hook-ups. Some of the sites look out over an expansive lawn and to the sparkling Bay of Florida. Those sites were all taken, of course, but it's only a short walk for us.

Q047619 Everglades National Park Flamingo Campground #41 $7.00s dry B+
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February 25, 2003 (Tue) Flamingo, FL (2) - Woke this morning to a colorful sunrise out our bedroom window. It promised a beautiful day ahead and it was. After breakfast we set out on our bicycles to explore the campground and the facilities here. There is no village per se (we don't think) but there is a grocery store, gas station, motel, cabins and a sizable marina. There is plenty of wildlife too - osprey, hawks, herons, egrets, grebes, storks, ducks and anhingas and many other exotic species as well as the normal assortment of flying folk. We even saw a large flight of the reclusive white pelicans pass overhead in a very geese-like "V" formation.

Our area of the campground seems to be the hangout of choice for about a dozen turkey vultures. They circle above, gather in groups on the ground or just wander around. We can't imagine there being enough carrion around to support such a large flock.

The mosquitos can be very bad here at other times of year but are not bad now. A sign at the ranger station announces the misquote rating as "Tolerable". We agree. That was one down from the highest -"Care Free". "Total Mayhem" the worst. The gnats are a different story though. There is no way to keep them out of Q short of closing up completely, and it's far too warm to do that. They are so small they come right through the screens.

A cold start - #31-01

February 12, 2003 (Wed)
Home to Wytheville, VA (533/533 miles) Q046428

Well it's been an interesting day. It was 24 degrees at 6:15 when we got off this morning and dropped steadily as we drove Northwest on the Garden State Parkway and West on I-287 and I-78. It got down as low as 13 degrees in Pennsylvania before finally beginning to warm up a bit. Add a blustery head wind often filled with blowing snow picked up in the nearby fields and you can imagine how eager we were to turn south toward decent weather.

Q still had antifreeze in his plumbing - so we had no on-board toilet facilities - and his house batteries were so low from inactivity that they were barely able to keep the refrigerator running. The prospect of spending the cold night in a noisy truck stop or Walmart parking lot was weighing on us - most campgrounds are closed in the winter when their water pipes might freeze and camping traffic is low. In hind sight we realized that we should have headed directly south to get to the warmth sooner. Luckily we found the Ft. Chiswell Campground open. We can't hook up to the water but we've been able to put a little in our tank so we can use our bathroom facilities. We're plugged in so we can run the heater. We even have a cable TV hook up. Ah, the life of luxury. We're in Virginia just South of the junction of Interstates 81 and 77. The temperature here is about 40 degrees but the forecast is for it to go down into the teens tonight. Florida is going to feel really good!

Q046428 Ft Chiswell Campground #11 e/w/tv $24.64 B
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February 13, 2003 (Thu)
Wytheville, VA to Richmond Hill, GA (428/961 miles)

It didn't make it down into the teens last night but 24 degrees was cold enough to make sleeping difficult. And the wind was fierce all night long. We couldn't imagine what the wind chill might have been. It was almost up to 32 degrees by the time we were ready to take off at 8:45 but the wind still made breaking camp miserable.

We headed south on I-77 and up and over the Blue Ridge Mountains. Fancy Gap pass wasn't high, 2900 feet, but there was still plenty of snow on the ground. It slowly vanished as we went down and south. We heard on the radio that I-77 was shut down due to an accident with fuel spill up ahead so we jumped off onto I-74 so we could take the parallel US 601. We never heard anything more about conditions on I-77 so maybe we detoured for nothing. It was good to be off the interstates for a while though.

Gas prices are outrageous. In New Jersey we paid $1.49 a gallon. Since then we've seen it as high as $1.71 at places we would normally expect to pay reasonable prices. We've not done too badly - $1.54 at one place, $1.56 at another. The temperature has moderated - it was all of 64 degrees as we crossed the causeway to the campground. But this is Georgia.

Q046856 Fort McAllister State Historic Park #8 e/w $15.64s A
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February 14, 2003 (Fri)
Richmond Hill, GA to Penney Farms, FL (185/1146 miles)

We're getting lazy - stayed in bed until 7:15 or so this morning then showered and had a leisurely breakfast. The sky was cloudy with the sun breaking through in patches and the temperature was almost balmy at 54 degrees. A good kind of day for traveling. The big class A from the campsite across from us - the Haas' from PA - was pulling out of the dump station as we pulled in. We noticed that they had forgotten to put their TV antenna down. We tried to get their attention but could not. We wonder if they still have it.

We gassed up in Richmond Hill ($1.54) and started south on I-95, heading for our favorite fudge shop in the Darien, GA Prime Outlets discount mall. (It's our favorite because it's the only one we allow ourselves to shop at, not because it's any better than any other.) The mall was having a sidewalk sale - great prices but not much we could use. Joy did pick up a $49 shirt for $5 though.

Last year we swung by the bridge in Brunswick we'd watched being built because we thought it would be finished. It wasn't. This year we were sure that it had to be finished. It wasn't! It's been under construction about six years so far.

We got into Penney Farms, about 3:30, set up camp and went to see Mark's mother. We found her awake, alert and glad to see us. Apparently she has good days and bad. We were glad this was one of her good days. Conversation was difficult but not impossible. We'll be here until Sunday morning.

Q046856 Penny Retirement Community RV campsite #1 e/w $7.50 C
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February 15, 2003 (Sat) Penney Farms, FL (2) - Today was for MotherB. We walked over to see her and spent a couple of hours with her at dinner and supper times. We were able to help her eat these meals and it gave us a way to communicate without the struggle of verbal exchange. It is wonderful to see her sense of humor shine even though she is so weak. Between visits we came back to Q and read, napped, worked crossword puzzles and Mark practiced his guitar (he's three weeks into a new practice regiment after 25 years of total neglect.) In the evening we played a couple of games of RummiKub and watched a TV show that we'd taped before we left home.
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February 16, 2003 (Sun)
Penney Farms, FL to Lakeland, FL (171/1317 miles)

What a day! Violent thunderstorms here and record snowfall and blizzard at home. But it started smoothly enough. We got up, showered, unhooked Q from utility support, and went to say good bye to MotherB.

At 11:00 we headed for Starke where Mark's sister Dorcas and her husband Mike were camped in their fifth wheel. While we were there the rain came. It poured with lightning striking so close that there was no time between the flash and the very loud clap. But good company and good conversation made it almost fun. By 3:00 when we were again on the road it had let up but it didn't last long. We got gas just before getting onto I-75 ($1.65). Then it began to rain again and it poured all the rest of the way to Lakeland.

But at home it was snowing and blowing. We heard that 18 inches or more were expected in Washington and New York. It made us glad to be in the South experiencing less than completely pleasant weather (66 degrees). Our daughter Jennifer and her husband Dave were scheduled to leave Liberty Airport in Newark, NJ at 5:00 and fly to Miami, FL. We wondered if they'd be able to get out - we were hearing that the New York airports were shutting down. Donna, Ed and Kathy's daughter, checked the internet for us when we got there and found that the flight did get out. It must have been one of the last out. We arrived at Ed and Kathy's and joined family and friends celebrating their grandson's 4th birthday. A highlight of the party was the key lime cheese cake they served for desert.

Q047212 Ed and Kathy's back yard campsite #D e/w/s A+
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February 17, 2003 (Mon) Lakeland, FL (2) - This has been a relaxing day of visiting and errands. Ed and Kathy saw their daughter, son-in-law, and grandchildren off , then we all went out shopping and lunch at a Subway shop. When we got back, Mark downloaded email and later called our son Jeff for a situation report at home. They had about 20 inches of snow at the time and it was still snowing. They were all OK although getting their girls to and from their weekend swim meet before it was called off turned into quite an adventure.

Tonight we watched "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" on Ed and Kathy's new DVD player. Great movie!
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February 18, 2003 (Tue)
Lakeland, FL to Englewood, FL (110/1427 miles)

Before getting on the road at 11:45 we went to the used paperback book store in Lakeland. This is the best such place we've ever shopped in. Besides having a huge selection and not being picky about what they take in, they pay the best price (25%) for the books we bring in. We're always surprised at how many books we can get to break even.

Our trip across I-4 and down I-75 was uneventful. The weather was cool for Florida this time of year - 67 degrees - but otherwise typically cloudless, sunny, and beautiful. We got here about 2:30, unpacked Q, and moved him - against his will as always - out of this motor home restricted condominium into the bank parking lot. While Joy, her mother and sister caught up on family news, Joy did a much needed laundry and Mark began to translate our notes into this more readable account of the last few days.

Q047322 SunTrust Bank Parking lot - parked