Now I’m in Mr. Peabody’s Way Back machine. Or so it seems. I’m so far behind in my posts that I need a kind of time machine in order to remember all the places I’ve been and what I’ve seen. That’s the problem with having so much fun, “work” is an after-thought that you only get to when there’s nothing else to do. And there’s always something else to do. But I will try to get my thoughts in a coherent form of some sort and get them on the page.
Biscayne
While I was still in the Homestead area I decided to visit Biscayne National Park. I really wish I had a kayak for that. I still haven’t been able to replace the one I sold before I bought my bigger RV. I finally found the one I want, but nobody has it in stock! The store that has it in their catalog doesn’t actually have it in stock yet, and they don’t seem to know when it will be available. Having something shipped to you when you have no permanent address can be a problem. Particularly when it is a big, heavy something.
Pretty fish for dinner
Meanwhile, I was in Biscayne and most of what there is to see there is either underwater or on one of the many little islands that dot the bay. I have snorkeling gear, but the reef action was farther away than I wanted to swim to, so I had to be satisfied with just walking around on the shore. It really is a beautiful place. I will be going back there after I get a new kayak, either next year or the year after, depending on where I decide to winter next year.
The bay is teeming with life. Colorful fish abound, birds everywhere, the ocean sparkling and bright. I want to go back! There is no camping there, aside from a couple of spots for park volunteers to put their RV’s. But there are a few spots for RV’s to park for the day, you just have to get there early if you want one. I met one guy who camps in store parking lots in town every night, then gets to the park as soon as it opens in the morning. He spends the whole day fishing, soaking up the sun and enjoying the beauty of the place until it closes for the night. He told me that he does that for a month or two every winter. Having a mobile house is nice for that kind of thing.
crab
hermit crab
I had planned to spend a second day at Biscayne but decided to go into Homestead instead and have a new radio/CD player and speakers installed in the RV. The old unit was too old to be able to “read” a lot of my mp3 format CD’s, thus I couldn’t listen to them while driving. And the speakers were so beat up that they were a joke. There are two speakers in the dash, installed flat on the surface, face up. They have had a lot of moisture roll into them over the years; condensation from the windshield, spilled drinks, whatever. The paper cones that were in common use when they were installed weren’t in very good shape anymore. They popped, crackled and made other unseemly noises, particularly if the volume was turned up much past the “marginally audible while driving” level. I felt that since I was replacing those two, I might as well have the two in the coach “living room” done at the same time.
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This, of course, added up to a bunch of money (the speakers alone were $100.00 each) and a whole lot more time than anticipated. The speakers in the coach were installed in such a way that it was obvious that Itaska didn’t want them to EVER come out again. But they were finally removed and the new ones installed. The new speakers do NOT have paper cores and if something gets spilled into one of them, it can be mopped out with a paper towel or vacuumed out with a wet/dry vac. Sweet. The sound I’m getting now is even sweeter and no matter how high I turn up the volume, no distortion. Yes! You’re never too old to rock and roll.
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Since that shot the entire day, I ended up “camping” in the Home Depot parking lot for that night, then headed up to Midway Campground in Big Cypress National Refuge the next day. I really like Midway, but for some reason the park service powers-that-be decided that it should be by reservation only this year. And the reservations must be made at least 48 hours in advance of your arrival. Then they raised the cost of camping there (also the cost of all nearby campgrounds). There were no improvements to the campground itself. No reason to charge more that I could see. But it is what it is, and I wanted to stay there. Unfortunately I could only get five days in a row, then I would have had to go somewhere else for a day, after which I could have returned to Midway for another four days. Which is way too much trouble, so five days was it for me.
wood stork
butterfly
While I was there I did get to visit Sweetwater Strand again and also hike a couple of trails that I had missed on my last visit here. Since I was visiting slightly earlier in the year, things were a little different. The birds weren’t nesting yet, so there were fewer to watch and photograph. The air plants weren’t blooming yet either. But beautiful is beautiful even if it’s different from what you saw before. I also got a chance to make some new friends, but that happens at almost every campground. Most RV’ers are very friendly.
great blue heron
white heron
Once I left Midway, I headed north to Okeechobee, both the lake and the town. I had been told about a campground a little north of the town of Okeechobee, near a boat ramp, that was free and very peaceful. I wanted to check it out. On the way up, I drove along the east side of the lake. Not that you can actually see the lake that way. The lake is surrounded by big earthen dikes to prevent flooding, so no views of the water.
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As I neared the town, there was campground after campground nestled along the road. Most were very small and basic, but they had character. I thought about stopping and finding out prices and availability (full hook-up sites are so nice), but there wasn’t much in the way of parking in most of them and the traffic moves pretty quickly in that section. I also knew that if I liked the place I just might decide to stay for a week or two and not meet up with my friends in the other camping area.
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So I continued into the city of Okeechobee, then decided to spend the night in the local Home Depot parking lot. I was tired and it was getting late. I didn’t want to find myself trying to locate an unmarked campground after dark on roads I had never traveled before. It seemed prudent to wait for the morning light.
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The night was ever so peaceful. I parked by the side of the store, near the back. Traffic noise barely reached me and scenery wasn’t bad either. There was a large pond behind the store and a lot of birds were taking advantage of the water for a meal and a night’s rest. If it hadn’t been for all the pavement, it would have seemed like I was out in the woods somewhere.
campground
Upon reaching the campground the next day I found that It was everything I expected and maybe a little more. I found a nice spot under the oaks and set up camp; putting out the slides, unrolling the awning, setting out my lounge chair and table, etc. Since I still don’t have my solar panels, being where the sun could hit my roof wasn’t necessary. Although it would have been warmer. Mornings in the inland areas in that part of the state were still pretty cool.
‘gator
It was a great place to camp. There were no hook-ups, not even a place to get water. The only “amenity” was a bunch of trash cans near the boat ramp. So at least you could dump your trash. All this meant that there weren’t that many people in the campground. Which is always nice. The other plus sides were; water all around for boating, kayaking, fishing, etc., birds of every description abounding, solitude and stars at night beyond count, a pleasant trail to walk down to the river, vibrant sunsets and peace beyond measure. Whew! If it hadn’t been for needing to get my generator serviced, my kayak replaced and a dozen errands to run, I might still be there.
sunset
sunset two
But all good things eventually come to an end (to be replaced by other good things, of course.) So I took my baby into town and found a place to get the generator serviced. By the time I finished that, plus picking up my mail and getting by errands run, it was already almost 5 PM and that’s no time to start a days drive to the next destination. So I went back to the campground for another night. While I was taking Topper on his last stroll of the evening he started growling at something off to one side of the trees. I shone the little flashlight I was carrying in that direction but didn’t have enough light to get any detail on what had his attention. Then what I had thought was a shadow in the tall grass moved. Judging from its size and the fluid grace of its movement, I may have seen a Florida panther passing through. It also caused me to purchase a better flashlight so that if it ever happens again I will know exactly what I’m looking at!
River near campground
I finally bid farewell to the peaceful place under the oaks and headed back toward the eastern coast, then north. Vero Beach as my destination. But that needs to be a different post. Too much to write about, too little time…
slipstreamserendipity 