America's Sweetest Town, Clewiston, Florida

We wondered what the miles and miles of grass-like plantings were as we drove along the southern side of Lake Okeechobee from Loxahatchee to Clewiston. It's sugar cane! Apparently the mucky soil here is perfect for cultivating it, so it is quite the industry all around this area.
I would post a picture of the fields, but it's pretty boring to look at. I thought this sign at our campground was more interesting.

Lion Country safari

We are in Loxahatchee, FL at this combined KOA and African wildlife preserve. We hear the lions roar off and on, making us feel like we really ARE in Africa. Feeding the giraffes was the best, although driving through the wild animals' habitat was also a thrill. Herds of wildebeest, zebra, Impala, tapir, rhinos, as well as ostrich, chimps, gibbons, and more. In addition, there is an amusement park with restaurant. I'm thinking about a camel ride tomorrow!

Bonnie Dwyer

Okeechobee

We have often stayed at KOA campgrounds because we can usually rely on them to be very clean and the larger ones to have amazing amenities. This one has several heated pools, a 9-hole golf course, mini golf, a snack bar and a bar that serves 16 oz draft beer @ $1.50. Temp went down to the high 30's overnight. Still, better than home!

Soggy State Park

Highlands Hammock State park was hit last night by heavy rains and wind. So we have decided to move on. Will post more later. 

Crane, revisited

This guy is giving me the beady eye!

This Florida crane (I was originally told it was a whooping crane, but maybe it's a sand hill crane) accompanied me briefly on my morning walk until two of his buddies came swooping in with such a clatter! They are noisy.

We are having a great time in central Florida with warm temperatures and sunshine. We couldn't ask for more!

Not missing Maine weather, for sure.

These cranes stand about 30 inches.

Our little camper among the giants

See the little van? That's us!

We are spending this week in Lake Placid, Florida. The only Lake Placid I knew before was in NY. This one was named by Melville Dewey, creator of the Dewey Decimal System. This seems appropriate for a retired librarian!

This RV park is named Camp Florida Resort and is a super friendly place. It's mostly snowbirds, as you might imagine. It's done up right and includes tennis courts, a salt water swimming pool, and lots of scheduled activities.

Parked by the salt water pool

We spent a couple of nights at our friends in Hudson, FL, north of Tampa. I've known Marilyn since 1965 (yikes!) when I spent a year near London being sort of a nanny. She was a neighbor.
During our 2-night stay, the weather improved so we could sit out in the sun for a bit.

We took them to lunch at a British-style pub called "Brits" where we had a couple of refills on the complimentary the fried potato chips. Yummy!

Ted, Bonnie, Marilyn

Brits pub in a mall, Hudson, Florida

Here's what we like to see

Gas was $1.99 a gallon yesterday and today $1.95. At 15 mpg in the camper this is a welcome sight!

Well, of course the first order of business is to find antique malls, right? This one was on our trip from Darien, GA to Ocala area of Florida.

So, Tom, being a good sport, stopped so I could wander the aisles for awhile. That's one way to stretch my legs, and it was free since I didn't find anything I couldn't live without. I looked at a quilt top that was entirely hand stitched, alternating 9-patch and T blocks from late 1900's, but it was fragile.

We found a Trader Joe's in Gainesville, bought a few provisions and found a campground for the night. It's a KOA with conveniences - the most important being the laundry, which we are using. The best part? The temperature is an acceptable 68 degrees. When you leave sub-zero northern tier, this is wonderful!

Darien, Georgia

Of course I found an antique shop. This one had an amazingly  random assortment of stuff. But I remember being here a couple of years ago when I spotted a reproduction of the Harriet Powers Bible quilt for a fellow appraiser! Such fun 

Tonight will likely be the last one in a motel. The temperature will be warm enough to sleep in the camper tomorrow. 

Heavy rain in NC

At least it isn't snow, and the milder temps feel good. 

We are taking our sweet time, planning to stay in Lumberton, NC tonight. I'll be looking for a yarn shop so I can keep busy knitting while riding shotgun. 

2015 travels south

Leaving in our 2001 Roadtrek 190 Popular

It's time to resurrect the travel blog, so here goes. It's been awhile, so this will be a work in progress.

The Maine winter is a good thing to leave behind for awhile if you can. Now that we live in a condo, we feel more comfortable locking the door and heading south. So, we've made it to Richmond, VA today (Jan 11), where current temp is 44 degrees. We'll take it. I think the temp was  in the single digits when we left on January 10.

Thanks to Stan, Toot and Ella for giving us a sendoff from NH.