End of the Road....Ed died suddenly July 20th and Jean trudges on a very rough & lonely road

4th trip - Nokomis, FL WITHOUT THE RV!!!!

Road trip WITHOUT the RV!!!

Back in February, while we were staying at the Royal Coachman in Nokomis, Ed had this "brain fart" when I left him alone to go to the laundramat.  He suggested we go look at a park unit for sale by an elderly gentleman which was 2 doors down from Karen & Jeff and not far from Betsy & Rich (our buddies from our old boating days on the Hudson).  It was more the location that attracted us than the furnishings because there's woods across the street which means less for Molly to bark at (which was a wrong assumption).

We ended up signing the deal before we left to head home and Don, the seller, remained in the unit until his son came down to pick him up and drive him back to NY in April.  

Ed worked around "moi's" schedule and we packed the rooftop carrier, put the bikes on the bike rack on the back of the car, and packed the car making sure we had enough room for the dogs (never leave home without them!).  We left on Sunday, May 19th, and headed south.  We did an overnight stop at the LaQuinta in Brunswick, GA...first overnight stay in a hotel for the dogs and they did pretty good ... considering.

We arrived at the Royal Coachman Encore Park in Nokomis around 14:00 and took some things out of the car and then headed to Sleep Land to purchase a queen-size mattress (the unit was furnished but the bed was a full size).  By the time we got back to the unit the Sleep Land truck was already there getting ready to unload the new mattress...talk about timing!

Karen's & Jeff's sidewalk

While I was making up the new bed, a LOUD boom of thunder shook the unit and Mandy came running to find a hiding place.  Ed was out unloading the car was and deafened by it and came inside and made a remark (something about changing his underwear) and after he recovered he walked outside and noticed little flakes falling from the sky.  It turned out those little flakes were ashes and the lightning had struck in the woods across the street right across from Karen's and Jeff's unit.  Let me mention that at this time of the year, most of the people are gone and there's only a handful of full-time residents here but none up along the street where the fire started.

Ed called 911 but didn't know the street names and tried his best to explain where the fire was burning (remember we had just gotten in a couple hours earlier...we know the street names NOW!). 

We heard sirens blaring along the main road and it turned out that lightning had struck and started a couple of other fires.  One firetruck finally arrived with two firefighters and they got started on one hose.  Then one firefighter ran to the back of the truck to get another hose out in the other direction.  I mention this because I became a volunteer firefighter when I realized that the heavy hose was wrapped around a telephone pole and the firefighter was trying to pull it into the woods with no success.  I put my camera down to see where Ed was and he was heading down the street to talk to some neighbors who had now shown up to watch; I looked at the firefighter and made a motion and he nodded from across the ditch and I went and grabbed his hose and dragged it from around the telephone pole to straighten it out for him to pull.  Ta Da!!!  I'm still waiting for my helmet.  Here's a YouTube link of the fire:  http://www.youtube.com/user/PawpurrsNewBern/videos

OK...so that was our FIRST day here!

We've been checking out restaurants and already found a couple to put on our FAVORITES list:  Briandi's Italian (a very small "hole in the wall") and Saltwater Cafe which has early bird 39 cent oysters on the half shell.  Both of them are within two miles so very convenient. 

We also went to the pool one day and pretty much had it all to ourselves for a while and there's some nice tiki huts to protect us from the sun.  We take Molly and Mandy to the fenced-in dog park definitely once and mostly twice a day.  One of these days they dream about having their own fenced-in yard.  There's lots of squirrels and bunnies here so both Ed and I are getting a workout on holding onto the leashes. 

We met up with Carole & Bob Armstrong for dinner at Rosebud's and Sharkey's on the Pier and did a lot of catching up (more buddies from our boating on the Hudson days who are now full-time Venice residents).  Those two restaurants were also put on our favorites list.

Most of the time we are just chillin' and enjoying reading and relaxing (Ed enjoys a rum & coke) and thinking how nice this will be when we come back during January, February and March. 

We did check out some consignment stores and Furniture Warehouse and after doing some rationalization, we decided to replace the old sleeper sofa in the unit with a new double reclining sofa (there's still a futon out on the lanai for overnight guests) figuring we would be more comfortable in that and will pick one out in January.

Before we left RCR though, we picked out pavers and submitted a plan for approval and hope to have a patio when we return.  We headed home on Friday, June 7th so I could be back in time for the Garden Club luncheon (Ed HATES my commitments!).  We did the drive in 12.5 hours and got home around 20:30.

 

Our next scheduled trip is September 23rd with the RV to go to a Good Sam Club Samboree in Marion, NC and then meet up with members of the Fairfield Harbour RV Club in Winston-Salem on September 29th for a week's stay.

3rd trip - Wilmington KOA in Wilmington, NC with Fairfield Harbour RV Club

The Fairfield Harbour RV Club's Open House was Saturday, April 20th and the next day we finished packing up the RV and headed the short distance (approx 2 hours) to Wilmington, NC to join up with Wagonmasters Betsy & Don Albaugh and Karen & Dave Costello.  Joan & Bob Ross also arrived a day early and Pat A & Walter Rucks, Fay H & Wayne Fretwell, Debbie & Jim Harris and Roberta & Bill Flynn joined us the next day.

Ten of us decided to do the trolley ride around Wilmington which was very educational and interesting.  Plenty to do around the area and we found a great bar & grill downtown:  Front Street Brewery Bar & Grill.  We had dinner there with Costellos the first night and then met up there for a group happy hour the day we did the trolley ride.

Ed and I went to the Wilmington Arboretum and Amy (one of my good friends from Raleigh IBM day) and her two boys (a toddler and a baby) came and met us at the campground and then we headed to Airlie Gardens to walk around there.

Ed also went to the USS North Carolina Battleship along with the Costellos and Bill Flynn & Jim Harris while I walked the dogs around the grounds.

Don Albaugh arranged for the group dinner at the Bridge Tender Restaurant at Wrightsville Beach which was very good.

We ended the trip on Friday, 4/26 and headed home to Fairfield Harbour. 

(Ed ended up flying to Michigan on Tuesday to be there while his Mom had a quadruple by-pass.)

2nd trip - 4th stop - Lexington, SC with FH RV Club

The ten of us (Ellen & Jim, Debbie & Bernie, Roberta & Bill, Karen & Art and us) said good-bye to Stephanie & Chris Davies after we all packed up and left the Georgia National Fairgrounds in Perry, GA.  Stephanie and Chris were starting out for a cross-country trip.  The rest of us were heading to Lexington, SC to the Barnyard RV Park.

We ended up heading back to Lizard Thicket for dinner with the Pettigrews, Palmeris and Pethybridges.  The next night we went to a Mexican restaurant with Pettigrews and Pethybridges and Ellen ordered a frozen Margarita which she insisted I share with her (she got a brain freeze and it was a BIG drink).

Ed wanted to do a tour of a gourmet popcorn factory in Columbia and Cromer's (p-nuts AND popcorn) had a minimum requirement of ten people for a tour.  Ed was able to talk everyone in to going and for the tour price we got free cotton candy and a bag of popcorn.  The popcorn was pretty good and everyone ended up buying something afterwards.

After that everyone went in separate directions and we went to the River Banks Zoo and Botanical Gardens with Karen & Art.  It was cold but it was really nice.   

The distance between the zoo and the gardens ended up being quite a hike and 3/4 of it was UP hill.  Ed was smart and he opted to move the car from the zoo parking lot to the gardens and he said that was quite a distance also.  However, the gardens were beautiful and well worth the strenuous and exhausting walk.

Everyone departed Lexington, SC on Tuesday, 3/26 to head back home to Fairfield Harbour.

2nd trip - 3rd Stop - Georgia National Fairgrounds in Perry, GA - FH RV Club

Everyone packed up the next morning and the five rigs formed a "convoy" to head up the street to the Georgia National Fairgrounds for early arrival to the Georgia Good Sam Club Samboree. 



FH RV Club minus Bernie



The Fairgrounds provided us with full hook-up and we were able to park in a horseshoe formation and save a spot  (thanks to Skip, one of the GA volunteer parkers) for Bill & Roberta Flynn who arrived a day later.

In addition to the RV Club's cook-out and happy hours, the Samboree provided plenty to do with a few vendors to shop at, new RVs to look at, bingo, donuts in the morning, free ice cream one day, and a catered dinner.  The entertainment was great:  Friday night was a 50's Big Band (that was the theme) which got Bill and Roberta up to dance.  Saturday it was Crystal Gage who was not only a great singer but also a hoot and loved bald heads (Jim Pettigrew got his head rubbed).  Crystal's boyfriend also was part of the show and he was not only a singer but played a mean violin. 

Saturday night another thunder/lightning/rainstorm blew through so it was quite messy packing up Sunday morning.

2nd trip - 2nd stop - Perry, Georgia with Fairfield Harbour RV Club

We arrived in Perry, Georgia and checked into the Fair Harbor RV Resort meeting up with other RV Club members.  After everyone (Davies, Palmeri, Pettigrew, Pethybridge) was set up, we went out to dinner to the Menonite restaurant...LampPost Restaurant...table for ten. 

That night we had a lots of rain with horrendous thunder and lightning and the storm knocked the power out. 

2nd trip - 1st stop - Lexington, SC

We're back at the Barnyard RV Park in Lexington, SC and Karen and Art Pethybridge pulled in not long after we did.  After we got set up, we all went to the Vegetable Medley for dinner.

Sunday we got up and walked to the flea market in front of the campground and then did some driving around with Karen and Art and had dinner at Lizard Thicket that evening.

1st trip completed -- We're HOME

We got on 95 North at 9:30 am after fueling up and left Brunswick, GA to head towards home.   Ed decided that he could do the return trip in one shot so we got home and had the RV pulled into the driveway at 5:30 pm. 

1st Trip - 6th Stop - Brunswick, GA

We pulled out of the Royal Coachman Resort in Nokomis, FL a few minutes before 10am after hooking up the car and saying good-bye to Betsy and Rich. 

We started running into some rain and by the time we got to Brunswick, GA and checking into the Costal Georgia RV Resort a little after 3 pm, it was raining pretty good.  Of course, by the time we got the RV parked and hooked up, the rain stopped but it took us a bit to dry out. 

This is a nice RV park with concrete pads, mostly pull-thrus, and close to Jekyll Island and St. Simons Island.  This might be a good place to come for an RV Club trip and we'll scout around the area and see what the attractions are.

After the rain during the night, the cold air moved in and I ended up getting the long pants, warm sweaters AND my winter coat back out from the storage under the RV bed.  We headed to St. Simons Island and checked out the Fort Frederica Memorial site.  We were lucky that they let both of us in under Ed's Golden Age pass since there wasn't much to it.  We did play "dress up" in the visitors' center and that was fun.  We got to walk the dogs on the beach and then found a lot of shops and restaurants in the village on St. Simons.  Most of the restaurants didn't open until 5pm but we did find a little cafe to eat at that was pretty good.

We then drove over the bridge to Jekyll Island and had to pay $6 to get on the island but it's good for 24 hours so we might go back again tomorrow even though that island isn't as commercial as St. Simons.

[CLICK ON PICTURES TO ENLARGE]

Saturday we drove back over to Jekyll Island to do some more exploring and used our pass from the previous day that was still good.  We went to the Georgia Sea Turtle Center which was pretty interesting; in addition to information on turtles, it's also a hospital and rehabilitation center.  We then walked around the historical houses which, even though they're big, they call cottages.  This is a great place to take your bike and ride around and you can ride on the bike trail all around the the island.

Catching up...

On Sunday, I left Ed alone and headed for the laundramat...big mistake!  If anyone knows Ed, they're familiar with his "brain farts" and he had one while I was gone.  When I returned, he suggested we go look at one of the units for sale here in the Royal Coachman Park and, easy-going me, said yes.  Now we had something to think about...we like the area (between Venice and Sarasota!) and there's PLENTY to do here at the park and it's dog-friendly with a great fenced in dog park (unlike so many other parks around here).  It's also right down the street from Karen and Jeff and not far from Betsy and Rich. 

Monday we went for a bicycle ride going the opposite direction on the Legacy Trail (biking/walking) this time we went towards Oscar Scherer State Park and rode around checking out those campsites. 

Tuesday (2/5) we went back to look at the unit again and we decided to GO FOR IT!  We signed some papers and then we headed back to Sarasota to Jungle Gardens.  We were back in time to head to Luna's Ristorante in downtown Venice for dinner with Betsy & Rich and Karen and her friend, Linda.  You wouldn't believe the size of the dinners at Luna's...Ed LOVED it there!

Wednesday (2/6) we started to "break down camp" but postponed it because we had a better offer...we ended up having lunch at Turtles on Siesta Key overlooking the intracoastal waterway with Betsy and Rich.  When we got back, we said our "good-byes, see you later" and then resumed the break down procedure.  We'll be pulling out on tomorrow and heading north.

Sarasota - Ringling Estate

 After a rainy night we woke up to a cool morning (as in needing- a-jacket cool) with the forecasted highs in the upper 60's.  We packed the dogs in the car and headed to Sarasota to the John & Mable Ringling Estate.  We spent most of the time in the Circus Museum which houses a lot of circus history.  Also housed there is the Tibbals Learning Center -- the circus miniature and interactive galleries (no, we could not walk the tight rope or fit in the little clown car).  The replica in miniature of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey was created by circus historian Howard Tibbals.  It features eight circus tents and 42,000 objects in a 3,800 sq ft exhibition space and replicates the tented circus when it was at its largest (circa 1919-1938).  It was amazing! 

Ed and I couldn't remember if we had ever been to a circus....

In addition to the Circus Museum we checked out the gardens on the estate and the Venetian Gothic Mansion (Ca' d'Zan aka House of John) which was beautiful on the outside but definitely wasn't our style on the inside.  There was also a Museum of Art on the grounds but we were getting tired of walking around and headed out.

Meeting up with our old Cornwall, NY boat club buddies






Ken McBride ... the GREAT entertainer at
t.j. carney's



 Monday night the five of us (pictured US, Karen, Betsy and Rich) headed out for Mexican Food at a place in The Brickyard.

Wednesday (1/30) the five of us met two more from our old Hudson River boating days at t.j. carney's in downtown Venice.  It was great seeing Carole and Bob Armstrong who transplanted from NY to Venice, FL a few years ago. 

We had a great dinner and the entertainment, Ken McBride on the keyboard and singing, started and we had a great time (as in audience participation).  It was like old times!



Carole & Karen





and then there were SEVEN of us

 Friday (2/1) we went to Carole and Bob Armstrong's for drink and chili and then met up with two MORE CYC couples:  Paul & Dotty Allen and Mike & Mary Conley...seems like old times!



1st Trip - 5th Stop - Nokomis, FL

We left the Florida State Fairgrounds this morning before the "rush" of hundreds of others started pulling out.  We hit the highway and around 20 minutes into the short trip to Nokomis, Ed noticed that our car being towed behind the RV was "weaving".  He carefully slowed down and pulled off the highway with the car hitting the bicycles on the bike rack and, once out of the RV, found that the pin had come out of one of the tow bars.  The bar was dragging on the highway so he had to unhook the other bar from the car and I loaded the dogs in the car to ride with me and followed him the rest of the way.

Upon arrival at the Royal Coachman RV Resort in Nokomis, the coach started losing air pressure both in the parking lot after checking in and once again trying to back into the site.  Hopefully, in the two weeks we're here, we can get things fixed.

On the bright side, we met up with our old Cornwall Yacht Club buddies:  Betsy & Rich Harden and Karen & Jeff Schaack and went out to dinner at Pop's Sunset Grille along the Intracoastal Waterway.  We saw a dolphin swimming and I didn't have my camera!!!

Monday, Ed and I did a little driving around and decided to stop for late lunch/early dinner at Ophelia's Pasta House in Nokomis.  The dogs LOVED it because they're dog-friendly and they have an enclosed patio where THEY can come and eat with you and they get to order off a doggy menu (they ordered chicken).  Definitely, a highlight of the trip for the dogs.  Later we had happy hour at Rich & Betsy's place with Karen & Jeff and then Karen and I went to Bingo (we didn't win!).

Tuesday, Karen and I said goodbye to Ed and the dogs and we headed to the beach on our bicycles.  It was almost a 7 mile round-trip ride with the wind in our faces both directions but flat (except for the drawbridge over the intracoastal).  The red tide left a lot of dead fish on the beach but we picked up some pretty shells and then pedaled down to the North Jetty (the South Jetty across the inlet is Venice).  We talked to a few people there and Karen found a real pretty shell...it was pretty until she felt something move in her hand and that's when she met Charlie.  After she looked Charlie in the eyes, she couldn't bare to take him home and kill him so he was set free.

Thursday the three of us ended up going to a sunset drum circle on Nokomis Beach the other night.  It was a bit chilly but it was a BIG circle with lots of people showing up with their drums.  It was sort of like a jam session and a few free spirits got up and "danced" while another guy did like an Indian ritual with feathers...quite different.

On Saturday, Ed and I headed to downtown Venice to walk around.  Like New Bern's Bears, they have the painted turtles and dolphins throughout the downtown area.



Pelican tree...you definitely don't want to be sitting under this!



1st TRIP - 4th stop - Florida State Fairgrounds, Tampa

Ed filled the water tank and emptied the holding tanks and we checked out of Lazydays Campground today after getting our last free breakfast and lunch. 

We arrived at the fairgrounds and parked in the holding area for the Thor Diesel Club (TDC) and waited for the other TDC members/rigs to arrive.  We ended up being in the first group to be escorted to the section where we'll all be together.  This place is packed; mostly motorhomes lined up side by side with enough space in between to open awnings.  The RV Show starts on Wednesday and we can come and go as we please while we're here. 

The members of the TDC all met for Happy Hour and we reacquainted ourselves with those we have met at past rallies and met new ones. 

During one of the Happy Hours, the topic of the python hunt came up and the people who live here in Florida say it's a big problem.  These huge snakes have been eating alligators, deer, bear!! and they're starting to move northward looking for more food.  What's scary was that someone said that by 2014 they should be up to NC which I find hard to believe. 

Thursday it was cold (61 is COLD here), rainy and windy.  In the morning, they offer donuts and coffee to people who are staying on the fairgrounds so we walked the dogs over.  We found another building (this RV show covers a LOT of ground) full of vendors and it wasn't too crowded, thanks to the weather, and the dogs were allowed in the building so we decided to kill two birds with one stone by walking the dogs and browsing at the same time.  We came back to sit down and look at the many brochures that we picked up and then decided to walk back over so Ed could pick up something he had seen. 

Due to the weather/rain, one of the members of the TDC who lives nearby in Seffner invited the group to her house for a pot luck. 

Friday we walked around the show again checking out some more things.  TDC sponsored a catered dinner; it was cool sitting outside but it was good food and good company.  Ed and I then walked over to the free entertainment, a comedian.

Saturday the sun and warm weather returned.  A couple of the rigs from our TDC group left today but we'll have our last happy hour with the group this afternoon.  We had been to the RV Supershow every day but decided not to walk around today since the nice weekend and the weather will probably draw crowds.  Our happy hour consisted of leftovers and then we headed over for the free entertainment, a couple that sings RV (funny!) songs. 

Sunday morning we start packing everything up and we'll have to see how the workers here are going to get the hundreds of rigs out in an orderly fashion.  It should be interesting!

1st TRIP - Third stop - Seffner, FL

It was cold this morning when we got up early in Perry, GA ... 32 degrees!  We got on the road by 9 am and started heading further south.  By the time we arrived at Lazydays RV Campground in Seffner, FL (near Tampa), we didn't need our winter coats but still needed our sweatshirts.  The timing was just right because we checked in and got hooked up before the rain started.  The 5-day forecast shows that the high temps are suppose to be in the 80s this week...YIPPEEEEE!!!!
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This definitely isn't going to be like our July-October 2012 trip where we were constantly on the move.  We're CHILLIN';  Ed and I each got a Nook and have been lolling around and reading e-books (I brought a few real books, too).  Honestly, this is RELAXING!

The weather is definitely nice but I see New Bern is enjoying temperatures in the 70's this week; where we are here in the Tampa vicinity, it's in the mid- to upper-80s.  Therefore, I packed the winter coats, long sleeves and most of the slacks under the bed to be pulled out when we start heading back home in February.

I received a certificate for completing my driver's confidence course on the 9th.  I got to drive it around the campground and even got to blow the airhorn to make someone move who was blocking the road.  They thought if they closed the door that would be sufficient...NOT!  The instructor told me to wait for them to move the class C completely out of the way and I was thinking "I can fit through there" but realized I wasn't in my car but in a 35' motorhome.  I didn't get to do any backing up but I'll have Ed let me do that when we get back home so I can practice getting into campsites. 

Thursday we went to Brandon to visit my sister, Arlene, and her husband, Arnold.  We sat and talked for a few hours and did some catching up. 

We went back on Saturday and I saw Jimmy, my nephew, who I hadn't seen in 16 years and met his wife, Jess and daughter Caylin. 

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Coming out of a new RV with two thumbs
up...NOT a good sign!

Ed and I were laughing because we haven't left the "compound" aka Lazydays.  We've been doing a lot of walking and bicycling throughout the campground and with the price of the site, we get a free breakfast and lunch each day while we're here.  Today we walked the dogs over to where the new 42' tag axles are and the dogs liked a few that were way above our budget (right now a pop-up isn't even in our budget!).

We went to a winery in Plant City (reminds me a little of New Bern with a nice downtown area with historic homes).  We opened up the place and Ed did some winetasting and bought some wine.  He's going to be doing some more wining with Mary N. once we get home.

Monday Ed and I drove over to St. Petersburg to visit Marie and Kathy Peleshuck, neighbors from the 60's in Cornwall, NY.  When Kathy was 2 - 3 years old, she was my "baby doll" and now she's 51 years old.  Time flies!  We had a nice visit and talked about the old neighborhood and friends.
It's nice to hook up with old friends.

1st TRIP - Second Stop - Perry, GA

We headed to the Barnyard Flea Market in Lexington before packing the dogs in the RV and heading to Perry, GA.

We arrived at Fair Harbor RV Park around 2:30 pm and checked in. 

We're staying two nights here so we can do some scouting around of the Perry area since we'll be returning back here in March with our RV Club to attend a Good Sam's Club Samboree at the fairgrounds (which is a hop, skip and a bump away).  This campground is also close to a lot of things (shopping, restaurants, etc) so it's definitely a good location.

Nothing exciting has happened yet so the posts can only get better :-)

Stay tuned!

1st TRIP - First Stop - Lexington, SC

Early wake-up (6:15 am!!!) and looked out the windows to see a glaze of ice on the Harbour.  BRRRR!!!  It's time to head further south!  Ed wanted to get on the road by 9 am so my goal was to get moving. 

We pulled out of the driveway at 8:42 am...18 minutes early than Ed's planned departure time...WHOOPIE!

We arrived at the Barnyard RV Park in Lexington, SC a little after 2 pm and was assigned a nice long campsite and left the car hooked up.  The campground is located behind this huge flea market that we checked out on Saturday morning.
When Ed found out there was a restaurant within walking distance, we left the meatloaf in the freezer and walked to Vegetable Medley; the buffet had really good food.