Snowbirding at Sunshine Key

Marge and I have come to this place for over thirty years missing a few, but from the rush of having only a few days with the kids, to a nice lengthy stay this year has been quite a transformation. This is truly a relaxing "Caribbean" style time. From fishing when we want to wandering a beach and finding a few treasures.....


Last night we had a great time at an evening meal with new friends from Virginia, New York, Pennsylvania, Alabama, and Tennessee. We all seem to have a lot in common but we are all from different walks in life. The commonality being the traveling in an RV and seeing this United states. When its done to avoid the weather up north we become the so called snowbirds. Most of us have been coming to this place for quite a number of years
The dinner party was fun, this was Italian night with genuine homemade meat balls and sausage with a special sauce. Superbowl Sunday is going to be an old fashioned pig roast. The dog by the way ("Cosmo" all 165# of him) belongs to our hosts for the evening. It is truly amazing how many animals travel with these RV'ers. I would have to say that almost 50% have at least one animal traveling with them. By the way, Cosmo was with us through dinner and sat anywhere he wanted !!!!



This is not an everynight thing but we have certainly enjoyed getting together telling stories about some of our travels. Altogether this group has been (separately) from Alaska, to New Brunswick, to Mexico and all over the US. An interesting group.

Shipwreck

We had a little excitement last night as a private sailboat washed up on the beach on the other side of the campground. Our weather here has been nice during the day but it has been quite windy. Actually the wind has reached in gusts as much as 35 or 40 miles per hour. We have had to take our awnings, flag and datastorm down for the evenings as the winds don't really die down at night at all. Anyway, apparently the sailboat lost power late yesterday or last evening while under power rather than sailing in the high winds and was drifting into the shallow areas. The anchor was thrown overboard but either not in time or it did not hold. No one was apparently hurt but from the pictures below it is obvious it will be quite a task to get it out of the shallows and floating properly again.

Spending time on the Water

I had promised the other day I would get some pictures of the area as well as some of the boats washed up from the hurricane. Well here is a series that you may enjoy.

Out on the water there are a fair number of shallow areas that have collected tree stumps and the birds have made good use of them to dry (the Anhinga's, Egrests and Pelicans).
One of the pictures is a Portugese Man of War.....they usually show up when the weather turns good and after the wind has died down. They're quite dangerous as they can sting you with their tentacles that hang out as much as 6 or 8 feet. The one pictured is as big as I have seen (12").
Marge and I do a lot of exploring and searching for things like the nurse shark she is pointing at. We followed it around for awhile in the shallows to see what was up, but let it go its own way. We also saw, but were not able to picture, two or three rays floating through the water. They are sure graceful as they slide through the water.
Jack & Garrett..... don't forget to click on the pictures to enlarge them and see them better!!

Last, but not least, we enjoy the bridges, the fishing, being on the water and of course the sunshine.

(If you look close at this last one you will see the warning about the bridge falling apart)

We even catch dinner sometimes, actually we always seem to catch enought for dinner....tonignt was Lane Snapper .....fantastic!!!! We are enjoying our time on the water!

Florida Keys deer -"Key Deer"

For those of you unaware, on Big Pine Key there is an endangered species of deer known as the Key Deer and there are perhaps 4 or 5 hundred of them. They are considerably smaller versions of what we see in Michigan and are pretty much tame as visitors feed them even though they are not supposed to. The biggest danger to them is the traffic on US 1 and while fences help (as well the radar traps too I might add) the death toll each year is about a 100. We witnessed a small mishap, actually the aftermath, when fisheries and wildlife rescued a small buck after it had been hit. They really took a lot of care in handling him while taking him to a vet.
I will try and get a few pictures of these mild manner deer when we visit No Name Key where they seem to congregate.

Hurricane Cleanup

Just a little more about the hurricane cleanup down here. Our impression is that they have done a wonderful job of cleaning up what appears to be a limited amount of damage as compared to what we had seen on TV. The area below is the collection area at Knights Key, however there are still piles sort of hidden out of the way. as is the case with the trailers shown. We also checked out the anchorage area at Marathon and all seemed normal. There are always a few derelict boats there but obviously the harborage is full now and shows no visible damage.

Bahia Honda

We used the boat for the first time and did a little fishing late yesterday....first fish caught was a grouper that was undersize, but fishing was good and with just a few shrimp for bait we caught enough mangrove snappers for a dinner. One of the things that has always impressed us down here is the relative ease of catching fish. It just seems that there is an unending source from boat, bridge or shore. I had only two dozen shrimp for bait and I would guess that we caught 18 or 20 fish. We've been invited for a fishfry tonight with our friends from Alabama (Marvin and JoAnn) and some others from Virginia (Jim, Virginia & RonaLee.....JoAnn is making homemade hushpuppies for all. I know, not particularly healthy but southern homestyle hushpuppies is too good to pass up.

While coming back from the fishing by the Bahia Honda Bridge we passed the first major Hurricane damage that hadn't been cleaned up. A sailboat that was washed up on shore and looked to be totally demolished with a recover or ID number spray painted on. I assume its waiting to be hauled away when there is time. We also ran into our friend Maria who works in the State Park and she said that they have totally rewired the entire park and will open in a few weeks. The beaches and some other areas are open daily but the campground had to be rebuilt. We also noticed a substantial number of trees that have been deposited or have ended up in shallow areas that don't really represent a hazard but will probably provide good fish cover.

The fishfry was a great success with lots of old friends from previous years....see below

I used to kid my inlaws about coming down here to Florida and then getting together with all his Lansing friends, but I have to say its nice to see people we have seen over the years and to talk to them about the years events. March 6, 2005 we left with a bang when I ran over a sewer pipe early in the morning, and I have been severely chastised since arriving this year about being warned when we leave, and they will put out orange highway markers for me. We do have fun giving everyone the business.

Sunshine Key RV Park

This campground that we have come to for so many years (30)is still one of the most relaxing places we have been and there are so many fond memories that we had with our kids and last year with Kathy and her family. We arrived and not too much has changed except for the minimal damage from the hurricanes this past year. We settled in and finally put together the boat we carry as shown below. We have been carrying this boat and motor around for 20 years now and its been wonderful down here . Easy to use and carry and sometimes we even catch some fish.Of course, now that we set up for fishing the next day the wind picked up (at 5:00 AM)and with a crash ripped the hooks out that control one of the awnings...needless to say we woke up and spent the next half hour trying to tie everything down (in winds up to 35 mph). Morning and the rest of the day brought continued high winds as you can see from the cloudy normally clear water and obvious whitecaps.Well, today was Saturday and fortunately today is flea market day at Big Pine Key and they have one booth there that deals in RV parts. Its always fun and today we went with purpose not only to get fresh produce but the parts to repair last nights damage. By noon we repaired the damage and are waiting out the weather.

Monument Lake and On to Sunshine Key

I missed a few pictures from Monument Lake that shows a little better how beautiful it was and no I didn't catch any fish but did see an alligator.

Yesterday we pulled into the Florida Keys on the way to Sunshine Key RV Resort. I had hoped to spend a few days at Flamingo which is 40 or so miles into Everglades National Park and a really unique place. I had stopped there for a few days two years ago and was intrigued with area and thought it would be fun to show Marge. Unfortunately, the area was still closed due to hurricane damage. The Keys however have either done a very good job of cleanup or there wasn't quite as much damage as was presented in the news media. There was obvious damage and a lot less foliage but things seem to be coming back quite well. We plan on exploring the area a little further to see what other damage there has been. Just a note for Dave Ritchie.....Porky's is alive and well and back in business as if nothing had happened.
We are still settling in and arranging things on our little site. Our inflatable boat needs to be put together yet but that will be done soon enough. This place is like a second home to us as we have been coming for 30 years or so and of course the weather is fantastic.

Movin down the road

I previously mentioned that we were staying in the River Bend RV Park which is pretty upscale RV Condo living. The Lots which have all the amenities sell for $90,000 to $180,000 depending on landscaping and location. There are little lakes that you look out on or preserve areas or close to club house or pool areas. There is also an elaborate marina area where you could keep a larger boat or if you trailer a boat there is a storage area that you can arrange to keep the boat in. Below is our spot ($60.00/night)and the road we were located on.

We left the River Bend Resort this morning and proceeded down further (and warmer) to Everglades National Park. Unfortunately, with the damage from the hurricane being as extensive as it was, the Flamingo area which is really the best area has still not been repaired enough for us to stay. We chose instead to stay at monument lake campground ($8.00 a night)which is really quite nice. They do not have hookups but they do have regular toilets instead of pits and access to water but no sewage dumps. We of course are self contained and we really don't have a problem with that. Actually, we have not really run into any major obvious damage yet although we have not really touched some of the coastal areas. There are a few signs that appear to have been knocked down but not much beyond that. Tomorrow we head into the Keys and are looking forward to settling in at our favorite place.

More old friends

We stopped at River Bend RV in Fort Myers which is really a nice upscale RV resort with all the ammenities thats sits right on the Caloosahatchee River. We had stopped here before and visited with our friends Art and Janey Armstrong shown below outside the clubhouse on the river. They travel in their motorhome a goood part of the year and are enjoying retirement to the fullest.

We also stopped to see Dave and Linda Gierhart who have been coming to this area for quite a number of years and staying right in Fort Myers. They sold their place this year and now rent a place that looks right out on the river with all the boat and manatee trafic right out their front window. The picture we took of them shows their huge front window that overlooks everything.

Today, Monday we are off to the Keys with an overnight stop at Everglades National Park although we hear that its really not open yet because of the hurricane damage.

Old Old Friends

Back in high schoo....pardon me...Way back when I was in High School, I was part of the swiming team which at the time was pretty successful (unbeaten for two years). There were three of us that swam the breaststroke and needless to say we spent a lot of time together and became good friends. We all lose contact with old friends but this trip has allowed some catch up time and we were able to have these guys for a cookout while in the St Pete area. They're part of the smart group that left the cold north early and settled where its warm. There was the initial updating about family and friends and then the really heavy rememberances of the good old times. It was great!! Anyway here we are reliving old times.

Fort DeSoto in Tampa Bay

Once we paid umpteen tolls (8 different toll stops) to get to Fort DeSoto from our last stop we found the trip well worth it. It’s like being in the Florida Keys as the park is located on spits of land or keys extending out into Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico with nothing but palm trees, live oaks, beaches and beautiful views.

The north beach at the park is rated as the #1 in the nation and is huge. It must stretch for 3 or 4 miles with parking all along. One area to the south is used for parasail or kite boarding which is quite exciting to watch.

The Campground is nearby and is really quite nice. It is highly wooded and you are warned upon arriving about the low hanging live oaks. It was most exciting getting into our spot and of course we have not been able to use the Datastorm to connect with internet because of all the foliage. As you can see the campsite is quite nice with the water right behind our coach.

Early morning and dusk views with the water so close is most peaceful. One morning we even had a small dolphin just off shore.

Fort De Soto was built and activated around 1900 and was really only an active post for about 25 years. Around 1940, some of the areas nearby were used as a bombing range with the resultant “holes” now offering excellent fishing on the nearby flats. We won’t have time this stop to do much fishing….maybe next time.







The campground at Fort DeSoto needless to say was super place to stay....nice and quiet and lots to do and see. We would highly recomend it to anyone.

Double Oops!!!!

Once again we have found a beautiful campground and would recommend it to everyone...Fort DeSoto State Park. Absolutely beautiful....very wooded but quiet and away from everything being in the middle of Tampa Bay. Limited phone service even. Were here for 4 nights and then on again. While here we hope to catch up with old friends from High School. We did stop at St Petersburg Pier and see Rick Theurkorn Karen Hamiltons brother (My Brothers Wifes Brother) He took a leap of faith sold everything and is now the Pizza King on the Pier at St Petersberg. We enjoyed the Vist. Here he is at his new business.

The pier itself is kind of neat as its an upside down pyramid.


We plan on exploring this park further and will probably be a few days before we post again but life is good and the sun is still bright and shiny down here.

Connection Problems

Oops! Our connection depends on a clear view to the southern sky however we are in the middle of a tall palm forest without that direct view....bummer. Tomorrow we should be able to catch things up.

Hank