It is sunny and nice with the temperature in the 70's. We stayed around the campground today and just enjoyed sitting in the sun down by the water. We went to a great seafood restaurant for dinner, dining out over the water.
Dec. 25
We are having great weather here in the keys. Sunny and in the 70's again today. We drove to a nearby sandy beach and enjoyed putting our feet in and walking along the sand. We spent most of the day outside enjoying the beautiful weather. I cooked a ham and we had a very good Christmas dinner.
Dec. 26
Hard rain in the night but by morning it is clearing. The wind is blowing hard today with white caps on the water on both sides of the islands. We drive the Jeep into Key West and go to the Historic Seaport Boardwalk where there are restaurants and shops and of course many docked boats. We had a good lunch and Dick bought 2 pieces of key lime pie to take home. We love that pie! On the way home we stopped at the Turtle Hospital but missed their last tour. They had a great display of the different turtles in the area and lots of pictures and information.
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| 7 mile bridge on the way to Key West |
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| The water was this incredible color |
Dec. 27
Today we move north from the keys. The wind is still blowing but not as hard as yesterday. We move up to the town of Moore Haven which is near Lake Okeechobee and the larger town of Clewiston. Dick's parents spent one winter in the Clewiston area back in the 70's and we remembered the stories his dad had about the area. The Clewiston area is known as Sugarland because sugar cane is grown there. We passed acres and acres of sugar cane in different stages of growth. Smoke was in the air as they need to burn the field before they harvest the cane. They harvest the cane from Nov through March. There are also orange groves and lots of cattle in the area. We saw many truck loads of oranges on the road.
Dec. 28
It got cold in the night and frost is on the ground this morning. We had an early lunch then took off for a drive around Lake Okeechobee. We stopped at several market stands along the way and bought fruit and even some sugar cane. There is a high dike around the lake so you can't see the lake from the road. There are roads over the dike so we could see the lake. It is marshy around the shore. Back at the campground we bought dinner at the club house and stayed and played bingo. Dick was lucky and won a game. He ended up winning $37 which pretty much paid for our night of entertainment.
Dec. 29
Today we stayed around the campground and enjoyed the sunshine and visiting with people in the campground.
Dec. 30
Sunny and nice again today. We drive into Fort Myers and on the way we stop at a discharge river at a power plant to see the Manatees. They are very sensitive to cold water so they hang out around power plants where there is warm water. The Manatees are endangered and protected in Florida. The power plants must keep the warm water flowing even it they shut down the power plant to work on it. We were excited to finally see Manatees. They are air breathing mammals and are related to elephants. They are slow moving and live on aquatic vegetation. We had a good view of them from the boardwalk along the water and saw all sizes of Manatees. We next went to Fort Myers Beach area where there are shops and restaurants. We ate lunch at an open air restaurant. Dick decided he wants a bike so we go to Camping World and buy 2 fold-up bikes. They have a carry bag to put them in when we are traveling. They are small enough to go in the back of the Jeep when folded.
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| Manatees |
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| Fort Myers Beach |
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| Shopping at Fort Myers Beach |
Dec. 31
Dick got the bikes set up so we could ride around the campground. We had fun riding on all the roads and talking to people along the way. We stayed in the campground today and just enjoyed the sunshine. After dinner there was a New Years Eve party in the club house. Everyone brought finger food to share and the campground band was playing music for dancing. We enjoyed sitting with Ron and Elaine from British Columbia and meeting some new people. We left before midnight and moved out to the road by our neighbors. They were playing music and we had fun doing some line dancing and learned to fox trot. We rang in the new year outside and among some new friends.
Jan. 1
Sunny and nice again today. We stay around the campground to do the laundry in the afternoon. There is Bingo again tonight and we are going to go over and play. We were lucky again tonight and both of us won a game and ended up winning $86.
Jan. 2
Sunny and warm today. After breakfast we went down south to Big Cypress National Preserve. The preserve totals 729,000 acres. We saw birds, alligators and turtles in the roadside canals. We came on an area where there was a high fence with wire on the top to keep the Florida Panther off the highway. They are funneled to a underpass under the highway. At the first visitors center we walked along a boardwalk and saw Manatees again. There were not as many as were at the power plant but a few were swimming in the water. At the visitors center in the center of the preserve we saw many alligators sunning and swimming in the canal below the boardwalk. We drove to Everglades City and had lunch. We stopped at the Gulf Coast Visitors Center in the Ten Thousand Islands area of the Everglades.
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| Alligator swimming in Big Cypress |
We said good-by to the couples we had become friends with and move about 70 miles north for three days. We really liked the campground and met some really nice people. We exchanged information so we can keep in touch with them. We are in the Wauchula area at one of the Thousand Trails campgrounds.
Jan. 4
Warm enough today to wear shorts. After breakfast we go to the river that flows around the campground and check on fossil digging. They find shark teeth in this river. One man was digging and collecting in the river. He looks for fossils frequently and he gives us a lot of information. Before leaving he gave us 2 shark teeth that he had gotten from a local mine. He makes jewelry and has a booth at a nearby flea market on weekends. I don't think we will try to do any digging. We go to dinner with the couple behind us. They have been here before and know the good places to eat.
Jan. 5
Sunny and nice today. After breakfast I go over to the meeting house where there are crafts to learn. I make a crochet necklace and then in the afternoon I make a crystal bracelet. It was a fun way to spend the day. After dinner we go over to the couple behind us to say good-by. We are leaving in the morning.
Jan. 6
It rained in the night and still raining this morning. We are going up to Orlando and only have about 70 miles to travel. This campground is very large with about 1500 spots and we are staying for 7 days. Tomorrow Chad, Mel and Jacob fly in to go to Disney World. We are camped only 9 miles away so it will be any easy ride into the park. We drive down to Orlando to buy our tickets into the park and got a 5 day ticket. The more days you buy the cheaper it is.
Jan. 7
Cold and windy today. We drive down to a flea market to try to find the man who gave us the shark teeth. He wasn't there today but we did a little shopping there. We stayed around the campground when we got back and I did some laundry. Chad and family got in late because their plan was a couple of hours late. We will make plans for rest of the week and spend some of it with the kids. Definitely Happy Travels, Barb
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