Here we sits, with a 180 view of FL H20. Somehow Ollie scored the BEST site in the entire RV park, so we have no neighbors to obstruct our view.
When they last left you, F&O had arrived in Knoxville, TN and were biding their time for two weeks while Karl was having some plastic surgery on his tailgate. The highlight of this trip was to see a long-lost cousin (the best-ever cheese knife is in the mail), and to hit the KX farmers’ market on both Saturdays. F&O also went to a legit non-commercialized Mennonite market way over yonder, which was the best ever. Ollie went to the Appalachian Museum experience right down the road while Flynn stayed home and binge watched Netflix. Mental note, when spending any significant time in TN, be sure to stock up on orange clothing or risk being shunned.
At last Karl was fixed, and the crew headed to Lucas, Bowling Green, or somewhere in KY to visit family of Ollie’s. They went trick-or-treating with the kiddo and the following day hit Nashville for an afternoon. We all know what that means (hint – shots involved). Two days after All Hallow’s Eve, they went to an epic haunted house place which had 4 attractions including a creepy doll factory. Dolls are the worst.
Family and business taken care of, it was time to head eastward. Mooch-docking for two nights at a friends’ pad in South Carolina included a daytrip into Charleston, a horse drawn ride tour, lots of seafood, and homemade cookies for the road. Can’t beat that with a stick. Oh yeah, they also made pulled pork sandwiches for dinner one night. F&O wish they had planned on staying there longer.
A night at a state park in Acworth, GA was the last stop before hitting FL*. Flynn and Ollie lucked out, as it turns out their friend Brisco Mutt (and handler BJ of course) were in town. The Bs cruised on out to the lake and shared burgers and a fun meet-n-greet at the campsite. BJ is a friend we only see every year or so, as he travels the circuit, and his location at any given time is any where on the planet. Brisco Mutt behaved VERY well and took a liking to Ollie, probably because he was cooking the burgers.
Finally, Florida. First stop was Huguenot City Park, outside of Jacksonville.
There they met with friends (C&B, the turtle saviors) for a grill and some beverages, and spent several hours in Jacksonville-proper trying to absorb the vibe. Okay, first of all, don’t bother with the North Riverwalk – there isn’t one. Secondly, DO go to the Jacksonville library, which is a stunner. While it is a library, it is also a gallery and has 5 floors of cool stuff to look at. Across the street from the library is a candy making store that makes the best salted caramels you will ever have. Win Win.
One of the drawbacks to planning a trip to FL is, uh, hurricanes. Basically, one month before F&O were to arrive and hang out in the sun and warm temps, Helene and Milton punch-smacked Florida around. Ergo, for a few weeks the otter kept a stringent eye on the itinerary, and apart from one RV park (Cedar Key was flattened), all the reservations were in the clear a week* before F&O were to alight in the Sunshine State. Ollie extended our stay in Wauchula there for two extra days to fill the void left by Cedar Key-No-More.
A daytrip to St Petersburg was the first jaw-dropping sights of the damage done by Milton and Helene, and lemme tell ya, it was impressive (not in a good way) even a month afterwards. Up until hitting StP, F&O had seen neat piles of trees and debris piled up by the sides of the roads they were travelling on, a few blown out windows with plywood on them, and a damaged roof or two. FEMA had obviously been through and done a tidy job. St Petersburg was wackadoodle, a month later. Aftermath of a war, obviously. Shredded buildings, boats strewn all over, piles & piles of concrete, mounds of sand, and mostly closed businesses. F&O contributed to the local economy of StP by playing a round of mini golf in 90-degree heat/90% humidity (almost died doing it). There were baby alligators and Flynn won the round.
Another day trip was made to visit yet more long-lost family, again of Flynn’s. There is something about seeing and catching up in-person with your humans. It brings a peace of mind. Thanks for having us over, and for lunch Auntie, Rev, and Cuz! See ya’ on the flip side.
While in Wauchula, there were trips to poker rooms which we shall not pontificate about in this story. The editor will surely get around to some opinionated trips reports at some time regarding the degenerate hobby.
Five days later, F&O find themselves in San Carlos for the their first of 4 nights. There are dolphins outside our RV. Flynn will fill you in on Part Deux of Florida in a future episode, but right now it’s time for sunset beverages.
*While in Acworth, GA – two weeks before our arrival, F&O were notified their reservations at one of the FL state campgrounds was cancelled. Bam, and just like that, the pesky hurricanes threw a wrench. Stay tuned for F&O’s solution!
Fin
Flynn
Random observations: It is difficult to tell when businesses in Florida are open, because they all have window darkening shades to keep the sun out. They look closed.
The editor cannot seem to stop putting two spaces when starting a new sentence. Sorry. Working on that.
So entertaining.