KOA Savannah South (December 28, 2009 - Monday)

We left home this morning at 9:00am and had a great ride down. We drove by this place that looks like it is competing with South of the Border.

So in the South, when they run out of names for cities and towns, do they make stuff up? Coosawhatchie? Really??

I thought Cass got us lost...

We arrived at the Savannah South KOA in Richmond Hill, GA at 3:30pm. It was a very nice, very clean campground with very level sites. We were one row back from a pond with all sorts of ducks and geese!

We will be staying at Mayport Naval Station for 3 days and 2 nights then off to St. Augustine for 7 days.

Titusville, FL (November 19, 2009 - Thursday)

November 2009 Florida Photos

On Tuesday, November 17th, we went to the John F. Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral. We took the bus tour of all the premises. We were able to see up close the Launch Pads, see the route that the Shuttle travelled from the Vehicle Assembly Building to the Launch Pad and the enormous vehicle that took it there!

On Wednesday, November 18th, we went to the Astronaut Hall of Fame. It houses the largest collection of personal astronaut memorabilia! And across the street from that was the American Police Hall of Fame and Museum.

We should be home on Friday, November 20th!

Titusville, FL (November 16, 2009 - Monday)

We were on the road from Fort Lauderdale early enough that we arrived at Manatee Hammock mid-afternoon.

Manatee Hammock is a county park but it is very clean and quiet. We didn't do much on Saturday. On Sunday, we moved to the site across from where we were at so we could get the local NBC affiliate which was the channel the Patriots were playing on Sunday night. And we have met ALOT of Patriots fans or from Massachusetts here!! Cass fished for a while too!!

We are approximately 12-15 miles across the Indian River from where the Shuttle Atlantis will be launching from!

Today, we brought our chairs down to the beach on the Indian River at around 11:30 am and there were already alot of people down there setting up! We went back to the RV and had lunch and then went back to wait for the launch. There were alot of tripods and cameras and spotting scopes set up!!

At exactly 2:28pm, the engines ignited and the flames were visible within seconds! It roared into the sky, through the clouds and onward and upward. The smoke lingered. The sonic boom hit us about 3 minutes after the launch!

Cass did a fantastic job with the video and I couldn't be happier with the still pictures I took! It was a thrilling, exciting unforgettable event!

Fort Lauderdale (November 13, 2009 - Friday)

We left Key West at 9:20am and arrived safely in Fort Lauderdale at 1:30pm. It was still pretty windy but with water on both sides of us along Route 1, there is bound to always be an "ocean breeze"!!

We are staying at Paradise Island RV Resort. The sites are very small but it is very clean and very near Rt. 95!

Bluewater Key RV Resort (November 12, 2009 - Thursday)

It was gorgeous today and yesterday! The wind has finally died down. Cass has spent the last 2 days out on the dock fishing! She used the shrimp that she bought at West Marine... she used it to catch fish that she then used as bait! She was reeling them in left and right and having a blast! When our neighbor Owen saw her out there fishing and catching, he joined her... she out-fished him! His wife Sue and I just sat under the Tiki huts and watched!!

Bluewater Key RV Resort (November 10, 2009 - Tuesday)

We have spent the past two days down in Key West! It is such a cool place to visit, shop and people watch!

Yesterday, we hung mostly right around Mallory Square. Today we walked Duval Street and had lunch at Caroline's... sat outside and had a delicious lunch! Then we took the trolley tour and did some shopping!

We stopped at West Marine on the ride back so Cass could buy some stuff she needed for salt water fishing! And while Cass was shopping for her hooks and bait... I happened upon a SkyMate Wind Meter which measures wind speed. It was VERY cool and is staying in the rig!! And when we got back to the RV, like yesterday, Cosmo and Patrick were sitting in the window so they probably didn't sleep at all while we were gone and naturally exhausted! Cass did some fishing ... and caught 2!!

The wind has finally subsided and it rained for the first time since we have been on the road!

Bluewater Key RV Resort (November 6, 2009 - Friday)

We left Lazy Days at around 11:00am on Thursday. We packed up, closed the slides, auto-raised the leveling jacks and headed to the bays for one last time. Tiffany (our delivery coordinator) told us that we needed to have the air pressure checked in the tires. And it was a good thing we did because Cass asked them to check the airbags... and they were empty! One last stop to empty the gray and black water tanks and we were on our way to Key West!

We drove down to Rt. 75 and got to drive through the Everglades on Alligator Alley. We didn't get to see any alligators but we did see plenty of birds! It was very windy due to Hurricane Ida being 300 miles off to our south/southwest. Cass said that with the car on the back, it was alot of work driving!

We got all the way to Homestead, FL and stayed at Goldcoaster RV. It was very clean but more of a neighborhood with single wide trailers and lots used for long-term rentals. We were up and gone the this morning at 8:00am!

We got to Bluewater Key RV Resort at around 11:00am. The woman said that check-in isn't until 1:00pm but when Cass said that we were actually supposed to have arrived yesterday... we were in! :)

So we are in spot #76 at Mile Marker 14.5! It is windy... but gorgeous here!

Lazy Days, Seffner, FL (November 4, 2009 - Wednesday

After what was starting to feel like we were getting the run around, we are in our new rig! It is absolutely everything we hoped it was going to be and more! It's hard to believe that having the 2 slides and a couch makes everything so comfortable! Vacationing in this for extended periods of time will be very easy to do!

Monday and Tuesday was spent getting the MKX finished so it is ready to be towed. We also had to try and get Lazy Days to get moving on our new rig. We had been telling every person we had been dealing with that we were indeed on a schedule and had reservations in Key West. We were being told by one group that Lazy Days does not "detail" a rig before delivery. Yet our salesman was absolutely insistent that they do and incredulous that we were told that they don't!

Finally yesterday, we were told to pack up and move from the Rally Park over to the lot where the transfer would happen. We were there at around 5:00pm and the new to us Winnebago was brought to us at around 6:00pm. It was clean and beautiful and we couldn't be happier!! The windshield was replaced, the electrical issues were fixed and both the interior and exterior were cleaned! And the RV was set up to tow!

We slept like babies in the new rig... I guess moving from a double bed to a queen really made the difference. The dogs also like the additional room. They like that we can toss the toys for them so they can run some. I think Cosmo has claimed the couch as his!

Lazy Days, Seffner, FL (November 1, 2009 - Sunday)

Cosmo woke us up at 6:05am according to the clock in the bedroom. When he fell back asleep, we did too - and it was 7:45am when I got up and turned on the coffee. We were thrilled thinking we got so much extra sleep ... until we realized we forgot to change the clocks. The bedroom clock had automatically updated so it was 6:45am when we got up!

Nothing much is going on with the new to us Winnebago. The old owners were still moving out and into their new 5th Wheel.

Yesterday, we had signed all the necessary paperwork with Lazy Days. So while we own the Winnebago and Lazy Days owns the Coachmen, we're still in the Coachmen.

Around 4:00pm, our salesman Dave pulled up to our campsite in OUR Winnebago. He let Cass drive it... we took it on a quick spin up on Rt. 4 and back. Cass is thrilled with how easy it is to drive! She said it's just like driving the truck - it is NOT the workout like the Coachmen.

And it wasn't bad with the slides in either. We will be just fine going down the road!!

Lazy Days, Seffner, FL (October 31, 2009 - Saturday)

We were up and about at 5:30am. We took care of the dogs, showered, unhooked the RV and were on the road by 7:00am! We were quite proud of ourselves!! And the drive from Starke, FL to Seffner, FL was very easy and pretty. There was farm county on most of Rt. 75.

We arrived at Lazy Days at about 10:30am. We headed right to the on-site Camping World for our 11:00am appointment for the MKX. The service manager did say that prepping the car to set it up for towing is the most labor intensive. He said it is 12 to 14 hours of labor and he will have the vehicle until Monday even though the Service Department is closed on Sundays. Our salesman, Dave Mercer met us there. It was was nice to meet him after he and Cass had exchanged so many emails and phone calls.

He gave us a tour of Lazy Days - the new RV section, the used RV section, where you park to move from one RV to another! He showed us the Service area where they were already working on the MKX! He showed us the pool and where the free coffee is! He took us back to where the RV was parked and escorted us over to the Rally Park (the campground)!!

As of right now, Cass is getting us checked in while the dogs and I wait in the RV!!

KOA - Starke, FL (October 30, 2009 - Friday)

We left Calabash at 7:30am. Cass was driving the Coachmen and I was driving the MKX with the dogs in their beds in the backseat. After running back home because we forgot something and of course stopping at Dunkin' Donuts for coffee, we were finally on the road! We didn't make our first stop until South Carolina for gas. And we had lunch in the RV in the parking lot. We made it through Georgia with relative ease despite alot of construction!

I guess the biggest news is that we took our new 2010 Lincoln MKX to have it set up for towing behind the 2008 Winnebago Outlook we will be trading the 2004 Coachmen for! Very exciting...

Tonight, we are staying at a KOA in Starke, Florida. We arrived at around 4:00pm, checked in and got set up. We have to remind ourselves - the very first thing to do is LEVEL!

Apache Campground (09-29-09)

Apache Campground Pictures

We are finally as ready as we ever will be to take our "shakedown cruise" in the RV! We chose a campground close to home, only about 20 miles away, just in case!! We left home at 12:15pm. We had to stop for money and to fill the airbags in the RV. Cass drove us with no problems to Apache Campground in Myrtle Beach, a great Campground right on the ocean!

We arrived at the Campground at 1:00pm. We had the propane tank topped off (it runs the hot water tank and the 'fridge when we are on the road). And we rented a golf cart...

We were on our site, parked, levelled (with some help from the gentleman across the way) and completely hooked up by 2:20pm! We are both very proud of ourselves since this is our first real camping trip in our RV! Our rug is set up outside, our chairs are out and set up!

Cosmo and Patrick are adapting really well, in fact better than either of us thought. Cosmo is sleeping under the dinette and even Patrick is walking around and being very inquisitive!

We are a mere stone's throw from the Ocean. As I am typing this, the windows are open and we can hear the waves crashing on the beach. Unfortunately, all we can smell is the spaghetti and meatball dinner that Cass is preparing! :) (I should mention that Cass prepped everything at home... the spaghetti is in a baggie and the meatballs are in a Tupperware.)

After dinner, it will be a walk on the beach for us...

September 30, 2009 - Day 2
So we happened to pick the first "cold" days of fall to go camping. It got down to the mid 40's last night... we had blankets but it is an RV so no insulation! We were both pretty chilly last night. Even Cosmo slept on the bed... something he very rarely does. We woke up this morning at 7:30am and got to talking about being cold. Cass said she thinks the air conditioning might have heat strips so we can take the chill out. I said "I think there is a furnace button..." to which Cass busted out laughing and asked "So why did we freeze?" AND - the heat works perfectly like everything else so far!!

While we haven't been here 24 hours yet, our list for items we "need or forgot" continues to grow. And it continues to be the day of seeing how things work... it was the first time we used the coffee maker. And in hindsight, I'm really surprised that we didn't test it before we headed out. We all know how important coffee is! And it is the first time for a RV shower! Well, that's not entirely true... Cass had showered in the RV while it was still parked at home to make sure everything worked and to see what we would need on the road, like a floor mat outside the shower! So it was really Beth's first time in the shower and it shockingly went very well! We were both concerned since the RV has a 6 gallon hot water tank and Woodbrook had a 20 gallon hot water tank... however the RV is more of an on-demand hot water tank because there was plenty of hot water!!

We took a walk on the Pier and watched the fishing. We saw one gentleman catch an ugly fish that he called a "mother in law" because it is so ugly!!

Then another guy caught a puffer fish!

And we saw a 7-8 foot shark circling around the pier!! We even went back to the Pier at sunset... the ocean was very calm!

It was another absolutely gorgeous day here at the beach!

October 1, 2009 - Day 3

We woke up to another absolutely gorgeous day. It wasn't too chilly last night but our "new found" heating system did turn on twice.

We decided to stay another day. The weather continues to cooperate and we are getting the much needed experience living in an RV! It is also really good for the dogs to still be here. It is a Thursday and more and more people are checking in and making noise. Most of these people have dogs so it is a good training exercise for our dogs to have noises and people all around!

Apache offers cable TV as an amenity but we hadn't hooked it up until today because our over the air antenna was working perfectly! But again in an effort to make sure things work, Cass hooked up the cable and after a few adjustments, it too works!

We are fortunate to have alot of storage in the Class C RV of ours! We are realizing what we do need, what we might need and what we don't need. And also finding a place for what we do bring is relatively easy... remembering where stuff is put away at - that's another story!

All in all, we had a great time... everything worked and we had no problems with setting up or breaking down our RV!

South of the Border (08-19-09)

We took a "shakedown cruise" to South of the Border. Driving the RV is getting easier with each trip, big or small we take. The ride was approximately a 65 mile drive from door to door, mostly a 55mph to 65mph road, a 4 lane road to a 2 lane road so it was a nice combination of driving experience. The weather was just about perfect...

Cosmo and Patrick are really enjoying their RV and we have been making sure that getting them used to being in the RV and travelling is smooth. We have spent time with them in there parked in the driveway. Cosmo did fine on the ride sleeping either in his bed or under the dinette or on the dinette bench. Patrick on the other hand, is needy and insecure and wants to sit with whoever is NOT driving!


Beth drove to South of the Border...










Cass drove home...













Cosmo slept...












Patrick did not...










And if you are thinking about going to South of the Border, don't bother...

Our RV

Recently, we realized that we had been thinking about or shopping or researching for an RV since 2000. When we both retired 2 years ago in 2007, the shopping became more intense. We didn't want to buy something too big or too expensive... what if we didn't like it? What if the dogs didn't like it?

The results of our shopping - a 27 foot, 2004 Coachman Freelander!