OLDEST CITY IN THE USA - ST.AUGUSTINE

To get here - We had to battle huge storms, driving off the freeway twice to escape zero viz, and hearing the tornado warning on the radio as we went! Daytona 500 was postponed til 8:30 that night and people in tents were drowned out as we passed. It's a fast route from Miami north on the Turnpike, and we appreciate the car sticker that automatically charges the toll fee to our credit card.

  Before that we spent two good days in the Everglades, a haven for bird watchers, walking the boardwalk trails, finding lots of wildlife and exotic birds especially the beauitful dark red feathered roseate spoonbills, and swooping kites.

   St. Augustine is a very interesting historic city, which has flown 6 major flags in its history - Spanish, French, English (briefly!), Spanish, Confederate and US. The massive fort, the most northerly point of the Spanish empire, guards the harbor. Later came the robber barons, railway moguls and glitterati to establish the town as a haven for vacationing northerners. It's all here along with lots of tourist kitsch now, but also lovely old neighborhoods and mansions and gardens. Sadly it's the start of rainy season too. A river runs down the cobbled street outside our patio today.

  We're holed up in the annex of a graceful old B&B inn, where mimosas come with breakfast and free martinis in the Tini Martini bar overlooking the harbour at night. Everyone is very gracious and friendly, the tourist trade is the only game in town, even if it's unraveling a bit at the edges these days.

  Southern food, fish and seafood restaurants abound. Last night sunset dinner over a river harbor with the pelicans, and flounder on the plate that was swimming earlier. I don't think I'll ever get to like hush puppies, like most things here, deep fried corn bread balls.

  Many old houses are refurbished and open for tours, and the recreated Colonial District tracks the many colonial eras in an active manned historic park setting, rather like Calgary's Heritage Park.

  With this heavy rain, we're not inclined to stroll around one of the 5 major walking tours today and may give in to find a launderette and get the clothes clean instead.

  

  

La Florida - and no snow...

We've been in Florida for a week now and although everyone says it has been very cold we don't agree. However, we have had to wear our heavier gear and have not been sitting outdoors for 3 meals a day as we usually do in Hawaii in November.

  Soon I'll figure out how to upload my photos on the ipad so for now it's just words...maybe not.

  En route from Miami airport we stopped off in Naples for lunch on the bayou with friends Jackie & Ian from Oakridge, a good way to wind down to the laid back style around the Gulf coast.

  We spent a lovely week in Fort Myers (FM) with cousins Margaret and Brent, great hosts, who trundled us all over the place, claiming they were enjoying it all too! They found it's much busier in February than April, actually hitting a beach jam for an hour one day. We attended the annual Edison Light Parade and nearly lost our eardrums with the deafening military and band entries, but a fun event for sure.

  We checked out the local restaurants and shopping, I replaced my lost sunglasses with 2 pairs of prescription ones for about $200, and we visited an Outlet mall already. 

  Off south toward the Keys, we had some lovely walks in the magnificent Big Cypress and Everglades parks, havens for wildlife and beautiful birds. A highlight - mother anhinga feerding her 4 chicks which I captured on video. Loads of sleepy gators, haven't eaten any yet.

  Tonight we had a first. Dinner at the famous Cracker Barrel restaurants spread throughout Florida, down home style food, no booze!! After complaining his catfish was tough to eat, Ted was informed he had been served chicken tenders instead! All servings here are mammoth, so the server proceeded to provide a complete duplicate of his meal, which he virtually polished off again! This time it was fish and blackened - he declared it a success.

  En route to Florida City, just north of the Florida Keys, we stopped off at a great harbour restaurant and fish market, where I finally got into the freshest stone crab claws and soft shell crabs, delicious! Last night it was an oslaught on my cholesterol level with she-crab soup - again delicious. The grouper and mahimahi are usualy fresh here, but lots of other local fish and giant shrimps too.

  Today a return to our diving alma mater, John Pennekamp National Reef Preserve. We enjoyed the visitor centre and aquarium displays, strolling the short nature walks, and trying to remember where we camped  40 years ago when we took our first diving course here. Weather and winds did not oblige today so all boat trips were cancelled. We are here for 2 more days and hope to take a snorkel trip out to the reef if we can.
  

  We will also spend a day in the  Everglades National park and hope to see the magnificent roseate spoonbills, which are local birds here.

2014 FLORIDA TRIP

It is -27 and new snow out there so we will fly to Miami Feb 11 to spend 6+ weeks traveling in Florida, Georgia and S/Carolina. We will leave the glacial temperatures behind and smell the sea air again. Don't follow us on F'book!

Apr 15 and home again

After a good breakfast - that's the norm at hotels now - of eggs, sausage, cereal, fruit yogurt and good coffee, we do the last run. We pass a herd, maybe 30, of beautiful pronghorn antelope, and a couple of coyotes digging at the edge of the road. A few hawks or falcons are returning, that's a good sign. But no grass!
We have a pleasant 60 second border crossing - welcome home to Alberta! - but gradually the sun gives way to clouds then rain and snow at the edge of the road. Not looking good. Snow is forecast all weekend in Calgary. But we have a tail wind so it helps Ted's diesel consumption.
We stop before the border to get gas and offload liquid, and I meet one of my ski buds in the ladies washroom, also returning after 2 months in Phoenix! It really is a small world.
We pull into our driveway at 3:15pm. There's 3 feet of snow in our side yard but our drive is almost clear.
The odometer says 45899km, we began last October at 30550km, so our faithful RV has done over 15,000km with only one oil change and blowing a resistor? I think we now know that we're not going to spend the whole winter in Calgary again.

Apr 13 The final push north to home...

After a restful time to end our time in the south with our good friends, we start the journey north in sun. It is a magnificent drive up through northern Arizona and southern Utah, vast spreads of colourful mountains, huge deep gorges, snow-topped mountains in Idaho and finally Montana, then the Big Sky.
Warned of incoming storms, we get lucky and have sun and mainly blue sky. We winterize in southern Utah and spend the next 3 days in hotels in Provo, Idaho Falls and Great Falls. The latter by the rivers so we stop driving early, and take a walk along the banks and enjoy some sun. We wake Apr 14 to sub-zero temperatures, which drop even lower to 27 as we cross the continental divide for the third time in two days. Then down into the beautiful forks of the Missouri river winding through idyllic valleys and gorges - definitely huntin, fishin and shootin country here. The daytime temp climbs to 48, then 55, but with sun it feels better.

Phoenix - Berrett hospitality & half of Calgary...

Nancy & Colin are here for a month north of Phoenix in Sun City Grand so we reroute to pay them a visit. They are in a lovely residential area on the golf course, but we hit the coldest day on record for that time of year! Sheesh. It's a high of 45 and freezing when we rise. Then the rain comes! The only thing for it, of course, is more retail therapy at the nearby outlet mall. They give me 1.5 hours to power shop and I managed to do just that. Meanwhile, Ted and Colin buy shoes and run into the Robinsons and Fawcetts from the ski club! They are renting a place about 5 minutes from C&N, but we don't have time now to visit with them. They have also met up with the Halligeys (in Tucson) and Crombies (in Phoenix) from the ski club. I guess some of us could have had the wind-up party down here. There's an idea for future years...

April 5, A surprise visit...

We are 5 miles from the Mexican border in an isolated national park. We have a liesurely morning, take off later for a hike in the park, Ted is slightly ahead as I shoot some photos, a car stops, and out steps Bonnie and Surinder Khanna, our neighbors from Calgary, members of our ski and wine clubs! Talk about coincidence, it was meant to be! We have a lovely short visit, swap war stories and suggestions, they take off for the 40 mile drive back to their RV site and we take our walk. Amazing!
Next day, we do the 21 mile scenic drive over dirt roads, fantastic views, but as we had a maybe "wetback" come by begging for food at our campsite this morning, and ran into another lone Mexican at the half-way point in our drive also asking us for something?, we don't feel comfortable to leave the RV and go hiking in the desert. Probably just hungry guys but as one of the rangers was shot by back-country druggies in this park a few years back, we just feel safer enjoying the drive.
One of the interesting things about a country at war with its neighbors (keeping Mexicans out...) after I reported the guy begging at our campsite, they sent the helicopter over for many flights and the rangers circled our fairly isolated part of the camping area. As Ted says, you probably just cost the border patrol a few thousand $$$s.
Next day we head north through serious US air space, with huge fighter jets doing complicated manoevres just above us, very impressive, probably getting ready to help out our trusty soldiers in Afghanistan. Sadly, we receive a note from Deidre this week to say Mik is shipping out to Afghanistan again soon. I guess that's his job but I don't have to like it...He and Aggie had another baby boy in March so it's going to be hard on her when he leaves, as Antonio just turned one!