FTJ Entry 135: Carrabelle Beach: Been Here, Done That

The second time around on the "Forgotten Coast" is a bit warmer compared to 2011, but after a few days of lovely weather we are now in a cold, cloudy period. Crap.

Five days in (and despite the current gloom), we continue to enjoy this place, with its deserted crescent beach and nearby idyllic island of St. George -- and of course, oyster heaven in Apalachicola, just down the road.

Sunrise over Carrabelle Beach.

 

We just got our Connecticut license plates for the new motorcoach, so we are all set at last. The Dutch Star is looking good, don't you think?

This photo and the ones below pretty much typify the kinds of crowds we find on the beach here. Even on the sunny days, you don't encounter too many folks.

Boo on the clouds! Fortunately, the sun is going to reappear tomorrow.

Speaking of oyster heaven, Beau just had his first dozen raw oysters ($6.99) of the year in downtown Apalachicola and said they were wonderful -- among the best of any he had eaten. The price can't be beat, either.

Apalachicola has a colorful history, and some correspondingly colorful characters, such as shopowner John Lee (below), who was a newspaper editor and played a small role in a John Hurt movie filmed in the town. Apparently, John L. and John H. are good friends (and drinking buddies). He says he and John also got actor Sam Waterston's son drunk when the kid came of age. Seemed proud of that achievement.

John Lee (related, of course, to General Robert E.  Lee) is a very funny fellow, with many (tall?) tales to tell, full of great details about the history of the Apalachicola area. He also sells locally harvested Tupelo honey, some of the finest you can buy.

John Lee in his curiosity shop.

A movie scene featuring a younger John Lee (with mustache) arresting John Hurt, far right. John plays this film in his shop -- one of his presumably many 15 minutes of fame.

 

John Hurt's bloody shirt from the movie.

I must say we meet some interesting people during our travels.

Oh -- there was also this guy, whose 1930 Model A Ford broke down on the road right in front of our rig. Very nice antique car. Plus, I loved his dog.

Our Sendoff from Ft. Myers Beach

I tend to go in reverse chronological order in these blogs. Below, a few photos from the party our Gulf Waters friends threw for us the day before we left Fort Myers Beach (February 1). We were SO sad to leave them all and come north. Plus the weather in Fort Myers Beach was perfection.

With party hosts and all around great people (featured in a previous blog), Joan and Ed Buck from the Cape. Miss you guys!

Two terrific new gal pals and Gulf Water neighbors, Jackie and Dawne.

They love having parties at Gulf Waters Motorcoach Resort. What a super bunch of people.

On the way up north to the Panhandle we stayed one night at a campground in the boonies of Homosassa, FL.
Yikes. Not for us -- WAY too much like "camping."

Wishing everyone good health, good weather, and safe travels.

Whoops -- almost forgot:  HOW 'BOUT THOSE GIANTS??!!!!  What a great Superbowl.

The GIANTS RULE! (Sorry, Pats fans.)

Tanks, Panky

FTJ, Entry 134: Later, Alligator

Well, I am sad. Our little gator apparently caused some ruckus with our neighbors, crawling out of the pond and under their motorcoach. Maybe he was hot and looking for some shade?

At any rate, hearing this, the park decided to bring in some gator wranglers to remove our little pal.

A female wrangler captured our little guy...

....and a male wrangler then taped his mouth. See, he is not a very big gator -- what harm could he really do?

Apparently, our little fellow will go to an alligator farm for breeding. Yeah, sure. Even the wranglers seemed sad performing the extraction.

I know the little gator could have caused some problems. As the woman who owned the rig where he was seen loitering beneath noted, he could have attacked her as she stepped out of her coach, or he could easily have bitten her little dog. 

Yes, yes, good points, but I am still sad that our little scaly friend is gone.  :- (

So today is the Sunday before the Super Bowl, I believe. We are keeping fingers crossed for the upcoming big matchup.

Here is Beau during the last game, against the 49ers,  when at 8:13 he wrote down, "The Giants Will Win!"  He kept the note for luck. Let's hope it works again.

Another night watching the "beach crows" make their group flight:

We leave on Wednesday. On the road again, heading for Carrabelle Beach on the Florida Panhandle. It will be colder there, unfortunately.

Tanks, Panky

FTJ, Entry 133: Feeling Fine in Fort Myers Beach

We continue to really enjoy this RV resort. (I do have to clarify that the "feeling fine" description is perhaps overstating it in my case. My back is a mess after the move and cleaning, etc. Chiropractor, here I come.)

Anyway, the people have continued to welcome us with open arms and we will be sad to leave them. And the weather -- perfection every day so far. That's 23 straight days of sunny weather, most days in the 70s, the last week in the 80s. Amazing.

Some photos from our stay and our new RV experience:

Harvey on his last run, to the dealer. Bye, Harvey -- you were GREAT.
I did get a bit misty eyed saying farewell.

Old and new. Well, new to us.

Our salesman, Todd.

Beau is ready to go.

Moving day -- what a nightmare.

Settling in.

Our neighbors certainly have a lot of cocktail parties. At the first one we attended, we were telling people about our new diesel pusher (we had yet to bring it into the park), and lo and behold, the couple who had our Dutch Star were AT THE PARTY.  Beau and I spoke to the husband and wife separately and found this fact out nearly simultaneously. WEIRD coincidence -- but handy, in that Ed, the former owner, has been invaluable in helping us adjust to (and solve issues with) the much more complex rig.

Fuzz, Ed Buck, Beau, and Ed Gilmore, the former owner of our "new" coach.

I was talking to Bev, on the right, while Beau was talking to her husband Ed (above) and we both found out they were the former owners. Too funny.

PARTY TIME

The fellow in the hat is Lee, who is in the site next to us. His wife, Dawn, is wearing the black top in the background. Very nice couple.

Joan, on the right, is a dear lady from Cape Cod, married to Ed Buck.

 

Ladies corner.

The sky was filled with birds that night -- migration? Not sure.

On Saturday there was a chicken BBQ and a pool party at the resort clubhouse. Fun day. Good food, good music, nice people, perfect pool day --  in the mid 80s.

Tiki Bar action.

Loving it here.

 Tanks, Panky

FTJ, Entry 132: Oops, We Did it Again

We are really enjoying our month here in Fort Myers Beach. The weather has been perfect, the people friendly, the resort really first-rate. The area has everything you would want, including a terrific Broadway-caliber theater, where last night we saw a touring company production of "Rock of Ages." Fabulous fun.

Just some photos:

Entrance to the resort.

Our site at Gulf Waters resort.

The park's resident gator, about 4 feet long -- he hangs out directly in front of our site along the pond.

Stork checking out the gator. Stupid or brave, not sure which.

One of many fabulous sunsets we watch daily.

Ten minutes down the road, we have the gorgeous white beach that allows dogs and features a bunch of lively restaurants.

Oh Yeah -- Now for the Oops Part...

Well, I guess we are committed to RV-ing a while longer, in that we finally found a diesel pusher we like and could (barely) justify in our budget. As some of you know, we had been looking for a bigger RV for so long that we actually gave up, and partially because of that, we both were vacillating on whether to keep up this lifestyle much longer. 

Then we saw this small RV dealer practically across the street from where we are staying, and I guess it was fate. The coach made the decision for us. This is a motorhome we can live in for quite a while (well, if it's not a lemon). The dealer has to fix a few things, but we should take delivery by the end of next week.

Is this wise? OMG. Are we nucking futs?  

Oh, who really cares? 

(Big talker. If only I were truly that cavalier about life. Those of you who know me understand why I have not slept for two nights straight. I am a nerve-jangled wreck.)

But what the hell. We only go 'round once. We'll likely have to subsist on Alpo in our dotage (or are we in that now?), but by then we will likely not realize it -- or care all that much. 

So our new home is a 2003 (same age as our current coach) Newmar Dutch Star, in fabulous shape. It's more than 40 feet long -- nearly five feet longer than good ole Harvey the Marvey RV, and of course, a diesel pusher. More living area and room to breathe for the two of us; more torque, better climbing, and engine braking for Beau; a larger bedroom and more  tile flooring  for me. But we did have to make a few compromises, such as the oak cabinetry (we both prefer dark wood) and a few other things.  

Newmar is a very highly regarded RV manufacturer, so we are keeping our fingers crossed. Naturally, there are bound to be issues...here's hoping they won't be major. 

HERE WE GO AGAIN!

So here it is. Looks gigantic, doesn't it?

Love the tile floors. Tiled all the way back to the bedroom, which has a speckled shag carpet. It also has a work area next to the table/credenza with a slide out for our laptop and printer.

 

The bedroom has its own vanity (we will have his and hers sinks and medicine cabinets), and a built-in one-piece washer/dryer.

That's enough news from your crazy friends today. (What the %$#!!#& next?)  Have a great one.

Tanks, Panky

P.S. Thought I would just throw in this last photo for a chuckle. This is how Beau drives these beasts. Barefoot. Kind of worrisome, but he seems to have done all right thus far.