YOLO in Florida, Mar 2022

Our goal was to be in Florida in March to register the YOLO van in Florida when the sticker on the license plate ran out.  We had to have an appointment to deal with the matter and we had a week or so before we had to be in Cape Coral.  We took the scenic route along the beach.  The white, white sand here along the panhandle was stunning.  

We found a public access lot in Navarre Beach that didn't say No Overnight Parking and tucked in for the night and another beautiful sunset.

Someone left this pile of shells near the entrance to the beach.

The water tower and visitor center in Pensacola, Florida.  Colorful.

We drove back west along the Gulf Islands National Seashore on the panhandle of FL until we reached the end, at Fort Pickens.  We wandered through the old brick buildings like this one.  

Old floating mines that were used to protect the entrance to the harbor here.

Jason in a phallic pose with a big gun.

Brick archways in the old fort.

Another big cannon mounted on wheels that could be swung in an arc to fire at enemy ships.

They are rebuilding much of the fort to preserve it.  We always try to read the posted signs to learn what we are looking at.

The cobbled brick walkway in one of the buildings looked smoothed by time, yet still so uneven as a floor to walk on.

I like the teal and pastel pink and lavender of the sunset next to the white sand.  This might become my background wallpaper on my laptop.

And then we have the fiery orange and hot pink that bleeds into the purple to keep the eyes feasting as the sun goes down.  I'm really glad I'm not colorblind.

This old home caught our eyes as we waited for a train at a railroad crossing.

We had to collect our year's worth of mail from Green Cove Springs. While on the east coast in the Jax area, we visited a high school friend of Jason's.  Terry and Marti graciously hosted us in their new home  And they fed us like royalty.

Airboating seems to be a family recreation activity here where the water is shallow, with lots of weeds and growth.

Two friends with airboats were launching this one for its maiden voyage.  Unfortunately the trailer wheel fell in a hole and the back transom of the airboat, which is normally only inches above the water, fell below the waterline before they could get it off the trailer.  The boat filled with water in a hurry and the owner/designer tried to hold the back corner of the boat up while his friend tried to pull it back out of the water.

Water gushes out the two bung holes to drain the boat.  They moved the trailer over a bit to avoid the hole (created by power loaders who gun their motors to get their boats up onto their trailers) and just barely got the boat off without dipping the back end into the water again.  Surprisingly, the drivers of these airboats didn't wear life jackets, either.  Luckily, anywhere he took the airboat that day, he could step out if he got into trouble as it was mostly just knee deep.

Not an official camp site, but we stayed next to the water here where locals came to launch their airboats.

The early morning mist rising off the water.  The fishermen were out early.

Cypress reflections in still waters of the swamp.

While visiting our cruising friends Mike and Sue in Punta Gorda, we got to view their local marina holding their "Blessing of the Fleet" boat parade. The Burnt Store marina fire boat spewed a water jet while the boats turned in the corner basin with salutes, trying to miss the manatees that were lazing in the water there.

Our visit to the tax collector office (Florida's version of the DMV), didn't go so smoothly and we were forced to make another appointment to try to get our business with them completed.  Jason wanted a personalized plate for YOLO and making a change to the title meant getting original signed documents that we didn't have with us.  So we went to visit other friends in Bonita Springs for a couple of days.  We tested their patience, hospitality, and neighborhood covenants by parking in their driveway.  At least the van was clean.

Jason on the deck of Cathy and Floyd's home.  Their house overlooks a little lake that now contains a resident alligator.  We kept an eye on the local ducklings that had just hatched, as did the alligator.

Jason with Cathy and Floyd just before we left.  

YOLO looks at home in these classy digs, I think.

We headed back out for more camping in the area to await our next appointment.  We made reservations and got special use permits to use this camp site in the CREW Crystal Dome Recreation area.  We were the only vehicle inside the locked gate, but lots of birders and hikers used the area on foot.  The special use permit is free from the local water management district, and it gives us the combo to the lock for the gate so we can drive in and out.   

Out for a hike along the trails here, we happened onto this large gator.  It surprised us and we scooted past in a hurry to keep from disturbing it or enticing it to chase us.

A vagrant at an intersection.  Just loved his white-framed sunglasses.

Jason and I made it all the way down to Key West.  We drove at 3AM to avoid the hassle of the traffic both ways.  We found parking next to a park across from the beach, with public restrooms there.  We tried to use the public bus system while in town, but the bus never showed up where we waited in the sweltering humidity and heat of St. Patrick's Day.  These beautiful orchids brightened the wait, though.

The local pickup for large objects was this crane truck.  It picked up two big chairs and the full-sized couch (with the covers still on them) and placed them in the big dump trailer where we waited for the bus.  Snazzy.

We gave up on the bus and walked clear across town to Kermit's Key Lime store to get key lime pie.  Jason is savoring the tart taste of his slice here.

I went for the white chocolate-covered frozen key lime pie on a stick.  Awesome!  And it cooled me down after that long trek across town.

A wall of stickers and ours were still in the van, darn.

We happened into a rum distillery just as they were ushering folks in for a tour, so we just ambled in with them.  We had a tiny taste of their rum in a teeny cup of pina colada.  These jars of unknown stuff were left unidentified as the owner gave us his spiel.

The owner is a chef and believes being a chef and using the best ingredients creates a better rum.

That's the owner in the red bandana.  His worker called in sick so he had to give the tour himself.  The clear elixir is pouring out of the copper still behind him.

Ancient rum runners of lore aside, he claims to be the first legally licensed rum distiller in town,

As we left one distillery, what do we see but another one on a different corner!

We reached the southernmost point of land in the USA.  It's traditional to blow a conch horn at sunset and this bronze statue commemorates the founder of that tradition.

The buoy that marks the destination for so many here in Key West.  People waited in line to get their photo with this marker, but we didn't require exclusivity in our photo, so we clicked and continued on our way.

Jason taking a call at the end of the earth.

The Conch Train as it travels through town full of tourists.

The infamous Duval Street in Key West.  We were there on St. Patrick's Day and the atmosphere was surprisingly mellow and low key.  No outrageous folks to be found.

Taking the beach toys back to the hotel, this worker looked dwarfed by her load.

An indigenous species preserve near the park where we stayed had lots of birds being rehabilitated.  A very stinky place, but this snowy egret had the softest looking feathers I'd seen.

Roosters were everywhere in this town!

 A giant conch shell, the symbol of the local high school.

Heading back north, we stopped in the Everglades Visitor Center.  While $28/pp for the ride through the swamp on their train was a bit much, we walked the boardwalk and spotted this brown anole lizard in mating mode.  He was molting his skin, but that didn't stop the repeated inflation of the red dewlap to try to attract a mate.

We awoke to the mist in the marshes by a local trailhead.  The trail itself turned to mud shortly after the start, so we didn't follow it.

The drops of dew decorate this spider web near the Gator Hook Trailhead.

Lots and lots of dragonflies buzzed around us here.  These black and yellow ones are Halloween Pennants.  This one liked the perch on our antenna.

Hiking along a trail, I spotted this thing nailed to a tree trunk.  No indication what it is for, I just have to guess it might be for bees or wasps.  I've never seen another one anywhere and there was no signage and no one to ask.

Jason on a hike through the trail area where we camped.  Later that hike, I spotted the elusive Florida panther.  When he realized I'd spotted him, he turned around and crossed back across the boardwalk and disappeared before I could get Jason's attention to see it.  Folks we talked with said they'd been hiking this area for 25 years and never seen one, so I was very lucky.

It's been a dry year for this marsh area.  The water level gauge shows all the way down to 0.00 inches.

Across the road was an orchard with oranges still loaded on the trees and falling on the ground.  I wandered over and picked up a few to see if they were ok to eat.  Yep, they were ok.  I think the orchard is probably a victim of 'citrus greening' disease so the fruit isn't being harvested and transported.  There is no cure for this disease that has now infected over 80% of the orange trees in Florida.  The trees will produce less fruit of much poorer quality until they die in a few years.  Orange juice will become a drink of the past.  So many orchards are now being bulldozed to make room for housing developments all over this state.

Rich and Jan, old cruising friends from when they lived aboard Slip Away.

We tracked them down in Tallahassee and spent a couple of nights telling stories and catching up.  We had a wonderful breakfast at their local Canopy Road Cafe and walked off a few of the calories around their scenic neighborhood.

We visited the Maclay Gardens State Park as it was said to be in bloom just now. Lots of camellias like this one on show for us.  This one looks so perfectly round. 

Jason in a ponderous pose overlooking the lake in the park.

This little green lizard, probably another anole caught my eye in the greenery along the walk.

The pretty color of the water in this reflecting pool really stands out in the green lawn.

A flower blown into the corner of the pool by the recent winds and rains.

Entering the little garden required Jason to bend to fit.

Bright yellow blooms on this weed are as pretty as any cultivated flower.

Open Pond Campground in Alabama was our last stop before making a push for home in Michigan.  For $4/night we got hot showers and fresh running water near our campsite.  We met a guy from Alaska and picked his brain for info about our upcoming travels for the two nights we stayed here.  Hard to beat the price and comfort offered here, and since you can stay up to 14 days at a time, lots of folks make this their winter base; easy to see why.  I had my hammock out and read if we weren't off hiking the woods around here.

These trees look like giant onions sprouting out at Open Pond.

The nasty reality of the higher gas prices.  We hit over $100 for the first time in fueling the van.  Bummer that prices skyrocket just as we've planned a long driving trip in our van.  Guess it's a good thing that Jason drives so slow!

Hopefully this gas will get us back to the cottage.  Jason will make some adjustments to the van and we will take care of dental appts and such before heading to Alaska.