1255 April 7, 2025 Sad In Cedar Key

It was nice to walk in a new place.  This campground is really cute.  I went to check-in at the office this morning and they offered us a spot here for next winter.  I think I would rather be in the Keys…

We left around 9am.  We had a longer drive today; our destination was Cedar Key.

There was no easy path from central Florida to the coast.  There were ten different ways to go and they all involved a lot of wiggle waggle and navigation.  We worked our way steadily north and west until we arrived on the Suncoast Parkway.  We arrived at Cedar Key RV Resort at around 2pm.  It was 86 degrees and very windy.

We packed dinner and drove into Cedar Key.  We were last here in November of 2023.  Just a few months before, in August, Hurricane Idalia destroyed the town.  There was a lot of damage to the waterfront restaurants and shopping area.  When we got there before Christmas, the stores and restaurants were just beginning to reopen.  The following August, Hurricane Debby struck the town again.  There was more damage to the town businesses and infrastructure.  As the town was beginning again to recover, Hurricane Helene struck in September of 2024.  3 hurricanes in 13 months. The waterfront area is devastated.  I am not sure if they will ever be able to rebuild.  The area is so terribly broken.

The post office is boarded up and there is a post office on wheels in a parking lot.

There were multiple motels and homes that were in shambles.  There is still a lot of debris that needs to be cleared.  The drive through town was quite sobering.  The reality of the power of wind and 8-12 foot storm surges fully evident here.

The Community Park has been rebuilt with fresh paint on the pavilions and new playground equipment.  It seemed like it was important to the community to have the center of town look put together.

A new sculpture installation at the park.

The ibises were foraging for bugs in the grass.  The male has his mating season color on.

We saw large pink birds, spoonbills, flying near the shore.

More pelicans.

A wildly outlandishly decorated golf cart!

We left town and drove on a dirt road through the National Wildlife Refuge.  We immediately saw feral hogs.  There were two black and homely sows and we could see two small brown piglets.

We have another day to explore tomorrow.

1254 April 6, 2025 See You Later Alligator!

I walked laps at the Midway Campground.  We packed up and left shortly after 9am.  Today we said goodbye to Southern Florida.  No more Everglades until next winter.  Tim wanted to drive up through the center of Florida.  We traveled through Big Cypress National Forest.  Then we drove through panther country.  We drove through farmland and arrives in a small town called Immokalee.  We were looking for a place to pull over and take a break.  We saw a park but we couldn’t find the way in.  We drove a little further and found a large empty parking area near a tomato packing plant.  We stopped.  Outside the garage door, there was a large bin of free tomatoes.  Tim picked out 3 beautiful, perfect, vine ripened tomatoes.

I worked on the blog while we were in an area with service.  Tim went walking in the town.  He came back excited.  He said we had stumbled upon a huge Farmers Market.  We drove across the street and found a large industrial complex with huge warehouses for sorting and packing produce.  We didn’t see any retail sales and we were a little disappointed.

We turned back onto New Market Road and saw a nice produce stand.  In the parking lot, several men were loading a pickup truck with hundreds of watermelons.   The guys sliced one open and handed us a sample of the most delicious red and juicy watermelon.  There were thousands of melons in boxes on pallets.  We purchased a whole watermelon, corn on the cob, and mangoes. 

As we walked back to the RV, we saw a small alley that led to more than a dozen other produce vendors.  We had fun walking through and choosing some avocadoes and pepitas and Tim got a mamey.

We continued our journey.  The smaller towns gave way to larger towns with all of the big box stores and fast-food restaurants that we see in every larger town across the country.  We stopped and did a Walmart run for RV supplies and staples.

Tim asked me to start looking for a campground for this evening.  I began making calls.  I eliminated the resorts with 1-star ratings.  The state park was closed for reconstruction and renovation.  I called 8 RV parks before I finally found one that could accommodate us and then I was just really lucky!  This place, Lake Glenada RV Resort doesn’t usually take phone calls on Sundays but she answered and she helped us!

We got settled and by that time it was late afternoon.

We both took turns walking around the park.  It is a cute little place.  We have a lakefront site. 

We enjoyed a great meal…a fresh tomato, nice bread with fig balsamic and olive oil for dipping, and fresh mangoes.  We haven’t had a tomato that delicious in years!

1253 April 5, 2025 1253 April 5, 2025 Snowbirds In Flight

I walked one last short walk around the campground and along the seawall.  It was balmy, 79 degrees, hot, and windy.  I was glistening!

We prepped the RV to move and away we went.

We traveled on the Overseas Highway all the way to Homestead where we hopped onto Krome Avenue.  We took Krome all the way to the Tamiami Trail and drove to Midway Campground.  We were settled in early afternoon.  We had intended to stay here for two nights but the forecast for tomorrow is for 89 degrees and windy.  We had wanted to bike the 15-mile loop at Shark Valley one more time but it is no fun when it is windy and hot.  We changed our reservation for just one night.  This turned out to be a good decision for another reason.  Tim noticed last night that he had another flat tire on his bike…boo!!!

Tim did some walking here in the campground.  I sat outside for a while this afternoon.  It was less humid here than in the Keys and the breeze made the warm air feel pleasant.

We packed dinner and drove to Monument Lake.  We saw a gator sitting atop a rock in the water and then a huge gator resting on the bank.

I saw this cool Florida Lubber, a grasshopper, in the gravel road.

After eating, Tim was wandering along the vegetation near the water.  There were hundreds of skimmers rising up from the grass and fluttering around him.  I wish I had my new camera.

We saw dozens more grasshoppers climbing the trunks of the palm trees.  We saw birds munching grasshoppers too.

We found these eggshells beneath a tree.  I don’t think that they are bird shells.  The eggs are very round and larger than most bird eggs.  They also felt more leathery.  I am thinking they might be turtle eggs or even gator eggs…but that is pure speculation on my part…I don’t know to whom they belonged!  I also think that a bird got into the nest and had a little snack…but again, I may have made that up as well!

After so many days and nights in the Keys, it was quiet and relaxing in this beautiful and peaceful place.

1252 April 4, 2025 Last Day

I walked in the campground and then went into Marathon with Tim.  He went to the gym and I went to the grocery store. 

It was really windy again today but we were undeterred.  We packed our lunch and drove to Curry Hammock.  The kiteboarders were enjoying the stiff wind and we were entertained for a long time.  It was fun to watch them zipping across the water and then catching air and doing tricks.  These guys were not novices.  The kites were whipping and the athletes were moving rapidly along the surface of the water.

A squadron of pelicans flying low.

We walked to the end of the beach and sat watching the ocean and the sky. 

We spent some time getting things packed and ready to move.  We have had the most wonderful time here.  The very best part was having Kyle and his family with us…lasting memories for sure!  The warm weather and sunshine and color are all excellent reasons to be in the Keys during the winter.  I have grown to dread the cold and greyness of the winters in Maryland.  Tomorrow, we will slowly make our way north toward home.  We have lots of stops to make and we hope to find some new places to explore.

A glass of wine and one last sunset at Jolly Roger.  We even saw dolphins tonight. Until next year…

1251 April 3, 2025 Winding Down

I took a walk in the campground again this morning.  This chocolate lab was laying on the seawall just watching all the people go by!

It was very windy again today.  Wind speed was at 20 with gusts at 24-28mph.  I had no interest in being pummeled by the wind and so I stayed inside.  I read and did stuff that needed doing.

This evening, we went to Islamorada. We saw these military jets flying overhead.

We wanted one more dinner at Florida Keys Brewing Company and Taco Jalisco.  We decided that Green Turtle and the taco truck were our best meals here in the Middle Keys.  We had another great dinner and listened to a musician playing acoustic guitar.  She had a pretty singing voice and we enjoyed being there.

When we got back to the campground, we walked down to the water to watch sunset.  There were lots of clouds again tonight but it was nice to be outside.

1250 April 2, 2025 Slow Day

I began my day with a walk in the campground.  When Tim was ready to drive to the gym, I went along and walked again in Marathon.  I found a pretty little marina.

We did some grocery shopping before heading home.

This afternoon, I spent time sitting in the shade at the beach area. 

Tim took a ride on his bike and then he went out to the beach later in the day.

We packed dinner and drove to Long Key State Park.  It was really windy but I managed to cook our omelets on the cookstove.  Finding a place to eat out of the wind was a challenge but we did just fine.  We sat watching the water for a long while.

As we drove back to Jolly Roger, the sun was beginning to go down. 

1249 April 1, 2025 Sea Life

Another campground walk this morning.  I saw people peering into the water along the seawall.  I stopped to look and saw spiny lobsters sticking their heads out. 

I also saw lots of bigger fish.

We packed lunch and drove to the Old Seven Mile Bridge with our bikes.  We had a great ride.

At mm1.4 I saw shadows moving through the water.  We stopped to look and saw about half a dozen rays.  We watched them for a long time before moving on.  On our return trip, the rays were still there.

We took our picnic and found a table in the shade and along the water.

This afternoon it was hot.  I put on my bathing suit and went to the pool.  I did about 10 easy laps and it felt so nice. This guy visited the pool to get a sip of water.

I grilled mushrooms and onions and peppers and shrimp and made tacos with black beans for our dinner.

We went out to watch the sunset and ended up talking with Norma from Michigan.  This is her first trip to the Keys and so we shared lots of fun ideas with her.

1248 March 31, 2025 Bahia Honda

Another walk doing laps in the campground.  It was already 77 degrees this morning.  The forecast was for a high of 78.  There isn’t as much diurnal variation in the temperature and the sun feels more intense than just a few weeks ago. 

We packed lunch and put the bikes on the back of the Jeep.  We drove to Bahia Honda.  We started with a five- or six-mile bike ride through the park.  We stopped under a bridge for a drink of water, glad for the shade.

We found a great picnic table under the trees and with a waterfront view.

We shared our picnic area with a lizard.  We have seen these everywhere.  He is a brown anole.  He was doing pushups as a display of his supreme physical condition.  He was either trying to attract a female or scare off another competing male.

The yellow flag was flying indicating moderate surf and current conditions. The purple flag was also out, signaling the presence of stinging marine life.

The tide was high and there wasn’t much beach. There were great piles of smelly seagrass along the shoreline. The park does not remove the seagrass. It is part of the ecosystem and shorebirds find their food in the tangled grasses. The seagrass also helps to prevent erosion of the sand.

This evening, we went to Islamorada to try Papa Joe’s Waterfront Restaurant.  We enjoyed our dinner.

We have just a few days left here.  We were talking about the things we would like to do with our remaining time.