Trip Cut Short

We received sad news last week regarding the death of JC, Jenna's dad, just a few weeks after being admitted to the hospital with a collapsed lung and fluid in his lungs, as well as pneumonia, and possibly a heart attack.  It was more than his body could take.

We first met JC when Steven & Jenna had been dating for a while and things were getting serious between them.  JC helped pour beer at the beer truck for Haymaker Music Events.  That was more than 11 years ago.  Since then we have shared a lot of good times and good stories, JC and Jim worked together with Steven to finish their basement and a few other projects.  We were together most holidays and for lots of family dinners.  To say that JC will be missed is an understatement.  To say that he was loved not only by his family but by lots of friends as well was shown yesterday when so many people came to the funeral home to pay their respects and many of them came also the reception held at JC's house.  I worry about those who are left behind, Jenna, Amanda and Patrick specifically.  I think the impact of this loss has not hit them yet, but that it will in the coming days or weeks, and I am glad that Jim and I are able to be here to help in any way we can.  Thankfully we were able to get refunds for reservations cancelled to return home a month earlier than planned. There is always next year to visit those places and do those things if we choose to. 

So for now, our travels are put on hold, and we will pick up with the blog when the RV starts rolling again.

Exploring Lake Okeechobee

This is one of the locks from/to the lake

We drove through Clewiston to see Roland Martin's resort, which turned out to be not much of a resort.  

From Clewiston, we drove east then north to Pahokee where we could get a better view of the actual lake, rather than just the canals that surround the lake as pictured below. 

 https://lakeokeechobeenews.com/community-news/concert-boat-moors-at-pahokee-marina/

The news article above gives all the information about this boat that looks like a giant barge  that is moored in the marina at Pahokee.  It has been used as a concert "hall" for the American Wind Symphony Orchestra for many years, traveling all around the world.  

 This is the harbor at Pahokee.  We saw an alligator out in the lake, and in the harbor we saw a manatee hanging out (Below). 

There is a campground right on the water at Pahokee Marina.  Rates are $37 per day for a 50 amp. full hook-up site.  The view of the lake is beautiful, but the town of Pahokee leaves a lot to be desired.  Housing is all low income, both Blacks and Mexicans.   It is a very poor area, so the marina area is a big contrast to the town. 

As we drove back toward South Bay, we passed lots of cane fields being harvested, some burning, so I captured this shot of the view.  The air smelled sweet. 

We are scheduled to stay at the South Bay Park for a few more days, but may leave early.  JC died early this morning and we don't know when the funeral is, but we will head home in time to attend the funeral.  This is therefore our final stop in Florida this year, cancelling our Hanna Park Reservation.  We have certainly enjoyed the warm weather, time with RV friends, long walks, kayaking, meeting lots of interesting people, and just having fun and relaxing.  

South Bay RV Resort

We found an RV park on the south end of Lake Okeechobee.  It is a county park and it is very well maintained.  The cost is $29 per night or $276 per week, so we reserved a week.  The only negative is that it is located just off a major route (80) across the state from West Palm Beach to Fort Myers, so there is a lot of traffic noise.  The sites are large, paved and spread out and there is a small lake in the middle that is home to some fish, alligators, and various birds.  There is a walking/bicycling trail up on the rim that surrounds Lake Okeechobee, over 100 miles around, although some of that is closed due to construction.