Homeward Bound

We are leaving Rainbow Springs today and heading home to Virginia. Our reservation at Hanna Park was cancelled Friday, as that Campground closed on Saturday for the rest of March.  Yesterday we heard that Florida State Parks will all close on Friday, so we will not be alone in heading home.   Hopefully this coronavirus will die out sooner rather than later.

As we headed north on I95, a large portion of the northbound traffic was RVs and Semi Trucks. Most of the license plates were Yankees and Canadian. We stopped for the night at the Walmart in Manning, and found ourselves "boondovking" with more than a dozen other RVs, most Canadians, headed home. The Walmart here has more empty shelves than stocked shelves in the grocery section. No TP, or any paper products, no bottled water, very little in the meat section, very little milk, etc. They did have ice cream, so I picked up some Neapolitan for us to enjoy tonight. We will wait until we get home to attempt to buy essentials. Hopefully everyone will have gotten the buying for a year craze out of their systems.

On another note, I learned that there may be future help in getting reservations at wanderinglabs.com.  We will check this out when we start looking for sites again.

In the meantime, if you wish to reach us, drop us a line at teachcalc@gmail.com

Safe travels!

Rainbow Springs ParkPark- Main Entrance

The main entrance to Rainbow Springs is about a 10 minute drive from t.he Campground.   This weekend it was very busy, in spite of the coronavirus.   There were lots of people enjoying the water, either swim.ming or kayaking,  and lots more sunning on the lawns or wandering the trails through landscaped waterfalls, azaleas,  and other vegetation.   We took Gus with us and it was a challenge to keep him from jumping over walls or into ponds.  The park is very beautiful and well maintained.

Hiking with Gus

Gus and I have been doing long morning walks, exploring various paths in the park. Along the way We have encountered various creatures, from cats to turkeys. Lucky for us we avoided crossing paths with a puma, thanks to a quick warning from a ranger to not proceed further on the path we were on.  Today we also saw a single seat paragliding go kart as it flew over our heads. Gus was as intrigued as I was.

Kayaking on Rainbow River

Thursday afternoon we took the Kayaks out on the water, which is crystal clear. We paddled upstream to the Head Springs, which took about an hour. Along the way we saw a few alligators resting near the banks, several types of water birds, and lots of turtles and fish. Some of the turtles we encountered swimming near our kayaks, but most were sunbathing on tree branches sticking up out of the water.  We also encountered lots of other kayakers and paddleboarders as well as a few pontoon boats and scuba divers and snorkelers. In places the water is quite deep on the river. As expected, it took as less time to get back to where we put in, but we also didnt paddle much except to steer.

First Days at Rainbow Springs

Rainbow Springs State Park is located west of Ocala, near Dunnell on, FL. We arrived here Tuesday afternoon for a week stay. After settling in, we walked down to the river's edge to enjoy the views and watch Gus test out the steps going into the water. The last step down is under water and beyond that is about a 2-3 foot drop. The water is very clear and there are lots of small fish swimming near and on the lowest step. Gus proceeded to fall into the water from the bottom step chasing a fish and getting fully doused in the process. It was a big surprise to him; he immediately climbed back up the steps and shook all over us and anyone else nearby.  We had a good laugh at his expense. Alligators have been seen in this area, so there is a posted sign saying "no dogs allowed to swim", but thankfully we saw none that day, or since in that area.

Wednesday Gus and I took a long walk following the Tram Road. We walked as far as the schools, about a mile down the road, and back. The Tram is for tubers but it is not running this time of year, so it makes a great place to walk.  Later that afternoon Maryann and Phil came for cocktails before going to dinner at Swampy's in Dunnellon.  We have known Maryann since we lived in West Virginia, since 1973.  When we first met she was married to Jay Mullen and they had one son, Michael.  A lot changed after that, with both of us having children, and both families moving to Ohio, although not the same area of Ohio. We still managed to get together when we could until Jim and I moved to Virginia.  We have managed to stay in touch over the years, through her divorce from Jay, and her marriage to Phil , and I treasure the times we can get together. She and Phil live in the Ocala area, just south of the city. We love visiting with them each year if we can.

Last Days at Fort De Soto

We explored all of the park while here, visiting the fort with Gus, and the main beach area. There were no thong bikinis, a disappointment to Jim, but it was a much cooler day and few people were on the beach. There are lots of beautiful live oaks in the park; lovely to admire.  

We leave here in the morning, and I will miss this place, except for the dust.  The jeep is covered in it and so is Gus because he likes to lay in it. 

Tomorrow We head to Rainbow Springs State Park, west of Ocala.

Chihuly Museum

Chihuly has his own Museum in St. Petersburg, about 20 minutes drive from the park. We took time to visit and admire his creations. We had seen some of it before when he brought his exhibit to Richmond.  The work is beautiful and hard to believe how the color blends are achieved.
Afterward, We met up with friends John and Dianne, who live in Sarasota, for dinner at Miller's Bar and Grill.  The food wasnt great, but every year we enjoy getting together with them for dinner. John was a high school classmate of Jim's, and his wife, Dianne, graduated 3 years behind them.  We loved hearing about their new grandson...such a cutie from the pictures.