02-05-2014 Finally Florida…and whatever was I thinking??

Current Location: Destin, Florida  44 degrees F with a low tonight of 34 and a high tomorrow of 43?

I have visited northern Florida during every month of the year except July and August, and nope, it has never been this cold.  Or maybe I am not remembering it properly.  Looking back at the blog, I see some complaints now and then during my Ocala visits about frosty nights and cold windy days. 

We have been incredibly lucky on this journey.  During our first month traveling south through Texas, through country that is known for sudden snow storms and cold snaps, we had gorgeous weather.  We missed the worst of the cold in Corpus Christi by a week, and then when it turned cold again in the south, we headed out on a Caribbean cruise.  Amazing timing!

I should be grateful…I really am…but yup, I am cold tonight.  We are settled in at Destin Army Recreation RV Campground, something called MWR….meaning Morale, Welfare, Recreation.  Unlike most military family camps, this one isn’t on a base and required no military ID to enter.  It was built for the morale, welfare and recreation of military folks in need of respite.  Of course, retirees like Mo still benefit.  Just today we were talking about what an incredible benefit these camps are for people who have served in the military. 

Where else in the very expensive Destin area could you stay for just $19. per night with full hookups, including sewer, and an extensive list of cable tv channels.  The laundry costs a measly .75 a load and the showers are clean, again with roomy private dressing rooms and unlimited hot water.

There is a beautiful swimming pool, supposed to be heated, but as of this writing it wasn’t, but it was still quite pretty.  The kids splash park looked like it would be fun in warmer weather and the fishing pier extended far enough out into the bay that we actually saw flounder through the clear waters below us.

When we arrived back in New Orleans from our cruise on Sunday morning, the skies were laden and cold, with heavy fog warnings.  The fog never lifted all day.  Disembarkation was incredibly easy, but the shuttle that we had prepaid managed to do a switcheroo and changed the pickup zone without letting us know.  By the time we were picked up an hour late we were not happy.  The guy got no tip!

When we picked up the fur kids at the Canine Connection in Uptown New Orleans, they were in great condition, clean and happy and well fed.  With a minimum 7 day stay, Abby was given a free bath and Jeremy got his toenails trimmed. They were of course happy to see us, but we could tell they weren’t at all stressed out. Although Jeremy did stick to me for a couple of days like a little fur ball of glue.  Once back home to the rig, we found everything in good shape, with our small solar panel keeping the batteries charged up and all the food in the freezer still OK.  It was a test…and it worked.

I planned for a full day to regroup in New Orleans before our planned departure.  Monday dawned dank and damp and foggy and again, that fog never lifted.  New Orleans seems to be a fairly dank place….while we were there everything was damp and wet and moldy.  I didn’t develop a great love for the city, or the outlying areas we traveled when we were there.  Unlike the magical bayous of other parts of Louisiana we have visited, the sprawling, unplanned messy communities with bone jarring pavement on the Westbank didn’t impress me in the least.  I was glad we were leaving and had no desire to explore anything further. 

Erin has posted about some wonderful sights in New Orleans, especially the murals, but in that dank fog and after being tired from the cruise, a day of laundry and vacuuming out the car and MoHo were all I wanted to manage.  It was good to get everything all freshened and ready to go for the next leg of our trip. We did manage to navigate 12 miles across town to find an Office Depot for some printer ink (that wasn’t in stock), found a WalMart next door (where the ink WAS in stock), and spontaneously stopped at a veterinary clinic where I bought another case of what my vet calls Ensure for old kitties, since it is from veterinarians only and my supply for Jeremy was dwindling.

The three month trip we have planned is basically a three part adventure.  Part one is behind us, with the southward journey through West Texas and the Texas Gulf Coast topped off by our Caribbean cruise.  Part two will be a month in Florida, something I have dreamed of for years now.  Part three will be the unknown route of the trip back west. 

We crossed Mississippi and Alabama on I-10, with dark fog and rain discouraging any side trips.  I knew from blog reading that there was a lot to see on the Gulf Coast of both of these states, but I was Florida bound and the day was dang ugly.  I just wanted us to get from point a to point b.  It didn’t help that I had the first real killer headache I have had during our entire trip.  I tried to go back to the bed to rest a bit while Mo was driving.  (Yeah, I know…no lectures please)  The pavement was so rough that I almost got bounced completely out of bed, so that solution lasted all of ten minutes.

Once we arrived in Florida though, things started to feel better.  I have no idea why.  Just something about the Florida landscape, the clean white sands among the pines, the feel of it.  I have no clue.  Must be all in my mind I guess, but eventually the headache lifted. 

We took a route south from I-10 that went through Navarre and toward the east along 98, avoiding any toll bridges to our location on Okaloosa Island, the location of Destin and the Destin Army MWR where we had a reservation.  We knew to expect tight quarters, so the campground wasn’t a surprise.  Our spot works for us with room to park the car, open the slide, and still have a tiny bit of privacy from our neighbors, but not much.  With the cold temperatures, we are glad for full hookups and our little electric heater.  I heard a rumor today that propane fuel is more than doubling in price in some places.  We filled our propane tank back in Corpus Christi and shouldn’t need more for a long time as long as we don’t use the furnace.

This morning I woke up, excited to get my boat into Florida waters at last.  Watching the weather, we knew that the winds would be rising as the day progressed, but the sun wasn’t going to show up until later in the day.  Lucky for us, we decided to go kayaking early, and were in the water at the MWR boat launch by 9am, to partly cloudy skies and a stiff breeze.

I spent quite a bit of time researching the route along the southern side of Chocktawatchee Bay that winds around toward Destin Harbor.  It was only about 2.5 miles or so to paddle under the bridge and into the harbor, and we hugged the shore to avoid the worst of the choppy water.  As we rounded the point before the bridge, the current  through the channel was creating some crazy conditions and I was glad for a stable boat and a buttoned up life jacket.

Once we were under the bridge and into the harbor, however, things calmed down considerably.  With the season not yet in full force, we didn’t have to fight too many big boats, but a couple of them passed us in the confines of the harbor and they looked very big from the water level of the kayaks.

We paddled about a mile or so to a small beach where the Boshamps Seafood and Oyster House is located.  They have patio dining and allow dogs, with even a special doggie menu, so we thought it might be a nice place for lunch.  Problem was, it was only 10:15 and of course, they weren’t open yet.  I thought maybe we could paddle the bay for awhile and then go back, but Mo was feeling uncomfortable about the increasing winds and that channel we had to get back through.

Good thing we left when we did.  We got through the channel ok, but those big waves were pushing us along from behind and the current was coming downbay toward us.  I kept thinking…I am a good swimmer…I have on a life jacket….my camera is locked up in the Pelican case.  I even put my glasses in the pelican case before we tackled the point.

Once around the point, though, things got even worse, with a strong north wind coming directly toward us and making some pretty dramatic whitecaps on the bay.  Mo was ahead of me and she saw a small marina and headed in, hollering something at me that I couldn’t hear.  Yup…I was ready to go in as well.  We landed on the tiny little beach and managed to get out of the boats without getting rammed too badly against the rocks. 

Finally got the boats up on the dock and hauled ourselves out of the cold water and onto land.  The marina was closed with only one lone rather grumpy man around who didn’t seem to think much of two tourist ladies emerging from the water at his boat marina. He was a bit of a jerk actually. 

Mo stayed with Abby as I volunteered to walk back to the camp to get the car.  Lucky me, it was only a mile and a half and by then the sun came out in full glory, and away from the water there was barely a breath of air moving.  The walk was actually quite nice, and would have been better if I hadn’t been next to barefoot in my thin water shoes.  I got to see all the houses we had viewed from the water from the roadside.  The luxury of those waterfront houses can be seen fully from the water, but isn’t at all evident as you peer down the long driveways from the road.

It all turned out just fine, and we loaded up the boats and drove back home to the rig, happy to be warm and dry and in one piece.

The rest of the afternoon was pleasant, with a short drive to the town part of Destin to find PetSmart for some good dog food and a visit to the Destin dog park, well reviewed by people who have been in this area.  I couldn’t believe the shopping in Destin.  The main shops along the highway are just a tiny front for hidden corridors of outdoor malls that go on forever. 

We saw a huge Bass Pro Shop and decided to check it out, without realizing we had parked in an area called Destin Commons.  Almost like a city within a city, it is possibly one of the best shopping venues I have ever seen!  Good thing I wasn’t in a mood for shopping.  I simply wanted to get back home and out of the cold wind and make a toasty quesadilla for supper. 

As I was walking along this afternoon, while Mo waited cold and wet at the marina, I thought, what an introduction to Florida kayaking.  The Florida part of this trip is mostly my idea, my little dream, and Mo keeps saying she hopes I get it out of my system.  I am pretty sure she would rather stay out west, or travel up to the New England states we have yet to visit in the MoHo and maybe continue into the Maritime Provinces.  Hopefully the weather here in Florida will warm up a bit and the kayaking won’t be so dang difficult!