Getting ready to roll!

I've spent a fair amount of time with the annual spring clean for the TT.  I always HATE doing the roof but oh so important!  Our trailer is going on its 6th season and we use it at least 4 weeks a year so it has that lived in feel.  Of course that also means upkeep and maintainance are important.  This year I noticed the canopy has developed some cracks...and I'll have to put on a conditioner to keep it supple. 
Anyway, we are getting ready for a trip to the forgotton coast of Florida and we  have all been busy as bee's around here.  Fishing report is looking good and the water temp's off Appalachacola/ St Joe area is in the mid 80's.  I'm going surf fishing for flounder and pompano and hope to bring some to the table.
Just a few more days now and off to the coast.

Heading to NC

We are getting ready to head over to Franklin NC next week.  Just a short jaunt to meet up with friends and buy a few rocks at the gem and mineral show.  We'll be staying at the Great Outdoors RV Park, as seen int this picture.  We like this one for accessibility and convenience to Franklin.  Its one of those great "utility" parks.

Snow Birds, 1954

Jan. 1954, Aloha Gardens
These are my grandparents who pulled this beast from northern Illinois to St Petersburg Florida with a station wagon! Guess you could say I come from a family of campers and travel trailer pullers.

Most Expensive Spring Break EVER!

It started out as an inexpensive spring break, 2011 but that changed before we hit the Alabama border rolling South through Tennessee.  I pull our TT with a F250 Super Duty diesel and going up a hill I felt a sudden loss of power and the wrench light came on on the dash.  Uh-oh!  I proceeded to limp on down to Ft Pickens CG and called the Pensacola Ford early Monday morning.  Their service dept line kept kicking over to the cashier and she put me through to the service dept voice mail.  It said somebody would call me back.  By 2 PM I'd had enough waiting so I called Gary Smith Ford in Ft. Walton, 40 miles away.  They got me in first thing Tuesday and then the bad news came.  Blown turbo, and a repair bill around $2,500.00.  OUCH!!!  I had to rent a car to get back to the campground and this little repair cost money and qutie a bit of time away from the beach.  Thus ends the tale of my most expensive Spring Break.

Ft Pickens Camp Ground

Campgound B has really changed since the huricanes went through.  Hardly any trees left and the sand dunes with the live oak and other vegitation are all gone.  Still a grand beach and cool coastal fortifications but not like it once was.  Picture taken from the B loop closest to the A loop.

Ft. Pickens, Gulf Breeze Florida

Our first trip of the year finds us heading to a campground I've camped at since 1967.  Its changed little over the years but this one will be an eye opener as two huricanes have ripped though it since our last visit.  I look at pictures of the campground and notice most trees did not survive.  And while that saddens me, its nature and this barrier island has seen its share of storms. 

The picture is from one of the many coastal batteries looking out to the gulf.

St. Joseph Peninsula SP, FL

St. Joe SP...a throw back to when times were simple and the camping was primitive.  This is a great little state park that will remind you of of times gone by.  Yes it has 30 amp and maybe even some 50 for those bigger rigs and water but the dump station is at the entrance of the loop.  There are two campgrounds, the Gulf Breeze (GB) and the other one in the pines.  We  stayed in GB and anybody with a rig of any length should only consider GB loop.  As you can see from the picture the campground is just over the dune from the beach, what a plus!  We love this park!  Its so close to the gulf, is out of the way and is smack dab somewhere along the "forgotten coast" of the Florida panhandle.  Its about 30 miles to Apalachacola and well worth the trip...or several trips.  If you would like to see my picasa album please click here.