On Sunday morning,, November 29, we left Farr Park in Baton Rouge about 8:30, Acey’s mileage 68,908.1 and Thor has 76,183. In a light rain, we drove thru Mississippi,
We added our 24th state to our map. Joining up with Alabama, where we travelled last year, we now have a full circle of states that we have driven through in Acey.
We drove thru Alabama as the light rain continued…
It was still raining as we crossed the Florida state line, the “Sunshine State” welcomed us with “liquid sunshine”!
We stayed overnight at CCC Campground and RV Park in Chattahoochee, FL (about 30 miles west of Tallahassee). Again, we did not need to disconnect the toad, so it made things a bit easier when we left Monday morning. (Aceys mileage 69,319.6, Thor stayed at 76,183) It was a cool and clear day as we set out.
We arrived at Rose Bay Travel Park (an Encore resort) in Port Orange, FL. around 3:30. We have full hookups here with 50 amp service.
Interestingly. most of the folks here seem to be permanent residents, like our neighbors,
On Wednesday, it was rather cool out and we decided it was a good day to replace the LED rope lights that surround the overhead lights in the front of the coach. Many of the lights were no longer working. This required taking down 2 large panels from the ceiling.
The rope lights were attached with a LOT of staples that we removed with the lights.
I forgot to take a photo of the new adhesive LED strips we attached, but they look like these strips that Jim put in the front cupboard last week.
These lights turn on when the cupboard is opened to check on tank levels, open the awning, set the thermostats, controls for the water heaters, floor heaters, TV antenna and other controls and monitors.
The new overhead lights give off a softer and brighter white light.
After that job was done, we went shopping. Jim wanted to get another jack so he would have 2 in order to change the struts on the Jeep – pulling Thor behind the motorhome may have contributed to the shocks wearing out. Since we left Nashville in May, we have pulled Thor 7,384 miles, plus 5,000 more last year. But, after driving 76,000 miles as well, it was probably time to change them. We also stopped in at Michael’s and found a squirrel to decorate Acey for Christmas!
And with a “Merry Christmas” sign, suction cups and some lights from Dollar Tree – we decorated the front window for under $20…
On Thursday we rode our bikes 3 1/2 miles to the beach, crossing a high bridge over the intracoastal waterway.
It was good to see the ocean again! We have gone from the Pacific to the Atlantic… We walked 2 miles up the beach – and back again. The white sand beaches in the Daytona area are known for the hard packed surface that can be driven on, but other than the lifeguard truck, there was no vehicle traffic on the beach today.
We rode back over the bridge. It was a nice day to be out getting some exercise!
Friday we drove up to Ormond Beach to ride on a bike path along A1A – the highway next to the beach. We parked in a church parking lot that allowed Off Beach parking.
We rode our bikes 10 1/2 miles up the beach trail to Flagler Beach where we stopped at a little waterfront restaurant – High Tides at Snack Jacks – and had lunch. The beach here has on orange tint to it, and the sand is soft; cannot be driven on like the beaches south of here.
We loved watching the waves break on the beach as we ate our lunch. It is mesmerizing to gaze on the ocean.
Looking at the vast expanse of water remined me of a song lyric “Who taught the ocean you can only come this far?” More evidence of our Creator’s handiwork!
The bike trail was basically a sidewalk, and was well maintained.
Saturday was a cooler day. We had hoped to drive down to New Smyrna Beach to see if we could view the SpaceX launch, but it was delayed till tomorrow. So – we will try to go Sunday! How often will we have an opportunity to see a launch in person?!
Jim decided it would be a good time to change the front struts on the Jeep.
Here’s one of the new struts.
The Jeep steers better and has a better ride for sure!
Sunday morning, we missed Sunday School Zoom as we headed to New Smyrna Beach. Lots of seagulls stood along the shore!
And several people came to the beach to see the SpaceX launch. We saw a small fireball ascend to the sky.
We watched as it rose higher in the sky, but then lost sight of it as it went into the clouds. A minute or two after the launch, we heard the loud WHOOOOSH of the take-off: it was pretty amazing!
We got back to Acey in time for virtual worship with Stephens Valley Church on You Tube and went for a bike ride around Port Orange after lunch.
Monday was cold and drizzly – a good day to do laundry and cleaning – not very exciting , but has to be done!
Tuesday, it was still cool, but clear and sunny. We drove up to Daytona Beach and walked on the pier, boardwalk and along the beach.
We did not see many people out, but the seagulls were enjoying the beach!
And the pigeons too! Funny that we didn’t even notice the surfers….
On the way back to the car, Linda noticed some spider lilies that reminded her of her sister Laura; much of her art had tropical flowers.
Two pieces that hung in our home featured spider lilies.
The one thing Linda misses about not having a house is enjoying her Mom’s and Laura’s art. Linda could do a whole ‘nother blog about their work…
Wednesday Jim worked on installing a port in the “basement” to hook into the central vacuum so we can vacuum out the Jeep.
After lunch on Thursday we rode down to the beach and walked down the beach about a mile and back again. There were a few cars driving on the beach today.
Riding up and over that intracoastal bridge was tough, but we did it again…
We took a short break at the peak to take some photos.
Then back to Acey to prepare to leave in the morning. After dinner, we were able to see the NASA Delta IV Heavy NROL-44 launch from our campground! There was a fireball visible thru the trees, and we watched it go up and up until it got far enough away that we lost it in the trees again.
Here’s a short video Linda took with her iPhone
On Friday, we are heading to Central Florida for a week, staying in Wauchula.
I didn’t realize there was so many rockets flying off into space. Good to see you are getting your exercise.
Thanks for viewing and commenting Bro! Chris kept us up to date on the SpaceX launch – there was another one from Boca Chica, Texas and then we saw on the news about the Delta launch at the Cape. First time either of us were able to see a launch “in person” — after seeing so many on TV over the years, it was pretty cool!
NORMALLY there aren’t that many launches in a 1 week period this was a fluke…BUT…SpaceX has plans for as many as weekly launches at some point in the near future…that was supposed to happen this year but COVID!!!