Out with the old year – in with the new – in Clermont

After we disembarked the Mardi Gras and picked up Acey in Mimms on Sunday December 26, 2021, we drove to the Orlando RV Resort which is actually in Clermont. Jim got her parked and leveled and hooked up to electric. We stopped for lunch at Jersey Mikes and dropped Chris off at the Orlando airport. We got some groceries and headed back to the RV park. Chuck will be staying with us for a few days. After dinner, we Zoomed with the family.

On Monday, Chuck wanted to explore some craft breweries, so after lunch, we stopped in at the Ellipsis Brewery. We each got a flight to sample their offerings. We all enjoyed their craft brews!

Gatlin Hall Brewing was our next stop where we also got a flight each. Its fun to try new flavors!

On Tuesday, we played a round of minigolf – Chuck was the big winner.It was a nice sunny day to be out – the wonders of being in the south for winter!

After lunch, we visited Crooked Can. They have an unusual set up for a brewery.

The brew house was behind a large window, and they offer tours. There was a large selection of their brews on tap. Jim and Linda had been here before, but it was worth a return visit to see what new brews were on tap.

This was what was different here – a kind of mini strip mall – several little shops and restaurants were in the same building!

There is lots of seating outdoors (as well as indoors) – a very “happening” place!

We enjoyed our stop at Crooked Can!

Our next stop was Suncreek Brewing. Their brew house was on a lower level.

We each enjoyed a flight of their craft brews.

For dinner we fixed some German fare and got a photo just before it all dissappeared; warm German potato salad, red cabbage and bratwurst with bavarian mustard. Our last dinner with Chuck – for now anyway.

On Wednesday, Chuck’s visit came to an end – and at 8am, we headed to the airport. Linda had been having a slightly scratchy throat for a day or two that all of a sudden began to feel a lot worse. She has allergies all year and some amount of sinus congestion and/or sneezing is not unusual, but we thought maybe she should get to a doctor. We couldn’t find a “minute clinic” at CVS or Walgreens. The place where we got tested near the RV park before the cruise had a long line out front, so we didn’t go there, and ended up at Clermont Urgent Care. Linda signed in at 1:30 and was told to come back in 5 hours; they were quite backed up! So at 8pm, she finally got in to see a physician – the flu and strep tests were both negative, and the doctor recommended a PCR test for COVID – since Linda was seeing the doctor, she couldn’t have the “rapid test” – and supposedly, that test is not accurate for the omicron variant. As late as it was, the PCR test would not be going out to the lab until Thursday – then Friday and Saturday would be holidays and the lab would be closed – closed Sunday as well so the results would be back on Monday.

Thursday and Friday were days of rest and recovery – the weather was beautiful and we stayed put! We had hoped to go to a New Years Eve party at Russ and Adele’s in The Villages, but decided that was probably not a good idea, since its quite possible Linda has Covid. There was a band playing at the Rec Center – outside – so we walked over and listened to the music for a while.

We didn’t stay long and walked back to Acey and watched the NYE broadcast of the festivities in Nashville – 7 different venues with live music and lots of crowds!

On Saturday, Jim began to have similar symptoms as Linda – scratchy sore throat and some sinus drainage. Neither of us have had a fever, but it seems quite likely, from what we have heard and read, that we both had Covid, possibly of the omicron variety.

Sunday morning we tuned in to YouTube to see the Stephens Valley worship service from last week and Zoomed with our Sunday School class. It was still very pleasant out, so we went for a walk around campground. There are a lot of Sandhill cranes that wander around the resort – here are some we saw!

Later, we made pizza for dinner and Zoomed with family.

Monday morning, we got a call from the clinic and the test results were in. Linda had tested positive for Covid; but both of us had been feeling better each day. After lunch, we walked around campground again, and came to Hancock Lake. A pretty lake – but no swimming – could be alligators…

As we headed back to Acey, there were 2 dogs up on the dash of this motorhome! Looks like they will need to give the windshield a good cleaning before they drive off!

We did not do much on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday – continued to isolate and rest. Linda started a new book; Jodi Picoult’s Leaving Time (which we heard about last year when we were at the Elephant Sanctuary in Hohenwald, TN) Jim did a few maintenance chores and polished the chrome on Acey’s wheels.

By Friday, we both were feeling pretty good, but lines are still HOURS long to get tested for Covid, so we are hoping we are over it, and are not going to get a test. Neither of us have had a fever, and it seems our sinuses are clear and we’re not coughing. So, we decided to go on a bike ride! We headed to the General James Van Fleet Trail which we have visited many times. Its in the heart of central Florida – and in the Green Swamp.

It was a gorgeous day to be out riding on this trail – we only rode 9 miles today; we didn’t want to “over-do”! As we pulled up to Acey to park, this turtle was in our spot! Linda got out of the Jeep to take photos and watched it as it moved on into the grass.

On Saturday, JIm made pancakes for breakfast, as is our tradition. Afterwards, we packed up lunch and headed out to ride again on the Van Fleet Trail. Being that it was Saturday, the parking lot at the Green Pond Trailhead was pretty full, but we found a spot to park. Lots of folks were out today enjoying the beautiful weather! As we rode over the bridges, we saw a big gator down in the water. Probably 5-6 feet long!

Further down the trail, Jim noticed another gator in the water along the trail!

We rode out about 7 1/2 miles and found a nice spot to have lunch. There are benches, gazebos and other rest spots along the trail.

On the way back, the gator by the bridge had moved a bit – it is a big one!

On a rock behind some trees, we saw 2 smaller gators earlier, one was still there getting some sun!

Usually we see lots of gopher tortoises along this trail – today we didn’t see any on the way out, but saw 3 on the way back. It was another nice day to ride this rail-to-trail route – we rode about 15 1/2 miles today. We stopped at Aldi for some groceries and headed back to Acey. We leave tomorrow to go to Wauchula for a couple of weeks.

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16 thoughts on “Out with the old year – in with the new – in Clermont”

  1. It is always a joy to read your blog.
    We missed you both at New Years , but glad you took care of yourselves and that you are feeling better!!
    Great photos, as always

    1. Thanks Adele! We are sorry we had to miss the party at your place, but it was best to stay put since we weren’t sure what I had at the time. All better now and ready to party 🙂

  2. Thanks for letting us welcome the New Year with you all! I remember a big snow in Nashville about 5 years ago when we borrowed your plow-like shovel. I happily found one like it at a hardward store a year later and it hase come in handy here this week. Surely you were glad not to be in the below freezing temps. We all can marvel at the same blue skies we share. Stay safe and thanking the Good Lord for easy ways to ‘travel along’ to warm places with you.

    1. Facebook was full of photos and comments from our Nashville friends about the crazy 70 degrees one day and snow the next – typical middle Tennessee winter weather! Wait 24 – 48 hours if you don’t like the weather… That shovel was my Dad’s at one time – a great tool for moving all sorts of stuff! We often have the same thought you mentioned about sharing the same blue skies – or the moon – when we think about our family members spread out across the country; it makes the world seem to be a smaller place. We’ll be back in Nashville in April and hope to see you guys then! 💗

    1. Thanks Peggy! We were fortunate that we are both vaccinated and had the booster as well – we recovered quickly from what really just felt like a bad cold.

    1. Yes! As much as we tried to avoid it, Covid caught up with us; just glad it was a “mild” case and its in the rear view mirror now!

  3. Hi Linda and Jim,
    Here we are with a brand new shiny wheel new year. You know how to start it out right. I’ve never seen sandhill cranes so close you could (but shouldn’t) touch them. Thanks for posting 🍺

    1. Those cranes are so strange! They wander all over the place like they own it… makes you wonder if people feed them; they don’t seem to be afraid of humans and wander wherever they want. There are also gopher tortoises in the park, but we don’t see them as often – the one in our parking spot was a rare occurance.

  4. I enjoy following your travels! You all must be so healthy with all the bike riding. I also had the sore throat and congestion, but tested negative on the rapid test.

    1. Thanks Sallie! The doctor I saw said the rapid test is not good at detecting Omicron – I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s what you had! It really seemed like a bad cold, and I’m glad to be over it!

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