After a while the new becomes common place and you tend to wonder what you did before. What seemed strange, complex or a hassle about packing up and travelling every couple of days has become part of the daily routine. It’s fun exploring new places – a different walk every day – it is also stressful in other ways.. planning, finding and learning all the time. As you would expect all the sites so far have been different but as you travel South (or North now) you notice that the flora and fauna changes slowly… palm trees and other exotics appear for example.
The real Florida is still wet and wild with the Everglades acting as a huge drain as fresh water moves slowly south and out into the Gulf. We were and are still not fans of swamps although the biodiversity is amazing (bird life, plants) the Everglades are full of alligators (lots everywhere, along every bank) some of them well over 10ft long. Much more frightening are… mosquitoes. The locals tell us that this is a low mosquitoes year the wet season (May – Nov) is nearly over and even covered in spray (50% Deet) we have still been bitten to the point where you can’t sleep because you itch from head to toe with huge bumps. These things can bite through your clothes and will even bite you on your face.
As I said you get used to dealing with things on a daily basis however although camping on the Florida Keys coast, 10ft from the sea, is truly amazing… looking out at the sunset colouring a perfectly flat, mirror reflecting sea… we personally have already decided that Florida is not for us. We have stared planning our route North up the Gulf coast and then West into Alabama, Mississippi and Texas.NB Still about another 2-3 weeks in Florida.
To give you feel for the daily routine…
Starts at around 7:30 with a cup of tea and a scan of the campsite from our bedroom windows… maybe some new people have moved in, some will have already left but sometimes we are alone… just us or maybe a couple of other RV’s hidden somewhere. If you are frightened of the dark (some sites are totally pitch black – amazing stellar skies) and things that go bump in the night (birds, squirrels, er… raccoons… unlikely to be black bears or Florida panthers as both are very shy we are told) then you would probably drive into and straight out of some sites when you see how empty they can be. Although RV’s are self contained with everything you need for life support you can feel very alone especially when the mobile has no signal. It is dark at 6pm now and you don’t walk very far after dark (not when you saw the alligators basking in the lake on the way in : ) Freedom and a sense of adventure is all part of the RV fascination. The open road takes you where ever, when ever but makes no promises about where you choose to stop.
I normally have breakfast while Jane is in the cupboard (bathroom) then we swap over and think about moving on. Jane stowing away anything that can move on the inside and me pulling the external bits – power lead and water hose etc – unless it was a primitive site and then it just checking the pods and vents are shut and the bikes are secure. It is always worth checking for hitchhikers – only lots of ants in the power lead storage pods so far.Then it’s the ritual check of the internal control panel for the status of ‘the systems’. OK, so there is lot’s to worry about. Tanks that you need fill (fresh water and LPGas). Tanks that may need emptying… Grey - waste water, Black - human waste - don’t ask for details. Plus checking the batteries (coach and engine) charge. You have some additional concerns - the pilot light (the fridge switches to LPGas when on the move), tyre pressure, gross weight… etc It’s like taking your house with you when you go away for a weekend. But just RELAX, you have got nothing else to do all day!
Within an hour of breakfast Sat Nav Suzie asks the question ‘Where to?’ and we are off. If you ignore her she sulks and refuses to help and when she get confused, she is simply dangerous. You need to keep an eye on her and where she thinks you are going.
Finding your planned campground is normally easy… registration and maybe a quick chat with the ranger… finding your actual space and getting into it is a bit harder. It’s easy to run Jane over when reversing – even with the walkie-talkies (ha ha). All that only to find the awning is going to be more effective on the sunny side… the other way round… so round we go again. Then its a level check and the hook-ups… power, water.
Cup of tea, a quick read of the site blurb, bikes off for a quick bit of reconnaissance of the site, trail locations and the general area to see what’s what and where the interesting bits are for tomorrow – walk etc. Time for a glass of wine (weekends only of course : )If you think this all sounds like you, we can sell you our RV fully equipped (Aug 2011?), complete with everything... including a fibre optic Christmas Tree - another blog :)
The US must be the best place in the world for this type of lifestyle. We have hardly scratched the surface and looking forward to the really big and unique vistas that you get out West (Grand Canyon etc.) – hopefully without the mosquitoes.
