Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.

Henry David Thoreau

Splitting up & a Scary Welcome

Saturday February 22 & Sunday February 23, 2014
Blue Springs State Park
Orange City, Florida

 

SATURDAY

Today is a solo day.

 

Saturday begins cloudy and overcast.  Not David’s idea of a beach day.  He prefers hot and sunny.   Me, I’m an any time it isn’t thundering beach goer.  In fact I prefer a bit cooler and overcast day so I don’t have to deal with the sun and put up an umbrella and slather with sunscreen every 90 minutes.  I can wear light weight long sleeves and long pants and then just put the screen on exposed parts.  I also have a lot of trouble with my eyes in extremely bright sunlight  I worry about getting macular degeneration which has really ruined my dad’s life. So for me, this is the PERFECT beach day.

 

 

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Thus we agree to do our own things. But first it’s time for oatmeal pecan pancakes with fresh fruit like Plant City strawberries.  YUM!!   The fruit in Florida during the winter is seriously wonderful.  Oranges and tangerines at stands all over the place.  We made a run to Detweillers when we went up to Sarasota and they had citrus, strawberries, and fresh blueberries and blackberries.   Just wonderful

 

 

 

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David stays at the coach to putter around and cross things off his list.  Unfortunately he takes no pictures of what he’s doing all day.  The better not to get quizzed I suppose.   So all I can post about it was what I did. 

 

 

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I head on down to Nokomis beach where I easily find not just a parking space but my favorite one in the corner on the farthest end of the lot.  I’m really surprised at this on a Saturday.  But it looks like there are other folks with David’s opinion that this is not a beach day OR perhaps the winter break people who flooded the beaches earlier in the week have had to return home to their cold northern abodes.   For whatever reason, there are many fewer people here today.   This is more like what I’m accustomed to.

In fact, there are more skimmers and gulls on the beach than people when I arrive.  I love this.

 

 

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Aren’t their bills amazingly cool??
They hunt by flying across the surface of the ocean with their lower bills in the sea.

 

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It’s foggy here too.  I take my umbrella with me “just in case”, set things up and go for a walk in the water.  My battered toe likes walking in the water better than not.  Pretty good waves today for the Gulf.  See what I mean about many fewer people?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Willets are out hunting and soon the waves have attracted the skim boarder boys. Those boys run as fast as their legs can take them into the water, throw down the board, jump on top of it, ride it into the wave and then turn the board around while they are standing on it to ride back to shore……..with more or less success.  Perhaps skim boarding is surfing in the Gulf.

 

 

 

 

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This woman spends over an hour digging a hole and pawing through it looking for sharks’ teeth.  She works at it, then she sits in her chair and rests and comes back and begins again.  There are a lot of people walking around pawing through the sand near the water looking for sharks’ teeth.  One woman has a medicine bottle half filled with them.   Why do they want them?  What do they do with them?

 

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There are also people collecting bags of shells.  Some have a bag in each hand.  I wonder how long it will take them to empty the beach of shells.   I prefer to take pictures of the things I admire and leave them for someone else to see but hopefully not to keep only for themselves.  Happily this shoreline is pretty much a pile of shells.  I find them beautiful just as the waves have tossed them.   The big ones of course are gone as soon as someone spots them.

 

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I spend the entire day here just walking the beach, enjoying the water, the fewer people and reading a book.  It’s a perfect day for me.  Here’s my last picture at Nokomis beach complete with zinc sunscreen on my face.   The fog never lifts.

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SUNDAY

This morning we pack up and try to get on our way early.  HA! 

 

Somehow it doesn’t matter how much of the outside stuff we pack up the day before, by the time we have breakfast, pack up the inside, bring in the slides, bring up the jacks, dump the tanks, put the dolly back on the RV and the car on the dolly we are lucky to be on the road by 11:00.  I just don’t see why it takes us SO long.  But it does.  I read in a blog yesterday about someone who was on the road at 7am.  This seems impossible to me. 

The 180 miles from Oscar Scherer to Blue Springs is an easy interstate drive.  North on I-75 and East on I-4.  The only really difficult part is driving I-4 through Orlando where that road is absolutely horrible and if we don’t want to shake our house loose from its chassis then we have to drop the speed to 40 or 45 mph tops.

 

 

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We make it there just in time to get set up JUST before the rain starts.  WHEW……………

Blue Springs has lovely campsites well separated from each other with lots of “real Florida” all around them.   Their only problem is that the campsites near the walk to the springs all seem to be rather unlevel.  This is our 3rd year here and our third different site and all of them have had this problem.  If we back in, we have to put boards under the tires to keep them on the “ground” and not hanging up in the air.  5th wheels have an easier time of course.

 

 

We get a rather scary welcome to Blue Springs.

 

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We’re just about to sit down to eat when my phone starts screeching……what IS that noise?  Turns out it’s a weather alert.  We haven’t had one in a LONG time.  I quickly turn on our weather radio to hear that we are under a tornado warning.  Not a watch, a warning.   This is NOT what you want your phone to be telling you.

We quickly try to figure out what county the park is in since they are talking about counties.  When they mention cities, they don’t say Orange City.  But I’m concerned that Orange City is really a “town” since they are talking about the two “cities” just south of us.  

Tornados in Florida in February?  Is this “normal”?   Is anything normal anymore??     In the end the tornado is spotted 12 miles south of us and headed east.  We thankfully get nothing but rain.  Not even particularly high winds.

 

We don’t get out to see the park on our first day because of the storm and rain is predicted for the next 4 days here.  But it can’t rain all the time right?   And even with the warm weather now, there MIGHT be a manatee or two at least at the foot of the spring run.   I’ll check this out tomorrow.

39 comments:

  1. We had threats of tornados year round in Pensacola.
    Those pancakes look great!

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  2. Yay, you're here!!! Can Olivia and I stop by and see you??

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    1. "Wow Paula, haven't heard from you in ages. Perhaps we could meet at the Sweet Spot.

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    2. I have become rather antisocial, but I do enjoy reading your posts! The Sweet Spot would be great. When would be good for you?

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    3. Drop me an email Paula, in the loss of Outlook Express and move to Live Mail (which I DO NOT LIKE) I've lost a lot of email addresses. RVDreamlife@gmail.com

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  3. I'll take skimmer and gulls any days over thousands of people out for a good time on the beach. Love, love love the shot on Nokomis Beach! The photo speaks a thousand words.

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    1. Thanks Nan. I'm so glad you like my beach shots. I sure do enough of them. :-)

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  4. I'm with you, Sherri! I much prefer the beach in the cool weather. Susan and I are excited about our trip to Charleston. We'll spend time at Folly Beach. I'll be able to WALK and enjoy this trip. I love Charleston in March or October - temps are just right.

    I was the only person at General Coffee State Park in Georgia in late February or early March when a tornado came through. I had an aframe camper at the time and it opened it up and let water pour in. Lizzie, Jack, and I spent the night in the bath house in the shower. Very scary. I laughed when you were trying to figure out whether you were in the path. Fortunately I had had leashes on the pups, when the radio said people in Nicholls take cover and the wind started to blow. I had no idea what city/county we were in so I ran to the Jeep (at the time), grabbed the Atlas, and sure enough...we were in Coffee County (nearest town Nicholls)! It was the same tornado that did major damage to a high school in Enterprise, Alabama before heading my way. We made a wild dash to shelter! Jack and Lizzie slept like babies. There's more to the story, but before you know it my comment will be longer than your blog!!! :)

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    1. Sounds pretty scary Nancy. We've spent a lot of time in bathrooms in Arkansas and Oklahoma one year. I just wasn't expecting it in Florida. So great to hear that you will be walking the beach again.

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  5. Is that a special app you have on your phone to get the alert, sherry. I would like to get it for mine. Sounds like you two are having a good time. Hope you see some manatees

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    1. Jean I think it is unique to each phone. Mine came with an emergency alert setting and I just checked it. You have to have GPS on your phone though for it to know where you are. I think most or all smart phones do.

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  6. Love the shells. As tempting as they are pictures make a better souvenir. I'm with you.

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  7. I must have missed the part of a post where you explained what you did to your poor toe...... Gulls are great. Hope you didn't get rained in or blown away!
    xxxooo

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  8. LOVE the shell pics.. have always picked up shells. when in Florid I got much more discriminating and taking ONLY perfect ones or special, different ones for the day.. as there were so many. We really don't have that many here in PNW.. maybe it is a tropic thing?? It's the looking for and finding, beating the ocean... :)

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  9. I have a few shells I picked up in Ireland, but they take up space and so I don't even look at them all that often - they are packed away in a box. Glad you missed any truly bad weather, and hope your luck holds out.

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  10. Nice way to spend your solo day. I am with you...about the only thing that can keep me from the beach is lightening. That blue water sure has me missing the ocean in a bad way. Especially with 40 degree temps on their way back! :::sigh:::

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  11. We camp in Texas a lot and get tornado warnings. I found an 8 X 10 laminated map of TX counties, it really helps when we hear the alarms on the phones blaring or watching the weather on t.v. I keep it taped inside the cabinet door where we keep our maps and outdoors gear in our motorhome. That maps has really helped our stress levels when we are in those areas. Becki

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    1. Hi Becki. Glad you chose to comment. Great idea about the map. Hope to hear from you often.

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  12. Nice shell pics. Have you ever been to Sanibel Island? Are the shells really better there as I've heard? Guess we may go to the Outer Banks for spring break Mar 8-15, so we can get some beach time too. Looks like fun!
    Lynne

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    1. I have been to Sanibel but just for the day since there is only one RV park there. I didn't find it a whole lot different but I've heard that Captiva beaches are the ones that have great shells. We didn't go there. Perhaps the day I was there in the afternoon, the shell gatherers had already been there in the morning.

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  13. Setting up our weather radio with the appropriate county information is one of the first things we do when we arrive at a new location. In this day and age of uncertain weather, receiving alerts is a good thing.

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  14. I just love the skimmers. Ours must all be down south.

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  15. I agree about sharks teeth and shells. Take a few - not lots and lots. I think the shells are 'renewable' and as long as sharks are safe, maybe they are too but still. Soo glad the tornado missed you and that you made it to Blue Springs safely. Hope the rain stops and you see some manatee!

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  16. I love your pictures of the skimmers. They are among my favorites. We don't have a lot of seabirds here in the Keys for some reason. I guess it's because we don't have a lot of beaches.

    I'm glad your phone alerted you to the weather. Scary, heading into a tornado warning while driving a motorhome.

    I looked back and found we stayed at site 18 at Blue Springs. It's listed as a 35 foot site, but we fit our 41 feet into it quite nicely and I don't remember it being not level.

    The reason I look for shells and sharks teeth at the beach is because I get bored sitting still. Now, in a boat, I can sit all day....just not at the beach. :)

    I don't remember so many tornado threats in all the years we lived in Tampa, but of course back then, we lived in a concrete block house and had no internet or phone apps that warned us, so maybe they were there, but I didn't know about them.

    Enjoy Blue Springs.

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  17. I am so glad you suggested taking pictures of the shells. I just love shells (I have this problems with rocks in the west). And I have nothing to do with them living full time in our MH. Someday, if we ever get back to a sticks and bricks, I could make lamps. But right now I am following your suggestion and taking photos. I will add them to my photo frame.

    Those pancakes do look great. I never thought about adding oatmeal.

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  18. I just love your eye for nature's beauty. Even in the piles of shells, you find interesting designs to capture with your camera. Those skimmers are amazing, I can't wait to see them in person one of these days, soon I hope. :c)

    We are able to get packed up and depart our campsite by 7 am. As long as we start getting ready at 3 am...

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  19. Glad the bad weather skirted by!!! Hope the rain ends...it seems to be a never ending problem this winter;o( However, at least it is not snow!! There is another cold front coming through so perhaps the manatees will return:o))

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  20. Nice beach day, sure beats the crowded days on the beach anytime. We've found a great bike trail along the beach here, enjoying the ride everyday we can, one side beach the other either new houses (since Katrina) or lots with foundations from former homes. We do keep an eye on the weather and have a NOAA radio we set up when we get somewhere new.

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  21. Ha! I had to blow up that first picture of the pancakes to look closer. I couldn't see any plates and thought you were eating them right off the table. Kind of messy with syrup. ;)

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    1. Judy, that's just what David said when he saw it. And that's why I put the closer picture. With that table cloth on the picnic table and the clear glass plates, it did look like we were pouring the syrup on the table. HA! We've gone to glass plates to avoid the lead in all t he paints and ceramics.

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  22. I always drool over those pancakes! Shells...we have gathered a few bagfulls. My artist friends is going to make jewelry...I would be too if my tools weren't back home in storage! I'd like a wreath in my camper to remind me when we leave (if we leave) what happiness the beach brought me!

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  23. Hey! You're only 45 minutes away from us! Can we get together for a paddle? :-)

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  24. Blue Springs is one I know very well. Bill and I always ventured over there from our place in Flagler Beach to see the manatees and then I'd usually go back once or twice on my own during the month of January. We'd always walk the trails and then walk the campground talking about how we'd come there when we had our RV. Interesting that even as non-RVer's, we'd always talk about how unlevel many of the sites appeared to be. And oh my, I HATE driving through Orlando on I-4 in a car, can't imagine driving Winona and towing.

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  25. oatmeal pancake recipe, please?! jeeeeeez those looks good. When I had my bead shop, I ordered shark teeth from a Florida supplier ... the kids loved to make necklaces with them ... and some people think they are good luck ..,. I saw whatever... ;)

    tornadoes are nooooo damn fun....

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    1. say ... I say whatever ... oh, look up at the first sentence ... jeez.... those look good .... sigh

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  26. I just showed your blog to Eric, because he is always frustrated that we can never seem to pull out of a campground before 10:30 or 11:00. Now I feel better because I'm in good company. :) Glad the tornados bypassed you.

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  27. Seems like the weather isn't normal anywhere this year. Glad you had only rain and no tornadoes!

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  28. I knew you would have a grand time at the beach and I am really glad the weather was just right too. I get stressed when my list gets out of hand, so it did me good to get some things off of it. I would have loved the beach too though.

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  29. we were just there, two days ago, the 24th! and the only Manatee we saw was swimming around with a tracker. and we drove around the campground and thought we might be able to squeeze our 36 foot 5th wheel into a handful of sites.

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