This was our 2013 Jayco Flight Swift 198 RD

THIS WAS OUR 2013 JAYCO FLIGHT SWIFT 198RD, PARKED AT THE TOMBSTONE TERRITORIES RV PARK IN ARIZONA



Sunday 5 December 2021

We are at our winter spot

Yes, I know you have been wondering if we got away or where we are and I had promised to blog from underway. Things don’t always turn out the way you thought they would. First of all, we are here in the south. Here is the Wandering Oaks RV Park in Ocala, Florida. We’ve been at this park before a couple of times and liked the area, tranquility (except for the occasional revved engine at a traffic light close by) and the friendly people here.

We are parked and set up

Why is everyone driving on the left lane?

just a scenery along the way

This time it took us three full days to get here. No breakdowns, the trailer and truck worked fine, but traffic jams and lots of construction along the way. Add to that coffee breaks and short days because it gets dark at 6 PM we had some rain on Wednesday and on top of that we dislike driving in the dark. In the end it doesn’t even matter because we sleep in the same bed every night, just in different locations. The first night we stayed at a Lowes parking lot, the second night we choose to stay at Home Depot parking lot and the third night it was the parking lot at a Camping World in Georgia close to the border of Florida.

 

I thought this was a beautiful tow truck 

He got a customer a little bit further ahead

So to back up we left Canada last Wednesday. The previous Saturday the boat got shrink-wrapped. The guys that did it called and asked if they could come a day ahead of schedule and we were glad they did, because a couple of hours after they were done we had snow flurries and frost overnight. Our local bird population I treated to my last three suet cakes but I only had two wire-mesh holders so I resorted to an onion net to improvise. 

 

The birds are going to miss us

Hope this net worked as a substitute

Albatross was wrapped up nicely

The guys put a door with a zipper in the shrink-wrap 

Monday and Tuesday we spent packing the travel trailer. There are so many things we don’t bring along but just the essentials alone seem to be turning into many trips back and forth. Finally after all the chores we left on Wednesday morning thinking we did good time wise. After 5 minutes on the road I remembered that I hadn’t opened the doors of the fridge and freezer and didn’t empty the full icemaker reservoir of the ice cubes. The power was off for the fridge, so just imagine the mess it would create on the floor with the ice melting but the water not evaporating. Yep, we turned around to take care of the matter.

 

At the Ambassador Bridge Border Crossing in Detroit there was only one car in front of us. Our papers were in order but after being asked if we brought any fruits and vegetables I admitted to have two already peeled Clementine’s in a small container in the fridge for a snack later on. BTW they were grown in the USA, but apparently not allowed back in, so they were taken from us and disposed of. After that we were free to leave and bonus, the toll bridge collection booths had a sign saying: “FREE - Welcome back Canadians.” That was nice!


Very friendly neighbours 

We are parked just behind the flagpole

Now in real time, after setting up here at the RV Park we are acclimatizing to the enjoyable weather here. We already met two of our really nice immediate neighbors. This is Ralph, who retired from the United States Marine Corps with a Purple Heart.

 

Our neighbour Ralph

I hope everyone back home is happy and healthy and I thank everyone for dropping in again. I’ll post some more photos of this park and area next time.

 

15 comments:

  1. Nice to see you folks made it south this year. Enjoy your warm weather stay.

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    1. Thank you Al. We were hoping the same for you, but maybe next year you will get away again. Perhaps we might see you in the southwest?

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  2. Yay! We're so glad you got away and have a great spot to hangout for the winter ..and it's only 80 miles from here! Expect a visit from us for sure at a future date. Oh, and Marlene, have fun at Aldi - I know you've been missing them.

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    1. I was just waiting for you to say that! Of course you are welcome to visit and I would have shouted out an invite. Lets PM when it is convenient and also my US cell nbr. Been already to Aldi on the way down and today!!

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  3. Glad you made it! It looks very nice and sunny, besides being a great RV park. Your neighbor Ralph looks like a fun guy!!! How nice you got a free toll! Every little bit helps!! Enjoy the nice weather!

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    1. Thanks. We were hoping to get a spot down here. If we had been able to leave much earlier we might have chosen the southwest. Yep, that was a pretty nice surprise at the border.

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  4. That's great that you got away and have found a nice park to stay in. We will miss seeing you out here in the southwest. Enjoy your your time there.

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    1. I admit to being sad that you went to Florida rather than where we'll see you but at the same time very happy to see you got away safely and will be warm for the winter. Enjoy the park and your stay! ♥

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    2. I know you might be a bit disappointed about our choice, but there is always another year, or so we hope. Lets aim for a summer visit in Canada.

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  5. Glad you had a Safe and Enjoyable trip to Florida.

    It's about time

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    1. It seemed longer this time, but we are happy to be here.

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  6. Good to read you escaped the cold of the north and made it safely to the warmth of the south. Enjoy!

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    1. We will enjoy the warm weather but hope for our family and friends that it won't be too cold or too much snow back home.

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  7. Welcome to the U.S.! Ocala is a great place to spend the winter, we were going to head down that way ourselves, but our son made different plans for us.

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    1. Thanks. Would have been nice to perhaps meet up somewhere her in Ocala. Hope those plans your son made will work out nicely for you.

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