THE PRAIRIE - PART THREE

Monday we had a late start waiting to get a ranger (a Polaris ATV) to haul our stuff to the equestrian area so we worked a bit later than usual.  Having to work around occupied camp sites can be a chore at times.  We did manager to get five tables sanded and coated.  These tables seem to older and more well used – and dryer so they are soaking up the Thompson’s.

Here are some pictures of the alligator clutch along the main road (Peavine).  A clutch is what you call a group of young gators, much like a flock or heard.  Momma is keeping a close eye on her little ones.  They young ones appear to be about 12 to 14 inches long.  You really have to look close to see them on that mud island.  This is the mom and babies.

This is a close up of just the babies – how many do you see?

After doing what we could do on Tuesday we stopped by the office to let Charlie know we will need more Thompson’s.  He next wants us to repaint the sign at the front entrance. 

Wednesday morning we loaded up one of the Ranger’s and took our sanding gear to the equestrian area to continue table prep and brought the Ranger back.  We then rode our bikes to do the work as we only had four tables to sand, but two of them were in pretty bad shape and took a lot of work. 

After lunch Judy looked at her sock and thought maybe her toe was bleeding and then she looked in her shoe.  She found the remains of a tree frog smashed in the shoe.  We then did the bolt count in the family campground and then loaded up the sanding gear to return it to the shop.  While at the shop we gave Bruce the list of bolts and the need for another five gallons of Thompson’s.  Think we may take all or part of Thursday off – all of it if we don’t have any material to work with.

Well as it turned out we had no more Thompson’s and no bolts so about 10:30 we took off for Port St Lucie on the east coast.  Not a hard drive but a long one along fields and fields of pasture and cows and dairy farms and then acres of vegetables – corn, cabbage, green onions and potatoes.  In some you could see the migrant workers picking cabbage.  Had a nice lunch at a place called The Captain’s Galley just of US1 and then made a couple of shopping stops and headed back home.  On the way out of town pulled into a Raceway gas station and topped the tank of as diesel was only..yes only $3.81.  We had just enough time upon our return to relax for an hour before heading to the office for game night.  As other volunteers had gone into Okeechobee for corned beef and cabbage, it was just us and the Anderson's so we taught them the game “Five Crowns.” 

Our supplies had arrived on Thursday afternoon so Friday we headed to the equestrian to finish up the tables.  But we were short stopped by the heavy dew and fog from over night.  The tables had standing water on them – and not from rain.  We did the legs of the remaining ones and then after lunch and the sun and wind had dried them, finished the tops and benches.  We are glad that task is complete.  Now to go back and put in bolts and screws on the ones which are not tight.

Can’t believe it but we slept in some on our lazy Saturday.  After breakfast we took Lilly for her morning stroll and on the way back she chased a squirrel up a tree.  Then she moved to the next tree and we thought at first she was following the squirrel through the branches and suddenly hair on her back stood up and she growled.  When we looked up we saw a raccoon.  They were just starring at each other. 

In our area, in fact right behind us, four families came in after dark and set up tents.  They have three or four little ones under 6 and they are having a good time.  They made little noise setting up camp and getting the kids into bed.

We decided to go out for lunch with Janice and Bob.  What used to be Cissy’s is now called The Prairie Cafe and under new owners.  The reports are accurate as the food is good and they have done some little things to improve the atmosphere.  The rest of the day was just taking it easy.  Saturday night’s moon rise was spectacular.  The moon was at a point closest to the Earth and rose so red and full.  Tried to capture a picture but it just would not work, but did mange to get a shot of sunrise Sunday morning though.

We made a day of it on Sunday, church, flea market and grocery shopping.  The flea market is nothing special but we can say we made it this year.  For a change we hit the Publix instead of the Wal-Mart and picked up the few items we needed.

Monday it was back to the projects.  Jon had to finish working on the tables (adding bolts and tightening others) and Judy was off to the office.  Judy was busy reconciling billings filing, she just loves office work – not – and Jon completed the main campground and rounded up what will be needed to power wash the ramp entrance to the Clivus.  The “Clivus” is like a large porta-potting but it composts waste and does not need to be emptied.  The wooden ramp and railing are dirty and in some areas green with mold.

The campground is full of lubber nymphs.  They are baby Lubber grasshoppers (Romalea microptera (Beauvois)), an interesting species very common down here.  They are flightless and really don’t hop very well either. 

Tuesday saw the conclusion of power washing and the end of office work for a spell.  By the time everything was done and all the equipment put away it was after 3.  We may take Wednesday off and go looking for long needle pine trees so we can collect more needles for Judy’s next crafting idea.  Saturday morning there will be a ‘sparrow roundup’ in the prairie area east of the campground.  They will flush the birds into a net and check and band the ones they catch.  This prairie is home to the Florida Grasshopper Sparrow – an endangered species.

     

Well Wednesday turned out to be a full day on the prairie.  About 9 we received a radio call from Mike and Carol (also volunteers) about going out in the park manager’s truck to check out the primitive camp sites.  We had originally suggested sites in 2008 and then added two in 2009 and last fall they done more work on the locations.  So off we went, spending all morning to the west locating and inspecting three locations/sites.  A little after noon we came back to the campground for lunch and discovered Lilly still outside – tied of course.  We thought that she may have started winning after we left and Bob let her out.  She has started that business when we are visiting Bob and Janice two camp sites away.  Well she looked pretty guilty and we thought for sure that is what happened, but it was not.  When Judy had returned with Lilly from her morning walk, Lilly’s paws were very sandy, so she tied her out to let her feet clean up some.  Well, between the radio call and then a phone call and getting ready to go out to the prairie, we forgot that Lilly was tied out.  She often goes under the trailer to nap and we just did not see her.

On our way back from locating the sites to the north, we pulled into an old citrus grove and picked some grapefruit.  This area also has several orange trees, but they are very bitter.  These wild citrus are nothing like the orange trees one sees in the many groves here in Florida.  These trees are big, thirty to forty feet high and because of this, many of the best fruit are too high to get to.

As we were making the four mile trek along a dirt road that serves as a fire break, we spotted three swallow tailed Kite drifting in the air currents.  These are rare to see in this area.  They are mainly found along the northern countries of South America.  They don’t use their wings to navigate – they use their “V” shaped tail as a rudder and sometimes as a pusher.

As we did not get to ‘play’ on Wednesday as planned we decided on Thursday to go out for lunch and search for long pine needles for Judy’s new craft.  We did do some work in the morning, putting site numbers on the electrical boxes in the campground.  After lunch at the Prairie Cafe, we headed for a trail head north/west off 98 passed the river.  We did not have to walk in too far and came upon lots of long pine needles.  We gathered a good bunch and will probably go back for more.

Friday morning was very foggy, but we got on our bikes a little before 9 for the five mile ride to the shop area where Charlie had set out the paint for our next project.  The big sign at the main entrance required painting.  As we were painting the background and back of the sign, Judy stepped on a red ant hill and she knew it right away.  Luckily she came away with only one bite.  We finished the base color and had a nice lunch overlooking the prairie and about 12:30 checked the paint.  Because it was old, old oil based paint and was applied over a sign made of compressed foam and other man-made materials, the paint was slow to dry.  We decided to take a break rather than sit and watch the paint dry so we drove back to the Greystone and took a two hour rest.  About 2:30 we went back but in some areas the paint was still tacky.  We did mange to get one coat of yellow on the letters so the sign looked good for the weekend.  However, Monday we will have to do some touch up and make it look better.

Saturday Jo, Amy and Missy drove up from Jupiter/West Palm Beach for a visit.  Some how they managed to miss the two foot by three foot sign for the park and drove 15 miles into the little town of Lorida, but finally did make it.  We had a nice visit and enjoyed a good meal of Jambalaya and corn bread.

 

Sunday will be our day in town and means we only have two more weeks here.  We plan on beginning our trek north on Sunday the 10^th.  Most of the other volunteers depart next weekend so it will be a lonely last week.
Slow getting this blog 'published' as we had a busy Sunday and Sunday evening.  It is now Monday morning and it is raining so no work for a while today.

THE PRAIRIE - PART TWO

After a peaceful Sunday it was back to the tables on Monday. Judy has been “asked” if she would mind working in the office some – she will do it but not a choice project. She met with Natalie on what it would entail and may do it some, but only if we have nothing else for her to do.

Tuesday we went to the Equestrian campground and found that only four of the sixteen tables there had been scrubbed and power-washed. Before we started sanding we headed deep into the hammock to locate the orange trees. There are three wild orange trees, probably 30 feet tall. All of the lower branches have been picked clean, but we had our step ladder and extension picker. We picked three bags – probably three dozen or a more. Some are okay for eating but mainly they are good for squeezing into juice.

During dinner we were entertained by several musicians. There was a banjo, fiddle and guitar and it was enjoyable. Latter Charlie stopped by with another five gallons of Thompson’s so guess when we are done cleaning those other eleven we will be coating them.

When we got ready for bed, there was a very bright light at the rear of the bathhouse. It looked a little like a small light house – white tent/Tepee bottom and this very bright light on top. On Wednesday we learned it was ‘moth-ers’…..did not know there were people out there who like moths and take pictures of them. Apparently that light attracts them to the white tepee and they photograph them. In the office they were all excited to show Paul, the biologist, all the great pictures of moths they had taken.

Judy spent Wednesday working in the office – not one of her favorite things to do. Natalie is showing her some things and she is helping out. She has inventoried all the stuff for sale, completed the gas/mileage usage sheets on each vehicle for February and has been answering the phone. Meanwhile Jon has been busy power-washing picnic tables in the equestrian campground. Today he completed six and has but five more to do, if the rain holds off. Thursday’s forecast is calling for isolated and scattered (yes that’s what it says) thunder showers nearly all day.

Have not mentioned the wildlife but maybe that’s because we are used to it. Along Peevine Road, the main road into the park, there is a small mother alligator with a number of babies. Ruthann took a picture and counted nine sets of little eyes. The mother looks to be no more that five feet long, a young mother. And along the south side of Military Trail between the office and the equestrian section a small one can be seen in a mud hole. We think this one will be moving on soon as the water is beginning to dry up. Nearly every night and sometimes early in the morning the coyote are going at it. Sometimes it is just howling and others it is yipping as they run across the prairie. Of course we also have seen lots of turkey buzzards (though not nearly as large as their Texas cousins), crows, Caracara and many of those little shrub nesting birds in the palmetto. There is a burrowing owl with a nest along the main road, but it is in a pasture with cows and several donkeys and is hard to spot. We will have to make a trip out to several of the sloughs and see what is there too.

Well the weather guys were right. Thursday started out sunny but clouds were building in the NW. Weather dot com indicated that the rain would not hit our area until about 11. Judy headed off to the office and Jon loaded up the power-washer and headed to the equestrian campground where there were five more tables to clean. It was a good thing he packed his old shelter half (military rain poncho) as at 9:15 the skies opened and it poured. Though it rained for nearly four hours, the rain gages only collected a half an inch. Late in the day Jon finished the tables and Judy completed unpacking Charlie’s office goods. They had packed everything up to remodel the offices late last year and just never got them unpacked.

As we are to man the park booth at the Speckled Perch Festival on Saturday, after putting numbers on the electrical boxes in the equestrian we decided to have some fun. Shortly before noon we headed to Sebring to look for a couple of items and have a late lunch. Judy needed a 5/16” furl or sleeve and some thread material to tackle the pine needle weaving and Jon needed some socks. We also needed to find a special florescent bulb for our reading lamp. We accomplished it all and even stopped by a Sweet Bay Market and picked up a few grocery items.

We had only been back a bit when in the northeast sky you could see this long and wide contrail with a shinning dot at its head. We watched as the dot separated from the contrail and moved further into space. Checking the internet we discovered that it was a military launch form Cape Carnival sending a new GPS satellite into orbit – an impressive sight. Almost forgot that on Wednesday we were sitting in the Greystone having lunch when we heard two loud booms and the trailer actually shook some – it was the shuttle coming back in for a landing.

We completed our tour as booth watchers for the park’s booth at the annual Speckled Perch Festival. It was an interesting four hours as we meet some folks from all over, including Louisville, Ohio. We were surprised at the number of folks that live in Okeechobee that did not know of the park’s existence. A highlight of the booth was an alligator skull. It came from a ‘gator found dead near Gum Slough near the north park border. There were no signs of trauma and the park staff is not certain what caused its death. The mud hole he used had dried up, but that was not why he died. By the measurement from the nostrils to the eye socket the length figured to be between 11 ½ and 12 feet – a big one for sure.

This is the preserved skull on the display table.

Judy waiting for more ‘customers’ to walk by.

As the park will be full all week, Sunday we had to do a little work. We had three tables to sand and coat in the main campground and coat the two near the visitor center. We managed to get all but one done in the campground. So we this next week will be finishing up the tables in the equestrian area and then work on tightening up tops, legs and benches using deck screws and bolts.

FIFTH INSTALLMENT – THE PRAIRIE

Monday morning the 28th we packed up and headed for what we call “The Prairie” 35 miles NW of Okeechobee. It was just nine when we pulled out of the dump station and headed for the gate and almost 9:15 when we left MacDill AFB. We took a sort of zig-zag course to Sebring and then southeast on 98. It was just after 12:30 when we pulled through the main gate at the park.

As we pulled into the office parking lot, we saw the ‘swamp buggy’ coming to wards us on Military Highway. As we got to the office (which was closed for lunch) the buggy pulled in and here it was Charlie Brown, the park manager, with thee volunteer couples. Two of the couples depart on March 1 and he was giving them a last tour of the park. He told us that we could park on V3 or V4 (V for volunteer), and that is what Natalie, volunteer coordinator, told us. This is the spot from Google Maps.

We opted for V3 as it is a bit longer and wider. As we setup Cliff and Ruthann Anderson and Bob and Janice Lewis stopped by to welcome us. It took a couple of hours to get all setup, but this will be our home for the next five to six weeks and wanted to make it just right.

Tuesday we went by the office twice to make connection with Charlie about what he had on the list for us, but we could never make the connection. We did chat with two couples that had been here during February. Guess it was just as well as we had some good (good for here) rain in the afternoon. The entire county is under a fire ban, so no campfires or planned burning.

After dinner we walked the nature trail and had not gotten a quarter of the way when we spotted two deer watching us. After the walk we sat on the porch of the visitor center for a bit and then started towards home. On the way we met up with Charlie as he was driving home. He laid out a number of things for us to attack so we know we will be busy for the next few weeks.

Our first task will be picnic tables. One of the volunteer couples that left had used a power washer to clean them and remove the mold. Not exactly how familiar they were with a power washer as the wood was pretty feathered and gouged in some spots. It raised the grain and will make coating them a real task.

Wednesday morning we drove over to the shop area to gather materials – belt sander, sand paper, etc. As usual it was a bit of a challenge to find everything. It was interesting to see that the five gallon bucket paint mixer we had made the first year was still being used as were the old Maxwell House Coffee cans for painting. Thing is they never cleaned the coffee cans out so we dumped a number of them. We got started about 10 and realized that there was no way to get the tops and seats smooth again, so we just worked on the real rough parts. We managed to get five tables done and then after lunch took the ‘ranger’ to the shop to pick up the Thompson’s Water Seal. Charlie had pointed out a one gallon and a five gallon can so he thought that would keep us going. Well, the five gallon can was empty but the gallon was full.

We managed to get three tables done, but did not do the underside – just the exposed parts. That leaves about 35 more to work on so we will be busy for a while for sure.

Judy is applying some Thomson’s to a table already sanded and Jon is tightening all the carriage bolts and finding ones that need to be replaced.

Natalie, the Admin Assistant, asked us to help with the Speckled Perch Festival in Okeechobee the weekend of March 12-13. They will use the swamp buggy in the parade and have a booth that will need to be staffed. More about the festival later - when we know more.

Thursday nights are Domino's at the office so we went up and were introduced to a new game called Wildfire. It’s sort of a cross between Mexican Train, Chicken Foot and regular domino's. It was fun and an interesting game to learn. It allows much more conversation and interaction than Mexican Train. Judy came through the winner on our first night playing.

With a full campground expected for the weekend, we planned on working on tables only until about noon. Charlie bought us five gallons more of Thompson Water-seal so we have plenty – for now. We worked on all the tables we had sanded on the inside of the circle and sanded a couple on the outside, but had to give up about noon. A storm front blew in and we had high winds and a few drops of rain. Before we had to call it a day we managed to get all but eight tables completed in this campground section.

While sanding on one table Judy ran a splinter up under her right thumbnail. She worked on trying to get it our, but it is under the nail and no way to get to it with a needle or tweezers. For now she will use all sorts of potion to try to draw it out and peroxide and alcohol to keep it clean.

Awoke on Saturday to another beautiful, but windy day and time to ourselves. Just before dark what appears to be two families moved into the two sites behind us. They set up three large tents and a dining fly. We tried to count the kids, but they did not stand still long enough. After breakfast Judy took Lilly for a long walk and Jon worked on a couple of things in the trailer. We will head into town about 2:30 to accomplish a few tasks before church and then get a bite to eat and do our weekly grocery shopping.

Not a whole lot has changed in Okeechobee. We first stopped by the CVS drug store and Judy talked to the druggist about her splinter. The druggist recommended a salve and a drawing cream and to soak the thumb in Epsom Salts. It should work out so long as it does not become infected. After church we ate at Beef O’Brady’s and then to WalMart. We did’t get back home until after 8….a long day. So Sunday was just a day of rest and dog walks and just chatting with folks. Lilly enjoys soaking up the sun and Vitamin D.

Fourth Installment

Monday evening we played “Jokers” with the Woolridges and another couple. Their rules a bit different but at the end of the evening it was even – two games each for the ladies and men. Wednesday we headed to the Florida State Fair as it was ‘Senior Day’ and admission included entry to the recreated Cracker Village next to the fair grounds. The first cracker village building we entered found two ladies doing pine needle weaving, a new craft that has Judy’s interest. They were very helpful and gave us several tips, including what to keep the needles together – a 5/16” copper ferrule.

While strolling around we found this one-man-band. Well not really one-man as his wife was trailing him playing drumsticks.

We wondered into one of the arenas in time to watch calf cutting/roping by teams. It was interesting and fun to watch as they tried to rope a calf, bring it to the ground and then a girl had to run out and ‘brand’ the calf with a powdered branding iron.

On the way out we stopped by a 4H exhibit and Judy made some butter and picked and squeezed her own cup of orange juice.

Thursday we had Floyd and Mary for dinner and after introduced them to ‘Golf’ as we play it. They play a version but they are dealt 8 cards and must use the card they draw. Over dinner we discussed making a trip to Bok Tower and Gardens in Lake Worth and possibly taking a free tour of the Tampa harbor.

The weather has really turned great so after washing down half the trailer we headed for the SeaScapes restaurant for lunch. It is located near the Marina at the south edge of the campground. Finished the other half of the trailer but not sure how long the cleaning will last as the dew is very heavy and the dust is flying as people drive by. After lunch we managed to get hold of the harbor and setup the tour for next Wednesday morning. We will make it a full day and after the tour head on to Bok Tower at Lake Wales.

As we have decided to stay put in partial hookups, we are constantly changing neighbors. Folks will move in from dry camp for a day or maybe two then be offered a full hookup site in the ‘sandpit’ area and move. Some of them move over for just one or two days before they leave the park. Saturday was another beautiful day and as it is a long weekend, many families have joined grandparents for some time in the sun and at the beach. The water is still pretty chilly, but that does not deter the young ones. We made a run to Home Depot to get some carpet for the Greystone outside steps and picked up a geranium plant to brighten up the spot and take home with us.

Wagon Wheel Flea Market called to us so we made the drive across the Gandy Bridge into Pinellas Park to one huge venue. As with most Florida flea markets, this is a series of connected and lined up pole buildings, plus outside vendors. We only walked the main buildings and did some outside vegetable shopping. Saw some strange vegetables. A number of large root types and some large yellowish fruit about the size of three grapefruit plus fish – all kinds of fish being sold by Koreans were at the outside stalls. After the a couple of hours of shopping and seeing all the sights we headed toward home and on the way looking for some ice cream as it was Judy’s birthday. Mary suggested a spot in a park on Bayshore not too far from the base so that was where we headed.

It is a nice little park with a long fishing pier and a small restaurant that also has ice cream. As it was nearly 2 and we had not had any lunch we decide to eat a little before ice cream. As the fish and chips basket is pretty good sized we ordered one and we split it between the two of us. It was a huge piece of fish and really good fries. Floyd bought ice cream for desert and Judy’s birthday. We were all pretty tired by the time we got back home.

Monday Jon worked on the carpet for the steps. At first he thought he would attaché them with grommets and wire ties and did that with the top one. The grommets tend to bunch the carpet up so the bottom two steps are held down with double faced tape. We will see if that works. After dinner it was back to the game room for some more hand and foot. This time we were joined by Lawrence and Helen Ryder from North/South Carolina. They say North/South because they would prefer to be North Carolinians, but live just across the border a bit west of Charlotte.

Tuesday we awoke to dense fog and clouds. The weather had predicted it and it certainly came true. During the night you could hear the distant fog horns sounding but by noon the sun was bright and it was time for some ‘rays’ and maybe a nap.

To show exactly where we are at Tampa, below is a screen shot from one of the mapping programs. You can see that MacDill is at the southern tip of that peninsula that extends into Tampa Bay and sort of separates Tampa and the Florida mainland from St Petersburg. The campground is in the bay.

The Security Police on this base are also sailors. There are signs in the bay around the base indicating that entry is prohibited and they boats to patrol and respond to craft that enter the zone. Here are two of their boats.

From the beach at the marina you can see the tall buildings of downtown St Petersburg.

 Birds, birds, birds, always lots of birds and be found around the beach area.

Thursday was a full and busy day. We picked up the Woolridges at a little before 8:30 and headed for the Aquarium. After some false turns we found an open parking deck and picked up our token as we entered - more about those tokens later. At the Aquarium we joined about one hundred other folks and boarded a boat for a tour of the Tampa harbor. The tour was nearly and hour and a half long and we learned a lot about the harbor and all the activities therein. Among the sights were a number of dry docks and ship/boat repair facilities. We also saw a four story barge that is towed out into the gulf for fishing. It is a floating hotel/fishing camp and people are ferried out to it for one to seven day fishing expeditions.

Ships in dry dock in these shots.

Mary, Judy and Floyd are watching the sights as we cruise the harbor.

Third Installment

After much discussion we have decided that this will be our last week here at Tyndall. It is too chilly and our site too shaded when the sun does come out. The rest of the week was pretty quiet through Wednesday. Just the usual, morning coffee, exercise/fitness center, craft time and a little of evening games. In there we have times to walk Lilly, listen to the F22’s and F16’s buzz over on take off and landing and evening retreat at 1700 – 5PM each day.


Wednesday was “craft day” at the club house. Linda, a regular here who is always organizing things, set up to send valentine cards to GI’s. Some how she found a list of names and one of the other ladies who is into scrap booking had cards and envelopes so many of the women and some men made valentine cards to send off. As we are on Central Time here, TV shows are an hour earlier than home so that by 9 most things we want to watch are over so it is off to bed and read some.

Lilly had her vet dental follow up on Thursday afternoon and all looked good, except for her cough. She has had it since the extractions and as the vet explained it is most probably irritation from the tube down her throat. We now have more medication for her to take! Other than the dry (well it sounds dry) tickle like cough she is back to her old self. She seems to enjoy the three times a day walk through the woods and has gotten to know a couple of other dogs, including a full sized greyhound named Chester who has stripes much like hers.

We had just finished a walk before dinner when it started to rain. It rained on and off all night Thursday and into Friday morning. Sure is nice to have this electric awning – up and down so easy. Where we are in the woods we are not subject to any winds so it can stay out, but it would be nice to have more light. On our way home from the walk we stopped to chat with a couple from Wisconsin and she was lamenting the lack of light and sun in the sites too.

On Saturday we decided to hit the mall everyone talks about and again try to locate Peppers. The mall was certainly nothing special, but they did have lots of easy chairs and soft benches for folks to sit it. When we walked out of Dillards into the mall there must have been ten gentlemen of age sitting in lounge chairs. Peppers’ was certainly good, but El Ricon back home is hard to beat. After church on Sunday we began to pack things up and get ready to move out. We took a nice long walk and bid our farewells

Sometime early Monday it began to rain and it was coming down hard as we hooked up and dumped. Dumping is no real fun, but to have to do it in the rain really adds to the enjoyment! We pulled out of Tyndall FamCamp at 7:30 CST in the rain and drove in sometimes very hard rain until we were just north of Tampa. After having the Greystone checked by security at the MacDill main gate, it was long drive through the base to the FamCamp. The overflow area is pretty full but we did put or names on the rotation list. Right now the wait is 4 to 5 days for a partial hookup site, but we filled with water, have our “blueboy” and Honda generator so we should be okay. We have lots planned for our time here so “boon-dock” camping will not be too bad. This is one of five AF bases testing a new food service program so we can eat in the dining facilities anytime we want so we may try it.

Well it is now Thursday and we are still pretty far down on the list for a partial hookup site. We have been doing pretty well in the overflow field though. On Tuesday we plotted in the nearest JoAnn’s store and headed there in the morning. Rather than take the Cross-Town Leroy Selman turnpike, we found our way into downtown Tampa. After some ‘recalculating’ we finally found the JoAnn’s and a lot more including lots of restaurants and a big CompUSA. Did not really find anything in either place but did locate a good place for lunch….a chain called “Cheddars.” On the way back stopped and filled up the Ram at a Texaco - $3.35 verses $3.49 outside the base. On Wednesday we just stayed home and walked the trails and on the beach. Each night about dark the generators start up. Many are quiet Honda 2000’s but there are a couple of loud Yamaha’s and those with big Class A motorhomes seem to leave them run a long time. Then there is reveille at 0615, To the Colors and the National Anthem at 1630 and just to keep you on your toes, Retreat at 2200 followed by Lights Out……guess that’s how they also test the base alert and warning system.

This is where we are dry-camped/boon docking. We are just one of many in this big field.

Friday morning during our walk around the park to check out the Marina and beach we saw a woman playing cards that we recognized from Tyndall. We knew that the Woolridge were here, but had not seen them so we stopped to talk to her for a while.

The next morning we decided to stop by their unit while walking, but found no one at home so we continued on to the Marina to check on the hours propane would be available. (It got very cold over night and the furnace ran several times and some time during the night we ran out….no I don’t use the automatic change over from one tank to the other) Anyway when we walked in, there sat Floyd and Mary with another couple so we joined them for some conversation. They invited us to play cards after church so our Saturday evening was booked.

Church was interesting, as are most base chapels as they are shared facilities. The priest was a retired AF Chaplin from Panama. He had been stationed here and when he retired was offered a ‘contract’ to stay on as ‘parish’ priest. After the homily he had all married couples stand and then we all renewed our wedding vows….even to the ‘you may kiss the bride’ part. It was nice. After church we played ‘hand and foot’ for a couple of hours and the ladies certainly did take the guys for a ride.



Sunday morning we went to the Marina for coffee and donuts and met some more interesting folks. Judy got into a deep conversation with our dry-camp neighbors and Jon found a State Farm retiree from Texas. After that we needed a 2 mile walk and then sat in the sun to read the paper. Along the way we spotted this crane in the canal.

Late on Sunday we were offered a partial hookup site, but after looking at it decided to not take it. It was about as far away from everything as you could get and was all grass and backed up to a canal. But that did get us to thinking more about moving on. After some careful consideration we decided that if we were offered a nice partial site we would stay put until we need to head to KPPSP and pass up the keys. There is lots to do in this area, including seeing the Bok Tower and Gardens (about an hour’s drive) so we will see what happens.

Sunday evening Floyd and Marry had us over for conversation and Pizza before we played cards. As with many other games, there are house rules – or Florida rules so we had to establish what we were going to do as we were joined by a couple from Arkansas. As a Valentine’s Day treat we will all go to the Crab Shack a late for lunch on Monday.

As we were preparing to leave on Monday, Linda from the park office called and wanted to know if we wanted site 310. We could see it from where we were dry camped and felt it would be good so accepted it. The people on the site are moving to a full hookup site and have to wait until that is vacant (the old domino effect) so on the way out for lunch we stopped and signed up for two more weeks at MacDill. It is a little strange – the moving business here. Even though checkout time is 11, many don’t get moving until after lunch time.

Well we are settled into our home for the next two weeks. It certainly is nice to have not to worry about water and to have electric on demand. The Honda kept us going, but we only would run it some in the morning and then in the evening. Those nights we played cards and only had it running for a short time did put a strain on the battery.

This is our home until the end of February.

Second Installment

Judy has signed up for twice a week sessions at the base fitness center. They are doing about 30 minutes of “Zumba” and then a half hour more of yoga. We can make an appointment with a trainer and set up a program we can go through on the machines they have. We will go over on Monday afternoon when the facility is not too busy and see about it.

This is where we will be calling “home” for the next few weeks.

Friday was Lilly’s day to go to the base vet. Everything checked out just fine except for her teeth. She weighed in at 33.8 pounds and they even scanned her chip to make sure it was still working. The Vet Tech gave us a list of off base vets that we could check for teeth cleaning. She said that if the civilian clinic says they will need blood work, come to the base vet clinic to have it done.

Morning coffee and reading time at the Greystone.

The annual ‘Penguin Bash’ was held on Saturday afternoon. The FamCamp provided fried chicken from Po Folks along with salad and cake and the campers brought side dishes. Sam (Samantha) the park manager also gave out a number of prizes including a month’s stay and a 22” LCD TV. No we did not win anything but had a good meal and met some interesting people.

Monday morning made the call to a local vet (recommended) and set up for Lilly to get her teeth cleaned on Thursday. Had to then make an appointment at the base vet clinic for blood work…..almost as much to do for her as a human! After lunch we stopped by the fitness center and met with a personal trainer. She is going to plot a program for us and on Tuesday afternoon we go back to learn which machines to use and what settings to have them.

After dinner on Monday we headed to the Panama City Marina Civic Center for a free concert by the Band of the Air Force Reserve. It was a packed house – never have seen so many old people in one place! They put on a great show and the female vocalist was out of this world. Hard to connect that she is a ‘professional’ singer with dual degrees in vocal performance and is an Airman First Class in the AF. We were also entertained by the only bagpipe piper in the AF. He was really good and in the middle of one piper tune broke into some jazz. Now imagine that – jazz coming from a bagpipe.

On Tuesday for the first time since our arrival the overflow section was empty. The day after we moved to a site there were nine units waiting for sites. We really don’t think we will be offered a full hook up site (with sewer) but where we are is fine. It is one of the few sites in the back loop that gets some sunshine. It rained very hard this morning and we had two plus inches of water standing on our mat under the awning but by noon it was all gone. After lunch we had our meeting with a trainer and received instructions on the machines she said we needed. It took about an hour to go through each as she first did one of us and then the other. After she finished we went back in and used each as she had instructed. There must be 75 different machines, plus a number of treadmills, stair steppers, elliptical walkers and stationary cycles. It is quite a place and was very busy. Before and after duty ours it is really full.

It was a bright sunny day so we took the quarter mile boardwalk across the dunes to the beach. Judy tried to find some shells and she did find a small sand dollar.


It is interesting how the seagulls will park themselves headed into the wind. Sometimes they stand and other times they nestle into the sand.


Wednesday we headed east to Apalachicola for a seafood fix. The “Seafood Grill” was just as we had recalled…an old single floor store front that has been a restaurant for many years. It is built up 6 steps from street level as the road is just at sea level. It is nothing fancy, nice sized servings and the food is good although their prices have gone up. We enjoyed the meal and then walked around the town some. The city was once a large sponge center with sponge divers going out in the gulf to harvest various live sponges. Apalachicola is about 50 miles east of Tyndall on US 98 and the road passes through some beautiful old towns and some newer vacation home spots. In 2007 when we were here you could still see a lot of hurricane damage. There is still some where older buildings right along the water were destroyed.

The “Seafood Grill” in Apalachicola.

On the way back we tracked the mileage along US98 which runs through the middle of Tyndall AFB. From the eastern most boundary of base property to Bonita Bay where the drone retrieval boats are (the FamCamp is right next to it) 14 miles of US98 bisects the base. On the north side the flight line, runways and aircraft support facilities are found and on the south, all of the housing and base support including the commissary BX and fitness center. Not sure how many acres or square miles the base encompasses but a lot of it is coastal sand and many many acres of slash pine. Last weekend they were doing some prescribed burning to clear out the underbrush along the four mile road to one of the housing areas.

Thursday was Lilly’s big day. We had her at the Vet’s by 7:30 for what we thought would be routine cleaning; turned out to be a bit more than that as several of the teeth were infected and had to be pulled. During the morning we went to the fitness center, and while Judy was doing the Zumba/Yoga Jon did the circuit of machines and then both did some work on the elliptical machines. It was after 4:30 when we picked up Lilly and brought her home. She is not feeling all that good, but has been a trooper about it.

While Judy was at aerobics it was time to ‘blue boy’ it. Our portable tank is actually gray, but the principle is the same when you don’t have a sewer connection. Since the men’s shower has been closed down for repairs and the men and women are sharing (rotating hours of use) the ladies shower it causes us to use our own more. After lunch we went for a 2-3 mile bike ride in the old housing area across US98 from the FamCamp. In the evening we went to the club house and made up a table to play hand and foot. There is one couple here that many don’t want to play with but it worked out for us. It was a long night sitting, however.

Saturday and it was off to the local quilt shop (Quilting by the Bay) and to visit the marina. Actually it is more than a local quilt shop as they have web site, advertise in a number of quilting magazines and ship out lots of material. Upstairs they have large automated quilting machine to ‘quilt’ completed and sandwiched quilts. It was then a stop at Hobby Lobby where we found some interesting material and a couple of other unique things. After lunch at CiCi’s we went to the marina to tour a 3 masted schooner. It is a ship built in 1989 to replicate an old ship. It is sailed by a group called the 12 tribes, a religious group. It is really something. We forgot the camera so no pictures. Well did take some with the camera on the phone, but can’t get them off.

Winter 2011 - NC and Florida

First Installment

After a one day delay in departure because of the TV situation (will cover that later) we headed for Charlotte/Davidson on Tuesday the 4th. It was an uneventful trip with Judy following in the Santa Fe with Lilly. The trip moved along at a good pace until we reached Statesville on I77. What should have been 40 minute drive to the speedway took nearly twice that time because of traffic. We set up the Greystone and called it a day. Wednesday morning we were at Mark and Kyra’s in time to walk Niko to the bus and take Aleksei to pre-school. Mark and Kyra departed about 2 for the airport and their Modern Language Association conference in LA and the boys were ours for the next five days. Judy settled in to housekeeping and cooking in a different environment and Jon travelled each day/night to the speedway to handle the animals.

Thursday Aleksei does not have school and as the replacement TV arrived on Wednesday afternoon, we took that time to go out to the Greystone and install it. It worked fine and the installation not hard. As for the TV, when we took the Greystone into General RV on Dec 3 for the TV to be replaced (it had a big black line down the screen) we expected it to be done. Well it wasn’t – long story short they messed up and it took a visit with the General Manager at the dealership to get us a TV.

For a break on Friday we packed the boys up and all went to spend some time at the trailer. That’s when the weather turned cold. It was too cold to work much with Niko on his bike and too cold to even be out. We had promised IHop for lunch and started out to find one when we ran into a real snow storm. Nearly a white-out but it was still too warm to stick. We found a park and the kids played some and then headed for the IHop but traffic was so bad decided to head toward a different one the GPS had found. Well we could not find it so stopped at a Shoney’s instead. Had a very nice waitress who told us that Aleksei could eat free from the buffet (and he wanted pancakes) and that Niko would be half price – cheaper than buying just a pancake breakfast. So we settled in and all ate good for sure. Sunday we headed back to Davidson to prepare for the snow.

And snow it did. It took 90 minutes via the interstates to get from the speedway to Davidson on Monday morning. At 3:30AM no snow, but by 5 nearly 3 inches covered the ground and car. Of course school was cancelled and it looked like Aleksei was beginning to breakout in chicken pox. We really were not sure Mark and Kyra would get back in Monday night as lots of flights were cancelled as the snow had stopped but the precipitation had turned to freezing rain and sleet. They did and we headed for the trailer about 9. It took us nearly an hour to make the trip. Tuesday morning we awoke to more than an inch of ice crust on top of the compacted 7 inches of snow!!

On Wednesday morning it took about an hour and a half to remove the ice and snow from the slides so we could get them in. Consequently we did not get on the road until after 10:30 for our drive south. We stopped at a nice little campground north of Savannah for the night and then headed on to Grassy Pond near Valdosta, GA. When we arrived, the Camp Host was walking his dog and flagged us down. All sites were full, but he double parked us next to his unit and we had full hookups for our two nights there. The sun was shinning during the day, but it was cold at night!!

Friday we went into Valdosta to visit Nancy Juster and after some good coffee cake, Jon headed out to do some shopping and take care of some things at the trailer. After dinner and farewells it was back to the FamCamp for the night.

Saturday’s drive to Tyndall AFB near Panama City was pleasant and easy. We took some back roads so got to see sights you would not see along the interstate. When we arrived about noon Central Standard Time (one our time) we were put into overflow (just water and electric hookups) and were told it would be 4 or 5 nights before we could get a regular site. After we situated ourselves we took a walk with Lilly around the campground and recognized some of the people we know by the camper or usually by the name sign hanging on their site post. We did stop into visit Arlene and Jerry Snyder for a bit as they were the first couple we met when we came to Tyndall seven years ago.

Sunday was church and a little shopping at the BX and just some relax time. On Monday we stopped at the office to pay for another night in overflow. The duty Camp Host said that we should only be in overflow one more night so we took off to do some grocery shopping and have lunch out. When we arrived back ‘home’ about 1 there was a note on our door that site 23 was ours. So we spent a couple of hours getting moved and set up more permanent. It’s a nice wide site and not all shaded in, which we both like. It felt good to set up home for at least the next two, maybe three weeks.

Now that we are settled in we have ourselves in a routine for the next few weeks. After breakfast Jon heads to the clubhouse for coffee and chat with the guys and Judy heads off with Lilly for a long walk. Later in the morning it’s time for some chores and projects around ‘home’ and after lunch Judy heads to the clubhouse for craft time with the ladies. Many of the campers return to the clubhouse at 6 for cards, jokers, dominos or some other games. We are not going to go every night as that can get to be a challenge (sitting for 2 plus hours) and besides some nights we have certain TV shows we want to see.

Some of the ladies are going to the big new base fitness center on base to ‘workout’ with a trainer on Tuesday and Thursday and have invited Judy to go along. On MWF mornings one of the ladies leads a large group in ‘exercises’ in the club house from 10 – 11 but we walk Lilly or ride our bikes around the park roads

Pot-luck dinners are held each Tuesday and as usual with these activities there is plenty of good food to go around. Drinks and table service is provided by the campground.

Wednesday night is VFW hamburger night. About 1/3 of the campers head over to the nearby VFW hall for great hamburgers and must say they are really good. But, there is one big downside - it is so smoky that when you come home you have to put everything in the laundry. It was a good thing we were planning on doing laundry Thursday morning.

The weather could be a bit nicer, but by the internet it looks like it is a heck of a lot better than NE Ohio……11 degrees right now (11AM on Friday EST).

Sorry no pictures with this installment.  Will work on getting a few to add next time.