Hontoon Island

Thursday, April 22nd;

Hontoon Island

Today we had a free day. What to do? We decided to go on a picnic and see something we had not seen before. There is a State Park near De Land called Hontoon Island. Exploring an island seemed like a good idea!

We drove up I-4 to the Deland exit and followed SR 44 to the turn off for Hontoon Island. We wove through an area of nice homes on leafy green canals to the parking lot. The sign said, “For ferry ride over to island please stand on boat dock”. Sure enough the little ferry was coming our way.

We saw some people fishing from the shore but no one else seemed to be having a picnic. We walked up the dock to the picnic ground and found a table. We were immediately the center of attention of the resident squirrel population. They appear used to people and picnics and came very close to us looking for lunch. They seem to have divided the territory as the one who arrived first drove off any other visitors.

We both had our cameras out and took pictures of life on the river as we sat there - a kayak, various boats and two airboats came by. After a good lunch, we stored the picnic cooler with the ranger and began our exploration.

There is a small museum at the opposite end of the building housing the ranger station and store. It was a good place to start. It explains the history of the island from the Indian settlement described through the archeological investigation to more modern times. Archival photographs of people arriving for a picnic o an earlier version of the ferry. The story of an undercover agent hiding here during the ‘30s investigating gang activities in Florida. An interesting film created by a local retired ranger that along with static displays, described the flora and fauna of this place.

Now that we had an overview of the island, we went out to find the start of the Nature trail. It was a lovely stroll with no other visitors. There was layer on layer of green in various shades that it was impossible to show in pictures. Live Oak, Saw Palmetto, Pine, Palm and Cypress share the island each taking the space best suited to its needs. It had rained recently so the normally brown Resurrection fern was leafy green on the sides of the old oaks.

We startled an Armadillo as we walked quietly down the path. That was a first for us as we see them more frequently as road kill. As we continued the walk we saw more of them. I came around a corner and startled one right in my path. The Armadillo and I both stopped to consider the situation before it moved off quickly but not so far away. With my telephoto I was able to get some very nice shots.

We stopped alongside the St. John River to take pictures of the Cypress trees and the Cypress knees that come up around them. At the same time a tour boat came along the guide was explaining about the Indian Midden that is an archeological sight on Hontoon Island. The apple snail shells have created a 40 foot hill on that end of the island. That is a lot of Potlatches!
We continued on to the trail’s end and found the snail shell mound he mentioned. Then it was time to turn around and head back to the dock. We enjoyed the return trip just as much. Seeing the surroundings from the reverse angle always shows up something new. More armadillo and a black racer snake!

We found our way back to the dock, retrieved our picnic cooler and took the little ferry back to the truck. A very pleasant day!

Settled in Orlando

Friday, April 16th;

The Flying Blue Angels replica is still flying at the Pensacola rest stop. It is a very nice tourist information center with free WiFi and hosts serving information along with orange and grapefruit juice. We are back in Florida!

We drove on past De Funiak Springs and stopped at Falling Waters State Park . The plan was to make the last day a little shorter and to stop somewhere we could walk about and enjoy. It was a lovely little park. There is a lake with a small swimming beach. Do the alligators know it is for people only?

Past the lake there is a boardwalk that takes you past a number of sink holes to a 100 foot sinkhole that has created the tallest waterfall in Florida. Not too impressive if you come from a place with mountains and waterfalls. On the other hand I would not want that sink hole opening up in my back yard.

We traded stories with other campers and it made a very pleasant last night on the road.

Monday we finished the Panhandle and headed south on I-75 to Howey-in-the-Hills. We stopped at our friends Steve and Glennys for a good visit. It was good to be in doors on a rather blustery evening.

Howey has strict rules about visiting RV’s so we moved on to Orlando Tuesday and parked among the citrus trees in Abe and Frances back yard. Also a lovely spot to be. We could smell the blossoms and step out the door in the morning to pick oranges or grapefruit for breakfast. The pecan tree is covered in Night Blooming Cereus. It will be a wonderful show later this spring. It lasts only for the one night and then the bloom is over.

We got the RV in better order while having a good visit. Friday we moved on to Twelve Oaks RV Resort on SR 46. Back in our old neighbourhood not far from my office on International Parkway. Now the front window cover is up once more. We have a mini herb garden Abe created for us sitting on our picnic table. We can get the easy chairs out.

Having settled in we are filling the calendar with people to see and things to do. I will add to the blog less frequently while we are sitting in one place. We plan to be here until the middle of June and then the Doves will be rambling once more.

Meandering through Mississippi

Saturday, April 10th;

We have had long days since we left the Monahans Sandhills. We were up and out by 7:15 that morning and drove until we were just outside Fort Worth. Our goal was to be up really early and beat the traffic through the city the following day.

You can’t beat the traffic through the city - it never stops! We did get a jump on rush hour. We started at 6:15 AM and arrived at the far side of Dallas about 8:00 AM. We still remember hitting rush hour while passing through those two cities on our first trip. We were inexperienced and the trailer was not so easy to manage with our first truck. It was a relief to have that part of the trip over.

We stopped for breakfast at a Cracker Barrel in Tyler, Texas and then went on to a rest stop for Dan to have a nap. Refreshed we carried on until later in the day and stopped at last in West Monroe, Louisiana.

Again it was just a Highway RV Park and there was nothing notable to do. We did decide to take it easy for the remainder of the trip and divided the distance into three more days.

Today we got up in a more leisurely manner. Had breakfast, cleaned up and went off into West Monroe to do some banking. There was no one around at 9:30 in the morning so we were soon done and on our way east again.

I was sad to see the rest stop on the Louisiana side of the Mississippi was closed. We had stopped there in 2001 and a black gentleman was the caretaker. He introduced himself and spent time telling me about his job and how proud he was to keep this lovely place up. He gave us advice on what to do in the event of a hurricane, wished us a good journey and to keep safe. I enjoyed our visit.

Now the rest stop is in sad repair. Grass is growing through the pavement. The picnic shelters and tables are greying. It will take some work to bring it back to the pristine place it once was. More important, what happened to the man who welcomed us so warmly?

On the Mississippi side of the river, the Information center is a gracious as I remembered. I took pictures of the bridges across the river and read some of the history of Vicksburg, a very central player in the American Civil War.

Once again I made the mistake of passing a rest stop because we had just had a break. There were no more! We arrived at Jackson and turned south on Highway 49. We finally stopped for lunch at the D’Lo Waterpark. Not a Canadian style waterpark with waterslides and swimming pools but a forest park by the water. In this case the water was actually recognizable. It was the rocky river’s edge where the Sibyls played and the man became a frog in the movie “Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?” That was an interesting surprise.


We carried on after lunch and ended our day outside of Hattiesburg, Mississippi.

Tomorrow we will go on to De Funiak Springs in the Florida Panhandle and the Monday we should be in the Orlando area.

Monahans Sandhills

Wednesday, April 7th;

We left Tucson early on Tuesday and headed for Texas. We had been over this part of the road before and were watching for familiar sights. I am still delighted to be near Cochise’s Stronghold and Tombstone. My childhood heroes were the cowboys and Indians of the western movies - Roy Rogers and Dale Evans; Gene Autry, the singing cowboy; Hopalong Cassidy and many more that came later.

Dan remembers unusual round rocks as we drive into New Mexico.

We have a strong tailwind and out fuel mileage jumps up to almost acceptable. Half way through New Mexico the strong wind creates sandstorms. We can see them blowing heavily in the distance but what we drive into is relatively light. Just enough to feel it in your throat and nose. Not enough to alter our visibility.

Many of the rest stops are closed. Apparently it is a cost cutting measure in states that are having trouble making ends meet. We are told California has stated that it has run out of money and is well into the emergency funds. That is a sobering thought.

We tick off the miles - Lordsburg, Deming, Las Cruces and then we cross into Texas at El Paso. It is early but we have decided to stop for the night at the Roadrunner RV Park. We are still in the city and there is nothing to do in our vicinity. It is really a working man’s RV park, more for living in than visiting. Oh well, it is just an overnight. We amuse our selves with reading, writing, sorting photographs and our computers. I Skype those at home and everyone seems closer.


We are up and ready to go early. We decide to have breakfast further down the road. A good decision! There is nothing visible but open land and the plants of the desert here are low to the ground. There is some green showing but not the bright colours of Arizona and New Mexico. There are Palmilla in bloom along the road and I would like to see one close up to get a picture. We stop at a rest stop just past Fabens, Texas to eat and I find the Palmilla I am looking for. They are much larger in this landscaped oasis than those in the distance. I go wandering to take pictures while Dan has a rest.


Refreshed we continue. We are in the area known as “West of the Pecos” and it still looks much like it must have in the days of the wild west. Once past the town of Pecos we are heading toward the “Odessa oil patch” and now we see the oil rigs - donkey engines slowly pumping day and night. Not much further, we have reached our destination for today. The town of Monahans and beyond it the Monahans Sand Hills.

Monahans Sand Hills is a State Park that covers 200 square miles of sand dunes. It sounded like something to see so we planned to stop early and spend time there. It was a good choice. We had one corner of the park all to ourselves and we wandered up hill and down with our cameras. The dunes are amazing. Their size, their shapes, their changing form, the light and then the shadows as the day drew to a close. The wind blew all afternoon and it was cool even in the bright sun. Small sandstorms were created over the ridges of the larger dunes. As we walked we could see individual grains rolling along by our feet. It seemed a shame to mar the landscape with footprints. I tried not to step on anything that might grow and stabilize a portion of the land. It did not take long for the footprints to be erased and there was no record of our adventure.



We ate a late dinner so we did not miss the sunset in this spectacular place. As we sat in the evening we realized the wind had stopped and the quiet is wonderful away from all the activity of towns and highways. We turned out all the lights and went out to see the night. The darkness is really black. I would not wander too far from the trailer on my own. Without it being lit up, I might not find my way back!

I am looking forward to seeing the changing light of morning! Then we will move on.

Easter in Tucson

Monday, April 5th;

It was wonderful to wake up and know we did not have to hitch up and travel on! We got up, had a nice breakfast and went for a walk around the park through the back gate and into the desert.
The park itself is largely “park models”. Permanent residences like a large trailer without wheels. They have become very much like small homes now with bay windows, vaulted ceilings and skylights. They are no longer boring rectangular boxes. Each owner has created a little garden of their own and they are all lovely at this time of year.

There is an arroyo through the middle of the park. A dry wide gully that will hold a flash flood should one occur and keep it from damaging any of the units.

The clubhouse has the laundry facility with a fenced area for hanging clothes to dry so there are no clothes lines in view in the park. There are rooms for gatherings of all kinds. The notice board lists weekly crafts, poker, prayer meeting and other social events. There is a lovely landscaped pool area where you can swim, bake or socialize. Further down the hall there is a full library and a pool room with three pool tables. There is always something going on.

Once out in the desert we were captivated by the variety of cactus and all the different blossoms. Dan was captivated literally as he was testing to see if they always stuck into you or if it was only when approached from one direction. Then, why did they stick into you if they did not appear to be barbed? But stick it does - well enough to take a knob right off of the cactus while remaining attached to your hand!


We saw and heard a number of birds. The cardinals were too quick to photograph. Another bird with a big song was too small to show up in the pictures. The dove posed well. The pheasant ran off screeching.

Most interesting was a swarm of bees hanging in a tree. You could see the mass seething and hoped they were just normal bees!

It being Easter Sunday, we did not expect any of the tourist sights we wanted to see to be open. Instead we planned a day of errands. Since the map showed Walmart to be near the Mission San Xavier del Bec, I thought the mission would be a good first stop. The mission was founded in 1692 and the current church was completed in 1797 - the oldest intact European building in Arizona. It is also called the White Dove of the desert. It is an amazing white against the deep blue sky of Tucson.


We wandered there for a while trying not to interfere with the regular members of the parish celebrating their Easter. Then on to Walmart to get some necessary kitchen supplies. Next stop Camping World - a toy store for RVers. That was closed for the holiday. On to Albertson’s for food and the day was done.

We decided to stay on Monday as well. We went back to Camping World and this time it was open. We had a good time prowling the aisles looking at all the things useful and not so. I found a cookie sheet that would fit in my oven - it might hold two cookies at a time. Not so useful. We managed to come out with an armload of stuff we absolutely had to have!

Next stop we went looking for Famous Dave’s barbecue recommended by Jane and Larry. It was good! I don’t know if the pulled pork is the best I have had but the sides were better than most I will agree. No way we could eat it all. We need the seniors menu these days!

The highlight of the day was the Center for Creative Photography at Arizona State University, Tucson. It was started by Ansell Adams and is home to the majority of his work. There was a current exhibit in the main hall of other photographers and a small exhibit of Ansel Adams on the second floor that changes every three weeks. I always enjoy seeing his work and the New Topographics exhibit was interesting.

We ended the day with quiet time at home and laundry. Tomorrow we will be on the road again but we will be clean!

Next we go through New Mexico to Texas.

Time off in Tucson

Saturday, April 3rd;

We left Indio about 9:00 AM and found our way back to I-10 with no difficulty. It would not be an arduous drive to Tucson. The desert is fairly level with one long slope to climb between California and Arizona at Blythe. We did the drive to the border in two hours. It took us all day with two stops for flat tires coming home from Florida last time. It had been a memorable day and we pointed out the places of interest as we passed them going east.

We noticed many of the rest stops were closed this trip. We stopped for gas just before noon and Dan suggested pulling over to a dirt lot there for a lunch break. I suggested we go on to the next rest stop not far east. It was closed. So was the next one. Third time lucky but it was quite a few miles on.

Dan lay down to rest and I took my camera out into the desert. As the sign suggested, I did watch where I was stepping and did not venture far in my sandals. I could not resist seeing all the flowers in bloom up close!

After a nice lunch break, we carried on around the edge of Phoenix and south to Tucson. We found our way to the east side of town and back into the hills where we planned to stop at Western Way RV park. The husband and wife management team are very nice and very helpful. They discussed the pros and cons of the available spots and got us settled in. They even opened the office to get us coupons for some of the tourist venues nearby in case we should want to visit them Easter Sunday.

That brought up a thought - we had not realized it was Easter and everything we planned to see would be closed. Oh well we would extend our stay a little and go sightseeing on Monday.

It was nice to be settled. Dan put the “legs” down on the trailer and opened the cover on the front window. It was about 80 degrees F during the day (26.7 degrees C). We had the doors and windows open and could smell the orange blossoms as we sat at the table. It was lovely!

As the sun began to set we went for a short walk out into the desert. Here we were warned to watch for coyotes, rattlesnakes and javelina. I don’t even know what a javelina is! Dan tells me it is a wild boar. Add that to spiders and scorpions and maybe we should stay in the trailer! We returned safely to cook dinner. The desert stars were bright above and we decided to turn in early. The fact that we did not need to move again seemed to relax us. We were more tired than we expected. At this time of year the night is cool and makes for good sleeping. ‘Night all!

Glamping in Indio

Friday, April 2nd;

The drive from Dos Reis Regional Park in Lathrop to Indio is a long one but we started early. We were following a highway we had been on before. In the fall of 2005 it was brown as far as the eye could see. At this time of year it is green with swaths of gold and orange California poppies interspersed with white flowers and stretches of purple. A very colorful landscape.

There were areas of trees, some were green - covered with leaves as you would expect in the spring. Some groves were still showing the gray skeletons of winter. Not a leaf to be seen. When we stopped at a pleasant rest stop for lunch. Dan stretched out for a nap and I went wandering with my camera. There were two groves backing the rest stop - one was green and one was grey. Both were well cared for so obviously grey does not mean dead. What were those trees?


We decided to take Highway 210, a bypass paralleling I-10 going east. My assumption was we would stay outside of Los Angeles and it would be easier to join I-10 closer to Palm Springs. The problem with not knowing a local area is we did not know Hwy 210 was a road the locals used to go everywhere. It was a parking lot even in the middle of a Good Friday afternoon.

That effectively disposed of our plan to have an early arrival and a pleasant afternoon in Indio. We found our way into Indio looking for the Indian Wells RV park. Our memory did not help us with the large scale map we were carrying. We knew we had driven too far from the freeway to be on the right road so we stopped to ask directions. The gentleman that I spoke to said the RV parks on the map were not in good areas of the town and we would not be safe there. We should go to Emerald Desert on Frank Sinatra Drive. The one Dan spoke to also directed us to Emerald Desert. My directions were to turn left on Country Club drive, Dan was told to turn right. We tried Dan’s way first it made more sense looking at our map. It was right. We found the park quite easily.

Before we left home, Chris introduced us to a word - “Glamping”. Let me say Emerald Desert is the definition of that word. Take all the amenities of a luxury hotel and replace the garden villas with RV’s. You’ve got the picture. I signed us in and Dan asked me how much it was a night. I had to say I did not look! It was lovely. The first person I met was a lady walking her dog. Her advice, don’t take your own towel to the pool - the ones they provide are so big and fluffy! It was really too bad we had not arrived early enough to enjoy it all. We walked the area enjoying the trees, the gardens and the setting sun.

In the morning it was warm and sunny once more though the wind was cool. Dan came in carrying a big plastic Easter egg full of jelly beans. It had a piece of paper welcoming us to the park. We found out later we should have picked up any we saw - some contained very nice prizes. Saturday mornings there is a buffet breakfast in the clubhouse. This day it was scrambled eggs, sausages, French toast, fresh strawberries, peaches, doughnuts, Danish, juice and coffee. Another couple came in and I watched as they chose their breakfast. The old gentleman was a World War II veteran. The lady serving breakfast thanked him for his service to their country and for herself. I was impressed by that. The couple made their way to our table and asked if they could join us. One of the best things about traveling this way it the people you meet. This couple were active and involved in the world. Southern California is their home and it was interesting to hear their views. Dan mentioned the Philippines and the men got talking about their experiences in that area. Dan’s was one of peacetime, his was a time of war. As the conversation became more personal we could see there are pictures in the old veteran’s mind that are as fresh as the day they were formed and events that haunt him still. I won’t forget his story.

After breakfast it was time to say good-bye, to pack up and hit the road once more.

Dos Reis

Thursday, April 1st;

Wednesday morning we got off to a late start and did not have to worry about waiting for the park to open. It was cold in the morning and I waited for the furnace to take the chill off before getting up. We had breakfast, cleaned up and put more things in the correct places. Chris will be glad to know that everything did have a place, all the boxes that left the house are empty and the trailer is tidy. We registered for the previous night, paid our bill and left - heading toward Portland and points south.

We decided, while in Oregon where there is no tax, we would do our shopping so we stopped at Fred Meyers in Salem and loaded up on groceries. (Frances, I found the Reisling we had in La Conner with Marjorie. Two bottles are on the way!) We had a picnic lunch in the trailer parked in their parking lot. Next stop - Costco. By the time we were done we had used up three hours of driving time. Oh well, it was a job well done and we were on the road again.
Driving south of Salem we saw field after field of sheep many with young lambs. In some fields the green grass was so tall the tiny lambs were almost hidden. A very spring scene. Then we climbed to Canyon Pass and it was snowing. The road sign at Mile 82 said “Snow zone. Carry chains or traction tires.”

We made it to Phoenix, Oregon before stopping for the night at the Holiday RV Park just off I-5. It was a cold night and even our comfy down nest did not keep me warm enough. I am sure only a small part of my face stuck out of the blankets and my skin was cold to the touch. Turn on the furnace!

The morning road report for the Siskiyou Pass said bare with icy spots, up to 6 inches of snow on the sides of the road. Carry chains or traction tires. We took our time loading up again. I walked around the park and enjoyed the little river beside us. It made a pleasant sound as it moved along. It was lovely to see the ducks going about their business. Dan had the empty propane tank filled and we were on our way again about 9:15 AM.

It was less than half an hour to the pass and it did have fresh snow along the roadside but the road itself was clear. Many trucks were working their way up the steep slope. Our new truck did not have a difficult time of it. What a difference from last time! We came to the top of the hill and the view out over the valley and the mountains beyond was spectacular.

We were driving into sunshine and by noon had our jackets off. We remembered the area around the Klamath River from our trip home in the fall of 2005. It was all brown and much like our Okanagan. Now it is all green. We stopped in Shasta Lake looking for an RV Center we never found but I did get my Bank of America card straightened out. A new card will be waiting for us in Florida. That took two hours, a phone call to Florida, picture ID, much signing of my official signature and finger prints! Note to me - check all banking before leaving on the trip!

We finally stopped at the Willows rest stop for lunch. It was surrounded by farmland all ready for planting. The young trees in the center area were all in bloom. Now I even had my vest off - T-shirt weather! We had been driving past olive groves, orange groves and grapes. Not much further on we saw our first palm tree. From snow to palm trees in a single day!

We planned to stop early and enjoy the evening but suddenly RV parks were hard to find. They are not well marked in California and we sailed right past the first one we aimed for. We found the next one with help from a pleasant gas station attendant but again we arrived after closing and wanted to get away before opening time so we pressed on.

We found a lovely little Regional Park in San Joaquin County - Dos Reis. It is also surrounded by farmland and along a river with a lovely river walk. Too bad we arrived so late! I will see more in the morning but we are leaving early to get past Los Angeles tomorrow.

I did go for a quick look at the irrigation canal and surrounding area before we left in the morning. The sun was just rising over the park. Now it was possible to see what we had missed - a wonderful horseshoe pit in the center of the grounds brought back memories!

Next stop - Indio and a good Mexican dinner if we can find the restaurant again!