A Trip of First Time Events

Retirement Begins

We "finally" retired.  After many years of work for both of us, we started the next phase of our lives... and started with a two week trip.  A trip designed to test our ability to live in the camper for an extended time, to try different types of campgrounds, to visit relatives, and most important to get to warmer weather!!!

January 14, 2021 - Prattville, AL

We stopped overnight on the way to Pensacola... in the Prattville Walmart parking lot.   A few stores and other locations allow you to stay overnight at no charge!  The first of many firsts on this trip.

We ran out of battery and in the morning had to leave earlier than we wanted to...  seems that those motion activated lights in the storage area have a switch position of always on...  and would drain the battery if left on!  Yup...  drain the battery...

January 14, 2021 - Fort Deposit, AL

One of the great things about being retired and having a flexible schedule means that we get to change where we go, based on interesting new finds.   Along the way down I-65 in Southern Alabama we saw an exit sign for "Fort Deposit"...   Well, that must be some kind of Civil War fort...    sure....   Let's go that way!!   

As it turns out, any remnants of the fort at Fort Deposit have long since vanished...  Fort Deposit was a supply fort established by General Andrew Jackson during the Creek Indian war. Little is known about the fort, (at least The Google does not know much!)

But the town is a small, southern Alabama destination and we drove through and looked around..  Should you plan a special trip to Fort Deposit? Was it worth the side trip?  probably not, but have you been to Fort Deposit, AL?   We have...

January 15, 2021 - Pensacola, FL

Pegs and Jokers - Ever heard of it?  We hadn't, but evidently it is all the rage in the RV parks.  At least Pre-COVID.  We stopped nearby Chris and Lisa's house and visited for a few days..  Included in the visit were:  Pegs and Jokers; The Yum Box (with a family Zoom chat); Shrimp Boil; and a whole bunch of catching up.  We miss seeing them routinely...   Oh well, the trailer helps enable the visiting process...

Pensacola RV Park is right around the corner from their house... and was a great place to stay....

January 18, 2921 - Ochlockonee River State Park, FL

A chance to do a stay at one of the less developed, much more rural campgrounds in one of the great Florida State Parks.  (Oh, yea...  ok-lok-nee). Water and Electric available, and good cell phone coverage so we could watch Hulu TV on our cell phones...   

The Ochlockonee River flows from Southern Georgia into the Gulf of Mexico at the Apalachee Bay in Florida.  The campground was  a good place to stay while exploring the central Florida panhandle.

January 19, 2021 - Tallahassee

We drove up to Tallahassee and stopped at the Mission San Luis, one of the largest and most important missions in Spanish Florida.  The mission was established in this location in 1656 and was the western capital of Spanish Florida. 

Florida Natural Bridge Battlefield Historic State Park 

During the final weeks of the Civil War, this was the site of the second largest Civil War battle in Florida and where the St. Marks River drops into a sinkhole and flows underground for one-quarter of a mile before reemerging.

St. Mark's Lighthouse

Since we were "in the area" we stopped by (after Google Maps taking us on "Old Plank Road"... a wonderful dirt road)...  and we saw an A-10 fighter doing a low altitude pass over the gulf right off shore.    But the real draw was the lighthouse...  

January 20, 2021 - Port St. Joe

Cape San Blas on the northwest coast of Florida has eroded throughout the years dramatically.  The lighthouse originally built in 1847 has been reconstructed and moved many times since then.  In 2014 the lighthouse and the associated buildings were relocated to their current locations in Port St. Joe. 

We got to climb to the top, and the damage caused by Hurricane Michael in 2018 was obvious.  Construction and re-construction is underway, but it will take years to return Port St. Joe completely.

 

T.H.Stone Memorial St. Joseph Peninsula [FL] State Park

We drove out onto the St. Joseph peninsula and spent some time walking around the Florida State Park..  There are sand dunes on the Gulf side and marshes on the St. Joseph bay side.  We walked around a bit and took some great pictures...

St. George Island

Right at the end of the bridge over to St. George Island is another light house.  The St. George light is a 72 foot replica of the original light built in 1933.

Crooked River Lighthouse

Built in 1895 on the mainland to replace the light on Dog Island, this light is now cared for by the citizens of Carrabelle FL.  It continues to guide ships through the East Pass between Dog Island and St. John's island.  

The Smallest Police Station in the world

But the Carrabelle Florida big "claim to fame" is that Carrabelle is the home of the Smallest Police Station in the World.   First placed so that the one Police Officer on duty could get out of the rain and have a phone to call the dispatcher, the second-hand phone booth still stands today in Carrabelle. 

And, as a compliment to the Smallest Police Station is the not-so infamous "Bottle House"! The Bottle House was under repair at the time we visited, but we could still take some pictures... and  voilà, there is a lighthouse made of bottles as well! 

White Squirrels

We are still parked at Ochlockonee River State Park, and right before we leave, we get to see one of the more famous samples of the local wildlife.  The white squirrel.  These squirrels are not albino squirrels but are a separate breed derived from the grey squirrel.   They are native to a few places in the Eastern United States, and the Ochlockonee River area is one of those places.  Interesting... 

January 21-25, 2021 - North Beach Camp Resort, St. Augustine, FL

We moved from Ochlocknee to St. Augustine and stayed in the campground for four nights to get a chance to see everything we could in the greater St. Augustine area.  

January 22, 2021 - Jacksonville FL area

We drove up to Jacksonville and then to Fernandina, FL and saw the Amelia Island Lighthouse.  It is the oldest existing lighthouse in Florida and is not very accessible.  We had to stop in front of a private house and walk up a short driveway to get near the lighthouse.   Honest, there is a lighthouse behind those trees!! 

After the lighthouse, we went to Fort Clinch State Park in the most northeast corner of Florida.  This fort, built after the Second Seminole War in 1847 and is part of the Third System of coastal defenses.  Fortifications on this site date back to the Spanish construction in 1736.  

January 23, 2021 - St. Augustine - Day One

We bought the trolley tickets to get an overview of the sights in St. Augustine, and pick a few to explore more deeply...  Along the way, we stopped at:

The Fountain of Youth - 

We went, we saw, we drank...  and not a bit younger did we become....   (but they had a good chicken sandwich~)

The Old City Gates and St. George Street

Made of coquina, the city walls are remarkably resistant to cannon fire... and, well, St. George street is a souvenir buyer's dream... and reminds one of downtown Gatlinburg.

Castillo De San Marcos and the St. Augustine Lighthouse

January 24, 2021 - A Fort and Some Sweets

On Sunday, we focussed in and hit a couple of high valued sites that we wanted to see.  The fort Castillo De San Marcos and the Whetstone Chocolate Factory.  

The Castillo De San Marcos was on the top of the list, and showing up early meant that we got into the fort without a long wait!!   Built in 1668, after a hundred years of previous fortifications being defeated, washed away by storms and burning, this version of the fort was built of coquina blocks.  Coquina is a local building material naturally formed from small shell pieces and carbonic acid.  Mined on the nearby Anastasia Island it became the most logical construction.  And, as a by-product it is very resistant to cannon fire!

And a great discovery!  The local artisan company with just a few local stores (and a mail-order business), the Whetstone Chocolate company.  Small production runs, with just a few employees yield special chocolate flavors. And they have a tour...  and a gift shop!!!    we took some home... surprise, surprise..

And on the way back to the campground....

A quick stop to look at the Great Cross at the site of the first landing in St. Augustine and founding of the first Catholic parish in Florida.

And then, what visit to St. Augustine could possibly be complete without a stop at the Old Jail...  

January 26, 2021 - Reed Bingham State Park, GA

On the way home...   

We stopped in the middle of Georgia peanut territory and stayed a couple of nights, including a memorable trip over to Moultrie, GA and the Pleasant Grove Primitive Baptist Church Cemetery.   William F. Duggan ran away from home in Moultrie and joined a circus.. He eventually owned a circus, and was fond of the Elephants...  Now he rests beneath a large marble elephant monument.  Reportedly the only such grave marker in the world!

 January 28, 2021 - Wind Creek (Alabama) State Park

One more stop for a couple of nights, and then we return home.

Horseshoe National Military Battlefield

Andrew Jackson's army ended the Creek War by defeating the Red Stick Creeks along the Tallapoosa River in eastern Alabama.  

And that is the final stop on the way home....  The dogs seemed to enjoy the trip....

But Wait!!!  That's not all....

The largest Office Chair in the world is in Oxford... right on the way home!!!  a must stop!!