We began out trip south on December 1st, after spending two weeks preparing Baby Hughey by loading items for our winter survival. We decided that we wanted to visit our grandson, Cody, who was attending school in Charleston, S. C. for further education while in the Coast Guard..
We left with our friends, Harry and Bobbi with our first destination being Paintsville State Park in eastern Kentucky. We had decided to stay off 75 and since we were heading east, caught Rt. 23 out of Columbus. We stopped for fuel at the Pilot in Circleville, OH, and sadly our friends had a bearing going bad on their camper. Since there was nothing we could do to help, we ventured on. Paintsville State Park is a very nice park. The only problem we had (or should I say, Roy had) was no TV or WIFI. It was one of the very few parks open all year.
Our destination for the second night was Spartanburg, South Carolina. Route 23 is a trek through the Appalachian Mountains. It would have been very beautiful, except that the rain decided to keep us company most of the day. The motor home performed quite well through the mountains with some pretty steep downgrades. Going up and winding around and around, we reached an elevation of 4,000 feet. The houses in the valley, looked like toys. Cunningham RV Park in Spartanburg was a nice park and with Passport America, was a very reasonable stay.
On the next leg, it was onward to Charleston, S.C. We stayed in Lake Aire RV Park, about 12 miles from downtown Charleston. They had experienced a huge rain the day before, and the park was a bit on the muddy side, but adequate. Harry and Bobbi met up with us there. On 12/4, we picked up Cody and headed to downtown Charleston. We ended up eating at Bubba Gump's. Good conversation and good food and then it was time to get Cody back to base. So very proud of him!
On 12/5 we left Lake Aire Campground heading for Jekyll Island, somewhere new for Roy and I. By that time we were traveling on busy I 95 and a truck driver let Harry and Bobbi know that they had another smoking wheel on their trailer. That meant another lengthy stop for them, but this time, all the wheel bearings were taken care of and they were on their way. We had gone on ahead once again, arriving at Jekyll Island Campground around 3 p.m. You have to pay a fee to get onto the island itself but the campground was very nice with lots of trees. Harry and Bobbi were only a couple of hours behind us, so once again we had our friends to enjoy Jekyll Island. We experienced some of the coastal fog the next morning, so it was a bit later that we explored the island.
In the early 1900's some of the rich and famous decided they needed a quiet getaway and invested in Jekyll Island. They built a hotel which is still in use and is, indeed, grand. Then came some "cottages" which are huge and quite elegant. It's always interesting to see how the "other half" lived and it's neat to have some of that lifestyle preserved.
On 12/7, it was time to move southward. This time the destination was Salt Springs which is in the Ocala area. We stayed in the Ocala National Forest Campground which turned out to be very nice. Because we have the National Park pass for seniors, it as very affordable with full hookups. The actual springs are a short walk from the campground and quite unique. The water temperature stays at 72 degrees and there were hundreds of mullets (fish) enjoying the warm, clear water. It was a bit too cool outside to put our suits on and test the water. H & B told us that the manatees come into the springs for the warmth in the winter. Harry took us for a ride in his truck down a two-track, dirt road to a "ferry" crossing. Apparently it is a one man operation and he must have been at lunch because we waited for about one half hour and turned back By crossing the lake, it is a much shorter distance to the town of Palatka.
While in the area, we made a trip to The Villages to visit a childhood neighbor of Roy who is battling cancer. The Villages has certainly gotten much larger than the first time we were there. Nothing but golf cart after golf cart. I might add some very nice golf carts !!
We said our good-byes and after a three hour ride, we arrived at our winter spot at Camp Florida in Lake Placid, Florida . Most of our time from now on will be enjoying our friends in the park, while exploring the the surrounding area..
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