Have You Ever Had A Day Like This?

(Bushnell, FL) 55 degrees, blue skies, chilly

We came to this area with the hopes of kayaking down the Weeki Wachee River.  The weather, however, just did not want to cooperate with those plans and we woke up this morning  to 37 degrees.  It’s been sunny and warm for weeks, but today it was COLD!  So, we decided a bike ride and walk with Jimmy might be nice. 

Just as we were about to leave John said maybe it had warmed up enough and we should go ahead and kayak the river  So, we scrambled to gather up our kayaking equipment and clothes.  I called the kayak livery and found out the last launch was at 11:30am  Rats…it was 11 o’clock and an hour drive away.  OK, back to plan B. 

Near the river was an area called the Weekiwachee Preserve.  According to the website it offered biking, kayaking and hiking trails.  It only mentioned that dogs could not be on the bike trails.  We drove around the area and eventually found a tiny little sign showing the entrance.  This preserve at one time was a quarry and there were 7 lakes to hike around.  It was much different than some of the areas we had been to so far.



Weekiwachee Preserve



The area for the most part was very flat and just a few palm trees mixed with tall grasses. 

However, we never really got to explore it.  We had only been on the trail with Jimmy for 5 minutes when a official looking person told us that  dogs were not allowed anywhere  and threatened us with a $280 fine.  Alrighty then…I guess we’ll move on.  I really don’t like to argue with men with guns.  He did mention there was a dog park at Crews Lake and gave us some rather vague directions. 



Very short walk with Jimmy



The navigation system in my Droid phone (nicknamed Lois) has been invaluable (at least up until today).  It found the lake and off we went.  We should have been a little concerned when the road got very bumpy, turned to sand, and oh… did I mention rather questionable houses with huge dogs and high fences.  I’m not sure what was going on in this area and really did not want to find out.  Lois led us to a dead end with  another really large fence blocking any more travel.  We skedaddled out of this area and did eventually find the park. 

Wouldn’t you think that a park named Crews Lake would have a…lake. Well after much searching this is what we found.  Sheesh! 



Crews Lake



They had even built an elaborate tower for viewing the lake.  Maybe something's happened to the lake.  At any rate it has been missing for quite some time.  The grasses were very tall.

We did find some nice trails and yes it was dog friendly. Jimmy had a great time.  It was just one of those days.  It reminded me of the song “mama said there would be days like this”. Have you ever had a day like this? 

Staying At Our First Escapee Park - Sumter Oaks

(Bushnell, FL) 55 degrees, cloudy, chilly

Our two week reservation at MacDill AFB ended today and we have really enjoyed our stay.  The people were so friendly and the beach was wonderful.  We could have stayed longer but we would have to go into a rotation schedule and probably would have been in the boondocking area most of the time.   It can take up to two weeks to get back to a full hook up site and this is prime time for base.  We only have a week until our NOMADS project, so we decided to travel and see a couple of areas instead. 

We have belonged to Escapees RV Club for several years.   Essentially the club was organized  to share knowledge and provide support to those who love or are considering the fulltime RV lifestyle.  They provide a wealth of information and last fall we attended their annual rally in Goshen Indiana.  One of their benefits includes being able to stay at one of their Rainbow Clubs located mostly in the south.  There are eight parks and the daily rates are very reasonable. 

Located about about 1 1/2 hours north of Tampa is the Sumter Oaks RV park in Bushnell.  It was an easy drive and the campground was located not far off the interstate.  It is a very rural area and the campground has lots of live oak trees draped in Spanish moss.  There are about 100 full hook up sites with  large concrete patios.  It was a bit of challenge backing into our site but it is in a nice quiet area.  Our site is #12 and the rate is $15 per night plus electric.  You have to write down the reading on your electric meter and pay a small amount for the electricity at check out. 

We settled into our new campground today and walked around the area.  There are lots of birds and owls in the area.  The camphost recommended a  German restaurant for dinner about 20 minutes away called the Old World Restaurant in Floral City. The decor was a very dated but the food was delicious and reasonable.  The city was very quaint and is said to be "a slice of Old Florida". 

Tomorrow we may go  for a bike ride since there are several nice trails nearby.  We are also very close to the Weeki Wachee Springs State Park home of the famous mermaids.   It has an amazing river to kayak but the weather will probably be too cold tomorrow.  We'll see what the weather man has to say in the morning.