On the Road Again, Destination...Home

After much thought about what we should do and how we should take care of repairing the motor home's electronics and replacing the 13' awning, we decided that the most prudent thing to do was to return home. We could have continued on our trip and lived without some of the electronic displays that monitor certain aspects of the motor home...we would just have to monitor things ourselves. But, to continue on our trip without the large awning would have been very difficult, especially as we headed into the heat of the southwest. When we are set up at a campsite, the awning helps shade the side of the motor home that houses the refrigerator. Motor homes are not well insulated vehicles and heat or cold penetrate easily into the living area. If we couldn't shade the outside area by the refrigerator, it would barely be able to function adequately. Lack of an awning also means the air conditioning would have to work overtime to maintain a comfortable temperature inside the motor home. We thought about ordering a new awning and having it delivered to a destination on our route, but then we ran the risk that it wouldn't be there in time or something else could go wrong and cause us to be "stuck" somewhere for who knows how long. By coming home, we could wait as long as necessary for all of the parts that need to be replaced.

We left Port Charlotte, FL and took several days to trek home. At a campground called Dixie Caverns just outside of Roanoke, VA, we toured the caverns on the grounds of the campground. Although not as spectacular as Carlsbad Caverns in NM or even Luray Caverns nearby, Dixie Caverns was interesting. The caverns were accidentally discovered in the 1920s by a couple of young boys who were chasing after their dog. The dog fell down a hole and landed on a ledge. The boys rescued the dog and told the owner of the property about a cave. He explored the caverns for about three years before opening it to the public. Initially, people had to lower themselves into the caverns using a rope. Over time, another entrance was built and paths, stairs and lighting were added to improve access. I am always amazed at these underground wonders of the earth. Stalactites and stalagmites formed over thousands of years from water and minerals. The shapes and sizes were just incredible. There were quite a few rooms in the caverns. One room had a stalactite shaped like a huge bell. It was referred to as the wedding bell and there have been a number of small wedding ceremonies performed over the years in that one room. Our tour lasted about an hour and then we got back on the road.

After a few more days of one night stays at campgrounds, we arrived home. We were away exactly one month. In spite of our encounters with nightmare weather and the damage to the motor home, we had many good times while we were away, but at this point, we are just happy to be back home.

Port Charlotte, FL

While in Port Charlotte, we planned to visit with a Connecticut friend and her husband who are retired and now living in Port Charlotte. Unfortunately, she had to leave Florida unexpectedly to attend a funeral, so, we had to cancel our plans to get together. We also planned to visit with Pete’s cousin, Cynthia and her husband who live in Venice, Florida which is a short drive from Port Charlotte.

At about 7:30 AM on our first morning in Port Charlotte, the wind began to blow wildly and within moments our motor home was battered with heavy rain and raging wind. Hail the size of ice cubes pelleted the roof. The wind was so strong the motor home was rocking and before we knew it our 13 ft. awning (which was rolled up along the edge of the roof and secured) was ripped from the side of the motor home and hurled onto the roof. There were metal posts dangling on both sides of the motor home.  A plastic dome that protects one of the air vents on the roof cracked when it was hit by the awning. The rain was coming down so hard and fast we could only see a couple of feet out the windows. As quickly as the wind came up, it ceased, but the rain continued for a few more hours. We immediately contacted our insurance company who told us not to touch anything and wait for an insurance adjuster to arrive. We found out that more bad weather was on the way and decided to take pictures and get the awning removed from the roof so it wouldn’t cause more damage or possibly injure someone. Other people in the RV resort had damage to their motor homes and had called an RV service company. When the service company drove by our site and saw the awning up on the roof, they stopped and Pete had them help him get the awning off the roof. This incident was even scarier than the lightning in North Carolina!

Later that day, the clouds parted and the sun came out. That evening, we went out to dinner at a restaurant called JDs that had a fantastic jazz quartet. It was a nice diversion after a very stressful day.

The insurance adjuster came out the next day and all of the damage is covered on our policy, so now we need to get the awning replaced! Fun, fun, fun!!!

Day before the storm

After the storm

We had a wonderful visit with Pete’s cousin, Cynthia and her husband, Bill. They gave us a tour of Venice, FL and then cooked a delicious dinner for us. We enjoyed the time we spent with them and it ended our visit to Port Charlotte on a positive note.

Key West and Naples, FL

We departed St. Augustine and headed south along the eastern coast of Florida. We needed a one night stop at a campground before we reached Key West. Lion Safari KOA was just outside West Palm Beach. It was too late to ride through the Lion Safari park, but the campsites were so close to Lion Safari that we could hear the lions roaring during the night and into the morning. We could not believe how loud they could roar.

The next day we arrived at Lazy Lakes RV Park on Sugarloaf Key. Our campground had a real tropical feel with lots of palm trees. It was early enough in the day, so we drove into Key West that afternoon. Duval Street was the main street loaded with t-shirt shops, bars, art galleries, bars, restaurants, bars, souvenir shops, bars, jewelry stores, oh, and did I mention bars! As the day wore on, more and more people arrived downtown and a loud, party atmosphere began to resemble something like New Orleans during Mardi Gras. We roamed around and found a sandal shop that was on my To Do list.

Many years ago, when my mother-in-law would visit friends who lived in the Keys, she would buy Kino sandals (leather flip-flops) for her sister and all of her daughters-in-law. I looked online before we reached the Keys and found out that Kino was still making and selling sandals in Key West. I was able to watch people making the sandals and bought sandals for all the Ryder women in remembrance of my mother-in-law.

As we continued to roam all the little side streets and shops, we checked out the menus at a couple of restaurants. After dinner we headed back to the campground with some ideas about what we wanted to do the next day.

The weather on the Keys was very warm and sunny. We took the Conch Train Tour the next day and learned about the history and lives of the people who have lived in Key West. While on this tour, we saw mile marker zero for US Route 1. If you follow Route 1 from here you will travel about 2,369 miles and end up at Fort Kent, Maine. We also had the opportunity to visit the southern most point in the U.S. and have our picture taken next to the marker.  

That evening we dined at Michael’s Restaurant, a bistro with outdoor seating under shady trees. At the end of dinner we received a post card that had a watercolor print of the restaurant that we thought was reminiscent of Key West. On the back of the postcard we found the name of the artist and I looked her up on the Internet. We found three galleries where her art work was for sale and the next day we went to one of the galleries in search of a larger print that we could frame. While I was looking through a display of the artist’s prints, Pete began a conversation with the woman working in the gallery. It turned out to be the artist of the print we wanted to purchase! She found the size print we wanted and we chatted for awhile. Turns out she is a retired teacher from the Chicago area. With our print in hand, we were off to find the Butterfly Conservatory.

Coconut Shrimp with Sweet Chili Glaze

Artichoke Hearts Baked With Garlic and Parmesan

Served with Mini Pita Breads

Mahi Topped with Macadamia Nuts and Finished

with a Dark Rum and Banana Butter Sauce

At the Butterfly Conservatory we walked along paths in an enclosed, climate controlled botanical garden with trees, flowering plants, waterfalls and hundreds of butterflies flying everywhere. They landed on plants and people. Pete had a beautiful, blue butterfly land on his ball cap. There were also some birds, including a really noisy male flamingo who was trying to garner the attention of a female flamingo. We enjoyed the conservatory and then went to find some lunch.

After lunch, we walked to the Key West Aquarium. It is a small, old aquarium built in the 1930s but still interesting. There were numerous exhibits of ocean creatures found in this area. We saw many colorful tropical fish, an octopus, and sharks. While we were there, a docent fed the manta rays.

We enjoyed our visit to the Florida Keys and prepared to travel to Naples, FL.

In Naples, we visited with friends, Sandy and Everett, who had once lived in Vermont. Pete and Everett have known each other for years after owning and working in their own aviation businesses. We enjoyed their company and a nice, leisurely dinner at Sandy and Everett’s home.

The next day, we traveled to Port Charlotte, FL.