Down to the sun

Thursday 29th October to Monday 2nd November
The last few days in New Brunswick fly by with more suburban deer sightings:

Here relaxing in Jean & Tim’s back garden:

We did one more trip to the Irving Nature Park, this time there were no fox sightings.

Halloween we went to see Michael Jackson at the movies (love that Orianthi Panagaris) while Jean stayed at the house to dispense the candy. Here she is with baby Nathan, dressed in her costume:

On the Monday we did some last minute provisioning and put our Subaru in storage (in a church yet).

Tuesday 3rd November
At the crack of noon we finally rumble out of Quispamsis, stop by the car storage place and get a view of the Queen Mary 2 in Saint John's Harbour. Apparently Saint John is a very popular cruise-ship destination - who'd a thunk it?



Then it's down the highway to the US border at St. Stephen in Canada, Calais in the US.

After November 1st all campsites in the north are closed so we ended up parking in a Flying J truck stop for the night (in Maine) amongst all the big rigs:


Wednesday 4th November
After a good breakfast in the Flying J restaurant it was back on I-95 and down through the rest of Maine, a little bit of New Hampshire and then into Massachusetts, around Boston and down to the Connecticut coast and an overnight stay in a Wal-Mart parking lot.


Thursday 5th November
After breakfast in the Wal-Mart McDonalds we’re back on the road and heading for New York. Heavy, heavy traffic as we pass through the Bronx, across the George Washington Bridge and into New Jersey.

We were still not far south enough to get a campsite, so that night was spent in a Camping World parking lot – another free source of overnight parking for RVers.

Friday 6th November
Up and off in still cool weather and one of our less pleasant day's travel into Maryland and past Baltimore and Washington – always a trying experience with multiple lanes of very heavy traffic that stops and starts.

However, before too long the traffic thinned out and we crossed from Virginia into North Carolina.

On the way up we stayed at a place near Roanoke Rapids which gave us a 50% discount with our Passport America membership. So we stayed there again.

Saturday 7th November
After 4 days of travel we decided to have a day of rest, so we stayed a second night in North Carolina. The friendly folks at the RV Campsite at Carolina Crossroads lent us a car so we could go do some shopping. Still it isn’t that warm.

Sunday 8th November
Our next stop was to be Edisto Beach in South Carolina, over 300 miles away so we started early. However, by the time we got down to southern South Carolina it was getting late so we parked in another Wal-Mart just off the I-95, this time with many more RVs. And finally it’s warm.


Monday 9th November
We did the last 40m to Edisto first thing in the morning and got ourselves a site in the beach area where we couldn’t even get in last time we went there.


It’s a beautiful spot that we’ve even booked in for a week on our way back next May.

Tuesday 10th November
An early start again to make a long trek to Vero Beach in Florida. Friends Geoff and Bunkey are presently staying there on their boat Party of Two, waiting for guests before heading over to the Bahamas.

We arrived just in time for a pot luck (organized by Bunkey naturally) so got a free meal.

Wednesday 11th November
We spent about 6 weeks in Vero Beach aboard Incognita in the spring but never heard about the CLOD’s breakfast that they have in a restaurant every Wednesday. CLODs are Cruisers Living On Dirt. These are people who have given up the cruising life and bought a place in Vero Beach. It was a lively do and good value. Here’s Bunkey holding forth.


After breakfast we took Buddy for a grooming – he was getting quite warm. Carol got her hair done, we picked Buddy up and took him to the vet for shots etc. and then drove him up the coast to kennels to leave him there for a few days.
Then it was back on the I-95 and a couple of hours down to West Palm Beach to park the RV at Ira and Ann’s.


Thursday 12th November
A day of shopping around West Palm Beach but at night we took a trip down to Clematis Street which is one of two places where there is street entertainment. It was a little cool for hanging around.

Friday 13th November
The original plan was to go cycling but the high winds put the kibosh on that one so we went geocaching instead, in the Apoxee Wilderness Preserve local wetlands area.


Carol and I each got to find our first geocache (practically unaided).


It’s a beautiful spot and with no bugs and gorgeous weather it was a lot of fun.


Saturday 14th November
The wind had dropped to make cycling an option so we packed Ira and Ann’s bikes onto the back of the RV with ours and trundled the RV down through West Palm Beach to Palm Beach on the other side of the Intracoastal.


Our first trip was up the side of the Intracoastal to the north end of the barrier island that is Palm Beach in time to see this container ship go out through the inlet.


Next attraction was a walk round the Four Arts garden complex with its Asian gardens.


and statuary.


On to the bikes again and over to the ocean side to go visit the famous Breakers Hotel.


The ocean was demonstrating the behaviour that we guess gave the place its name.


We took a rest in the shaded courtyard for some munchies pretending we had the bucks to stay there.


Back to the RV, loaded up the bikes and then back to Century Village after another wonderful day in the sun. If only Florida could be like this 12 months a year.

Sunday 15th November
Time for a visit to the beach while the weather is still so good.
Ira and I went ‘swimming’ while the girls sat on the beach. The waves and the current running along the shore were fierce. I’ve never been in surf like that.


Monday 16th November
Geoff and Bunkey had invited us to their 40th wedding anniversary way back in summer when we were at their place in Tobermory. They were still on their boat in Vero Beach and so we needed to get the 90 miles back up the highway, a job for Ira and Ann’s car rather than the RV.

We got there in plenty time for the lunch at an excellent Chinese Buffet.
Here is the happy couple.


We all had good time with all the boaters.



Buddy had been on a vacation at a kennels in Sebastian just north of Vero, so before heading back to West Palm Beach we picked him up.

Tuesday 17th November
Time for us to head to the boat and start work on the many outstanding projects.

We said our goodbyes and headed on up the I-95 to Stuart for some shopping and I got to Harbor Freight for the first time. What a place, wish we had them in Canada. After some food shopping for things we would definitely not be able to get in Indiantown where the boat is, we travelled the 20 miles to Indiantown Marina and got the better of two remaining spots in the RV park.


After quick check that the boat (and our friend’s boat Bilbo) was still there and nothing bad had happened over the summer we settled in for the night.

Wedesday 18th November to Monday 23rd November
Boat stuff plus the occasional cycle into Indiantown.