We continued on I-10 into our native Florida, planning to see a bit of the Panhandle beaches, then swing up to Tallahassee, where we were undergraduates, and then down to Bushnell, in the center of the state, to rest and gear-up for the big gathering. The beaches were beautiful, as advertised, somewhat marred by hurricane damage and by the massive rebuilding and upscaling. We lived the better part of three years in Tallahassee and, impoverished students that we were, never saw those sugar white sands and crystal clear waters; back in the days when it was just the north Florida beaches and not even the Redneck Riviera. The highlight of our Florida incursion so far was three days spent with Susan and Ken, friends from college days with whom we have kept up these 50-some years. It was great fun reminiscing, catching up again, and seeing Tallahassee through experienced eyes. The place has changed, as every place has, but there was still plenty to see that we actually remembered. After Tallahassee, we drove south on uncrowded state and county highways to the Sumter Oaks SKP RV park, near Bushnell, in deepest, darkest central Florida. We will break camp again on February 26th, to head to WDW, Le Monde d'Isgny, aka Mousetopia.
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Our first night's stop was up the river in Milton, FL, which dates
from Florida's earliest days as a state; and where you can still see
some charming old Florida architecture; linguistic change is always
interesting..."blackwater" means something entirely different to us |
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| Pensacola Beach, on the national seashore there |
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| Not the wild west |
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We wanted to go to the end of the island and see Fort Pickens, a
former star fort, dating back to the Jacksonian era, and known
mainly for being one of the few southern coastal fortresses never
captured by the secessionists |
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| Most photographed item at Fort Pickens |
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| When you go to a fort, you expect to see walls and cannons |
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| Thus |
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| And excellent National Park Service interpretive signage |
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Spare parts...actually, 18th century cannons from Florida's earlier
Spanish and briefly British periods |
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| Says "GR"...George Rex, George III, I would think |
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| Distant view of walls and cannons |
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Moving right along...back east along Pensacola Beach; about every
five blocks is an Alvin's Island...beach attire, fashion, sports, etc. |
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| Now walking the beautiful beach at Destin |
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| Water as clear as we've ever seen it |
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| White sand and little birds |
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| Us, there, then |
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With Ken and Susan in Tallahassee...not our first visit...nor,
hopefully, our last...thanks for the great food, drink, hospitality
and conviviality...all boosted and tested |
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Among several old sites still standing
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| "Smoking" a glass of bourbon after dinner; seriously |
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Gotta' get me one of these to try out on scotch; also a portable
sous vide for the camper |
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| Us, there |
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At the SKP park near Bushnell; pastoral squalor in darkest
central Florida |
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| Sort of says it all |
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Except just outside our window, this forbidding swamp...with
benches for brave birders |
1 comment:
Glad you made it back to Tallahassee!
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