August 24-25, 2022
Grab N Geaux 16, Sulphur, LA
Diesel fuel
60.792 gallons; $4.59/gallon; $279.58
New Orleans RV Resort & Marina, New Orleans, LA
219.76 miles/4 hours
Deluxe waterfront site 24
FHU Back-in
$75.60/evening + tax
$165.48
The rain is pretty much unstoppable š. In between the rain drops we get packed, unhooked, hooked and then on our way. We are chasing the front we were hoping to leave behind, but thatās not in the cards for us today. This front is traveling east along with us. What a dismal day and two more are in the forecast for the time we are in New Orleans. I-10 east has its good and bad areas, and the visibility is awful with all the rain š©.
An hour and half west of New Orleans the rain let up a bit, but passing through Baton Rouge was rough. The road/bridge was horrible, as was the traffic crossing over the Mississippi River. The ride was better out of the city limits until we neared New Orleans; the roads worsened, and the rain started again.
The Resort is really very nice. The sites are gravel, but well maintained. The roads are very navigable and newly paved. Our site is on the waterfront, but againā¦a back in! I just donāt get it; no foresight to position the hook ups to make even some of them pull-ins. š¤š¤. Nonetheless, the sites are beautifully done with palms and bushes between each for privacy. The Resort also has houseboat rentals, tiny homes, and villas. Thereās a restaurant and bar, pool, spa, and exercise room. There is a new owner as of this year and they are working on making the Resort a pleasurable experience.
So much rain today made for a soggy basement š®. Thought we had that problem resolved! The wet vac is getting used once again and fans are in place to dry the carpet. Itās not very hot at 78*, but the humidity at 96% can take your breath away.
We went to the French Quarter for dinner at Oceana Grill. Their roasted oysters with a Cajun garlic cream sauce were outstanding. Our fish entrees were delicious as well. Bourbon Street was a bit of a better experience this time around. We walked to the end of the road and came upon Fritzelās jazz bar and enjoyed one of the best bands! The trio was fabulous. At 8:00 is was stunning how many of the bars along Bourbon were very much empty. Two years ago, we could barely find a seat š¤·ā and the streets were swarming with visitors. It was an enjoyable evening.
The next morning Barry finished the cleanup and we headed out for breakfast at TOAST. Itās where the locals flock and even on a Thursday morning it was packedā¦and very good.
In an attempt to find a car wash the GPS brought us to a corner where there was actually a canopy with a guy under it and cleaning products with a hose! My goodness, not our idea of a car wash! Got to give him credit for having a job! We moved on and found an actual car wash.
Next, we moved on to The French Market. So much fun! Shopping, food, cocktails, and jazz music at an open-air, covered venue. We listened to a wonderful band at The Gazebo CafĆ© and then another at Market CafĆ©. One more pop-in at Fritzelās in the French Quarter and yet another jazz band. Excellent!
It would not have been the total experience without stopping in at the Resort restaurant, The Lighthouse bar and grill, where we indulged in a couple of appetizersā¦then we called it a day! All in all, New Orleans was a great experience this time around.
The roads here and the surrounding neighborhoods are horrific, at best. One road leading us to the French Quarter literally had a foot-deep pot hole. Thankfully, it was daytime, and we saw it! The roads and highways could use a lot of TLC!
August 26-27, 2022
Emerald Beach RV Park, Navarre, FL
222.74 miles/4 hrs.
$85.69/evening Good Sam
$75.16
$160.85
FHU Pull-through #33
We traveled 1-10 east most of the way. Our last 22 miles was on very busy U.S. 98. We drove through Mississippi and Alabama tunneling under Mobile Bay. The bird and I rode in the back, so I missed much of the scenery.
Navarre is a very popular vacation destination which makes for a pricey stay. The Park does have a beachfront with loungers and tiki huts, a pool, and six waterfront back-in sites for even more money. The nice thing about those sites is you also get a deck where you can sit and view the water.
We drove to Navarre Beach and visited the Marine Park. They care for a huge tortoise, a smaller guy named Flip Flop, but mostly they pride themselves on Sweetie Pie. Sheās a 12-year-old Greenback that was found by a couple walking the beach. She had severe injuries, lost a flipper from fishing line being so tightly wrapped around it, part of her shell was cut off due to being hit by a motor! Poor baby! She will live at the Marine Park for the rest of her life.
Navarre Beach is quite large and long! Itās the Gulf shoreline! There are several pavilions and bath houses along the beach and the walkways to the beach are really long. The sand is beautiful, white, and soft. We took a very long drive along the coast and ended up in Pensacola! On our drive we came across several entrances to the beach, most with a bath housesā¦really very quite nice š.
Back at the RV we made a couple cocktails and headed to the beach for sunset! Beautiful night!!
Saturday we headed to the little beach here at the Park for a while. It was a pleasant morning. Barry found a seafood market with oysters ($9/dozen) so we left the beach so he could get them before they sold outā¦they didnāt have many.
We went back to Navarre Beach and the Windjammer Bar right on the water.. Great spotā¦.yummy peel and eat shrimp with a couple of cocktails. Later on we devoured the yummy oysters. It was a very enjoyable, relaxing day š.
Earlier in the day we visited a indoor flea/farmerās marketā¦if we needed veggies this would have been the place to buy themā¦very reasonable prices! As for the rest of the vendors, there was nothing much that appealed to us. It was a good place to walk and be cool for a while. 90* with 75% humidity todayā¦not so comfortable š„µ.
August 28-31, 2022
Ho-Hum RV Park, Carrabelle, FL
239.27 miles/4-1/2 hrs.
FHU Waterfront Pull-in site 35A
$50/evening
$150 + tax -10% return guest
$148.50
Diesel fuel
Speedway, Midway, FL
$47.86 gallons; $4.89/gallon; $234.44
DEF 5.96 gallons; $3.99/gallon; $23.83
Back onto I-10 east toward Tallahassee. Once we reached Tallahassee we were re-routed to several two-lane roads through rural Florida. Lots of wooded areas in the boonies! The RV managed to pick up and kill hundreds of love bugs. The windshield and front of the bus was a black, buggy mess.
With about an hour left to our drive we reached Highway 98ā¦the last leg of the day! Yay.
Once we settled in we once again headed out to explore our 2-years ago stomping grounds. We love the Panhandle and what it has to offer. Beautiful beaches, scenery and some of the best cloud formations and sunsets we have seen. We ventured out a good 50 miles west on Route 98 passing through Eastpoint, Apalachicola, Port St. Joe and Mexico Beach. Sunday must be a day of rest in these areas as mostly everything was closed. The Family Coastal Restaurant in Eastpoint was open and we were able to enjoy more oysters; and the local Apalachicola oysters are excellent.
Fuel
Mobil Exxon, Apalachicola, FL
11.47 gallons; $3.85/gallon; $44.26
Monday was a beautiful day and we set our sights on St. George Island. One of our favorite places in the Panhandle. It has a very beachy vibe. The five and one-half mile bridge, Island Drive, takes us there. This year we find so many of the homes, most are named, for sale or rentā¦so, so many of them! And yet, building of new homes and communities is ongoing. We drove to St. George Island State Park all the way to the end of the island and took a very windy walk along the shoreline. After cruising around we ended up at one of the few restaurants on the island and actually on the beach, The Blue Parrot. Delicious fish tacos were devoured on the open-air, covered patio with the Gulf as our view. Not to hard to take!
Our last day here š¢! We chose to make it a beach day on St. George Island and parked ourselves next to The Blue Parrot. After a couple of hours on the hot beach we decided a cocktail was in order. We bellied up to the bar and enjoyed a couple of margaritas. This is where we met Harryā¦a very friendly and interesting gentleman. We shared RV stories with him and he with us. He and his wife have owned five different ones over the years. He also is ex-military and his job was to maintain nuclear reactorsā¦somebody has to do it! We also discussed our love of oysters and our next stop being Lynnās Oyster Market and Raw Bar. We said our goodbyes, got to Lynnās and said hello to Harry! He decided to suck down a dozen, also. He joined us at a table and continued conversation regarding his jobā¦Barry was quite interested in the what, where and whenās. We truly enjoyed his company. It was unfortunate we had not met him on day one š.
August 31-September 1, 2022
Clover Leaf RV Park, Brooksville, FL
218 miles/4 hrs
$69/evening
$138.00
FHU Back-in
I have nothing to mention regarding the drive to Brooksville, as I have concluded that sitting on the couch for our moves is best for my emotional and physical well-being. Sitting up front is too hair-raising for me.
Clover Leaf is very unappealing. The staff is very nice and accommodating, but the park itself is old and not very welcoming. Mostly full-timers, with many having no pride in ownership. The roads are very tight and the navigation is dicey. We were assigned a site that we were not able to get to due to a huge puddle and cones blocking the road. Barry backed into an empty site and we returned to the office. We opted to stay in that spot, even though we barely fitā¦we will manage for two evenings. This option was better than trying to navigate the roads again for a different site.
Brooksville is our halfway point and not a vacation destination. Itās a working community with not much going on in the way of tourism. We did take a drive and came upon a lovely state park, Withlacoochee State Forest and McKethan Lake. The views were pretty amazing! The āforestā is just thatā¦a forest full of live oaks, covered in ferns and Spanish mossā¦it was mesmerizing to say the least. We also were fortunate enough to see deer twice on the side of the road, always a lovely findš.
Last day of our adventure! Sparacia Witherell Family Winery & Vineyards is just five miles away, so after some RV cleaning
we decided to check it out. It was a bustā¦to say the least. An outdoor patio with no covering on a hot and humid day is not on the menu for us. It appeared to be the owners home with a patio, tables and chairs and nothing more. Bowling it is! Brooksville Bowl is small with 12 lanes, a few arcade games and a bar and grill. A bit of indoor activity was great.
Papa Joeās came highly recommended for dinner. It was good, moderately pricedā¦and I didnāt have to cook. Much of what we brought from home with the thought of cleaning out our freezer will be returning with us! Most of whatās left are long cooking time itemsā¦best for cooking at home.
September 2, 2022
Imperial Wilderness, Naples, FL
234.9 miles/4 hrs
Diesel fuel
RaceTrac, Naples, Fl
55.221 gallons; $4.72.9/gallon; $261.17
A very uneventful 4 hour drive on I-75 southbound and we are home!
