Trackrock Campground - Blairsville, Ga (April 2009)

Wednesday, April 08 - We packed up this morning in the cold (38 deg) and were on the road at 9:30 AM. We avoided going through Atlanta which added a few miles, but had a beautiful drive through Rome, Elijay, and Blue Ridge, Ga. The drive was 221.4 miles and we arrived at Trackrock about 2:40 PM. The temperature was about 60 degrees which was nice for all the moving of stuff we had to do. While we were setting up, John & Jan, who are the hosts here that we became friends with last fall, came over and greeted us. We gave them the grand tour. We got everything set up and had a nice dinner at our dining table for the first time. We will post some pictures soon. The site is very nice, with a good view of the lake from our patio.

Thursday, April 09 - Today we woke up to quite cool temps, but it warmed up nicely and allowed us to finish transferring things from the pop-up, get the 5th wheel organized the way we want it, and clean, clean, clean. It was nice to be able to take a break and go out for pizza with John & Jan at Downtown Pizza in Blairsville. We are getting to know where everything is in the 5th wheel and are enjoying it greatly. (Pictures Added)

Friday, April 10 - There were severe thunderstorm warnings for the area today, but nothing severe has happened, thankfully. We got some nice rain and a little thunder. We went down to the office and got our mail, and took a nice walk around the campground. The hills step up the level of exercise benefit to our walks. The road up to the Hilltop Circle is particularly challenging. We have gotten most of the major work done to getting settled in, so we are taking it more easy today. (More pictures added)

Saturday, April 11 - Considerable severe weather passed through the area late yesterday, which kept us glued to the weather reports, but thankfully most of it missed us. All is quiet this morning, and the sun promises to come out. 

(Evening) - We got about 1 minute of sunshine today, but at least the worst of the weather is gone. We drove into Blairsville and stocked up with groceries and a few other necessities. That pretty much finished off the afternoon. 

Sunday, April 12 - We pray that you all have a joyous Resurrection Day. He is risen!  He is alive!!! We went to Meeks Park outside Blairsville for a sunrise service that was jointly hosted by the local Lutheran and Presbyterian churches. Even though the temperature was about 32 deg., we had a great time, and didn't get too cold. After breakfast, we went to the "Hole in the Wall" restaurant in downtown Blairsville for an excellent breakfast and to thaw out. 

Monday, April 13 - Wow! We were awakened early this morning to very strong winds. We had just put up the screen room that we have and the wind destroyed it. Thankfully, we did not experience any other damage. There were a couple of trees down in the campground, and a couple of folks lost awnings. All is calm now. When we went to bed, nothing was forcast on the weather channel for this area. It has been rainy most of the day, so we took the opportunity to do a couple of projects on the inside. It is amazing how dirty a brand new camper can be. (Pictures Added)

Tuesday, April 14 - We drove into the neat little town of Blue Ridge today. They have many shops that cater to folks looking to furnish their cabins. We found a wool blanket to put on the livingroom floor that really brightens up the room. We also bought a covering for the bed and matching pillows. Actually, the covering is really a fabric shower curtain, but it works perfect. The pillows were in another store and amazingly, are the identical pattern. The weather is supposed to improve this week, and we might actually see the sun. We are sure enjoying being in the mountains, and the drive over to Blue Ridge was beautiful. 

Wednesday, April 15 - Hope your taxes are done. It is a beautiful day here, with temps in the low 60s and clear skies. Today was laundry day, and Joan did most of the work. John made up for it later by digging up an area around a tree on our site for a garden. We also did some cleaning up around our site, clearing away leaves and sticks and putting some of the rock back on the driveway. (Pictures Added)

Thursday, April 16 - We drove up to Murphy, NC today, which is only about 23 miles north of here and stopped at Lowes and WalMart. We picked up some gardening things, and armed ourselves with cleaning stuff for the 5th wheel. It is quite dirty from the weather it has faced lately. We started a little garden around a tree on the side of our site. It looks quite nice. The ride there and back was beautiful. We also stopped at a campground that we had considered for a site for us to stay, but concluded that we are better off where we are here. The weather has been really beautiful, with some rain expected on Sunday. 

Friday, April 17 - A good night and a beautiful morning. Today was clean the outside of the 5th wheel day. John got up on the roof and got that cleaned, along with the trim area along the roof line. We put gutter extenders (a short piece of plastic) on the gutters to direct the water away from the sides of the camper. This helps to not get black streaks down the sides. We are going to finish washing the sides next week. It really looks better already. 

(Pictures Added)

Saturday, April 18 - We got up early this morning and headed over to Vogel State Park, about 9.5 miles from the campground, for their anual volunteer clean-up day. After breakfast, we were given the job to clean all the plaques on the nature trail. After that we helped spread mulch. We had lunch, then spread dirt around the beach area. At about 3pm, we took our weary bodies home to rest for awhile. This evening, we will go back for a banquet dinner. 

(Pictures Added)

Sunday, April 19 - We went out for breakfast at the Mountain Cafe in Hiawassee, then went to Sunday School and Worship at Hiawassee U.M.C., where we have been several times before when we have been in the area. It was nice to be welcomed back by many friends we have made there. After a great Sunday school class led by Van, we totally appreciated a wonderful blended worship service. The music, led by our friend Hope, was awesome as usual, and the message challenging and inspiring. We were invited to stay for the fellowship luncheon even though we didn't know to bring a dish to pass. We were able to sit with Irene and Bob and renue our friendship and catch up with news. We feel very much at home here as we do with the entire area. What a blessing, indeed. 

Monday, April 20 - There was considerable hazardous weather in the area last night, but all was quiet here with just rain. Something got into the garbage cans near our campsite during the night that was large enough to get the can out of its holder, but we never heard anything, and we couldn't find any tracks. There are bear in the area. 

Tuesday, April 21 - A major advantage of having a 5th wheel for our northern home is being able to have friends over for dinner and have plenty of room if the weather doesn't cooperate. Because of the wind that was forecast, we thought we would have to eat inside, but thankfully, it was very pleasant at the picnic table. Irene and Bob, our friends from Hiawassee U.M.C. graciously agreed to come out and visit us, take a hike around the campground, and join us for dinner. We had a wonderful time getting to know them better and sharing the day.  

Wednesday, April 22 - Today we went on an explore of Cooper's Creek National Recreation Area, which is part of Chatahoochee National Forest. We were mostly looking for areas where we could access creeks for fly fishing. We found some good ones and fished them a little, but didn't catch anything. We really enjoyed the beauty of this area, which is only about 20 miles from Trackrock. We hiked a short trail that was full of spring wild flowers. Some were familiar, such as trillium, mayflower, wild geranium, and Solomon's Seal, others not. 

Friday, April 24 - We drove through Blairsville and fished at Meeks Park on the Nottley River. We saw many very large fish that John thought were carp. Just for fun, he threw a white wooly bugger fly and let it sit on the bottom in a deep hole and low and behold one of them took it and proceeded to give John about a 15 minute battle. He finally landed it and got its picture.

(Picture added) 

Saturday, April 25 - Today, we went to a local winery (Crane Creek) that was hosting a benefit wine tasting for several local charities and organizations. We decided they didn't have anything better than the box wines, but enjoyed talking to folks there, especially those at Trout Unlimited who were giving fly tying and fly casting demonstrations. We plan on going to their next meeting and deciding if we will join. It would be a way to learn local streams and techniques as well as meeting people with common interests. 

Sunday, April 26 - We really enjoyed the worship service at HUMC (Hiawassee United Methodist Church) today and felt the Lord's presence very strongly. We went out to lunch afterwards with a group of about 20 to Young Harris College, where we enjoyed an excellent buffet. We heard about a biking/hiking trail near Jackrabbit National Recreation Area Campground about 10 miles north of Hiawassee on GA 75 that we wanted to check out, so we headed there after we ate. We decided to hike the trail first and make sure it was negotiable by a couple of old fogies on our mountain bikes. It looks like it will provide a challenge, but should be doable. We hiked the middle loop that was a little over 3 miles long. We met several bikers, including kids, on the trail. It was a beautiful day today and we are feeling very grateful for the opportunity to enjoy this beautiful part of the country. 

(Pictures Added)

Monday, April 27 - We drove over to Duke's Creek Falls trail today and hiked the 1.1 miles down and back. This is an extremely beautiful falls, one of the best we have seen. It was especially nice, of course, to have some water in it, which is something we have not had for some time. While we were down at the falls, we fly fished the pools it created and both caught fish. Joan caught a nice 6" rainbow, and John caught the same and a 9" rainbow. We then drove down to Raven Cliff Wilderness Area and fished Duke's Creek there. Joan caught another nice 6" rainbow. On the way home, we checked out a couple other areas, but did not fish them. We were about 17 miles from Trackrock. The road we took there (Hwy 348) passes over the Appallachian Trail at about 3400 ft. The views from overlooks on the way were incredible. 

(Pictures Added)

Tuesday, April 28 - Today was a get caught up day and chill day. We (Joan) did laundry and we (both of us) fished the local pond here. Joan caught a small bluegill and John caught its grandfather. He was the biggest bluegill John has ever seen in person. He succumbed to a green/red wooly bugger that was given to us by the folks at Trout Unlimited booth at Crane Creek Winery on Saturday. John also caught the fish yesterday on this same fly. I guess they know what they a doing there at TU. 

(Picture Added)

Wednesday, April 29 - We drove into Young Harris and Hiawassee and stopped at Mountain RV and picked up a couple of items we needed at their fairly complete supply store. We then went to Towns County Beach Park and fished from shore. We both caught a few bluegills and Joan lost a nice bass. We were both using the red/green wooly bugger, which continues to be very effective. The leaves here continue to fill in the campground and make our site more and more cozy. The weather forecast was for possible showers today, but we didn't get any. 

Thursday, April 30 - This was an exploring day around Blue Ridge. John needed some fly tying supplies that we could get at Unicoi Outfitters there, so we combined the trip. We stopped at a few recreation areas on the lake, the first one being Morganton NRA. They had a nice campground there, and a boat launch where we could launch the kayaks. We then headed over to the dam and fished the tailwaters for awhile. They were generating, so there was considerable flow. John caught a small rainbow on a topwater caddis with a yellow foam indicator. We headed into town and had a hamburger at Sue's. The burger and fries were very good, but the cole slaw was not. After finishing our meal, we stopped at the outfitters, where the lady remembered that we were the couple who last year had won the raffle for the free half day on their trophy waters. The young man was very helpful getting John what he needed. Finally, we drove down a gravel road that took us to the headwaters where there was a delayed harvest. That means that it is single hook only, no live bait, and catch and release. This is a very beautiful river, that will be great for wade fishing. We talked to a fisherman named Steve, who was very helpful and even gave John a few flies to try. He also goes to Florida in the winter. 

(Pictures added)

View Pictures:http://picasaweb.google.com/johnjoanW/TrackrockCampgroundApril2009#

Whitetail Ridge COE Campground - LaGrange, Ga (3/30 - 4/6/09)

Monday, March 30 - We got up about 7 AM, packed up, and were on the road headed to LaGrange, Ga at 10:10 AM. It was a beautiful drive with many flowering trees in bloom including dogwoods and azaleas. We tried to stop for lunch at a truck stop in Alabama, but it was far too smoky. They showed us the non-smoking area, but it was just as smoky as the main room, so we left. We had a sandwich on the road and arrived at the campground at 3:40 PM after driving 251.9 miles. There are not many campers here now, but it is supposed to be full by the weekend. The lake, however, is very full of water. We had dinner, showered, and setteled in for a quiet evening. We have decided that we will not try to drive so far again, because it is very tiring to break camp, drive nearly 5 hours, and set up again. This happened this time because we could not get into Cottonhill Campground near Ft. Gaines, Ga.

Tuesday, March 31 - It rained off and on all day today, but we were able to get in a nice walk and fish from the boat dock and shoreline. We caught a few bream, but none of them big enough to keep, especially two that John caught that were only about 1 1/2 inches long. It was fun anyway. The weather people are calling for some more rain in the night that is supposed to stop about noon tomorrow. The pollen is really thick here. There is a coating over everything which got stirred up when the mowers came around with their blowers cleaning off the streets. So far we have not had any problems except for some sneezing.  

Wednesday, April 1 - We got the forcasted rain in the night which was fairly heavy, but no wind and little lightning with it. We finally were able to get the kayaks out, which we were able to launch from our shoreline. We fished the bay that is closest to our campsite and managed some small bream and one nice bluegill that John caught. A few more of these would have made a nice dinner. We went out again in the evening after dinner without success. John had one on that slipped away. We have new neighbors who went out for crappie, but only managed a couple. We are expecting more storms tomorrow evening that are predicted to be strong. We will have to keep a close ear on the the tv, cell phone, and weather radio. 

Thursday, April 2 - Another storm rolled through during the night and woke us. Even though there was little wind, the rain was tremendous, and there were a couple of really good lightning strikes. Thankfully, they missed. It rained most of the morning and got quite windy early in the afternoon. We had to tighten some of the lines from our tarp and lower the awning. There are some substantial storms headed this way for our evening entertainment. We would really love for them to go north of here. (Some pictures added)

Friday, April 3 - Yet another storm in the night. This time it was brief, but contained a powerful wind gust. Again, thankfully, everything stayed in place. This morning the sun is shining once again and promises to warm us some. There is a washing machine and dryer in the restroom building and Joan is going back and forth doing a couple of loads. We were quite tired from the previous nights antics, so we decided to not take the kayaks out and fished from the boat ramp and dock instead. John caught a very nice crappie (see pictures) and lost another one. We brought it back to camp and John filleted it. We sat in our recliners in the evening and enjoyed the view of the lake from our front yard. 

Saturday, April 4 - Finally, a quiet night. We slept like rocks and woke up to the sound of many, many boats on the water. With the weather cooperating and being the weekend, all the crappie fishermen in the area are here to try to fill their live wells. It is a little cool this am, getting us ready for the predicted 30's on Tues. & Wed. mornings.  We did our morning walk after breakfast, delivering our trash to the dumpster and then hiking the other loops.

Taking advantage of the nice day, we headed out in the kayaks for a little fishing. The lake was a little rough, as there was a bass tournament going on, and the the fishermen were zooming from one spot to another with one of those spots being a cove very near to our campsite. The best is yet to come with an overnight tournament that consists of fishing for carp from AIRBOATS!!! For those that don't know, airboats are the loudest and most obnoxious craft there is, and to think we will be able to hear them all night.  

Sunday, April 5 - Our worst fears were realized with airboats racing around the lake near the campground. We were not able to sleep much past 3AM. On the way to church, we complained to the host who wasn't able to sleep much either. He said he would be talking to the ranger to see if anything can be done to prevent future tournaments like this one. The worship service was nice and they have a new pastor. The music was familiar, but nice and the pastor's message was very personal and relevant. It began raining when we left, and promises to rain all day and night. We were planning on moving to Sweetwater Creek COE Campground on Altoona Lake tomorrow, but will most likely delay our departure for at least a day. 

Monday, April 6 - We had a quiet night except for the wind coming up. It has cooled off significantly and the wind continues. There is talk of snow fluries tomorrow. We extended our stay here until Wednesday when we will leave for Trackrock Campground near Blairsville, Ga. Meanwhile, we will be getting things ready to leave. Joan has been looking up things to do this summer while we're in the Blairsville area. 

See picture at:

http://picasaweb.google.com/johnjoanW/WhitetailRidgeCOECampgroundLaGrangeGaMar30Apr062009#

Fred Gannon Rocky Bayou State Park - Niceville, FL (March 23-30, 2009)

Monday, March 23 - We got nearly everything packed on Sunday, readied the house to leave, and were on the road by 7:40 AM. The truck and camper are crammed tight. We drove 368 miles and arrived at the park at 3:15 EDT. We got everything set up and finished dinner just in time to take a walk before it got dark. This is a very pretty park with large sites and nice access to the water for our kayaks. Every site is filled with hopefully considerate people. We met a nice couple with two kids (David, Diane, Taylor and Savannah) from Illinois who are here enjoying the warmer weather for spring break. 

Tuesday, March 24 - We had a nice quiet night's sleep and woke up to a beautiful, but breezy morning. We took a walk down by the boat launch and met and visited with a nice couple (John & Wendy) from Canada. We enjoyed trading favorite spots with them. We came back to camp and had pancakes & sausage for breakfast. Because it was so breezy, we opted to leave the kayaks on the truck and put on waders instead. We were somewhat protected near shore and really enjoyed fishing this way. Sadly, we only managed one pinfish that John caught on a glass minnow fly. These fish are commonly used for bait. We took a break in the afternoon and dozed in front of the tv. After spaghetti dinner, we took our flyrods down to the boat docks, but jeven though we enjoyed the beautiful evening on the water, we came back empty.

Wednesday, March 25 - After breakfast we went on a hike on the Rocky Bayou Trail, one of the trails here in the park, and another along Puddin' Head Lake. We fished a little, but came up empty. The weather is changing with considerable wind and clouds. We are expecting several inches of rain over the next couple of days. It was just too windy to get the kayaks out yesterday or today. Today is John's son Corey's birthday. Happy Birthday Corey! After dinner, we went for a walk around the campground and stopped to talk to our neighbors who are here in a large family motorcycle group. The couple we were talking to have a campground in Georgia near the Florida border near exit #1 off I-95. We found out they used to camp at Trackrock for about 35 years and know the Alexander family very well. We wished them well and headed over to John & Wendy's and shared their fire and had a nice time visiting.

Thursday, March 26 - We heard wind high in the tree canopy and some rain in the night. John received a couple of weather warnings on his cell phone of sever thunderstorms and a tornado warning. We got dressed and walked around the campground to make sure that folks had all gotten the warnings. Several had not including our new friends John & Wendy and David, Diane, Taylor, and Savannah. Many campers met at the restroom building to watch it pass by. There was heavy rain and lightning, but thankfully not much wind. This weather is forcast to continue for the next couple of days. We sure wish they could get some of this in Tampa where it is severe drought conditions. We took it easy in the afternoon and it rained nearly all day. We drove into Valpariso and had dinner at the Boat House Restaurant. We got the early bird specials, which were sirloin tips and rice. It was excellent. After dinner we went over to Lincoln Park and tried to fish but it was way too windy and chilly. It looks like there is more severe weather on the way. We will keep a close ear on the weather radio and watch the weather channel. 

Friday, March 27 - There were tornado warnings, heavy rain, and lightning early this morning and rain and lightning all day today. We watched dvd's that John had recorded from cable earlier. The rain finally let up enough to take a walk around the campground late this afternoon. Most of the sites are occupied by Airstreams that are apparently here for a club outing (nice choice of dates.) We will be staying close to the weather alarms on John's cell phone and the weather radio tonight for a repeat performance. We will head down to the restrooms again if there is treatening reports. We will be very happy to see an end to this rain. 

Saturday, March 28 - There were no tornado warnings during the night, but we were under a watch and John received many, many messages from weather.com on his phone. Finally, about 2PM the storms passed and the sun came out. We took a nice walk and a hike on one of the paths near the boat ramp. It was great to be able to get out without the unbrellas. Wendee and John joined us to watch "It's me or the dog" on Animal Planet tonight. We think they picked up some ideas on handling their dog, Slider. 

Sunday, March 29 - We stopped at the "Coffee House" in Niceville for a very nice breakfast, then went to the First U.M. Church for a contemporary service. It was truly an outstanding worship experience. They have three contemporary and two traditional services as well as a wide variety of other ministries each week. We will surely return there when we can. We stopped at Wal-Mart in Fort Walton to pick up necessities and did some packing today. A couple who are campers here informed us of flooding on Walter F. George lake near Fort Gaines, and the closing of one loop at Cottonhill Campground, causing the other loops to fill with campers. We have decided to jump up to Whitetail Ridge in LaGrange, Ga tomorrow. 

View Pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/johnjoanW/FredGannonRockyBayouStateParkNicevilleFLMarch23302009#

Wekiwa Springs State Park - February 16 - 23, 2009

Monday, February 16, 2009 - We got all packed up and headed out this morning at 11:28 AM. Our Garmin directed us to take State 471 up to 50. We got about 15 miles from hwy 50 when our right trailer tire blew out. John managed to get it over onto the shoulder safely, so we unpacked enough stuff to get the jack out and began changing the tire. A nice couple stopped and assisted with this effort. Our thanks to them and to God for sending them. John was struggling with getting the car jack to lift the wheel high enough, and the man who stopped had a trick that worked perfectly. We got the tire changed and decided not to try to continue without a spare. We called the tire place where we had just purchased new tires for the camper a little over a month ago and he said to bring it over and they would fix us up. Sadly, when we got there, they said they do not have these in stock and would not have them until tomorrow. So our trip has been put on hold until tomorrow. Bummer!!!!

Tuesday, February 17, 2009 - Finally, we got underway. We went over to the tire place and picked up the replacement for the one that exploded yesterday. After they put the new one on, we headed out at 10:53 AM at 62 deg. and arrived at here at Wekiwa at 1:02 PM at 70 deg. We got set up and drove to Tavares for dinner with Joan's Vermont classmates at Angelo's Italian Restaurant. We had a great time and an excellent dinner with Julie, Barry, Judy, and Laurel. Our campsite here is very spacious and nice. Pictures coming tomorrow. 

Wednesday, February 18, 2009 - After a good nights sleep, we started the day by taking our coffee and tea on a walk down to the springs. They are about a mile from our campsite along a nice trail. We were also able to check out the kayak launch and make plans for taking them out later in the day. On the way back we spotted a doe and her fawn and Joan managed a few pictures. We had oatmeal for breakfast, then drove over to the launch, put the wheels on the kayaks and walked them down about 200 yards to the water. The area is among the most beautiful we have seen in Florida. The water is crystal clear and the bottom is full of rocks, submerged logs, and vegetation. We saw some fish action, but were unable to catch anything. John thinks most of the fish were tilapia, which do not take artificial baits much. Fishing was also made quite difficult because of the high number of canoes passing by us. We talked to a couple, Dan and Jackie, who were celebrating their 20th wedding anniversary by canoeing like they did when they first met. Many more you two. 

Thursday, February 19, 2009 - This morning, after our morning walk, we watched the weather channel radar to follow the line of rain that was proceeding the most recent cold front. The rain did not last long, so we went down to sand lake with the fly rods to see if we could catch a fish. There was only a few places where we could access the lake and struggled casting in the strong wind. We spotted a pair of bass which were spawning on their bed and John managed to put a fly on the bed and had the female on for awhile, but she only had hold of the hairs on the fly and let go. When we came back to camp, the couple (Pat & Dick) were here that we met at Cloudland Canyon State park last July. We will be having breakfast and joining them for a pot luck with a camping group they belong to. 

Friday, February 20, 2009 - Today was a nice, cool hiking day. We first hiked down to the campground entrance to get a picture of the entrance sign. On the way back we stopped by the ranger station to see if there are fishing areas on Prevatt Lake in the park. The ranger did not know. While we were there we met a couple (Joan & Joe) who were getting an extention of their stay by moving to a site where there was a cancelation. We headed back to camp and were stopped by a photo op. of a pileated woodpecker doing a serious number on a pine tree alongside the road. While Joan was taking its picture, Joan & Joe walked up and we talked some more. They are here in Florida for three months escaping Wisconsin winter. After breakfast we hiked the 1.1 miles to Prevatt Lake, but although we enjoyed the view of the lake, there were no areas open enough to fish. We hiked .9 miles to Sand Lake and fished there for awhile, but only got a few hits and no fish. Finally, we hiked the 1 mile back to the campsite and had dinner. After dinner we joined the R-Vision group around their fire and met some nice folks. 

Saturday, February 21, 2009 - We made it through and stayed warm during a very chilly night in the low 30's. It was still quite cool when we went over to join the group at Dick & Pat's site for breakfast. The food and conversation were excellent, and by the time we were finished, it had warmed up considerably. It is supposed to be near 70 today and for next week. We returned in the evening to Dick & Pat's for a potluck dinner with the R-Vision group. Again, the food and conversation were excellent and we had a great time. 

Sunday, February 22, 2009 - We took a coffee walk, had and oatmeal breakfast, then hiked over to Sand Lake again to do a little fishing. This time we brought a spinning outfit to see if we could change our luck. John managed to catch the bass that was on the bed, but nothing else. We came back to the campsite, had dinner, packed up a few things, then sat by the fire for awhile. 

View Pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/johnjoanW/WekiwaSpringsStatePark

New Big Horn Fifth Wheel

In our attempt to help the economy, we went to the Tampa RV show this week and purchased a 2009 Heartland Big Horn 3385 RL fifth wheel. We do not have a truck to pull it, but instead will have it delivered to the northern GA or western NC mountains to serve as our northern home in the summer. We have kept our pop-up camper to use for camping here in Florida or in the area around where the fifth wheel will be, such as Smokey Mountain National Park. We have not had an opportunity to take any pictures yet, and the unit will be stored at the dealer until it is shipped, but here is a web site from the manufacturer so you can see pictures of it.

 http://www.heartlandrvs.com/product.html?id=2&name=Bighorn&section=gallery&cid=14

We can't wait to begin to use it. 

Ft. Desoto County Park, St. Petersburg, FL (Dec. 16 - 22)

Tuesday, December 16 - We got up about 7:00 AM and started getting ready to leave. We said our goodbyes and were ready to leave at 10:07 and 75 degrees and arrived about noon after driving 61 miles and encountering a traffic jam near the skyway due to an accident. We got set up, had some lunch, and launched the kayaks from the shoreline near our campsite for some late afternoon fishing. We saw a lot of action, but did not even get a hit. John will get a fishing report and we will try again tomorrow.

Wednesday, December 17 – We took our coffee walk around the campground, which is nearly empty now, and then returned for a pancake breakfast. After cleaning up, we launched the kayaks for a day of fishing. John caught three trout and a large ladyfish and fought a very large trout that took our all the fly line to the backing before getting off right at the boat. Oh well, he was going to release it anyway. The season for trout is closed until January. Joan is having trouble casting the heavier flies that John had success on today. We are really enjoying being out on the water with temperatures around 80 degrees and bright sun.

Thursday, December 18 – We decided to take a break from the kayaks, so after breakfast we headed over to the beach for some surf fishing. We wound up on the channel that goes by the beach and fished it for some time. We met a couple, Ray and Loretta, from St. Pete who we talked to and fished with. They caught a few whiting, but we came up empty.

Friday, December 19 - After breakfast and our usual coffee walk, we launched the kayaks near our site for some more fishing. John caught three trout in edges of deeper areas. He rigged Joan with a little heavier Clouser fly that had fairly sparse material. After a few casts, Joan landed a very nice (about 18 inch) trout. It was a beautiful day on the water.

Saturday, December 20 – Not a quiet night. We got new neighbors, a couple of high-schoolers, who talked loudly most of the night. We have decided to avoid this park on the weekends and just come Sunday thru Friday. This morning Bruce and Cheryl came out for some kayaking. Bruce and John fished while Joan and Cheryl paddled and talked. John caught a 2 pound ladyfish that gave him a very good fight and a flounder that was a little too small to keep. It was another beautiful day on the water.

Sunday, December 21 – Today was a down day for us and an opportunity to do a little clean up. The night was a little quieter, but we were awakened by a very noisy cleaning crew working on the restrooms about 6:30 AM. We walked over to meet a couple (Bob and Judy) who let us know on http://rv.net/ that they would be here and to come over for a burger. It was a little early for that, but we enjoyed talking to them. Bob has many innovative ideas to solve various camping problems. We watched a football game in the afternoon and then after dinner, took our fly rods over near the office where there is room to fish. After several minutes, John hooked up with another 2 pound ladyfish with a very appreciative audience of young ones. They were very excited to see someone fight a fish on a fly rod. Just after dark we took a walk along the shoreline and the RV section and talked to a couple who were sitting by their fire. He was a minister for many years and now leads missionary trips into Canada to start churches among the Native Americans there. They were very interesting to talk to.

Monday, December 22 – It was a bit cool and windy here today, with a high in the mid 60’s, but we did fish some. We started out by walking up the road to the boat ramp near the bridge that crosses Bunce Pass. We stopped several times to throw in on the left side of the road, and tried around the boat ramps. John caught a very small trout by the ramps. Other than that it was just an opportunity to get some good exercise walking. We came back and ate early as Joan wanted to get the fridge cleaned out. John cleaned the bed end tops to get some unknown substance off them and we got a few things ready to go tomorrow. We then went back to the sea wall in the pet area where Joan caught a flounder, but it was too small to keep.



View Pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/johnjoanW/FtDesotoCountyParkStPetersburgFLDec1622?feat=directlink

Oscar Scherer State Park Osprey, FL (Dec 2 - 15, 2008)

Tuesday, December 2 - We left home at 8:20 AM with a temperature of 56 degrees and arrived at Oscar Scherer State Park near Osprey, FL (south of Sarasota) at 10:26 AM after driving 108.6 miles and two hours and six minutes. It was a relaxing trip with light traffic and a nice tail wind. After getting set up (orienting the satellite dish was a real challenge) we had some lunch and took the fly rods down to the lake. John caught a small bass and we saw some nice fish, but with very clear water a bright sun, and a cold front last night, the bite was slow. The temps dropped quickly when the sun set. We then had supper and retreated to the inside. John forgot the Verizon air card, so we have to take our laptops to the nature center to update this blog. It may not get done every day, but it will get updated. He also forgot the cable for the camera. He did remember everything for setting up the satellite dish and that is working well. Thankfully, friends are bringing down the forgotten items next week.

Wednesday, December 3 – We woke up to quite cool temps, but thankfully, stayed nice and toasty all night. After a nice coffee walk down along the South Creek Trail to the picnic area, we had oatmeal for breakfast and went over to the nature center to update this blog. We then drove to Walmart to get some necessities, then to Blackburn Point to fish a little. We tried from shore at a park there with no success, so we crossed the swinging bridge over to the other side of the channel and put on waders to try the adjacent areas. We each caught a needle fish, but other fish did not seem to be active. We returned to camp for dinner and John tied some flies we think will be successful tomorrow. At least that is the hope. It warmed up nicely in the afternoon and predictions are for a warm day tomorrow.

Thursday, December 4 – This morning we took our coffee walk to the nature center where the park volunteers were serving a sausage and pancake breakfast. We enjoyed a nice meal as well as talking with other campers there. Afterwards we showered, and then drove down to North Jetty Park in Venice and launched the kayaks for some fishing. Sadly, the fishing was good, but the catching was not. We enjoyed being out anyway. The park is really great with a nice launch and ample parking. Many use the area to just be out near the water. There is also good beach access there. On the way home we stopped at Pops Restaurant on the Inter-Costal-Waterway and enjoyed hamburgers while watching the boats pass by. There was a night heron and many gulls that wanted to be fed. Even though one diner couldn’t resist, we refused to feed them.

Friday, December 5 – This morning we returned to the nature center to check e-mail and update the blog. We met a couple there (Connie and Dennis from Wisconsin) and talked with them until nearly lunch time. We also got signed up to go on a kayak outing tomorrow with a naturalist. In the afternoon, we launched our kayaks by the park office and actually caught fish. John caught a small snook and Joan caught a mangrove snapper and two snook. They were really fun on the fly rod, but even if the snook would have been big enough, they are out of season now.

Saturday, December 06 – We drove to Bayfront Park on Sarasota Bay early and met a group of kayakers to go on an outing with Dr. Jack Taylor, who is a marine biologist and a wealth of information about the ecology of the area. We took several water samples in the bay and Hudson Bayou which showed there is work to do to return the environment to an acceptable state. After the outing we had a snack and took the kayaks back out and fished in the area around the marina. We saw considerable action, with birds hitting the water after bait and fish crashing the surface, but could not get anything to hit. We put the kayaks back on the truck and walked over to O’Leary’s Tiki Hut for lunch. We both had excellent sandwiches and enjoyed sitting outside to eat. On the way back to camp, we stopped and launched again in the park, but the fish were not as active as yesterday at the same time. Joan managed a mangrove snapper, and had a large snook on, but lost it on the retrieve. John caught a small snook and lost another.

Sunday, December 07 – Back in April we enjoyed a contemporary service at Christ United Methodist Church in Venice so we decided to return there this morning. Again, we really enjoyed the service which featured Christmas music done in a lively, worshipful style. Folks were friendly and welcoming. We went back to camp and watched football while fixing an early dinner. After dinner, we took a walk around the now mostly empty campground, and then headed back to the same church for their annual Christmas concert. The music was very enjoyable with large member participation.

Monday, December 08 – This morning we updated the blog at the visitor’s center and met a couple (Jose and Pam), then drove into South Sarasota to take advantage of our extra discount to buy some more fishing shirts at Beall’s Outlet store and then picked up some needed items at Walmart. After lunch we drove back to Blackburn Point and wade fished until dark. John missed a fish and Joan caught another needle fish.

Tuesday, December 09 – Today we drove over to North Jetty Park and met Jose and Pam for a day of kayaking. John fished while Jose observed and Pam took pictures of local flora and fauna. John had one fish on, but lost it. It was beautiful out and we saw many birds including an immature bald eagle. Afterwards we stopped at Buddy’s Pizza for an excellent dinner.

Wednesday, December 10 – We met Cheryl and Bruce at North Jetty Park, but it was too windy there to launch. We drove up Casey Key, million dollar houses on the ocean and checked out Blackburn Point, but it also was too windy. We ended up launching at Oscar Scherer by the office, where there was more protection. John & Bruce fished while the ladies paddled around. Cheryl and Bruce have Hobie Kayaks that are very nice. The kayaks have paddles under them that you peddle with your feet. We enjoyed a picnic lunch at the picnic area. Fishing was very slow again today and it wasn’t until the end of the day that John caught a nice sized snook. It gave a good fight and swam all around John’s kayak before submitting to being lipped. This is one of the few saltwater fish that you can actually grab by the lips like a bass.

Thursday, December 11 – A cold front came through early this morning bringing strong winds and heavy rains. We battened down the hatches and drove over to the nature center for the weekly pancake breakfast and waited out the storm. When things quieted down, we went to Beall’s Clearance Store to see if they had any bargains. Joan picked up a tee-shirt and a pair of shorts real cheap. We drove back to North Jetty Park and fished from shore for a while, but nothing was biting. Later in the evening John walked over to the lake in the park and caught a couple of small Largemouth Bass on a popper fly he tied.

Friday, December 12 – Today was very windy and much cooler. It struggled to get into the 60s, but the sun felt great. John tied four flies, two poppers and two Clouser minnows, using synthetic material purchased at the local fly shop yesterday. We took the kayaks out here in the creek and John caught three snook and a mangrove snapper using each kind. We have new neighbors for the weekend and the volume has been turned up some. We will probably find some place to go tomorrow.

Saturday, December 13 - I won't tell you what time we got up this morning but after our coffee walk and breakfast it was getting pretty close to noon!! We checked out a few parks in Venice this afternoon. Started at the boat ramp near the old railroad station along the inland waterway. Not as much action as when we were there in April. Then on to Venice beach and Pier where we cast into the surf for awhile without any hits. Then to Casperson Park which has its own little lake and canoe launch which looks very inviting. Our last stop was Shamrock Park which is also along the inland waterway. We fished from the bank for a bit; thought it would be good for the kayaks till we saw a big boat go thru which would have swamped us!!

Sunday, December 14 – We went back to Christ U.M. Church this morning and enjoyed carols done in a contemporary style. We really like two pastors, but the senior pastor is retiring this year, so we said good bye to him. He gave an excellent message that focused on the shepherds, and why they were picked by God to first receive the Good News. He explained that it was because they “needed it more.” We stopped by Walmart on the way home and after lunch we put the kayaks in at the park and fished for awhile around the Intercostal Waterway. John managed one small snook that hit on a topwater fly that he tied.

Monday, December 15 – After our coffee walk around the lake and breakfast, we drove back to Casperson Park and fished from the bridge, fished the Inter-costal, had a picnic lunch, and then fished the beach. All the fishing produced nothing, but the day was beautiful, despite intermittent showers. In the evening we got a few things ready for our departure to Ft. Desoto tomorrow.

View Pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/johnjoanW/OscarSchererStateParkOspreyFLDec2152008