Seeking Warmth in all the Wrong Places

Wednesday, January 22, 2014
Santa Rosa Beach, Florida, United States
Mykaa River Resort – Venice, FL
Jan 20, 2014
Trip Mile Marker: 1,599
 
Departure morning at Everglades Isle, we wake up to sunshine and warmth that makes it difficult to leave, but it is time to move on. A short drive to Venice, FL and we arrive at the Myakaa River RV Resort, a former KOA campground 10 miles out of Venice. The campground was small, mostly full timers and very friendly. A good experience but since the site we was assigned was one of the few sites reasonably acceptable, we were lucky.

Our purpose in Venice was to visit my all time favorite Uncle David and Aunt Ann who reside in Springfield, OH but winter in Venice. This is always a fun visit and by plane or motorhome we have tried to make a pass through Venice once a year for the past several years. ]

Prior to dinner, Mary and I did a little touring of Venice, a city with a history dating back to the late 1800's, the downtown area is well planned and neat with the main street full of interesting shops and a lot of foot traffic. We took a short, cool windy walk on the beach. A surprising number of faithful beachgoers were bundled up and sitting on the beach. Where is the Florida weather?

Dinner was at Sharky’s, a well known seafood restaurant on the beach in Venice. Mary and I found Sharky’s by chance several years ago on a driving trip through the area. Then it was a small, rustic beachside restaurant with a lot of character and great seafood. Now it is a multi-storied, glassed in, ultra modern restaurant with a Walmart sized parking lot for customers, much higher prices and food that is OK. Progress has not done Sharky’s well. But the time with David and Ann was great and our visit fun and we plan to do the same again next year.


Tallahassee RV Resort – Tallahassee, FL
Jan 21, 2014
Trip Mile Marker: 1.942

A long 343 mile drive is ahead of us but we wake up to sunshine and get an early start out of Venice. Unlike last year when one of our tires on our Honda decided to voluntarily separate itself from the wheel as we were driving by Ocala, this year was eventless. The Tallahassee RV Resort is a repeat stay for us. The park is easily accessed, very clean and friendly.

Similar to last year I had contacted my U of KY roommate to see if he and his wife could have dinner with us the evening we were in Tallahassee. This being the second time in 46 years I had seen Dave, we had another fun evening and are hoping he and Susan can visit us in Kentucky sometime in the near future.  

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Topsail Hill Preserve State Park – Santa Rosa Beach, FL
Jan 22 - 24, 2014
Trip Mile Marker: 2,097

Last year we did a fast drive by through the Destin and Fort Walton Beach area. We liked what we saw and decided to spend a few days in the area this year. Several RV acquaintances had recommended Topsail Hill Preserve State Park as the best place to stay in the area and we locked in for 3 nights in the park. Topsail comprises a large tract of land with about 2 miles of ocean front. Named for its tall uniquely shaped dunes it is wooded with spacious camp sites and numerous bicycle and hiking trails. It is really one of the nicest state parks you can find. Our only problem was – "guess what?" it was cold.

Hunkered down for three nights in the cold, Mary and I took a few hikes around the park. When we hiked to the beach, the 2 miles of beach was empty. A beautiful beach with fine white sand and picture perfect in gulf colors. As far as you could see, no people. A nice way to be at the beach but beach lounging in your ski clothing is not my idea of good beach time.

Fortunately for Mary, not so much for me, the shopping in the area is superb. The high end stores are in an area close by and slightly further is a huge outlet mall. Both areas kept Mary busy. We also took in some movies we had been wanting to see at a nearby theater and three meals at Panera Bread gave us our Panera fix.

Topsail and the weather is beginning to convince us that if you want warm winter weather, go where the weather stays warm. These frigid temps are making us think about extending our 2015 reservations at Everglades City to 6 weeks. But our experience at Topsail is good. If a person came here in late spring or in the fall, it would be great, particularly with grand children like our Jacob and Elise who we miss immensely.

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