The ground hog popped up and said 6 more weeks of winter. We figured we should get out of Trump town where there is too much hot air during the day and freezing at night. A few weeks of respite somewhere warm would be what the doctor ordered! The snowbirds have the campgrounds pretty much filled up in Florida until Easter, but since the RV Tiki Hut is only 19 feet long, we were able to grab a number of single and double nights at campgrounds along our planned route in Florida without too much backtracking. Before departing, I removed the TV and turned off the news Apps on our phones to enjoy the vacation better.
Drove down to Virginia Beach to kick off the trip southward.
Overnighted at Santee SP enroute to Florida. It is a nice campground that is near I-95 and very convenient to use while transiting up and down the eastern seaboard. Santee was only 15% full and we go a very nice, quiet waterfront site.
Visited the Castillo De San Marcos in St Augustine and camped at Anastasia SP about 1.5 miles away.
We drove to Hillsborough River SP which is near the Gulf coast to get closer to Weeki Wachee Springs SP. Hillsborough had numerous trails including several bridges over the river.
Drove to Weeki Wachee Springs SP for the river cruise and live Mermaid Show. Great little cruise on clear spring water. No Manatees present but the Mermaids were in their full glory!
Returned to Hillsborough and did some more hiking at the park. Had our first alligator sighting on this trip so far.
Drove to Highlands Hammock SP to camp overnight. The park had numerous hiking trails. The best hiking trail was the Cypress Trail which was mainly on raised boardwalk through a genuine Cypress swamp.
Waypoint to catch a glimpse of manatees enroute to Sanibel Island. Got to see a mother manatee and her calf.
Got the last RV parking spot at the Sanibel Island lighthouse area and went shelling on Sanibel Island.
Repositioned to Koreshan State Historic Site to be close to the Fort Myers Beach area and Lovers Key SP. Very nice campground with many historic Koreshan buildings. Easy drive to Lovers Key SP.
Day trip to Lovers Key State Park to check out the beaches and hit the 5 mile bike trail. If we had another day, we would have gone kayaking there as well.
Overnight at Koreshan.
Visited the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens near downtown Sarasota enroute to Lake Manatee State Park. Fantastic gardens specializing in all manner of Epiphytes (air plants). Love the free parking in downtown Sarasota.
Overnight at Lake Manatee SP.
Went to Sharky's to walk out onto the Venice Fishing Pier. Sharky's also rents sand sifters to anyone who wants to go hunt sharks teeth on the beach.
Went sightseeing on the pier. It was a very breezy day and the surf was crashing on the beach.
Rode a portion of the Legacy Bike Trail from Venice towards Sarasota.
Toured Venice Beach and Venice and the sharks tooth museum. Many gift shops and Italian restaurants in this town. (Venice is a veritable Pokestop heaven if you ever need to load up on Pokeballs, etc)
One last night at Lake Manatee SP and then we drove down to Collier Seminole SP in the Everglades.
It was a fantastic trip! Our only regret was that we wish we could have spent more time in each location.
Next year we plan on exploring the Northern parts of Florida and the Florida Panhandle. If we have enough time, we would like to extend as far as New Orleans before returning via Atlanta.
