BEACHING OUR WAY NORTH

We hope this finds you doing well and enjoying the spring weather! Due to Covid, we decided to reduce our travel and hang around the Central Florida area for the winter! We did what is commonly referred to as the Florida Shuffle. The art of spending the winter months moving between Thousand Trails and the many Encore (TC) parks in the area. This worked well for us, as we were able to visit Bart’s aunt and get together with my sister and her husband from time to time. We were also fortunate enough to know a small group of fellow full – time RV travelers that were doing the same thing as we were. We would often land at the same park, which allowed for us to enjoy some social distant happy hours, campfires, or pool time together. But like so many others, our social encounters were very limited. Suffice it to say, by the time spring rolled in, we were ready to roll out! So at the end of March, after receiving our second vaccination, our hibernation came to an end! Fully vaccinated, we set out on our journey north. The first leg of our trip has a definite beach theme to it. Our first stop was Vero Beach and from there we made our way up the Florida coast, visiting Daytona, Ormond and Flagler beaches. In Georgia, we spent some time at Jekyll and St. Simons Islands, as well as a few days in Savannah. Our journey continued with a month-long stay in Myrtle Beach! We are currently enjoying the beautiful, albeit humid, Emerald Isle area. Along with exploring new areas, we have spent time with family and friends, have been blessed with exceptional weather, and have enjoyed the sand, surf and seafood along the way!

Photos ABOVE; Lunch with fellow full- time RVers & YouTubers Bri & TJ of Embracing Detours. Check out their channel! Daytona Speedway & Visiting boating friends from NY, Dean & Janice as they navigate the Great Loop. BELOW: Kip & Nancy, RV friends we first met in Palm Springs in 2019. Bart with his Aunt Patty. The Inthanongsak Family joining us for some Putt – Putt. full – time RVers, friends and YouTubers, George & Louise! Check out their channel; Milesacrossusa.com. Fellow full – time RVers and friends Pat and Carol rubbing in that they are at Epcot!

Along with enjoying some badly needed beach time, we embraced our post – vaccination ability to get out and about, exploring the many different things each new area had to offer. We even dipped our toes back into the tourist pool and visited a few attractions, including Daytona Speedway, Alligator Adventure and House of Blues. We had many opportunities to get together with family and friends along the way! While in Myrtle Beach, my two sisters, brother and their spouses joined us for four days. It was the first time we had all been together in years! Meeting up with friends and family on the road is one of our favorite aspects of full – time travel!

Photos: Family time at Lulus; Gator time – too close for comfort; Look at this turtle; House of Blues

Exploring Savannah By Trolley

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Savannah! We used Old Savannah Tours trolley to explore this beautiful city. The trolley provided an enjoyable and informative narration, along with frequent stops throughout Savannah’s historic district. This trolley allows for passengers to hop on and off as they choose, which makes it easy for everyone, including people with mobility issues, to enjoy the city! From what we could gather, almost all the Trolleys offered the on and off feature. Although there are many different trolleys to choose from, Old Savannah was the only one that allowed dogs on the trolley, as long as they weighed twenty – five pounds or less and could sit on your lap. This made our decision an easy one. Being able to include Deek allowed for us to take our time exploring without worrying about him or needing to cut the day short to go and take care of him. Not to mention, Deek loved the trolley ride and all the squares he was able to explore. There is so much to see and do in Savannah that even with two full days there, we look forward to a return visit!

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Exploring Jekyll Island By Bike

Jekyll Island is one of the islands off the coast of Georgia that makes up the Golden Islands. It has ten miles of beautiful shoreline, as well as over twenty miles of awesome bike paths. These paths take the rider along sand dunes, historic sites, and beaches, including the must see Driftwood Beach! You can even stop at Tortuga Jacks and have Mexican food, a cocktail, or both, while enjoying a beautiful ocean view. This is our favorite bike path to date! Jekyll Island also home to the Georgia Sea Turtle Center. We really enjoyed seeing the turtles in various stages of rehabilitation and found our visit to be both informative and fun. We used our Passport America membership to stay at Southern Retreat RV park, which is fifteen miles from Jekyll Island and twenty miles from St. Simon, but I would like to note that there is an RV park on Jekyll Island.

Exploring Barefoot Landing By Golf Cart

In Savannah we loved our trolley…On Jekyll Island we loved our bikes…While in Myrtle Beach, we loved our golf cart! The RV park we stayed at in Myrtle Beach, Barefoot RV Resort, is located half a mile from the beach and a mile from Barefoot Landing. Both areas are easily accessible by golf cart. Barefoot Landing is located along the intracostal Waterway. It offers a variety of shopping, dining and entertainment experiences. Crooked Hammock, the brewery located there, has a circular bar that extends over the water, providing magnificent views of the surrounding area, including numerous turtles swimming in the water below. It seems as though there are outstanding food, drink and music opportunities every ten feet or so. We speak from experience as we made a solid effort to visit all of them!

Where we stayed…

Sunshine Travel RV Resort Vero Beach (Trails Collection — Sunshine Holiday Daytona (Trails Collection) — Southern Retreat RV Park (Passport America) — The Oaks at Point South (Thousand Trails) — Cartersville Country Winery (Harvest Host) — Barefoot RV Resort (Private RV Park) (There is a Passport America close by – Briarcliffe RV Resort) — Goose Creek RV Resort (Trails Collection) Another TC park, Whispering Pines is a few miles down the road. Please feel free to ask us any questions about our travels or the places we stay.

Until next time…