McINTOSH, FL: Where We Are

McIntosh, FL is not exactly a booming metropolis.  It's a small town that's probably seen better times, situated on Hwy. 441 between Gainesville and Ocala, and surrounded by horse and cattle farms.  Sportsman's Cove Resort is actually located between the edge of the historical district and Orange Lake and very near to the historic train depot and museum.   (McIntosh, FL history)    Unfortunately, the lake level is so low, the old boat launches are over marshy land. There are some interesting looking houses nearby and an abundance of very large, old oak trees decorated with lots of Spanish Moss.  We'll leave here on Sunday for the 114 mile drive to Seffner, FL near Tampa.

MCINTOSH, FL: Off the Beaten Path

Over the last two days, we've made our way east with an overnight stop in Quincy, Fl, and then south  arriving today at Sportsman's Cove Resort in McIntosh, FL  While this isn't exactly a "resort", it is a quiet, laid-back, rustic sort of campground near a large lake south of Gainesville and north of Ocala, with top-notch free WiFi and cable TV. The people we've met so far are very friendly.  We'll be here for 5 nights before heading further south to Tampa.  To fill our days, we'll do some exploring, but we'll also be enjoying the quiet as we stay busy with our computers and get caught up on a few RV chores.

The cold weather just keeps following us with nighttime temperatures just below freezing, but the pictures and stories of snow and cold from northern AL and central NC make us glad we're in sunny and unusually cool Florida.

SUMMERDALE, AL: Final Day at Rainbow Plantation

Sunday January 19th:
The past week has included lots of relaxation, several trips to nearby towns, dining out, dining in, social gatherings at the clubhouse including pool for Hank and Bingo for Selene. and coversations with old and new friends. The weather has been cold at night, but nice on most days....much better than many areas to the north.  On Wednesday, Little House  received new house batteries, and an easy-battery-fill system.  We found out that some of the electrical problems  we were having were due to a problem at the hookup post, and the campground made sure that was fixed.

Tonight will be another ice cream social at the clubhouse and we'll have a chance to say "see you later" to our fellow campers.  Tomorrow, we'll head east on I-10 for an overnight stay in Quincy, FL, west of Tallahassee, before heading south on I- 75 on Tuesday.  We look forward to warmer weather and meeting up with more friends. A new week lies ahead and that will find Little House in new locations.

SUMMERDALE, AL: Enjoying Our Stay

Time to catch up on days that go by too fast.  Life at Rainbow Plantation is laid-back, yet there are plenty of activities if you want to join in. We don't participate in very many of them, but we certainly enjoy those that we take part in. Some days, we just hang out with our computers, enjoying life in Little House.

Thursday, we visited the Fish River Grill in nearby Fair Hope, AL. This location is very small....just a trailer for cooking with an attached closed-in patio area for eating.  Hank enjoyed his crawfish and shrimp pistols (Fried French Rolls stuffed with OMG rich cream sauce), along with cole slaw and French Fries. Selene had the Alabama Chicken Melt (grilled chicken tenders, grilled onions, bacon, lettuce, tomato, mayo on Texas Toast) with French Fries.  The sandwich was messy but very tasty. Our opinions of the complimentary Swamp Soup were mixed.  Definitely a different type of cuisine! Lunch was followed by a visit to the Post Office and shopping at Walmart.  Dinnertime found us at the clubhouse for a meal of meat loaf, rice with gravy, roasted vegetables, salad, dessert and drink for $6 each.  (There are some good cooks in that kitchen!).   After dinner, Hank played pool and Selene played Bingo.

Friday, we drove to nearby Robertsdale to arrange for some needed work on the RV.  We've known since we bought the Discovery that the house batteries needed to be replaced, but we were putting it off as long as we could.  Lately, we've had some signs that these batteries were not charging as they should.  We put ourselves in a happier state of mind by sharing a delicious pizza at Vitollis.  After a quick stop at Winn-Dixie, we returned to the RV park.  Friday evening, Hank played pool with Gene Beaver and Selene visited with Dottie.  Dottie and Gene are RV-ham radio friends who have lived in the residential section of the property for 20 years, and they were one of the first to have a year-round home here.
Saturday started off stormy, but that didn't keep us from going to the clubhouse for breakfast ( French Toast and bacon or sausage, or bacon or sausage biscuit) at a reasonable cost.  There were also crafts and flea market items for sale.

Sunday was another beautiful day......blue skies and comfortable temperatures until late afternoon when it turned noticeably cooler.  We opted not to go to the Flatulence Fest (a sort of pot luck with all items having some kind of bean in the ingredient list including desserts at a cost of $3 each with the proceeds going to the local fire department/rescue service). Over $400 was raised.  We did arrive in time for the ice cream social at 6 P.M.

Today was the monthly lunch meeting of the local Escapee Chapter to be held at the Original Oyster House in Gulf Shores.  During our visit to the area last February, we dined at the restaurant's Mobile, AL location so we wanted to be part of this gathering.  The predicted rain moved in, but we were warm and dry inside with new friends and delicious food.

We've decided to stay at Rainbow Plantation for another week before moving east and then south on Jan. 23 toward Tampa, FL.

SUMMERDALE, AL: Waiting For Warmer Weather

With a low of 20 degrees yesterday morning, and barely above freezing temperatures by afternoon, outside activities were not on our list of things to do.  The campground gave notice yesterday that the water would be shut off as of 4 P.M., and would stay that way until at least Wednesday when nighttime temperature may be closer to 32 degrees. The clubhouse and office water would stay on.   Hank filled our fresh water tank, disconnected the water hose, and made sure the drop light was on to provide some heat in the bay where the water pump is located.  Our two electric heaters and our two furnaces are keeping us nice and  warm inside Little House.

This morning's low was near 20 degrees again but at least today was sunny. However, the wind chill was still below freezing, so we just stayed inside.

Tonight we went to the campground club house for dinner of tuna sandwich (with optional cheese, tomato, and lettuce), split pea soup or bean soup, mac and cheese, dessert cake and drink for $5 each. 

After dinner, we were entertained by The Sweethearts of Branson, a husband and wife duo, who put on a good show of oldies ranging from country to pop to gospel.

SUMMERDALE, AL; First Night

We left the property of John and Peggy Wilder in Helena, AL about 10:45 this morning and drove 4 1/2 hours to LA  (lower Alabama) where we settled in at Rainbow Plantation near Summerdale, AL.  We were supposed to be here for 10 days in early December, but had to go to Panama City to get our large slide worked on.  By the time repairs were finished, we didn't have enough time in our schedule to make the trip back here worth the drive. We'll spend the next 8 nights here enjoying the many activities taking place and meeting up with friends who live here.

Tonight we finished our chores in time for the Ice Cream Social Hour at the clubhouse. While the weather will be turning very cold here over the next 36 hours, it still won't be as bad as it will be in central and northern Alabama.  There's even the possibility of sleet and snow flurries, which would be quite an event  here in southernmost Alabama.

HELENA, AL: Last Day

It's been another great visit with the family here in central AL.  Everyone arrived as planned.  The weather has turned very cold and we've decided to head south one day earlier than originally planned so we can avoid the worst of the next Arctic blast.  Tomorrow we'll head to Summerdale, AL near the Gulf coast.

We've spent the last 6 days parked on John Wilder's property (ham radio friend) on top of a hill not far from Kathy's house.  His vehicles and boat, including his motor home, are stored in a very large metal building that also contains his apartment - quite a set up.  We've been provided with a water hookup as well as a 30 amp electrical hookup.  This type of stay at a friend's or relative's site is known as moochdocking.  We are very grateful to John and Peggy for providing the site to us as well as the chance to get to know them a little better.

The past two weeks of family time have been wonderful, but it's time to get the wheels rolling under Little House once again.