Departure Date 1/1/2015
We left to drive south to pick up the RV at 8:30 AM on 1/1/2015. The traffic on New Years day was wonderful. We went right through New York city (which we normally never do) with out a hitch. We stopped in Doswell, VA to stay overnight and watch the college football playoffs. BooHoo Bama lost, OH well Roll Tide for 2016. The next day travel was good for most of the day but by late afternoon we hit a multi-mile major slowdown on RT 95 above Savannah GA. Thanks to my iPhone traffic reporting we jogged around the tie up and only lost about an hour. After picking up the RV in Brunswick GA we drove another 28 miles south to stay the night at the only RV park we could get into. It turns out lots of people travel after Christmas and after New Years to start their trip to Florida for the winter. We stayed overnight at Country Oaks RV Park in Kingsland GA. Linda vowed that we would not try the two day trip this far (550+ miles a day) again. Getting in after dark and setting up the rig is a pain.
The next day we drove to Crystal Lake RV Park, in Mims FL. We stayed there two nights first to stock up with groceries (Publix is the best supermarket outside the Northeast) and then the second day to visit Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. This is a really good birding site.
Arrival Date 1/5/2015
This is a travel day. We went down to south eastern Miami and stayed overnight in Larry & Penny Thompson Campground; address 12451 S.W. 184th Street, Miami FL 33177. This is a Dade County Park. We have stayed here before. Decent place for an overnight. We had an adventure on the road down. I stopped at a Flying J truck stop to gas up. Flying J has RV islands which makes it one of my favorite truck stops. After finishing my fill up, I got in the RV and turned the key to start the engine. Nothing happened! No start no cranking of the engine! I futzed with many of the controls, started the generator and did several other things to try and correct the problem. No go. Finally I got out and checked the battery. After cleaning and re-tightening down the cables and clamps, the RV started. Off we went. I feel really good when I can fix issues by my self.
