Dolphin Pool

Thankfully, this isn't the guy that bit me

Tropical River--Discovery Cove

Clerbrook RV Resort, Clermont, FL: Up this morning and got going so we could get to Discovery Cove in time for breakfast. Made it there and got checked in by 9:30. The breakfast was just a continental breakfast, so we won’t rush to get there in time again. After eating breakfast we changed into our wet suits. Went to the coral reef first. Was pretty cold getting in but we acclimated pretty quickly. The fish are absolutely beautiful. And the rays are all around you. A great experience. We spent about an hour and a half in the reef and then swam the tropical river. Went to the aviary this time. The birds fly right down to you. One of them bit me! Spent about an hour in the tropical river and then we went over and got something to drink and relaxed for a while. Then we had a huge lunch. We didn’t do the dolphin swim this year, so we showered and changed back into our clothes and headed back. We got two free passes to Sea World as part of our entrance fee. So we’ll see what tomorrow looks like. Always fun to go there. Hit 85 today. Life is good.

Clerbrook RV Resort, Clermont, FL: Got really chilly last night—50s. But it warmed up quickly this morning. Had the heat on for a while though. The guys were supposed to be here at noon to clean and wax the fifth wheel, but they called and said they’d be late. They showed up around 1:00. We sat outside reading until they showed up, then went inside while they cleaned. It didn’t take them very long. After they finished up we went biking around this huge park. There are 1225 sites here and there’s an 18-hole golf course in the middle. There are three pools and Jacuzzis. There are a lot of permanent sites here—both park models and RVs. It’s a really nice place. We kept hearing this bird near our site today and it turns out two sites over there is a couple from Michigan with 2 parrots and 3 dogs. They had one of the parrots outside and we stopped and talked with them for a while. One of the parrots is a small red/yellow thing that makes a lot of noise. The other is an African grey. Don’t know how they do it with 3 dogs and 2 parrots in a RV. Had left-overs for dinner. Think it hit 83 today. It’s supposed to be 85 tomorrow and partly cloudy so I made a reservation at Discovery Cove. Looking forward to it. Hope the weather holds.

Jack checking out one of the boats at the SEAL Museum in Ft. Pierce

Sebastian Inlet SP to Clerbrook RV Resort, Clermont, FL: Left Sebastian Inlet at around 11:45 and drove north on A1A to Melbourne and headed west on Rt. 192. After getting through Melbourne it was clear sailing. I just set the cruise control at 60 and enjoyed the scenery. We passed through a lot of “old Florida”—large areas of scrub and cattle ranches and then through some wetlands with large clusters of cypress trees just greening out and some abandoned citrus groves. The road was really good—four-lanes—and hardly any traffic. About half way to Kissimmee was the little subdivision of Harmony. It’s supposed to be a green community. Started encountering traffic again at St. Cloud but got on the Florida’s Turnpike just outside of St. Cloud and headed north. Clermont is northwest of Orlando and our campground is about 5 miles north of Clermont. We’re staying at the Clerbrook RV and Golf Resort and it’s kind of in the country. It has an eighteen-hole golf course and all the amenities. Lots of live oaks dripping with Spanish moss. Pretty place. Mike called and made an appointment tomorrow to have the fifth wheel washed and waxed. Have cable TV here so we’ll probably watch TV until we’re comatose. Had dinner at a Mexican restaurant in Clermont.

Cocktails at Jack & Karen's

Sebastian Inlet SP, FL: Mike’s birthday today. Planned on taking him to dinner tonight. Another rainy cloudy morning. But it cleared around noon. Jack called and I asked if he wanted to join us—which he did—and we ended up going over to his place for a couple of drinks first. Went to the Texas Roadhouse over by his house and we all had steaks. Really good. Sat around talking forever. Jack gave Mike a book on the history of Florida. Came back home and for once it wasn’t blowing like crazy. A really nice evening. Tomorrow we leave for Orlando.

Pelican Preserve

Jungle Trail

Sebastian Inlet SP, FL: Rainy again this morning. We were going to take our bikes out since there are many miles of bike paths in this area. But the weather didn’t cooperate. At 4:00 it finally cleared and we drove up to the treasure museum. This area is called the Treasure Coast because of all the Spanish galleons that wrecked along this coast. According to my friend, Jack, they still find stuff being washed up on the beaches. The museum was just about to close but they let us go in for a few minutes. It’s pretty small, but still interesting. After that we drove over to the Pelican preserve which was established by Teddy Roosevelt in 1903—the first wildlife preserve to be set aside in this country. There are several trails to walk, but we just walked down to the Indian River and out on the boardwalk overlooking the river and the islands just off shore which are also part of the sanctuary. Then we walked back to the truck and drove down the “jungle trail” which is a dirt road that meandered through a pretty large uninhabited area and then through a very upscale golf community. Actually it was two golf communities—the road went right up the middle of them. But there’s so much vegetation I’m sure most of the people that live there don’t even know it exists. After meandering through these upscale communities it continued along the Indian River for quite a way. There were beautiful, upscale homes on one side and beautiful boats on the other. Then it would go through a patch of “old Florida”. A very interesting drive. Back to the campground and had grilled chicken for dinner. If it’s nice tomorrow we’ll probably take the bikes out.

Navy Seal

Jack warming up

Sat, 3/21/09

Sebastian Inlet SP, FL:

Rainy, windy morning. Jack came over this morning at 11:00 or so and we headed out to the Seal Museum in Ft. Pierce. A really interesting place. Bought a book entitled “Lone Survivor” about a seal team in Afghanistan who had a desperate fight with the Taliban until they were all killed except one. It’s currently being made into a movie. Should be a great read. We also ran into an eighty-nine year old gentleman who is a veteran of WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. He was MIA in France for two years during WWII after his plane was shot down. The French hid him in a basement for two years. Amazing. Drove back and on the way stopped and walked out onto the beach. Frothy waves rolling in under threatening clouds. And someone was actually out there swimming. Had pasta and hot dogs for dinner. After dinner Jack brought out his guitar and started playing. He is very good. I was so impressed. A really fun day.

Burt Reynolds home--across from Jupiter Island on the Intracoastal

Fri, 3/20/09

Jonathan Dickson SP, Jupiter, FL, to Sebastian Inlet, FL: Left Jonathan Dickson shortly after noon and arrived at Sebastian Inlet SP and were set up around 4:00. We drove up Rt. 1 which went through several towns and we hit one light after another. Finally turned off onto A1A just north of Ft. Pierce and didn’t encounter any more lights but the speed limit was much slower. Beautiful drive though with the Atlantic on one side and the Indian River on the other. And saw some very impressive homes—especially on the Atlantic side. A very pretty area. Called my GE friend, Jack Lunden, and he came over in about an hour. Sat around drinking and catching up and then went out to eat. Had dinner at the New England Pub and Eatery about 15 minutes north of Sebastian Inlet. We decided to take in the Navy Seals museum tomorrow which is just north of Ft. Pierce on A1A. Jack is going with us. We’re meeting here at 11:00 tomorrow morning.