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Once more our time on public land came to an end (and all our holding tanks were getting pretty full) so we moved back to Orlando which was our first stop in Florida. Now that we know the ropes we are so much more comfortable finding a site and backing into it. Our routine for setting up and packing up is very efficient and takes us less and less time to the point that we often feel we forgot to do something. So far we haven't forgotten to bring down the antenna (I hear lots of people do that) or worse, retracting the awning (now how in hell does someone drive off with a big awning still deployed and not notice?). We have found a better configuration for the inside of the trailer giving us more room at the door to take out our large patio chairs and table and the bicycles. We find that it's not much of a bother to bring the bikes in for moving and it protects them from the elements. While stationary we keep them alongside the trailer, under the awning which keeps them nice and dry and out of the sun. Both bikes are locked to the stairs of our home but I don't think it's really necessary to lock them as people seem to leave a lot of things outside their RVs with no worries. I haven't heard of anyone getting something stolen but why take the chance.
We decided to go visit a heritage village in Clermont which was very small with just a few houses from the 1900s but a lovely site right by a beautiful lake with a huge fishing pier. We then strolled through town but didn't find anything really interesting except perhaps a few antique stores. The big draw to Clermont is the lakeside bike/walking trail. I forgot that there was a restaurant right by the lake that seemed interesting and surely delivered a nice view.
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| Pa Glen rocking away on the porch |
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| The beautiful bike and walk trail in Clermont. |
Before reaching the Heritage Village we passed a cute pond with a fountain where different species of shore birds were enjoying the sun and the water.
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| A cormorant drying his wings |
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| A juvenile Ibis |
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| A wood stork |
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| A Little Blue Heron |
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| A Great Egret or a White Heron (just like the Great Blue Heron but white - in Florida only) |
Our days here seem to consist of reading in the morning and then taking Cheeka for her daily walk through the trails in the afternoon. We did go to the lovely pool which greets us with sunshine and tepid water that is just refreshing enough without feeling cold. There are plenty of loungers around the pool to let everyone have a spot to sunbathe. There is another pool called the activity pool. It has an even depth of 4' to make it easy to use for water volleyball or aqua fitness which I keep missing.
We also visited the dog shelter in Orlando which is the nicest such facility I have ever seen. Each dog has a huge indoor/outdoor run, the building is air-conditioned and they have large play areas/meeting areas outside that are covered in fake grass and kept immaculately clean. One of those outside paddocks contains some agility obstacles and they do use them to test a dog's braveness. One dog we looked at went right through a long tunnel all by himself. The volunteer who was handling the dog said it was the first time a dog went through that tunnel. I really liked that dog but she was a pit bull mix and Glen thought we might have trouble explaining why we have such a dog when we go back to Ontario. There are so many pit bulls at the shelter it breaks my heart. Where do they all come from? They are all friendly and playful. Unfortunately, many dogs have heartworm disease which requires a long time to heal and while in treatment the dog must be cage bound. There are no guarantees that the dog will recover and it's also impossible to know from the blood test how advanced the disease is. It's really sad to see a healthy looking sweet dog that hopes to be adopted but has a disease that will keep most prospective takers away. Heartworm is very prevalent in Florida. Thank God we kept Cheeka on her heartworm medicine!
Going to the shelter is in the same direction as going to Disney World, Epcot and Hollywood Studios. As you near these parks the street starts to sprout a lot of souvenir shops, all painted differently and wildly to attract attention. It's kind of fun to see. That street (I believe it's the 192) also has a number of elaborate mini-golf parks with huge waterfalls and fake mountains. It sure would be fun to play on those courses!
Just before leaving the campground we discovered another trail that started beside the dog park. There were wild oranges growing alongside the trail. I picked one and brought it back to the trailer. I was excited to eat it but it was extremely sour, more like a grapefruit and had tons of seeds. I threw it out after the first bite.
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| Our front yard. |
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| The beautiful calm lake. |
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| Boats and kayaks available for the campers use. |
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| This little bird would dart in and out of a bush on our campsite and forage through the leaves for bugs. |
Now we are off to a new free site called Kicco (pronounced Kisso). It will be fun to explore a new location!
Leaving you with these beautiful dawn pictures taken by Glen while I was still sleeping.
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