WE HAVE ARRIVED!

Well, we had our Cajun meal, and I must say that it was one of the best meals I have ever eaten.  We asked the owner of the campground where we were staying (he is a native of the area) where we should go eat, and it took him no time to tell us.  He told us exactly what to order and we did, at least most of it...we could not have eaten that much food.  We ordered the gumbo, Tom had chicken and sausage and I had shrimp and crab and it was unbelievably good.  After that we shared a seafood platter and got away with an incredible meal at a very reasonable price.  It was amazing!

This morning, after a night of torrential downpours, we left the rain and took off for Texas.  It REALLY rained hard in Louisiana but they said that they needed it, as does Texas.

We were only 27 miles from the Texas border, so it did not take long.  We were glad to get off of the washboard roads of Louisiana, they are really bad.  We drove 112 miles today to Galveston Bay, a nice short drive.  We stopped at the Texas Welcome Station and took a few pictures to prove that we made it.  There is less than 400 miles of our trip left....however, EVERYTHING in Texas is far from everything else, so it will still take a little time to get to Mission.  We will be here until Thursday morning, leave for Corpus Christi, where we will stay for four nights, and then drive next Monday morning to Mission.  So far we are right on schedule.  Tom has done a great job driving the fifth wheel and Barklee has done well as our passenger.  And we have met very nice people along the way.

Here is the proof that we are actually here!

Catch you in a day or two!

DOWN IN THE BAYOU

Yesterday I asked Tom to take me on a Swamp Tour for my birthday...(even though it was the day after) and we went on a highly recommended tour in the bayou town of Beaux Bridge, Louisiana, in the heart of Cajun country.  It is really beautiful here, a different kind of beauty than that of Florida.  It is fascinating to me how each state has its own distinctive look.  We drove over so many bridges as we traveled I-10 including a gorgeous drive into Mobile Alabama over a really long bridges through the marshes and over the Gulf of Mexico.  It is really a beautiful city to drive into.  The drive through Baton Rouge took us over some magnificent (but scary) bridges over huge waterways, including the Mississippi River.  Then once in Louisiana we drove over incredibly beautiful swamps, rivers and creeks. I am loving this trip.
Anyway, the swamp tour was led by a native Cajun that grew up in the bayou (which is a waterway, or creek, through the swamp).  We saw MANY alligators as well as birds and other wildlife.  The swamps are very similar to those in South Carolina but with a slightly different look.  I loved it.  Here are some pics from the tour:

Cajun Camper

This was a Cajun deer stand until the bottom rusted out!

This is a bayou.

Well, we will be in Louisiana one more day (four total) and we have not yet had any Cajun food, so we will venture out for lunch tomorrow for the new experience.  I can't wait!
Hopefully I will post again tomorrow or Sunday, which is the day that we arrive in Texas!  Our first stop there will be Galveston, which is only 2-3 hours from here, should be a nice, short trip!
See you later, alligator!

THESE PICTURES NEED NO WORDS--

Last night in Destin.....

"The heavens declare the glory of God"....Psalm 19:1

SAYING GOODBYE TO THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE

What a  gorgeous place.  As many times as I have been to Florida, I have never been here, and I love it.  It is time to leave, and I am not ready, although I know that there are many more exciting places ahead.  There is so much to see in this country.  Here is an example of how pretty it is here:

The sand is unbelievably white and fine, and the water is Caribbean blue and green.  It is as clear as can be and the beaches are oh, so clean.  This strip of land is called "The Emerald Coast" and I can understand
why. I would love to come back here one day.

Tomorrow morning (which happens to be my birthday) we leave for Lafayette, Louisiana where we will stay for four nights.  This is new territory for me as well, and I am looking forward to it.  It will take us about six hours to get there.  Three hours, a nice break in the middle and then three more...easy breezy.
Here is one more goodbye Destin pic.......

Will do my next posting from Cajun Country.......
Blessings,
Jackie

YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS...THIS IS A CAMPGROUND?

Well, not really.  But sort of.  We left the Jacksonville area yesterday morning and drove west along the Florida panhandle to the Destin, Florida beaches.  It was I-10 all the way and it is a really nice stretch of highway.  Did you know that Florida is as wide as it is long?  It is almost 400 miles across, which is how long it is long......if you were to drive from Miami to Pensacola you would drive almost 800 miles....yikes!
Destin is absolutely gorgeous.  It is a very narrow strip of land along the southern panhandle and it is on the Gulf of Mexico.  Thanks to Tom's military service we are able to stay at military bases and this one is a dandy.  It is more like a resort...in fact, I call it a Camp-Sort.  It has villas, motel style rooms and spaces for RVs.  It is the Destin Army Recreation Area and it is Paradise.  The sunsets are spectacular.  I wish we could be here more than five nights!  For $20 a night, it is a steal!

Even when Barklee is inside, he keeps himself entertained....

This is the first day that I actually felt that I could relax after the months of preparation..and it is all worth it.  

Tomorrow we may venture into the town of Destin to look around and take some photos. Did I say how beautiful it is here?  And we have met some really nice people already.
I will do more postings from here with hopefully some dandy pictures.......
Blessings,
Jackie

WE ARE ROLLIN, ROLLIN, ROLLIN!

Well the day has finally come, September 20th, and we are right on schedule.  We rolled out of the Charleston Air Force Basse Campground at 11:00 this morning.  I will have to say that I will miss hearing Reville in the morning, the Star Spangled Banner at 5:00 and Taps at 8:00..  That was cool.  And listening to the roar of the C-17s leaving at night.....and feeling so secure on a military base....if you are ever camping and need a nice place to stay in the Charleston area and are retired military...it is a really nice campground complete with mess hall and comissary.

We drove a short leg of the trip today, only 4 hours, on I-95 to the Georgia/Florida border where we are in a KOA campground, and it is really nice.  Here is a pic of our site....

Tom drove the truck, of course, and I follow in the car.  Due to the high mileage on my car and the gas efficiency we decided to keep the car for jaunting around when we get to our destinations. That way we are not always driving the gas hog diesel!

It was an odd feeling driving away from Charleston today and passing by the Summerville Exit, not sure when we will be back.  I will miss my friends, but will keep close ties and hope to keep even closer contact with family and friends now that I SHOULD have more leisure time.  Below is someone I will miss dearly..

Betsy Smith is one of my most special friends.  Betsy was Women's Pastor when I worked at Seacoast Church and was my boss.  But more than that, she has been such a role model.  In the last year she has mentored four women in her home with us meeting on a weekly basis and I have learned so much from her over the years....the group was called Friends for Life and they truly are.  I appreciate all that Betsy has taught me and shown me by her example and we WILL keep in touch!

I hope to highlight many friends and family as I do my blog since I want to take time to thank so many people who have made a difference in my life, and also to share my family with you.  So stay tuned, you may just show up on this blog one of these days!

Tomorrow we head across the panhandle of Florida for the longest leg of our trip and will spend the next five nights in Destin, Florida, on the Gulf of Mexico.  I hope to get a lot of good pictures there....the sunsets are fantastic from what I have read.  In the meantime, stay tuned!!!

BEGINNING THE GREAT ADVENTURE

Well, after a year of research, plotting and planning, we have officially made the move from our home into our camper.  Call us crazy, but we have decided to downsize, simplify and enjoy the next few years while we are still able to explore the country and see friends and family.  There is so much to see in this wonderful country and we want to see it up close and personal.  We are joining the ranks of over one million others who are living life on the road.

The decision was not that hard, but the process was.  Moving from a home into a camper requires a lot of planning and a lot of purging of unnecessary "stuff" that we accumulate.  We, along with most people, have way too much stuff that it totally unnecessary.....you realize it when you have to whittle 30 T-shirts down to 6 or 7...and everything else you have.  You decide what is important and what isn't.  Family pictures......hoarded each and every one...the dog...yeah, he comes.  All of the technology to keep us connected to friends and family, of course.  Books?  Who me?  This camper is now a bookmobile, thank you.

We have left our lovely home in Summerville, South Carolina...(see below)

in the hands of good friends who will take good care of it for 4-6 months as their new home is being built.  We are so blessed to know that they are there.  Many full time campers sell their homes, but we want to keep our home to return to when the journey is over. We hope to keep it rented to good people until we return.

Here is our new home:

As you can see, there was a lot of downsizing to do.  But we do have a full bath, a kitchen complete with oven and microwave, (no dishwasher),  living room, dining area, small office space and king sized bed......we love it..  All of the comforts of home.  And we can take it with us!  It is pulled by a Chevy DuroMax diesel truck.  

On Thursday, the 20th we will be heading for our first destination, Mission Texas.  There Tom will do 20-25 hours a week of light maintenance...(right up his alley) in return for free lot rent for the camper. We will be there from October 8th until April 15th, when the "Winter Texan " season is over. This will be our longest stop as we want to see as much of the country as we can.  Over 500,000 Americans winter over in Southern Texas.  Our address there will be :

Tom and Jackie Hynd

c/o Mission Bell RV Resort

1005 N Stewart Ave. #334

Mission Texas  78572

Please be sure to keep this address handy!  And look up Mission Bell RV resort on the web, it is a lovely 55+ resort that has about 600 sites...some permanent.  I cannot wait to take in the Tex-Mex culture!

We are currently at the Charleston Air Force Base where we are making final preparations on the camper and the vehicles as we prepare to leave.  We will be sending you updates every few days and keep you posted as to our adventures.  We will travel from Charleston to the Florida/ Georgia border, to Pensacola Florida, to Lafayette, Louisiana, to Galveston, Texas, to Corpus Christi and finally into Mission.  The trip will take us 18 days.

We cannot wait to see what the next few months bring and invite you to come along on our journey.  Please save the blog to your favorites and check in on us every few days.....we would love that!

Blessings,

Tom, Jackie and Barklee