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Update 20 - 3/25/01
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Welcome to several new folks that have joined our ever growing list of friends following us as we tour around the USA. A special welcome to Suzanne Lane and all her Third Grade Students at Polk Elementary in Lake Wales, Florida.
We are in Jacksonville, Florida, visiting with relatives and friends.
Leaving Lake Wales, we rode north to the 1000 Trails RV Park near Orlando.
There we spent five days in a rented trailer with our grandchildren while their parents celebrated their 10th anniversary on a sea cruise to the Bahamas. We did our best to keep up with the kids while visiting Disney World and other theme parks. This is a fun part of Florida to visit, even with the high prices and crowds.
After picking up our son and daughter-in-law from their cruise we stopped briefly to visit with George's cousin Bruce and family in Kissimmee. We hadn't seen Bruce since he was a child, over 30 years ago. Unfortunately, we could only stay a couple of hours, and promised to spend more time on our next visit.
Our first day back on the road north toward Jacksonville turned out to be one of the few we have sat out due to weather. Florida is in a 100 year drought, and the 4-1/2" of rain that fell is much needed. The next morning we made our way to the Kennedy Space Center. What a wonderful experience that was! We really enjoyed learning more about the history of space travel. The Rockets and the Shuttle are amazing machines. A not so known fact is that the area around the Center is a nature preserve inhabited by all sorts of interesting plants and animals. Check out the US Fish and Wildlife exhibit when you visit Kennedy Space Center.
Later that evening we were awakened by the famous Boom-Boom sonic shock as the Shuttle returned from it's latest trip to the International Space Station.
The next evening was spent at Tomoka State Park, where we met Jim and his children, taking a few days off for Spring Break. Another in the long list of great places to visit in Florida, Tomoka has a rich history of early settlers and native peoples. After dinner, we joined them for S'Mores and great conversation around the "campfire" which was actually charcoal as open fires are currently banned due to the dry conditions.
Another day's ride brought us to Saint Augustine and the home of Trudy and Wayne. Located on the beach south of town, they have a gorgeous home that they graciously opened to us. The next day they gave us an insider's tour of the area. Drawing from Wayne and Trudy's seemingly limitless knowledge, we were in sensory overload, trying to absorb all the history of the country's oldest European settlement. Not as "touristy" as some places we have visited, the locals have worked hard to preserve the town as it was 400 years ago. We visited the Fort, the college that is located in what used to be the Flaggler Hotel, and the Lightner Museum. We also learned about the native peoples that lived here for many generations. Later that evening we again enjoyed Trudy's superb cooking. Like so many other places we have visited, Saint Augustine just can't be seen in a couple of days. It is high on the list of places we want to visit again someday. Thank you Trudy and Wayne, for a wonderful visit.
When we were planning Free as the Wind, the bicycle coordinator for the State of Florida put us in touch with Jeanne in Jacksonville. Jeanne has helped us immensely during our stay, putting us in contact with several of the kind folks that have hosted us along the way, and suggesting routes and places of interest along the way. She again saved us from a bad situation by advising us to stay away from the coast on our way from St. Augustine to Jacksonville, as there is a huge Golf match underway in Ponte Vedra and auto traffic was extremely heavy. We rode into Jacksonville on US 1 in light traffic with good shoulders most of the way.
We will be here for a few days, visiting relatives we haven't seen for years and touring the area, then we are off to Washington, DC to spend a few days in the Capital with our daughter and grandchildren from Washington State during their spring break.
George and Sharon Miner
Vancouver Bicycle Club, Vancouver, Washington
2000 da Vinci Global Venture towing Bob Trailer
Free as the Wind - Our one year self-supported tandem tour of the USA, Mexico and Canada
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