From the Shore to the Lake

Lake Okeechobee, that is. The second largest fresh water lake in the U.S. We arrived today and after a small snafu regarding our spot (we had been assigned a 30 amp spot and wanted a 50 amp spot) we got settled in a very nice, large, cement padded (50 amp) spot that is just over the levee from the giant lake. Two unfortunate things about this otherwise lovely park....bugs and road noise. We are adjacent to the highway and the truck noise is awful (we were warned). The bugs were a surprise but I guess it's to be expected away from the gulf shore and near fresh water breeding grounds! We'll survive, after all, we're use to bugs in Minnesota.

We had spent yesterday driving down to Fort Meyers area. First thing we did was drive over to Captiva Island. I kind of figured this "shelling capital" would be busy, touristy, and expensive but I underestimated all three. First off, a $6 charge just to drive onto the island (Clearwater was free, Fort De Soto $ 0.50 and Gasparilla $2!) Then the traffic....bumper to bumper almost the entire island. Then you pay to park at a beach, another $2/hr. Etc,Etc... We took a walk on the beach and split. Frankly, I have more shells than I need and the shops and restaurants crowded with tourists held little appeal to me. The beach wasn't even as nice as the ones we had been on farther north and even the water wasn't as pretty. Just a lot of people doing the "Sanibel Stoop" (ie....shell picking).

We returned to the mainland and headed toward Fort Meyers Beach. Just prior to crossing the bridge (free!) we stopped for lunch at the Nauti Turtle. Very nice marina-side bar/restaurant. We enjoyed a sandwich and beer and the great view of the marina.

Nice!!!

After lunch we went over to Fort Meyers Beach. After snaking through the town traffic jam, we found a parking spot just a block from where we were to meet up with some new friends we had met in Aransas Pass, Texas. Teresa and Bill are also new to full-timing and are currently staying in Bonita Springs so it was the perfect opportunity to meet up and enjoy their company again. Their friends, Stacy and Dan, were also along so we had the added bonus of two new friends!  But we still had a few hours to kill before our date so we walked along the main street and down to the beach. This area is by far the worst beach town we have seen so far. Dirty, crappy surf shops and a bunch of run-down bars beach-side full of some real low-lifes. The entire "tour" took about 1/2 hour so we settled on buying Jeff a cigar and then finding a spot near the beach to relax until it was time to meet Bill and Teresa.

Finally it was time to head to SOB (Smokin' Oyster Brewery) and it was a great relief to find our friends and also a great bar/restaurant that they had chosen to meet us at. We had "taken" to these two at first sight and, again, it was just a blast of an evening. Stacy and Dan were equally wonderful and extremely entertaining. It's always nice to talk to people that understand the RV lifestyle, good and bad. But it was also nice just to talk and laugh about things completely NON-RV related for a change!

Dan,Stacy,Teresa,Jeff,Lisa and Bill!

After some beers and laughs at SOB we headed to Nervous Nellies for a late dinner. Another great pick by Stacy, we were able to sit out on the upper level deck and enjoy the beautiful night air. Jeff and I had about a 45 minute drive home so after dinner we headed back to the BP.

We will be spending the next week (re)packing and preparing for St. Maarten, trying to find a "babysitter" for Xena, and exploring the 120 mile bike trail that circles Lake Okeechobee on top of the levee.