Travels Continue...

Our travels will continue, but this time without the Roadrunner.
First, a little catch up:  We got back to Virginia Beach two weeks ago.  The last two weeks have different to say the least.  Life continues to be good and we are sorting things out.  We have a very nice place to stay at Kelly and Jon's house.  They have a large extra bedroom/office that we are occupying.  It is about the same living space as the Roadrunner was with a full fireplace at one end and a desk, sofa and chair along with our bed.

They are working on life with a 2 and 4 year old and in the final days of getting another house renovated to sell.  In their spare time.  We've been looking for a place to live and have looked at about  50 places and actually gone through 4 or 5.  We are waiting for something that is fairly close and within our price range.

Obviously, after living in 300 sq ft or less for the last 10 years, we don't need a big place.  After about  10 days, we found something that will work and made an offer.  They countered, we re-countered, they re-countered the counter and for $192K, we have a place in Norfolk, VA.  Yikes! We signed the docs and everything is in motion.

We are 6.5 miles and 15 minutes away from Kelly and Jon and two adorable grandsons.  The house is in a pretty good neighborhood with a  large back yard and a nice sized garage.

Here's what it looks like on Zillow:

It needs a new kitchen, two new bathrooms, windows all around and a few other things.  And so begins our time in the Tidewater area.  Since we have 3+ weeks until closing, we decided we'd try something different and take a road trip to Arizona and back.

We're going to see family in TN TX, NM and AZ.  Here is our approximate travel route from Google Maps:

Along the way we are planning to see a few friends and hopefully check into Red Bay for old times sake.  This trip will give us a chance to see what it is like to travel like we used to and see if we can acclimate to that travel mode for a few months.  We'll see.  A couple of places we'd like to see are Canyon de Chelly National Monument (in the Four Corners area) and Antelope Canyon in Arizona.

It should be fun and lot of driving but we're looking forward to it.  

That's all for now on the Roadrunner Chronicles, thanks for joining us!

Selling and Delivering the Roadrunner to New Owners

A little over a week ago, we completed the sale of the Roadrunner.  It started out slowly with an email on December 31, 2018 and culminated in getting the deal done 43 days later with the new buyer.

Roadrunner on test drive with new owner

A friend with the same year, make, and model motorhome sold his in December and asked if he could pass along our contact information to a couple of people who were interested in his coach.  Soon after, I got emails from both individuals.

Thing happened a lot quicker than we planned.  We decided to put the Roadrunner up for sale after out winter trip to Florida.  That would be the first or second week in April.  But since this opportunity presented itself, we figured we could change our plans if things worked out.  After all, “Two birds in hand are worth three in the bush,” ... or something like that?

We never had to advertise the Roadrunner or contact a consignment agency.  We're calling it divine intervention and are as grateful as we can be.  It turned out to be a "win-win" for both the buyer and for us. He got a great coach for less than what he would have paid at a dealership and we got a little more money than many said was possible.

We traded emails back and forth with the two interested parties in January.  I sent each about 30 pictures of the Roadrunner and answered a lot of questions.  One was concerned about the price we were asking and the high miles we had on the coach.  Both of those items I understood.  Our 2007 Allegro Bus had 130,000 miles on it.

When we were in Red Bay after Thanksgiving, I talked with a motorhome broker who said that the two factors that he and most RV dealers consider were simply, year of the motorhome and miles.  Those two factors determine what they are willing to pay an owner for a used motorhome.   He said we would be fortunate to get $85,000 or $90,000.

As owners, we felt our motorhome was in great shape, had minimal issues, and worth top dollar.  We had put a lot of work into keeping it running well and looking good over the years.  May a lot of upgrades. Our original sales plan was to take the Roadrunner back to Red Bay the first week of April and get some odds and ends/minor work done, then park it on a lot there and see what happened.

That plan never materialized. Instead, we cleaned out the coach and got the Roadrunner ready to turn over to the new owner.  Every step of the way, we knew that for one reason or another, the sale could fall through.  Our situation was unlikely from the start but just because we had some unique circumstances to navigate, "unlikely" doesn't necessarily mean, "not possible."

A week before the new owner flew in to see it, we rented a 4' x 8' U-Haul trailer and packed it full of everything we could not carry in the Honda CRV.  We were already were traveling light since we left a lot of our things back at our daughter's place in Virginia Beach before we started on the Florida trip.
For less than $100, we rented the trailer and drove to Virginia Beach for a few days.  It coincided with our youngest grandson's 2nd birthday which was great.

Meanwhile, we were continuing the correspondence and figuring out a viable "change or ownership" plan.

Some of the hurdles we had to get over were his situation and modifications to the Roadrunner.  He was flying in to look over the coach.  Then, if it all worked out, we offered to help him get the coach to a storage facility which was about eight hours from where we were located. 

A number of things had to be addressed:
- High miles of coach
- Age of the motorhome
The broker suggested we ask what we wanted to get for it and see what happens.  Our friend with a coach like ours did that and got more than we did.  But then, he also had a lot less miles than we did.  I think anyone who shops around can see that there are a lot of 11 year old RVs that have not been taken care of very well.  We tried to keep up with things and have made something like 17 trips to Red Bay over the years to stay on top of maintenance and improvements.  We felt it was better to get a few things done each time than pay a big bill all at once.

- Washer/dryer addition
- Lack of table/eating area
- Keeping the recliner
- Purchase price
The buyer was always complimentary when I sent pictures and I ended up forwarding about 75 in total.  Two items on his list were that wanted to install a washer/dryer and to reinstall the Corian table.  We did a little bit of research and offered some recommendations with a couple of shops in Red Bay who could get that done for him.
I also wanted to keep the custom table and the Lazy Boy recliner we had in lieu of the sofa we had removed on the Driver Side.  He was OK with all of those.
After about 10 days of discussions on "how this might work" I thought it appropriate to agree on a selling price.   Better to see where we were in the process than get down near the end only to be surprised.  It only took a couple of emails and we agreed on a price we were both happy with.

- Meeting at the airport hotel
- Test drive
He was flying into the Jacksonville Airport late on a Saturday night and then taking a shuttle to an airport hotel.  We met the next morning at the hotel and drove him back to the campground at Naval Station Mayport.
We took a tour of the outside and then the inside of the Roadrunner, where we went through all the details of operation.  Inside the coach, Pam and I explained the operation of all the systems moving from the front to the back and answering all his questions. Next, Pam explained the procedures for shutting down the DirecTV, pulling in the slides and getting the Roadrunner ready to roll.  I then went outside with him and showed him what I do with the hookups and putting away things.
After that, he and I went for a test drive around the outskirts of the base.  He did fine and carefully returned the Roadrunner back to the campsite so we could connect the Honda CRV.

- Transfer of funds
- Bill of Sale
- Transfer of Title
We did our due diligence to verify that he could get an official check made out to me that I could deposit online using the USAA mobile app.  We are both USAA members. I thought a simple transfer from his account to my account would work.  Instead he had a check drafted that could not be changed or cancelled for 90 days.  A friend in the tourism industry said that some unseemly folks would pay for their tickets by checks and then turn around and cancel their checks.  The USAA procedures in place prevented that possibility.
After the test drive, we signed two identical copies of the bill of sale with two witnesses at the campground office and then filled out the Transfer of Title.

- Departure from Naval Station Mayport
- Arrival at KOA for the night
- Dinner at Cracker Barrel
- Sleeping arrangements
By now it was about 1030 AM.  We hooked up the tow car (Honda CRV) and headed for a KOA off I-75 where we had made reservations for the night.  After a couple of hours on the road, we pulled into a truck stop for some fast food.  He was able to drive the coach for over an hour on the freeway so he got some time behind the wheel.  I liked the idea he got the chance to drive it around base and also out in some traffic.  He did fine and liked the way it handled.
Our stop at the KOA was about 3 1/2 - 4 hours away from Mayport.  The delivery destination (the next day) was an RV storage facility east of Atlanta, another 4 hours away. The overnight stop allowed him to set the unit up at the campground while we were there to answer any questions.  Next, we went out to dinner together and drove back to the campground.  We had bought him a sleeping bag and pillow and we found a motel in town for the night.  He was able to check out the DirecTV by himself plus everything else inside the coach.  When we met the next morning we answered a few questions but it went smoothly.

- Departure for Atlanta-Hartsfield Airport
- Rental Car
- RV Storage
- Adios
He had breakfast of bagels, orange juice and coffee that we had in the refrigerator for him and we grabbed something at the hotel.  We met early at the KOA and he did all the departure set up and procedures with some minimal coaching.
Our next "stop" was the Atlanta-Hartsfield Airport.  He had arranged for a rental car.  We looked up the airport information online and made sure we would have no problem driving the Roadrunner to the airport.  I could not imagine that it would have any low hanging walkways or overpasses that would be a problem.  We checked it out but also kept a keen eye for some surprises along the way.  We had no issues.  As we approached, I slowed and pulled over near the parking garage, and put on my flashers for 30 seconds.  He hopped out and went on the rental office.  We exited the airport and drove 30 miles over to the RV storage facility.  He met us there shortly after we arrived.  We removed our license plates, unhooked the CRV, took one last picture, said, "Adios Roadrunner, it's been amazing!" We shook hands again with the buyer and we were off.

The end of an era.  It was a bit surreal as we drove to the nearest Chick-Fil-A for lunch and pondered our future... 

Thanks for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles.  There are more stories to come, be sure to tune in!

   

Friends from the Beginning and Now

I started dabbling in the blog world back in 2007.  We went full-time in May 2009.  During that time I started writing about lots of things in order to learn how to do.  The aim was to have a running documentary of how:

• We chose the RV life,
• We transitioned to it, and also a 
• Log of a few of people and places we were going to see in the new lifestyle.

But there are a lot of gaps even with a blog...  

We met Ron and Jan through mutual friends but not sure exactly when that was.  We started attending Barcroft Bible Church in 1995 and it may have been that year.  For some reason, our paths never crossed much and we moved on to a different church.  A few years later we also recall seeing them at Lake Fairfax in 2009.  

Turns out Ron and Jan also have a motorhome and moved to the Seattle area about the same time as we started full-timing.  After 5+ years there, they moved on to Arizona before ending up here in Florida.

Last week we were at the Tampa RV show paying for something at one of the vendor booths and Jan said, "Hi! didn't know you guys were coming to the RV show!"  We turned around and there they were.  It had been years since we had seen them. We spent 15 minutes chatting and catching up and were glad for our unplanned encounter.

We made a note to get together for dinner and last night it happened at Ford's Garage.  I didn't recognize the name but we realized there are a number of these restaurants all over Florida.  Pam said we had been to one of these restaurants before and I had no recollection.  

We all arrived by 5PM and then spent a couple of hours over dinner catching up and hearing about how they chose to live in Florida.  

They love it here and are actively involved in the community including serving regularly at a local food bank for the homeless.  We shared stories of RVing in cold weather, being in Arizona and heard also about their work with the creation and operation of Jill's House in McLean, VA over 10 years ago.

As we talked we remembered the time we saw each other in a large church.  We were sitting near each other but had never met until then.  We didn't plan the meeting but it happened.  We saw them again a few months later at the Lake Fairfax where we stayed with our new coach for a few weeks.  They were there before they hit the road to relocate in the Seattle area.

Then, fast forward 10 years to the Tampa RV show and another unplanned meeting!  They were there at the beginning of our full-timing days and now what appears to be the last couple of weeks of it.  How fun is that?  

It was great to spend time with them again and we'll be looking forward to the next time.  Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles!

Changing Gears, Downsizing, and Questions?

We've thought about this day and it is finally upon us.  We wondered how we'd feel about it when the time finally came to switch things up.  The time is now here.

We're going to be selling the Roadrunner and downsizing.

Depending on how things work out we'll be moving to the next stage of our lives. Getting another but smaller RV is part of our plan at some point, but we have other things on the To-Do List before that happens.

To-Do List for the next few months:

• Sell Roadrunner
• Go to Virginia Beach for a few weeks
• Look for/buy a house? 
• Take a road trip out west?
• Return to VB and find a place
• Buy a used Class C
• More RVing (part-time)

After we get to Virginia Beach, an option for us might be to take a road trip out west.  We're thinking of traveling in the CR-V from Virginia - Arizona and return. We may stay with friends and family along the way.  Then we could return to VB and see where things are.

Here's some questions we've heard so far with some quick answers:

Why are we doing this?  Why now?
We definitely have mixed emotions about this but wouldn't be doing it if we ultimately really didn't want to do this.  The main reason for doing this is to be near and involved in our grandkids lives as they get older.  Harrison will soon be 2 and a couple of weeks after that Brooks will be 4.  They like having us around and we like being with them,  so we feel like now is the time to make some changes.

We also like being near our kids.  We enjoy spending time with Kelly and Jon and working on projects.  Adam and Melissa are only a few hours away too, so that is another bonus.

How Did We Decide on this course of action?

Last summer we started talking out loud about the possibility of changing from full-time to part-time RVers.  We believe grandparents can have a positive impact on kids lives and want to be those grandparents.  We discussed lots of things but the bottom line is that we love RVing and yet love our grandsons more.  The best choice is for us to cut back on our time on the road and spend more time with them.

Are we road-weary?
No!  We love being on the road, but we are focused on a higher priority for the next few years.  We fully intend to continue with RV living as often as we can.  We think that will mean trips every few months for a few weeks.

How do we feel about the change?
Mixed emotions, meaning we loved every minute of full-timing but we need to do this.  We need to be present and move on.  We look forward to the adventures ahead and learning how to "settle down" again.

How long have We Been on the Road?
We have been on the road since May 2009.  Looks like we will end this stint of full-timing just shy of 10 years.

What kind of a place will you get?
We are thinking a small 1100-1500 sq. ft. single family house, not a condo or townhouse.

Do You think you will full-time again?
Don't really know, but we wouldn't be surprised if we do when the boys get older.

Will you keep blogging/writing?
Absolutely!  I have lots of posts that I've started and are begging to be completed. I love writing and am learning a lot with the forthcoming book.

Where are you in the process of selling the Roadrunner?
We have had extensive exchanges with the buyer will get together in a few weeks.  I think they'll be pleased with what they're getting.  It looks like a win-win and we will do what we can to make that happen.  If that doesn't work for some reason, we'll go back to plan A, which is advertise and actively market it beginning in April.

What's next in the coming days? 
Cleaning, polishing, and emptying the Roadrunner, packing up things and preparing the Roadrunner for sale. Also I'm working on our forthcoming book: "The Wonder of RV Living," Roadrunner Chronicles, Vol 1 and continuing to write more blog posts.  We still have so much to tell of the places we've seen and where we've been.  And I have more ideas for the next manuscript.

It's been a real joy and quite a ride.  And we're looking forward to the days ahead.  Thanks for joining us on this edition of the Roadrunner Chronicles!

Time in Tampa - Jan 2019

We've been in Tampa for a few days and are getting used to the cooler weather.  It seems when we are  in Florida for the winter, we usually find warm/hot weather and then face reality when we make our way north.

We were in John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park before continuing down through the Keys to Naval Air Station (NAS) Key West for three great weeks.  (More about that in future posts).  The weather was unseasonable warm and near the high 70's and low 80's for most of our time there.  I think we may have had 2-3 rainy/windy days but on balance it was terrific.

As we moved north to Bonita Springs for a few days, the weather got cooler and here in Tampa it is in the low-mid 60's.  Last night it got down to the high 30's.  But whose complaining?  Not us!  We are glad to be here and can put on another sweatshirt or jacket.

The MacDill AFB FamCamp is a large one with a lot of moving parts.  They take reservations but also have procedures for people like us who arrive and want to stay.  Similar to the process at NAS Key West campground, since they had no sites with full hookups, we stayed in dry camping.

Gladly it was only one night.

We were notified along with 4-5 other people that spots with full hookups had opened up and we moved over there and got set up.

We have a good site pointed north.  That means we get some shade for our front door and awning in the afternoon when the sun is pointing at us from the west.  Pam noticed during our final test check before we departed Bonita Springs that our tail light is out for the coach-car brake system.  She took off the taillight and tighten up some wiring connections.  We'll know if it worked when we leave here and hook up the car to tow behind the Roadrunner.


Since we are in the Tampa area for a few weeks we made sure we visited the Tampa RV show.  I think this may be the 4th time we have attended.  This time we wanted to check out Class C's and also look up friends who were manning the Habitat for Humanity booth next to Camping World.

To our surprise, friends from a long time ago contacted us and asked about our blog to pass on to a friend and mentioned they had been to the Tampa RV show earlier in the day!  Ugh.  Not surprisingly, we did not see them.  Tampa attracts about 70,000 people during the course of the show and yesterday I think half of them were there with us!

It was fun and since our tickets are good for two days, we will return later today.  We have some Freightliner Independent Front Wheel Suspension questions (asking for a friend...)

It always interesting at these huge shows and we saw a few RV setups that are new to us.  They are pricey.  I read a piece last week that said there are 500,000 new RVers each year.  That includes everything from a pop-up to a $1M Prevost but still it is a staggering number.  No wonder getting into campgrounds is getting a little tougher?

I don't remember what version of a Class B this was (Phoenix?) but it was interesting because it had a drop down bed.  And plenty of space for a pet underneath. 🙂

On a more serious note we looked at the Jayco Redhawk and thought it has some very good features.

We need to pick some brains of you folks that have downsized.  What do we need to look for?

That's it for this edition of the Roadrunner Chronicles!  Hope to see you today at the Tampa RV show!  If not, drop us a line anyway.  Thanks for stopping by.

Spending Overnight in Key Largo and on to Key West - Dec 2018

We were up early and ready to roll out of our campsite at Fort DeSoto campground in St. Pete.  It was a little tight but we went slowly and negotiated the turns fine.  We had to dump tanks so that took an extra 15 -20 minutes.  It was a fairly easy drive to catch I-275 and then I-75.

We were planning on spending the night at the Miccosukee Resort and Gaming Casino parking lot that night.  We made pretty good time even though we caught the morning traffic in Tampa and found more near Fort Myers and Naples.

About mid-morning we were talking about dry camping in the casino parking lot.  We are not big fans of casinos but many have RV accommodations or allow overnight stays.  Each of the three previous visits to Key West we have stayed at this casino.  Pam wondered out loud if there might be a campsite at John Pennekamp State Park which was another 40 miles down the road.

We called and to our surprise we were able to get the only reservation they had for the night.  We made a diesel fuel stop at our favorite Tom Thumb convenience store along the way and arrived at the state park for check-in about 2:30 PM.

We had some tree issues but were able to move the Roadrunner forward in the campsite and park it to one side so our DirecTV dish somehow missed the nearby trees.

It's always a good day when we have good wifi, a level site, cell phone service and satellite TV.  All the comforts of home.

We were parked in between three couples who were all from Quebec.  We talked with Diedre and Dianne who were a real nice couple.  They had a Monaco which they purchased in Toronto.  We compared motorhome stories and could relate to different issues we've experienced.

They were off to get some time near a sandy beach while I was setting up.  When they returned we talked some more.  They asked if I wanted to learn or improve my French? and invited me to Happy Hour with their friends.  It was nice of them but it had been a long day so I declined.

We had a great night's sleep and pulled out of our spot into an open area to connect the Honda behind the Roadrunner.  Pam noticed something in the back of the motorhome engine compartment.  I opened both doors and realized some of the insulation on the engine compartment was laying on the engine.  The insulation tape (looked like regular HVAC tape to me) had come loose.

I knew I should have at the time, but the was a little disconcerting, so I didn't take a single picture.  I was more concerned with assessing the damage.  We could not reach far enough into the compartment to cut away the portions of the insulation that were hanging down and knew that we had to access the area from inside our bedroom.

We had new carpet installed last year so it made it a little more difficult to find the four screws securing the compartment access lid from the bedroom.  We were not on a schedule so that was good.  We were able take our time and remove the large trim wood board underneath the closet door and then take out the screws.  Lifting the bed, we pulled out the lid and shined a light into the engine compartment.

We cut away three pieces that were hanging down and removed them.  There were three pieces of insulation on one side of the compartment that we cut way.  I inspected it all and didn't see any more out of place and buttoned it all up.  Later, I called Brannon at Custom RV in Red Bay and asked if there was any risk and he said we'd be OK like it was until we got it all replaced.  The bedroom closet floor was likely to be hotter than usual during our travels but we should be safe.

Another noteworthy start to our driving day.  Off we went toward Key West.  We passed through Key Largo, Islamadora, Marathon and the rest of the Keys on a beautiful day.

It is one of the scenic drives in America and a favorite of ours. The water is clear and blue and just what you'd expect in a tropical place.

We looked closely for hurricane damage from Hurricane Irma that hit landfall in Sept 2017.  It was pretty amazing, but we could see very little of the hurricane's effects.  We hardly saw any debris and only a couple of buildings that were damaged.  We did some a lot of new construction since our last visit to Key West in 2016.  There obviously was major destruction going on during the hurricane.  The cleanup was a testament to the hard work and ability of the cleanup crews to get it all back to normal.

Our campground is the at the Sigsbee Naval installation at Mile Marker 3.  We checked in were able to extend our original reservation through January 8, 2019.  They have 90 sites with full hookups and 310 dry camping sites.  If all the spots are taken in full hookups, we spend time dry camping until our turn comes up.  Campers get two weeks of full hookups and then rotate again to dry camping or leave.  It is very organized.

Our first order of business after we got our site was to grab some lunch at one of our favorite places:  Sandy's Cafe:

Then we went over to Island Bicycles where I rented a seven-speed hybrid with airless tires. They are solid and work surprisingly well.

The next morning I set off on one of my most favorite things to do in all our years of full-timing.  Ride my bike around the island of Key West.  I just love it.

The 13+ mile route around the island was full of memories from our previous three visits here over the last 10 years.

I took a lot of pictures and had a nice leisurely ride.

We were able to extend our stay and intend to be here for three weeks.  We are off to a great start.

Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles.

Merry Christmas Everybody!

Pam and I wish everyone a Merry Christmas!  

We hope the New Year brings you the 

Best of Everything!

We appreciate the many folks who take the time to check in and see what is happening on the Roadrunner Chronicles.  It has been a great year with big things to come in the next. 

~ Randy and Pam

Time in St. Pete - Dec 2018

The St. Pete area was a good choice because Jon and Kelly and the boys were on vacation there for a few days.  We snagged a campground site at Fort Desoto/Pinellas County Park


The campsite was very level and we had room for all the slides.  The palm tree canopy prevented us from getting satellite TV but we were forewarned.  We were able to pick up a few Over the Air (OTA) channels.

We had a free evening and looked up friends Joe and Cindie and met them for dinner at PJ's Oyster Bar in St. Pete.  It was a nice evening to catch up and enjoy each others company.

The next day we met everyone at the Tampa International Airport.  The terminal was very impressive.  It was big and roomy and had all kinds of places to sit and relax and had plenty of charging stations for everyone's electronics.  I haven't used airports in a while but it was noteworthy.

They arrived on time and took the train from the airplane to the gate.  It was exciting to see them after 4 weeks.  You'd have thought it was years.  Harry was in his happy place, Grandma's arms.

The boys were on their first plane trip and it was fun for them.  They did pretty well.  Brooks was a little upset when we left the terminal to pick up a rental car because he didn't want to leave "Florida."  Mommy explained he thought the airport was Florida...

Things got a lot better when we stopped at Chic-Fil-A for lunch.  The boys were out for the drive to St. Pete and their rental house on Pass A Grill Beach.  It was perfect and everyone adjusted after a couple of nights.

We wasted little time hitting the beach.  It was a little cool but it we walked down to it and played with the boys for a while.

The rental house was in pretty good shape and had everything they needed except food and drink.

Jon and I made a quick trip to the grocery and filled the cupboards.

Jon cooked on the grill and after dinner Pam and made the 15-minute drive back to the Roadrunner.
Our campground location could not have been any more convenient and turned out to be a great choice.

The next day we met up and all drove over to the Great Explorations Children's Museum in Tampa.
It had a kids Publix grocery store,

 and a pizza place they could make cloth pizza's which were not nearly as messy as the real thing.

Another favorite for Brooks was this big netted climbing contraption.  He went all the way to the top and returned.

After the museum we went to a local pizza place for lunch and it was delicious.  We made it back to the beach house in time for naps

Another day we went to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium.  It is a run by a non-profit organization that is dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of some animals.  We got to see some dolphins that were made famous in the Dolphin Tale movies.

An attendant explained what was going on with five resident pelicans living there.

It was a real joy to spend time with the grandkids again and to see Kelly and Jon.

While at their beach house one afternoon, I went for a walk along the beautiful Pass A Grill Beach to the famous Don CeSar Hotel.  What an iconic relic of the past!  I told Pam it reminded me of the Royal Hawaiian Hotel on Waikiki.  Sure enough -- it was modeled after it.

In 1928 when it opened it was known as Florida's "Pink Palace."  It struggled during the Depression Years.  During World War II it served as a hospital for soldiers, sailors and airmen struggling from the effects of war (Sounds like PTSD, but back then it was politely called something else.)

After the war, it regained some prominence with famous people staying their including baseball greats Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig.  Joe Dimaggio honeymooned there with new wife Marilyn Monroe.  FDR and F. Scott Fitzgerald were also guests. 

I walked about a mile along the beach to the hotel, walked through it and took some pictures.  I love this kind of history.

Our stay with the kids was great.  It did our hearts good to see Brooks and Harrison again and we reminded ourselves that we'll see them again in a couple months. 

Before we left the area, we were able to connect with good RV friends Marj and George.  We had seen then in Virginia Beach in the summer, but we always jump at the chance to see them when we can.

We went out to lunch at Billy's Stone Crabs and went back to our place for a little while.
We left for the Keys the next day and loved our time with everyone in St. Pete.

Thanks for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles today!

Marg, Bill and Bok Tower

Sometimes I get a second chance on my blog posts.  In this case, I began this draft two years ago but never completed it.  Then, we were visiting Marg and Bill, we took a short day trip over to a popular tourist attraction, the famous (to folks in the area) Bok Tower Gardens.  Now (Dec 2018) that we are seeing Bill and Marg once again

I decided to complete one of my "draft" posts.  I've started and not completed a number of posts over the years.  So here is my take on an attraction worth seeing near Lakeland, FL:
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Meaghan's parents Bill and Marg winter at the SanLan RV and Golf Resort in Lakeland FL.  We were very glad to be able to line up a few days together and see them.

The campground is a very large one and getting ready for snowbird guests to arrive.  We got a nice spot with plenty of space and a concrete patio.  All the acres and acres of grass is mowed and the whole campground is well maintained.

The second day here  I jumped at the chance to wash off some of the two weeks travel grime off the Roadrunner.

The roof also cleaned up pretty nicely.

Though we only have a few days together, Bill and I were able to squeeze in a couple of days of golf.  We both had some good holes mixed up with the ones we didn't score too well.

One day we went out by ourselves and the next day we played with his weekly men's group at another course and also enjoyed it.

We took the time to hang out together and have dinner each evening, splitting our time between eating out and having dinner at each others places. 

On Saturday we took a day trip to Bok Tower and Gardens near Lake Wales which were quite impressive.  It was a nice 40 minute drive from Lakeland through some back roads.

As we drove into the area, it looked as if it was a relatively new Visitor's Center, but the Bok Tower and Gardens have been around for a long time.  It was completed in 1929 and has been an attraction ever since.

The genius behind the beautiful place is Edward W. Bok.  His family emigrated from the Netherlands after the turn of the last century.  He eventually became a wildly successful publisher and Pulitizer-prize winning author and accumulated substantial wealth.

He loved visiting Florida from Pennsylvania and decided to purchase land which included Iron Mountain.  It is 298 feet above sea level and the highest plot of land for miles.  Bok wanted to recreate the area and make it into a world class garden and bird sanctuary.  He also commissioned Milton Medary (a Philadelphia architect) along with stone sculptor Lee Lawrie to build a 205' tower with a 60-bell carillon.
The sculptor's other work in on display all around the country.  He also worked on the Nebraska State Capitol which we visited late July, 2013.

The grounds are now almost 100 years old and have beautiful trees and vegetation.

A tribute in the gardens to a Japanese member of Bok's staff

Marg and Pam near the very tall tower.

We were there when a musician conducted a short recital on the bells housed within the carillon.

Bok died in 1930 and is buried near the base of the tower.

It was a beautiful day to see the garden and towers and we especially liked the short concert.  It was fun to share it with Marg and Bill.

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Thanks for taking a look with us on the Roadrunner Chronicles.