Florida, here we come!

Wednesday, Oct 18 … Got up at the regular time today and went to the World Golf Hall of Fame in St. Augustine, FL. It was formally located in Pinehurst, NC but was relocated here 8 years ago. Without a doubt this is a display of golf memorabilia that is unmatched anyway where in the world. The Class of 2006 - Larry Nelson, Vijay Singh, Marilynn Smith, the late Henry Picard and Mark McCormack - will officially be welcomed into the World Golf Hall of Fame on Monday October 30th. Also included with our ticket was the movie "Open Season" in the Imax Theather! Cute movie.

Tuesday, Oct 17 … We rode our bikes approx. 6 miles roundtrip on the coastal hwy. We stopped along the way to walk yet again on the beach. It was much different here than the shell beach near our park. Later in the day we drove south and found a beach that we could drive onto with the car. We watched a guy parasail and many more waiting for the perfect wave to surf.

Monday, Oct 16 …. Got up earlier than usual this morning (0645) and walked across the street to the beach to watch the sunrise. Needless to say it was awesome. There were a few clouds which made for a spectacular view of the effects of the sun rising over the pounding surf. We took several photos. We drove into the town of Old St. Augustine and did the walking tour of the village. St. Augustine is considered the oldest settlement in America being settled by the Spanish in 1513. The quiet coastal city came to life in the 1880’s when railroad magnet Henry Flagler began to develop the area as a winter resort and playground. We visited the Spanish fortress of Castillo de San Marcos, now a national monument, built in 1672-95. In the old village, we saw the oldest one room wooden school house in the U.S. It was built in 1750-60 of cypress and cedar and still looks surprising sturdy. We then went to the Cathedral-Basilica of St. Augustine which is the oldest Catholic parish in the nation. Built in the 1790’s it was reconstructed after a fire in 1887. Next to the Washington Cathedral, it was one of the most spectacular churches we’ve ever seen. We then walked into the courtyard of the Flagler College. This was, of course, built by Henry Flagler in 1888 as the former Ponce de Leon Hotel. Maybe we’ll go back and take the tour of the interior because the outside is absolutely stunning. We then went to the village and had a delicious Brooklyn style pizza for lunch.

Sunday, Oct 15 … We drove into St. Augustine and decided to go to the large flea market held on weekends. Bought a few items … mostly some produce. On the way back discovered the Rver supply house… a Walmart super center and had to purchase a few supplies. After getting home, we took chairs and a book and walked across the street to the beach for about an hour.

Saturday, Oct 14 …. Today we are driving about 140 miles to our next stop of St. Augustine, FL. Very nice weather day with morning temps in the mid-40’s. Drove about 50 miles to Brunswick where we stopped at a Flying J for propane and diesel. Paid $1.79 a gal for propane and $2.36 for diesel. The drive to St. Augustine was uneventful (the way we like it). The city of Jacksonville was beautiful on this bright sunny day. The RV park in St. Augustine (Beachcomer) had roof damage to one of the buildings from one of the ’05 hurricanes that hasn’t been fixed. The park roads are not paved, dusty and filled with pot holes. Other than that it’s not bad. The Atlantic is just across the street to the east and the Intercoastal waterway is at the back of the park to the west. After we got the motor home set up we took a short walk on the beach. The beach seems to be composed of ground up sea shells mixed with sand. There were shells everywhere. The surf was awesome.