Southbound

The newly-annointed Co-Pilot sits in her favorite spot in the RV and peruses gifts from her wonderful co-workers at Nutricia North America. The book is full of pictures of Tracey and her workmates and is inscribed with personal notes and rememberances.

We pulled out of our driveway in Derwood, Maryland, late in the afternoon of January 1. Even though it was a later start than we'd envisioned, we still met our goal of beginning this new chapter on the first day of the new year.

We also left just as a stinging cold front was descending over the East Coast. It followed us south, although we escaped the bitter temperatures that numbed our home state.

Along the way, we stopped in Richmond to visit with my Aunt Mildred, who celebrated her 102nd birthday in December. She's a remarkable woman in many ways, not the least of which is the ability to clearly remember incidents that took place in Richmond during World War I, such as the practice parades of militia troops up and down Stonewall Ave. in front of her childhood home. She remembers many of the significant events of the 20th century first hand.



As we made our way south, we overnighted at spots in Virginia, South Carolina, and Georgia before crossing the Florida state line yesterday afternoon. After downing cups of the obligatory free--and delicious--orange juice at the Florida welcome center, we made our way to Blue Springs State Park in Orange City, just northeast of Orlando. We'd been here before and we wanted to return to check out the manatees that winter in the relatively warm waters of the spring. These huge acquatic mammals live during warmer weather in the nearby St. John's River, a wide body of fresh water. But they can't tolerate temperatures below sixty degrees. So each November they make their way up a side stream to Blue Spring where the water remains a steady 72 degrees year round. We like seeing these majestic, slow moving animals glide through the clear water, many of them in family groupings.





We also enjoy the tropical vegetation that surrounds the spring. The sunny 70-ish weather didn't hurt, either, as we made our way along the boardwalk that skirts the spring and winds through the woods.




The Co-Pilot is still coming to grips with not having the benefit of a regularly- scheduled day ...