Arrival time at Clearwater Travel Resort was about 1:30pm – we pulled up and parked in front of the office.  We knew when we reserved that we would be in an “overflow” spot, not an actual site.  We went inside, hoping a cancellation would have bumped us up!  Alas – no such luck!   We pulled around and Bill backed into OverFlow 1.   To be honest – we were pleasantly surprised – not bad!  It is on the end and we are backed up to the bathhouse (which is rarely used since everyone here is self-contained), but they added gravel (broken up shell actually), so it isn’t mushy at all.  A trade-off we have decided is worth it is, while we are only on 30amp, we also aren’t metered.  On the 50amp “regular” sites – we would be on metered electric – so that would be adding to our already LARGE CG fee!  Ok – we aren’t upset anymore about being on OverFlow 1!


Since our arrival – we’ve been visiting with my parents and sister, having meals, getting some shopping done, catching up on boring chores, I made yogurt, all kinds of things.  

We went for a walk one night on the Courtney Campbell Causeway.

I’ve gotten my butt kicked – twice! – at Scrabble, by my Mom and Shannon!  They both play online games a lot.  I do not.  It was not unexpected that my score would be far behind!

We had friends, Gene & Eileen – and Max! – come visit and have dinner with us.  We grilled some of our AK salmon – it was yummy!  It was great to see them!  Last time we were together was in Q last winter, so it’s been awhile.  It was wonderful to catch up with them!  We hope to see them again before we leave FL!  

Another day we (Bill and I and my parents) took a ride down to Arcadia to visit K&J Produce and Joshua Citrus.  We were on the hunt for ribeye steaks, oranges, grapefruit and anything else that might catch our eyes!  Long term readers might remember our first visit to this area was in Feb 2015 for the RV Dreams Boondocking Rally, and again a year ago, strictly to stock up.  We filled the coolers and my Moms insulated bags with meats and citrus!  We enjoyed an ice cream and then headed back.  It was a beautiful and productive day!

We celebrated Bill’s birthday with breakfast at Perkins and sunset sail, followed up with burritos at Moes!  Sounds like a budget busting Day doesn’t it?  Well, it isn’t as bad as it sounds, as my frugal hubby spent a chunk of time signing himself up for “free on (or near) your Birthday” offers.  So far, in addition to the above, he’s gotten vouchers for free bagels, subs, steak dinner, etc.  He’s too funny!  

Since we didn’t exchange for Christmas this year, I decided to go a bit above our “usual” birthday gifting and got him a dash cam!  It is really for both of us and I’m really excited about it!  I’m kind of annoyed at myself for not getting it last year, in advance of our AK trip, but there are plenty of places still to see!  He also got a new Rush t-shirt and DVD.  Was a happy day!

Something else we’ve done is spent that check from Swagman and finally got new bikes!  We spent 3 days visiting several shops, learning about different types and brands of bikes, and then trying out a few.  In the end we decided on hybrid comfort bikes by Jamis.  We were in touch with my brother throughout the process, as he has worked in bike shops, selling and doing repairs. Bill and I respect his opinion and appreciate his input, which helped in making our decision.  Check them out!

One of the nice perks to being in this area is there are lots of bike trails.  We took our new bikes out for a spin to break them in a bit.  We left the CG and took the Ream Wilson Clearwater Trail into Safety Harbor.  It’s fairly flat and paved for most of the way.  It was a beautiful day to be out enjoying the weather.  

Next on the list is upgrading the hitch on the back of the 5er – but that can wait til next time!