Shopping, A New Friend and Highbanks

DeBary, FL.

42 deg. clear, no wind.

Forecast = Clear. High of 70F. Winds from the NNW at 10 to 15 mph shifting to the East in the afternoon.


As soon as Linda got up and had her breakfast Tuesday morning, Jim and Linda took CLT (Cute Little Truck), and headed for Jacksonville. You see, by accident, quite a few years ago, they had found a shoe store in a shopping center on the North side of Jacksonville.  It's called Rack Room Shoes and they sell all kinds of shoes.

And, they carry shoes in Jim's size, (14). : )

The soles of one of Jim's pair of shoes had split.  So being that we were in the area, they headed over there and ended up buying Jim 2 pair, since the second pair was 1/2 price.  : )

By about 12:30 they were back to the CG.

Oh, I want you to see my new little buddy that came into Kelly's Monday evening.

He's brand new and lives up in the central part of Pennsylvania. His owners brought him  down to Florida to visit family and friends and now he's on his way back home. I wished him a safe journey as he pulled out of the campground yesterday morning.

Speaking of yesterday morning,  it was about 9:50 when we pulled out of Kelly's. Once back on US 301, we retraced our route back to Callahan and then followed US 1 down to I-295. 295 took us around the west side of Jacksonville and joined back up with I-95 on the South side of the city. Once back on 95 we took it South to exit 329 where Jim pulled me into a T/A Truck Stop and topped off my tank with some of that good old #2 diesel fuel.

You see, since I'll be setting in a RV Park for at least 2 months, Jim wanted to get my tank as full as possible so there's not so much chance of condensation. My furnace also uses diesel fuel when it gets colder, so that was another reason to stop and fill up.

From the Truck Stop, we continued South on 95 and followed it down to Daytona Beach, where we turned SW on I-4. I-4 then brought us down here to DeBary and the Highbanks Marina & Camp Resort, where I'll be spending the next 2 or 3 months.

It was 12:50 when we pulled up in front of the office, so it took us exactly 3 hours to stop to top off my tank and travel the 147 miles down here.

After going into the office and talking to the nice ladies inside, Jim came out and unhooked CLT from the back of me and parked him across the road in a parking area. Then, the park manager led me into the park and to my site. By about 1:15 I was backed into my site, (the same site I was in last year, #198), and Jim was getting a ride in one of the workers golf carts, back up to the office area, to retrieve CLT and pay for my site.

I've only been here once before, but Jim and Linda have been here often enough that many of the folks in the park wave and welcome them back, as was the case as we drove through the park to get to my site. In fact, Jim and Linda both made the comment that it was good to be back in this park and this year especially, it kind of felt like they were coming back home.

Much of the afternoon was spent getting me set up for the long term. Extra attention was paid to getting me real level and getting all the utilities hooked up and looking as neat as possible. Then, because they were both tired and didn't want to cook, they headed over to the Steak & Shake Restaurant for dinner.

So,  ,  ,  ,  ,  this is where I'll be for quite awhile. There'll be many days where there's nothing to post about, so I won't be posting near as often. But, you can be assured that I'll let you know when there's anything new happening.

Did you know that DeBary Hall Historic Site is the restored winter home of Samuel Frederick de Bary, the first settler in this region? Built in 1871, the 8,000 sq. ft. Italianate architectural style mansion is open to the public with artists. displays, multimedia programs, and docent-led tours. DeBary Hall Historic Site was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 24, 1972.