Opening up the shades this morning, we saw that the sun was out, but not for very long. We had one heck of a thunderstorm late yesterday afternoon and into the evening, complete with thunder and lightning. It stopped in time for us to walk Auggie though. Today would bring pop-up storms throughout the morning and afternoon. They never lasted for very long and it seems that we’re already into the summer weather pattern of afternoon rain showers. We had some phone and online business to take care this morning and left for Fanning Springs State Park around 11:00 which was about a half mile away. Fanning Springs is one of my favorite freshwater springs in Florida.
Water temperatures are a constant 72 degrees, so it takes some getting used to, but once you’re in, the crystal clear water is refreshing.
I swam for about an hour while Bob hung out in the shade. We left when it started to get busy, but before that we had the place pretty much to ourselves.
We made a stop at Walmart 9 miles back in Chiefland for a few tools that Bob needed to install the new Brake Buddy system, a swimming noodle, and a new I-phone case. On the way back to the campground, Bob wanted to explore what was on the road that runs parallel to the campground on the other side of the river. We had seen some interesting structures from our side of the river on our walk with Auggie last night. We love to check out these areas of “Old Florida”.
Our campground sits on a canal off the great Suwannee River, hence the name of the campground. The Suwannee River is 246 miles long and flows from Fargo, GA in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge to the Gulf of Mexico. Driving further down the road, we were able to discover something new, established in 2019. It was the Suwannee Belle Landing Restaurant.
The Suwannee Belle sits right along the river’s edge. From their dock, you can get a good view of the swift-flowing majestic river that flows all the way to the Gulf of Mexico.
We stopped for a beer and an appetizer while enjoying the view of the river. We kept our 6-foot distance and donned our masks when needed. On our drive back, we encountered a brief shower, but it was over by the time we got back to the campground. We brought out my pineapple plant that we carried in the Jeep and placed it in the sun. We decided to bring it along with us while we waited for it to ripen. That way we could enjoy the juicy, sweet fruit on the road. It takes 2 years to mature and produce fruit, so I wasn’t going to leave it for someone else to enjoy after growing it from the stem planting.
Auggie and I sat out at the campsite to enjoy the intermittent sunshine for the remainder of the afternoon. The campground was quiet and Auggie did his best to hunt down geckos and squirrels, which were numerous.
Bob researched the installation of a new Brake Buddy for the Jeep. The Brake Buddy system is made to put on the brakes in the tow vehicle. The one we were using that we got for free was old and on its last legs, so we decided to access the Camping World store in Panama City and get a new one when we arrive there in a few days. We enjoyed the afternoon without any more showers. The sun was shining, the breeze was blowing, and the cicadas were buzzing. No COVID worries here. Later, we went inside and tried to watch the launch of the Space X Dragon capsule on TV only to be disappointed because it was scrubbed due to the weather. We plan to watch the next attempt on May 30. Tomorrow we leave for the Panhandle and the city of Carrabelle. We’ve been to the campground with beach access before and enjoyed it so much that we wanted to go back again.
Water looks very inviting and you look pretty happy. Stay safe.