FLORIDA to TEXAS

Late December to early February

Northerners imagine that Florida is always sunny and warm. In reality, Florida can have some damp, bone-chilling weather.

We spent some very cold days before Christmas at Fort De Soto County Park and Hillsborough River State Park.

Wind, rain, cold, and unheated shower houses – not a good combo. Woodsy campsites turn muddy, potholes appear in dirt roads, and hiking trails become a hop-scotch around puddles. All you can do is layer on more clothes and wait it out.

The silver lining to cold winter weather here is that it brings the manatees up river to the springs where they can warm up.

We made a day trip out to the Tampa Electric Manatee Viewing Center in Apollo Beach. The power plant’s recycled discharge water warms the river and the manatees come in by the hundreds.

The electric company, in a feel-good, win-win scenario, has created a free visitor center complete with a viewing tower, boardwalk along the river, educational center, and garden.

It was a cold day for humans, but a delightfully warm one for manatees.

The education station was well done. Among other facts, we learned that manatee flippers have toenails which are remnants of when they walked on land – millions of years ago.

The cold front eventually moved on, and so did we. We found a campground that we really liked: Lake Louisa State Park near Clermont.

Our sunny site was a welcome change from camping in the woods. With more than 4,000 acres and several lakes, the park has lots to explore.

Before it became a state park, this property held managed citrus groves. While hiking, we saw oranges growing wild, and we enjoyed sampling a few.

We spent a relaxing afternoon in Winter Garden, where everyone seemed to be out with friends, enjoying the warmer weather and the week in between Christmas and New Year’s.

Our New Year’s Eve was spent with our friends Joann and Bob Kollar in Homosassa. Once again, they hosted us for a seafood extravaganza. We feasted on shrimp, steamed clams, blue crabs, and roasted potatoes. Eating outdoors on New Year’s Eve!

What a terrific start to the New Year!

We left Florida on January 2, and headed west toward Louisiana.

Our halfway stop was Meahrer State Park near Mobile, AL. This was a great surprise. This lovely park is surrounded by wetlands and water. After a long day’s drive, we enjoyed an evening walk on the boardwalk before settling in for the night.

The next day we drove across southern Mississippi and made our way to Covington, LA, on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain.

Covington, LA

For a winter break, we had arranged to stay in an Airbnb in Covington, LA, for January and February. This country getaway was on an old farm outside of town.

Covington is on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain, close to Mandeville and Abita Springs. New Orleans is less than an hour away across the lake.

We like this area. There’s lots of shopping and restaurants. We went to the weekly farmer’s markets in Covington and Abita Springs.

The markets are a lively mix of crafts and foods. We bought stuffed grape leaves, homemade spring rolls, and a loaf of delicious sourdough bread. Musicians were playing in the town bandstand.

The little museum in Abita Springs is open on market days. We visited and learned of the town’s history when people came to take in the pine scented air and enjoy the healthy spring waters. The resort business ended after the logging industry clear cut the forests.

The town is quieter now, but sweet; it has become a haven for artists, musicians and entrepreneurs who appreciate small town living.

The Tammany Trace paved trail runs for 30 miles between Abita Springs and Slidell. During our time here, we walked and biked most of this terrific trail.

And, yes, we made a stop at the Abita Springs brewery.

This area is a prime location for fresh seafood. We purchased fresh gulf shrimp (yes, with heads still on) at Northlake Seafood in Mandeville, and then back at the house, we made shrimp etoufee.

We loved the fresh oysters at both Chimes and Buster’s restaurants.

The locals will tell you that Louisiana (which is pronounced “lews-see-anna”) oysters differ from Pensacola oysters, which mostly come from Apalachicola. Something about mud vs sand. Never you mind, they’re all delicious.

New Orleans

We spent an afternoon in New Orleans cruising the French Market.

Gators are a thing down here…

And enjoying music and the artists at Jackson Square…

NOLA music is like no other. It’s a wonderful mash up of Cajun, zydeco, jazz, blues, African, and bluegrass. You hear it and you just start to dance.

The Mardi Gras spirit has been in full swing long before this year’s February 21st date.

Local communities have their own galas, parades and Krewe clubs. It’s like the Mummers parade and string band clubs in Philadelphia, but the build-up and celebration goes on for a whole month.

Stacks of King Cakes are for sale in all the markets. Every King Cake comes with a little plastic baby stashed inside. The person who gets the slice with “da baby” will have good luck.

People decorate their businesses and homes with lights and Mardi Gras colors. It certainly brightens up the dark winter season.

For a number of reasons, we decided to stay in the Airbnb just for January. Right now, for us, two months off the road is too long. So, we cancelled our February reservation, and then made plans to go to the Gulf coast of Texas for awhile.

We left Covington on February 3, heading west. Our first stop was Lake Charles, where we camped at Sam Houston Jones State Park. This park recently reopened after two years of post-hurricane renovations. New bathouses, paved parking pads, great amenities.

Storm damage is still evident on the park’s trails and borders. Rangers said the storms took 85 % of their trees. What a huge effort to rebuild!

In Lake Charles, we saw a rodeo advertised on a billboard and decided to go.

It was an experience with a bit of everything you might expect: expert male and female riders doing trick riding, bull riding, calf roping, obstacle course barrel riding, kids riding sheep, (which is called mutton busting), cowboys with lassos of fire, clowns for distraction, and the crowd singing Sweet Caroline while waving their cell phone flashlights high in the air.

Lots of little kids wearing cowboy boots and hats. Very expensive popcorn. You know what? Everyone should go at least once, so you can check it off your life bucket list.

So, on we go, still on the Gulf coast. Today we’re at Galveston Island, camping at the state park on the Gulf of Mexico. The waves are crashing on the beach and the sun is shining.

Heading out tomorrow to see more of Texas!