Cedar Point Campground, NC

Got an early start from the Wal Mart at 7:30 and arrived here at about 3:00 PM.  Despite it being a slightly ong day and some frustrating slow traffic at times it was not a bad drive.
Spent a nice evening with Dave & Gale and we'll all spend an extra night here tomorrow night so we have a bit more time.  Besides, it sounds like VT is still a little snowy and cold to return tooo quickly.
I seem to be having some technical difficulty with the laptop tonight.  It won't load the blog.  I am posting this from the tablet.  But the photos are in the laptop.  Maybe tomorrow.

Hardeeville "campground" at Wally

This little boat passed us on the highway.  Think that's enough power?

Hardeeville SC

Good bye Florida!

Finally got the truck fixed this morning!  We got on the road a little after 1 PM.  Kept running into slow traffic.  North of Jacksonville FL we had a long stretch of very slow moving traffic and again all around Savannah GA.  We have been through Savannah but have not seen traffic like this.  It was almost as bad as Atlanta.  It was so bad that we got off just south of Savannah to camp at a Wal Mart in Richmond Hills.  But we drove past the entrance because it was not marked and in the process of turning around we decided to go further north.  And back into bad traffic.
So we get here to the Wally in Hardeeville, the Wal Mart website says they have overnight parking but the store has 'no overnight parking" signs".  Yet there are 6 campers here.  We'll see.
Oh, we are here because I called around a dozen campgrounds in the area and they are all full.  There is not a campsite to be had for a good 50 miles around Savannah.


A couple views of Paynes Prairie:

Paynes Prairie 5 (final?)

What a day.  Another reset.

The Warranty company has denied the claim, calling this a pre-existing condition.  OK, remember that this started less than an hour after I bought the truck.  Now the selling dealer has agreed to fix it at their own expense.  So they are overnight ordering the part and having it installed at their own favorite garage tomorrow at 9:45 

If that all goes by plan (which will be a first for this adventure) we will be on the road around noon.  We can't make it to NC in that short time but should arrive late Saturday to see David & Gale, who are there tonight in a double site that we are supposed to be sharing!

This afternoon we found a very nice city operated wetlands park.  It is a man made wetland for water treatment, removing nutrients, sediment and trash form the stream before reaching Paynes Prairie.

Paynes Prairie is the name for a 22,000 acre state park and much larger savannah or marsh.

Took lots of photos today but the cell service still stinks so I can't load them.

Paynes Prairie 4

Still stuck here waiting for the truck.  The idiots at the warranty company cant get anything done, like authorize a repair that is clearly covered.
Went to a park in Gainesville for a little hike.  We each got a haircut.  Made numerous phone calls to try to get my truck back.
Maybe tomorrow.
No photos.

Paynes Prairie 3

The truck is in the shop and we have a rental to get around.
While I was in town with the truck Carlene was out hiking many of the trails here at the park.  I dropped her off at the Visitor Center about 1.5 miles away where she could hike her choice of several trails and walk back to camp if she so chose.  She and Callahan had a good time and we all got back to camp at the same time.  This afternoon we went out to a spot on the lake to hang out in the shade and relax.  Carlene had seen eagles there earlier in the day and we could see some large birds in the distance.  We also could hear eagle calls in the air but did not see any close enough to identify.

Carlene's view from the observation tower

Our afternoon relaxing spot

Paynes Prairie 2

When you buy a used vehicle you always wonder what the first problem will be.  So when the "check engine" light came on while driving home it was frustrating but not all that surprising.  I was overjoyed t the thought that I had bought a very good 5 yr /60,000 mile warranty!  So I had an appointment this morning with a mechanic to check it out.  Also when we left Homosassa I was not convinced that the trailer brakes were working right.  The mechanic said the code reader was for a Nitous Oxide sensor and that could be why the brakes didn't work.  All I could think was what kind of idiot engineer made the trailer brakes turn off when a NOX sensor reading was off???

Next stop was the local Dodge dealer.  We have an appointment for tomorrow morning.  

This afternoon I fixed the trailer brake problem.  It was a bent contact in the plug.  Took 2 minutes and most of that was getting the pliers.

Took a hike out the trail along the lake for some good views and peaceful green surroundings.  While walking around the campground we were talking to a guy from Ontario whom we had met early yesterday.  /He and his wife told us about a good pizza restaurant near here so we thought that sounded good.  It was!

Drove around the park a while when we came back and saw a big turtle beside the road.  Stopped by for a visit and watched him eat some grass.  A half mile farther we saw 2 deer crossing the road.  While walking Cal before bedtime we had some small critter cross in front of us.  That got Cal all excited.  Quite a wildlife park!

Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park, Gainesville FL

Got off to a pretty slow start today.  Had to repack the back of the truck since I had taken out most of the cargo and stored it under the camper while making the trade.  Then Smith came over with a couple things we had forgotten at his house.

But when I went to hitch up the truck I discovered that I have a 2-1/2 inch receiver on the new truck and a 2" hitch.  OMG, where am I going to find an adapter on Easter morning????   Smith suggests the flea market, which is open every Sat-Sun.  We went to check on that while Smith scouted auto parts stores.  He found Auto Zone open.  They had the adapter.  Finally all set.

Came up here to Gainesville and this very nice state park.  Looks like they have a lot to offer, boating, several trails covering several miles and shady campsites.