Friends from Barrie Headed for New Orleans....

Tom and Johnni (Joan) are headed for Savannah, Jacksonville, and then New Orleans before heading home to Ontario.

Ocean Lakes Campground, Surfside Beach, South Carolina

We have been here at this resort campground for almost three weeks now. It has been a great place for me to recover from a bout with Bronchitis, with our site being just steps away from the beach. Before we leave this week though I wanted to share our thoughts on this place for others who may wish to come here.

Reception and Reservations: Reaching the campground by phone was challenging and I was left on hold for more than 7 minutes twice while calling for reservations. Normally this is not a big deal but when roaming, minutes are relatively scarce for us since we use our Canadian Blackberries as our main phone lines. There is an online booking system that works for American credit cards. Once we arrived and during our stay the reception desk was very helpful.

The Sites and Amenities: The sites are quite large and plentiful so you can find what you want, proximity to bathrooms, pool, playground, ponds or beach.

The Internet service SUCKS!!! You pay extra for it and if the park is full expect to go make a coffee while a picture is posting if it works at all, or expect to get online at 3 am where it is moderately better. Granted we were at a site near the beach and perhaps if we were nearer the repeaters, which look to be on top of the bathroom buildings, it might have been better. Also there is a picnic table area up near the laundromat where you can log on for free up to 12 users at a time and when I wanted to skype I did that because the signal is better.

A big laundromat (100 machines) and a store that is also quite large can be found on the grounds.

The park has a playground, and a large pool and a variety of other amenities that a visit to their website will reveal. It is a very large park so they also have golf cart rental available for a fee.

The water has too much fluoride in it to be drinkable so even though we triple filter, we could not drink it. There are drinking water spigots at the Post Office in the Park. We bought our drinking water.

Park Security: There is a front gate where all vehicles coming in are checked for a visitors pass. The site also has many cottages as well as the RV park. Security does rounds every so often during the day and overnight.

Would I Come Here Again? Well yes, but mostly for the beach being so accessible and for the area having so many attractions. There are loads of restaurants, tourist attractions, and shopping venues in the area.

Shark Fishing?

Richard caught two baby sharks yesterday and we released them both after noting how beautiful and healthy they looked... There were other retirees on the beach from the Niagara region who also were fishermen and one was excited to help get the first little shark off the hook and back in the water.
When Richard released them back to the sea we watched to be sure the rough surf didn't wash them up again. They knew what to do with that strong tail once they hit the water...

Surfside Beach/Myrtle Beach March 2010

Richard has been enjoying his fishing while we have been here at Myrtle Beach area. The water is cool but very beautiful. High tide this day was around 11 am and it was a cloudless sky as you can see with a temp of about 73F.

These fishermen were tending their crab trap line along the shore and the pelicans were very observant in case any bait or catch might come their way.

From our windows we can admire the palm trees and sunshine outside...

Camp sites here are large and with cement pads and grass. I love it when all the awnings are out. The more time we spend in the Airstream, the more we love it.

Yesterday we went out for lunch at Margaritaville, Myrtle Beach and we were a little disappointed that it was not on the beach as it should be! :-( The service was also not that great...we were comparing it to the one in Las Vegas on the strip and it has loads more character! We love the little Surfside Beach restaurant Nibils for breakfast and are headed there tomorrow morning with friends from the park.

Trip planning home is well underway now that my bout of Bronchitis is over. We have decided to go west and then north again opting to forgo both the eastern shore route and the one due north one through the Mountains in PA.

Every Trip Yields New Knowledge...

ATLANTIC OCEAN AT MYRTLE BEACH
Well this trip back to the old stomping grounds of my Parents is too much fun. Too bad I am feeling a little under the weather, but every day I get stronger and the sea air and rest are doing me loads of good! The weather has been just wonderful, we have slept with the bedroom windows open at night. We were laughing because last year we had to trade our down comforter for a lighter cotton one about mid Feb time frame but this year we are still enjoying the heavier covers at night.



So what have I learned this trip? Well I have learned that Richard can cut my hair and he does a great job of it. When you don't feel much like going out but you still need to feel neat and tidy you just make do. It took some convincing and assurances that no matter what happened I would not be upset! LOL. He did a super job and I am loving my new cut!


I also have observed here at this campground that if you take a site close to the playground then you will have lots of children nearby having fun. We are far from the playground but it is an observation I am filing away for the future! :-) Also sometimes a site a little farther away from the beach will actually give you a better view. You need to think about that because there are trade-offs.


The shower facilities are quite a bit of a hike away so we have been showering in the Airstream and this morning I was almost cooked like a lobster because the setting on the shower handle was a little loose and mostly hot hot water came out. I learned that RV water heater tanks do not have a temperature dial like our home hot water heater does so all the adjustment is in the faucet handle. So once you read the directions, unscrew it, and make the necessary adjustments safe showering is the end result. Our faucets and fixtures are all oil rubbed bronze and when Richard had this one apart he brought just one of the pieces out to me to feel how heavy it was...whoa, no wonder the Airstream is heavy! It is fixed now and Richard has just tested it with his shower.

One of the neat things I saw here at this campground is that some of the RV's appear on the hitch of an Ocean Lakes Campground truck and are placed on the site waiting for the owners to arrive from wherever...cool. So you can keep your RV here in storage and they will drive or pull it out and place it on the site right by the Ocean. You don't have to have a truck to haul it, you don't pay property tax for your cottage, and you can be guaranteed a great spot for vacation fun; beach, golf, attractions etc.

Sunrise .. South Carolina Style...

This morning Richard saw the orange on the wall outside the bathroom and realized something beautiful was happening out our door. He didn't wake me from my sound sleep as he stole out to capture these amazing shots...

Myrtle Beach 2010

Myrtle Beach, the sand is not as white as Perdido, but the sea is just as beautiful. We walked the dogs on the beach, something that is allowed here until May. Rudy and Reggie loved it...Reggie b-lined it for a young woman in a bikini and made friends as he always does...I can see I will have to be walking the dogs with Richard or who knows what "mischief" reggie will get him into!


This is the view from the Airstream door . This morning the sea was very calm and lovely.

Love birds...there is a long beaked white one out there too that I need to get a picture of...no idea what it is!

We went out to explore a little last evening...

This park also has multiple ponds with fountains...nice.

Atlanta is Behind Us!

Well, we left Playa Del Rio on March 3rd , heading for home a little early, with me very sick with Bronchitis and weak! It was a gorgeous day at the beach and a great day for travelling but we were sure going to miss the beach and the people for another year. Once we arrived in Birmingham, our usual first stop on the road North, I was too sick to go further and basically needed to rest in bed for a few days.

Birmingham South looked a little bleak this early in the season but the sun shone for three days and I steadily got stronger. The urgency to get home also dissipated while I recuperated and we decided to head out to the East Coast for a more leisurely coastal route home. We are also hitting Myrtle Beach, a favourite snowbird site for my parents when they were our age. Retracing their steps will be fun. I was thinking today that it is 42 years ago that I first went to MB with my parents for a March Break holiday. Wow time flies.

As we entered Georgia the Airstream rolled along effortlessly slicing through the air. We passed Atlanta on I-20 right through city centre! Glad it was Sunday and not Monday traffic!

Parked at the Flying J for the night we start up the generator to power up Airebella for the night's rest.

Sure hope the generator is there in the morning... :-)

Birmingham South Campground...

Birmingham South Campground has welcomed us many times. This past few days it has been a place for me to try to get over my Bronchitis resting in bed, relaxing with the sun streaming in the windows.

We had been heading North, hurrying that first day for a window of good weather, only to realize that I needed bed rest and a little pampering from Richard. :-)

As I start to feel stronger, we are thinking of the beach again, missing it !

Ottawa Visit Feb 2010

Derek and Brooklyn after bath time...
Louise and Madison ...

Payton reading!

Brooklyn skying with Grandpa!

Madison!

Baby Madison is three months old!

Brooklyn is 20 months old and a going concern...very sociable and chatty!

I waited every morning for the bus with Payton and one morning the snow was packy so we built a snowman and adorned it with my scarf!

Lisa and Madison and I got to have a quiet dinner alone at the red lobster. Madison slept the whole time!

The view of the Golf course from Lisa's back window.

I just returned from a wonderful visit with my children and grandchildren in Ottawa. The week was full of wonderful chats, visits with family, good times with the wee ones directly. It all made me smile but tired me out! I came back to Perdido Key last night with great memories, loads of pictures and a cold from a little too much sharing! LOL ... I guess you get the bad with the good sometimes so I do not mind it at all.