Tuesday, November 27, 2018

Great Week with Family

Hi All,

We all got together for Thanksgiving.


The table groaned under the food load.

On Saturday we went out to celebrate Scott's birthday.

then back to the house for more celebrating.

Meanwhile back in Grand Teton, bear 399 and her two cubs are still out fattening up.
Thursday we get to Ding Darling-getting very excited.

Love,

Sandy & Carl 
Living & Traveling in our Motorhome
Volunteering across America
617-435-8502
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Thursday, November 22, 2018

Vilano Beach

Hi All,

For the last week we have been camped on the beach just north of St Augustine. Tuesday we hiked around the adjacent Vilano Beach.


The boardwalk through the salt marsh is decorated with ceramic nature scenes like this snowy egret.

A cute crab

and a chubby turtle.

At the beach we saw some real snowy egrets on the breakwater leading to St Augustine harbor.


The campground was sold out for Thanksgiving week so yesterday we moved to a different campground away from the ocean (and near the outlet malls!). In nearly 20 years of RVing, certainly our shortest trip at 11 miles. Once settled in, we began cooking. Sandy made a sweet potato casserole and Carl made a green bean casserole.

We will celebrate Thanksgiving with Scott, Tara and the boys.

Happy Thanksgiving to all our US friends and family and a belated Happy Thanksgiving to our Canadian friends.

Love,

Sandy & Carl 
Living & Traveling in our Motorhome
Volunteering across America
617-435-8502
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Tuesday, November 20, 2018

Fwd: St Augustine Lighthouse



Sandy & Carl 
Living & Traveling in our Motorhome
Volunteering across America
617-435-8502

Begin forwarded message:

From: Carl & Sandy <greenbaum2@gmail.com>
Date: November 16, 2018 at 9:40:17 PM EST
To: Sgreenbaum135@gmail.com
Subject: St Augustine Lighthouse

Hi All,

We met our friend Evalyn for a tour of the lighthouse. Just north of Anastasia State Park, the lighthouse has a unique stripe pattern and light flash sequence.


We wimped out on the 219 steps but the spiral staircase makes an interesting pattern.

This building housed the families of the head light keeper and his assist keeper. The small buildings on each end are the summer kitchens.

The lighthouse is also home to a marine archaeology research center. Their most recent recoveries are from the HMS Industry which ran aground while bringing British loyalists from Charleston to English Florida at the end of the Revolutionary War.

This carronade was date stamped 1760, setting the earliest sinking date.

Many flintlock weapons were found. This "Brown Bess" was x-rayed while still encased in concretions. Note that it is loaded with "buck and ball", a combination of musket ball and buckshot.

This convex mirror allowed us to take a selfie with the lighthouse.

After our tour, we attended a presentation by a USF History professor. The topic was his research on the early residents of St Augustine including summers spent at the Spanish archives in Seville. Perhaps the most interesting and entertaining history presentation we have attended.

Dark when we left, the lighthouse and quarter moon lit our way with a little help from Carl's cell phone.

Love,

Sandy & Carl 
Living & Traveling in our Motorhome
Volunteering across America
617-435-8502
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Thursday, November 15, 2018

Clouds & Rockets-GEEK ALERT

Hi All,

First we must apologize to all of the people living in northeast Florida. The last two weeks have been solid overcast and it is Carl's fault! Two weeks ago he bought a telescope and blue sky had been scarce ever since.

100 miles south it was mostly clear sky when SpaceX launched another satellite from Cape Kennedy. Carl grabbed some stills from the live stream.
Falcon 9 on the pad

Climbing out

After booster separation the second stage burn starts. You cannot see flames outside the atmosphere but you sure can see the heating of the  engine nozzle.

After separation, the booster burns its engine to return to earth

and land out in the Atlantic on the drone ship "Of Course I Still Love You". This was the third time this booster was flown!

After another second stage burn, the communications satellite was deployed in geosynchronous orbit at an altitude of about 22,000 miles.

SpaceX will be busy with four more launches before the end of the year. Then, early next year, they will test the Crew Dragon capsule for manned space flight and launch another Falcon Heavy with a big communications satellite.

By then we will have some clear skies and can send some of our own moon and planet photos.

Love,

Sandy & Carl 
Living & Traveling in our Motorhome
Volunteering across America
617-435-8502
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Sunday, November 11, 2018

Hanna Park

Hi All,

Yesterday we drove to Jacksonville and camped in this great oceanfront County Park. It is not far from where Scott & Tara used to live and we reserved our favorite site.

It's at the end of the last row with thick foliage between the adjacent site. The other side is a lake where we watched a cloudy sunset.

As the sun was setting, hundreds of wading birds flew in to roost for the night on islands in the lake. Few places are more secure from land predators than an island with alligators in the lake.
We saw hundreds of white ibis and almost as many herons and egrets. Osprey and a bald eagle completed the air show.

Today's Astronomy Photograph of the Day was nostalgic for Carl who worked on the Lunar Module Program . A panorama from Apollo 15 including the lunar rover.

We will be in Jacksonville and St Augustine until late November when we head south towards Ding Darling.

Love,

Sandy & Carl 
Living & Traveling in our Motorhome
Volunteering across America
617-435-8502
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Friday, November 9, 2018

Stephen Foster Folk Culture State Park

Hi All,

When Stephen Foster penned the words "way down upon the Suwannee River " he had never seen the river. The popularity of the song, made the Florida State song in 1935, motivated people to create a memorial to Stephen Foster here along the River banks.


This museum honors the author of 200 folk tunes that resonated with America.

This diorama depicts, "My old Kentucky Home".

Jeanne with the light brown hair.

As part of the memorial, a bell tower or carillon was built with a 97 tube bell array.

The Suwannee River is low this time of year

but the memory of this talented songwriter endured.

The park is in White Springs, FL site of an early tourist community. Check out the prices!

Tomorrow we are off to Hanna Park on the beach in Jacksonville.

Love,

Sandy & Carl 
Living & Traveling in our Motorhome
Volunteering across America
617-435-8502
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Thursday, November 1, 2018

One Step Closer

Hi All,

Today was a stressful day. Since our windshield wipers stopped working, we have been keeping a close watch on the weather. 

This morning we awoke to tornado watches, severe thunderstorm warnings and gusty winds- but no rain yet. We were rolling by 8:30 and got away before the front came through.

We drove east on I-10 through the area affected by hurricane Michael. For 100 miles at least 20 percent of the trees were down. In some places there were quarter mile stretches where every tree was broken off about 10 feet up. No billboards survived (not necessarily a bad thing).

We camped at Suwannee River State Park. We hiked along the river to the confluence of the Suwannee and Withlacoochee rivers.
With luck we will make it to Barberville tomorrow for Jamboree.

Love,

Sandy & Carl 
Living & Traveling in our Motorhome
Volunteering across America
617-435-8502
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