The Great Smoky Mountains National Park - The Drive

We decided to head to the Smoky Mountains to enjoy the fall foliage and do some hiking. (Little did we know that pretty much every other person this side of the Mississippi River had the same idea! More on that later.)

Since moving to Florida, we have repeatedly heard of "Buc-ees" - a convenience store/gas station phenomenon that has a cult-like following. (Yup - we're serious.) So after many drives up/down I-95 going from/to Florida, we finally decided to make the effort to go to a Buc-ees (which also advertise immaculate bathrooms). 

 

The place was HUGE! It was WAY more than a "convenience store" - there was a full grocery section, clothing area, touristy stuff, cookbooks, gift items, etc.... Pretty much they had everything. They even have these "famous" brisket sandwiches (yes, we tried one - it was okay), 

a dozen (or more) types of jerky, 

 

a bakery, and more. Oh yes, and the restrooms were very clean. And there is gas, for sure. No exaggeration - about 100 pumps. All this being said, we wouldn't go back. It takes WAY too much effort to get to the bathrooms and the gas pumps - much easier to go to a more traditional gas station - and most of the time time a decent one has clean bathrooms. 

 

Hello from Brad & Buc-ee!

 

 

Hello Florida!

 

We arrived to our new home in southeast Florida! Some statistics from our trip cross-country:

• Total miles driven: 6,134
• Total time spent in the car: 126 hours, 21 minutes, and 25 seconds
• Highest elevation: 12,005 feet in the Rocky Mountains
• Lowest elevation: below sea level in the Low Country of Charleston, SC

As we would drive away from an area, we independently rated each place - here are the results:

	Suzanne	Brad
Sun Valley	7	7
Springdale/Zion	9	9
Kanab/Bryce	8	7.5
Monument Valley	5	7.5
Mesa Verde	7	8
Black Canyon of the Gunnison	8	6
Rocky Mountains	10	9
Hot Springs/Little Rock	3	5.5
Charleston, SC	7	8

Along the way we had some great food and some not so great food - however we did get sick of hotel breakfasts pretty quickly. Overall we both think it was a great trip with some unexpected fun times and a bit of unplanned adventures. Now it's time to sleep in our own bed......ahhhhhh!😊

Everglades National Park, Florida

We took a quick trip to The Everglades National Park, along the Ernest F. Coe Scenic Drive to Flamingo. There isn’t really any hiking in the area – more like ½ - 1 mile boardwalks/paved paths – with elevation gains of 3 – 6 feet 😉. We basically stopped at every turn-out to see what was there.

Our first stop was the Royal Palm area where the first thing we saw was a car covered in tarps. Huh. Then there was another car covered in tarps. Huh again. Then people actively covering their cars in tarps. Hmm…. Well, after talking with one guy – and seeing signs posted all over the area - it seems as if the Royal Palm area has some pretty pesky vultures that like to eat the rubber on the windshield wipers and sunroofs, causing damage to the vehicles. The park provides the tarps, so there we were, covering our car in tarps!

Here are some of the pesky vultures – there were dozens all over the parking lot.

We first took a 0.4 mile walk along the Gumbo Limbo Trail – we saw one alligator but didn’t bother taking a picture of him since it wasn’t a good shot.

We then took the Anhinga Trail, 0.8 miles. This was a super cool spot with lots to see – our favorite walk of the day.  Some photos……..

Yeah – Florida is pretty flat! 😊

These grasses were probably 12 feet high.

Probably in another couple weeks, the lilies will open……

After our stroll, we (obviously) walked back in the parking lot – so see vultures on some of the cars, even with the tarps.

Of course, some people can’t read……and this guy (among others) was having a feast.

We drove a bit more and then walked on the Pinelands Trail, 0.4 miles of, you guessed it, pines.

Back in the car and a few miles down the road was Mahogany Hammock Trail, another 0.4 miles walk where we were more interested in the warping of the rails than the views.

Brad sort of blends in, huh!

West Lake Trail was up next, a 0.4 mile walk in mangroves. It was supposed to be a loop, but alas, nope.

We made it to the area of Flamingo and meandered around. While we were looking at the manatees swimming, a super-friendly construction worker (they are building a hotel in the area – it will be ready summer 2021) stopped while driving by to tell us about an American Crocodile hanging out by the marina – well, off we went! Here he is………

Here’s the best we could do to get a manatee photo....

We then walked the Guy Bradley Trail (can’t pass up a trail with the name Bradley now, can we?) and saw an osprey guarding her nest. 

 

And there ya have it!  It was a fun day – we saw lots of wildlife (birds, fish, alligator, crocodile, manatees, osprey……) and went on some nice strolls.