NORTH TO JACKSONVILLE, FL February 24-March 7, 2018

We were back to our travels going north to Jacksonville after a wonderful time near my sister in Safety Harbor. We had a great stay at Rainbow Springs State Park for 5 nights arriving just in time for the annual "Cracker Days at Rainbow Springs".  But finding the campground itself was interesting since the springs and park are set in different location from the camping area. Of course the GPS took us to the main entrance of the park, which was wrong. So a turn around with our large vehicle and back 5 miles to the campground and soon we were set and relaxing again in our favorite element. 

I really love that we spend more time in the less populated areas in northern Florida, even if the weather is cooler than the southern beaches. Less people and the availability of sites is a real bonus. Florida is filled with natural springs and it's wonderful that so many states parks were created to save them for all to enjoy. This particular natural spring is a first magnitude headspring basin which produces 600,000,000 gallon of fresh water per day forming The Rainbow River. And it was stunning!

The river itself was not far from our campground, we rode to the river each day just to enjoy the beauty. Lots of kayaks and canoes traveling along it.

When we checked in the ranger told us to be sure to go to the main park for the festival going on that  that weekend.  Not having any idea what a Cracker Festival was, we went over to find out...and such fun! The festival celebrates the pioneering days of this area and is held the last weekend in February. The park becomes home to quilters, blacksmiths, basketmakers, woodcarvers, and even this wonderful folk music.

 This gentleman was displaying his collection of skins and showing how early settlers lived.

 And the azaleas were blooming...nice!

More music

  Even a demonstration of how a still works!

 And, I had a great video of a "cracker" but it won't post.  The title refers to a cattle rancher who uses a whip made of hand tied strings to drive the cattle along. A 12 year old boy was demonstrating how to make it pop or crack.

 As always, there were several beautiful bike trails near the park which took us on different routes and this one right down to Swampy's Riverside Bar and Grill.

 From Rainbow Springs we moved on to Rodman Campground for the next 4 days. Only 9 miles from the town of Palatka, it's also very near this dam. Originally created during the 1960s it was part of the Cross Florida Barge Canal project which was to connect the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean across Florida for barge traffic. Two sections were built but the project was cancelled many for environmental reasons. Today its been reamed the Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway.
 
 Visiting the town of Palatka was fun with its murals in the historic section; hard to see, but Paul is standing near this one. On our second visit we added a beautiful afternoon at the Ravine Gardens State Park and more azaleas.

 Then our last stay was just south of Jacksonville at Faver Dykes State Park.  I'd seen it on my searches each year we're in Florida but had never stayed so this year we booked a couple of nights.  A little different from what I'd pictured, but nice and quiet and remote. The surprising element is how far it is off the main highway, even once we reached the park entrance it was still mile or more on a dirt road into the campground.  We were beginning to feel a little uncertain as we were driving this huge vehicle down the little road but then we came to the gate house and all was just fine. Its a small park of maybe 30 sites, all of them nice and large.

 And it was the perfect place too start packing for our really big three month trip to Europe! After taking morning walks around the park I'd come back and work at planning and packing.  I'd ordered these soft travel packing cubes, what a fantastic way to pack!! Everything organized into its own little cube so easy to move right into the suitcases. I only wish I'd had a way of identifying what I was putting into each one...I've got to figure that out yet. Here's how it looked ready to pack and weigh the suitcases. No matter how many times we travel, the worst part for me is always the packing. It never gets easier, but it does get done!

And, now it was time to put the RV in storage and begin our longest travel outside the US. New adventures ahead, for sure!