Grant us rain, in due abundance, but stop it too, sometimes…

Different Site Same Campground

Another Slide out problem? Oh No!

Saturday 12/19/2009 – So we promised to move this morning to a different site by 10:00 AM. We woke up to a sunny beautiful morning, had coffee (I actually had tea – trying to keep healthy) and started to move everything out of the way, for the slide-outs. I am not sure how Hydraulic pumps work, but we have only one button in our new RV, and it pushes/pulls the slide-outs in one after the other. First the front one – the bedroom, then the living room, then the kitchen. In the middle of the process, the slide-outs stop coming in, and I need to release the button, wait a little while and start again. I am not sure if it suppose to be this way or if something is wrong.

As we were folding the slide-outs, when it reached the third slide-out, the kitchen, the slide-out got stuck. It looks like the bottom was pushed while the top got stuck, and the whole thing got at an angle.
I started pushing out, but guess what? first the bedroom, then the living room then the kitchen… Did not like it…
We make sure there are no Hickory nuts or any other debris, and tried again. After few attempts, the slide-out was in. I don’t know if it is because the RV was not leveled, or because of another reason, but that was scary.
Our site for the next 3 days is on a cement slab, and supposedly perfectly level. so we will see how it works when we leave.
This new RV does not have the levels on it like the older one, so I did not figure out how to level it yet. I will let you know when I do. Promise!

The Alligators drowned,

Moving to plan ‘B’

It has been raining since we got here to Mississippi, The whole 8 days of Chanukah, and we were stuck in the RV working and trying to catch up on the office work. Today for the first time finally the rain stopped! It was sunny and nice outside.
We did not want to miss this opportunity, as we were eager to get out. We did not get to see Alligators in Alabama, and we really wanted to see some, so Patti looked up and found an Alligator farm with air boat rides close to Moss Point, not so far from us – Gulf Coast Gator Ranch and Coast. That sounds like real fun! We grabbed the camera, directions and jumped in the car. maybe 20 minutes of drive – and we were there, but it was not a farm – it was a pond with a house in the middle. The rain of the last days have flooded the whole farm! Can’t believe it! The Airboats were abandoned and the whole place looked deserted. And the gators? I donno – They must have drowned. So now what – We will go back to the campground, get the bikes and go for a bike ride in the Mississippi side of the Gulf Islands national Seashore.
Moving to plan B.

From Nature to city and back on Bike

We drove back through the campground, packed the bike on the truck, took the handheld GPS and continued to the park. The park entrance is located very close to the city of Ocean Springs. In the ranger station there was a very polite older lady that tried to tell the full story of the history present and future of the park, from a geological, social and personal perspective. It was already noon, and we did not want to miss the outdoor sun, so as she was talking we snuck out the back door, I am not sure if she noticed or not. If you happen to get there and she is still talking, you will know why.
What we did get is a stamp for our National Parks Passports, and a map of a bike trail that goes all the way to the town of Ocean Springs and back. Total of 15 miles!
After the 8 days of doughnuts and fried food – we needed a trip like that, so we jumped on the idea.
The trail took us through the park, passing rivers, bayous, swamps and ocean views. The dominant trees were the oaks, and there are countless number of bird species in the area.  The city of Ocean Springs is a charming little town, and the views of the ocean can be seen from many places inside the city. The downtown was very vivid and had many art shops and since this is Christmas season – the streets and store fronts were decorated and festive.
There are some big nice houses just in front of the beach  with mature trees and unbelievable views of the ocean from the front yard. Don’t want to even guess how much those cost. We drove through many Marinas of mostly fishing boats and Sail boats. One boat caught my eye in particular – it was a very old boat. with a wood board on the side.















reminded me the old fishing boat from the movie Jaws. That is nice.
Here are some other noteworthy views that I captured with my camera: