By the time we had gotten all packed up and made a stop at the sani-dump, it was 9:45 by the time we hit the road. Rather than taking an Interstate highway, we would be on highway 301 heading south towards Ocala, Florida. For the most part, it was a four lane divided highway. Unfortunately, not being on the Interstate, there was no Visitor’s Centre to stop at as we entered Florida nor were there any rest stops to stop and have our lunch. We managed to pull into a Shell Station in the small town of Lawtey where Steve filled up the gas containers to ensure we had enough gas for the quads once we got to Salt Springs. There was also a large lot adjacent to the station where we were able to park the rig and have our lunch as well.
We even saw our first cotton field along the way....
It was shortly after 2:00 when we pulled into a small shopping area parking lot in the community of Salt Springs...where the Visitor’s Centre was. After researching the area on the internet, we had decided to go to a small rustic campground call Delancy West. It was the only campground in the area where you are allowed to access the Ocala ATV trails directly from your site. All others do not allow ATV riding in the campground...you must unload at the trailhead. However, after asking the fellow at the Visitor’s Centre about the campground, it sounded much too rough a road to get our rig into. Rather than chance it, we decided to stay at the Salt Springs campground which was right across the street. We’d stay at least a night there and see how the road was before pulling the 5th wheel in.
When I got back, we sat outside with a cold beer before deciding to set up the satellite dish and see if we could find a signal. I had found the coordinates on a website called “DishFinder” and Steve set out to see if he could find a spot through the trees. After getting it all set up, I sat inside reading out the signal strength to Steve (via our two-way radios) while he moved the dish. To our surprise, he really didn’t have too much trouble find a satellite and a fairly strong signal...YAY!! We really think that the reason we had such a hard time in Waycross was because ShawDirect had turned off our signal. But we were up and running now...all was good!
After securing the tripod down, Steve went over to talk to a camper across the way. We had noticed he had an ATV with him and Steve wanted to talk to him about the trails. While he was gone, I tried and tried to get an internet connection on the laptop but had no success. Occasionally, I’d get a weak signal, but it was too weak to actually connect to the internet....BOO, HISS! Oh well, I believe there is Wifi up at the office...for a price. Guess I will just have to use it while we are here.
Once Steve returned, we decided to sit outside under the awning (out of the rain) and toast our new destination...we are now in Florida!! Wow, I really have a hard time believing it sometimes! What a blast!
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