Turtle Beach

Currently in Lake City, FL
Next stop: Florida Panhandle
Coming up: Biloxi, MS and New Orleans

We were lucky enough to meet up with several of the Keefe clan to celebrate the New Year.  Turtle Beach Campground on Siesta Key has been my favorite RV camp so far!  First of all, right off the beach.  Johnny and I took several walks on the beach - in the sunshine and not in the sunshine.

Path to the beach

Campground picnic tables off the path

Although not big, the campsites were beautiful and level.  There were privacy bushes between each site.  Johnny did a great job backing into our site on the first try.  You can see our red Jeep on the left hand side below.

 Kevin (Johnny's brother), Marianne (his wife)  and Johnny golfed - those of you who have golfed with me before know I just rode in the cart and enjoyed the sunshine.  And the beer cart.

There was some really cool wildlife visible right from the course.

Deer cooling off in the shade

That night we had dinner at the campsite.  Grilled pork tenderloin was delicious!

We were at Kevin and Marianne's for New Years Eve for dinner and games (Farkel and Wits/Wagers).  We were having so much fun I forgot to take photos!

Although the weather was nice for 3 days, we had 3 days of cold and rain.  We went to a movie on New Year's Day and then out for pizza with Margy Keefe (Johnny's sister), John Mehus and their friends Jim and JoNancy.  Johnny told lots of stories so there were lots of laughs!

We were able to get in one long walk on the Legacy Trail in Sarasota.   It is essentially a bike path, but it was too cold to bike the day we went so we walked.  The trail is the paved over railroad bed of the CSX railroad.  The railroad was built in the early 1900s to serve the Barnum and Bailey Circus which was headquartered in Sarasota for the winter.

Railroad Crossing

Shelters look like railroad platforms

One other quick historical note about Sarasota - Bertha Palmer came to this area to make it her winter residence in 1910.  This is the same Palmer family of the Palmer House in Chicago Loop.  Since I spent a good amount of time at the Palmer House during my career, I found this interesting.  Mrs. Palmer is credited with bringing investors and other development to this area of Florida.  Many streets in Sarasota are named after the Palmers. 

Finally, we had one big family dinner at Kevin and Marianne's that included Margy Keefe and her friends, Lauren Keefe (Kevin and Marianne's daughter) and Marianne's brother and mother.  It was a full house and full of fun!