Camping in Cutie RV: October 2022

Manatee Springs State Park, Chiefland, Florida

After breakfast and a quick stop at the marina, we headed north to Manatee Springs State Park which is a good stopping place to break up the trip back to Valparaiso. We had a quiet spot while we cooked chicken taco bowls in the instant pot only disturbed by the deer grazing in the woods behind us. In the morning, we packed up and drove over to the springs with our coffee and picnic breakfast. It was a peaceful walk along the boardwalk as we were the only folks out. We stopped for lunch at St. Mark's and had a superb burger with fries and a craft beer at Cooter Stew Cafe across the street in the shade from St. Mark's River. What a nice mini vacation!

Our campsite at Manatee Springs

Our shy deer

Reflections in the springs

No manatees spotted

Flood levels markers

A touch of fall color

Wood sculpture

Bright blooms

Shady cafe and plenty of bird visitors

American Space Museum, Harvest Host, Titusville, Florida

After a great breakfast on the terrace of Another Broken Egg Cafe overlooking the park in Lake Mary, we drove to Westland Marina Boatyard to check on our catamaran. After Hurricane Ian, we were sent pictures from the boatyard that all was OK with the boat but want to check for ourselves. One sunbrella cover on the front windshield was blown off and there was plenty of bird poop on the deck. We washed off the deck and Glenn installed the new windshield wiper arms. We took a shower at the marina and then headed down the street not far from Playalinda Brewery to the American Space Museum Harvest Host for the night. We spent several hours enjoying the exhibits and then walked over to the brewery for a couple beers, pork nachos, and Cuban sandwiches enjoying the outside dining to ourselves. We sat outdoors behind the trailer and enjoyed the cool evening. After dawn, we walked around the corner to Sunshine Bakery and enjoyed coffee and a scone on their outside bench.

Out front

Our campsite at American Space Museum

Outdoor exhibits

We squeezed in our lawnchairs for a little privacy after hours

The renovations across from brewery

The old sign around back

Our osprey visitor

Orange County Brewers Harvest Host, Lake Mary, Florida

We had a short drive to Orlando RV Center for our inspection. We found a great coffee shop with outdoor seating on our way to Trader Joe's. By the time we were done browsing, the trailer was ready to pick up. Another short drive to Orange County Brewers Harvest Host for the night. We were directed to park behind the hedge in their overflow parking which was a huge empty paved lot with trees along the hedge for a nice quiet spot. One other van spent the night. We had the outside patio to ourselves and sat on the comfy sofa by the unlit fire pit. The Tin Roof Restaurant had a wide selection of Mexican food to go with the great beer selection. We then had a shady spot outside the trailer to relax. We took a walk near sunset along the Seminole Wakiwa Bike Trail to locate Another Broken Egg Cafe for breakfast. We stopped at the bench in the park next door and watched a cricket game. This was such a great location and we were visited by a red-tailed hawk in the morning.

Our spot before we moved to the overflow parking lot

Our campsite at Orange County Brewers

Great location in an office park

Our noisy hawk

Wekiwa Springs State Park, Apopka, Florida

We headed south towards Orlando RV Center for the annual inspection of our airstream trailer for the warranty. We camped about 30 minutes from there at Wekiwa Springs State Park near Apopka. We had a beautiful wooded quiet spot as we cooked chili in the instant pot for dinner. We got up early the next morning with our coffee and yogurt and found the trailhead and took a wrong turn and ended up at the lake instead of the springs. We packed up and then took the car and trailer over to the springs for a quick walk on the boardwalk before heading off to our appointment.