Our Other Florida Stops
Lois and I chose the month of April for our first ever trip to the Sunshine State. Disney World, sitting smack dab in the middle of our itinerary, was the most exciting and anticipated stop. And as we already shared in our previous blog, camping at Disney’s Fort Wilderness and spending two days at the Magic Kingdom was an epic adventure, full of sweet memories to cherish for years to come.
But with still plenty of days left to spend on either side of our Disney World extravaganza, Lois and I had chosen other special places to explore and experience before the Florida heat and humidity drove us north for the summer. Seriously, one could create quite a long punch list of things to see and do in this state, whether it be the Gulf shores, the Florida Keys, or the eastern Atlantic coast. But given we had weeks, not months to work with, much of that was gonna wait for another time.
Here are the highlights from our other Florida stops.
Fort Walton Beach, Okaloosa Island
Lois walking Fort Walton Beach at sunset
I’m not sure what Lois and I expected from our first trip to the Florida coastline, but “Oh boy!”, we are sure glad we came. Our eyes were treated to clear blue water laced with emerald streaks of color, providing stunning natural views. And the weather in early April was near perfect with temperatures in the high 70’s. Most importantly, horrible humidity was no where to be found, and better yet, enjoying the surf was very pleasant this time of year. It had a slight chill, but the water was very easy to get into under plentiful warm cloudless skies. This is not Hawaii, but what Lois and I experienced on Okaloosa Island — between Fort Walton Beach and Destin — certainly sparked comparisons.
That being the case, this is a resort area that attracts many tourists. But being April, with kids still in school, college spring breaks complete, and Snowbirds flying north for the summer, Lois and I were never overwhelmed by crowds.
There are certainly many places to stay and tons of restaurants to choose from. In our case, we spoiled Harold-the-RV with a site at an upscale RV Park. Hotels and the beach were on the Gulf side of the main road running along Okaloosa Island; we were on the other. Just two minutes away, Lois and I parked for free, then walked straight onto the beach. The RV Park, however, had its own water front to enjoy. Just a short stroll from our front door was the edge of the bay that separated this barrier island from the mainland a quarter mile away. Here we enjoyed a warm pool and tables under umbrellas, whiling away the afternoon enjoying boats of all kinds.
As for eating out, thanks to Yelp (a popular app) we had no trouble finding great food nearby. Our favorites included “Dat Burrito”, “Pazzo Italiano” (Crazy Italian), and “The Donut Hole”, the latter of which served delicious breakfast and lunch entrees until 9:00 pm — Lois says “Best pancakes in the world!”. And what did The Donut Hole offer for dessert? Donuts, of course, or if one prefers a piece of pie or cake as big as your head - yum! 🍩🥧🍰😋
I could go on and on about Fort Walton Beach and Destin, an extraordinary place to spend 10 nights. This place easily found a spot on our “gotta come back” list.
Kennedy Space Center
I believe most readers of this blog know that my last gig before retirement was working out of my home office for NASA’s federally funded Jet Propulson Lab in Pasadena, CA. How exciting that was! Having gotten a coveted NASA job, I was able to check-off a major bucket list item. For me, I proudly contributed to three planetary missions — two for Mars and one for Jupiter.
I have many amazing memories of working alongside the JPL R&D team. One particular highlight occurred during my first trip to their campus. To my surprise, one of my peers gave me a personal behind the scenes tour of all the cool stuff: misson control, the space craft assembly building, an up close look at a Mars rover, and more. For the general public, I believe JPL has a very interesting visitor center. But what I got to witness that first day was quite the thrill and an unexpected privilege.
Fast forward to 2025… During our first lap around the country, Lois and I made it a priority to visit two other NASA facilities: Johnson Space Center in Houston (2 days), and the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Wow! For the general public, these campuses host two of the greatest space museums in the world.
And yes, some time ago, Lois and I, with our kids, spent an afternoon at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum on the Mall in Washington, DC. This national treasure belongs on the short list as well, a must see destination for young and old.
As we set out from California this year, there was one NASA site left on our wish list — potentially the greatest one of all — the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Florida. So during our first trip to the Sunshine State, Kennedy Space Center was on the vacation docket — no discussion, a no-doubter, completely non-negotiable. 😉🚀🌖
“So what did we think?”, you ask. “Was it a total blast?” (pun intended).
Before I get into that… One very special highlight was seeing Kennedy Space Center with two of our great friends, Bruce and Janine from California. It turns out those two were coincidentally in the Orlando area on a special trip with two of their grandkids, celebrating recent high school graduations. Thanks to some careful scheming by Lois and Janine, a plan hatched to coordinate our visits to Cape Canaveral. What a joy it was to hangout with them that day, catching-up on life while experiencing this very special space center.
So back to that all important question… “Was it a total blast?”
Imagine my surprise when I learned — just a couple of days before we arrived — that a launch was scheduled on the first day of our visit to Kennedy Space Center. Best yet, it was no ordinary rocket. SpaceX was set to hurl into space their seldom flown Falcon Heavy. The purpose? To lift a massive communication satellite into orbit.
So this became the plan:
Spend 2 days at Kennedy Space Center
Watch the launch on Day 1
Meet up with Janine, Bruce, and grandkids
Do a 3 hour VIP tour of the assembly building and launch pads on Day 2
And this is what happened:
Spend 2 days at Kennedy Space Center
Watch the launch on Day 1
Meet up with Janine, Bruce, and grandkids
Do a 3 hour VIP tour of the assembly building and launch pads on Day 2
What?! Arghhhhhhh… 😤
It all began to unravel on Day 1, not long after we made our way to the viewing area for the launch. Barely settled into our spot, it was already time for the final countdown: T -30 seconds… 5, 4, 3, 2, 1… ………. ………. ………. …….. …….. NOTHING. Just crickets! Complete silence. No deafening roar of the engines. No sign of the rocket slowly lifting above billowing fire and smoke. Nada!
After several painful moments, the announcer, who had just a minute before enthusiastically called out the final countdown, got back on the microphone and sheepishly shared unwanted news. Mission Control halted the launch at T -28 seconds. “Sorry, folks, we’ll try again tonight at 8:22 pm”.
Wha, Wha, Whaaa!
Never mind that. Lois and I were so happy to enjoy the day with Bruce and Janine. We had a wonderful time taking in the sights.
But wait, there’s more… Later that same day came the final disappointment. NASA announced that liftoff was further postponed until later that week, after our stay in the Cape Canaveral area. Worse yet, our VIP tour on Day 2 was canceled — the general public was barred from the launch area until it was completed.
Bottom line: Was our trip to Kennedy Space Center “a total blast?”
Nope… It was “a total BUST!” ☹️
Saint Augustine Beach
Widely recognized as the “Oldest City in America”, this continuously occupied European-established settlement was founded by Spain in 1565. Saint Augustine predates by half a century both Jamestown and the Pilgrims at Plymouth Rock. Wow!
As for our visit, Lois and I chose to park Harold-the-RV at a KOA near the Atlantic coast. The town’s pier was less than a mile away, where we enjoyed watching beautiful waves along the coastline stretching miles in both directions.
In fact, “beach” became the theme for the week as we visited no less than three. Neither of us were up for a swim this trip. Instead, we spent many hours walking through the surf as it lapped onto the beach. While I took photos, Lois hunted for new trophies to add to her shell collection. Unfortunately for her, the public beaches are largely picked over. We did, however, hear a rumor that one particular location is a great place to find shark teeth, so off we went. But try as we may, none were found. Again, no surprise because while we were hard at work, we learned several other families were doing the same. Better luck next time.
Note: Truth be told, for a while Lois and I thought we found a shark tooth… until we later realized it was a random dog’s toenail - yuck! Worse yet, Lois kept it. 🤪
There is no such thing as a bad beach in the Saint Augustine area. Our favorite shoreline was just east of Fort Mantanzas National Monument. It is a holy grail for seeing shells of every size, shape and color. Bummer for us, it is on the grounds of the National Monument which means it is federally protected — no shells made it into our pockets that day. Even so, we call it our favorite because the beach is undeveloped and naturally preserved with plenty of wildlife to enjoy. Moreover, we almost had the entire stretch of sand to ourselves. As is so often the case, cool breezes and the repetitive roar of waves calmed our spirit and fed our souls.
So what about the Historic District? It is definitely a fun place to explore with boutique stores and restaurants galore. Adjacent to the old town is Castillo de San Marcos National Monument, a fort dating back to 1695. And on another side of the district is a large waterway with an ornate bridge and plenty of boats to see.
Saint Augustine was yet another Florida hit. There is much more to see and enjoy next time we are in the area.
What’s Next?
Just ahead are no less than three sets of dear friends to vist, one each in Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia. This includes a camping trip with one of them in the western Georgia mountains. Lois and I also anticipate more natural beauty to take in when we venture into the Appalachians in western North Carolina.
