Our first Year in USA

I note that it is exactly one year since we first flew into Florida on March 5th 2007, to start our adventures which we optimistically entitled ‘Let Hopes And Dreams Take Flight’. In that year we have been in Florida for exactly six months, over three visits. We have bought a Chevy Truck, a Travel Trailer and an electric wheelchair. We have travelled more than 10,000 miles. We have been as far south as you can get, Key West. We have been to West Palm Beach which is the most eastern point of Florida, when we visited friends there. North East to St Augustine and seen the oldest town. As far north as you can go, when we drove over the 31st parallel just north of Sneads. Almost as far west as you can go in Florida, by going to Pensacola. We have seen Everglades, mangroves, cypress and live oak hammocks, coral reef, Florida scrub, barrier ecosystems, karst (limestone) scenery, first magnitude springs, a shuttle launch, a civil war re-enactment, OK so we also went to the Magic Kingdom, lots of alligators, turtles, manatees, dolphin, racoons, bald eagle and osprey. We have swum in the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico. We have followed the River Suwannee and the Apalachicola. We have been to four bluegrass festivals, four bluegrass weekends (including a hog roast), performed on stage in a bluegrass band and been to the Florida Folk Festival. So far we have been in 35 Florida State Parks. We have written more than 50,000 words on our three blogs and taken more than 8,500 photo’s. I can safely say that we have had a wonderful time, which has more than lived up to our expectations. We have met a lot of really wonderful people, who have made our time here even more enjoyable. We are now looking forward to travelling to other states on our next trip.