Back to Florida

Back to Florida – September 2011

Before we left Calgary the trunk and back seat of our disposable car were carefully packed with the boat paraphernalia that had been amassed during our summer stay in Canada. As our departure date neared a few family members were skeptical that the growing accumulation of purchases would fit. With a little strategic package placement Tom was able to close the trunk and both back seat doors and was still able to use the rear view mirror with an unobstructed view. The only intrusion in the front area of the car was one end of the eight foot aluminum spinnaker pole that protruded between the seats within six inches of the dashboard.

Not knowing how USCBP would approach our jam packed cargo and having visions of not being able to make everything fit quite the same ever again, we decided to spend the night on the Canadian side of the border and face that potential challenge in daylight. We were aware that Saskatchewan had become a “have” province but were still surprised to find Estevan’s hotel parking lots full of oil rig service vehicles. We considered ourselves fortunate to find a room for the night.

Not all prairie wheat fields are flat.

In the motel lobby we heard rumors about a combine demolition derby in the neighborhood but no one seemed to know when or where. It sounded entertaining. At breakfast the next morning we met the parents of the winning driver. The top prize was $1000 cash but he had to buy the combine first. Sorry we missed it.

The border crossing in the morning was a breeze. Passports, a copy of our US cruising permit and a cursory examination of our trunk and backseat was all it took to send us on our way.

High water levels from the spring floods were still in evidence as we travelled through North Dakota as they had also been in southern Saskatchewan. Fresh piles of rubbish from flood damaged homes dotted the roadways adjacent to the highway showing us that the cleanup efforts were still underway several months after the fact.

Hannibal, Missouri was the childhood home of Samuel Clemens, a.k.a. Mark Twain, author of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer as well as many other literary works. We arrived late in the day but with still enough light for a self-guided walking tour of the town.

Tom and Huck heading out for a day of adventure

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In keeping with the theme we ate catfish for dinner at the Mark Twain Dinette and spent the night at the retro and economical Mark Twain Motor inn. The pink tub and toilet were probably original.

While we are not huge country music fans we couldn’t resist the urge to stop and check out the Grand Ole Opry when we passed through Nashville, Tennessee. The Opry was closed for a private function the night we arrived and the nearby Opry Mills giant shopping mall was still undergoing repairs from the aftermath of a major flood in the spring of 2010. We took a backstage tour the next day.

One of the dressing rooms used by the entertainers.

 On stage at The Opry. No, I did not sing.

We found some live entertainment at the Nashville Palace’s open Mike stage where Randy Travis and Ricky Van Shelton apparently got started. The acts we saw on stage that night will not likely follow in their footsteps.

Interstate 24 heading SE from Nashville towards Georgia took us through a lush and scenic mountainous terrain. The winding highway was busy with more tractor-trailers than we had seen since leaving Calgary. At Chattanooga we changed to Interstate 75 and crossed the border into Georgia. The volume of traffic increased as we got closer to Atlanta and we saw our first evidence of a serious automobile accident. The remains of a burned out car were being removed from the scene of an earlier incident and traffic was backed up for miles. We can only hope that no one was seriously injured. Fortunately for us we were not travelling in the same direction as the affected traffic.

 Typical scene along the Interstates. Mile high signs advertising fast food, gas, cheap motels and lawyers.

Traffic jam in Georgia.

 

Georgia cotton.

At St. Mary’s, Georgia we caught up with boating friends Ed and Karin whom we had last seen at Big Majors Spot in the Bahamas. Over lunch we told “How I spent my summer” stories and compared notes for winter plans.

Before long we were in Fort Pierce, FL at Riverside Marina and prioritizing the job list.

 

Relevant Reading : The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain

Mark Twain, a.k.a. Samuel Taylor Clemens, used his hometown of Hannibal, Missouri as the setting for this fictional account of the antics of a boy and his friends as they found ways to entertain themselves in a life without Movies on Demand, HD television, iPads or any of the electronic gizmos that are so necessary today. Tom Sawyer and his BFF, Huckleberry Finn, hunted for and found buried treasure, witnessed a murder and attended their own funeral as members of the congregation.

Several buildings in Hannibal have been restored to reflect the era of Tom Sawyer’s life and some have even been designated as the fictional residences that exist in the story.

This was the home of Becky Thatcher, Tom Sawyer’s first sweetheart.

First published in 1876, the story is fun to read at any age, especially if you are passing through town.

You can probably get it as a free download for your e-reader.