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By Vicky Wells, on August 29th, 2010
Blog Title: What To Say?
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
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Aug 29 ~ Day #111
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Budget to date
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Spent today
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Total to date
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Daily average
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Total
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$11100
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$27.20
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$9430.97
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$84.96
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Miles by Road
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Miles by Sea
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Miles by Air
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Miles by Train
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Total Miles
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13853
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4451
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000
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69
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18373
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Current Location: Davie, Florida
Transportation: $
Accommodation: $27.20
Today’s Total Expenses: $27.20
What To Say?
The times that we spend several days in one place, particularly when we’re just relaxing and not sightseeing, are the times when we find it most difficult to do daily posts.
After all, how many ways can you say, “it was sunny” or “it was rainy”?
And, who wants to hear what you had for breakfast, lunch and dinner EVERY day?
More Liquid Sunshine
Today started very overcast which was actually kind of pleasant as the days that are really sunny can also be really hot!
Yes, I know, I’m complaining about the weather no matter what it is. Hey, I’m Canadian – it’s our job to complain about the weather. 
As the day progressed, though, the rain started – quite a lot of rain. By supper time it was pouring, which meant we couldn’t get out the Coleman stove or the JetBoil. So dinner was a couple of already cooked chicken breasts and salad. Actually, it was pretty good.
Stuff Getting Wet
As the rain continued we noticed we were getting little puddles of water on the tent floor.
We started moving the important stuff into the front of the car to keep it dry and putting down towels to soak up the water.
We were too late to save the cardboard box we were keeping our canned goods in but everything else fared pretty well.
By Vicky Wells, on August 27th, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
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Aug 27 ~ Day #109
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Budget to date
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Spent today
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Total to date
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Daily average
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Total
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$10900
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$93.19
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$9376.57
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$86.02
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Miles by Road
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Miles by Sea
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Miles by Air
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Miles by Train
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Total Miles
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13580+273=13853
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4451
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000
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69
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18373
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Current Location: Davie, Florida
Transportation: $30.00
Accommodation: $27.20
Food: $35.99
Today’s Total Expenses: $93.19
Condo to Camping
Today we made the transition from a one-bedroom condo back to our tent. It actually isn’t as difficult as you might think.
With all the tenting we’ve done on this trip the tent and inflatable mattress have become quite familiar and comfortable.
Geoff is now an expert at setting the tent up quickly and getting the mattress in place in the back of the Jeep.
We are here now until we leave for Europe in just a little over a week’s time.
We’re staying in another naturist resort. Yes, we’re very comfortable with that and, hey, it means a lot less laundry!
However, this resort was established in the late 60s and at that time it was out in the middle of nowhere. Now it’s actually surrounded by subdivisions with lots of houses.
Trying to Find the Cheapest Gas
We always try to make sure we get the best deal on gas whenever we need to fill up but this time we left it a little late and spent a little too much time trying to find the best price.
We pushed it so far this time that we almost ran out of gas! And, the gas station we did stop at had pretty high prices compared to what we had seen in the Orlando area and on the drive down to Fort Lauderdale. So, we just put $30 worth and headed back to the campground.
We aren’t planning to do much in the way of driving during this stay anyway. I expect we’ll head out for groceries in a few days and then the car will go into storage while we’re in Europe.
By Vicky Wells, on August 21st, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
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Aug 21 ~ Day #103
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Budget to date
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Spent today
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Total to date
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Daily average
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Total
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$10300
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$30.00
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$9094.38
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$88.29
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Miles by Road
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Miles by Sea
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Miles by Air
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Miles by Train
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Total Miles
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13488+34=13522
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4451
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000
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69
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18038
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Current Location: Vacation Village at Parkway, Kissimmee, Florida
Accommodation: $30.00
Today’s Total Expenses: $30.00
Day 103 – Saturday, August 21, 2010
Cypress Cove Day Pass
As an outing for today we decided to visit Cypress Cove – a naturist resort right here in Kissimmee.
On their website they offer a free tour and day pass and we thought we’d take them up on their offer.
Great Weather
The weather forecast for the day was favorable – 90 Deg. F and small chance of afternoon thunderstorms.
Given how hot, humid and rainy it’s been we thought we had better jump at the chance to take advantage of a, hopefully, good weather day.
Pools, Paddle Boats and More
This resort certainly has a lot going for it. We were given a complete tour and they have several full time residents, lots of RV sites and several tent site as well. In addition to that, they also have a few hotel rooms and apartments with full kitchens for rent.
There’s tennis courts, a big lake with paddle boats and canoes that are free to use and two heated pools as well as a very large hot tub.
Surrounding the pools are things like a boutique, clubhouse, hair dresser, restaurants and bars and even the American Nudist Research Library with quite an extensive collection of nudist publications through the years.
We even donated a copy of our book “The Elusive Beaches of Eleuthera” which rates each beach on the island for privacy.
Is Bigger Better?
It’s probably the biggest naturist resort we’ve seen so far with a lot going on.
We felt that perhaps the size of the resort accounted for the feeling that we got that it wasn’t as friendly or welcoming as other naturist resorts we’ve been to.
However, we were visiting on a singles weekend, so maybe that had something to do with it as well.
If you’re in the area, take advantage of their day pass to check it out.
Rain, Rain Go Away
Well, it seems that if it’s Florida, then it will rain in the
afternoon, as sure enough it did.
It certainly cleared the pool really quickly, particularly when there was some thunder.
Trying Out the Paddle Boats
When the weather cleared, we actually took one of the paddle boats out on their 50-acre lake. It was calm and pleasant and – thank goodness – we didn’t encounter any gators. Hey – it’s Florida!
Back to the Condo
A short drive back to the condo for dinner, drinks and relaxing in front of the TV. Yep, pretty boring but still enjoyable.
By Vicky Wells, on August 12th, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
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Aug 12 ~ Day #94
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Budget to date
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Spent today
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Total to date
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Daily average
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Total
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$9400
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$54.00
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$8466.43
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$90.06
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Miles by Road
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Miles by Sea
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Miles by Air
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Miles by Train
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Total Miles
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13148+112=13260
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4451
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000
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69
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17780
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Current Location: Sunny Sands, Pierson, Florida
Today’s Total Expenses: $54.00
Accommodation: $34.00
Food: $20.00
Breakfast at Denny’s
We both had trouble sleeping this time and only got a couple of hours at the rest area. So, it was still about 3:00am or so and we were back on the road again.
We had plans to camp on August 12th, but 3:00am was way too early to arrive anywhere.
So, like I said, in a weak moment I said, “Hey, let’s go have breakfast at Denny’s. They’re open 24 hours and that should use up some time.”
So, that’s what we did. We got Madge (our Magellan GPS) to direct us to the nearest Denny’s and we had one of their larger breakfasts.
We didn’t need it, it was way too much food. We had stuff in the car that we could have had for breakfast and it wouldn’t have cost us anything.
Our breakfast ending up costing us, with the tip, $20.00! That could have been applied to a hotel room or campground where we could have used food we have already purchased and also got a much better night’s
sleep.
Like I said, spending a few hours last night at a rest area and then spending $20.00 at Denny’s was really a false economy. Hopefully I’ve learned from this mistake.
Sunny Sands, Pierson, Florida
We will be checking into our first timeshare tomorrow, August 13th, and decided to spend tonight at Sunny Sands, a family naturist resort, in Pierson, Florida.
We arrived way too early at Sunny Sands but were able to check in at 8:00am. We had a lovely camping spot and they also had a sparkling clear swimming pool that was most welcome after all the driving and heat we’d been through.
More Rain
During the afternoon there were a couple of rainstorms, but they cleared up quickly and we were hopeful that the tent would be dry by the morning when we needed to pack up.
Shooting Stars
We were back in the pool around 10:00pm to cool off before turning in for the night and found out that there was a meteor shower predicted for tonight.
Well, we did see one shooting star, but that was it and we waited for at least an hour or so. Still, it was pretty impressive as it streaked across the night sky.
By Vicky Wells, on July 31st, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
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July 31 ~ Day #82
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Budget to date
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Spent today
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Total to date
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Daily average
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Total
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$8200
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$96.00
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$7746.21
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$94.46
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Miles by Road
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Nautical Miles
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Miles by Air
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Miles by Train
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Total Statute Miles
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10529+128=10657
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3856 [4437]
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000
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69
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15163
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Current Location: Cavendish, PEI
Today’s Total Expenses: $96.00
Transportation: $56.00
Accommodation: $40.00
Confederation Bridge to Prince Edward Island
This morning we packed up our tent and headed over the Confederation Bridge into Prince Edward Island.
We had been told by others that there is no charge to use the bridge to get onto PEI, you are only charged when you leave. Apparently the same is true of the Wood Island Ferry.
As we drove over the bridge, which is an impressive drive by the way, we got a quick glimpse of the charges for the bridge. We only saw one sign with the prices, so, if you miss it, you miss it, I guess.
Anyway, I was pretty sure the sign indicated that for a passenger vehicle the charge for the bridge was $42.50. That seemed pretty high to me, but it’s a pretty impressive engineering feat, too, so I guess it’s right.
And, like I said, you only get charged once, so that’s not a charge for each way – thank goodness!
Red Soil and Potatoes
You may or may not know that Prince Edward Island is pretty famous for its potato production. I think, if you’re Canadian, you’ll probably be aware of that fact, but maybe not.
Some Canadians may even remember the Stompin’ Tom Connors song about PEI, but now I think I may be really dating myself.
One thing that I certainly didn’t know about PEI is that the entire island, at least the parts we saw, seem to be completely covered with red soil. And, when it rains, red mud.
I actually found it fascinating.
Oasis Campground
We had decided to stay at Oasis in Cavendish, PEI. It’s Atlantic Canada’s only naturist resort.
It seemed kind of pricey – $40.00 to tent there – but every lot had water and electricity even though we only needed an unserviced lot for our tent.
It’s a tiny resort with a small swimming pool and there weren’t many people there during our stay.
Because of the price, we decided to stay only one night. Had their prices been a bit more reasonable we would have likely stayed a few days. Regular campgrounds in the area were more in the $20.00/day range.
However, as with most naturist resorts, everyone was friendly and welcoming.
Charlottetown, PEI
I particularly wanted to see Charlottetown, the birthplace of Canadian Confederation, so, after setting up the tent we headed into the capital of PEI.
I was hoping for an impressive waterfront, but that wasn’t the case. It was difficult finding a parking spot, but when we did find one we grabbed it.
I had always thought that the place where confederation happened was called Confederation Hall, but, apparently, it’s called Province House.
We stopped into a museum near the waterfront to ask for directions and were pointed in the right direction and told to look for “the gray building that’s shaped like a Kleenex box”! Honest to goodness, that’s a quote. And you know what, he was right!
On the second floor of this particularly unimpressive building is the room where confederation happened.
I had hoped for something more impressive to mark the birthplace of my country, but, well, we Canadians in general are kind of low key, anyway – right?
Scenic Drive on Highway 6
Heading back from Charlottetown, we decided to take the scenic drive along Highway 6 expecting to see a lot of ocean and beach, but no such luck.
We got a little lost at one point and ended up heading into a Provincial Park. They wanted a fee, but we told them we just wanted to drive through and they let us proceed. However, we still didn’t get to see much ocean on the drive.
Evening Campfire
People we met at the pool in Oasis invited us to join them at their evening campfire and we were happy to accept.
It was a lovely evening with lots of lively, interesting conversation.
Thanks for inviting us.
By Geoff Wells, on July 3rd, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
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July 3 ~ Day #54
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Budget to date
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Spent today
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Total to date
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Daily average
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Total
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$5400
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$24.00
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$6140
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$113.70
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Miles by Road
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Nautical Miles
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Miles by Air
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Miles by Train
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Total Statute Miles
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6924+00
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3826
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000
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69
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11,427
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Current Location: Green Haven Sun Club, Balgonie, Saskatchewan
 Green Haven Clubhouse New Friends
We arrived at Green Haven late on Tuesday night and there were only a few people on the grounds. Many people from Regina and the surrounding area have permanent campsites here but they generally only come out on the weekends.
Since this is a long weekend more people than usual are stretching the weekend (Thursday July 1st is the official holiday) so the camp has been gradually filling up.
Naturist Lifestyle
This blog is primarily about traveling on a minimal budget so we have not said much about the naturist camps we have stayed in along the way. However, I think we would be doing our readers a disservice if we failed to point out the advantages in staying at clothing-optional camps.
Friendly People
We are always amazed at how welcoming and friendly everyone is compared to a textile camp (non-nudist). We have stayed at many regular campgrounds and never exchanged a single word with any of our fellow campers.
Value For Money
Prices vary, but on average you pay about the same to stay at a clothing-optional campground as a textile one. The difference is that most camps have a pool, hot tub and free hot showers. You generally get to use the clubhouse and its kitchen, plus things like pool tables, darts, possibly a sauna etc.
Northern based clubs will often have a community campfire at night where everyone meets whereas in a textile camp you have to buy the wood for your own personal fire that you sit by alone.
No Laundry
A final benefit that is important when you are traveling as light and as long as us is that in a clothing-optional camp there is no laundry to do.
By Geoff Wells, on May 10th, 2010
There is so much to see and do in the world and not enough time to cover it all. We don’t want to end up in the rocking chair at the old folks home complaining about all the things we wish we had done – so we are just going to do as much as we can from now on.
Money – there is never enough
Having the will is one thing but practically you have to be able to pay for it. With even a modest income you can do a lot of traveling and we are going to prove it.
The Challenge
We have set ourselves a limit of an average of $100/day. Continue reading $100/day Travel Challenge
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