Scouting A Winter Retreat

We have another rainy day with temperatures in the 50s.  The weather in Florida has been somewhat disappointing this winter.  It has rained more than usual and the temperatures have been much cooler than normal.  I’m not complaining, mind you, just stating the facts.  Every day we are out of the bitter cold and snow in almost any region north of here, we are grateful.

Warm weather is what we are looking for in our winter destination.  We don’t necessarily want it to be hot, but at least rarely in the freezing zone.  Last winter, we wandered around south Texas to see how we liked that area.  Basically, we found it too windy and brown to suit our tastes.  It had its pluses, of course.  We found some really nice campgrounds, the people, both winter Texans as well as the locals, were very friendly, and goods and services were generally very reasonably priced.

We’re looking around northern Florida this winter.  We don’t have the winds like we did all over the southwest and the live oaks, shrubs, and even some of the grass is green despite the cold temperatures this winter.  So far, we haven’t found a campground we truly like which is also within our budget.

This morning we took a drive over to Williston.  This small community is about halfway between Ocala and Gainsville, but a little farther west.  We had heard good things about a new campground there and wanted to check it out.  Williston Crossings RV Resort is a relatively new campground; open maybe 3 years.  There is still construction going on.  It is very highly rated and justifiably so.  All the interior roads are paved, the spacious sites are concrete with concrete patios, and the park is beautiful landscaped.  We spoke at length with Mrs Owner who was very helpful and answered a zillion questions for us.  They have about 140 sites open and almost all occupied with another hundred under construction.  The new clubhouse is gorgeous.  They have a few activities, but certainly not the number we are familiar with at the Escapees parks.  This park has one big drawback for us--it is 20 or so miles from both Gainsville or Ocala where the larger supermarkets are and a Wal-Mart pharmacy.

It is a nice park and we were impressed.  Still, at this time the Plantation in Summerdale, AL is our first choice, but Williston Crossings is a close contender.

After our visit to Williston, we stopped by the grocery for some grub and have been relaxing at home this afternoon.  This is a super day for an afternoon nap, but I have resisted the temptation.  I wonder why?

We have no plans for tomorrow.  We’ll wait to see what the weather is like.