STE3 Hop 7
217 miles via US 98, US 319, FL 345 and FL 24, with a refueling stop. Cumulative tow miles: 1300. Truck miles: 269. Cumulative truck miles: 1770.
Pelicans at sunset
Usually our refueling stops occur about 150 to 180 miles into the hop. This one occurred 24 miles into the hop. Why? Because the one diesel pump at the one gas station within 5 miles of our Port Saint Joe home was hit by a truck and put out of commission. So I was forced to find a place to refuel while towing the rig. I hate to do that, especially when the route does not include an interstate highway with a large truck stop.
Well, I found a Marathon station in Apalachicola that was actually pretty easy to get into and out of. The only other problem on the hop was that I thought I took a wrong turn when I got onto US 319 because that road took us due north for about 10 miles. I didn’t recall a northerly jog and figured the GPS was taking us on a longer (but faster) route. It wasn’t. The route did, in fact, include a northerly jog.
The rest of the trip was uneventful and only moderately interesting. But the day was beautiful and the traffic was light, so we traveled mostly under cruise control. I like that.
Our home in Port Saint Joe was Presnell’s Bayside Marina and RV Resort, on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico. We had a back-in site with unobstructed water views on two sides – arguably the most beautiful view in our 5 years of travel. Would we stay here again? Hell, yeah!
The best thing about that campsite? The view. Particularly the sunset view. I got some wonderful photos.
We dined on our last night in Port Saint Joe at the Sand Bucket, a very laid-back BBQ place just down the road. My pulled pork was very good, but the real star of the meal was the homemade potato chips. Just spectacular.
The view from my sofa
Pulled pork basket
The bay in daylight
First sunset
Our site