Halloween Town

Our first stop in Florida is in St. Augustine. It is just a short drive to get there. We are able to get in just a little before check-in time. When backing into our site we notice how tight it is going to be. There is a tree in the back, one on the side, and the slab to fit in-between. We backed up as close we could to the slab and brought the camper as far back to the tree as possible to see if the slide would have enough room. We think we will have just enough room. We pull forward so I can put level blocks under the right tires then back in place it goes. We get everything in place then disconnect the truck. I begin to push the slide out while Chris stands outside to be sure we are good. When I say we have no wiggle room, I mean we could not go either way any different than we were. We did notice when we put the slide out and from being on the sand we were not level anymore but we are keeping it as is. It wasn’t the worst and I am not trying to get it between the trees again.

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Once we are all set up we took the bikes down and rode around the campground. We then decided to take them out and explore. We take a side street that leads us to the beach. The road is the access for cars to be able to drive on the beach. Bikes are also allowed so we took them all the way down to the end and rode back. Chris had to try a burnout which covered his bike with sand. We missed our exit but just went to the next one and headed back to the camper. We had a relaxing evening sitting out by the fire, making dinner, and turning in early for bed.

​Monday was a regular work day. We relax outside for a bit when done and then decide to take the bikes the other way down the beach. We find our way to the street and stop at a restaurant to grab dinner. I got an awesome teriyaki pineapple meal that came out looking fire and tasted as good as it looked. It was dark by the time we left so we headed back to the camper and went inside to get ready for bed.

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It is Halloween so after Chris finishes his work day we get ready in our costumes. I refused to spend money on a costume when it would just sit in the camper for the next year taking up space so we used the hats we had done in Nashville, wore flannel, jeans, and cowboy boots and we looked the part. We had to drive to the city of St. Augustine to get to St. George Street. The party we are going to is at Prohibition Kitchen so we decide to just eat dinner there before the party starts. Unfortunately, we had to leave the building and wait in line to enter back in for the event. While waiting outside in line the people watching and seeing all the incredible costumes was awesome. This town sure knows how to celebrate. We had a great time meeting people, dancing, watching the costume contests, and listening to the band play. We ended up leaving around 10 pm and walking around the historic town. It really gave a creepy vibe with people in costumes with the current surroundings. After walking for a while we head back to the truck to make our way to the camper.

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After working until about 4 pm when we log off eat some chocolate and chill for a bit. It was super windy so we went inside and watched multiple episodes of The Masked Singer. We had a healthy piece of pie for dinner and then called it a day, time for bed. Work wasn’t so bad because it was still super windy outside. At lunchtime I didn’t feel like sandwiches so we went next door to check out a local restaurant, Hurricane Grill. We share a meal and have a drink. Since it still wasn’t comfortable to sit outside and we seemed to spend a lot of time inside we walked down the road to have dinner at Oasis Restaurant. It’s on the second floor so we could watch the clouds move in. We could see it was going to start raining so we finished up, paid the bill, and headed back before it started. Once we get the chairs put away back inside for another evening watching TV and heading to bed.
​We get up for a last run on the beach. It’s a cool morning, the sun is rising and the wind has died down some. It was an excellent last run. After getting our day started the rain and wind have now moved in. It sticks around for most of the day. Once we are done working we take a walk around the campground to move our legs. It still isn’t the best weather so again it’s another night of sitting inside making dinner, watching TV until it’s time for bed.

The next morning it is raining so I lay around in bed watching some Netflix while Chris gets ready. Once he is out of the shower I get in and get myself ready. We make some breakfast and get things to head back into St. Augustine to explore more of the city in daylight. On our way into town, Chris has to take the truck to the beach for a drive. It isn’t often we get to drive on the ocean. We make our way down the beach and off on the next street then we head to a car wash for a much-needed wash. This was the first car wash since we left and Black Betty was dirty!

​We then make our way and find a parking spot inside the garage. I take the camera with us but I don’t end up getting many shots. We walk from the pillars on the top of St. George to the bottom of the street. Going into many of the wonderful shops and appreciating the architecture of the buildings. On our way back up the street we stopped at a bar to have an appetizer and a drink. We are on the way to the truck to drop off the camera when we stop in a local shoe shop and I ended up buying a pair of Birkenstocks that I had been wanting. 

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We drop everything off at the truck and head back to do a tasting at the distillery. I had forgotten my ID but they still let us in. We have a small group of 4 and have a fun time trying all of them. They had so many great choices. We ended up buying 5 (the 🔥 were the ones we got) so we got a 6th free along with a cooler and they also threw in some extra merch. They would have held onto it but they close at 7 and we didn’t want to have to worry about it so we walked it back to the truck.

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We then headed back out to hit a few bars we wanted to try. The first was the No Name bar. It wasn’t really happening but we did add our Instagram to the fence to join the many other doodles that had been made on it. We moved to the front to be closer to the street but still, the vibe wasn’t right. We had seen through the fence a band was setting up so we went to check it out. There was a sign that said to enter at the entrance of Bull and Crown Publick House. We make our way there and decide to grab dinner before heading out back. We had a great meal sitting on the front deck right on St. George Street so people watching was the best entertainment as we ate. Once we were done we still had some of our drinks left but we were able to take them out back to watch the band. They were on a break so we found a picnic table to sit at. There was an elderly gentleman sitting next to us with another man. We started chatting with them and found the other man was in the band. He was just on his way back up so we chatted with the elder man until the music started. The band was good. We danced some and after a bit it was getting late so we decided to make our way to the truck and back to the camper. 

We wake up at 5:45 (which is actually 4:45 because of the time change) to take the bikes to the beach do a sunrise ride and catch it with the drone. It takes a few minutes to get the drone in place but then it follows us as we ride catching the beautiful sunrise beyond the ocean waves and we ride along on the beach. It was chilly so I was glad I had a hoodie on. I couldn’t believe Chris was only in shorts and a T-shirt. Around 7:30 we bring the drone down, I snap a few photos with the camera than we ride down the beach. I am freezing by the time we are back and off the beach.

We go to Red Frog and McToad to get some brunch. I am so fricken cold. We are the first at the restaurant so we find a seat at the bar. I order an Irish coffee to help warm up and Chris gets a mimosa. Within no time there are 5 locals who have come in and sat at the bar. I guess I had sat in one of the seats they usually take but we all joked about it and said I can borrow it for today. They were a wonderful group of people. We chatted with them the whole time we were there. We had a great breakfast and a few drinks but then it was time to head back to the camper to start picking up as it was a move day. We say goodbye to everyone, I give the guy back his seat 😆 and we go get on the bikes to ride back home.
​We instantly started getting to work putting things away and packing up the camper to get connected to the truck. Again, we have no wiggle room so I watch to make sure Chris can pull forward safely. He does, I pull the level blocks put them away and we are off. We were told to take A1A all the way as it is a beautiful scenic drive down the Atlantic Ocean and brings us right into our next stop.

Turtle friend who was just passing by