Holidays in Titusville

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Having arrived at our lot in The Great Outdoors (TGO) at the beginning of November, we have started to see other residents slowly starting to return for the snowbird season over the past few weeks. I don’t know for certain how many of the owners of the 1625 lots within TGO are year-round residents but my gut says it is only on the order of 20%. That means the other 80% are only here during the winter months - like us.  It seems like a good number of them don’t arrive until December while others stay up north until after all the holidays are over before hitting the road to Florida.

Bird of Paradise on Our Lot at TGO

The day before Thanksgiving, we have a special geocaching event to attend at a city park near Rockledge. Known as a CITO (Cache In Trash Out), think of it as a group of people that come together to help pick up trash. In this case the group is a bunch of geocachers from the area. There were about 10 to 12 of us and we spent the hour wandering all over Dick Blake Park and picked up an impressive amount of trash. It was fun to get a chance to meet some of the true locals since we are far from full time Floridians. We had a quiet Thanksgiving day back in our rig and Chris prepared a great meal.

Like I mentioned in the previous post, our sightseeing and exploration activities drop off significantly when we come to our lot for months on end. But we still take the time to explore from time to time. In early December, we head down to just south of Melbourne to Turkey Creek Sanctuary Park. We  have never been to this park before but there were several geocaches and an Adventure Lab to show us around the trails. We start out at the nature center. There are lots of exhibits and even a few terrariums with some native animals.

Frog

Pair of Lizards

Osprey

The park consists of 130 acres with around 5 miles of trails. We let the caches dictate our route along the trail.

American Beautyberry

There are a fair number of boardwalks in the park because it looks like there may be some wet and muddy areas during parts of the year. It’s been fairly dry so mud wasn’t an issue.

Boardwalk at Turkey Creek

Not too surprising based on the name of the park, we eventually find the creek. We spotted a few animals along our hike. A turtle was sunning on a fallen tree perched over the water.

Turkey Creek

Turtle Sunning

We even spotted a raccoon wandering in a marshy area. We enjoyed the walk and will need to come back later to check out more of the park.

Raccoon

Another Creek View

While we were down near Melbourne, we head over to check out the Bass Pro Shop. Lots of these stores have all sorts of wildlife displays but this one included a few outdoor pens near the front door. One side had a few hogs while the other side was filled with some gators.

This Little Piggy

Large Gator at Bass Pro

One of the activities that takes place here at TGO each year is the golf cart parade. The past two winters we have been in the park, we had never wandered over to see what it was all about. This year we made the effort to head over to watch the festivities. The parade route consists of a little over 3 miles along the main park road - going past about a quarter of the total lots within the resort. Our street isn’t on the route but it’s only a quarter mile walk from our site to where all the participants are to converge ahead of the late afternoon start time. The whole rally parking lot was full of golf carts and people. Many of them were elaborately decorated or dressed for the popular event and everyone seems to be having a good time.

Dog Relaxes Before Parade

Lined Up and Ready to Go

We walk over just a little bit from the staging area to find a spot to watch the parade. Of course Santa has to make an appearance at a Xmas parade.

Santa

Snowman Cart

Some of the people have more decorations than fit on a normal golf cart and are forced to pull some sort of trailer.

Large Trailer

Small Trailer

There were well over 100 participants.  Most followed the Christmas theme but a few used random decorations while a couple simply drove their plain golf. Since we are some of the very few people at TGO without a golf cart or even the desire to own one, we aren’t sure what the fascination is with them.

Jurassic Park Theme

Santa and Mrs Claus

There were lots of bubble machines playing music and automatically blowing bubbles. A few people did their bubbles the old fashioned way with a jar of soap and a simple wand. A fair number of the people had large amounts of candy and we constantly found treats at our feet.

Abominable Snowman

Clown Makeup

It took nearly 30 minutes for all the contestants to make their way past our spot. Towards the end, a couple of the grounds maintenance workers came by on their mowers.  They weren’t elaborately decorated but were enjoying the crowds. There was even a golf cart that looks like a fire truck to bring up the rear of the parade.

TGO Grounds Workers

A few days later was another community event we hadn’t tried in earlier years. The Twin Lakes De-Lites is a nighttime Christmas light show on a couple of the side streets on the south end of the resort. There are about 100 homes in this area and almost every single one of them is decorated - some with quite elaborate displays. There are hundreds of luminaries lining the side of the street helping to light the way.

Luminaries Line the Street

Surfing Santa

For this event, the streets are closed to cars but open to golf carts (of course), bikes and pedestrians. It’s about a one mile walk from our site but it was a nice evening so we didn’t mind.

Santa With His Rocketship

Nativity and Shadow

One home has Santa and Mrs Claus ready for pictures and another one has a musical group singing Christmas carols. One resident has a very large train display setup and running multiple trains.

Santa and Mrs Claus

Carolers

Elaborate Train Display

It was quite a festive atmosphere with many of the residents offering treats or hot cocoa. I suspect there may have been stronger drinks available if we knew who to ask.

We spent well over an hour checking out the displays and mingling with people. Of course when we were done, we still had the long walk home having gotten in 3.5 miles in total.

About 30 miles southwest of TGO is the Brevard Zoo. Our mission wasn’t to go to the animals but to do a walk that starts near it. The Brevard Zoo Linear Park Trail runs south from the zoo for almost 3 miles. There are multiple geocaches and an Adventure Lab along its length. Much of the trail is a wooden boardwalk and while it was a relatively pretty walk it is close to Interstate 95 - at times only a couple hundred feet away. Usually the trees and brush obscures the view of the highway, it’s hard not to hear the constant sound of the traffic.

Boardwalk on Brevard Zoo Linear Park Trail

At one part along the trail was a work crew clearing brush along the boardwalk. It looked like hard and endless work. Some of the brush was being cleared from the boardwalk while some was being cut back even further from ground level. We stopped to talk with some of the crew and they said that woods adjacent to the walkway tends to overtake the walkway and needs to be cut back each year. Fortunately it’s been dry enough that the area was not a swamp so it was safe to be down there and they were able to cut some sections even further. We could definitely tell a difference once we got beyond them. We made it about two thirds of the way to the end when we decided to turn back. It’s a nice enough trail but there are better ones that are a bit more peaceful.

Green Anole

Black Vulture

A couple of weekends before Christmas, we had two options of events to attend. One was the Merritt Island Christmas Boat Parade about 20 miles south of TGO. This had been the one we wanted to see but after investigating where were the viewing points, it wasn’t clear where to go to see the parade that wasn’t on private property along the creek. The second option was the Titusville Christmas Parade. This one is much closer and easier to figure out where to be along the route. The only issue is how popular the parade is, so parking is a challenge. One of the large shopping centers about a half mile from the start of the parade was as close as we could get but we arrived early enough to find a front row spot as we waited. A little after 6 PM, we could hear the bands starting up and the sirens of the emergency vehicles.

Antique Fire Truck

Police Bloodhound

Bubbles

There were all sorts of groups marching or on some sort of float. There were a few horses too.

Brevard County Sheriff Horses

Local Construction Firm with Float

This was a very family friendly event with kids lining the streets and others on the floats. There was a lot of candy being tossed to the crowd but they would need to land on our laps if we had any chance of getting a piece from the nearby children.

Old John Deere Tractor

Pontoon Boat as a Float

Pumpkin Carriage

There were lots of fire trucks both from Titusville and nearby towns. The variety of groups marching was impressive. I swear every heating and cooling contractor in the region had built a float to pull behind their work vehicle - good advertising I suppose.

Flaming Baton Twirler

Local Remote Control Club Shows Off

Glowing Tuba

The parade lasted nearly 2 hours which was a long time to be sitting on the side of the road but we had fun. The walk back to the car and all the traffic afterwards wasn’t great but a small price to pay for a nice evening.

Shriners

Choo Choo

About a week later we would head north towards New Smyrna Beach. Chris was in search of some new shoes and had located a well regarded shoe store in town. We decide to make a day of it and stop for a hike first at the nearby Spruce Creek Preserve. There are numerous trails for both hiking and mountain biking on this 2500 acre property. We picked one that wasn’t listed in AllTrails but having numerous geocaches hidden along the trail made it clear it was an option.

Trail in Spruce Creek Preserve

It was a pleasant walk. It was clear that bikes use the trail based on how it is laid out and the tracks in the ground but we didn’t run in to many other people either on bike or foot. We made it up to a nice viewpoint called Sunset Bluff that has a picnic table to relax and enjoy the views. We ended up with nearly a 5 mile hike and found 8 of the 9 caches we looked for. With all the other trail options, we need to consider a return trip to explore more.

Gopher Tortoise Hides

View at Sunset Bluff

From here, we drove into New Smyrna Beach so Chris can check out a place called Fleet Feet. I assumed this would be a quick stop for her to locate the shoes she was hoping to get, try them on and head out. When we went inside, it was clear this was a very different type of shoe store. When the salesperson had Chris walk across some high tech floor that measured all sort of aspects of her feet, I knew this was going to take awhile. So I head out and wander around the cute little town. Even though beach is in the name of the town, we are on the west side of the Indian River about 2 miles from the Atlantic Ocean. Eventually Chris texts me saying she was done and wondering where I was. With all that effort, they didn’t have the style of shoe in her size so it needed to be ordered.

Xmas Tree in NSB

Nice Mural

It was midafternoon by now and we decide to head over to the beach, find some ice cream and just stroll on the sand. This part of the beach is actually open for vehicles. Apparently the sand is quite firm for a few miles and people will pay the $30 per day to come here although I later found out it is free if you are a local resident of town. Besides the cars, there were a fair number of cyclists out as well. There was a couple sitting on the boardwalk next to their bikes so we asked them how the biking was here. They said it was very good and while a mountain bike would be best, there is no need to have a fat tire bike to pedal on the hard packed sand.

View at the Beach

Life Guard Tower

Two years ago, we had driven down to Cocoa Beach for the annual Surfing Santa event. This takes place on the morning of Christmas Eve. We had a blast and while we didn’t attend last year, we really wanted to go back. We had learned a few lessons from that first time. We don’t need to arrive at 6 AM to find parking. More importantly, wear something more Christmasy than just red and green shirts. Since then, we have both found very festive hats. I found an elf cap at Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland in Frankenmuth Michigan and Chris had picked up an “dancing” Christmas hat that plays Xmas tunes at a garage sale here at TGO. We did run into a lot of more traffic coming in later but we found parking at Lori Wilson Park 1.5 miles north of the event. There was also a great swell of pedestrian traffic walking down to the main beach area so coming in early may still have been a better idea?

Crowd at Cocoa Beach

Blue and Yellow Macaw

The weather was much more pleasant this year than the last time we were here but it’s hard to say if there were more people or not. We walked around and people watched. We saw some of the costume contest that brings out some very creative attire. There are a few different groups that come in to perform on the main stage. And since the weather was a bit nicer and the rip currents weren’t as bad, there were a lot more surfers.

Lifesize Holiday Barbie Doll

Polynesian Dance Group

Hang Ten

Santa arrived in an unconventional sleigh - a helicopter and dropped into the Atlantic from 25 feet above. Several powered paragliders that also made an entrance over the large crowds gathered here.

Santa Arrives

Paraglider Above

By 11 o’clock, we had seen enough of the large crowds. It was fun but didn’t seem quite as magical as our first time. Check out the prior blog post that has even more pictures and a link to a YouTube video I created of that first experience at Cocoa Beach Surfing Santas.

2023 Surfing Santa Post

Wipeout!

One of the features of our motorhome is our stacked washer and dryer. While they might not be a necessity for people that only travel occasionally, as full time RVers, the ability to do laundry in the rig is a must. Since our coach is a 2012 with original appliances, ours are over 13 years old. For the past few years, the washing machine has been rather temperamental. I have changed a part or two to get it to limp along but just before Christmas, it displayed a new error code. From what I could tell, the issue was either a bad controller or the motor was dead. In either case, we would need to pull them out as a pair since they are bolted together to even access the washer internals to complete a diagnostic. Given the cost of either of the parts and the age of the rest of the machine, and the problems we have been having, we decide it is best to find a new washing machine. We measured as best we could without removing them to determine the size that could fit since I’m not sure the motorhome wasn’t built with the current units in place.

We spent a great deal of time figuring out which present day washing machines would fit which eliminates all but a few units. After reading reviews, watching YouTube videos and shopping around, we make our choice and order one from Lowe’s that can be delivered between Xmas and New Year’s. The removal process was going to be a bit of a challenge for us. As I mentioned, the two units are bolted together for stability while traveling but it also means they weigh a lot, plus they are up on a platform in a cabinet with doors that is 14 inches above the floor of the rig. So I cannot simply disconnect the utilities and slide it out. That’s where being a member of the Sawdust Club here at TGO comes in handy. Besides having all the tools to build a platform, I found some scrap 2 by 4’s that I could use to make a platform that will be at the proper height to slide the units out.

Once they were separated, the dryer was light enough for Chris and I to simply place it on the bed out of the way. But when we try to lift the washer, we realized we don’t have the required combined strength to lift it up the additional foot or so to clear the corner of the bed to get it to where we could slide it along the floor. Fortunately our neighbors, Paul and Connie have arrived from Michigan by now and he was willing to come give us a hand. With it slide out of the bedroom to the front of the rig, we still need to get it up and over the passenger seat and out the just barely wide enough doorway. Since the washer was just being trashed, we decide to dismantle it and remove the side panels, motor and two concrete weights that are bolted inside the washer to help keep it stable during the spin cycle. With those parts removed, Paul and I had little trouble getting the rest of it outside. I needed to know and pulled out our scale to weight the concrete. The two pieces were each around 30 pounds and the motor was 16 pounds!

Fortunately the washer is delivered to our site by a couple of burly men with the proper lifting straps. We had already removed the passenger chair so the guys had no trouble coming into the rig and getting the new washer sitting on my platform. With Paul’s help, we got the dryer lifted up and attached to the washer. All I needed to do was slide the units in place and reattach the utilities. Not an easy job with the tight quarters, but successfully got them secured in their place so they should not move while driving. One side note, when I pulled out the old water supply hoses, they each had the words “replace every 5 years” stamped on them!

New Washer / Old Dryer

We had a rather low key Christmas and New Years. Our neighbors had brunch on Xmas morning and about 10 of us got to celebrate. I will admit, it is nice sitting outside in shorts in late December, that was seldom an option in Western New York! A few days into the new year, we headed back up to New Smyrna Beach but with our bicycles this time. The day couldn’t be much better - upper sixties and light winds and that morning the tide was low. We learned from the people we talk to a couple weeks ago that biking along the beach requires paying attention to the tide charts. The perfect day to try biking on the beach. There is a 5 mile stretch of the beach where vehicles are permitted to drive and while bikes could travel on the “lanes” for traffic, the beach is wide enough and actually firmer for biking if you ride on the ocean side of the car lanes. We parked at a small free parking lot a few blocks from the main entrance on Flagler Avenue. It wasn’t too crowded being a Monday morning so it isn’t a problem to navigate the few people walking or laying on the beach.

At Start of Bike Ride Along New Smyrna Beach

We start by heading south. We knew that vehicles are permitted down to 27th Avenue which is around 2.25 miles away. The signs and barricades make it clear that cars aren’t permitted further to the south but after studying the sign carefully, we realized that since we aren’t on e-bikes, we were allowed to continue south.

End of Motorized Zone

It was definitely less crowded as we went down the beach. For the next 2.5 miles, the beach was nice and firm for biking so we kept going. But there was one stretch where the sand was wet and mushy and pedaling required a great deal of effort. We went for an another tenth of a mile and it didn’t appear that the sand condition was going to improve so we decided to turn around.

View from Turnaround Point

Heading back north, there was a slight headwind but it wasn’t too bad and we enjoyed the near solitude of this end of the beach. We stopped at one point to have the lunch we had carried with us and even went up one of the stairs over the sand dune to find a geocache. A small crab was walking along beach and a small flock of Royal Terns were groomed themselves in the afternoon breeze.

Crab and His Shadow

Royal Terns

It was just under 10 miles when we got back to the place we entered the beach. We were enjoying the ride and still had energy left so we continued north. It’s less than 3 miles to the very end of this spit of land to the Ponce de Leon Inlet. There is a park at the very tip that we hoped to check out. We only made it half a mile north before we ran into a closed section of beach. There is some very large project taking place to reconstruct the dunes that are all along the beach in New Smyrna. It didn’t look like anything too dangerous was taking place but there were guards at the barricades so we head back to the last access point we had seen at Crawford Avenue. We follow surface streets until we get past the construction zone and come back across Beachway Avenue to continue our ride along the beach.

Dune Restoration Work

We made it to the inlet and saw an entrance to a large boardwalk that runs through Smyrna Dunes Park. Bikes aren’t permitted on the boardwalk, so we park them by the jetty and walk some of the boardwalk. This is right across from the lighthouse we toured in November of 2024.

Start of Boardwalk

Lighthouse Across the Inlet

Which Way Do We Go?

We walked about half a mile on the boardwalk to find one of the geocaches hidden here. With that mission complete we head back to the bikes but stop at a tall observation tower along the boardwalk to check out the views.

Observation Tower

View to the North

View to the South

We saw there was a walking and biking path not far from the boardwalk so we followed it to see if we could have ridden our bikes further into the park. We were able to walk the trails back over to the beach and our bikes but many of the sections were covered with very loose sand and would have been nearly impossible to bicycle so we made the right call in leaving the bike where we had. For the return trip, we biked the beach  until we hit the construction area and then just followed surface streets back to the car. We managed to get in just over 16 miles of mostly beach riding and had a wonderful day.