Key West and Alaska…Same Friends…Small World

 

The other day we were up to registration office to inquire about bringing non military campers on base. The quick answer is yes, but not now, because of the massive influx of snowbirds here in the southern end of the road. Well back to my story…We were leaving the office and driving away when we spotted a white one ton truck with New Hampshire tags. We stopped and said hello and drove off. Then it struck me! I know those people. I turned around and went into the office and said to them, “you have a truck camper and you carry a distinctive yellow diesel can on your roof”. He said, “I sure do”. We both recognized each other. We had crossed paths in Tok Junction in Alaska. A little while later, we made plans to have lunch the following day. More on this a little later in this blog.

We had heard rumors that five campers would be moving to a permanent site today. We checked in with Marsha, the camp host, and sure enough we were on the list. Our new site has a tree which is good, but also made the site harder to access. Being a clever guy, I decided it would be better to come in from the fire lane side. This worked out perfectly. I down loaded the camper in a few minutes and we were figuring where to put the ten by twelve outdoor mat. Next came the awning… this year I was determined not to have the shelter blow over in five minutes. I had made some 15 inch HD stakes. The ground here in KW isn’t too stable and one needs long stakes. It did the trick. Soon the day was behind us and we were exhausted from all of the moving around. The temperature didn’t help as it was close to ninety. All in all, it was a good day. We were located between Mike, his wife Terry and Steve and significant other Cheryl. Mike is the campground maintenance guy. (A good resource guy to know). Mike also has a wide outdoor screen, which on Thursday nights shows movies. Great spot to be in.

The next day Sam and Joan Christman picked us up and we went for lunch at Caroline’s Café. Sam and Joan were our friends from Alaska, or I should say they are now our friends from our chance meeting both in Alaska and Key West. They were down here visiting their daughter who works on a sailing ship “The Sebago” and at the “Conch House,” an Inn down on Truman Ave. I must give a thumbs up to the restaurant. The fish I had was excellent. We had a long talk about many things, but what interested me the most was on their many “Space A” travels around the world. That is something Helen and I have to do. We are thinking of Europe, maybe in the fall. Sam and Joan gave us plenty of info when to go and when not to go. They also explained how to get on the rotator flights from McGuire, Dover and BMI over to Germany and Italy. Maybe we will actually go on a “Space A” with them, if things fall into place. Sam needs a knee operation before he travels abroad again. If he heals well, he said he might be ready for a fall trip.

After lunch, it was time for a walk around KW. They took us to a nice shady park with a bubbling fountain. We sat there awhile and watched those wild rosters roaming in and out of the bushes. Next we headed up to their daughters place of work at the Conch House. Carol welcomed us and we sat on the veranda by the pool and cooled down. It was in the mid eighties now and a little humid, but the shade and a breeze did the trick.

Back at the campground, we had been invited to combination birthday party and anniversary. Dan and Jan were given a surprise party. Our two neighbors had invited us to come earlier in the day. Dan had been over several times asking me questions about the truck camper. He had purchased one before leaving Arizona, but hadn’t actually used it yet and had worries about how to load it onto the truck. They were planning to go down into Mexico (the Baja area). Apparently, they have spent considerable time there and felt completely at ease and safe. Here again, is a couple who lived several years on a small boat. They had been down in Mexico into several small ports and camped on the beach with no problems. As Dan said to me, “people who live on a boat do five things. One…live on a boat, two live in a home, three live in a motor home, four live in a nursing home and five live in a funeral home”.

That is what we did and saw!