Back to “Home Base”

 

Wesley Chapel, Florida (high 89, low 58)

We got on the road leaving Naples, Florida around 11am.  It was a fairly easy all interstate drive.

After we were on the road a while, Al started telling me about a tractor/trailer following us that had a very wide load.  He was trying to pass us when we slowed down due to traffic ahead.

Al was getting very upset because he didn’t think the wide load could pass us without hitting us.

Imagine an interstate that had only 2 northbound lanes at the time.   Then imagine a truck with a load that took up the width of about 1 1/2 lanes.  

Fortunately before the guy could get around us, traffic ahead sped up and we were able to stay in front of him for the time being.

Al kept a close eye on him, but I couldn’t see him so I had no idea how wide this rig was, until he actually did pass us a few miles later.

Fortunately, by this time the interstate had widened to three lanes and he was able to get into the left lane to go around us.

Can you imagine if he had passed us when there were only two lanes?  When he passed us, we were going 60 and he passed us very quickly, so he must have been going pretty fast.

I don’t know if this extra wide load was legal, but in our opinion, it shouldn’t be.  The cargo looked to be some sort of concrete blocks.

I decided to call the Florida Highway Patrol to report this, since I was concerned for the public safety.  I told her exactly what mile marker he was on and the direction of traffic.  I hoped to see him pulled over at some point, but I never did.

I was curious about the legal limits for interstate travel with a wide load.

This is what I found.

Pilot car - Escort car requirements.
Over 12' wide (up to 14') needs one pilot car or escort vehicle. Over 14' wide needs two pilot cars or escort vehicles. Over 14' 6" in height needs one pilot car or escort vehicle. Over 15' in height needs two pilot cars or escort vehicles.
Lengths up to 95' only require one pilot car or escort vehicle.
Travel restrictions.
Travel is permitted 1/2 hour before sunrise to 1/2 before sunset.  Travel permitted on Saturday and Sunday if not over 10' wide, 13' 6" in height and 55' long.  Continuous travel permitted if heavy only. Over weight travel is allowed for some constructions items as long as they are reduced (ie. blades removed from dozers, etc.). Be sure to clarify with permit office before travel.

I am guessing he was over 12’ wide since he was taking up half of the other lane.  He had no escort vehicle.

 

We were glad when he got around us though, so we didn’t have to keep worrying about him.

A little later this truck passed us.  Those are people in the back.  Doesn’t look very safe does it?

You see all kinds.  I worried about these pieces of furniture falling out.   The driver didn’t seem to worry as he traveled about 80 mph.

We got home, set up and visited with some neighbors.  I talked briefly to Jo Beth as she was driving by.  I saw a pretty lady walking her dog later. She had on a cute straw hat and a pretty orange dress. I thought  to myself how nice she looked.  It turned out that was Catherine, but I didn’t see her face so I didn’t recognize her.  Looking good Catherine!

The days are pretty warm here, but oh how nice and cool the nights are!  It was 64 when I got up this morning.  The air is crisp and dry, the sky is blue, and the birds are chirping.

Naples, Florida

 

Naples, Florida (high 88, low 65)

We didn’t leave Sunshine Key until 12:20 yesterday.  That was probably the latest start we have ever gotten.

We had to take the boat down to the storage facility and that took a little extra time.  It probably would be smarter to do that a day earlier.  Oh well.

We breathed a sigh of relief when the slides retracted, the engine started and everything appeared to be running well.

By the time we got going, there were some big patches of red showing on the radar.  We hate driving in rain, but we didn’t have much choice.  The nice thing about the weather app is that you can see where the rain is in relation to your position.   Several times, I would tell Al to slow down a little bit because it looked like the approaching storm was about to move out of our way.  No sense driving in hard rain, if you could slow down and avoid it.  It worked well and we never ran into any hard rain.

I took the obligatory pictures along the Overseas Highway while we were driving down the road.  Despite the clouds, the water looked pretty, clear and calm.  It made it that much harder to leave!

 

These pretty flowers were outside of some hotel or attraction.

Good-bye Florida Keys.  Hope to see you again in November!

We ended up missing the station where we usually fuel up after leaving the Keys.  Fortunately we had plenty of fuel, so we’re okay and could actually make it all the way to Tampa if necessary.  We prefer to not let the tank get very low, so we will stop at a truck stop in Fort Myers and fill up.

We arrived at Club Naples Rv Resort about 5pm.  It’s a Passport America park and right off interstate 75, so it’s a good overnight stop.  We had stayed here last year and liked it fine, but when we got here yesterday it was a muddy mess from the rain.  You could tell exactly where the snowbirds had parked and had their outdoor mats, because the grass was all dead and of course it was very muddy.  I wish everyone would use the type of mats we use that don’t kill the grass underneath.

We were both pretty tired, so I went to watch some Tv in bed and Al planned on watching some football draft programs in the living room.  He made the mistake of laying down on the couch, so of course that was where he spent the night.  He didn’t see any of his program either.

We got up this morning to a pleasant surprise.  Cool weather!   It’s 65 degrees, so we are able to sit here with the windows open for the first time in weeks.  Boy, does it feel nice!

We only have 187 miles to drive today, so we’re not in any hurry.  It feels nice to be able to have some coffee and computer time before we have to get moving.