One of the best campgrounds in Florida was at Flamingo in the Everglades National Park.

Here we had lots of space and took a sunset cruise out into the Gulf.

One good thing about Florida is the amount of wild life there is co-existing within the parks and preserves. This osprey had its nest on the boat lift at the marina.

At Flamingo we met some other World travellers, a young couple from Germany in a Toyota 4x4 camper and Simon and Rachel James from Leeds on a BMW GS1150. They were due in New York just six days later to ship the bike and follow it home at the end of their 12 month journey.

What tales they had to tell as we swapped stories!

Next morning we wished them Bon Voyage!

   After a night at the most expensive campsite ever-84$, it was time for us to drive down the long road of 41 bridges down from Key Largo to Key West.

An interesting drive alongside the blue waters of the Gulf and Atlantic.

Here we joined the queue to have our picture taken at this landmark before exploring by bicycle this tourist hot spot!.

Two cruise ships were in the dock and the shops were crowded!

Now it was time to turn northwards again and at Miami Beach we walked around the Art Deco area.

These vehicles are following us around!

Then we had to negotiate the six lanes of traffic on the Interstate around Miami.

Up the coast we found a vehicle that had also gone around the World.

The Kalbarri bus will take over 8 years at 50mph,

the Orbitor took 80 hours at 17,500mph!

  There was also a very slow moving vehicle-the crawler which travels at just 1mph.

This one had been overhauled and was going for a test drive carrying one of the Mobile Launch Platforms from which the Shuttle is launched.

Driving this monster around the turn takes skill and practice-each plate on the eight tracks weighs 1ton and there are 57 per track! You do the maths!

On the first day of our visit to Kennedy Space Centre we enjoyed the Apollo and SaturnV displays which recalled the famous moment when the Eagle landed on the moon.

The control room was on display and we watched the launch procedures and moon landing!

We had watched the real thing live in July 1969!

Nothing prepared us for the huge size of those rockets!

During the second day's visit we viewed some of the modules being prepared for shipment aboard the Shuttle for delivery to the International Space Station.

The Crawler still had not completed its test run out to launch pad L39B.

We had a close up look at L39A which will be used for the next launch.

Cape Canaveral Air Force base is still used for unmanned commercial rocket launches but Nasa is to concentrate on the exploration of Mars.

A launch that had been scheduled during our visit was postponed!

Jim gets to meet all the interesting people.

Just a few days later he was shaking the hand of Pooh Bear!

Yes we did visit  another Florida attraction and enjoyed the spectacle-even though it was raining!

Epcot at night was impressive.

 Jims wallet was now empty!

After all this expensive tourist activity we chilled out at an Escapees campground near Bushnell.

Many Americans asked if our World Tour had only been in the USA so the back door gained a map of some of the other countries that we have visited on our journey.

               Along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico.

  Our route passed through Inverness and out along the coastal road past places called Bald Point, Alligator Point and Dog Island.

  Many of the houses along the beach front were built on stilts to keep out of the flood waters.

Then we crossed the causeway onto the long and narrow St Georges Island. Building land is at a premium and some houses along the Gulf beach were very tall and narrow.

Very expensive to buy but very unattractive.  

They all got blown away when Katrina came this way!

  At the end of the island is a State Park and campsite where we spent time enjoying the white sandy beach.

Ara had told us to check out the campground library.

Most unusual!

After this lovely unspoilt island we arrived at the holiday resort at Panama City Beach-

Out of season even the MacDonald's was closed

We only stopped long enough to eat lunch by the 'famous' pier as the best thing to do was just drive on!

  Next stop was another State Park near Destin that claimed to be one of the best in Florida-It was certainly expensive and picture perfect.

Through a town with a familiar name-Warrington-our home town for many years!

The National Naval Air Museum at Pensacola has an excellent display of aircraft.

The base is home to the Blue Angels Display Team.

  In the evening there was a Benny Goodman concert which soon had our feet tapping.

              Battleship and blooms in Alabama.

Over the State Line into Alabama our route followed the eastern shore of Mobile Bay.

The town of Fairhope attracts many visitors with its old buildings, galleries and flower displays.

As we drove towards Mobile the towering hulk of the great WWII battleship, SS Alabama could be seen moored at an Historic State Park.

Alongside was a huge B52 bomber-unusual to see these two huge war machines together.

  At the visitor centre they hand out a list of numbered locations around the ship.

It is vital that visitors follow the red, green or yellow self guided routes as it would be easy to be lost in this huge ship.

This is the view from the battle bridge over the guns.

It is hard to imagine the scene when the big guns were firing and an enemy battleship was firing back!

Dot could not resist ringing the bell-everyone was deaf!

 There is only so much grey painted metal that you can look at in one day so we drove away to the campground at Theodore.

Next morning we visited the house and gardens at Bellingrath House.

The owner had made his fortune bottling Coca Cola in the early part of the twentieth century. His wife had collected porcelain and silver from around the world.

  This is an unusual but colourful planting combination-daffodils and parsley!

The camellias were in full bloom and this moon bridge in the Japanese garden was the centrepiece of a restful design.

               Mississippi casinos-Louisiana swamps.

Over another State Line and into southern Mississippi with its huge casinos at Gulfport and Biloxi.

This Casino looked like a pirate ship!  Just a wreck after Katrina blew by!

As we had no spare dollars to gamble we drove on towards Louisiana and the city of jazz, New Orleans.

Arriving just in time to take the afternoon city tour we quickly parked the bus in the Mardi Gras campground almost underneath the interstate flyover!

  The tour guide was dressed for a tour of the swamps but took us around the cemeteries!

He showed us all the famous graves-great fun.

The bus tour around the city gave us a good view of the fine old buildings that have been carefully restored and preserved.

The huge city park was an oasis of peace and quiet but another cemetery held a few surprises!

Instead of returning on the tour bus we stayed on to stroll along the river.

As evening arrived we found a restaurant in the French Quarter with a lovely courtyard in a house that had been offered to Napoleon when the French owned the city.

  Named after the town in France famous for its lady warrior the Americans call their statue- wait for it-

'Joannie on a Pony'!

Neither of us liked this city but were sorry to see how bad the hurricane damage was.

Looking at the map we chose to take the Interstate I10 towards Texas.

This highway must be the worst in all America. It is built on stilts across the swamps and made of concrete. Every joint has moved and the bus rattled and shook as we tried to go faster or slower but to no avail!

We limped into Lake Charles and stayed in the Walmart car park overnight for a rest!

Just after crossing into Texas we visited this pioneer museum at Woodville (another familiar name).

I managed to lock Jim in the town jail!

 At last the countryside was hilly and we arrived at the Escapees HQ in Livingston in good spirits!