Blackwater State Park

Father’s Day Weekend finds us at Blackwater River State Park in Holt, FL.  This is a weekend that we had very much looked forward to because we remembered a long ago tubing trip on the cool, clear Blackwater River with its white sand bottom and beautiful sandbars.  Unfortunately there was a record breaking rain storm in the Pensacola area the week before and now the cool, clear water is a muddy looking brown.  Bummer!  

The park itself is very nice.  The campsites are gravel and very level with full hook ups, which is always nice.  There is not a lot of privacy between some of the sites but fortunately we are parked next to a nurse and her husband from Pensacola who are camping with friends from their Sunday School Class.  We looked around and determined that if we ever returned here, Sites #11, #26, or #29 would be our pick with the most space and privacy.

Since we were so close to Pensacola, we decided that we would check in on my 91 year old aunt, Cile, and take  her out to eat for her birthday which was a couple of weeks ago.  Cile was my favorite aunt when I was growing up.  She kept me a lot when I was very little and spoiled me rotten.  She is also the mother of my very special (almost like a sister) cousin, Vicky.   I might add that we allowed her to drive us to the restaurant and I was sure that we would never make it back alive, but we did.  She was very happy to see us and I’m glad we went. 

When we returned from visiting my aunt we ate supper and went to bed pretty early.  Saturday was a much prettier day.  We walked around in the park, visited the river, and came back to the trailer to enjoy the cool morning by sitting outside and reading.  We grilled a pork chop, had corn on the cob and fresh tomatoes with it for lunch.  

On the walkway going down to the river.

Then Bubba’s brother, Joe, called and asked if it would be convenient for him to come for a visit.  It is always a good time for a visit from Joe.  He arrived about 1 ½ hours later.  We sat around outside for a while and enjoyed visiting.  Judy, his wife, was not feeling well and unable to come with him so we really missed seeing her.  Joe and Judy are in the market for a travel trailer since they both recently retired.  We’re very excited about the prospect of having someone to travel and camp with.  We grilled hamburgers and hot dogs for supper.  Afterwards Joe and Bubba walked down to see the river while I cleaned up.  By the way, the sign Joe made us when we started camping has generated a lot of interest.  We had two people this trip who inquired where we got the sign because they liked it so much.

Joe and Bubba and our special sign

We got up Sunday morning, had a big breakfast, packed up, and started home. Happy Father’s Day, Bubba! You’re a wonderful husband, father and grandfather. Amy, Amelia, and I have been blessed to have you in our lives.

On a sad note, this may be Archie’s last camping trip with us. The vet is pretty sure he has stomach cancer and there is really not much to be done for him. He is still eating well and seems to enjoy getting in the truck to go places, but he spends most of his time sleeping and is getting obviously weaker. Please pray that we will know what to do and when to do it. He has been a wonderful companion and it is hard to visualize a life without him in it. I used to not understand when people mourned the passing of a pet, but believe me, I understand now.