End of a Chapter

Days on Cruise:    1

Miles traveled:   398

Travel Time:    5  hours, 45 mins

Total trip odometer:  398 statute miles

At 10am today after a couple hours of hauling the last things to the truck, cleaning the boat, and our last pump-out (there ARE silver linings to ending this trip!) we took one final photo of “Next to Me” and walked down the dock to the truck.

As we headed toward the freeway, Bob plugged in his iPod and began playing “our song”: Next To Me, by the Subdudes out of New Orleans.  While this resulted in a few tears for Cathryn, it also reminded us what’s important:  wherever we are, as long as we’re together, we’re “Home”!

We drove 2 hours north, going 70mph on the freeway segment, and after 100 miles we arrived in Titusville, FL.  Bob commented “Well, we just covered the same distance that took us two days last year while beginning the Loop.” Our travel scale has now reverted to “American Standard” rather then “Looper Standard ”, so 9 mph is no longer the norm.

In Titusville we drove to the marina where we stopped a year ago to tour the Kennedy Space Center, this time to connect with friends from home, Bob and Debi from Fox Island, WA . They recently began their Loop in Mobile, Alabama. We’re a bit jealous of them for the adventure they have yet ahead.

Since our truck is loaded to the max with a back seat full of clothes hanging on a rod, cooler full of food, suitcases for our stops in motels each night and more, Cathryn squeezed  into the backseat while Bob and Debi both sat in the passenger seat.  Luckily we didn’t pass any police cars while on our way to Dixie Crossroads restaurant where we had lunch and shared stories. It was great to see Bob and Debi again!

After a 3-hour lunch we got back on the road and drove 4 more hours to Tallahassee, FL where we’re now ensconced in the local Best Western, where we had leftovers from last night’s dinner, warmed in the microwave.

We plan one more Loop-related blog with some reflections on our trip.  It may take a bit longer to really absorb this thing we just finished. 

In the meantime we’ll continue to post about our journey home and resumption of life at home. We hope you’ll stay with us as we decide “what next”. We’re NOT done with experiencing adventures around the world until we’re no longer able. We’ve already made a reservation for a month-long stay in a tiny bungalow on the Rio Dulce in Guatemala for the month of February 2014.