We drove our coach just 26 miles, about half an hour of driving (plus killing a little time at a Love’s truck stop), from Disney World to Clermont, Florida.

It’s a little awkward, as check out time from Fort Wilderness is 11:00, and check in at TTO is noon (very strictly enforced), but the drive time between the two is only about half an hour. We considered waiting for a bit in the overflow area at Fort Wilderness, but it was full. We also considered going to a rest area to kill some time, but we noticed a Love’s truck stop on the way, and figured we could spend some time there. Love’s doesn’t usually have parking that works for us, but what with a long time to get through the intersection and a few minutes at the pump, it used up enough time.

Here’s a map showing our route, heading west:

An interactive map:

Toading up on the way out of the campground:

Leaving Disney World (how sad):

Exit to I-4 East:

Disney-shaped power pylon:

Love’s truck stop:

Joining the very long line to enter TTO; this was at 12:07 on a Sunday:

Almost to the entrance, at 12:18:

Finally on the entrance road, at 12:20:

We knew it’d take a long time to get in, so I made some lunch while we inched forward:

Paladin on the dash:

Welcome:

Almost to the entrance gate, at 12:54:

But wait, there’s more: joining the line to get a site, at 12:56:

People watching the line:

Almost to the front of the line, at 13:22; I waited in the truck after we untoaded:

Getting guided to our site, at 13:36:

So yeah, arriving shortly after noon on a Sunday, finally getting to our site an hour and a half later. One day we’ll learn and arrive mid-week, when it isn’t so busy, though we prefer to travel on weekends to avoid impacting Jenn’s work.

We drove our coach 203 miles, about four hours of driving, from Carrabelle to Dunnellon, Florida.

Here’s a map showing our route, heading southeast:

An interactive map, with potential stops marked (we actually only stopped once, at Rocky’s 98):

Toading up at Ho-Hum RV Park; we miss that view:

Why does their bear sign look like a polar bear?

Goodbye Gulf Coast:

Lunch stop at Rocky’s 98 gas station:

They had convenient big-rig-sized parking:

A kitchen with various food options:

We just grabbed some super-healthy stuff for lunch (and fudge for dessert later):

Paladin on the dash:

Turning right in Perry:

Paladin was feeling very snuggly on this trip:

“Follow That Dream Parkway”:

Arriving at Rainbow Springs State Park; we had to wait for several minutes for another RV blocking the entrance, presumably because they didn’t have the gate code; this park is unusual in that you need a code to get in even before checking in, which they provide via email beforehand:

Check in parking:

Office:

Our site:

We drove our coach 258 miles, about four hours of driving, from Tucson, Arizona to Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Here’s a map showing our route, heading east:

An interactive map:

An example of why we don’t use picnic tables at campsites, at least without a tablecloth (but usually not even then): our neighbor was working on his sewer pipe connectors on the table:

Joining I-10 East:

Mountains:

Interesting rocks:

The Thing? travel center (post about the attraction later this week):

We had DQ there for lunch:

The Thing? and other swag:

More interesting rocks:

Rest area:

Paladin sprawled on the dash as we got underway again:

Welcome to New Mexico:

“Zero visibility possible”… yes, anything’s possible:

“Gusty winds may exist”… indeed:

Fun with zoom:

Instructions on what to do if caught in a dust storm (not very readable in this pic, but basically pull onto shoulder, turn off engine, foot off brake, lights off… presumably to save battery power):

Welcome to Las Cruces:

We really enjoy the mountains behind Las Cruces:

Our destination, the Las Cruces KOA Journey:

All decked out for the holidays (in early November):