0902 27,478 miles – Leave Gold Head Branch State Park 76°

We’re taking a leisurely route south to the Pleasure-Way rally in Sarasota.  Having been several years since first seeing The Villages, the huge development geared to retirees, we thought it was time to stop in again and see how much it has grown.

1144 27,571 miles – First stop was cousin Bob & Veronica’s lovely home overlooking a golf course. Their big wall mirrors worked well for a double group selfie. Bob and I are both sporting the latest in our family male hair style. It was fun to catch-up with their adventures.

1545 27,575 miles – Not far down the road, we landed at the Schmidts home. Bob & Lee are fellow Pleasure-Way owners we’ve enjoyed meeting at rallies over, at least, the last six years. Taking them up on a kind invitation to driveway camp, we were treated to a tour of their beautiful home and a visit to one of The Villages town squares for dinner. 

It wasn’t just us visiting. A twin to our Lexor was parked in Schmidts driveway. Laura, Peter, and their dog Vala (today’s first photo) were visiting as well. Pleasure-Ways were taking over the neighborhood!

I don’t remember why there are pictures of vans, but not of people. We certainly had a good time and a memorable dinner at the village square. 

We elected to stay inland traveling secondary roads instead of I-75. Noon found us at the Zephyr Hills Municipal Airport where 86° temps had us thankful for our generator powered air conditioner while making lunch. In addition to the airport there was a small military museum. Unfortunately, they didn’t open until later in the day. We found a consolation prize around the corner where a 1927 depot had been restored.