Chasing Adventure

Moochdocking – Parking on someone’s land for free (preferably you would know this “someone”) without any hookups. There are some things to take into consideration when going this route with your camper since your comfort is at stake. While we are parked for ‘free’, we do have some hookups, thankfully. 

From the start, we knew we would come down to South Florida and camp on the family farm. Honestly, we were looking forward to having land for Tigger to roam, beautiful sunsets over the acreage, blissfully dark and quiet nights out in the middle of nowhere, and being able to spend quality time with family. We arrived on the farm the weekend after Thanksgiving, and getting the camper into a spot where everyone was happy was comical. 

The original plan was to park in the fence beside the house, but Uncle Jim didn’t think Bandit (his dog) wanted to give up his yard (he was serious). Truthfully, I would rather park outside the fence because it felt more open. We are VERY grateful to have a 50amp plug-in and water available for us to use. We have also been allowed to run our grey water tanks out by the shed, again grateful. The black tank is another matter… let’s not talk about that stinky subject. 

Tigger does have his run of the land, but we figured out pretty quickly to make sure he doesn’t chase after the wild hogs that are running amuck down here. He might be a quick dog, but a tusk from a frightened hog could serious injure or kill him. Seeing the families with the little piglets run across the back of the property is quite cute though!

Our spot is perfect, with lots of mowed grass for Tigger right outside the door. He loves being able to have all this freedom and only stays inside during daylight hours if it’s raining. Our view from the inside is spectacular, especially in the evening across their land. It’s awe-inspiring, to say the least.

We have thoroughly enjoyed spending time with family. Just sitting around talking, telling stories about the orange groves (Lentz Groves was a well-known name back in the day), and simply enjoying the time has been nothing short of incredible. I have loved spending time with Aunt Lynn (and Nellie Bear, her sweet dog), as she has become my favorite person to visit with down here. These ol’ boys (Uncle Jim and Uncle Harry) are still working on maintaining the property on a daily basis, even in their 80s! There is a lot to care for and maintain, and everyday they are out trimming trees, mowing lawns, fixing holes the hogs dug up, caring for their trees and plants, feeding the fish/ducks, and anything else that comes up. It’s inspiring to see them work so diligently for so long! Greg laughs, but every time they boys drive off in their golf cart to work on something, I can’t help but describe them as cute, lol. 

There was a bit of excitement for all, when we found a steer wandering the back of the property at sunset. Black cow and no lights made for finding it again a little difficult, but fun to try. Uncle Harry and Greg took the old Jeep out into the undeveloped part of the property to track it down until the neighbor could corral it to the fence to be in the proper pasture. That’s the most excitement, aside from the hogs, that happens down here. Love it!

We are in an El Nino weather pattern, which is the technical way of saying it’s been raining for weeks. The beautiful grass we have been parked on is now a soggy, swampy, muddy mess. Tigger has to have his paws and belly wiped each time he goes out and no one is a fan of that task. The temps have gotten down into the 50s and while it doesn’t seem cold, it feels cold because it’s a wet cold. Uncle Jim has his beanie on and says he starts the fireplace burning if it gets below 62 degrees (he was serious!). The other day we saw a full and bright rainbow. God’s art is so incredible! I’m looking forward to the rain stopping so the ground can finally dry out and we can be outside without muck boots. 

We have spent the holidays and January down here, making great memories. While Greg has been the muscle to help trim some trees, I used my remodel knowledge to tile Uncle Jim’s back patio. For being “retired”, we sure are busy! About once a week or so, I take the drive up to see the Parentals and my BF, Terrie. I wish I got to have more time with them, but I will take what I’m given. We’ve also taken a couple Disney trips, because why not!? As we wind down our FL season, we anticipate great things as we head back north to TN in February!

~Katie