Wrapping Up Summer

We should all be wrapping up our summer and getting ready for fall. For some that means getting the kids ready for school and older ones might be going off to college. For most of us full-time RVers it means we may want to start heading south in anticipation of colder weather in the northern areas. Mountainous areas may be great to visit to try and get away from those hot summer months but play heck on the older bodies as the temps start going lower and lower each week.

If you are heading to Florida we hope you have your reservations already and/or workamping assignments all lined up. Generally, by now everything will be pretty much filled up from the beginning of October to the end of March. Most places even charge an extra fee for these months because most of Florida’s campgrounds and resorts are pretty well booked up. Workamping assignments are also probably all but booked as well. If you still wish to try and get a couple of assignments you should still go online and fill out the Florida State Park Volunteer Workamper application anyway. To increase your odds of getting an assignment or two and thus saving money on campground fees you will need to be a little bit more flexible in where in the state you are willing to go. If you have volunteered for the Florida State Parks in the last couple of years you will probably already have a user ID and password to submit you applications and see what opportunities are currently available. This resource has only recently been updated. Two years ago there were only 2 or 3 listings but over the years more and more park volunteer coordinators are being encouraged to utilize this board when they need to announce a volunteer need for their park. At present they only give the name or type of volunteer needed, the park name and an “APPLY HERE” link. The date is automatically added by the software instead of the coordinator so there is really no telling how up-to-date this listings really are and when they are for. Also, it would be sweet if they had a link to a description of the volunteer job they are needing. I can’t say this enough but other states have a very informative and interactive online system for volunteers to find upcoming jobs as well as stating what needs to be done, what amenities the volunteers can expect, the length of time needed, etc. Georgia and Alaska would be a great example of this. Please check out our new member site for more information. We are still running a special for new members and updating the listings as quickly as we can.

https://jbmstore.jolenesbooksandmore.com/downloads/insiders-guide-to-campground-hosting-in-florida-parks

As volunteers we do have more opportunities to enjoy the public land areas that we serve for however long we have that particular assignment. It is always nice to go to a new place and discover new things but sometimes its nice to be able to return to a familiar place that we enjoyed before. My mom is really looking forward to us hitting the road again and hopefully we will either earn enough to get us a newer camper or be able to pay to have our current RV fixed up and road-worthy. Right now we have been slowly renovating the insides as it is taking too long to save up enough money for a new motor. Now, we need a new motor, new tires and the brakes checked before we can venture forth. It is a never ending story folks whether you are maintaining your sticks-n-bricks home or your mobile one.

We are really thankful to Columbia County Parks and Recreations for allowing us to stay as long as they
have. We are still enjoying our time here as they don’t require a whole lot of work but do require that they entrance is opened on time, the bathrooms are clean, the park area is kept clean and that we ride the trails at least once a week to make sure they are not blocked with debris or in disrepair because of the weather. Yes, most of the trails are really soggy with all the rain we have been getting lately and the park’s maintenance personnel have to mow every single week. The campsite they provide for us is very stable and they mow around it every two weeks. The little storage shed should comes in handy and the FREE internet/cable TV is a great feature even though the TV is just basic and local channels. We are able to pay for Netflix and Hulu to help with that part.

Here’s hoping you all have safe travels out there! Till next time.