Well, I was going to reveal the secrets of the Dixie Campers but now I can’t because we’ve all been initiated into the secret brotherhood — or cult, I’m not sure which. After I posted last night’s blog and we all ate Eleanor’s fabulous pies, all the newbies in the crowd were summoned to the Official Altar and given ceremonial Dixie Camper t-shirts, nose glasses, and communion.

Key Lime pie and Chocolate-Hazelnut Tart by Eleanor

The Initiation Ceremony

I forgot to mention that the Dixie Campers were born out of the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina. Three of the “founding members” were driven out of their homes by the hurricane and moved into motorhomes or trailers for temporary housing. Vinnie already had a pair of Airstreams, but he inspired two friends to get motorhomes, and now they all travel together. Two of them are still full-timing in their rigs today, making the best out of a bad situation. It’s a “silver lining” story.

We hung around most of the day today, but had to get going by mid-afternoon. We’ll definitely see this crew when we pass through the south next time.

Now we are parked overnight in Ft Walton Beach, and in the morning we will set up at Henderson State Park for a week.

Maintenance note: Pretty soon I need to get the trusty Nikon D70 serviced. It has seen heavy use over the past two years and is overdue for cleaning. Last week it fell into the sand when we were trying to snap our Christmas photo (the wind was so strong it blew the tripod over), and this week the built-in flash has stopped working. The camera has shot over 12,000 photos in the past 18 months (an average of 22 shots per day!), so I guess it has earned a rest, calibration, and cleaning. I’ll ship it in to a service center after this next rally, and use Eleanor’s camera while waiting for it to come back.