Carrabelle, FL – Drenching rain has been drumming on the roof of the RV all afternoon. There was enough of a break this morning to pop over to the main building for a shower and to get in the car for our outing, but we wore our slickers and rainproof shoes, and with good reason.
We are right on the gulf coast of Florida’s panhandle, and as we headed toward Apalachicola, about 20 miles west of Carrabelle, we could see the whitecaps on the water to our left. The road took us through sections of forest with tall pine trees on either side of the road, but many of them were mere silhouettes in the mist and fog of the morning.
Bear warning signs were posted along the road, and our host Dennis confirmed their presence yesterday with a photo he had snapped of a mother bear and two cubs not long ago, after he scared them into a tree near the dumpster. The dumpster’s crumpled lid also bore evidence to bear interest! However, any wildlife in the vicinity today was probably huddled in the underbrush, looking for a way to stay dry.
We enjoyed seeing some of the old Victorian homes when we drove through the historic section of Apalachicola, and the small-town main street with little shops lining the sidewalks. I was delighted to find a Piggly Wiggly grocery store (being a pig enthusiast), where we stopped to pick up a few items. If their shopping bags had had the pudgy pig’s face printed on them, I would have bought that too!
Our cashier gave us directions to a good place for lunch, called Papa Joe’s Oyster Grill. By the time we arrived, it was raining more heavily, so we were glad to get inside. Our table was in a verandah part of the restaurant, with windows all around, so we could watch the rain and, not long after we sat down, great bolts of lightning. I looked toward the end of the verandah and noticed a finger of water flowing gently across the floor. When I mentioned it to the server, she said the roof would start leaking as well if it kept up!
Moments later, the head server came out to the verandah and asked everyone to please move inside, because they had received word that there were waterspouts and tornadoes in the area. We all picked up our plates and herded into the main building, finding seats where we could. The server was speaking calmly, but we could tell she was quite concerned. She told us she had seen the damage a tornado could produce. I was just glad our seats were next to a solid wall. We stayed inside for another 20 minutes, till the warning was lifted, and then sloshed our way through the pond-sized puddles to the car.
Once we got back to the RV (which, to our relief, was still in place and in one piece), we settled in for the rest of the day. I browsed the internet to see more about the storm and discovered, on a list of extreme weather for the day across the US, the highest rainfall, 4.09 inches, was recorded today in Apalachicola, Florida! I would say that report is quite accurate. I also read that there were two-inch hailstones near the Suwannee River that we had crossed two days ago on our way here. I guess we have been dancing between the raindrops….sort of!
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