We’ve been in Florida since November 23rd. As of today, that’s 165 days. The longest we’ve ever stayed in one state. During this pandemic we’ve been very fortunate to be able to hunker down here at Ho Hum, but alas it’s getting time to move on.
Our original plans were to be at Ho Hum for only a month and then head west to Pennsicola, then up to Memphis, across Tennessee to North Carolina and up the east coast to the annual doctor appointments in New Jersey.
That plan changed when the states starting closing down their campgrounds and social distancing became the new normal. We then decided to head straight up the coast stopping in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Maryland, and into New Jersey.
I started tracking the confirmed coronavirus cases for our location, and the counties we would be staying in Georgia and South Carolina. The number of confirmed cases compared to the county population remained low, however, the number has been gradually increasing everyday. And in Georgia’s case increased with 10 new cases in two days since they opened back up.
Feeling uneasy, it’s time to again change directions. A little research showed me that Alabama, Kentucky, and West Virginia have a relatively low number of confirmed cases compared to the surrounding states.
So, now we cancel all the reservations from change #2, and make new reservations for change #3. Hearing all of the horror stories about full timers having nowhere to go, I was surprised that I was able to make reservations for all the new stops on the first try.
So here’s change #3.
We’ll be leaving Ho Hum on schedule with a one night stop in southern Alabama, moving on the next day to northern Alabama, then Kentucky, West Virginia, and into Pennsylvania before stopping quickly in New Jersey for the doctor visit. Hopefully, New Jersey will be open by then since yesterday their Governor extended the state of emergency for another 30 days.
After that who knows. At this point, we haven’t canceled our plans to spend the summer around Lake Michigan, or the winter in Texas. but this is the new normal for now, and we have to remain flexible. And if you notice on the confirmed cases map above, Montana only has 456 cases in a state that has a population of a little over one million. Might be a nice place to spend the summer.
Until then, stay safe and healthy.