Florida, cats and racoons?

April 18, 2024

I really do hate my cat, most people don’t believe me but its true. It is also true that love and hate can coexist whether it be for a person, place or animal and that is the situation I find myself in. Love him and hate him.

Today we leave our beloved Florida home in Jupiter Palm Beach Florida where we have been living, full-time since January.  The temps are starting to rise in south Florida to a consistent and oppressive 90 plus degrees so its a good time to get out on the road. 

If you have never been to Jupiter, I highly recommend it.  Beautiful beaches, chill vibe, great dining and shopping, lots of waterways, nature and the Atlantic Ocean to explore. Jupiter sits just above the ritzy Palm Beach and only a couple of hours away from Miami, Key West and the Everglades.  

We will spend the next 3 weeks travelling north and west, approximately 4,000 miles with a destination of Banff Alberta. After 8 days in Banff visiting both our adult children, who now FINALLY live in the same location, we will head back out on the road for another 3,000 or so miles and back to our home in Ontario.

Both cats will be travelling with us, of course! Side note to all of you "almost" empty nesters, when the kids leave, they DON’T take the family pets with them! The cats have had quite a bit of outdoor freedom in Jupiter but will now be mostly confined to the inside of our 45ft motorhome. I know Beans will do great, content to look out the windows and take in the changing sites and sounds. If there is food in the dish and a comfortable place to hang out, Beans is pretty easy to live with. The other one… we will see. He is getting older and dare I say better??? It's been about a month since he last acted up and just about got himself a ticket to nowhere. Maybe we let Autumn out to explore occasionally…

That reminds me of the beach front condo at Cape Caribe, Cocoa Beach Florida , a place we vacationed at for many years. Right beside the condo is Jetty Park, a state run place with great beachfront access and a small RV park. Jetty Park is also home to a large cat colony, mostly made up of tuxedos that look a lot like Autumn and Beans. These Coca cats are not your average feral felines. These are thriving Floridian fat cats, living at the beach and getting fed mostly by tourists throwing shrimp and crackers and all sorts of food off their balconies to watch as the cats come running out of the bushes to nab the prize. It is extremely entertaining, particularly since a colony of racoons joined the commune and everyone gets along!  Racoons and cats co-habitating and living the good life. You know I have contemplated, somewhat seriously at times, that a quick trip to Cocoa could be a wonderful thing for a cat I hate. A nice retirement plan, living out his glory years at the beach. One can dream…

For now, off we go, our first stop on our journey is Cedar Key, Florida’s second oldest town.  Do you know what Florida's oldest town is ?

Until I write again, Cheers