The Big Gap

 The Thrifty Rocketeer Blog continues...

You may have noticed a gap in posts in this blog recently.

We had a death in the family, and it's precluded my involvement in model rocketry for several weeks, as we had to suddenly drive to southern Florida on a two day marathon drive...and back again.

But I have several things to share about that trip that may be of interest.


Driving south along the east coast on I-95, the road becomes somewhat monotonous, and you crave some variety. Just after the Georgia state line, there's an intersection called A1A that leads to the junction with Route 301.  This small interchange is very important if you want to cross from the east side of Florida to the west side.

Now, I know what you're going to say... "why not just stay on I-95 and take I-4 across the center of the state to Tampa?"  And you're right, that would work, but it adds about 60 miles to the total trip, as well as allowing you to drive faster across the interstate.

Route 301 is famous because it is the old major highway before the interstate system, that runs from southern Florida through Georgia and onward north into the Carolinas and beyond.

But it's the part near Jacksonville that interests us, because along with A1A, it describes a nice, smooth arc, that is more than an outer bypass around that metropolitan area.  In fact, it is  a divided highway that has now bypassed virtually all the little towns and continues you on your way through "Old Florida".

I use that term to describe the hotels, fruit stands, small towns and other features that you no longer get to see when whizzing past on the interstate at 70+ mph.   The signs of "old Florida" are still there...literally.  Large billboards remain close to the highway with white paint covering them.

But more and more of them have smaller placards attached, promoting fruit ahead, or to our interest, FIREWORKS!

I wish that I had stopped and snapped a picture of these billboards, cause they all read the same... FIREWORKS AHEAD...TURN LEFT AT SECOND STOP LIGHT IN TOWN.  They are desperate to get you to turn off and head into the sleepy little town that has now been bypassed.

But it's how they describe the fireworks that caught my attention.   ROCKETS!  MORTARS! ROMAN CANDLES.

I was almost tempted to stop, just to take a photo for this blog, and showcase how the general public views anything that launches into the air.  But I didn't.  Time was of the essence, and I thought that we would turn around and return the same path, and see these billboards and FIREWORKS ads from the other direction as well.  At least, I thought we would.  Maybe they are only positioned to appeal to tourists of old who are entering the state, and not those leaving.

Anyway, we didn't return via that route, but took I-4 across for a comparison.  And boy, I'll never do that again.

I was impressed by the number of identical palm trees that are braced up and swarming the interstate interchanges in the east half of the state, as I-4 joins I-95 once again.  But who's palm tress are those?  The State of Florida?  A private interest?  Or a public/private enterprise to grown them there, and then transplant them elsewhere?  I want one.


I also took the time to look up where one launches rockets in the Ft. Myers area.  It appears there is a club that launches an hour east of that community, near the town of La Belle, "in the swamp".   Now, I can understand the desire to get away from civilization to launch large rockets, but I'm not sure the dry interior of the state is the best place. Also, if I have a large rocket to send up, I'm not sure I want to hunt through a swamp to find it again.  So I have resolved, if I ever do return to launch a rocket, to make it a disposable one.  The gaters can have it!


This has been the Thrifty Rocketeer saying, "Take A1A/Route 301 if you can, to save time and money."


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