Catching up (pt 3) Picking up my Noovo Lite
I had been planning on going to Quartzsite in January of 2025, to meet up with some of my Coachmen friends. The Noovo was ready and was being shipped to Sunshine State RV in Gainesville, Florida.
My van arrived at SSRV!
I decided to purchase through SSRV because I wanted to have a back up plan of being able to trade the Beyond if I didn’t find a buyer. SSRV did offer an option to ship the van to me but because of the holidays it was cutting it close to when I was planning on leaving for Quartzsite.
Day 1 - December 28th 2024
Loading up the rental car trunk
So I decided to rent a car and drive to Florida to bring it home. I chose to drive instead of flying because I don’t like to fly, I definitely don’t like to fly during the holidays and I wanted to be able to bring the basics of what I needed and already had for the van to get home and not have to buy extra things that I would end up not using.
Plenty of room to bring what I needed
I packed up bedding, towels, bathroom items like towel racks, toilet paper holder, mirror and other decor - I took advantage of the space and packed whatever I could fit, figuring I could get some decorating done when I got to the campground after picking up the van.
Checking in on the weather
On the first day I stopped at a La Quinta Inn near Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The drive that day was very rainy and there was a chance of severe weather. Sure enough, there was a tornado warning while I was at the hotel that night!
Day 2 - December 29th 2024
The weather was so much better on the 2nd day, sunny, blue skies and nice temps.
yum!
Before heading out on a long drive day, I stopped at Cafe du Monde in Covington, Louisiana for morning coffee and beignets.
Big hotel room - still not as fun as a van!
After getting through the rest of Louisiana and into Florida through the panhandle , I stopped at Hampton Inn in Lake City, Florida. I was too excited to sleep, the next day I was picking up the van!
Day 3 - December 30th 2024
All detailed and waiting for me!
Finally! I got to SSRV early, even though my appointment was at 10 am I still wanted to get there as they opened. It was so exciting to finally see the van in person after staring at the photos for so long!
Getting settled in
After finalizing the remaining paperwork and a a quick tutorial on how the heating and hot water works, I headed to the campground that SSRV reserves for new owners and started unpacking and setting up the van.
Day 4 - December 31st 2024
New Year’s Eve at my favorite Harvest Host
I started my log drive home on New Year’s Eve and stopped at my favorite Harvest Host, The Cypress Taphouse and Fort Bayou Brewery in Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
Dinner!
Enjoyed a dinner of fried shrimp and their Taphouse Old Fashioned!
Happy New Year!
Bulleit Bourbon, Bulleit Rye with simple syrup, Angostura bitters, garnished with maraschino cherry and an orange slice then smoked with oak chips.
Day 5 - January 1st 2025
A looooong drive home……… Now the real adventures begin!
