Swamp Walk

I talked John into taking a 6.5 mile hike today because it was going to be fairly cool and cloudy which is good weather for hiking. We started out this morning walking in an area very similar to what we biked in yesterday, fairly open with scattered palm trees, lots of ferns and tall grasses. At times we were in actual forest with hardwood trees mixed with palms. I think most of them were cypress as the ground was muddy and there were "knees" poking up along the path. Past the halfway point we entered a dense forest with a canopy so low it formed a tunnel around the path. Once vultures, startled by us, took off from the ground and low tree branches and scared us! Another spot was full of robins chirping and singing, flitting from tree to tree.

The trail map showed two areas with water and mud but we thought they were just landmarks along the trail. But, no, they were actually areas where we had to wade thru the water and tromp in the mud! At one of three water crossings the water almost came over the tops of our hiking boots, the mud sucked off the rubber tips on John's hiking poles and threatened to pull off his boot, and my pant legs were heavy with black mud and grass stains. As we are fond of saying, "Been there, done that, NOT doing it again!" We can cross swamp walks off of our list of things to do.

Florida Forest

We really didn't do much today except ride our bikes this afternoon through a typical South Florida forest. Just a short ride from the campground was a 3.5 mile off-road bike trail which is a part of the state park. In MO we are used to lots of underbrush, noisy insects and deeply shaded woodlands. Here we saw lots of ferns overlaid with palm trees and tall, skinny pines letting in lots of sun while somehow keeping it cool. The path was sand covered with grass clippings, made bumpy with exposed roots and it was totally quiet. We watched closely for panthers or alligators but saw neither. In Florida they call this a 'mountain bike trail', note the total flatness. Our kind of mountain trail.

This evening the campground sponsored an ice cream social with live music followed by a talk from a local author. Since the screened pavilion is directly across from us we got to enjoy the evening without leaving our site. Of course the ice cream social started at 5:45 PM, before dinner so, as I always say, "Life's too short, have dessert first!"

Alligator and Bicycles

About 33 years ago, John and I attended a conference on Marco Island. One afternoon we had so free time so we drove over to the Everglades National Park and stopped at Shark Alley to ride the trams into the swamp, except that the swamp was flooded which meant the water was over the paved path so that the trams couldn't run. But they were renting bicycles if you didn't mind riding through water along the road. Being young and adventuresome we rode the rental bikes on the 15 mile trail. The last 7 miles were almost totally covered with water (sometimes over the pedals) and where there was no water there were alligators sunning themselves on the paved road! We were totally unprepared with no water or sunscreen, but vividly remember that bike ride.

Today, John and I rode that same trail again. This time the path was dry, the trams were running and we had our own bikes. We packed our lunch, lots of water and the sunscreen. We saw many alligators but only two were actually on the pavement, the rest were along the sides or in the water. It was a really nice day and I thoroughly enjoyed the ride. We saw lots of different birds like wood storks, snowy egrets, great blue herons, ibis and anhingas. The crows threatened to steal our lunch but we guarded our food jealously!

On the way back we stopped in Everglades City to see one of the oldest stores in the glades. Ted Smallwood saw a need for a Trading Post in the Everglades where the Seminole Indians could trade their goods for supplies, the local settlers could buy what they needed and a post office was important. The original store was built on the ground and accessible only by boat in 1906. Shortly after it was built a hurricane came thru and knocked it off its foundation so Smallwood jacked it up onto pylons and added on to it and it has stood there since 1920's. A road was built out to its island in the mid-1950's and it was in business until 1974 when they placed it on the National Registry of Historic Places and then closed down in 1982. When they closed the building they left everything inside, untouched. Ted's granddaughter reopened the trading post in the late 1980's as a museum with 90% of the original goods still in the store.

Collier-Seminole State Park

This park is named after an important person and an important event.

The important person is Baron Collier, a tycoon of the 1920's who bought a million acres of land in this area, eventually giving the land to Florida since the federal government did not want it for a national park. He also helped to build the Tamiami Trail by paying for 30 miles of the 50 miles built and also furnishing the special dredge used to build the road bed. The dredge would dig up dynamited limestone which was then used for the road bed and it also dug the ditch to divert the water away from the road. The dredge was a big square contraption with footings at four corners and two on either side. The bucket would dig when the center footings were planted. Then, using cables and pulleys, the four corners would "walk" forward a few feet and the center footings would plant again. It took 4 years to build 30 miles of road.

The important event was the Seminole Indian Wars. These started in the 1700's. After the third war, the Seminoles were sent to reservations. As the soldiers searched the area for Indians, they drew maps so that an 1857 map illustrated the Black River and a palm grove. The park is situated around that palm grove, which are the royal palm variety.

We arrived about noon, having left the previous RV park after staying two of the four nights reserved. We just did not like the area and were longing for a less commercial place to stay. The first thing the ranger here said when we told him we did not have a reservation was, "You are in luck!" I think we got the only unreserved site available. And for the first time in a couple of weeks I got to build a campfire!

Okeechobee Golf Club

Well, you can call it a golf club if you want but it won't be one for much longer. The fairways were okay, but the tee boxes were weedy and the greens were almost like sand greens except they had grass growing on them - sometimes. The "club house" was a beautiful old two story home but the only part that was open was the bottom floor for the pro shop and cart storage. They used to have a restaurant but had to close it because it wasn't making any money. The "driving range" was a short open area with a tall net at one end and a sign that read: "Do not hit balls over the net." The sand traps hadn't been raked for a long while and the water hazards were scummy. But we actually spotted one alligator in one pond. He was swimming around and attacking a floating stick! Cool! There was trash every where. The pro's wife was filling the carts with gas and there was no one to help us with our clubs. As you may guess, we will not be coming back to this course.

On top of all of that, the day was beautiful but the golf games were not good!

Did It Again!

We broke our number one rule - again! We made a reservation at an RV park in Okeechobee for 4 days and after arrival decided we want to leave after two days. It's not a bad park, there is just not much to do like hiking or biking or fishing. I did talk John into playing golf with me again but then I think we'll skip out of here and find a state park to stay in for a few days.

Fishing Days

Yesterday and today John is in the kayak trying to catch bass. Unfortunately the bass are preparing their beds for eggs so they are not interested in catching worms or shiny lures. Yesterday he fished in Lake Kissimmee while today he's trying Lake Rosalie. I hope he has better luck. I'm heading out to shop!!

Walkin' in Kissimmee

State Park, that is. After doing the laundry and a few other chores we drove to Kissimmee State Park and walked on one of their three trails. We probably logged 3.5 miles. This trail looped by the lake that is ever so pretty. It's a very shallow, blue lake, only 8 feet at the deepest point, with lots of grass and lily pads lining the shore. It is connected to other lakes around it by canals and streams along which boats can travel.

There is a real possibility that John will actually fish tomorrow.

Broken Rule

Today we broke one of our major rules by making a 4-day reservation at an RV park we knew nothing about. It turned out we should have only stayed here one night. It's not really a dump but it is not for short stay RVers like us. Most people here are seasonal, living in trailers and park models. They have very limited lake access and any bike riding will be a challenge on very narrow roads. And it appears that almost everyone here rides a three wheeled bike. We've never seen so many in one place.

We are near Lake Wales not too far from Lake Kissimmee State Park. We are considering leaving after two nights and forfeiting two nights cost.

Golf

I talked John into playing golf with me today at Island Links at Aquarina near here. It turned out to be a pretty nice day on an OK course. It was pretty short with par 3 and par 4 holes. I played boggie golf, John played John golf (not good). We saw a couple of gators sunning themselves and two holes were played off of wooden platforms placed in the swamp.  

John took me out for dinner in Vero Beach at a fun place on the ocean. We had a really good dinner.

Birds and Fish

The day started out with lots of sunshine. I attended church while John got ready to go fishing in his kayak. When I got home I fixed him a lunch and he took off. It was nice and quiet around here.

I strolled around the campground trying figure out what kind of birds I was seeing. I know one is a pelican but I'm not sure what the other bird it. It may be a Great White Heron. I watched several people fishing. One man caught a Blue Runner and another was fishing for Sheepshead. He cracked shells containing hermit crabs and used them for bait. Then he just hung his line over the side of the fishing dock and trolled it back and forth. Interesting way to fish. John did not have much luck.

Biking in the Rain

After fiddling around the RV all morning, we packed up a picnic lunch and took off for a bike ride to Vero Beach. The weather was very unsettled with only a 30% chance of rain and lots of wind but we thought we would take a chance that for 70% of the day it would not rain. And we did have enough luck during the ride to the beach as it did not rain. Because of high tide and high winds, the waves were obviously good for surfing as there were at least a dozen guys and girls out in the ocean. We enjoyed watching them while we ate lunch.

We started to ride on south but the clouds and wind got us worried so we turned around and headed back. About half way back we detoured into the Pelican Island Bird Sanctuary which is land that has been set aside for nesting birds. We were going to walk out to the observation tower except that it started to sprinkle. We thought about waiting for it to stop but decided we would rather put on our rain coats and get back. So, for the last 4 miles we rode in rain. So much for it not raining for 70% of the day. In fact, it rained the rest of the afternoon and into the night. We put 19 miles on our bikes today.

To Stay or To Move

According to one ranger the only site opening up today was #51 which we didn't really like as it was too small and right next to the dump station. But another ranger told us that two sites would be opening up today and we liked both of them a lot better. Now we can stay as long as we want, up to 13 more days. We also checked out the County Park which is only about two miles from here. It is almost an island projected into the Indian River. But the only site they had available was an interior site with little to no access to the water. We stayed at the state park. We also drove into Sebastian which is a 7 mile drive down the island, then a 2 mile bridge and 7 miles back up the mainland side. This whole area is full of high end housing and tourist lodging.

Today's weather has been very iffy. It started out cold then warmed up to about 74° but the wind was still blowing so it felt much cooler. We also weren't sure if the clouds were going to produce rain or not. Mid afternoon found us needing to do something so John got the bikes out. We rode about a mile and a half when a light fell off of John's bike so we had to go back to fix that. Then we rode about two miles and it started sprinkling so we had to go back. So much for bike riding today.

Time to Move

We took a great chance today by heading to Sebastian Inlet State Park without a reservation. South of Cape Canaveral and Melbourne and north of Stuart and West Palm Beach, we are camped on a spit of land separating the Atlantic from Indian River Intra-Coastal waterway. When we got here they had one site available for only 1 night but knew of a couple of people who would be moving out tomorrow so we could then move into one of those site. It was 85° when we got here but late afternoon the a front moved through and the wind kicked up and the temperatures started dropping.

We walked to the point on Indian River and watched six people kite surfing. It is so amazing to see them skimming along the surface on a snow board being pulled by a huge, colorful kite and then all of a sudden they hit a wave and are propelled into the air above the water. They gently land back on the water and take off and do it again. We then walked along the inlet and out on the pier into the Atlantic Ocean where the waves were crashing onto the sand. Several people were fishing off the end of the pier while others were surf fishing from shore. One brave (or stupid) young man was swimming in the surf. It has to be so cold!

I think we are going to like it here.

Another Day in Paradise

We elected to spend one more day here thinking we might ride the bikes on the beach again. But other activities took precedence and then we lost interest in the beach (for today). John thought he needed to clear the roof of debris and found several areas he thought should be cleaned, including the Fantastic Fan; then he got to checking the awning over the slide and found it needed to be adjusted; then the bikes needed air in their tires; and then it was lunch time.

After lunch I talked John into riding our bikes over to the lighthouse and and its museum. It was actually quite interesting. We learned about the creation of US Coast Guard and the female guards, called SPARS, especially during WWII. One story told of a Guardsman and his girl friend who were on the beach when a German U-boat bombed Jacksonville harbor. They could hear the blasts, saw planes flying over and actually saw the sub surface at St. Augustine. Another story relates that fried shrimp was invented in St. Augustine for the Coast Guard stationed here and those men spread the news of this delectable morsel. A museum docent showed us some of the particulars in building boats like they used to do back in England. They use White Oak and Live Oak. If you have ever seen a Live Oak tree, you would think it would not be good for building anything as it is very crooked and knarly. Boats, though, don't have many straight lines, they are mostly curved, so using a tree with curves was easier than trying to bend one. The view from the top was great. We got a good dose of exercise hiking up the 216 steps.

Happy hour starts at four so we wondered over to the Conch House Tiki Bar for a couple of rum drinks before heading back to the RV. And in honor of the US Coast Guard's fried shrimp, that's what we had for dinner.

Our 'New' Convertable

This morning we decided it was going to be a nice warm, sunny day so why not take the top off of the Jeep and drive it on the beach. John spent some time getting all the windows off and rolled up into a soft cloth bag and then very easily folded the whole top back so that now we have an open convertible! While he was doing all of that, I fixed us a picnic lunch. We got onto the beach about 3 miles down the road from us and drove for about 30 minutes (at 10mph) before stopping for lunch. As we ate we watched the pelicans dive into the ocean, shooed off begging seagulls, and enjoyed watching people walk or bike at waters edge. One enterprising young man blew by us pulled by a kite while his feet were attached to a skateboard like device. Later we watched him kite surfing in the ocean.

We estimate that we drove about 12 miles on the beach but I have to tell you it was not all that warm on the seashore! Clouds covered the sun at times but the wind never stopped and I got cold! I'm really happy I had my beach towel/blanket to wrap around me.

Getting the top and windows back on the Jeep was not nearly as easy as taking them off! So instead of eating out, I fixed us a really good Mahi Mahi dinner and we watched a movie. Good evening.

St. Augustine, Again

We are less than 3 miles from downtown St. Augustine and the traffic was light for a Monday morning so we enjoyed the bike ride into town. Our sightseeing took us past the marina, the monastery turned army barracks with white washed wood sided homes for the officers into Lincolntown, a part of St. Augustine that was originally developed by former slaves. Some of the oldest homes are found in this neighborhood. We also rode past the St. Augustine National Cemetery. A unique feature here are three pyramids which cover the remains of 108 British soldiers. They were killed by Indians during the Seminole War in the 1700's.

Henry Flagler was a very prominent businessman in St. Augustine. He built the railroad from New York to Florida for the sole purpose of luring people to the area as tourists. Many hotels, museums and churches were built here by him. We visited the Flagler College whose main entrance was once the Ponce de Leon Hotel, the Memorial Presbyterian Church, where the Flagler family is interred, and the former Alcazar Hotel which is now the Lightner Museum and City Hall and was built by Flagler.

After a tapas lunch we shopped, had some ice cream and then rode back to the RV putting 12.5 miles on the bikes. From the entrance gate to the campground entrance is about one mile and then the road actually doubles back towards the entry gate to the loop we are camped on. John keeps thinking that there has to be a shortcut out of the campground so we don't have to travel those two miles to get out on the highway. We spent a good 15 minutes both going and coming trying to find the shortcut and there is none!

The weather has been unseasonably warm here and we are enjoying every warm day. It was even nice enough for us to walk on the beach tonight, taking in the stars and rolling waves with flashes of light from the St. Augustine Lighthouse.

Anastasia State Park

After a lazy morning, we drove up to Anastasia State Park in St. Augustine on the off chance they might have an open site for us. Turns out they have lots of open sites so we easily got one. We had heard that this was a very popular place to stay and it wasn't always easy to get in. I guess we are here at the right time of year or we are just plain lucky.

Once we got settled in, we got on our bikes to explore the campground and then ride on the beach. This is another area where the beach is hard and flat which makes for wonderful bike rides. We went about 2.5 miles north without getting to the inlet into St. Augustine and put about 7 miles total on the bikes.

Then it was time to do the laundry - yuck!

Crabbing & Canoeing

The state park rangers offered a class on crabbing at the pier on the Pellicer River. I have done some of that with my brother but Judy had never gone crabbing so we attended the class. They showed us information about crabs, then how to make an inexpensive crab string which we used to try our hand at catching one. I think it is still too cold, even though it was in the low 80's today, for the crabs to be very hungry or active. We didn't see anyone catch anything. The ranger had a male crab, called a Jimmy, and a female crab, called a Sally, for demonstration purposes so if Judy shows you a picture of a crab, she didn't catch it herself!

Since we are on a river that joins the inter-coastal waterway, we rented canoes and paddled up stream hopping to see wildlife like herons, egrets, fish and gators. The first two we did see, but so sign of any gators. It must be too cold for them to be in the water.

Ray & Judy are huge Denver Broncos fans so John and I prepared dinner while watching the Bronco/Raven game with them. It was a good game, too bad Denver lost.

Lunch & Beach

We spent most of the morning visiting with Ray & Judy and drinking coffee. By about 11 am we decided that we would all drive over to the beach for lunch at Matanzas Inlet Restaurant where we had a beer the other day. John folded the top back half way and took the top half of the doors off before we left. As we were leaving we discovered an unannounced controlled burn right outside the campground. Judy needed to go back and get her dogs for fear that the burn might generate a lot of smoke which meant they followed us in their Jeep. We still ate at the grill which had excellent food. John pigged out on some of the best oysters ever. Then onto the beach where the dogs chased the waves and John and I did some power walking. Even though the day was quite warm inland, on the ocean the breeze kept the temps down by about 10 degrees.

These beaches are so wide and flat and hard that during the off season 4x4 automobiles are allowed to drive anywhere on the sand. Two pickup trucks thought they wouldn't have any trouble and got stuck. I think one truck got stuck first then the rescue truck got stuck. John, the Hero of the day, was able to pull both of them out of the soft sand and onto the hard pack.