2013-12 Exploring Crane Point, Marathon FL

We bought an annual pass to Crane Point Museum and Nature Center just across from the supermarkets in Marathon. We enjoyed their trails, historical Adderley house (the oldest home in the keys outside of Key West), and Wild Bird Center.

There are some of Wyland's earliest murals in this park

In the Adderley house

Looking out over Florida Bay

Yes, there are cactus in the keys

 

 

 

Osprey on the mend

Golden Orb Spider - watch where you walk, they're everywhere!

2013-11 Still Hot and Humid in the Florida Keys - where's winter?

I was looking forward to a cool down and perhaps a reduction in the no-see-em wounds, but no luck there - this month remained much hotter and wetter than normal here in the Keys. 


On the first of November, we went to one of our favorite waterfront spots,  for their doggie costume contest. My favorite was definitely the yorkie couple!

Football Jock and Cheerleader

November did bring two new arrivals to the Dolphin Research Center, Aleta's baby Diva, and Merina's baby Windley. We visited frequently but were not present for either birth. One occurred while we were working, and one was before business hours at the DRC. Nearly all dolphins here were born here, except for a couple adopted from New England Aquarium, Jax who was found seriously injured by a shark and non-releasable, and Louie, another rescue.

It was a thrill to see the newborns. At times, the mommas really seemed eager to show them off.

Margarita time! Getting their daily fresh water

 

 

Iguanas are non-native; if caught, they are required to be kept captive, or destroyed. These guys at DRC have been neutered and released to live out their lives at the center

 

 

 

Even the iguanas watch the show

Talon and Pax working with trainers

Talon and Pax are the athletic boys

They seem to love jumping



That's some serious air!

 

The moms and teenagers in the nursery also get their turn, including Molly their "old lady" at over 54, who was recued from a roadside trailer show (back when that was legal); she has clearly visible scars under her flippers where she was held up in the trailer...

 

The newborn babe just a few hours old

You can really see her "stripes" here. In dolphins, the babes have the "stretch marks" which disappear when out of that cramped womb for a while

Aleta showing off her newborn

And many more gorgeous sunsets...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2013-10 Jolly Roger in the Florida Keys

We arrived in Marathon FL on October 1 and started work the very next day. Contracted for the winter (busy season), we worked near full-time and were pretty exhausted at the end of most work days. Concrete work, laying new sod, painting, repairing boat dock....it was hard work in the humidity...
 
                                              but every evening, a fabulous sunset reward.



One of our first and best sunsets at Jolly Roger

Unfortunately, I was hit very hard by the local varmints, called no-see-ems, sand fleas, biting knats....no matter what you call 'em, they are buggers! They rarely bit Gary, but my legs were covered with at least 60 bites, looked like I had chicken pox and these bites took months to heal. Spent hours researching online, tried many suggestions...only thing which "sort of" worked was BenGay. So I walked round for months smelling like menthol.

It was an unusually hot and humid October (in fact, the whole winter was record breaking heat). We still managed to explore the keys a bit on our days off. We quickly discovered...
the best "happy hour" - not for drinks but for wings and shrimp, Sparky's Landing

Sparky's Landing for 25 cent wings and peel-n-eat shrimp

 and the best "sandy beach", Sombrero Beach

White sands and palms at Sombrero Beach in Marathon

and the famous "nude beach", Coco Plum Beach

And the coolest Lego collection in the keys at The Hurricane

And even some wolves in the keys...

We decided to buy an annual membership to Dolphin Reseach Center because it was just a few doors down and we knew we would stop in there frequently. Really enjoyed getting to know the dolphins, trainers, and watching the on-going research.





Also spent some time relaxing at Jolly Roger...

Our resident "spiny lobster" under the seawall



Resident Ibis flock

And many more fantastic sunsets...







2013-09 Our next stop going south through Florida, Peace River Thousand Trails park

As members of Thousand Trails, we can stay at their parks for "free" for up to 3 weeks at each. Unfortunately, we only had a couple days to spare on our way down to the keys. This was a nice park, and we enjoyed their amenities including clubhouse, pool and hot tub.


Our river front spot at Peace River

Click here to see our pictures from Peace River

2013-09 A "brief" stop at Costco in Tallahassee, and then on to O'Leno State Park

An exciting morning at Costco (ugh...traffic getting from the highway to the store, ugh...traffic in the parking lot, ugh...traffic in the store!). We were there to pick up necessities (toilet paper, paper towels, toothpaste, etc) but came out with $150 worth of miscellaneous nuts, snacks, and 5-pound bags of potato chips (huh? are you kidding me? who's gonna eat all these?)...then back on the highway (ugh....more nasty traffic) and heading south to our next stop, O'Leno State Park.

So glad we chose this stop. So much much better than any discount RV park could ever be. Beautiful park with wildlife including deer, alligators, turtles and all manner of birds, plus hiking trails, kayaing and canoeing, the very cool suspension bridge, and fascinating disappearing river ("the sink" and "the rise"). The "Friends of O'Leno" have a nice website with further information on the park. It is a great place to visit. http://friendsofoleno.org/




I think the "No Jumping from Bridge" sign is superfluous, as is the "No Swimming" notation below "Caution! Alligators". There are times when Darwin's Theory should simply be allowed to run its natural course.

 

Click here for more of our O'Leno State Park pictures

2013-09 Florida - Grayton Beach State Park and our first florida bear!

After a noisy night at a Walmart in Jackson, MS...we made it down to the Florida Panhandle. Hot and Humid, so found a state park with electric hookups. Grayton Beach SP not only has full hookups available, and nice restroom / showers - they also have laundry facilities!We took a day off the drive to rest, relax, and try to kick this cold we picked up in Missouri.

The white sand beaches and barrier dunes are gorgeous...enjoyed strolling the beach...there are barrier fences also around the sea turtle nests. Gary bought his Florida fishing liscense and almost caught a shark. I really wanted to go snorkeling this morning. The gulf is like bath water, but water's a bit choppy from a storm coming through, so I didn't think I'd see much.

We saw a little black bear on the road to the market. I know they have bears here, but just don't expect to see one. After all that time in Idaho, we have to come to Florida to see a bear. Go figure.
pics from around Grayton Beach State Park, FL