Yaking Around Wheeden Island Nature Preserve

This year we headed south without the trusty red canoe. Its provided us with six years of use and  we have never tipped it over, (We have been lucky a few times especially on the Gunnison). Still we wanted to try kayaks ever since we yaked with Alan and Sharon on Convict Lake in California.
So reaching St Petersburg we started to look for  kayaks, specifically single sit inside ones, with pole holders. We also were looking for kayaks that were stable and easy to get into and out from. Furthermore we didn't want them too long as we needed to use them on Wyoming streams with lots of turns.

Surprisingly there are no major outdoor stores in this area, but we did find one that had  a kayak I was interested in, an Old Town Vapor. The store also decked it with pole holders and an anchor system. So now we needed to find the right one for Renita.
She spent some time on Google and found several ones including a Perception ten footer at a Sports Authority. When we stopped at the store we lucked out and the yak was on sale for two hundred and forty nine bucks, three hundred off the list price!

Now we had planned to go to the art museum in Sarasota but as it was Veterans Day, instead we loaded the kayaks and headed to Wheeden Island Nature Preserve. Renita was pretty nervous as I pushed her away, (she can't swim), but her nerves quickly changed to smiles as her new yak is way more stable then the canoe.

We paddled to a shallow area and practiced turning. Both the kayaks turned on a dime, compared to the canoe, and sped across the shallow water. Soon we were exploring shallow coves and taking images of the numerous herons.
Stopping for lunch in a shaded spot we were able to easily tie up in a raft. the rest of the day was simple paddling and it was even easy when the tide shifted and ran out. Two dolphins jumped right in front of us, it seems the yaks allow us to approach nearer to the wildlife/
So we are both quite happy with the change. Now if you see a white chevy truck with two bright yaks, its probably us. Of course the Wyoming plates are another clue! Next we hope to drive up to the Crystal River and yak with the manatees. Clear skies

An Afternoon Birding in Sawgrass Park

A line of American white ibis marched by us.  They were engrossed in their relentless search for grubs, uninterrupted by the presence of two lesser beings. We had never been so close and we could see their rear black underside, something I for one had never noticed. The end of their beaks was darkened by the black muddy soil and one pulled a worm out of the ground and then proceeded to slurp in kind of like watching someone eat a piece of spaghetti.

We had decided to make a quick trip to the boardwalk at Sawgrass Park and do a little birding. This year we actually have a list of things to do and parks to see, (it’s too easy to just sit and read and before you know it’s time to move). Sawgrass was the first thing on the list, along with buying kayaks, and of course Wheedon Island and Crystal River to name a few.

As we stepped onto the boardwalk a helicopter flew over head, and plane after plane roared by as they approached the Tampa airport, but the birds didn’t even raise their heads. There were lots of small alligators and marsh hens and we quickly learned the distinctive call of the red beaked birds.

A startled blue jay flew into the thick swampy brush, where it was quickly hidden by the dense foliage. We both know so little of south Florida’ wild plant’s, there is so much to learn and so little time. It always takes me a while each winter to reorient myself to the coastal birds, beak and leg color is so important. Renita knows the shore birds better than I do.

 

So when we saw a white wading bird with a yellow beak and black legs it was easy to identify it as a great egret and not a snowy,(black beak and legs). Renita spied a pileated woodpecker; we had already seen the numerous large oval holes. She also noticed a red belied woodpecker, feeding high in a dying tree. Its mate was not as colorful but it did pose and allow us to see the distinctive markings on its belly.

The walk along the boardwalk turned into a really nice birding stroll. When we reached the tower two anhinguas rested in nearby trees and preened themselves after successful feeding on the numerous fish. Spotted gar where everywhere and it looked like tilapia had invaded the large pond. A tricolor, (Louisiana), heron walked on top of the vegetation and all ignored the ever present gators.

The park itself is boarded on one side by Interstate 275, and yet it was an oasis of life that we both enjoyed. The birding had been surprisingly good and it’s a place we will return to, a nice break from the many beaches. Clear skies

Sumter Oaks

The long leaf pines towered over our heads as we walked along the nature trail. The undergrowth consisted mainly of saw palmettos, one of the forest plants that colonize the ground here after a fire. I ran my fingers along the small saw tooth edge from which the plant got its name, but it really wasn’t much of a saw. We heard the distinctive hammering of a pileated woodpecker and saw the oval holes it left as it drilled dead standing timber but we never spied the bird. Still a bird heard is a bird counted.

It was almost noon and we really didn’t see many birds at the Dade Battlefield State Park, but we both noticed a soaring bird with pointed wing tips and a narrow square tail. It looked to be some type of falcon but it wasn’t going to let us see it close up and so we couldn’t id the species.

Leaving Tallahassee, we had drove to Sumter Oaks Rv, (an Escapee Rainbow Park), and had decided to spend a week. It turned out that the birding in the park was surprisingly good and of course we were greeted with the usual warmth and hugs that one always receives when in a SKP,(short for Escapee and pronounced skip) park.

We heard of the craft group, called the stitch and b#^@  and so we went to the daily gathering to see what everyone was making. There Betty and Barbara and Dave and Terry, (and of course I forget a bunch on names), made us feel welcome to their daily session.

Terry wanted to learn to wire wrap and we ended up teaching her a mini class on wrapping a pendant, and of course she did a great job with her very first piece, she wrapped the brown variegated jasper in copper wire and you could tell by the finished product that she is an experienced crafter.

Perhaps the most unusually Skp’s in the park are the four sand hill cranes who wander in and out, completely unconcerned by all the activity. The park is edged by a swamp and alligators, snakes and herons all wander in and out so one does have to keep a vigilent eye. We never did see any gators or snakes but during our stay a pygmy rattler did crawl onto one of the roads where it was persuaded to leave,(ok the image is of the little blue heron in the swamp and not a sandhill).

We made the short trip to the Dade Battlefield State Park and learned of the battle in which the Seminole killed all but three of the troops dispatched to aide another outpost. It was one of the many battles in the long and costly Seminole war. It was another of the Manifest Destiny wars fought because the US wanted to send all the Seminole Indians to Oklahoma. The Indians never did surrender and some stayed in the swamps although most were eventually defeated and forced west.

So we had a really nice week in a beautiful oak filled forest setting. Spanish moss hung from the towering oaks and swayed in the steady breeze. Elephant ears resembled giant rhubarb, bordering one edge of the swamp. All in all it was just the kind of week we needed after our long pull from Wyoming to Indiana and then to southern Florida. Sumter Oaks was just the peaceful setting we needed and of course a good time with new friends.

Clear skies

From Shiloh to Bushnell, Florida

 

We left Shiloh and headed to Montgomery, Alabama. There we spent the night at the most beautiful campground we have ever stayed in, Gunter Hills which is a Corp of Engineers Campground. At eleven dollars a night, (senior pass), it’s a steal. The site was so large that we could have parked two rigs and trucks like ours, and that’s with full hookups.

So we took a nice walk and enjoyed the Spanish moss, hanging from the live oak trees. The campground was pretty full with lots of local folks setting up for the Halloween weekend. It’s celebrated more here than in Wyoming, maybe because it’s so cold back home?

Anyway the neighbors had motion activated life size figures, including a large rattlesnake. As I had had an encounter with a real one several weeks ago they were lucky I didn’t get my shotgun out and waste it, (we live and let live when we encounter rattlesnakes when we are in the middle of nowhere but I have a different attitude in campgrounds when there are small children present).

Unfortunately a cold front was due the next day so we headed out to Monticello, Florida where we stopped to visit our friends Bob and Sue. After five years of full timing they have bought a house, to live in for the winter months. It was so nice to see them and they are so happy to live near her sister.

However the campground we stayed at is the worst one we have ever stayed at!  It’s called Tallahassee East KOA, and between the trees and other campers I almost got blocked in. Luckily I was able to back through two empty spaces, pushing small branches out of the way and barely made it out the road.  Our neighbors tried to tow their rig between two parked rigs, (using the road, they are that narrow), and they hit a motor home as their back end swung around. Don’t ever stay there if you have a big rig.

So we said our goodbyes and headed east and south to Bushnell and Sumter Oaks Rainbow Park. It’s a beautiful place in a quiet setting. It’s a relief to be done traveling for a few months, ok we will pull to Tampa area next week, but at least we don’t have to worry about cold fronts and snow! Clear skies.

Shiloh

We walked along the Sunken road, its not really sunken, and stopped at each monument. Here were stones placed to commemorate each of the Iowa regiments that held at a place called the Hornets Nest against attack after attack. One of them,  the 12th Iowa, had even had to about face and repel an attack from the rear. They eventually were surrounded and had to surrender, but the dying hadn't stopped. Seventy one of the men died in a Confederate prison.

It wasn't just Iowa regiments that held here, Missouri, Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, Kentucky, and Ohio markers were all represented. The survivors, (over two thousand were surrounded and captured), finally retreated to Grants final line but they had held long enough. Johnston's final attack failed and Grant attacked and won the battle the next day.
Shiloh was the last on my list of Civil War Battlefields and in preparation I had bought the battlefield guide, Shiloh. Its over one hundred and seventy pages long and so I read it in advance and thought I was ready to guide us in our drive from stop to stop.

However it wasn't like Gettysburg or Antietam and we quickly became confused due to the thick forest. It made us understand the confusion that the undergrowth and rugged terrain had caused in the rebel lines. Finally figuring it out, we found where the battle had started and were able to trace the sequence of events.
Pausing at the Confederate monument I simply could not comprehend the bravery showed by the soldiers on each side.

Bloody pond was next to the sunken road, and we watched fish swim lazily in the shallow sunlit water. The myth said the pond was named for all the blood from the wounded and dead that stained its color but its another of those myths that surround this place.
A cannon stood where each general was killed, and it wasn't really surprising how close Lew

Wallace's and Sidney Johnston's monuments were to one another. Each step we took was on sacred ground and we both were silent in our thoughts. I had no relatives that had fought here, mine had passed at the siege of Vicksburg, and not from battle wounds but from mosquito borne sickness, (their Iowa regiment of sharpshooters had been place in a swamp).

Our last stop was where the final Confederate attack failed as the men had to cross  a creek and climb a steep hill. During all that time they were bombarded by Union gunboats, shot at from the final line and further bombarded by Union batteries.

The park headquarters here has a hour long movie that we both highly recommend should you ever visit here. The battle field guide we used was simply too much to properly use in the time we had, (the book says six hours is required to visit the sites but we used most of a day for the first day of the battle). I wish everyone could walk this and other such places to realize how special our country is and the heavy price paid. Perhaps then they wouldn't sign fools petitions demanding succession.
Clear skies.

The Rig is Fixed, Heading South

 

We took our rig in on Monday and it was fixed, as promised by Friday. The Heartland Customer service people explained all they had done to make the necessary welds and basically said they had rebuilt the front end to 2013 standards!

They had also fixed numerous other problems and it still seems like we keep finding things they fixed! So our hats are off to the outstanding job done by the Heartland Customer Service Center. Thanks to John H, Eric and the others techs responsible for the job well done, (oh and lest I forget thanks to David H for setting it all up)! Heartland treated us as a company should and stood behind their product, even though our warranty had expired.

So we reloaded the rig, resupplied the larder and refrigerator, and hooked up for a Sunday drive. The plan was to push it for three hundred and fifty miles, clear south to Cave City, Kentucky. Now we had already visited Mammoth Cave so other then enjoying the sights of beautiful state of Kentucky, we continued south to Tennessee. Crossing the state line we entered Louisville, where our gps took us on a strange loop of about five extra miles. It even took us back to the original starting exit/entrance.

Nashville, greeted us with heavy fog warnings, but we were able to drive through them and could actually see a little bit of the city. Turning west on Interstate Forty, a Natchez Trace Parkway sign quickly caused us to change our route as we decided to drive down the parkway.

Renita got behind the wheel and drove along the trace. The speed limit on it is fifty miles per hour, but with no trucks and little traffic she drove slower so I could enjoy the view. Notice I said I could enjoy the view as she had to really concentrate to keep the wheels on the narrow road, (It reminded us a lot of some of the interior Alaskan roads and Cassier Highway, both narrow roads with no shoulders).

The falls colors were not yet in their peak, but it really didn’t matter as it was a pleasant day driving the Natchez Trace, (If you ever get a chance follow the spring flowers north along the Trace). Turning off the parkway I took the wheel and drove the rest of the way to the Pickwick Dam Campground. There we found a beautiful, large campground, with long and level sites, spaced among towering Southern Pines.

To top it all off, it’s a Tennessee Valley Authority campground and it only costs eleven dollars a night with my senior pass, (first time I have been able to use it for camping). The campground is located on the Tennessee River and is just below the Shiloh National Park, which we plan on visiting tomorrow. Clear skies.

A Day Trip to Indiana Dunes State Park

So we dropped the fifth wheel off at the factory service center and decided to head out on a day of exploration. While we have spent time in Elkhart before, we have never traveled to the Indiana National Seashore or the Indiana Dunes State Park. The leaves are near peak right now and that alone promised to make the drive memorable.

We knew that the National Seashore would be closed, (thank you House Republicans), so that meant that we were really heading to the State Park. The National Seashore would have been free with my senior pass but the state park charged us ten dollars for the day pass as we were from out of state.

Ten dollars seemed steep to us as the regular restrooms were closed and the only restroom available was the worst smelling pit toilet I have ever used, (and that’s really says a lot)! In fact the bath house and all the facilities were closed, including the birding tower. You would think that the State of Indiana would at least charge less in the off season?

Still it was a nice, but windy, cool fall day and we strolled along the beach. It was such a clear day that we could see the Chicago skyline dominated by its towering skyscrapers, and they were fifty four miles away! We also enjoyed the large dunes and barren slopes that the park calls the Devil’s Slide.

So we enjoyed our time there, before heading back to Elkhart. It’s always a good day when you walk along a beach letting the sand work its way between your toes and it’s always a good day when you get to see a new part of the world filled with fall colors. Every day is a blessing! Clear skies