I got addicted to watching manatees at Blue Spring State Park, and after a month without seeing any of the priceless critters, I needed a fix. Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park reportedly had manatees on site. And it was within an hour of Bushnell, where we were camping. The park’s focal point is a large [...]
Entries from January 2010
January 29, 2010
Florida’s Record Cold Takes Its Toll on Wildlife
Manatees have become one of my favorite animals, so it makes me sad that Florida’s record cold has caused the death of at least 77 of these endearing animals. The coldest 12-day period since 1940 also killed hundreds of sea turtles and untold millions of fish. (That explains all the dead fish we saw on [...]
January 26, 2010
Our First RV House Guest
Last week we had the joy of having our first RV house guest! Cindi and I have known each other since we were 17-year-old freshmen at American University. It seems amazing that a friend from Denver would visit us in Bushnell, Florida. Call it perfect timing. Cindi had a few days between conferences in Tampa, [...]
January 23, 2010
It’s My Birthday
… and I’m celebrating it by simply BE-ing. Mother Nature has blessed this day with sunshine, temperature in the low 70s and birds singing joyously. I love our dry camping site overlooking the cypress swamp. The play of light on the trees and palmettos constantly changes. Depending on the hour, owls hoot, ibises feed and [...]
January 13, 2010
Old Florida
Here, in the countryside away from the beaches, we’re in the midst of Old Florida. A cypress swamp, pasture, small ranch (with donkeys), and a state road border the campground. Cattle graze on grass in the pasture — and on palmettos in the cypress swamp. Bird sounds range from hooting owls and trilling finches to [...]
January 12, 2010
Sandhill Cranes Strut Through RV Resort
This beautiful pair of sandhill cranes is wintering at our current “home,” Sumter Oaks RV Park in Bushnell, Florida. A lovely splash of red accents their heads. Usually they hang out in the neighboring pasture, but they occasionally come visit the campground. The grass must harbor something tasty that they enjoy. These past few weeks, [...]
January 11, 2010
Ice on the Cypress Swamp
It got so cold last night that the neighboring cypress swamp froze over! In the midst of Florida’s 2010 freeze, we’re enjoying our own nature park here. Our front window looks onto a beautiful cypress swamp. The trees’ knobby knees poke up through the water. Spanish moss drapes down from palms and pines. And a [...]
January 9, 2010
Sleet in Florida!
We’re hearing a different patter on our fiberglass rooftop today. Sleet! We’re only an hour north of Tampa and it’s sleeting! The other day, it was 59 degrees in Key West — a record low temperature for that location. Pity the vacationers seeking fun in the sun! We arrived in Florida in early December and [...]
January 6, 2010
Dry Camping Adventure
We’re dry camping, aka boondocking, at an RV campground for the first time. On the road, we did dry camp a few times at Wal Marts and Flying J Travel Plazas. But those were only for the night. This time we’re doing it for three weeks. Dry camping means no hookups for water, electricity or [...]
