Category Archives: On The Road

Traveling in our Coach

On The Road, Photos-Birds, Photos-Landscapes

~Alafia River State Park

January 22, 2016 Sheila 9 Comments

Alafia River State Park, Lithia, Florida

We are currently in Alafia River State Park. Our friends Karla and Larry are camping here with us for a few days, and we are very glad they are here.

Since Wednesday we managed to get in a few walks and one neat hike. If you like to bike and/or ride horses, Alafia River is the place to come. Check out this beautiful Florida State Park here: Alafia River.

Here are a few photos of our site and the campground. We have four Live Oak trees on our site.

Our rig

Our side yard for seven days.

Paved streets into the park and around the loops.

My Orchid seems to like it also. One started to bloom again!

Our view out the front windshield .

Water and electric; central dump station.

Pavilion amphitheater

Horse stalls

Lake on a cloudy day

Butterfly Garden in winter

The girls are enjoying it here.

Karla, Larry and Howard. Check out this bike trail.This park is known for its elaborate bike trails.

This park is pastoral and peaceful, and filled with live oak trees. The birds love these Live Oak trees. We have spotted several Osprey, one Bald Eagle and seventeen other species so far. Here is a beautiful Green Heron and a Killdeer.

Green Heron

Killdeer

A little fall color in winter. Alafia River State Park

More later…

On The Road, Photos-Landscapes

~For Beth and Pam-Myakka River State Park

January 16, 2016 Sheila 6 Comments

This tells us, some of the park buildings were build during 1934-1941.

This tells us,the park was established in 1935 and 1,920 acres were donated by the Palmer family.

Notice the photo of the plaque above, it is attached to these old log buildings, currently being used as a restroom and a picnic pavilion. Again, letting people know when and by whom these building were constructed. Right behind these building is the river and some people choose to launch their kayaks there.

There is a small room attached to the open, covered, picnic pavilion that houses a fireplace. Benches are placed around the room for people to sit on while enjoying the fire.

One cool morning while on a walk, we discovered that a fire had been started, and it was nice to stand there for a few minutes gazing into the flames. The last photo above is an outdoor amphitheater.

Lots of paths in the park to choose from. On this day a walk through moss covered oaks and palms, some covered with ferns.

Also, while out walking the paths, you are guaranteed to see Black and Turkey Vultures, and Herons fishing along the banks of the Myakka River.

The sites in the Palmetto Ridge area at Myakka River State Park are all full hook-up, some are pull-through, some are back-in, and even a few are drive-in, such as the empty one above. There are two bath houses, both with washers and dryers. All roads in Palmetto Ridge are paved, all sites are gravel. And, when it rains really, really hard, like it did on Friday, you will have your very own pond!

This state park is unique and gorgeous. A lot of people come to see the alligators; I come to see the birds and the sunsets. Each of us have their own reasons for wanting to walk along the Myakka River.

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I took the photo of this gator while standing on a bridge looking down at him.

On The Road, Photos-Flowers, Plants, Trees

~Lunch and a visit to a botanical garden

January 15, 2016 Sheila 8 Comments

Howard did his magic, and searched out another local, unique place to eat lunch. We pulled into a full parking lot at Casey’s Seafood and More here in Sarasota for a late lunch. That and the fact we had to wait a few minutes for a table, told us he made a good choice. After ordering and eating, he picked another great one.

A common method to prepare fresh, grilled fish in southern Florida, is to offer it with several choices of toppings. Casey’s had four topping offerings: Garlic and Butter; Tomatoes, Olives, Capers; Orange; and Maple. My grilled fish was delicious with the Tomatoes, Olives and Caper topping. Yum!

Even though it was a cloudy day after lunch we headed toward historic downtown Sarasota to Marie Selby Botanical Gardens. Please go to this web-site to read about her life and the gardens. Marie Selby

Selby Gardens is a leader in the conservation and display of epiphytes, or plants that grow on other plants without harming them, such as orchids, bromeliads, and gesneriads. (their information)

Celebrating 40 Years

I am sorry to say I don’t remember the names of most of the trees, plants or flowers we saw during our walk and tour of the gardens. I hope you enjoy seeing them.

Colorful blooms, up close….

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Koi Pond…

Water falls splash into pools, hidden secrets draw you down winding paths, color dances on pavilion floors as sunlight shines through them, these and more all contribute to a tranquil visit…

The gardens border Sarasota Bay, where you can sit on a bench and watch the sunset, enjoy a resting Little Blue Heron, or watch the boats entering or leaving the bay.

Beautiful poems…

A Succulent Garden…

Trees…

A winding path…

So many beautiful gardens, too many for me to do justice with these few photos. Howard and I enjoyed our visit to Marie Selby Botanical Gardens and if you are ever in the Sarasota area, I recommend a visit.

On The Road, Photos-Birds

~A Walk

January 11, 2016 Sheila 8 Comments

Myakka River State Park, Sarasota, Florida

Last Thursday, Howard and I took a walk down a path in the park.

We ran into a naturalist, on Wednesday when we arrived, and he told us about this path, saying he has seen Barred Owls in this area. We met him last year when we visited the park for the first time, and found him to be a real character and very knowledgeable.

I was sharing with him my lack of never having seen a Barred Owl in the wild. Saying, “it would be a nice Life List bird for me”. So off we go in search of this elusive owl.

It was a pleasant walk with temperatures just about perfect. The path we were walking on was slightly higher than the forest floor with swampy areas between us and the trees.

As we walked along enjoying the scenery, we saw something fly across the road up ahead of us. We tracked it to where we thought it entered the forrest. We were looking up into the trees and this Red-shouldered Hawk had landed on the ground next to the water. Seeing it standing there, near the water, was a surprise. It appeared to be digging in the moist earth. Of course as we approached it flew up into the trees.

Sadly, no Barred Owl sighting for me on this day, just a beautiful hawk. I will keep searching.

We continued, over the next 30 minutes or so, to watch this hawk as it hunted along this path. After observing, it fly into several different places and its behavior, I believe it was gathering nesting material; however, I can’t be sure.

Here are several photos as it flew from the ground to tree to tree.

The hawk flew to this stump and sat there looking around. Notice its muddy beak.

It took to higher ground landing on this tree branch.

This spot was near the ground; a low branch over the swamp.

Last location, was back into a tree. This photo is blurry, but it shows this beautiful Red-shouldered hawk snapping small twigs.

The feathered photo above shows a Palm Warbler with its back to me. I took this photo while watching the Red-shouldered Hawk.

Later in the day, in a different location, I took this photo of another Palm Warbler.

The header photo above shows Black-bellied Whistling Ducks catching a few winks.

Life is good, Happy Birding!