The adventures of Rachel

On Saturday while we were working Rachel decided to investigate the trap which has been set in the Courtyard with the intention of catching a raccoon who has been raiding the birdfeeders. As you can see in the photo-the trap works! She really wasn't very upset with her surroundings when we rescued her.

For every bad thing there seems to be a good one lurking in the future. On Sunday we came to South Padre Island for a little vacation from our vacation. A couple of days at the beach. Rachel is sure that the balcony outside our room was constructed just so she could bird and people watch. This is her favorite spot.

Like Rachel, Bill and Linda are enjoying the beach-we can see the waves from the balcony. The weather is what I call jacket weather-about 70 during the day with partial sun and partial clouds. S Padre is a nice place. We are enjoying our little getaway. Tomorrow we plan to visit Laguana Atascosta Wildlife Refuge and will be spending the night in Westlaco. On Wednesday we plan to check out the Don-Wes flea market and then get back to Falcon in time for the New Year and the Penn State bowl game on Thursday.

Christmas in Texas

Yesterday was warm and sunny here at Falcon State Park. The Park Rec Hall staff hosted a holiday dinner of turkey and all the trimmings which was very good. Bill and I exchanged gifts in the morning, took a nice walk on a trail and then attended the turkey dinner. After the dinner we took a ride around the park and got to see the vermilion flycatchers again. They are beautiful. The photos above just give you a hint of their beauty. They perch on a tree and dart out to catch insects in the air and then return to their perch to await more food. We watched one flycatcher who did a great acrobatic display as it stuffed itself on insects, up, down and around in the sky! Our holiday away from home was lonely without family and friends but at the same time was exciting because of the new and different things we were doing. I hope everyone had the best holiday ever.

JAVELINA

This is a collared peccary-locally called a javelina (pronounced HAVE a lina). We saw this one on the park road just a short distance from our campsite this afternoon. This animal is NOT a pig-it is related to rodents. This is the first time we have seen one although our campsite is littered with what we think is javelina scat. They are supposed to be stinky, unfriendly animals. We were excited to see this one and his/her two companions.
We went bird watching in the park today and Linda saw her first vermillion flycatcher. The most beautiful colored bird. Bill has taken some photos and that was planned for this blog entry until we happened upon the guy above. Stay tuned we'll get the flycatcher here eventually.
Our weather today is cool and cloudy. Not so good until you realize that we have the highest temperature in all of TX today according to the chatter at the Recreation Hall this morning. All things are relative as they say-we have shovelled no snow nor have we gotten close to the freezing mark with our temps. Tomorrow is to be back into the 70s with 80s later in the week. We have to remind ourselves that this is Christmas week. We hope everyone is enjoying the holiday week-we are.

Rare butterfly

This beautiful butterfly is a Mexican Silver Spot. They are seldom seen anywhere north of Mexico. Bill caught this one in the butterfly garden here at Falcon State Park. I guess he was confused about which side of the lake he should be on-since the south side is in Mexico. He is just one of the many things we have seen for the first time since we have been here.

An update on our activities:

Sunday we attended church at a Falcon Heights Church which is very near our location. It was an uplifting service.

Monday we made a trip to Rio Grande City (28 miles) and stocked up on food, did some Christmas shopping, ate at Whataburger and looked to see what was available there in Rio.

Tuesday (today) was laundry day. It is amazing how many clothes two people can wear in approx. 2 weeks. Laundry facilities are available in the Recreation Hall here in the park-so while the laundry did its thing-Bill went birdwatching and Linda visited with the Rec Hall volunteers.

Tomorrow we are going to Santa Ana Wildlife Refuge for an Holiday Pot Luck Lunch and party.

Thursday, Friday and Saturday we will be working back at the Birding Center.

One thing we have learned-the weather here is just as unpredictable here as it is at home. Yesterday was forcast to be 84ish and sunny. We went to Rio in shorts and sleeveless Tshirts. A front came thru and the temp dropped about 20-25 degrees in a couple of hours. We were frozen. People who have been here for awhile told us today that we should always take a jacket because it can change that quickly with no warning. We just put it in perspective-we were still much warmer than we usually are in December. We are enjoying being Winter Texans.

Learning the area

The first photo above is of the Rio Grande River not far from where we are staying. The far shore is Mexico. The second is of the Roma Bluffs World Birding Center Visitor Center in Roma, TX. We worked at our volunteer jobs at the Visitor Center for 3 days this week. It has been quite a shock to our systems to work 3 days in a row. Rachel is especially tired today. It was a time of learning new things. The Birding Center is located in an historic building on the square in Roma. The building is large and has been used in many ways over the years. The floors are original hand made irregular brick and a lot of the original wood work is still in its original condition. An interesting building to spend some time exploring. Part of my job includes learning the history of the building and other historic buildings around the square. I've been learning my job in the visitor center while Bill and Rachel (she is volunteering too) spend their days in the courtyard behind the building. The courtyard has bird feeding activities and a butterfly garden. We have seen many beautiful birds-most of them we have never seen before.

The weather here is lovely. Temps most days have been in the 70s with nighttime temps in the 50s. We had a short cold snap that kept temps in the 60s and 40s at night for a couple of days. At that time the wind was quite brisk (25-30 mph). Sure a change from the weather we are used to in PA at this time of year.

We are here!

Here is a photo of our home away from home for the next several months. The area is called high desert. Looks are very deceiving. Altho grasses and vegetation are brown they are teeming with life. The number of birds, butterflies, etc is unbelieveable. Right now at 11:15 AM the temp outside is 75 and is supposed to reach 85ish this afternoon. Very different from our home in PA.
Today we are getting settled and tomorrow we go to our volunteer jobs at Roma Bluffs National Wildlife Refuge.

We are ON the Road

Tonight we are in an RV Park off I35, just north of Waco, TX. We have been travelling for 3 days. The only sights we've seen have been thru the windshield. A few observations: There is snow in the higher elevations in VA, Tennessee has wonderful roads and great signs, Arkansas has terrible roads, Snow geese winter in Arkansas, Hawks are really plentiful in Texas and (duh!) Texas has lots of cattle. We have aprox. 500 miles to reach our destination. Hopefully then we will be able to get some photos.

It's getting closer!!

The countdown is now at 2 weeks until departure. The packing is beginning in earnest. We are anxious to hit the road.

On the Road Again, SOON!

3 weeks until we hit the road on our new adventure. We are going to be Winter Texans! We'll be volunteering in Roma, TX and spending lots of time just enjoying Texas. Right now we are busy, busy getting everything ready to travel and those things we must leave behind. The excitement is building.

Home again, home again

We arrived home today at approximately 3 pm. We had a great trip and returned with memories, suntans, and many photos. We are sad to have finished the trip and glad to be home. We are already thinking about our next adventure. Stay tuned.

Spring in the Blue Ridge

The photo above was taken this afternoon on the Blue Ridge Parkway in VA. Spring has arrived. As we travelled yesterday from SC to here in VA we saw spring everywhere. The redbud trees along I81 are putting on a show that is beautiful beyond compare.
Today we also visited the home of Cyrus McCormick who invented the first mechanical harvester. That one invention was the start of farming as we know it today.
Tomorrow we finish our journey home. We are sad that this wonderful trip is ending.

Conflict with a gator

While taking this photo yesterday Bill got more attention than he wanted from this hugh gator. He stooped down on the edge of the bank to get a photo at gator eye level and this guy immediately lept into the water and swam very close. He thoughts and intentions were very clear. Camera, tripod and husband came into the truck quickly!! This was in the Santee Wildlife Refuge.

Tomorrow we travel to Va for the last planned stop on our trip. We are both sad to see this adventure coming to an end.

Santee State Park, SC

This is the view from the window of our RV. The lake is Lake Marion and we are camped in the Santee State Park in South Carolina for a few days. We have begun our trek homeward. We have one more stop, in Virginia, before arriving home in PA. This is a beautiful location. We have been so fortunate to be able to see so much of God's creation on this trip! We plan to explore a nearby Wildlife Refuge later today.

Truck attacked. . . .

by a Tufted Titmouse. The guy in the photo above was attacking both mirrors on our truck here in the campground. Our theory is that he is trying to establish territory and thought his image in the mirror was another bird that he wanted to chase away.
We are now at Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park near Gainesville, Fl. This park has a herd of wild Spanish Horses and Buffalo. It is also a nesting place for Sandhill Cranes.

A day on Homosassa River and the Gulf

This is Captain Zarker in the pontoon boat we rented. He and First-mate Clifton took us to the Gulf of Mexico to enjoy the water, the sun and the lovely day. On the way out the river to the gulf we saw Manatees and Dolphins. After enjoying lunch while anchored in the gulf we travelled back upriver to the source of the river, Homosassa Springs. There we saw more manatees including a baby with its mother. Babies seemed to be the theme of that area, we also saw wood ducks with four little ones. A wonderful day!!

Pink flamingos. . . . . .Nooooooo. . . . . . .. . .

PINK ELEPHANTS!! As we drove around the area on our way to Inverness on Tuesday we found this guy along the road. That's Linda and Nancy keeping him company. We visited the Old Courthouse in Inverness and had lunch at Stumpknockers on the square.

Floating rocks

Monday at the Homosassa Springs Wildlife Park Bill saw a large rock in the river through his binoculars! Then it swam away. Turns out it was a manatee. Rocks normally don't swim!!! At the park we saw many other animals and birds that were being cared for because they can no longer survive on their own due to severe injuries.

Earlier that morning John swam with the manatees, while Nancy, Bill and Linda cheered him on and took pictures.

Sunday was spent at a flea market and then an evening church service with a gospel music concert by the Mercy Mountain Boys-a very good group if you ever get the opportunity to hear them.

Friends, Old and new

The photo above is of a neighbor here in our RV Park in Homosassa Springs, Fl. He came over to entertain us with his musical instrument which is constructed of an old bedpan, wood, strings etc. He is Bill Bates from Ohio and he says he has learned to play stringed instruments since his retirement. That is our new friend. Here in this park we also have old friends, John and Nancy, from PA. They arrived today and we will be spending several days together seeing the sights of this area.

Orchids and Parrots

The guy in the photo on the left thought he needed my shoestring. Soon he had help in his shoestring task as you can see in the other photo. Eventually there were 3 of the Sun Conure Parrots trying to relive me of my shoestrings! I had a hard time getting away from them.

Today we visited the Naples Botanical Gardens and their Brazil exhibit. They had birds and plants from Brazil and also an exhibit of orchids. The birds were adorable, the butterflies beautiful and the orchids beyond belief-more beauty than I can describe.

Tomorrow we pick up stakes and move further north to Homosassa Springs, Fl. There we will be met by friends from home. We plan to see manatees and any other interesting things we can find in that neighborhood. We'll be there for a week.

Meet Traveller and his cousin

This is traveller! He/she is a young night blooming cereus plant that Bill started to bring on our trip. Traveller's parent plant is at home being watered by an elaborate self watering system. Traveller is insurance that Bill always has a plant if something happens to the one at home while we are gone. Traveller is enjoying the southern warmth and growing daily. The photo on the right, with the lovely Linda, is a night blooming cereus plant that we found in one of our visits to a park here in Fl. This one is growing wild and is MUCH larger than Traveller! The tree is a large palm and the cereus is wrapped around the tree all the way to the top. It's leaves are a bit different that Traveler's but it is certainly a relative. Shows what a lot of warm weather and sunshine can do for a plant.

Gopher

Gopher Tortoise that is! He is a rare and endangered species that is found in this part of Fl. Today we found this guy while visiting Koreshan State Historic Site in a park nearby. He was hiding out under and near the porch of a historic building. Along with this guy we found many blooming wild flowers. Some so tiny you would almost miss them if you weren't looking closely.

Pelicans

These white pelicans were conferencing yesterday on Sanibel island. Note the 3rd one from the right. He's bored to yawning with the conversation and the one on his left is already asleep.

We did the Sanibel Stoop(bending to look for shells) and found some nice shells. There were millions to choose from but unfortunately the large ones weren't piled in any obvious place. It was a great day at the beach!

In the Everglades. . . .

Bill has been singing a song for days (my poor ears!) that goes "In the Everglades there's a way of life. . . . .no stress or strife". His little song is true; it was quiet, peaceful and beautiful. We are glad to be back in communication with the world, however. The photo above was taken on a boat trip through the everglades.
We are now in Ft. Myers, Fl and will stay here for a week. Yesterday we arrived and did some housekeeping chores, found a supermarket, etc. This morning we went to worship service at a church near our RV Park. We were welcomed and uplifted by the music and inspired by the sermon.
Tomorrow we plan to spend the day exploring Sanibel Island.

I told you. . . .

Yep, it says I TOLD YOU I WAS SICK. This marker is located in the cemetery on Key West. It was one part of that island that we toured yesterday. We saw the southermost point in the US and all the Key West sights as we toured on a trolley.

Today has been a houskeeping day with a trip to do laundry, paying bills, etc. Tomorrow we leave the Keys and go to the Everglades National Park. We will spend 2 nights there and see the hightlights of the area. We will have no electricity in the campground-so no internet posting until we move back to civilization on Saturday.

Life in the Keys

We started Sunday morning by attending a Sunrise Service here in the park that was sponsored by a local church. The service was uplifting on its own and ended with the baptism of 10 people in the water at the beach. Later in the day we travelled south along the keys a way. The photo above was taken along side the highway at a pullover. The colors in the water are fantastic.
Today we picked up forwarded mail at the Key Largo Post Office and spent the afternoon taking a glass bottomed boat trip out to the Molasses Reef. The coral of the reef was beautiful and the area was filled with many colorful fish, large and small. It has been an exciting couple of days.
Tomorrow we plan to drive all the way south to Key West for the day.

Get out of my space

This guy lives in a hole in the palm tree in the prior photo. He seems to have a lady and some children. Last night we grilled some burgers on our picnic table and Mr Lizard was trying to show us that he is boss and we were in his territory. This guy is different from the ones we saw in GA. The lizard population in this area is very large. We see them anytime we get off the beaten path.

John Pennkamp State Park

We are now on the island of Key Largo, the northernmost island in the Florida Keys. The coconut palm above is on our campsite. We plan to explore the keys and the everglades from here. The weather is great and the area is beautiful. We are so tan that we do not look like our northern winter selves at all. Retirement-the 'R' word is great!

Two Mile Hike Nets 6 inch Owl

This afternoon Bill and I hike a couple of miles in search of the tiny burrowing owl. We were successful as you can see in the photo above. These owls make holes in the sandy soil and that is where they nest. We were pointed in the right direction and after finding many started burrows we finally found an owl and his burrow. This little guy is approximately 6 inches high and he uses a bowing motion to indicate discomfort. He is just one more unique animal here on the prairie.

More campground visitors

These turkeys were visiting our campground. The wildlife here is abundant. Bill has been chasing birds with a camera ever since we got here. Today he took a hike in search of photos carrying so much photo equipment he looked like a pack mule. Tomorrow he has plans for another search for opportunity. This park is so beautiful in a subdued way. Our time here is passing too quickly.

WILDLIFE IN THE SHOWER!

We are now at Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park in FL. The little guy above and a friend greeted me last night as I entered the shower here in the campground. His brother/cousin was in the men's room in Bill's shower. He is approximately the size of my thumbnail.
At first glance this area seems desolate but is teeming with wildlife-right now a deer is grazing outside the window of our RV as I type this entry. We saw an endangered gopher tortoise and an endangered Caracara bird as we entered the park yesterday. This morning Bill took many photos of meadowlarks as I watched the bird's beautiful yellow chest and neck.
This is certainly not FL as we have known it before. We travelled thru cattle ranches and orange groves as we arrived. Park info tells us that the nearest gas station is 12 miles from the park entrance-and the campground is 5 miles of gravel from the entrance. It is beautiful: wildlife, long vistas, birds, wildflowers and dark sky filled with bright stars. What a treat!

Ah youth!

Look closely at this two old folks drinking from Ponce de Leon's Fountain of Youth. As I do this posting the gray hair is disappearing and the wrinkles are smoothing. High school tomorrow, elementary the next day. We did enjoy our tour of the Fountain of Youth!

Tomorrow we say goodby to St. Augustine and travel south to Kissimmee Prairie State Preserve Park. We will spend 4 nights there. We don't know what we may find there-the park is 5 miles off the paved road-but we expect to find more adventures and get close to nature.

St. Augustine

I hope you like my new friend. I found him in front of the Old Jail in St. Augustine. Isn't he handsome?
We've spent part of 3 days touring the Old City of St. Augustine on the Old Town Trolley. We saw lots of historical buildings and learned a lot of history. We now know that Ponce de Leon was only 4'11" and we know lots of information about Henry Flagler. He's the millionaire who built large hotels in St. Augustine and a railroad to Key West many years ago. We enjoyed the tours.
Bill is still actively pursuing that ultimate photo at the Alligator Farm. He has many gigabits of bird photos. You might want to think twice before letting him show you his vacation pictures.
Tomorrow's plans include the life changing event of a visit to the fountain of youth. A drink of that water and we'll be headed into high school, I'm sure.

Life in the slow lane

Here's a picture of Bill at yesterday's main event. This is how we both got potential sunburns and it was worth every red spot! A bit later he managed to take a nap stretched out on the sand. And a nap was a good thing since we were back on the same beach at 2:38 AM when the space shuttle launched 100 miles to our south. We saw the burst of fire as the rocket took off, unfortunately there were too many clouds for us to watch as the rocket went into outer space. Today we spent most of the day touring St. Augustine's Old City. We rode a tour tram throughout the city and listened as the guide told where places were and about historical events. We toured the Castillo de San Marcos National Monument and found the ice cream shop in the shopping area. Tomorrow we'll return to town and tour more historic buildings.

A GREAT WEEKEND

I promised one of Bill's bird photo so here is a roseate spoonbill from the Alligator Farm Rookery nearby. This is one of the many he's taken this weekend. He has enjoyed hours of bird photography this weekend.

Our other weekend activities included a farmers' market, an art & craft fair and just some down time. From the Farmers' Market we came home with fresh strawberries, tomatoes and corn on the cob. Also some great pecan pie!

We went to an uplifting church service on Saturday evening. Great way to avoid the shock of the time change on Sunday morning.

Rain Rain Go Away

Today has been a rainy one. There have been storms and several toronados in the area. We have been safe and dry. We spent the day taking a driving tour of the area and spending some quality time and money at the new Camping World here in St. Augustine. Tomorrow is predicted to be sunny and cooler. Bill purchased his Photographer's Pass for the Alligator Farm today. He is planning to get many photos of the birds that frequent the farm. Stay tuned-we'll post a sample.

Goodbye Stephen Foster, Hello Anastasia

The little guy shown above was on a tree beside a trail we walked yesterday. He was working really hard to impress someone!
We spent our last day at Stephen Foster just looking at the area and all the animals there. We had some problems last night with internet connections so we waited until today to post but we wanted everyone to see this guy.
Today we traveled south to Anastasia State Park near St. Augustine , FL. This is a beautiful park with a great campground. We will explore the area tomorrow. Anastasia will be our home for 10 nights. Lots of time for beach and town.

Gator!

Yesterday was a beautiful day at Stephen Foster. We hiked a couple of miles thru the swamp area and in the afternoon took a boat trip. The gator above was not too happy with our being so close to him. As he left in a hurry I was splashed with mud and water by his departure. We learned that Okefenokee means trembling earth and we saw why the name fits. The peat floats on top the water until it forms an earthlike area (Mr Gator was sunning on an area of peat). Gators & sometimes people walk on the floating area and with each footfall the earth tembles.

We began today with predictions of severe thunderstorms that never really happened. We did have some rain. We planned indoor activities based on the weather forcast. We toured the interpretative center and museum, visited a nearby town, read, napped and generally had a lazy day.

Stephen Foster State Park, GA

Yesterday morning at 5 AM we left our home in PA after clearing fresh snow from our camper and we traveled all day-stopping for more than an hour at 2 different accidents, many rest stops and meals. Last night we stayed at a Wal-mart near Columbia, SC. It was restful night except for the eggs thrown on the RV and truck overnight. Bill removed the evidence early this morning and we were on the move again. After traveling through more of South Carolina and some of Georgia we are now camped in Stephen Foster State Park which is located in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. The temperature today was near 80 and is still pleasant as the sun sets. We have been entertained by Pileated Woodpeckers, butterflies and a squirrel since our arrival at our campsite. What a difference a day and 900+ miles make. Here is a photo of our home away from home.

Tomorrow!

We are finally here. Almost all the packing and loading is done and early tomorrow we point south. Just to make it a bit more interesting for us, we are currently getting snow. The forecast is for 1-2 inches, but it better stop soon! I am looking forward to some sun and warm breezes.

3 days and counting

It's Wednesday and we leave on Saturday. Lots to do, lots to do. Today I get serious about the kitchen preparations for the trip. Tomorrow we will spend the day visiting our son, so no packing then. Friday we will do the last minute stuff and Saturday we roll out! Our grand adventure is about to begin......

Getting Ready

It is now 10 days before we leave on our RV adventure. Today our tow vehicle got an oil change and is now ready to roll. We have been loading some clothing in the RV and we are organizing the things we need to take along. We are getting excited about the places we will go and the things we hope to see. Florida here we come!