Blue Spring State Park and More! (Orange City, FL)

Debbie and I are approaching the end of our stay at Blue Spring.  We've been busy!  Saturday or Sunday  (who knows which)  after our trip to the lighthouse Debbie and I did a great bicycle ride.  I've mentioned the trail earlier.  But I haven't told you about Debbie's new bike.  For years Debbie has had a standard version of a Raleigh, 21 speed bike.  I'd say for years she hasn't liked the bike.  So we shopped for a replacement.  We were still at Fort DeSoto and St. Petersburg has something like 25 Bicycle Stores.  We visited several.  We were willing to spend $200-$300 but we got off light.  Debbie's choice was a used Schwinn.  We paid $150.  The bike is lavender with burgundy fenders - it's pretty.  It's a 3 speed (simple to operate).  The feature that may have swayed us most was that it has a great front basket.  Before leaving the bike store we bought a new seat.  It must be the most comfortable bicycle seat known to man.

While still at Fort DeSoto we put a $45 price on the old bike and set it out front of the camper.   It sold within an hour.  So we enjoyed our bike ride and  Debbie's maiden voyage on the pretty "new" bike.

Monday we  visited the Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge. (Warning: bird photos coming!)   It's probably no more than 10 miles north of Blue Spring.  It's a large water covered area with numerous foot paths.  It''s wonderfully tranquil and a birding paradise.

We saw many of the birds we routinely see such as these Great Egrets

and this Great Blue Heron

but more excitedly, we identified several new fellows that we thought were pretty cool.  These included an American Bittern,

Blue Winged Teal (males and females),

Tricolored Heron,

American Coot,

Common Moorhen,

 and a Pied Billed Grebe.

It's only fair to say that we also saw many other varieties that we couldn't ID.  We recommend this destination to anyone who enjoys the birds.
Tuesday we went to the DeLeon Springs State Park.  It also is only about 10 miles up the road.  It's next  to Lake Woodruff.  Along with the springs, the attraction there is the Old Spanish Sugarmill Restaurant.

It's a breakfast and lunch place where you cook your own pancakes at your table.  The price is very reasonable, $4.50 each for all the pancakes you can eat.  They bring you 2 pitchers of batter, one wheat and one plain.  For $1.75 a pop you can buy an order of blueberries, or bananas or pecans etc to add to the batter. We chose the blueberries and pecans.

The meal was great but even better were our table companions. They were 2 couples who were friends.  Both wives were teachers, one husband a band director, the other a choir director.  It may be shameful, but we didn't get everyone's name.  We did give them one of our cards so we hope they will read this blog and share there names' with us, please!

We had taken Bo and Laska with us. They stayed in the truck parked in a shady location.  After breakfast we took them on a five mile hike along one of the park's trails. Immediately after the hike we made a nice spotting of a Red Shouldered Hawk.

Wednesday we drove about an hour to Leesburg, Fl to have lunch with Charley and Sherry Dilworth and Jeff and Barbie Boldt.  We all had lunched together about a month ago in Lakeland, Fl. with about 25 other full-timers.  I think this is all pretty cool that we develop these friendships as a result of blogs and lunch.  We really had a very nice time.  We met at an Olive Garden and camped out there for about 3 hours.  I believe we will get together again in early March.

Left to Right: Barbie, Sherry and Charlie

Jeff and Barbie

Thursday was another great day.  Debbie and I went on a 2 hour "Eco" boat ride that departed from Blue Spring State Park.  It was a large pontoon boat and cost $22 each.  

The mission was to view wildlife and enjoy the river.  Mission Complete!  We saw zillions of turtles

and an endless number of alligators ranging in size from a few inches to 12-14 feet.

New bird sitings included a Green Heron (trying to hide in the grass),

Limpkin,

and Yellow-Crowned Night Heron.

Couldn't resist photographing some of our old favorites such as this Snowy Egret.

We also saw another American Bittern which we understand are not that common.

The lady narrating the tour did an EXCELLENT job!

We returned to Titusville today.  We spent a little time at Merritt Island looking for birds and feeding mosquitoes.  We also cruised Willow Lakes RV community.  It''s similar to The Great Outdoors.  Smaller and not as fancy, but still very nice.

We'll return to Alafia State Park in Lithia next week to try to get our warranty work completed.

Duane

More Fort DeSoto and The First Few days at Blue Spring State Park (St. Petersburg and Orange City, FL)

Our stay at Fort DeSoto County Park was a great success!  As the time passed we made several great discoveries about the place.  Maybe first and foremost, it has the most BEAUTIFUL beach.

It has been rank like #1 in Florida, or the country or the universe or something.  But the point is that the beach area is enormous and perfectly unspoiled!!!!

As you leave the gigantic parking area you walk through a grand stand of trees that opens up to nothing but sand and ocean! Additionally there are several fishing piers, trails and sidewalks adjacent to the ocean that gives you plenty of opportunity to simply enjoy the view.

We spent much of a day biking the area.  A day of sunshine and biking can make an old man sleepy.  So there we were on a pier and I discover a comfy looking concrete bench.  Now, I always claim I can sleep anywhere.  I rest my case.  I stretch out on the bench and snooze.  Later as I'm waking I hear someone say, "is he breathing?" 

At the other end of the peninsula there is another great beach.  As we approach this area we are delighted to see kites, huge kites that are attached to folks that are kite surfing.  Mighty pretty!

And much to our liking, there also are plenty of our winged friends.  One of our favorites is Osprey.  In areas adjacent to water they're quite plentiful.  They are big birds and maintain huge nests.

They are also known as Fish Hawks because they actively pluck fish from ocean and carry them to their family. 

We had a wonderful time viewing these great fellows.  But there also have been multiple opportunities to view some many great birds.  Debbie has done an impressive job of capturing pictures of the shore birds and waders.  VERY NICE!

We moved to Blue Spring State Park near Orange City, Fl on Monday, 7 Feb. The campground is nicely wooded (not too much), the roads are amply wide, some sites are small but others are a fair size. Blue Spring State Park has a great deal to offer including access to a way cool paved bike trail that is actually just outside the park. One evening I was riding the trail doing my best Lance Armstrong imitation. All of a sudden a squirrel darted out from the woods and got tangled under my front bike tire. He leaped or was thrown in the air and slapped my leg. I had visions of a rabid attack but he scampered away. Fortunately, we both survived.

Blue Spring State Park is also a habitat for the Florida Scrub Jay. This is a good looking blue fellow that is working hard to survive.

I won't pretend to be an expert but it is my understanding that they are only found in Florida.  Their preferred habitat is, act surprised, areas of scrub growth.  I think it's accurate to say that scrub is primarily stunted live oaks and palms. The quantity of this type of habitat has steadily diminished with years of development.  Debbie and I were here last year and the park folks had recently cleared, acres of land to facilitate this type of habitat.  These same acres have already grown back creating what I imagine is a perfect scrub habitat for the hearty Florida Scrub Jay.  This is a great example of why state parks and their natural areas are so important. 

Probably the winter highlight of the park is the presence of lots of manatee.  The Blue Spring creates a run that enters the St Johns River.  The manatee come up the run to enjoy the warmer water which I think stays at about 72 degrees.  The first night we strolled down to the river and there were oodles of manatee just hovering. 

There were so many that we enjoyed an endless chorus of manatee "blowing" as long as we stayed by the river.  The boys and I have returned to the river everyday since on our morning walk.  I now know that the number of manatee present is well over a hundred.  One morning there was a wildlife person in the run taking pictures of the manatee.  Her mission was to identify the manatee by their scars.  The scars are normally the result of being hit by a boat propeller. Saturday morning was a great outing.  The sun was shining brightly and the run was full of manatee.  We also had a visit from a "friendly" alligator. 

You could easily watch him ease his way up the run.  Eventually he dragged the full length of himself up on a downed tree to enjoy a little sun time. A great sight to see.

The park also offers an eco boat ride.  Laska, Bo And I walked down to the area where the eco boat departs.  And now the icing on the cake.  Across the St Johns river I see a bald eagle just waiting to have his picture taken.  One problem, no camera.  The boys and I discuss it and decide we'll walk back to the camper so I can get the camera and return.   It takes maybe 20 minutes for me to go up and back.  But when I return with camera the bald eagle is still there waiting for me.  Thank you!

Debbie has been absent from some of these activities for a couple of reasons.  Some of these days have been a bit cold and/or raining and she has left the adventure to us boys.  The other reason is that she spent much of two days doing our taxes.  Not surprisingly, I'm no help so she must put it all together.  It's done, we're not paying thousands as we normally do (love that retirement) and "we're" glad that the task is complete!
Today continued to be a great.  Debbie and I decided to cruise over to Daytona Beach. Our destination was  the Ponce De Leon Inlet Light Station Museum.

Not surprisingly, it was Debbie who identified this as a place for us to visit.  It turned out to be interesting, educational and pretty. The lighthouse and support buildings are wonderfully  maintained.

You have to walk 203 steps to reach the top of the lighthouse.

Worth every step!  The views from the top railing are spectacular!

I thought the brickwork and spiral staircase was mighty impressive. The support buildings contain endless displays of historical information that relates to lighthouses and history of the era.
These buildings housed historical stuff sorted by a particular subject.  One house contained displays related to the development of the  area.  Another may have been primarily about lighthouses across the country.  There was a generator house, a pump house an out house, etc.  There was a building that contained light house lenses.  The lenses are both impressive (one weighed 12,800 pounds) and beautiful.

This was a photogenic moment. We just had a wonderful visit!

But the day wasn't over yet.  It's now chow time.  In moments Debbie is on her "data" phone and finds a seafood restaurant that receives great reviews.  We go to Down the Hatch.  We get a booth with terrific views on the water.

Throughout our meal we are treated to a stunning sunset.  It lasts at least an hour.

At one point the sunset is parted by the Goodyear blimp that I think is in the area in preparation for the Daytona 500 next week. 

We have dolphins stroking along the waterway that are joined by a few birds as the sun sets. Our meal and the service is good.  We eat too much  then we headed home.  What a great day!!!!!

As I read and reread what I have written I recognize that I too frequently use the word GREAT.  I try to get away from that word but I can't help myself.  We view so much of  what we're doing, seeing and experiencing as nice, good, wonderful, beautiful, pretty, way cool, keen, spectacular, boss, groovy, the bomb.....you get the picture.  We're GRATEFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Peace

Duane

Fort DeSoto County Park (St. Petersburg, FL)

We departed Alafia State Park early Friday morning so we could be at Longview RV, east of Tampa, by 8 am to have the Norcold frig recall work completed and to review some warranty issues. We bought our Montana in Indiana but Longview is a Montana dealer.  The recall work apparently went smoothly and they seem motivated to facilitate our warranty repairs.  The process includes them getting approval from Keystone and then we have to return for the repairs.  The list is not great but if you're interested (if you're not skip the remainder of this paragraph)  these are the items we're having repaired:  The black water tank back flush water fitting has been broken since we picked up the camper. (we stayed 2-3 days at the dealer when we bought it checking out/learning systems but failed to identify this problem); no matter how meticulous I am when dumping tanks I get some seepage left in the discharge pipe when I open it the next time for dumping.  I'm convinced the valve is not closing or staying closed properly.  Even though Longview didn't peel back the underbelly to inspect the valve, they have taken my word for it and submitted the repair for approval; both clips that secure the Bedroom sliding closet door have broken; the wood inlaid mountain scene on the Living Room slide inside fascia board, that serves as a Montana logo, is warping; I/we believe the on-board water pump is too noisy.  Now the truth is I think that they are just noisy.  I think I've heard others speak of this.  (I welcome all input on this observation.)  The service rep listened to the pump with me and said, "yes, they're noisy" and gave me some suggestions about how I might quiet the noisy bugger.  OK, that's it.  On to Fort DeSoto.

We, (that normally means Debbie) have made/cancelled several reservations at Fort DeSoto (near St. Petersburg) for this winter as our itinerary has changed.  They won't give refunds, only a credit for a year, so we felt compelled to make this work somehow now while we're in the area.  The result is that we were to be in one site one night, the next site for two nights and a third site for a week.  We were here last winter with our 30 foot Sunnybrook so we were familiar with the layout.  However, our Montana is 38 feet.   Fort DeSoto is a beautiful campground.  Part of that beauty includes MANY trees, low limbs and narrow roads!   Simply driving through the campground requires close attention!! We SQUEAKED into the first site on day one.  I wouldn't say that I'm a great backer upper but I think I know what I'm doing.   The site on day two presented greater problems.  It may be accurate to say that we got the camper into the site.  However, this included nearly leaving a vent cover and an AC unit in the trees.  We didn't but to say that it was CLOSE doesn't give the situation justice.  Another problem was that the truck was twisted at a 90 degree angle from the camper and nearly up against a tree.  I was concerned that if I disconnected the truck from the camper I'd never be able to get it reconnected!!!  We hustled off to the office and they found another available site we could have for 2 nights.  (Remember, this is a winter Florida weekend).  So we approached plan B.  We made a couple attempts at the new site and bailed out.  We weren't even close.  The greatest problem is the narrow road with  a billion trees right at the edge leaving no room to swing my long bed, 4-door truck.  Back to the office.   They have two "emergency" sites that are quite large and far more "easy" to get into.  They assigned us one at the base of their HUGE water tank.  The tank looms overhead maybe100+ feet.  The site is surrounded with weeds, has no grill  and required a dozen blocks to level the camper.  However, to us it was a BEAUTIFUL site!!!!!!!!!!!

We gratefully settled in for the next two nights.  Debbie and I know that we have grown greatly as a backer upper team.  Debbie has become an animated spotter and we use our walkie talkies.  I have developed some patience with myself as well as Debbie.  I imagine I have some company when I speak of the stress created by this challenge.  We don't want to look stupid, we don't want to be beaten and we have a lot of money tied up in our lifestyle.  So I think it's reasonable to be concerned about crushing the side of the truck or caving in the camper roof.  But the truth is that Debbie and I got through this ordeal and were still on pleasant terms. ha! ha!  We practically glided into the third site with our eyes closed!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you're still with me I'll continue.  Fort DeSoto truly is a beautiful location.

The park encompasses an entire peninsula.  In addition to the campground, they have a great dog park and beach that Bo and Laska loved.  Just looked at their happy faces!

Dog Beach at Ft. Desoto

A marina, miles of trails to ride bikes, lots of beach, birds...

canoeing/kayaking, no road noise and beautiful sunsets are just a few of the additional highlights.

Just be prepared. There are some large sites that will accommodate the largest units, even a few pull-throughs.  You just have to work your reservations early. Enough Enough!!!

We had the opportunity today to enjoy a bonus compliments of following rv-dreams.com.  Donna McNicol, aka Froggi, organized a luncheon I guess for all those who were interested in attending.  I think this was an outgrowth from  "dreamers" spontaneously gathering at the Tampa RV show.  You know the deal, I get my info from Debbie and I go.  So I'm guessing 30 folks showed up at a Smokey Bones in Lakeland, Fl.

People drove in from an hour or two out just to enjoy the camaraderie.  We had met Froggi and her husband Stu for only a moment in Tampa.  We had previously had dinner with another couple, Charley and Sherry in Tampa with another gathering of RVers.  A third couple had attended a full timing rally we attended last April.  My point is that we didn't know who would be there and barely knew the folks I mentioned above.  Somehow it seemed important to attend.  I shared with Debbie that I thought it was indicative of our full-timing lifestyle that we would or could just truck off to an unknown event.  Froggi MC'd the gathering just enough to get us started.  She encouraged everyone to sit with folks they didn't know.  Froggi has obviously been well organized and charming for a long time!!  So we just had a great time.  Not surprisingly most or all of our conversation related to our mutual RVing experiences.  We made new friends and left with a few "business" cards to facilitate staying in touch with these new friends.  Blogging enables us to get to know each other without being with one another.  Debbie and I were flattered that we were included!  For those that were present and are now reading this, THANK YOU for contributing so greatly to what has become this wonderful life experience.  Today's event just adds to the pile of mighty pleasing memories!!!!

Duane