A Flower for You!

Surprise! Just because...

Hope, you, my friends and family have a great day ahead!

-Kevin

Interesting Life

"Interesting life," my dad exclaimed as he looked at one of his recent finds; oyster shells glued together by life riddled with other attachments and worm holes, a green hue of algae weathered by sun and surf. My response was to ask whether he was referring to himself or the shells? "Let's say, we have an understanding," was his response. Perhaps, this is part of his interest in shelling, I wondered.

We have been making our way down the Texas coast now about an hour's drive east of Corpus Christi. Here are some pictures that tell the story...

"I am Listening Lord."

"Life Finds Its Way"

"Camping on the Water"

"Ship Wrecked in Galveston"

"Flying over the Crowds"

"Thirsty America"

While on the beach at Galveston, we counted six oil tankers waiting to be called into port, the most numbers of large sea going vessels we experienced this past year, exceeding Valdez, Anchorage, or the Puget Sound. This area around Galveston and further south toward Corpus Christi is dotted with chemical, plastic, and other processing plants eager for the crude oil's arrival.

"Nature and Man"

"Wild Flowers on Goose Island"

Goose Island State Park is also a vital winter refuge for the still endangered Whooping Cranes, 280 birds strong, up from just 15 birds in 1941. They already headed north for the season, but the sign tells the story.

"Modern American Folk Art in Garden Brick and Paint"

Good day to all my friends and loved ones!

Heading Up the Sun Coast and Around the Bend Heading West

I know, the title of this blog post is not that catchy, but it is descriptive. A couple of weeks ago the three of us left Bradenton saying goodbye to family and headed north on Highway 19 past St. Petersburg and Tampa. Late in the afternoon we settled in at an RV park just outside of Old Homosassa, a quaint park with a community of people who immediately showed their friendliness. We had two different folk busying themselves trying to assist us to get parked in a fairly tight spot between large mature trees. The Park was a beautiful place complete with ponds, turtles, and even an owl. And, of course, it had a pool, clubhouse and a low-key community putting golf course through the whole park using the paved streets as putting fairways.

The renown Skyline Sunshine Bridge, south of St. Petersburg crosses Tampa Bay.

Homosassa RV Park

Informal Golf at the Park

Yulee Sugar Mills Ruins were just a few hundred yards away from the RV park. Processing sugar cane into molasses, sugar and syrup, supplying Confederate troops during the Civil War.

Here is an example of a mule drawn sugar cane mill.

We spent a couple days visiting new homes, manufactured homes and reviewing real estate listings for the area. We were amazed by the relative value for land and homes, much less than the Denver market we are most familiar with. No, we did not purchase or even get close to doing so. It was all about educating ourselves, and a bit of dreaming the "what ifs." Fancying river front ocean access property with a new home on it feeds something within, but the practicality of living so far from loved ones, moving to a totally new community, and dealing with a hotter more humid climate easily gets our hearts looking back to Colorado, our home.
We enjoyed the few days stop, readjusting to living full time in our 30 foot home. We traveled around the corner of Florida into the panhandle to Apalachicola, staying overnight in the town's marina parking area. We gained permission to park there from a Sheriff's Deputy since there was not a close RV park. It actually turned out to be a nice stop where we checked out some of the fishing boats, seeing a wonderful sunrise, and also gaining some fun camera shots in town.

Our tour of some quaint shops netted some fun time.

Sunrise, not Sunset.

A quiet evening by the inlet.

Happy on the beach again, a self portrait.

On our venture west we stopped at an Alabama State Park east of Mobile. To our surprise the park was the site of the last major civil war battle on the day the Confederacy surrendered. Berkeley, then a town that riveled Mobile, is now nothing more than a memory, but the battlements are among the most preserved. Unfortunately, the State was doing a controlled burn at the main battlefield and we were not allowed to visit the whole park. But not is all lost, the pictures I took almost can transport a person back to that fateful day, soldiers dying hours after General Lee's surrender in Virginia.

Startling discovery reminds me of another past in the deep south. This tree is located in the park.

Although the forest is now tranquil, its beauty belies it past. What mixed feeling I felt that on the evening bike ride alone.

Our next stop was Louisiana, at a State Park on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain. Although we had interest in traveling more quickly toward the Texas Gulf Coast, we stopped two additional nights due to severe storms in the area surrounding New Orleans. About five inches fell on us and at one time the area we were in was under a tornado warning.
An Angry Lake

One of my best pictures in the past weeks, taken during a respite in the storm.

Well, thanks for coming along. I am tired and need to hit the hay for another day. We are now in eastern Texas.

Before Time Gets Away, A Thanks

Floyd, Louise and I wish to thank Uncle Don and Aunt Judy for their wonderful hospitality! We spent close to two weeks in Bradenton Florida, nine days with our relatives. A goodly visit was declared by all, and we enjoyed the extras of living at a great Floridian RV and mobile home park with great relatives, food, entertainment, the birds and plenty of scenery. They live in a beautiful and convenient area, close to the white beaches of the Gulf and good shopping for the daily needs. Here, the happy couple posing by the pond near to their lovely winter home.

The beaches were welcoming and the alligators are of the type we all liked!!!

An added treat was the meeting of my cousin Cary and his wife Pam. We enjoyed getting reacquainted after some 15 years apart.

The scenery from our "temporary" residence was splendid, with easy access to the Sarasota Bay and beyond.

Perhaps, when taking this picture, I dreamed of a day...

Much of our time was spent resting and doing some necessaries like trailer repairs and new tires for our home on wheels, but, we also enjoyed some of the local sites, two highlighted visits were free to the public.
Desoto State Historic Park, located a few miles north proved to be a low-key, yet intertesting stop, full of earlier exploratory history feeding my natural bent on interesting historic stories. Desoto spent his later years (and his fortune) seeking gold in the southeast, hoping to find something similar to the Incas farther south. He traveled thousands of miles, but without success, till his untimely death.

The park provide historic stories, displays of authentic weapons and work implements, complete with costumed folk.

The other site I wish to highlight is just west of Bradenton, a small town called Cortez where there is a locally born and supported small maritime museum.

Thank you Don and Judy for such warm hospitality and generosity.

Ode to Florida Birds

This blog is dedicated to the splendid array of birds we have been privileged to observe along the coast of Florida along the gulf of Mexico. The Roseate Spoonbill is one of my favorites among many.

Sometimes less is more.

Remember the Wood Stork of earlier blog entries? I was please to see this one with its wing drying after a fishing expedition.

Anhingas revisited. They swim under the water when they fish and need to dry their wings out to fly.

You don't have to be exactly the same to enjoy good company on a warm afternoon.

Another entry has come to an end. I hope you enjoyed the bird show. All these pictures were taken in Bradenton just a stone's throw from my Aunt and Uncles' winter home in their RV Park. Quite a beautiful place!

Losing one's head over the beauty yet?