Another Day At Myakka

It's hard to take another day in paradise but someone had to do it. Today I went to the airboat area to see what I could see. It didn't take long. Myakka never disappoints.


Black Vulture

If you don't think there's snakes in Myakka your kidding yourself. These guys are the nonvenomous type thank goodness I stepped over them to take the pictures.

Beautiful Snowy Egret in breeding plumage

Bald Eagle looking for breakfast

If your looking for gators, they are here, they are everywhere

Roseate Spoonbill

Great Egret fishing with success

Little Blue Heron having a bad hair day

Moving Day

Not very often when I book a campsite we have to move to another site. Well, Myakka is a tough place to get 5 days in one place. So today we had to move about 100 yards down the road but that  didn't stop me from playing first. I went straight to the birdwalk to try and catch some of the early morning birds. Going there so early in the morning you have to watch for wildlife on the road.



Wild Turkey

Getting to the birdwalk you never know who is going to be there or what you will see. Besides a camera one of the most important items you need is a good set of binoculars. Mine are at home in Canada. This snipe was sitting down in the grass quite some distance away. His movement caught my eye.



Wilson's Snipe














Wilson's Snipe in morning dew







Deer grazing at birdwalk







I had to hurry back to back up and change sites. Nice pull-through site with some privacy. Open to the sun but cooler only 80 degrees. Will need the AC here.





Site # 64

One of my favorite places to take pictures is the outpost and tram area. The Gator Girl which is the name of airboat was just arriving. The Gator Girls claim to fame is being the largest airboat around. Looks like fun but I don't have time other things in mind.

 

Gator Girl

There is never a shortage of alligators in Myakka whether on the bank sunning themselves or swimming lazily down the river. This guy was sunning himself at the launch area for canoes.



American Alligator

At the end of the day, or I thought it was the end of the day, a turtle comes out of the bush starts digging a hole on the side of the road. Quickly I pull over and watch this for over an hour. Soon others did the same but most just flew by in their cars oblivious to the nature around them. I found out later with a little reseach this was a Peninsula Cooter native to Florida. Peninsula cooters are normally found in still water, such as wetlands, marshes, and ponds. They are mostly herbivores feeding primarily on aquatic vegetation. Peninsula cooters construct an unusual 3-hole nest, digging one deep center hole and shallower ‘false nest’ holes on either side. The female lays most of the eggs in the center hole, putting only one or two eggs in each of the false nests. The false nests are thought to distract predators from the main nest.

 

Peninsula Cooter digging three holes

After digging the holes within 10 minutes she layed 20 eggs in the center hole and 1 in each false hole.

Covered the eggs and away she went never to return

The site on the side of the road where she dug the holes. Absolutely no evidence to indicate she was there. She even placed leaves over the site. What an amazing experience. Momma didn't seem to care she had an audience.

 

Myakka River State Park

 

Everyday in Myakka River State Park is exciting and new. The sites you see and the wildlife you encounter each day is jaw dropping. Today was know diffferrent. The best time to view these sites are first thing in the morning. So I was up and out the door by 7 am and yes it was still dark and a little foggy but the sun had started peaking out above the tree canopy.

 



Sunrise over Myakka River State Park









After watching the sunrise I ventured down the road only to spot my first live yes live not roadkill armadillo. He was so fast crossing the road that I was only able to capture his back end. He must have learnt from seeing most of his relatives dead on the roadside. I called him armonee armadillo because of his nice suit. I have know idea whether it was a male or female I just called him Armonee.  

 

Armonee Armadillo

 

Deer feasting on the limb branches

Wild hogs are becoming a serious issue throughout Florida. Florida's wild hogs are often referred to as feral hogs. It is believed that hogs were first brought to Florida, and possibly the United States, in 1539, when Hernando de Soto brought swine to provision a settlement he established in Lee County. However, it is possible that hogs had been brought to the same site in 1521 by Ponce de Leon's brief visit. During the next four centuries, explorers and settlers brought pigs with them. Many of these animals were given to or stolen by Native Americans, who expanded pig numbers and distributed throughout the state. Europeans and Native Americans alike often raised these swine in semi-wild conditions (at least until the mid-1900s when open range ended and it became illegal) where hogs were allowed to roam freely and only rounded up when needed.

Wild Pigs

One of the attractions of Myakka is the well known canapy walkway. Completed in 2000 and inspired by Dr Margaret Lowman it became the first public treetop walk in North America. The walkway is suspended 25 feet above the ground and extends 100 feet through the hammock canopy. The tower rises 74 feet to a spectacular view of treetops, wetlands and the prairie. The building of the Canopy Walkway and Tower was a culmination of park volunteers, park staff, and professional contractors together providing 2,571 hours at a cost of $98,860.50.


 

Canopy Tower

 

Canopy Walkway

 

If your afraid of heights this is not where you want to be

 

View from Tower

 

On The Road Again

After staying in one place for nearly a month it's time to hit the road. We headed north to one of my favorite parks that being Myakka River State Park. It's only a short 1 1/2 hour drive but it's quiet and loaded with lots of bird, deer, hogs, and gators. We are getting a late start as know one checks out until the last minute consequently we can't check in until after one pm.

Entrance sign to Myakka River State Park

Myakka River State Park is a short 15 minute drive or 11 kms east of Sarasota on FL 72 Clark Rd. The entire park consists of 37,000 acres of which a small portion (1,920 acres) was donated from the original land owner Bertha Palmer.

 

Site # 074

Didn't take me long to get all set up, now it's time to play

 

Beautiful tree lined road through park



Undergrowth making a comeback

 

Few trees and wide open prairie

 

Sun shining through spanish moss

 

Sunset over Myakka River State Park

 

Can't wait 'til tomorrow, I'm so excited



Grayton Beach State Park

Since Grayton is not a long drive from our present location we decided to get a later start. We've done it a few times before so basically  we know where we're going. The day is sunny but cool. Driving there was pretty much unremarkable, it's approximately 150 miles. We arrived only to find our campsite still occupied. That's okay they were just about ready to pull out.


We've arrived

Front Entrance - Registration Office

Our Site # 47

After setting up we decided to go for a walk to the beach. It's one of my favorite places because of the beach. The sand is so white and the blue-green water is crystal clear.

White Sand Everywhere

Crystal clear blue-green water

Grayton consists of 2,200 acres of white sand dunes and salt marches. The lake within the park is known as Western Lake and it's the second largest coastal dune lake in the Florida Panhandle. Canoeing and kayaking are popular activities on this lake.

Western Lake

The campground has a new area and an older area. We camped in the new area which has full hook-ups including 50 amp service and sewers. Even though there's no shade trees in this area it's nice this time of year to get some sun on the rig. All sites are back-in. We however got one of two pull-thrus. The older area has lots of shade trees, sites are smaller, and no sewer connections. The washroom was being renovated when we were there. I didn't see alot of shorebirds as we walked along the beach however did see a few Great Blue Herons in the lake.

Great Blue Heron

Gulf State Park

This was our second stop at Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores Alabama. We made a quick stop here because we wanted to see the new additions they made to the campground but also because we love this area.

 

 

Gulf State Park is a 6,150 acre park that had it's fair share of hurricane damage over the years. Hurricane Ivan, the last to hit the area devasted the campground in 2004. If  anything good came from the hurricane it was the constuction of an almost new park. The new facilities consists of nearly 500 sites either pull-thru or back-in all with level concrete pads and water, sewer, and electric (30/50 amp). These amenities were in place when we were here last but what I didn't expect was what I saw on my morning walk. 

 

Our pull-thru site #197

Oh yeah, as soon as we arrived we noticed a new registration office. And yes you can now book reservations online...sometimes. The new office is much nicer than the old trailer.

 

Tennis Courts

New 5000 square foot swimming pool (not heated)

Kiddies splash pool

New Interactive Nature Center with live snakes (non-venomous)




New Store and Boat Rental Area

Gulf State Park also has 3 spring fed fresh water lakes, Lake Shelby, Middle Lake, and Little Lake all great for fishing and canoeing. However, beware alligators do lurch in these waters. You can spot them on a regular basis.

 

Middle Lake

 

Gulf State Park also has WiFi now throughout the park and it's pretty fast. After the hurricane destroyed the original fishing pier a mass construction was undertaken of the longest fishing pier into the gulf of Mexico (1,540 ft). For a couple of bucks you can walk on the pier where you can have lunch at the concession and watch the fisherman. Or you can buy a one day licence and fish all day.

 

 Besides the 18 hole golf course in the park, there are miles of trails either paved, hard packed dirt, or sand.

 

One of many trails



Several carvings throughout the park



 

Now you know why we will be back. Oh and did I mention the price is right also.