Lafayette Blue Springs State Park

 

We were told by some readers to be sure and visit this place.  I made us a picnic lunch, put a couple of soft drinks in the cooler, and we took off.  I had read on line that dogs weren’t allowed near the springs, and this was true.  One of the first signs we saw said no dogs allowed past this point so Rusty got stuck at home again.  We weren’t gone a real long time, and he does well for short periods without us.  We always ask the neighbors if they hear him and they always say not a peep.

It took us a little while to find it, but we finally did.  It was another $5.00 day use fee, but not sure I would pay that again.  It was pretty and fascinating to see all that crystal clear water, but the brochure made it out to be a lot more than it was.

We did have a very nice place to picnic and there was a nice rest area here also, but that’s about it.  There were several kids and adults swimming in it, so, it was hard to get a shot of it.  I did try to get a picture of the two turtles swimming around in the smaller of the two pools.  You may or may not be able to see them.

I guess it was the time of day we were there, but all I got pictures of, as far as the water, were reflections.  It is astounding that the flow out of this spring is between 14 million gallons and a very impressive 168 million gallons a day.

The Lafayette Blue Springs area was occupied by aboriginal people for thousands of years.  Approximately 14,000 years ago Paleo-Indian people first began to filter into the area.  Over the next 2,000 years the climate warmed and the natives subsisted on animals, fish, shellfish and wild plants found in the area.  Native Americans populated the area until the end of the Second Seminole War in 1842.  There are a number of aboriginal sites in the area.

 

We did spot a beautiful little green lizard.  I am not sure what they actually are called, but he was a pretty little guy.

This is some pictures of the bridge to the other side of the springs.  There was also more picnic tables on that side.

This is the steps leading down to the pools, but it was very steep so Donnie stayed up top while I explored a little closer.  I tried to get the turtles in one picture.  See if you can find them.

Catch you later…. :)

Suwannee River State Park

 

We decided to take a trip yesterday to see this park.  It is beautiful and right on the Suwannee River.  We had plenty of chances yesterday to see it and hike along it.  It was a blast.  We think now this would have been more suited for Rusty, but we left him home on this day.  I don’t think we will do that again.  Especially if we know we are going to be outside a lot.  I just have to remember that he is still young, and I think it is Don more than Rusty that needs to be trained.  We will get it worked out.  He is our forever dog, and we are his forever people.

 

It cost $5.00 again to get into this park for day use, but I thought it was worth every penny of it.  There are hiking trails, picnic grounds, bird watching opportunities, and we saw several boats, canoes, and fisher people.  There is a very large rest area with bathrooms and showers.  We were very impressed with this little park.

 

If I remember right there were two very large parking lots, and there is also a place for RV camping, but didn’t look very large.  Not sure our 38’ fifth wheel would fit in, but there were lots of smaller RV’s there.

This was my favorite part of the day.  We had just started walking down one of the trails when I saw a sign about bird watching.  Within the next few steps I heard this beautiful fellow looking for his lunch.  You could hear the familiar rat-a-tat-tat, and I knew immediately what was making the noise.  Sure enough, he was on the side of a tree about 10 yards away from me.  I couldn’t get really close without scaring him, but I think you can see that it is a Pileated Woodpecker.  I just kept snapping, but couldn’t get a really clear shot at him.  I love seeing them.  We had lots of them on our place in Indiana.

This is just some shots of the trail we hiked.  I hiked a little farther than Donnie.  He does walks with Rusty every day, but his knee still bothers him from when he fell.  I think he may have done more damage than he thought.

This a little farther up the trail.  That pole in the middle picture showed how high the floods were for different years.  If you look closely at the middle picture on the left, you can see it standing on the bank next to that large tree.  It would have been 10 feet over our heads when flooded.

This was a fun outing and I would pay twice that to go back into this little park.

I am getting so disgusted with my carpeting.  It seems like every day I am cleaning a new stain.  Since we got Rusty I spend a lot of time just cleaning up little stains he seems to bring in.  Don always wipes his and Rusty’s feet so I don’t know how it all happens.  I am really leaning toward having hardwood floors installed.  Does anyone out there know if this will work with 3 slide-outs?  My main concern would be tearing the hardwood up when we put the slides out or in.  It would be so much easier to take care of, and I think, look better.

Want to welcome my newest followers.  First is JO JO, she has a very cool site.  Mother of 4, rvs part time and has a home in the White Mountains of AZ.  Check her out.

The second is trustnoone1018.  Sorry, I couldn’t find a blog under your name, but if you have one, please let me know and I will post it.  Thanks to both of you for following along.

You all stay safe…  :)

Stephen Foster State Folk Culture Center

 

We started the morning out with a trip to Big Lots.  Do any of you shop there?  I like to check their grocery isles.  They have Campbell's soups in the large cans for a $1.00 or sometimes $1.25.  Best price I have ever found on it.  Sometimes we just feel like a bowl of soup and salad or sandwich.  I stocked up and won’t have to buy any for a while.   After leaving there I ran on to a mural that I thought was cute, and a couple of old buildings, on the way to the Culture Center.

I really loved those old buildings.  It looked to me like they may have some kind of old time gatherings or something there.  If they don’t, they are missing a good chance.  The little one with the chairs on the front porch is right down the street from the other two.  All look to be from the same era.

Mr. and Mrs. Crafty are my 2 newest followers, and I just want to say welcome to you and hope you enjoy the ride.  I looked at some of your crafts and really liked them.  If you all get a chance, check out their site.

We had decided to go out and visit one of the Parks on this day and thought it was a good idea to take Rusty along.  WRONG!!  I don’t know what was the matter with him, but he was so wild.  He wouldn’t settle down in the truck, and when we would get him out to walk, he would jump all over the place and want to go in the opposite direction from where we were going.  We were really sorry we brought him on this day. 

We did finally make it out to the Stephen Foster Culture Center, but Rusty was not allowed in any of the buildings so, we didn’t get to tour the beautiful museum or gift shop, but it was fun just driving around and seeing all the beautiful buildings and  Memorial Carillon Tower.

The Park is located in White Springs, Florida and offers camping, canoeing and hiking along the beautiful Suwannee River.  Since Rusty was acting up Don stayed in the truck with him and I got out and got only one picture with the River in it.

The centerpiece of the park is the Stephen foster Memorial Carillon Tower.  The carillon, the world’s largest tubular bell instrument, plays concerts daily featuring the music of Foster and music for special occasions.  The music can be heard all over the park, but we were not lucky enough to hear it.  We did hear it chime though.

The museum is housed in an antebellum style mansion typical of those that existed in Foster’s era.  I think the most famous song that Stephen Foster wrote was “Way Down Upon the Suwannee River”.  You can tell by this park that he was very well loved.  I took lots of pictures and will share them with you.

It was a $5.00 fee for day use, and they offer lots to do and see.  The flowers, as you will be able to tell by the pictures, were really pretty on this day.  Hope you enjoy the photos.

You will have to click on the picture to enlarge it and then you can see the big green wire balls hanging in the tree.  The other is the back of the museum.

This is the front of the museum.

The tall box on 4 legs is a bat house, and from the looks of the bottom of it, they have been using it a lot.  The rest of the picture shows the walk down to the large gazebo and river.

A beautiful park, and not the smartest move to take our puppy, but we did enjoy it and highly recommend it to you.

Later… :)

Osceola National Forest

 

We haven’t been doing much, just kicking back and enjoying life.  I did stalk another big bird, over by the pond/lake.  It is a beautiful bird and I think it is a Heron, but not sure.  Hope Judy can enlighten me on this. I guess to save a lot of wear and tear on Judy, I need to get myself a bird book.  That way I won’t have to keep asking her what they are.  I saw some little white birds, but before I could get a good shot of them, a lady and her dog scared them away.  I think they were Ibis. 

When I was through fixing supper, and cleaning the dishes and kitchen last night, I decided to go ahead and get my nightie on.  Not too long after sitting down to watch TV there was a knock on the door.  Donnie answered, because of my being indisposed, but my curiosity got the better of me so, I stood behind our stove and talked to the gentleman.  Turned out he was a reader from when I still had my blog on my trip journal.  Bill said he had been reading my blog forever and just wanted to stop and say hi.  A really nice guy.  He is staying at  the Ocean Pond campground out in Osceola National Forest and was telling us about it.  He didn’t stay but just a few minutes, but it is always nice meeting my readers.

Of course, he got me thinking about the campground so we took a drive out that way and drove through it and some of the forest.  I thought we might see Bill and stop for a minute and talk, but we didn’t see him anywhere so maybe he has already pulled out.  We loved the Park and I took a few pictures to share with you.

We loved this park.  It only has water and electric and of course doesn’t offer Wi fi or cable, but for just a few days I could do without both of those things.  It seems like more and more we want to be away from all the hustle and bustle of the towns.  This just gives us another option when traveling from place to place.  We also have the Golden Age Pass card that allows us to stay for half price.  This park would cost us $12.00 a day with this pass.  Not bad, and the surroundings are fantastic.

Tomorrow I may get out and visit a few thrift shops.  I went out yesterday and visited the Chamber of Commerce office and picked up some info about the area.  There is plenty to do and see around here, with several State Parks very close to where we are. We plan on visiting as many as possible. I also checked out the groceries and other places we will be utilizing.   They have a very large Publix grocery here, but I was not all that impressed.  May go there to get my meat though.  Do any of you use this store?  This is my first experience with them..

Want to welcome my newest followers, Allen and Connie.  Please if you have a blog, share it with me, and I will share it with my readers.  Welcome to you both and I hope you enjoy the ride.

Later… :)

Lake City, Florida

 

I know I have been very lax in telling you about the RV Parks we have stayed in so, will take this opportunity to do so. 

Montgomery South RV Park is where we stayed when visiting with Judy and Dick.  It really was the nicest Park we stayed in on our 12 day journey.  It is a rather new Park and the young fellow running it, Jim is a delight.  Very helpful.  Not a big park, but has all the amenities that are a must for us, at a decent price.  $26.00 a night I think is a pretty good price, tax was included in the charge.  We would definitely go back there.

The next Park on our trip was at Milton Florida, where we met with some childhood friends of my brothers, Harry and Kay.  They came over to our site at Pelican Palms RV Park.  The park was apparently an old KOA, but it was clean and had very good wi fi.  Also full hook-ups. No cable, but when we are just staying a couple of days, we just watch what we can get on the antenna.

Harry and Kay arrived about an hour after we did.  I had gotten some chicken, potato salad, and baked beans for lunch.  Harry brought us a big batch of smoked cheese.  It is made with pepper cheese, cheddar, seasonings, and bacon bits, then he smokes it.  It is delicious, and Don and I have really enjoyed snacking on it.  Thanks again, Harry.  We talked for a couple of hours and got caught up on everyone at home.  The guys had a few cold ones, then it was time for them to leave.  Kay, Harry’s wife has to get up at a very early hour to get to work so, she must go to bed very early.  She has been a cook at a local Nursing Home for a lot of years, and seems to love the work.  Harry is retired from the service so, he keeps the home fires burning. It was fun and we hope to visit with them again.

While in Milton we had also made plans to meet with some old friends we made in Indiana 2 years ago, while I was taking care of my brother.  Bob and Elsie also write a traveling blog, but don’t post often.  You can find their site at the bottom of my list with the other blogs from trip journal.   We met at Cracker Barrel, and it was like our last meeting was yesterday, cause we both read each other’s blogs.  They are originally from New York, but are full-timing now.  Elsie will be flying back to New York next week to spend time with a new grand baby, then, their plans are for out west, with their first stop at the Grand Canyon.  Elsie also shared with me some of her new projects.  She is making, or I should say weaving, a beautiful little basket.  She also made a quilted billfold.  I envy her the craft classes she has been taking.  We just didn’t have anything like that this year in Texas.  I had my camera with me and did remember to get a picture of them and us together.

Since Donnie’s back has been hurting for the last few days, we didn’t get to spend as much time with them as we wanted, but I am sure we will meet up again.  They stay in Foley, Alabama for the winter, and have asked us to come down in our RV next winter and check their park out so, we might just do that.  Thanks for a great meal and conversation Bob and Elsie!!   

The Park we are staying in now is not a fancy park at all.  From what they advertise on line, I thought it would be great, but I have learned that they take all their pictures to their advantage. It is called Inn and Out.  It has everything we look for in a camp, but there are lots of permanent RV’s here and scores of kids.  That would be ok with me if they respect our space, but so far that isn’t happening, and it really keeps Rusty going.  Oh, well, we paid for a month so, will just have to get through it.  We plan on doing a lot of sight-seeing so won’t be here a lot.  The couple right next to us are friendly and have a great sense of humor so, maybe we can talk them in to playing games or something.

BIRD ALERT!!!!

I walked over to the little pond that is on grounds and took a gazillion pictures of what I think is an Egret, but not sure.  It sure was pretty, but had black feet so, I could be mistaken on what it is.  I am sure Judy will straighten me out on what it is.  Let me warn you, I took a ton of pictures, but you can just ignore them if you want.

I honestly think this bird was posing for me.  It hung around forever.  It finally had enough of me stalking it, and flew to the other side of the Lake/pond.  There was a little black looking duck swimming around when I first got there, but it wanted no part of me and escaped right away.  I hope to see lots of birds and other creatures while we are here so, stay tuned.

Forgot to mention that the rent here, for the month, is $434.50, that includes all utilities, 70 cable channels, and very good wi fi.  May be a little high for the type of park we are in, but we will make do.

Later… :)

Montgomery, Alabama

 

We had another very uneventful trip from Gautier, MS., to Montgomery, Alabama.  It was a very pretty drive, and what  caught my eye more than anything else was all the redbuds and the wild Jasmine in bloom.  When they were together it made a breathtaking view.  I was driving so couldn’t get any pictures, but it was very pretty.

We reached Montgomery around noon, but again, I had a senior moment and lost Judy’s number.  Had no way to get hold of her so, I panicked for the first few minutes then, I just happened to think about sending her an email.  A little later I thought why not cover all bases so, I sent her a message on face book, and just in case she didn’t check, I sent her daughter a message also.  Melissa, Judy’s daughter did see the message and got the ball rolling.  Thank you Melissa.

We finally got to meet Judy and her husband, Dick about 30 minutes later.  Believe it or not, it was like we had known each other for ever.  After hugs, we hopped in their SUV and Dick took us to some of his favorite places, and even showed us another RV Park that is much closer to them.  After riding around for an hour or so, we went by their house and got acquainted with Killer, their little dog.  He is such a sweetie.  They have a beautiful home and a large, fenced-in, back yard..  We felt so at home and welcomed.

After leaving the house, Dick took us to a very nice Mexican restaurant for dinner.  It was great and Dick insisted on picking up the bill.  Thanks again Dick and Judy for a great meal out.

The next day we took the truck and Rusty and went back to their house for some playtime for Rusty and Killer.  As you might have guessed, I took a lot of pictures of the 2 boys romping in the back yard.  Judy went out with them for the first few minutes, but after that they just had a ball.

  

Dick had prepared a meal fit for a king for our dinner.  He made a roast beef with new gold potatoes, and carrots.  He also made some very good baked beans, Cole slaw and rolls.  That roast was so tender it just melted in your mouth.  He is a marvelous cook.  Judy is very lucky.. 

Judy seems to be doing very well with her bout with cancer.  I was worried we were wearing her out, but the way she talked, she tries to live every day to it’s fullest.

Judy and I hopped in the truck and ran over to her Vet’s office and picked up some flea meds. for Killer and Rusty.  We talked all the way over and all the way back.  We had a wonderful 2 days with these great people and just know we will be meeting up with them again.

Thank you so much Judy and Dick for a great two days of visiting and eating.  We loved it and love you.

I want to welcome 2 more followers.  Rachel and Mactrailer.  Rachel I couldn’t find a site for you, but if you have one please let me know.  Mactrailer has one  I have been reading and he is a wonderful writer.  Check it out when you get time.

We are in Milton, Florida now and met with some friends yesterday and are meeting with other friends in a couple of hours.  I will write more about these two meetings in a couple of days.

Stay safe….

Mississippi Cranes

 

Let me start out this post by welcoming my 2 newest followers.  They are Whitey and nantucketbreezes.   I could not find a blog site for either of you, but if you have one please share it with me so I can mention it here.  Thank you so much for following are crazy antics, and hope you enjoy the ride.

We have had a very busy 10 days since leaving Concan, Texas.  We traveled across Texas on our first leg of the trip, next we traveled into and through Louisiana.  Then, on into Mississippi, and now are in Montgomery, Alabama.  Next we will be dipping down into Milton,  Florida for a couple more visits with friends, and then on to Lake City, Florida for a months stay.  It has been a whirl-wind, but we have enjoyed every minute of the trip.

We finally got to meet the “Bird Lady”, Judy.

 

She is such a warm and welcoming person.  We clicked right away and talked non stop through our whole visit.  Of course, we discussed the do’s and don’ts of blogging, but we also talked quite a bit about the cranes and the refuge where she is volunteering.  We couldn’t have had a better time.  She started us out with a movie about these majestic birds, then took us on a tour of the refuge and surrounding areas to see if we could spot some cranes. We were sadly disappointed for the first part of the tour, then magically there they were.  They were pretty far away from us, but I did manage to get a couple of pictures of them.  Judy has a big camera with long lenses, but I just have a small digital.  If you want to see fabulous pictures of birds, and everything else there, check out her blog.  The cranes we got to see were Cross Beak and her young mate.  This is the first time she has chosen a mate so, this is an exciting season for the refuge.

After the tour, Donnie and I returned to the RV Park to take Rusty out to pee.  I am not saying anything about the RV Park on purpose because, it was not one I would recommend staying in.  I would rather just not say anything than to blast them.  I will say the roads in were very good, but where you park was in bad shape.  Nuff said… :) 

We then went back to the refuge to meet Judy, and the gang she volunteers with, to go out to eat.  She had first picked a BBQ place,The Shed, for us to go to, but when we drove by, the crowd there was just unbelievably large so, we opted for her second choice, Huck’s Cove.  To say it was interesting, is putting it mildly.  It was a hoot.  We opted to sit outside and enjoy the air and the river.  The River is “Singing River”.  One of the gentlemen explained that folk lore says the way it got it’s name was people would camp up river from the small town of Gautier(Go-Shay), MS., and the town folk would hear them singing all hours of the night.  Hence the name “Singing River”.  We loved this place and they have very good food too.  If you get a chance to meet this wonderful lady, Judy, you should.

We pulled out of Gautier, MS. early yesterday and made our way up to Montgomery, Alabama to meet my good friend, and faithful reader, Judy and her husband Dick.  We met them last night and I will write more about these great people in my next post.

Catch you later… Stay safe.