Belated Valentines Day Bike Ride

My Valentine...

We can't celebrate Valentines day ON Valentines Day because my poor hubby has to work...so we have to make arrangements to do something a different day.

This year, Jason really wanted to go for a long bike ride, so we choose to have our date at Shark Valley Nature Preserve in the Everglades National Forest because they have a 15-mile bike loop.

We were really excited...and we had a GREAT time. No...an AMAZING time. I honestly can't remember when I had that much fun.

Well...I can...but it was awhile ago, okay?

Here are some of the highlights of our adventure:

This is the very first gator we saw on our ride...there were many, many more...

This is a cool pic...these giant clover-type flowers were blooming and the insects were going CRAZY...bumble bees and butterflys were highly attracted to them...

This was our beautiful surroundings...

I love my own scenery ;)

Ugh...I really DO want to take good pictures...I always look chubby and goofy...

A big, beautiful Great Blue Heron

This was SUPER cool...we happened upon a clutch of newly hatched alligators. We stayed back from the SUPER aggressive momma...but got some pics of the babies!!

The view from the Observation Tower

A Rosette Spoonbill...I've never seen one before!!

So...we WERE gonna take a short excursion hike, buuttttt...

Yeah...gator wins...

I really did have a great time...it's my favorite date we've had in awhile...and I hope we can go back and do it again.

I love my husband...he's the greatest guy in the world. He really has his hands full with me...yet he sticks around...and makes me happy...

You make everyday like Valentines Day, baby...

Camping On Sanibel Island

Sanibel Island is an island off the Gulf Side of Florida that is famous for it's shelling. We've wanted to visit there for awhile...but never found the time.

We had a camping trip planned this weekend for Blackwater State Park, 9 hours North in Floridas Panhandle. But then, one by one, all the families we were supposed to travel with backed out...and pretty soon our family was facing going to Blackwater all alone.

I guess thats' not a big deal, but the weather forecast said rain, and Jason was less than thrilled about driving 18 hours for 2 days of camping...so we made a quick change of plans. I looked up camping on Sanibel, and found 1 available spot on the ONLY campground on the island. Not hesitating, I totally snagged it.

We were delayed leaving by 2-1/2 hours because of stormy weather...but we FINALLY took off in the afternoon. We got there, set up camp, and headed for the beach.

The campground was lovely...it was privately owned, and had lots of really cute amenities, like a duck pond surrounded by tropical birds, and a GREAT laundry room, and even a fish-cleaning station! The kids loved the birds...one bird (A Scarlet Macaw named "Fred") actually talked and would say about 40 different things to the kids. They LOVED it!! Fred even whistled at Savannah every time she passed, which totally made her giggle and blush BRIGHT RED!! It was SO ADORABLE!!

And they weren't kidding about the amazing shelling!! We collected all kinds of great shells, made amazing sand castles, and played in the warm (albeit a little rough) ocean. And thankfully - there was no rain.

There was, however, lots of HEAT. We were the ONLY tent campers in the park, and right around 11am, everybody disappeared into their air-conditioned campers and didn't come out until then sun went down. And even then, it was STILL hot. Like..so hot that sweat was actually dripping off the ends of the kids HAIR hot!!!

In fact, it was SO HOT, that after 1 sleepless night, Jason was ready to call it quits. After a morning trip to the beach, he headed over to the camp office to see if we could get a refund if we broke camp and left RIGHT AWAY. The nice lady said: "Are you the tent campers?"

Jason answered in the affirmative, and she said: "I don't blame you!! NOBODY tent camps in the summer!!" and she gave us a refund for our second day.

So, we broke camp early, stopped for ice cream on the way home, and took the Tamiami Trail, a two-lane scenic highway that cuts RIGHT THROUGH the Everglades, home. We stopped at my favorite backwater joint, Joannies Blue Crab Shack, for some grilled gator, frog legs, fried green tomatoes, hush puppies, and crab cakes. We enjoyed the singing of Raiford, the local yokel who sings and plays guitar and harmonica, and ate our swamp grub. Since we were the only patrons at the time, he played kids songs for us...like Old MacDonald and She's Coming 'Round The Mountain, along with Johnny Cash and the Beatles. Nicolette could hardly keep in her seat. She said: "Look at my feet, mama. The music makes my feet wiggle!!"

I was excited to drive the Tamiami with Jason, because although the kids and I have done it a few times, Jason has never gotten the chance. The scenery is just incredible...there's stuff you just don't SEE anywhere else but here...cypress trees dripping with Spanish Moss, gators sunning beside the road, Indian villages filled with straw-covered homes and long houses, signs advising you of panther crossings, and tons of tropical shore birds. We saw lots of wildlife, and had lots of time to chat. It was really great...and a great weekend away with the family...even if we DID cut it a little short.

We have a LONG vacation to Southern California and Utah coming up in a week, and I'm very busy getting ready. I only took a disposable camera with me camping, so as soon as it's developed, I'll scan in the pics.

I'm also a little slow because we (and by "we", I mean "my husband") purchased a new computer (...which means so much for a new camera for "me", or a cruise for "us"), and now we're in the process of getting it set up and transferring all our important files. It might not get done until I get back at the end of July!!

But don't worry...pics are coming!! Until then...

Junior Ranger Day at Shark Valley

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On Saturday, the 11th of April, I took my Girl Scout and Cub Scout troop to Everglades National Park to take part in their 2009 Junior Ranger Day, held at the Shark Valley entrance. It was a FABULOUS day!! The Park Rangers were GREAT with the kids...

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There were tables set up displaying different shells, bones, and skins of animals found all over the Everglades. The kids were allowed to touch and explore and ask lots of questions, which they loved.

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Then they met Ranger Rick (no, seriously), a law enforcement Park Ranger who told them about what he does for National Parks.

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Then Ranger Nate and Ranger Greg played some games with the kids and we all got to go on an awesome tram ride through the park.

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We stopped at a tower that you could climb and see 15 miles in any direction all around the park.

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The view was AMAZING...and there were so many animals to see (especially those incredible gators!!)

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We also went on a little hike in a Hardwood Hammock, where our VERY observant Abi spotted a baby Burmese Python lounging in a tree. Burmese Pythons are invasive species and NOT GOOD for the Everglades...but they have pretty much started to take over. The little guy was less than a foot long, and so well camouflaged, I'm just REALLY impressed that Abi spotted it!!

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Then it was back to the Visitors Center for lunch, and a meeting with the Everglades mascot, Alisha the Alligator!
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We had a little ceremony where the kids got a badge, a certificate, and an AWESOME new patch. After that, everyone got cake!!

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I had taken my own kids to Junior Ranger Day LAST year, and it was so fun that I just KNEW I had to get my troops out there this year. We had a lot of VERY last minute cancellations, and so several kids missed it, but boy!! They sure missed something AMAZING!! This is an activity that I would do again and again...

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Now that my girls and guys have been through Big Cypress AND Everglades, they just need to visit Biscayne national Park to earn their Junior Ranger patch from the National parks service.

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Keep posted...we'll be working on THAT soon!!!

Big Cypress Swamp Walk

Ya know how I'm always sayin' that there are some amazing things to do in Florida? And that you just gotta' go out there and do them?

Well - we did an amazing thing today with my sons Cub Scout pack and a couple girls from my Brownie Girl Scout Troop...we went on a walk through the cypress swamp at Big Cypress National Preserve.

The Webelos from Pack 424: Joseph, Liam, Joshua, Oscar, Chequevera, and Nicolas.

The Brownies from Troop 10224: Jessica and Savannah

We started our trip by seeing the gators in the canals that surround the Oasis Visitor Center at Big Cypress, and then watched a movie in the center about the Everglades. We saw animals, shells, and bones of animals that are native to Big Cypress. Then our guide, a Park Ranger named Jason, gave us a lesson on the importance of the Everglades and of the National Parks program before he led us on our walk. I was rear guard for the walk, so most of my pictures are of people's backs...but hopefully you get an idea of how totally cool this walk was.

The winter months are the perfect time to plan a trip like this, as the mosquito population is WAY down (thank goodness), and the lack of rainfall makes the swamp a little more accessible. In the summer months, Big Cypress gets an average of 60 inches a rain A YEAR...and the water would easily be chest high in places...which means it would be over the heads of some of our Scouts. But in February, we were rarely more than knee deep...the highest we got was up to our waists.

Primary president Michelle Rosales and Webelos Den Leader Ingemar Lopez were cheerily up to the muddy challenge of exploring a swamp.

Park Ranger Jason was so AWESOME with the kids and let us explore and ask lots of questions (and he was really cute, too!!).

The kids all started off REALLY scared to go on the walk...worried about gators and water moccasins and leeches and snapping turtles...but after only a few short minutes, they were excited and amazed (thanks again, Park Ranger Jason).

The boys are all having a great time getting wet and muddy and exploring nature.

He took us through the river grass prairie, which was really just a whole lot of ankle deep sticky black mud that sucked the shoes off the kids,

The boys traverse the dry prairie river...trying to be careful where they step...

Like, ewww...my foot in ankle deep mud/glue...

and then into the cypress swamp. It was amazing to be walking through the water, which was amazingly crystal clear until our sloshing about churned it up, and be surrounded by these beautiful cypress trees that were covered with spiky air plants and dripping with Spanish Moss and the occasional orchid.

Jessica and Joseph wade through the swamp on their way to the gator hole...check out all the air plants, ferns, and Spanish Moss that grows symbiotically with the cypress trees!!

Spring is just starting to show in the swamp, and the cypress are growing a new coat of bright green spiky needle-leaves, and the wildflowers are just starting to pop up and bloom...low lavender carnivorous plants and single tall yellow blooms that look like over-sized sunny Bachelor Buttons standing out boldly against the grey barks of the cypress.

Park Ranger Jason took us to a gator hole where we saw a big 'ol gator just before he hid under water, and watched a smaller gator (about 3 feet) climb up on a log to sun himself. The wallow was surrounded by egrets and herons, anhingas and vultures...all looking to eat and feed in the gators hole. Park Ranger Jason explained that alligators like to make the deep wallows to live in when the dry season shrinks their hunting territory. The wallows attract fish and birds and other animals who are also looking for deeper water to survive. Park Ranger Jason said the alligator is like a landlord...he'll let everybody come share his wallow with him. But after a while, he decides to collect the rent, and CHOMP!!... You never get to check out.

The kids thought that was hilarious.

Park Ranger Jason points out interesting flora and fauna in the gator wallow. I wanted to get a pic of the gator, but he was so well-camouflaged with the log he was sunning on that it wouldn't show up on my camera (my zoom isn't powerful enough!!)

I know that this is a trip that they will remember for a VERY long time. I certainly will.

Nicolas takes a break from sloshing...not really caring how wet he is, anymore.

You don't need to be a part of a group or Scouts to take advantage of this only-in-Florida opportunity. Big Cypress, like all National Parks, has some GREAT Ranger-led programs. To check out what any National Park or Preserve has to offer, just go to http://www.nps.gov/ and find the park you're interested in. If you want to learn more about the programs specifically at Big Cypress, visit http://www.nps.gov/bicy, or see the list of ranger-led activities at http://www.nps.gov/bicy/planyourvisit/ranger-led-activities.htm.

Have fun, and go explore your state...no matter WHERE you live!!

Even after a hose down...my socks and shoes are shot!