Old Gray Mare
TB Fanatic
So they're both in on what's ever going on? Enjoy your adventure Mother Hen. LOL. We'll just sit here on this cliff admiring the view....
Story Aunt Gus and Little Bear's Adventure Book 2 (Complete)
- Thread starter Kathy in FL
- Start date
Last one before the airport ...
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More water today. Actually that’s about all we did. First came a ride on the Loxahatchee Queen pontoon boat. It is something offered by one of the park’s concessionaires. The boat takes people on a 90-minute tour of the river with a stop at the restored 1930s camp of Trapper Nelson, the Wildman of the Loxahatchee. This tied in the story we heard from our guide yesterday. At the site, park staff lead visitors around the grounds and buildings.
Tacos using the gluten-free tortillas were such a hit yesterday that I repeated it but with beef instead of chicken, and refried beans and rice as the side instead of nachos.
After lunch Rick and Lev joined us for another kayak paddle. It was worth the second trip. Not to mention we started out outside the park thanks to our guide. The Loxahatchee River is famous throughout the state for canoeing and kayaking. The upper river winds its way under a canopy of centuries-old cypress trees, giving a real back-in-time experience. On the lower section, the river becomes a mangrove-lined estuary with ample bird life along its shores. In 1985, the Loxahatchee became Florida's first federally designated Wild and Scenic River.
There are only two nationally designated Wild and Scenic Rivers in Florida – the Loxahatchee and the Wekiva near Orlando and now Benny and I have been on both. Cool beans. The “wild and scenic” part is the 7.6 mile stretch from the river’s headwaters at Riverbend Park downstream to Jonathan Dickinson State Park.
I would have been content to do the stretch on our own but Moe was back with a passion to show us “his” river. Like I said, it was worth it. This trip takes in the best scenery on the Loxahatchee River, from Riverbend Park to Masten Dam in about three hours roundtrip. In this section, the water is clear and tannic orange color. The river bottom is mostly white sand and so visibility is good. We saw a lot of fish and turtles, with a couple of gators. The cypress trees just come one after another, with knobby knees poking up, airplants covering the branches, strangler figs wrapping around trees and ferns filling the banks. The river is narrow enough here that you are in shade under a canopy of green most of the way. It felt like paradise.
This section has two dams. The first dam, Lainhart, is usually reached in about 20 minutes. Our guide told us many people paddle over this dam for a little thrill. His advice was to check the water level and your skill level before trying it. Both dams have extensive wooden ramps that allow you to portage around them easily. Moe told us that for a short trip you turn around before reaching the second dam, roughly 1.8 miles downstream. We did the longer trip that took us beyond the second dam, called Masten Dam.
The Loxahatchee River has a bit of a current, but it isn’t that difficult. For every hour downstream you allow one hour and fifteen minutes to turn around and go upstream. Masten dam had about a 2 1/2 to 3 foot drop and while Moe paddled over it I wouldn’t with Benny with me. Lev chose not to because of his equipment and also because he had Rick with him, though I gathered he didn’t explain it that way.
The next two or three hours of paddling were just as beautiful as the first section. The river was sometimes narrow and twisty. It continued through a shady cypress forest and this is where we spotted the three alligators.
We got to stop again at Trapper Nelson‘s historic site. With fewer people we got to see it a little more in-depth. His hand built rustic buildings and animal cages are all preserved and it’s an interesting, atmospheric spot. There are shaded tables for a relaxing picnic. We spent 45 minutes there and had a snack to give our arms a rest. Right up next to Trapper Nelson‘s, the Loxahatchee River is a pristine, shady cypress swamp. As soon as we left Trapper Nelson‘s, however, we saw our first mangrove tree and soon the river changed character and was fully lined with mangroves. Soon the only cypresses we saw were the bleached white snags of ones that had succumbed to salt water.
The river in the last 3.5 miles was completely different – wide, sunny, saltier, windier and lined with mangroves. I was glad ours was a one-way trip as Lev and Rick were pretty tired by the time we made it to the park’s boat ramp where we turned in the kayaks.
Supper was quiet and now camp is quiet. Or ours is. Friday night so the weekend crowd has shown up. I don’t even think it is going to bother me so I’m hitting the hay.
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May 18 (F) – Jonathon Dickinson State Park (Day 2)
More water today. Actually that’s about all we did. First came a ride on the Loxahatchee Queen pontoon boat. It is something offered by one of the park’s concessionaires. The boat takes people on a 90-minute tour of the river with a stop at the restored 1930s camp of Trapper Nelson, the Wildman of the Loxahatchee. This tied in the story we heard from our guide yesterday. At the site, park staff lead visitors around the grounds and buildings.
Tacos using the gluten-free tortillas were such a hit yesterday that I repeated it but with beef instead of chicken, and refried beans and rice as the side instead of nachos.
After lunch Rick and Lev joined us for another kayak paddle. It was worth the second trip. Not to mention we started out outside the park thanks to our guide. The Loxahatchee River is famous throughout the state for canoeing and kayaking. The upper river winds its way under a canopy of centuries-old cypress trees, giving a real back-in-time experience. On the lower section, the river becomes a mangrove-lined estuary with ample bird life along its shores. In 1985, the Loxahatchee became Florida's first federally designated Wild and Scenic River.
There are only two nationally designated Wild and Scenic Rivers in Florida – the Loxahatchee and the Wekiva near Orlando and now Benny and I have been on both. Cool beans. The “wild and scenic” part is the 7.6 mile stretch from the river’s headwaters at Riverbend Park downstream to Jonathan Dickinson State Park.
I would have been content to do the stretch on our own but Moe was back with a passion to show us “his” river. Like I said, it was worth it. This trip takes in the best scenery on the Loxahatchee River, from Riverbend Park to Masten Dam in about three hours roundtrip. In this section, the water is clear and tannic orange color. The river bottom is mostly white sand and so visibility is good. We saw a lot of fish and turtles, with a couple of gators. The cypress trees just come one after another, with knobby knees poking up, airplants covering the branches, strangler figs wrapping around trees and ferns filling the banks. The river is narrow enough here that you are in shade under a canopy of green most of the way. It felt like paradise.
This section has two dams. The first dam, Lainhart, is usually reached in about 20 minutes. Our guide told us many people paddle over this dam for a little thrill. His advice was to check the water level and your skill level before trying it. Both dams have extensive wooden ramps that allow you to portage around them easily. Moe told us that for a short trip you turn around before reaching the second dam, roughly 1.8 miles downstream. We did the longer trip that took us beyond the second dam, called Masten Dam.
The Loxahatchee River has a bit of a current, but it isn’t that difficult. For every hour downstream you allow one hour and fifteen minutes to turn around and go upstream. Masten dam had about a 2 1/2 to 3 foot drop and while Moe paddled over it I wouldn’t with Benny with me. Lev chose not to because of his equipment and also because he had Rick with him, though I gathered he didn’t explain it that way.
The next two or three hours of paddling were just as beautiful as the first section. The river was sometimes narrow and twisty. It continued through a shady cypress forest and this is where we spotted the three alligators.
We got to stop again at Trapper Nelson‘s historic site. With fewer people we got to see it a little more in-depth. His hand built rustic buildings and animal cages are all preserved and it’s an interesting, atmospheric spot. There are shaded tables for a relaxing picnic. We spent 45 minutes there and had a snack to give our arms a rest. Right up next to Trapper Nelson‘s, the Loxahatchee River is a pristine, shady cypress swamp. As soon as we left Trapper Nelson‘s, however, we saw our first mangrove tree and soon the river changed character and was fully lined with mangroves. Soon the only cypresses we saw were the bleached white snags of ones that had succumbed to salt water.
The river in the last 3.5 miles was completely different – wide, sunny, saltier, windier and lined with mangroves. I was glad ours was a one-way trip as Lev and Rick were pretty tired by the time we made it to the park’s boat ramp where we turned in the kayaks.
Supper was quiet and now camp is quiet. Or ours is. Friday night so the weekend crowd has shown up. I don’t even think it is going to bother me so I’m hitting the hay.
sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Thank you, safe flight.
May 19 (Sa) - Seabranch Preserve State Park
All four of us were hungry this morning after all the time on the water so I did the full breakfast thing … eggs, home fries, bacon, and if they wanted “bread” I set out the rest of the bag of gluten-free tortillas. The caballeros were much appreciative, and they cleaned up while I finished getting ready for our day in Seabranch Preserve State Park.
The best way to explore Seabranch Preserve State Park turned out to be by foot. There were over six miles of hiking trails that provided ample opportunity to get out and experience the park. For Little Bear and I it wasn’t that many miles of trails after all the hiking in the national parks, but for a state park it was about average.
The hiking trails at Seabranch are divided into three sections: the north, south and east loops. The north and south loops take you through sand pine scrub habitat. With painfully white sugar sand underfoot and sand pine trees overhead; you feel like you are in the middle of nowhere during pioneer and early exploration of the state. The east loop trail offered something completely different; pine flatwoods and baygall swamp. Along this trail we saw red and sweet bay trees, slash pine, saw palmetto and cabbage palm. Our guide, a Scout doing an apprentice program, explained that because of how the loop was built, we got to explore the normally harsh and inaccessible baygall ecosystem.
Breakfast had been so filling, and the weather so warm, no one was really interested in a full lunch so all we did was take a break, eat some GORP and drink a ton of rehydration fluid. Scotty, the name of the scout, ate his share and was very appreciative and shared his troop’s recipes for GORP including one that used dried blueberries (similar to how raisins are used) and one that used freeze dried strawberries. The strawberries reminded me of Ms. G for obvious reasons and I nearly got the giggles wondering what her expression would have been to learn of Benny’s most excellent portfolio review. Then on second thought I decided not to think about her at all.
Scotty helped us … well, Lev … to get some naturalist shots to include with the upload he needed to prepare and then it was back to Jonathon Dickinson State Park for another night. Rick was leaving early for his day off tomorrow. He was already in “the mood” where he shut everything else off and out. I was in grocery list making mode and tuned him out. I have been thinking thoughts tonight … and yes, Lev is in the front seat snoozing after finally accepting that Rick wasn’t going to check up on us … and I’m coming to conclusions. I’m not quite sure that I’m firm on those conclusions but there you are. It is what it is.
May 20 (Su) - St. Lucie Inlet Preserve State Park
Rick’s day off. He came back tonight looking troubled. I tried to be a friend and get him to talk but didn’t have much luck. As much as I like Rick, though I’m still deciding what kind of like that is, he’s got some hang ups that don’t go well with my personality. There, I admitted it someplace besides my head. I’m starting to wonder things that I’m not sure are because they might be true or because of my own hang ups.
Today’s park, St. Lucie Preserve, is another one that is only accessible by water so I wanted breakfast to be a little more stick to your ribs. I fixed huevos rancheros. As an excuse for the extra work, I told Lev that it used up the last of the jar of salsa so I could get it out of the frig. Yeah, that’s why I did it. It had nothing to do with the fact that I felt like making one of the things my Dad enjoyed eating when he was home. I dreamed of Father’s Day last night. Made me restless so I’m glad we were doing water activities today. They always help me to settle down. What also helped was that Lev pretty much has some of the same issues with certain holidays as Benny and I do, just for different reasons. He avoided thoughts on Mother’s Day and hasn’t said anything about the run up to Father’s Day … and I hope Rick will leave it alone as well. If he can have boundaries then we can too.
The island the preserve is on is the classic Florida barrier island. Like I said, it is accessible only by boat, but it is worth the ride. A boardwalk takes you through mangrove forests and hammocks of live oaks, cabbage palms, paradise trees and wild limes to a neatly preserved Atlantic beach. I expected everything but the limes. I love limes, even more than lemons and other citrus. Grandma Barry had a couple of lime trees in one of her greenhouses. Every winter we would drag those throned menaces into the main house, so they’d be protected from the worst of the cold and they’d even get decorated for the holidays.
During the summer months, the island is an important nesting area for loggerhead, leatherback and green turtles. The turtles come ashore at night to dig holes in the beach sand where they lay their eggs. We didn’t see any on land, but I saw “signs” where they’d come out of the water and onto shore … drag and flipper marks … at least where people hadn’t walked through them.
The preserve is also a favorite of nature-y type students of all educational levels, from kidlets up to college graduate students, interested in learning about the native flora and fauna of Florida barrier islands. Other reasons to come to the island is to swim, sunbathe, or picnic at the pavilion on the beach; while yet others make the trip for the great surf fishing. The beach is normally quiet but with this being Sunday, there were quite a few people around. Snorkeling and scuba diving are also popular activities. The three of us did a bit of everything today.
Our guide was very chill. He’d take us to different spots, offer us a chance to see if we wanted to do something and then left us to it for a specific amount of time. The one thing he did do was tell us about the park. Opened to the public in 1969, St. Lucie Inlet Preserve State Park preserves one of the few undeveloped barrier islands on Florida's east coast. The park is composed of 10 distinct natural communities including beach dune, coastal strand, maritime hammock and tidal swamp. An extensive Anastasia worm reef is located offshore and extends 4.7 miles along the coast. This reef is the northernmost limit for the ranges of several species of corals found in South Florida.
He also told us about the reef around the island. An extensive Anastasia rock reef is located just offshore of the park extending 4.7 miles along the coast and up to one mile offshore. Depths range from 5-35 feet. This reef is the northernmost limit for the ranges of several species of corals found in South Florida. In addition, many species of marine plants and tropical fish are associated with the reef.
It was at that point we took a break to get rehydrated and eat some snacks at our guide’s suggestion. Good thing we took his advice. After lunch we explored the 3,330-foot boardwalk that meanders from the dock to the beach. Along the way, we traversed two coastal hammocks. I smelled it first, a skunk-like aroma. Ew. Turns out it wasn’t a skunk or civet cat we smelled, but the white stopper, a tropical tree. I definitely made a point of including that in Benny’s science lesson section of the next phase of his school portfolio. The picture of the face he made was pretty funny if I do say so myself. In fact Lev, after seeing it, wished he could include it in his work but the rules are no facial photos or film of Benny.
That’s when Lev said, “Oh well, I got this one.”
The rat got an even funnier picture of my first whiff of the odor. Benny begged if he could have a copy so he could put them side by side in his picture frame.
“You mean like this one?”
Lev to the rescue. Somehow he’d taken a frame where we were both doing it in the same picture. All three of us had a good laugh not too long before Rick came back to camp.
Rick wasn’t cold, just closed off. He brought Benny back a gluten-free cookie-cake for “graduating”. Benny loved it. Lev obviously approved, giving Rick a fist bump. I tried to let him know I appreciated it but he brushed it off by saying he should have done something immediately after and then just went quiet before heading to his sleeping bag early. I wish I could help him. I’ve been given so much support for my issues over the years I really have a backlog of paying it forward. But, and here’s a thought, sometimes there are things you have to figure out for yourself and letting other people do too much isn’t always any healthier than refusing to accept help when you need it. I’m not sure at what point in life that Lev is at but I’m beginning to think that maybe it isn’t my job to help him figure that out.
Resources:
Historical Markers and War Memorials in Martin County, Florida
May 21 – 24: Sarasota County
May 21 (M) - Oscar Scherer State Park (camp)
Got up this morning and broke camp as we were on our way to Oscar Scherer State Park. It is a popular one so I’m thankful that we are visiting after the weekend rush, and before the summer crowds hit in earnest. When we arrived at the entry gate we found our guide there waiting. Nathan is his name, and he is sharing our camp tonight after a cookout of roasted pork and some other Cuban sides that were brought in for a staff get together.
Nathan explained that in her will, Elsa Scherer Burrows (1884-1955) left her family’s 460-acre South Creek Ranch to the state in memory of her father, Oscar Scherer (who invented a process for dyeing leather in 1872). After a year of preparation, Oscar Scherer State Park opened to the public in 1956. Three decades later, real estate agent and environmentalist Jon Thaxton began campaigning for the state to purchase and protect adjoining Florida scrub-jay territory. With help from The Nature Conservancy, Sarasota County and wide public support, the state purchased an additional 922 acres from the adjacent Palmer Ranch in 1991. The park now preserves more than 2 square miles of natural land in a rapidly developing region and provides resource-based recreation for over 100,000 visitors annually. The park's visitor support facilities were complete by 1972 and are much the same today - a blend of preservation and recreation. This was a monumental step in the protection of the last viable acreage of scrub in Sarasota County - rescued from the bulldozers and saved for the scrub-jays.
Bald eagles nest in the park in winter and are seen regularly, or so we were told. We didn’t see any as Nathan explained that some of the nests that had been in the park for generations had been badly damaged due to last year’s storms and after working most of the winter to repair them, or rebuild them in new locations completely, they had flown off to their summer habitats. What we did see more than a few of were those pesky and noisy Florida scrub-jays. I swear those birds are fearless, or maybe just perpetually cranky. I saw several mobbing other birds that they took exception to. They even went after a couple of bird watchers that went too close to a nest. Teach them won’t it.
At one point, Oscar Scherer had the only protected population in Southwest Florida with a long-term chance of survival. No longer true, but storm damage has made the birds fussy and hyper protective of the territory surrounding nesting areas. Florida Park Service biologists conduct a monthly census of the population, and park staff strive to manage the scrubby flatwoods, the natural community needed by the birds, in a way that will support an optimum number. Prescribed fire and the mechanical treatment of vegetation are the methods usually employed but storm clean up is hampering that somewhat.
Nathan explained first thing that there is over 15-miles of hiking trails in the park. Seven marked hiking trails provided access to remote portions of the park though there were still trees and limbs down across a few trails as “widow makers” continue to fall despite all of the cleanup efforts. Numbered benches placed along the trails provide resting spots and, since the numbers correspond with numbers on the trail map, if we got separated at any time, we could determine our exact location on the trail.
After hiking and a light lunch of popcorn trail mix, we took a bike ride focusing on the Legacy Trail that runs directly through the heart of the park. The Legacy Trail is a 12-mile paved trail from the beaches of Venice north to Sarasota with the park located directly in the middle. We started on one end, went to the other end, then biked back to one of the pavilions for a ride close to nineteen miles, plenty enough for Benny after a morning of hiking.
That’s when we found out we were invited to the cookout and Rick accepted for all of us after a look to see if we were interested. Nice people at this park or maybe it was the party atmosphere. They were definitely interested in and supportive of the grant as well as our project. Benny got lots of attention, but I got my fair share of kudos for the national park blog that I did, and as well for not using Benny’s face and likeness. Everyone there simply called him Little Bear. He loved it.
Rick eased up a bit during the day but that is his normal modus operendi when it comes to recovering from his day off. Hopefully by tomorrow he will be completely back to normal, and he can have some fun with this job instead of carrying whatever burden is eating at him.
May 22 (T) – Marie Selby Botanical Gardens >> Sarasota Jungle Garden
Breakfast was some leftover pork on gluten free tortillas. I wasn’t really hungry and just pulled out one of my reserve protein shakes, this one a mislabeled flavor; I got surprised with peach instead of vanilla. That woke me up and caused Benny to giggle. The little mono (means monkey in Spanish).
I’ve noticed that I’m speaking Spanish more lately. Just a habit I had gotten out of but that I’m picking back up. I try not and do it too much but with the Spanish culture being what it is here in South Florida I’ve had more than a few opportunities to stay in practice. I’d like Benny to stay bilingual as well. Not because it is part of his culture but because it is a good skill to have and one much easier to learn and retain as a kid than to try and pick it up as an adult.
Rick doesn’t speak any Spanish (not even Spanglish) despite Rosa and her family. Lev surprised me by admitting he can speak bits and pieces of several. He was forced to on his overseas assignments and agrees that if you don’t use it, it is easy to lose it. The only reason he’s kept up with what he does know is because he still has contacts in those far off locations. Lev comes off as a good ol’ boy but there’s more to him than that, maybe more to him than he wants people to know. He’s got camouflage out the whazoo.
Our first adventure for the day was the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens. The place would be gorgeous if it wasn’t still digging out from the storm surge that did a lot of damage since it is little more than a piece of land that juts out into the bay. The worst damage wasn’t to the plants or trees but to the lighting and other infrastructure within the park, as well as the paths. The area where they perform wedding ceremonies is still completely closed off with yellow caution tape. Some of the trees took a haircut but they are the type of trees that grow so that such an event is part of their lifecycle.
You would think such a thing would be sad but there were a lot of volunteers in the park working on plant beds and laying new electricity. Everyone seemed happy and glad to finally have been given permission to get back into the park after all of the local waterside clean up.
Rick handed us a last-minute itinerary change. Instead of heading back to camp early we had tickets waiting for us at the Sarasota Jungle Garden, an Old Florida attraction that has been around since 1939. There’s things in this park that I’ve seen no place else, starting with the free-roaming flamingoes that you can feed and that are endlessly hungry. We started our visit at the Flamingo Cafe where the staff provided us with a gluten-free lunch box. Yeehaw and all that.
We did so many things in the time that we were there that I’m having a hard time remembering everything. Let’s see, we hand fed the flamingoes, held a parrot at the parrot show, held a snake, fed a giant tortoise (my favorite), took our picture with a gator (baby, not fully toothsome yet), watched some ring-tailed lemurs bust a move trying to out play each other, helped one of the animal keepers collect a bunch of baby ducks that had run off from their mother and gotten lost, and enjoyed the gardens. We also managed to take in all three shows they offered today: the Jungle Bird Show (where we held the parrot), the Wildlife Wonder Show, and the Reptile Show (where we held the snake).
Rather than head back to camp after that we had one more stop to make; Pinecraft which is the Amish community area in Sarasota. The food was amazing and plenty of it, even a lot that my caballeros could eat. My capris are telling me that I really need to start working out more because there is no way they are shrinking that much in the wash. And I did add to my program as soon as we got back to camp even if it was later than planned. Now everything is quiet. Except for the dim light in Rick’s tent. Geez I feel bad for the guy.
May 23 (W) - Myakka River State Park
Got up early, broke camp. Despite me knowing Rick must have been up late he really made an effort. I mean seriously. Not the weird I’m-okay-you’re-okay thing he does every once in a while, but a real effort despite there being dark circles under his eyes.
“Rick, I haven’t wanted to pry but … how’s your uncle.”
He looked grateful. “Better. The infection is under control and … look, I obviously owe you an explanation.”
“You don’t owe me anything. No pressure. Remember?” I told him feeling some of my own guilt for the thinks I’ve been thinking after some of the things I’d said.
“I remember. And I still appreciate it even if I’ve acted like an ass.”
“No. You’re under stress and …” I said, not really sure that I wanted to hear any potential confessions.
“And you wouldn’t make any excuses for yourself, and I admire that about you. You are who you are and you don’t apologize for it, but you also don’t rationalize it or make excuses. And … and I wish more people were like that. They just haven’t come out as strong as you even if they’ve had their own rough patches.”
Uh oh.
“Can Benny sit with Lev? Please?” he asked.
All I had to do was look over and Lev gave me a thumbs up where Benny couldn’t see. “All taken care of.”
“Thanks. This is just a little … embarrassing to be honest.”
“Uh …”
“My uncle … look, my Dad will always be my dad but he’s also always going to be my mother’s husband and all that it means. He wants to do the dad thing but … for a long time all he could be was my mother’s husband. And he never resented my uncle stepping up. They … shared me I guess you’d say and it turns out, according to Dad, that Uncle George may have needed me in his own way as much as I needed him. He can’t have children and it turns out Sylvia can’t either so they … yeah, they’ve gravitated that direction but very platonic because they’ve both put their families first in their lives. My uncle me … and Aunt Sylvia, first her caregiving career then her sister’s family. Rosa’s mother … I don’t know what to say about her that doesn’t sound bad but …”
“Hot mess?”
“Actually no. Though I could see where most people might see her that way. She’s just a very … dependent type of person. And anything that threatens her latest dependency … she gets very controlling to manipulative. And Rosa falls for that every time and … frankly she is starting to pick up her mother’s bad habits. Aunt Sylvia has been working with her, trying to break those habits but I don’t think it is going to work without some help because her mother is just always there … managing, nagging, putting ideas in her head, scaring her.”
“Okay … and you’re supposed to fix that how?”
He sighed. “I … can’t. Not from here, maybe not at all. Rosa is a nice girl. She can be a great woman for someone. But until she is willing to get away from her mother’s influence, I doubt that will happen. But I’ve made promises to Uncle George, and I’ve been walking a real tight rope. I was at the point of taking your advice and simply talking to him about his unrealistic expectations but then the infection and his doctor point blank told me that he’s still too weak and that he’s only allowing Aunt Sylvia access to him, he doesn’t even want Rosa and her mother at the hospital because when they are there somehow word gets to my uncle and … the doctor says the stress is a set back every time.”
“Sounds like your uncle’s doc is on top of it,” I said and really meant it.
“He’s on top of that part. Like an idiot I still obligated myself to helping with the immigration stuff. And it turns out you were correct on a few other points. Rosa’s parents left a bigger mess behind than her mother admitted to, or even Aunt Sylvia was aware of. And Rosa’s half-brothers – who should be helping with this – can’t because they’ve been deported but are in Honduras with their mother’s family, not the US like I was told. And the reason for their deportation wasn’t just federal immigration law, they have some jurisdictional criminal charges in a couple of different states and Rosa’s father … he lied for them and as a result was charged as an accessory.”
“Was Rosa’s mother ever charged?”
“Not … officially,” he said hesitantly. “But technically she is still a person of interest, and it is being held against her. And that is something I cannot fix. She’s finally hired a lawyer – so she says – to help wipe the slate clean. Rosa is clean except … she never was officially divorced from her husband before he died, and he left some outstanding debts, and the laws are different down there. If she wants to leave the country legally, she needs to clean up those debts. And she must leave Costa Rica legally before she can enter the US legally.”
Not knowing if my question was going to be welcome I asked, “I … I don’t mean to stress you out by asking but … is she expecting your uncle to pay those debts for her?”
“She was.”
“Er … was?”
“Yeah. I … I told her absolutely not, that Uncle George’s estate was not going to bankroll her mistakes. Her and her mother got a little … hysterical. They’re claiming that Uncle George promised to help. I told them he is too medical fragile to be making those kinds of financial decisions and that even if he did, I’m the one that has the POA and until Uncle George tells me otherwise … it will not be happening.”
Wow. “I take it that did not go over well.”
“Like I said, they got hysterical. However, I’m hoping this has been a turning point. Rosa has a job. It’s as a waitress but it’s good money. The restaurant belongs to the sister of her Godfather. The woman runs a tight ship, and it also means that Rosa’s son is in a type of preschool set up that is only two doors down from the restaurant. Even Rosa’s mother has a job … she’s cleaning houses for one of her brothers that owns some vacation homes. It’s about as good as I could hope for under the circumstances. Rosa is out from under her mother and both of them no longer really have the time to sit around the hospital trying to get a word with Uncle George.”
“Okay. Sounds like you are pulling things together as much as you are able, to fulfill the promises you made to your uncle. You can’t fix what you can’t fix. But why feel the need to explain all of that to me?”
“Because I’ve been acting like an ass. I still can’t offer … Gus I’ve still got a mess on my hands.”
“We said no pressure.”
“And I appreciate that like you have no idea. And … if possible … and while I know this is unfair … if you could just keep it that way for a while longer. I understand … trust me that I do understand and even if I have been too self-involved to understand, Lev has dumped me on my ass a couple of times to wake me up.”
“What?!”
“He … look. Maybe I needed it. Lev is decent. He could have really screwed me over in a lot of ways and not just professionally. Instead … never mind. Just, like I said, even if I didn’t really have a clue before, I do now. You aren’t free to just wait around and screw around. I … I’m sorry but I just can’t promise that I’ll have everything figured out before the grant is over. If … if I don’t, can … can I still call you until we figure out where we stand?”
What was I suppose to say? Hell to the naw? So I said yes. And while it made him feel better, I’m pretty sure that it’s only made me feel more something … maybe guilt. ‘Cause right here right now I’ll be honest. I’m no longer sure I have the energy or desire to take on someone that is as messed up as I am. Nor do I want to live in some never-ending triangle. Because I’m not too sure that Rosa isn’t already like Rick says her mother is, and she hasn’t retired from the field but merely made a temporary strategic retreat.
I wasn’t particularly hungry after that, so it is a good thing we’d already had our breakfast of egg and bacon sandwiches. We weren’t running late but were also barely running on time to check in at today’s park, Myakka River State Park. As one of the more popular parks, their Junior Ranger program reflected the bigger budget for it. Benny hadn’t really been asking for any of it but I’ve seen him wondering.
We also had a guide today … Rhonda. Older woman, not quite like the Iron Lady but not far off from it. Little less serious and a little more kid-friendly, or at least Benny gave her points for trying and played along which she seemed to appreciate. First, as usual, we were given the history of the park. Prior to 1850, the Myakka River was the Asternal River on English maps. A Seminole Indian reportedly told a surveyor in the 1850s that the name of the river was Myakka. The translation of the word Myakka is unknown. In all honesty it could have been a bit of a prank as a cultural tit for tat but no one really knows. Between the 1850s and the 1930s, cattle grazed on the dry prairie, a vast land of grasses, forbs, palmetto and other low shrubs with thousands of scattered wetlands. The Florida Cracker was a common sight.
In 1910, Bertha Palmer, a progressive businesswoman from Chicago, came to Sarasota and bought a vast amount of land as an investment and a way to save the money she’d made up north. A few years later, she purchased acreage farther inland than her initial real estate purchases and tried her hand at cattle and swine ranching. Meadow Sweet Pastures was located very near the Myakka River, where she introduced fencing and dip vats to Florida ranching. Then, in 1918 Mrs. Palmer passed away. Shortly after that, the Great Depression struck America. President Roosevelt signed into law the New Deal, a government program intended to boost the economy and spirit of the American population during those dark years. One program funded was the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). Over 17,000 acres of the Palmer estate were purchased by Florida to develop Myakka River State Park. Myakka is one of eight Florida State Parks developed by the CCC during the 1930s.
The CCC had lasting impacts, nationally and locally. More than 5 million young men were employed to help preserve natural areas across the nation. This employment allowed them to earn money to send home to their families. When the US entered WW2, the CCC provided well-trained and strong soldiers for the armed forces. Myakka River State Park was formally dedicated in 1941 and was officially opened for the public. Many of the CCC structures built in Myakka continue to be used, such as the visitor center, two picnic pavilions, five of the rental log cabins, and many roads and trails.
Rhonda got us space on one of the concessionaire’s boats as she deemed it too hot to do any hiking. I’ll admit that it was more than just a little warm. Every day, flat-bottomed boats take park visitors on a ride around the Upper Myakka Lake, and we got on the 11am tour. I wish we’d been on the 9 am time. It was so warm even the gators and fish had sunk deep into the river to get away from the heat. We did see some birds, but they were quiet and simply trying to stay cool, many of them holding their wings out of their sides. The tour lasted an hour, and I wasn’t the only one that the heat and gentle rocking of the boat put to sleep. Stinker Butt said he would have saved me so no one would have heard me snore. Uh huh.
It was so hot that no one felt like eating so I made banana smoothies as the whole, fresh bananas I had wouldn’t last long in the heat that built up in the van when it was closed up. After that Rhonda helped us to get to our campsite and then gave us time to set up. The park has three campgrounds with 90 campsites total. Each site is equipped with electrical service, water, a fire ring, and picnic table. The sites in Palmetto Ridge also have sewer hook-ups. A dump station is located near Old Prairie Campground. Laundry facilities are available to all campers in Old Prairie and Palmetto Ridge campgrounds. All campsites are located within 40 yards of restroom facilities with hot showers. Sites in Old Prairie and Big Flats are dirt-based. The sites in Palmetto Ridge are gravel-based and has vegetation barriers. Needless to say, I was grateful to have a site in Palmetto Ridge.
For the remainder of the afternoon I helped Benny participate in some Junior Ranger stations and activities that culminated in a fire ring program while Rhonda took Rick and Lev around to get some nature shots and film of some of the other areas of the park. It has been dark a couple of hours and it is still very warm. The solar fans are providing the only relief Rick and Lev have. Not much better here in the van. I think I’ll take another layer off and try to get some sleep.
May 24 (R) – Ringling Museum
Breakfast was cold smoothies. We all agreed that we’d eat lunch in a cooler environment as well. For now, all we wanted to do was get in the jeep and turn the AC on and get where we were going. And where would that be? The Ringling Museum, all the various parts of it. We had a guide waiting on us when we arrived. He wasn’t our guide alone however as we were going to walk around with a small group, our four and four additional adults, a set of older adults traveling together. They collectively gave Benny the hairy eyeball, but their attitude changed at the tour proceeded. I guess they’d had some less than good experiences with younger kids being part of “adult” tours.
First off, we explored all five floors of Ca’ d’Zan … John and Mable Ringling’s home. Talk about your wow kind of house. At the very top we got a panoramic view from the Belvedere Tower. The house was called a Mediterranean Revival-style mansion. It was a mansion all right, but I’ll leave the categorizing to other people. All I could think was “wow” in every room and up every flight of stairs. Speaking of stairs, we climbed 85 of them. Our half of the group had no problem, the other half … er … struggled after a bit because there was no elevator.
Next on tap was a guided tour of the Bayfront Gardens. The guide for that part knew his green things, that’s a fact. Especially all the names of the roses in what is known as Mable’s Rose Garden. Holy smokes. If I ever do stop in one place to do more than just pop a squat, I’d love to have a rose garden. They aren’t the easiest thing to grow in Florida because of the damp weather and general humidity. Too many roses are subject to what is called “Black Spot” when they are watered too much. Grandmother Barry had some beautiful ones that I had helped to tend but they are all gone now. When we were at the River House at Christmas my cousin Sharon had let slip – accidentally on purpose – that her son had mowed them over because they were all dead anyway. Really don’t want to think of that right now.
The garden tour was ninety minutes long and introduced us to some of the more interesting botanical specimens – like the banyan trees – while providing a historic overview of the development of the estate which has over 2,350 trees representing native, exotic, historical, and culturally significant trees. Our group had their water bottles but the other group hadn’t thought to bring any, so they had to carry around bottles offered by our guide.
Lunch, by unanimous vote, was eaten at the on-site café. It wasn’t cheap and it was a little frou-frou for the guys, but we managed to make sure it was gluten-free and would get us through the remainder of the day.
We finished eating just in time to meet up with our guide once again to “run away to the circus.” Or that is what he called what we were doing. The experience was to immerse ourselves in circus history, be wowed by human and animal feats, study the logistics of circus management (OMG), and we even got to try our hand at “walking the wire.” The Circus Museum has a huge and diverse collection of props, oddities, memorabilia, equipment, etc. It was so huge in fact it took up two buildings.
The Howard Bros. Circus Model consists of more than 42,000 pieces and spans 3,800 square feet. Created by philanthropist and circus lover Howard Tibbals, the model is a historically accurate rendition of an early twentieth-century circus. All I could do was marvel at the logistical engineering required to move the circus’s entire “tented city” from town to town each day. I got it even if the others in the group only thought they did. I remember the logistics of running my small Crews and Teams in Cadettes and Naval Scouts. What I was looking at, even in miniature model form, must have taken the an incalculable effort. I was a little jealous of how efficient it all sounded.
In the other building we got to try our hand at the circus arts. That’s where we got to try walking on a right rope, hypothetically balancing on horseback, and trying to squeeze into a clown car. Geez, and I thought jeep could be tight when we had a lot of equipment to carry with us. There were also multimedia presentations, including music and video, all through the gallery, that created a fully immersive experience. I nearly busted a gut when all three of my caballeros started sniffing the air like Mr. Mole when they spritzed popcorn smell through the vents for that 4D effect.
We are now back at Myakka and it is only slightly cooler than it was last night. But I’ll accept “some” gratefully. It could be worse.
Resources:
Marie Selby Botanical Gardens - The Living Museum
Sarasota Jungle Gardens – Sarasota's Favorite Family Attraction
Knight Trail Park Pistol and Rifle Range
Historical Markers and War Memorials in Sarasota County, Florida
May 25 – 28: Charlotte County
May 25 (F) - Charlotte Harbor Preserve State Park
Get this … for all four nights we are in Charlotte County we are going to be staying in a houseboat at night. How cool is that? Literally … how cool. After the last two nights tonight feels almost cold due to the fact the boat has real AC that can be run at night due to the batteries and the fact that it is hooked up to electricity on the dock.
Broke camp this morning after a light breakfast of yogurt, granola, and fruit and headed to Charlotte Harbor Preserve State Park. The park is composed of 45,387 acres and protects more than 100 miles of shoreline along Charlotte Harbor in Charlotte and Lee counties. It is the third largest Florida State Park. Benny and I were here before leaving Florida for the national park tour. He remembers it but he has no problem repeating it either. Good.
The park is still best accessed by kayak or canoe. Portions of two paddle trail systems wind through the park. Our guide wasn’t going to be available right away so we followed the path of many bird-watchers and accessed the upland areas at the pedestrian walk-throughs in each section of the park. We also made sure Benny could complete the Junior Ranger program since it was one of the newer ones and the activities were a little more high-interest than word searches and dot-to-dot’s.
For lunch I just had a bunch of fruit, nuts, gluten-free crackers and chips, summer sausage, and some hard cheese bites. I had frozen some hydration drinks and we used them for the remainder of the day. Because? We were going kayaking.
We paddled right over a small spotted eagle ray gliding along the shallows and watched a pair of pink roseate spoonbills pass overhead. We saw dolphins feeding and those stinkers got a little frisky in their fun. Other kayakers thought it was awesome. Me? Not so much. I had a young male dolphin tip Benny and I over during one of our sea kayak outings. I’m not interested in a repeat. Dolphins may think they are playing, or they are being curious or whatever, but they are still wild animals and I had a friend that was bitten by one. Nope, they could behave and stay in their own space while we stayed in ours.
The part of Charlotte Harbor we paddled is shielded from wind and waves by Gasparilla Island, home to the fancy-pants resort town of Boca Grande. Still, our guide explained that this kayak trip is best for calm days and because these are shallow waters, so we did it during high tide. It was one of more than 50 kayak trails in the Punta Gorda listed on the Charlotte County Blueways map. I’ve done a few of this others but never the particular one we did. Nice to do something different though even if you do the same paddling trail, they are always somewhat different depending on different factors like season, weather, and time of day.
The Woolverton Trail winds through a large area of mangroves that were once carved up as mosquito-abatement ditches. The channels are almost a grid format and, at one point, someone hung numbered signs at some of the intersections of the channels to aid navigation. Trust me, the signs mean little, you are better off going with an experienced paddler or using GPS. Although GPS isn’t always reliable, I still prefer it to relying on numbers and markers that are too easy for pranksters and other assorted buttheads to move around or destroy on purpose.
Along the return trip we met a group that said they get lost every time they paddle the maze, and that was part of the fun. They eventually would pull up the earth mapping program on their phones or tablets and they always found their way out of the mangrove tunnels. I wanted to tell them that would last until the first time their “magic slipper” didn’t work. Been there done that, luckily Grandfather Barry had taught me to navigate celestially, or we would have been in trouble.
Our guide explained that the Woolverton Trail has a wonderful origin. Edwin Woolverton, who died in 2017 at age 101, created the kayaking trail to give back to a community he loved. The Minnesotan started spending winters in a waterfront trailer in Punta Gorda in the 1970s and he put in many hours clearing the channels to create the trail. Now it is maintained by Charlotte County. I’m not sure he could get away with hacking at the mangroves these days. Someone would throw a real hissy about it damaging something’s habitat.
Benny and I had a blast kayaking but we were just as excited to spend the night on a houseboat so we headed that way as soon as we loaded up and told our guide and the other personnel at the park goodbye.
Overnight: Houseboat Rental (1) - https://flhouseboatvacations.com/houseboats/the-big-house/
May 26 (Sa) - Don Pedro Island State Park
Fruit bowl for breakfast this morning because we had an invitation for lunch. Actually, we had an invitation for all morning. It was at the Cecil Webb Shooting Range. The range, which was built in 1964, is at the Babcock/Webb Wildlife Management Area and offers supervised rifle and handgun ranges as well as two single-station, self-throw shotgun pads, providing target shooting enthusiasts a place to gain skills and knowledge for safe, responsible firearms handling and target shooting. It has gotten really difficult to find practice ranges where you can take kids and there were none, as in zero, in Key West. Benny also has a problem with sudden loud noises, even if they are muffled by protective gear.
I bent down on his level and told him, “You’ve got an out Little Bear. I’m not going to force you.”
“I wanna try,” said my stubborn little caballero. “But … but if it is too loud …”
“Like I said, you’ve got an out. I’m not into torture, but I think you are showing some real smarts to at least give it a try. Not a lot of kids get to these days and while I was younger than you when Grandfather Barry started me, your dad was just about your age. I think I remember everyone saying he got a kid-sized six shooter for his seventh birthday though it stayed locked up in Dad’s gun case until he was a lot older. It is locked up in storage and it is yours when we get someplace we can stop long enough to empty the storage bay.”
“R … really?”
“Yep, but …”
“I know Aunt Gus. It’s going to take us some time to find our harbor,” using the same term that I’d used a few times.
“Yeppers.” I told him keeping it light. But I didn’t tell him how badly we were going to need to find one soon.
Babcock Ranch is in Punta Gorda. Part of the ranch is the Babcock Ranch Eco Tours which was our primary target for the morning; getting a front-row seat to some of the most ecologically fascinating systems Florida has to offer as their brochure described it. However, in addition to all that we also partook in chowing down at the Gator Shack Restaurant which is where our lunch invitation came in. For an appetizer we had “gator skins” which were really just fresh pork rinds and smoked fish dip. For our meal we all had the “Mangrove Salad” which was a house salad with prime rib on top of it. It was all very yum. Mmmmm.
After lunch we went back to the Charlotte Harbor area, and located between Knight Island and Little Gasparilla Island is the Island known as Don Pedro. It’s another one that is only accessible by water. Boaters are allowed to tie up at the dock on the mangrove-lined bay side of the island. You have to be careful because the channel is only two and a half feet deep.
The attraction is the island’s one-mile white sandy beach. People go there for sunbathing, swimming, snorkeling and shelling. There is also a large pavilion where you can get out of the sun … and where I parked Rick when he started to get pink despite the liberal use of 70SPF. Lev doesn’t get near as dark as I do, or even Benny. He has too much Scandinavian or German in him. But he picked himself up a big bottle of 100SPF on one of our grocery stops and has been putting zinc on his nose and ears to keep the burnt and crispy look down to a minimum. So while Rick rested, Lev followed Benny and I around while we explored the island’s hiking trails on the 100-acre land base.
We got back and headed back to the houseboat and Rick decided to leave for his day off early. No idea where he’s gone but he told Lev he’d be in touch. Lev is in a mood of his own and I’m fairly certain it has to do with Rick. Those two are worse than a couple of brothers that I went to school with. Have a common enemy and they supported each other completely. Get in a snit with each other and it was watch them play act death by a thousand papercuts. Now Lev is glum and acting like he doesn’t know what to do with himself. I think I’ll pop a big bowl of popcorn for him and Benny and tell them to find a cartoon channel. That’ll fix it.
Siskiyoumom
Veteran Member
Wow! Thank you for all the new chapters!
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sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Took me a bit but I got the chapters read 
. Thank you. We're redoing the back ramp over the creek to the garage. Pouring concrete and replacing boards.
. Thank you. We're redoing the back ramp over the creek to the garage. Pouring concrete and replacing boards.
May 27 (Su) - Stump Pass Beach State Park
Rick’s day off. He isn’t back yet but I hope whatever is riding him let’s up a little. He explained some of the stress he is under, and if I had to guess some of it is a result of having to play the bad guy with Rosa … if not her mother. Does that make me jealous? I’m honestly finding it more difficult to drum up those kinds of feelings where she is concerned. I’m concerned for Rick … no longer so much so for myself. I have a suspicion where that is heading. I’m not ready to take it on headfirst just yet.
Today was another beach. Benny thought the name was just too funny; Stump Beach Pass. At the southwest corner of Charlotte County, there is a mile of beach where seashells and shark teeth wash up, and anglers fish the surf for prize catches. People visit the secluded beach year-round.
We spent several hours shelling and fooling around in the water. While the shelling is reportedly best during winter, we still managed to find several sharks teeth that others had overlooked. We picked the best two and left the rest for others to enjoy. If we weren’t on the beach or in the water, we were on the main hiking trail that passed through five distinct natural communities that provide habitat for many species of wildlife. We were going to take a ranger guided hike, but the weather changed. Best part of that was being in time to save a gopher tortoise that was crossing the busy road to keep him from being squished.
We could have waited out the storm, it didn’t last long even though there was some lightning in it, but instead we headed back to the houseboat so I could rinse a few things out and so Lev could get some editing done. I fixed kabobs for dinner.
Rick called me and he said that the storm was worse where he was so his friends had asked him to stay another night. He mostly had zoom meetings tomorrow and his friend has a better connection than I can get him in the van. He’s going to meet us day after tomorrow.
I’m going to admit that I’m a little relieved. He’s gotten a little heavy with his emotions. On the one hand he is relieved that I understand. On the other he feels guilty because I understand. If it was any other guy, Christopher for example, I’d suspect he might be cheating though in all honesty there’s not enough there between us to call it that even if he was doing it. And I think he is confused that I’m not feeding into the angst. That’s just not me. I have enough things in my life, real things, that could have caused the angst but I refuse to let it. I did enough of that right after Dad and my grandparents passed. Penny helped me during that time and I’ll be forever grateful. I just can’t go backwards.
Most definitely looking forward to every post you make! Thank you for providing these posts to us!
May 28 (M) - Gasparilla Island State Park
Last night on the houseboat. I’ve enjoyed the peace the gentle rocking gave me each night, but it is time. Seems like time for a lot of things though I can’t explain the feeling. I mean I can, it just feels like I’ve been here too many times before. I’ve barely got a month to figure out what I am going to do. Uncle Daniel seems to be building up to something as well. Then there is the Rick-thing. And if not Rick then the idea of losing my crew again, something that I’ve come to depend on whether I should have or not. Everything eventually comes to an end, that’s just the way life is.
Today we went back to do Gasparilla Island State Park. I wish we would have gotten accommodations closer rather than this sucky, nearly two hour drive every day … an hour in the morning and an hour return in the afternoon or evening. I’ve mentioned several times how the itinerary could have (should have) been arranged better. If I’m given a chance to offer a critique, mine will mostly be about that issue … less convenience and more efficiency. Duplicating those unnecessary drives was both a time and money waster in my opinion.
We finally arrived at the spot we were to meet our guide and right off there was a problem; no guide. And we needed one because they were who was supposed to provide the tickets, equipment for the activities, etc. After a wasted hour I decided to do what I could to keep Benny and myself from being bored while waiting on some kind of solution.
Separated from the mainland by Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound, Gasparilla Island is part of a chain of Gulf Coast barrier islands. The centerpiece of Gasparilla is the restored Port Boca Grande Lighthouse built in 1890. According to what I had researched, swimming, snorkeling, fishing and nature study are popular activities. Shelling is particularly good in the winter months along the gulf and the island was no exception.
Two picnic areas (at the Sandspur and the Boca Grande Lighthouse parking lots) offer pavilions for shade and scenic views of the surrounding water. That’s where I decided we would have the lunch that I had already prepped. The Port Boca Grande Lighthouse has a museum and is open to the public (where the tickets came in). The lighthouse is the oldest structure on the island and one of the oldest in Lee County. It was built in 1890 and operated by the U.S. Coast Guard until 1966 then abandoned. After 20 years, and a major renovation, the lighthouse was rededicated in 1986 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The state assumed ownership of the property, opening it to the public as a state park in 1983.
According to a sign-thingie I had seen a picture of online, fishing has always been an important part of Gasparilla Island's cultural history. The Calusa tribe fished area waters. In the 1700s, Spanish fishermen arrived and established camps along the shore where fish were shipped to Cuba. In the 1800s, American settlers were attracted to Charlotte Harbor by its rich bounty of sea life. By the 1900s, Gasparilla Island was seasonal host to many prominent sport anglers who fished for tarpon in Boca Grande Pass, which became known as the Tarpon Capital of the World. I figured if nothing else, we could do a little fishing with the tackle that was still in the hidden bumper compartment.
And that’s what we did. Rick was seething. Whatever his “day off” does to him, he counts on work being the stabilizing influence. It’s how I used to use Naval Scouts. To be honest I think I was more successful than Rick is being. Having this kind of snafu happening so soon after whatever takes place on his day off did not do much for his peace of mind. He sounded too much like me when my patience bone breaks.
Oh well, the day wasn’t a total loss. We rented a boat with some discretionary money that was in the till and went fishing where Little Bear and I caught a tarpon big enough to keep. Down in The Keys I learned the best way to catch those acrobatic water hellhounds. Natural bait will get the best results during the ebb tide. Position yourself up-current and let your bait drift towards the fish. But if it was that simple you’d catch them all the time. It isn’t. The fish are strong and fast so your line is as important as your bait.
Double the end of your line at about 6 foot with what they call a Bimini Twist[1] and attach about 8′ of 100 lb mono filament with a swivel. And just as important, don’t forget to use sharp hooks to get through the fish’s bony mouth. That tough mouth is the reason why most fishermen land only about one in five takes.
For live bait, shrimp work very well. Hook a large shrimp under its horn on the head or thread it and freeline it. Don’t use a float with this kind of bait because they make it difficult for the shrimp to swim naturally. You can cheat a little by chumming the water with small, cut-up pieces but you risk attracting other predators like sharks. Your hook size should be 2/0–4/0. Now I know fishermen who say crabs can be used instead of shrimp but I’ve never done it that way. Crabs are more expensive baits unless you catch them yourself the night before. Once you have them you remove their claws and hook them bottom-up. Cast towards your target fish and let the bait slowly sink in front of it.
Fish like pilchards, mullet, and pinfish also work as live bait. Hook in the bait fish in front of the dorsal fin to ensure they stay alive for as long as possible. If you’re anchored, hook the bait fish on the top lip and behind the head. Use a 6/0–10/0 hook depending on fish size with a large float 6–8 foot above the bait.
You don’t absolutely have to use live bait obviously. Live or dead fish can be used as bait on the flats, as well as large cut-up pieces of mullet but you need to know how to adjust the float to keep bait fish out of the grass. Cast often and in front of a single Tarpon. It is a workout to fish for tarpon. And if you spot a pod, don’t scare them away by casting into the pod. Instead, cast nearby where they’ll notice but not get startled. I’ve watched too many people try to drop their hook in the middle of a pod only to make them scatter and hack off other fishermen in the same area.
Tarpon is mostly a game and trophy fish. Ask a taxidermist what a pain they can be to stuff and mount. Their meat is full of small bones that aren’t exactly easy to extract. On the other hand, the big guys offer plenty of meat that is lean and full of protein and the meat is flaky with just the right kind of oiliness to it. I will say that if you aren’t good at deboning fish, pay to have it done or don’t bother. I’m good and that isn’t bragging. I was taught the skill as a child, and I’ve kept up with it and improved out of necessity to put food on Benny’s plate. And I don’t mind that as a fish they taste very fishy and smell even fishier. Yes, yes … I know that sounds stupid, but some people’s taste buds and noses seem to be offended by a fish being a fish.
First step you’ll need to do is skin the tarpon and remove all the fat beneath that as both are inedible. You can poach or pan fry tarpon using the right ingredients. You can even bake it but you gotta get kinda fancy to do it because to offset the fishy taste and odor you have to use similarly strong ingredients. But my favorite way to eat tarpon is in a “fish cake” similar to say a crab cake. Because of Benny, I’ve had to come up with a recipe that is gluten free[2] and that is what I served for supper tonight, and all three caballeros ended their day with a happy and full stomachs. It made our last night on the houseboat special.
Resources:
Cecil M. Webb Public Shooting Range
Historical Markers in Charlotte County, Florida
[1] Bimini Twist - How to tie a Bimini Twist | Fishing Knots
[2] Gluten-Free Fish Cakes Recipe
sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Thank you this morning.
beaglemama
Contributing Member
Thanks, Kathy!
May 29 (T) – Edison and Ford Winter Estates
Heading into one of the few areas not directly affected by a major hurricane last year. The same couldn’t be said for back in ’22 with Hurricane Ian or back in ’04 from Hurricane Charley. Both of those hurricanes devastated Lee County with Sanibel and Captiva Islands as well as Ft. Myers Beach taking truly horrible hits.
As a treat on our way to today’s activity we stopped at The Shell Factory[1] in North Fort Myers to spend about an hour looking at all of the shells they had in stock. The place is huge all on its own but it has an attached nature park that also draws a crowd … water park, animals, game room, specialty shops, restaurants, and even a 1927 carousel. We stuck with the shell shop. It has been around almost a hundred years, been through a few near closures over the years despite being a landmark, and they have millions of shells. Not kidding.
From there we headed to the Edison and Ford Winter Estates[2]. Visitors to the Estates get to see the winter residences of the famous inventors Thomas Edison and Henry Ford. There are historical buildings, award-winning gardens, the Edison Botanic Research Lab and the Inventions Museum which were both more than a little cool. The museum has hundreds of inventions, artifacts and special exhibits. We spent three hours there even without a guide. Really interesting at all levels. The estates are right on the water too and have seen their share of hurricanes over the years, but have always survived.
There are eleven gardens within the estates. The banyan tree was planted in the 1920s and is now the largest living specimen in the US. There’s an alley of royal palms that still stands from Edison’s time. There’s roses, exotics, trees I’ve never heard of, and more. Too. Cool. Of course Rick and Lev liked the old cars. Benny thought they were strange looking because one was made mostly of wood.
“Wouldn’t the termites get the car Aunt Gus?” I had a hard time keeping a straight face after that question but you know, here in Florida it was probably a reasonable question.
After a quick lunch of wraps and … what else … chips we headed to Everglades Wonder Gardens, another historical Florida tourist stop from 1936. You start your visit inside a small natural history museum with specimens collected by Bill and Lester Piper, the founders of the gardens. Outside, the museum is a three-and-a-half-acre botanical jungle filled with native trees and plants as well as species from around the world. There are also lots of rescued birds and reptiles, unable to return to the wild, that have been given a forever home in the gardens. Each one has its own unique story.
From that place we headed to our overnight stop at Koreshan State Historic Site where we will spend two nights, tonight and tomorrow after a full day of exploring the park.
The campsite is nice. There are sixty sites, all set up with electric and water, picnic table, fire ring and they even have enough space between them and a little bit of privacy. There is a dump station for the RVers, of which we count, but the sites are for vehicles forty feet or less in length. That meant that the Jeep had to be parked at the park office before we pulled in.
Rick and Lev are working … on reports and editing. I feel a little … lost. Tomorrow it will officially be one month. One. Month. And I need a plan. A real one. That really fixes things.
[1] The Largest Seashell Store In Florida Has More Than 5 Million Shells
[2] Fort Myers Museums, Attractions, Things To Do | Edison Ford Winter Estates
sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Big thank you, I check in here between work lol.
I write between work. ROFL!!
May 30 (W) – Koreshan State Historic Site
Nice not to drive at all today. Nice to have time to make a decent meal for Benny and the other two. I wasn’t sure what to call the other two this morning. I finally asked for and got a commitment from Rick and Lev that they’d act like a crew for the duration because I was going to drive off into the sunset with Benny and hang the consequences if they didn’t knock it off. They were creating anxiety where there didn’t need to be any and not helping where the anxiety legitimately was. Guys. I mean I get it. Testosterone is what it is. They’re stressed and have a lot of work they need time for. In fact, we all need a workday to close some holes and tighten some knots. But they’re making it harder than it needs to be and it was affecting Benny and that I wasn’t going to put up with.
Finally, the guide showed up we had for this park and his name was Garry. Kinda strange but not in a bad way, just eccentric. He’d even come prepared for his parrot to make friends with Little Bear and Gus the Pelican so yeah, the parrot was stuffed. I did say eccentric.
First thing he did was tell us about the history of the park which was kinda strange and eccentric as well: Throughout its history, Florida has welcomed pioneers of all kinds. Cyrus Reed Teed was probably the most unusual, bringing followers to Estero in 1894 to build the "New Jerusalem" for his new faith, Koreshanity.[1]
Dr. Cyrus R. Teed's utopian community of 200 followers relocated from Chicago to Florida in 1894. Dr. Teed took the name "Koresh," the Hebrew translation for Cyrus, meaning shepherd. The colonists believed that the entire universe existed within a giant, hollow sphere. They conducted experiments that seemed to confirm their beliefs. The Koreshans built and operated a printing facility, boat works, cement works, sawmill, bakery, store, and hostelry. Education, science, and art also helped shape their community.
After the death of Dr. Teed in 1908 at the age of 69, membership of his religious group began to decline. In 1961, the last four members deeded 305 acres of their land to the state. What remains of their community are 11 beautifully maintained historic structures that date from 1882 to 1920, and landscaped grounds that include unique ornamental exotic vegetation from throughout the world. The Koreshan Unity Settlement Historic District is on the National Register of Historic Places.
In the morning Gerry took us to several spots along the brackish Estero River where snook, mullet or redfish can be caught. Freshwater bass can be caught in the summer and fall high-water months. We didn’t catch anything big enough to keep but it was still fun. Estero Bay is located 3 miles by canoe down the river and offers saltwater fishing and wildlife viewing opportunities.
We ate a simple lunch and then did some hiking on the River Trail which begins on the north side of Monkey Puzzle Island in the historic settlement and parallels the Estero River, through a bamboo forest, then transitioning into an oak and cabbage palm forest. The trail ends in the oak shaded, picnic area and playground and is 0.44 miles from end to end. Not long but Garry made it an adventure that included some geocaching.
We also took the Blue Trail, which connects to the River Trail near its halfway point and creates a loop back to the historic settlement. The distance from the settlement side of the River Trail to the Blue Trail and back to the settlement is 0.64 miles.
For the remainder of the day Garry helped Benny play a kind of wildlife bingo and teaching him some animal tracking skills. Let’s see … gopher tortoise was the first one we found. We also spotted river otters and a gator. What we saw the most of was birds. Koreshan is home to over 100 bird species, including swallow-tailed kites, bald eagles, bobwhites, belted kingfishers and a lot of different kinds of wading bird species.
Our park day came to an end and as a peace offering Rick and Lev grilled some chops while I made the sides and bowls of popcorn for afterwards. Tomorrow we are going to Cayo Costa off of Captiva Island. It is going to mean parking the van for a primitive overnight camping experience for two nights – Little Bear already explained it all to The Crew but is also a little anxious. We’ll have to see how this works out. I tried to make an adventure out of it telling him it was like a very short summer camp only we’d be together. We’ve already got a place for The Crew to stay safe and guard Woobie and The Flag. He also wanted to put our digital photo frames and his Notebook in there for them to “guard” as well. I did the best I could as it was the only thing that would alleviate his anxiety. I’m hoping me being there will be enough. He is still taking the stuffies known as Little Bear and Gus the Pelican, but they are going in the waterproof case we started with way back at the beginning of the national park adventure.
It was a little hard to get him to sleep tonight. While some of it is anxiety, some of it is also excitement. The two battling each other had me stumped about what to do but then I had him do some modified stretching with me, almost like yoga, and it helped him to focus and calm down and get into sleep mode.
I hope I’m not making a mistake. Then again, I can’t go down the path we become co-dependent on each other. He needs to grow, and I need to let him … and help him without over-helping him. Now it is my turn to calm myself down so I can sleep. Benny is going to need me to set the right example.
[1] Friends of Koreshan State Park Inc - Koreshan State Park History
sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Thank you . We got the top boards off the ramp and fond the 12 foot main beams needed replaced. Sheesh The job just got bigger
. We got the top boards off the ramp and fond the 12 foot main beams needed replaced. Sheesh The job just got bigger
May 31 (R) - Cayo Costa State Park (camp) – only accessible by boat
I made breakfast burritos with the leftover chops from last night. I was kinda wanting fish tacos for some bizarre reason, but that wasn’t happening. I had everything either dried or hard frozen before we left and I made sure that the van was plugged in so I could keep the frig and freezer going. Losing stuff has always been a worry, but being away from the van for two days made that worry more possible. Rick said the garage where the van and jeep were going to be secure and so was the electrical source. He said in a power outage it automatically kicked over to the generator. All I can do is trust that is what happens.
Our first stop was the Sanibel Moorings Botanical Garden on Sanibel Island. Took a few years for Sanibel and Captiva to come back from the ’22 Hurricane Ian. You’d never know it today and I suppose people are thankful that last year’s storms skipped the area for once. The Botanical Gardens of Sanibel Moorings Resort are overflowing with 6 acres of unusual tropical flora and fauna. We got a 90-minute tour that I considered worth every minutes.
While there we learned about the Pistol Shrimp of Ding Darling. Pistol shrimp, also known as snapping shrimp, are a crustacean. Their two front claws are different sizes, with one being notably larger than the other. There are hundreds of species found all over the world, but most species are found in reefs and seagrass beds in temperate and tropical regions. They’re not very big, only reaching a few inches in size, but their large claws can grow to half its body length. This large claw is its weapon. When a pistol shrimp senses prey is nearby, it will open the top part of its big claw, allowing some water to enter a small chamber in the crook of the claw. Then, when it clamps down, the pressure from a small plunger on the top claw forces the water out of the chamber. This happens so fast that it creates bubbles. And not just any bubbles: these bubbles can speed out at 60 miles per hour, fast enough to stun or kill their prey. What’s more, when the bubbles pop, it makes a “snap” sound that gives these shrimps their name. It’s loud enough they say that humans can hear it if their heads are underwater.
From there we drove from Sanibel to Captiva Island which is mostly just residential and vacation condos after you cross the short bridge between the two islands. And then to the Captiva Island Marina where we met our guide for the next couple of days. His name is Smith. First and last name. Smith Smith the VII believe it or not. I heard him tell Lev that each generation hated their name so much they decided to curse the next generation with it. Alrighty then. Any one of them could have changed it if they really hated it that much, or chosen to go by some other name and only used “Smith” on legal docs. Whatever.
We got on boat at the marina and went to Cayo Costa State Park and set camp for two nights. Smith said we were in luck because the weather was predicted to be clear, if warm. Warm. Yeah it was definitely that. It was also buggy though buggy isn’t a weather prediction.
According to Smith, who was helping Benny with his Junior Ranger program materials, for 4,000 or more years before the arrival of Europeans in Florida, a succession of Native American fishing cultures lived and worked in the Charlotte Harbor area. Several of their shell mounds are located on Cayo Costa, which means 'Key by the Coast' or barrier island. In the early 1800s, Spanish fishermen from Cuba established 'fishing ranchos' on islands along Florida's west coast. Fish were caught, dried and then transported to Cuban markets.
A quarantine station was established on the northern end of Cayo Costa for immigrants entering the country through Boca Grande Pass in the late 1800s. Approximately 20 fishing families lived on Cayo Costa in the early 1900s, where they established a school, a post office and a grocery store. The only thing on Cayo Costa these days is the state park though there are a few, very few, original private homes on the island. As they fall to disrepair (or taxes) the State takes possession of them and they are eventually torn down and the island returned to its original, pristine condition.
Hundreds of nesting sea turtles come to the island during the summer months to lay their eggs. You may see a ranger in the early morning hours patrolling the beach to mark these nests. Park rangers do this to ensure the future of the species.
Our primary activity of the day was shelling. There are a lot more shells on the beaches of the island than anyone will ever be able to cart off. Benny and I were still very careful. We looked a lot, but only allowed ourselves to take the best two. The rest we will take home as pictures and drawings that Benny did.
However, there is more than just shelling on the island, at least within the state park boundaries. There are 9 miles of beaches; miles of hard pack dirt roads for biking to spots like Boca Pass, Quarantine Rocks, and Murdock Point; you can hike the same roads the bikes use; wildlife viewing; snorkeling and kayaking; and of course, camping.
There are 30 primitive tent sites and twelve cabins. For whatever reason they expected that Benny and I would need a cabin and the men took a tent site. I suppose that was okay but, in all honesty, the only benefit of the cabin – which barely qualified as a wooden box – was that the one we were in had a very small screened area attached to the front that kept the mosquitos down to a minimum though I still sprayed us and everything else with repellent.
There are bathrooms and potable water next to the camp store that you can get ice and firewood at. The camp store doesn’t carry food, so you need to bring everything else with you. Landes, with gluten-free issues himself – said that we’d fire grill our main meal of the day but he was both surprised and grateful when I brought out the picnic lunch and there was enough for him as well. Wraps and chips, no hardship to share and it took care of some of the weight in the cooler which gave more room for ice to cover the kielbasa and vegetables and baking potatoes.
I also kept the aloe in there to provide after-sun care because you know that Lev and Rick got pinker than commonsense would dictate, as Grandma Barry would have called it. I can’t write much more as I need to save the battery on my tablet since I had to use the charger a couple of times on my phone for all the pictures that Benny wanted. Tomorrow we are going to be on a boat most of the day so we’ll have to see how that goes.
June 1 (F) – visiting other islands by way of a chartered boat
Benny only woke up twice last night. One of those times because I had set up to listen to the wind that had an odd tone to it. There was a storm but it never came onshore, thankfully; but there was a lot of lightning in it that we watched for a moment before I could tell which direction it was moving. He woke up bright eyed and bushy bear tailed so it appears that I was being too concerned about his anxiety being away from his “space.”
Rick surprised me by asking privately how Benny had done overnight and when I told him he said, “No. You did the right thing but maybe you just made it so he could leave the van and his stuff with less anxiety. You’ve got the personality of see problem, fix problem … or at least make it so the person with the problem should be able to fix it.”
I thought the comment a little something or other and I wonder if Rick is starting to wonder some of the same things I am. I told him no pressure and he hasn’t indicated that things have changed for him so I’m not going to let it drive me Barrymore. It is what it is.
Breakfast was gluten-free, steel cut oats. Little warm for the morning but it stuck to our ribs which is what we needed. Today we hit up several local islands via a small, chartered boat - Cabbage Key, Useppa (I think that is how you spell it), and Pine Island. Around Pine Island we mostly did wildlife viewing including frisky dolphins. They like showing off and playing in the wake of the boat. On Useppa we found out the only way to visit this exclusive destination is to be a member of the island club, the guest of a member of the club, or a passenger on a contracted cruise ship. It’s on the “must-see” list and I’ll admit it was kinda nice. The Collier Inn was under renovation so Landes had arranged lunch at the Tarpon Bar restaurant (gluten-free salads to keep things lite in the heat). We also got a chance to visit the Barbara Sumwalt History Museum and take a stroll through the island’s garden paths.
We spent more time on the water and then were surprised with dinner on Cabbage Key. The island has an Inn and Restaurant, built in 1938 by American playwright Mary Roberts Rinehart. The restaurant, which sits on top of a Calusa Indian shell mound, had really nice panoramic views of the island and Pine Island Sound. The food was delish … I went with the traditional cheeseburger as a reminder the place is supposedly the location of that old Jimmy Buffet song “Cheeseburger in Paradise.” The walls of the Inn are lined with signed dollar bills… kinda wasteful but I guess for some people a dollar is no big deal. There was also a short nature trail and water tower to climb.
It was essentially a sunset cruise back to camp and Lev seemed to be real happy with the film he took today. Rick seems more relaxed as well. I’m thinking it is because the phone didn’t keep going off (next to zero connectivity out in the channel area). Not my call but he keeps lapsing in that area and going back to bad habits. I know he needs to stay connected for his uncle, but the rest of it … oh for Pete’s sake, I keep saying it is none of my business and I need to leave it there. So I’m a fixer, it is what I was trained to be, but somethings need to be left alone. It isn’t my job to fix Rick’s situation. Need to get my control issues under control. Besides, I have other things I need to focus on.
One month. I have one month to figure things out. I’m the adult and I need to do this right. I’ve finally had a few nibbles on my resume. I think mostly because I’m willing to be flexible. I need a little cash, but I’d even be willing to barter most of my pay in lot rent and utilities at this point.
sssarawolf
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Nice find this morning, thank yo for all your hard work with writing.
June 2 (Sa) - Lovers Key State Park & Mound Key Archaeological State Park
We were supposed to go to Lovers Key State Park and Mound Key State Park but they were both closed due to some major construction on the barrier island roadway and staffing shortages. Shocked me a bit to be honest. We drove an hour and a half to be told sorry, we forgot to tell you. Rick called it in immediately and we were told just to go to tonight’s accommodations early. Well we did, though I did make a side trip to pick up a few things at the grocery.
It was worth getting there early. Rick had held back on us as a surprise. We're staying in a freaking pyramid[1]. I kid you not. We stayed in what they called The Luxor. It had two bedrooms and two baths. The guys took the bedroom with the twin beds and Benny and I were in the downstairs room that has the queen bed in it. We didn’t have to share a bathroom as there were two of them, one for each bedroom. Not that I cared much but there were also two flatscreen TVs with streaming service capabilities (use your own account) as well as free internet and wifi. Well, I cared about the internet and wifi but beyond that not so much.
There was a fully equipped kitchen with cookware, tableware, and that sort of etc. so I didn’t have to pack anything in from the van. There were two terraces, a BBQ grill, a Washer-Dryer set up, air conditioning, and linens. We had a lake view, access to two parking lots, and a complimentary starter supply of paper towels, toilet paper, trash bags, dish washing soap, hand soap and one load of laundry soap. I certainly did more than one load of laundry so had to provide my own supply. They guys also did their laundry and I think we were all thankful for that perk.
I also found out that we will be here for three nights and while tomorrow is Estero Bay Preserve, the day after is a true workday. For now, I’m going to use the washer since Rick is done with his load and then take some time for some overdue personal hygiene of my own.
[1] Indulge In Relaxation When You Spend The Night At The Pyramids In Florida