Florida Xmas Wildlife

While the last few days have been rather laid back due to 50 & 60F weather, the wildlife still cooperated. The highlights were gators and sandhill cranes at Paines Prairie and today, Xmas Eve at Manatee Springs, consisted of:

Ten horses a braying, nine buzzards roosting, eight squirrels scampering, seven Brahma cows  resting, six campers camping, five rednecks spitting, four Pileated woodpeckers pecking, three manatees floating, two turtles swimming, and an armadillo in a prairie. The special treat was the four Pileated woodpeckers in a group which put on quite a show, pecking, flying, and squawking. We have never seen more than one at a time.

Florida Xmas

We made it back to Florida after skirting a Knoxville ice storm.  It has been dry down here and several hard frosts have browned the grass.  Paines Prairie water levels are half of what they were last year so the birds and gators have changed favorite spots.  We walked the prairie yesterday ( about 2 miles) and 20 mile in the distance we could see smoke from a 1,000 acre fire. It had jumped a four lane road so we certainly don't want to be in it if Paines has a fire. This 25 sq. mile of brush would make quite a blaze.  The highlight so far has been the lunar eclipse on the winter solstice. Missed the last time in 1638 and will likely miss the next one in 2094.

White Christmas

There is one thing you can get in an Ohio winter that is hard to come by in Florida.

Happy Holidays!

Frigid North

While visiting Ohio, the temperature has remained in the 20s and 30s.  A break between the late Thanksgiving dinner and an early Christmas presented the opportunity to take in some local events.

The first event was the annual Tiffin University Holiday Concert held at the Ritz Theater in Tiffin.  This business college has an extraordinary amount of talented students with musical skills. Their abilities provide a very entertaining concert ranging from stage band and choir to rock, a Capella choir, and gospel.

The second event was a three hour tour of the  Hayes family home, Spiegel Grove, and presidential museum in Fremont (formally Lower Sandusky).  The museum has many interesting items as well as many unique items. These include several western post civil war elk horn chairs, a sizable Chinese military arms museum (weapons stolen from China during the Boxer Rebellion),  and the usual political and well to do family rhetoric.

Early Xmas

Tomorrow the Moose travels the final 150 miles to our winter home at Williston, Florida.  Then the Squirrel is going to scramble up I-75 for several weeks of holiday in the frigid north.

San Marcos de Apalache

Perhaps the best stop in this area was San Marcos de Apalache.  While little still exists here, at the intersection of the Wakulla and St. Marks Rivers, this seems to be a major place of importance in US history.  Over a 400 year period; Desoto, Andrew Jackson, pirates, the Apalache & Seminole Indians, the British, the Confederates, and the Yankees all lost men due to hostilities and disease at this confluence at the Gulf. Today the area is still 80% natural with the exception of a laid back fishing village.

Tallahassee Area

We had not visited the Tallahassee area except as a drive through on I-10.  When you look a little deeper, you find a few things of interest but no major oohs and ahas.  Not a place we would want to call home. We finished Xmas shopping and visited some of the local attractions.  Jackson Lake and Letchworth-Love Mounds are 1-2,000 year old archaeology sites.

One  attraction which might be better in March, is Maclay Gardens. This is a nice park like home setting and in the dead of winter is covered with camellias, holly, and pansies. We may drop back for that.

Holiday Campground on the Ochlockonee River

Today was a two hour drive along the coast. After setting up we visited Bald and Alligator Points where we found horseshoe crab exoskeletons and more shells. The evening ended in a sunset and supper at a local dive which had excellent deep fried grouper, scallops, oysters, shrimp, and hush puppies.

Indian Pass Florida

With the cold front immenient, it was time to venture the last 100 mile south to the Gulf.  Three nights at Indian Pass Fish Camp gave us a water front site overlooking Apalachicola Bay.  Watching dolphins from our RV window was one highlight. The other was the camp's Thanksgiving dinner which started just as we arrived (smoked turkey and whole roasted pig with all the southern trimmings). The area provided 2-1/2 days of entertainment including the George Island Beach, St. Joseph Penisula Beach, the Orman Estate, and John Gorrie Museum in Apalachicola. The beaches were white sand, the estate had droves of Monarch butterflies headed south, and the museum featured information on cotton (it has pretty white and red flowers), and Gorrie's air conditioner patent.

(View out the RV window)

Chipley Florida

With the cold north wind pushing south, it was time to cross the line into the Florida Panhandle.  This area contains several state parks we had not visited.  Our local base was Falling Waters State Park, a nice wooded campground but with neighbors close by. This park has a 76' waterfall, actually a sinkhole, hard to photograph but still worth the effort.  Within a thirty mile radius you also have Florida State Caverns (this karst is really a sink hole with its lid still in place); The Ponce de Leon Spring (must have been broke as it was pretty but didn't seem to physically change us); & Eden Gardens (a unique, pretty antibellum plantation).
An interesting 2-1/2 days.

Lagrange Georgia

Lagrange is a nice western Georgia college town.  The old jail, turned art museum, made for an interesting visit. The longest covered bridge in Georgia and the fall peach trees also complimented the day.

Warm Springs Georgia

This wooded, hilly area is the location of the FDR (Roosevelt Little White House). FDR built a cottage here after buying the Warm Springs resort just prior to the depression.  Although he traveled here only several dozen times in twenty years, he had a substantial influence on the area.  He also died here. A simple cottage and an interesting museum. His hand control Ford and Willeys convertibles are on site. 

Two bedrooms, one for him and one for his "personal secretary" (Eleanor didn't visit here.)

Because of his interest in bringing rural areas into the 20th century, the REA was created. This early meter consisted of not only the meter but also four breakers, substantially less than what the Moose has but power enough for a few lights, appliances, and a refrigerator.

White Tail Ridge COE

This Corps of Engineer park placed us near the waters of the Chattahoochee River. We have now camped along this river, from it's origin in the northern Georgia Highlands to it's arrival at the Gulf, via the Apalachicola River.  Our nearest neighbor, not counting the squirrels,  was several hundred feet away.

Noccalula Falls

From Nashville, we headed south weaving back and forth across the Alabama/Georgia border.  In doing so you switch repeatedly between Eastern and Central time zones and ultimately have no idea what time it is. Our first stop was Noccalula Falls in Gadsden, Georgia.  Noccalula was a young Cherokee girl who chose death over a prearranged marriage to a Creek warrior. A nice waterfall, considering the low water level, and a quiet wooded campsite with wild turkeys make for no complaints.

Lost on the road

Eleven days have passed since our last access to the internet. In that time we moved from Nashville, to Gadsden, Georgia.  Then on to LaGrange, Georgia; Chipley, Florida; and Port St. Joe, Florida.  The sites were either Corps of Engineer, State and City Parks, & a Gulf Coast fish camp.  Great physical sites, most with full utilities, but no Wifi. Truthfully the last two weeks is a blur, difficult to remember without our pictures. The best thing was zero rainy days with us inching forward ahead of the cold front so temperatures stayed in the 50s, 60s, & 70s.

The Hermitage

After taking a day off yesterday, due to rain, we spent four hours at Andrew Jackson's estate today. It was an interesting day, a interesting estate and house, and a fair museum. Jackson's unique background and history makes for an interesting story. He is one of those individuals which did some pretty amazing things and has had local history cover up, rewrite, and minimize a number of his negative characteristics. Considered an advocate of the common man, he had a 1,000 acre estate, 80+ slaves,  hated the British, Washington bureaucrats, and Indians.  A lawyer, plantation owner, military general, and land baron; it was apparent that he was very much a type A person, egotistical, and self serving.

An interesting side note of the day was a small herd of Scottish Belted Galloway cattle on the estate. We had spotted these in the south last winter but didn't know what they were.  Essentially striped Holsteins.

Burgess Falls Natural Area

Today was an overcast 47F day with occasional light drizzle.  Not ideal picture weather but still a nice trio of waterfalls located about an hour east of Nashville.

Nashville Tennessee

This morning was a short 90 mile drive to Nashville and Two Rivers RV Park.  The rain went over last night and the temperature has dropped to the high 50s but we still have sunshine. After getting settled for a four night stay, we ventured downtown to see the full size replica of the Greek Parthenon. Constructed in 1897 for an exposition, it is now an art museum. An impressive structure, it is concrete verses granite. No plans to actually go to Greece. We finished the day with a casual walk across the Cumberland River via the new (2007) pedestrian bridge. Nashville is a lot larger than we expected.  We are about two mile from the Ryman and Grand Old Opry.  No plans to attend at this time. Based on what was damaged by flooding here last year, the elevations involved, and what is still closed; this flood was a whopper!

Munfordville Kentucky

A laid back day in Kentucky resulted in an interesting find, Munfordville.  This town dates back to 1801 and is very history conscience.  Located at a buffalo crossing of the Green River, it became a stronghold for both Yankee and Confederate troops during the Civil War due to a large railroad bridge.  Morgan organized and trained his cavalry here.  A stop at the battlefield provided a walk through the rolling countryside which consisted of a substantial amount of wild native grass which had been combined.  While approaching our car we were cornered by a 95 year old Kentuckian who insisted we tour the historic Woodson home which overlooked and was part of the battlefield.  An interesting old coot, we left knowing more than we needed to about the house, the "govment", "baca", and trees which were shot during the war. Re: house and cannon ball shot tree. (We also took the 20 mile back road Amish tour, these Amish being substantially more progressive than in Ohio.). Another 70F day but 55F and rain is moving in.

Mammoth Cave

Today was a short 60 mile drive to Cave Country RV Park in Cave City Kentucky. We changed time zones so we arrived about the same time we left Shepardsville, almost a time machine. At Mammoth Cave we took the New Entrance tour which is a vertical stairs first opened in the 1920s.  It's an interesting entrance compared to the gradual historic entrance.  Once down several hundred feet, it is the typical Mammoth limestone hole in the ground.  After a 3/4 mile walk we exited through Frozen Niagra. Mammoth is always interesting especially since it has probably been 20+ years since our last visit.

The other major event of interest today was the Green River Ferry.  This is becoming rare in the USA and made a nostalgic addition to the day, a definite must see. The road sign is also a classic.