Where IS The Water?

During the recent cold spell, we explored some of the local parks by land. I had read that they have kayak launches, but you have to portage your boat to get to the water. The first park was Delaplane Preserve. 

It was a nice walk that meandered through the scrub pine and palm tree woods, complete with air ferns.

We knew we were getting close to the St. Lucie River when we saw this marsh.

Arriving at the launching area, it was quite picturesque. However, even though it was a short quarter mile walk, it would be quite a ways to carry or drag the yaks.

Off we went to the next park in Stuart, called the Kiplinger Preserve. 

This trail ended up being a mile hike over very muddy and swampy terrain. Some of it had walkways and bridges, but we had to walk through or around some black muck at several points. 

This is a popular spot, but we couldn't figure out why there is a kayak launch and dock that far out, unless you were already on the river, and wanted to stop to rest (yes, that is a girl with very pink hair 😉). 

The river is wide here and that is the I 95 bridge. A short distance in the opposite direction, is the St. Lucie Lock to enter the Okeechobee Waterway.

Although we didn't find any good places to kayak on this section, it was well worth the exploration. Below is the kayak trail and supposed launching sites...

 

Holiday Cheer

At his time of year, it is always fun to walk around our community and see how people decorate for the holidays. The first four photos below are all of the same house! Santa even talked and sang and had an alligator on a leash at his feet. Needless to say, the owner won our park's decorating contest. 

This is the house next door to the winner and received second place honors...

The icicles changed colors on the eaves of this house while the deer was trying to eat the lights 😉...

Flamingos are very Floridian...

The colors did not come out well in this photo, but the palm trees are lined with red and white lights, reminding us of the Elbow Reef Lighthouse in Hope Town.

To wrap up the tour, here are just a couple more, although there are many other displays that we have enjoyed walking by nightly...

From Our House To Yours

 MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Sailing Again

Dave finally got to go sailing in Coquina today. I don't think that I posted about his dismasting last spring, because he was quite traumatized and we try not to post about bad things. The mast actually came down and broke when he was hauling the boat out of the water. The ramp and parking area are under a bridge and he retrieved the boat on a different side of the dock than he went in on. Just a few inches of incline from the bridge clearance made all the difference in the world, and the top of the mast hit the underside of the bridge. Luckily no one was hurt and the bridge was unscathed. I told him that he could make this another project, since he loves a challenge. A few days later, after mentally recovering (he kept saying. "I can't believe I did that! It's not like me at all."), he was rounding up a used mast, and since then he modified it and changed over all the hardware, halyards, etc. He even made it so the mast goes up easier, which is convenient since he sails alone most of the time. Today we took the boat down to Sandsprit Park to make the final adjustments and he went for his first sail, while I kayaked. Everything worked really well and just a few more modifications are required. We both had a fantastic time in Manatee Pocket. 

We are so glad we had our outing while we could. Christmas winds are going to blow and it is predicted to be unusually cold in a few days. It might even get into the 30's at night. Time to find our heavy coats and wait for Santa.😉

Anything Goes

On a really calm but cloudy weekday, we took the opportunity to kayak from the beach along Hutchinson Island to Nettles Island on the Indian River. We launched at a spot just north (right) of the wooded section in the photo that I 'borrowed' from the internet. Google Earth calls it "Our River Beach."

As you can see, Nettles Island is a high density community. You may not think it would be an interesting paddling trip, but it definitely is. It is so diverse, going from seeing the nature and beaches in the wooded area before the community, to seeing all the houses where anything goes, with RV sights, modulars, and beautiful homes all tightly thrown in together (and a marina too!). The architecture is noteworthy since the houses are built to fit into tight spots at strange angles. 

On the way back to the beach, we checked out this abandoned derelict boat. As we got closer, I noticed a tent set up in the mangroves, so someone must still be living there (sorry, the tent isn't visible in the photo)!

We are glad we don't own this sailboat because it has been taken over by pelicans and an osprey. They didn't move as they watched us cruise on by. Dave was closer and said it really stank. 😉

At the beach we launched at, there is a memorial to three people, which is also at the road. This is a popular spot on the weekends, but only one other car was there when we arrived and none when we left.

What a great workout we had on fine kayaking day!

My Cranes

While passing the local school on my morning walk today, I happened to see my favorite birds in this area, the Sandhill Cranes. These birds are amazing and it was special to be so close to them. First I saw them in the field, but on my way back, they were right next to the fence.

There are signs on the road everywhere to look out for them and we usually see them in pairs (they mate for life) or three, if they have a young one, but the other day we saw 5 of them on a side street. We stopped since they were crossing the road and they came right next to the driver's side of the car. Neither of us could get our phone cameras out fast enough to get a photo though. I am so glad I had my camera with me today, especially since the cranes weren't afraid at all. I stood there quietly observing them until they moved on to check out other areas, and then of course, so did I. 

Walking Tours

Cool temperatures were the perfect time to take some walking tours in our area. We decided to check out the Port St. Lucie Riverwalk boardwalk, which meanders along the north fork of the St, Lucie River for about half a mile. It can be accessed from the Botanical Garden at one end and the Veteran's Park at the other. It even has boat access...

However, as we walked along, we were disappointed to find out that the boardwalk is not contiguous and the bridge in the distance in the photo above, separates the two portions. Luckily there was another access at the bridge that led to a parking lot and we walked back to the Botanical Garden. The Botanical Garden itself is a wonderful place to visit with all sorts of different gardens like butterfly gardens and palm gardens. The property is quite spectacular...

We visited there about a week ago with friends Lorraine, Bob, Barb, and Barry (with masks and social distancing, of course) and Lorraine took this funny photo of Dave with a decorative emu. Looks like he is saying, "Only pay for what you need."

We also discovered another interesting little trail in the town next to Jensen Beach called Rio (pronounced with an 'i' not an 'e'). 

It was a short nature walk with tree and plant identifier placards along the way. These pretty flowers are called dune sunflowers, but Dave thought they should be dune daisies.

At the end of the path we made the wonderful discovery that there is a small park and beach on the St. Lucie River.

Since it overlooks the Harborage Marina, we know we will back with our kayaks to portage them the short distance and launch them on the beach to explore.

More walking adventures happened today for me here in our community. I stopped at one of the small lakes to see if there was any waterbird activity and found a flock of Ibis resting and preening along the shore. Someone must be feeding them because, as soon as I stopped, they surrounded me, along with a Muscovy Duck.  

One even jumped up on the bench in front of me to get closer! That was my cue to move on.

We never know what we will find when we go out and I sure am glad I have had my camera on hand.