Reason? Freezin'!

The reason I haven't posted for a while is that we are back up north and getting ready to do lots of yard work. The weather has been sunny, but oh so cold to us with thin Florida blood. 😉  However, the tree leaves are budding and the flowering bushes are in full bloom. We arrived in time for my forsythia which is almost past it's prime already.

My flowering quince is gorgeous this year, but that means there will be many little quince apples to pick up in the fall. 

Hopefully the deer like to eat them, and we have plenty of deer right now! Four of them ran in front of us right in our driveway, and I have seen a few meandering in the woods (photo from a few summers ago). 

We are really looking forward to a busy summer season with lots of events on our calendar. Meanwhile, we rake, mow, and blow leaves, grass, and trails.

Last Paddle of the Season?

Today was possibly our last kayak trip of the 2023-2024 season. Since we love paddling around boats and yachts, we launched at Sandsprit Park and circumnavigated Manatee Pocket. 

Although we use the beach, there is a newly renovated launch ramp. One glitch with the ramp is that some of the boat trailers drag when backing down, because of the angle. We saw one trailer get stuck on the ridge. Hopefully the issue will get fixed.

Just in case this was our last trip, Dave washed the yaks. This is the perfect way to clean and dry them.

If we happen not to go out any more, we can once again say that we are "going out on a high note!"

Still There!

The Cranes are still at Dave's workshop today. A neighbor said that a pair of them nested near by last year, so perhaps they are the same ones (they mate for life). If they are sticking around, it's time to name them! I came up with Sandman (Sandy) and Hillary. That's pretty appropriate for Sandhill Cranes. 😉😂

Knock Knock, Is Anyone In There?

Dave had a couple of different visitors at his workshop today...

These two Sandhill Cranes made quite a racket thinking that their reflections in the glass door were other cranes invading their territory. They kept calling out and pecking at the door.

Finally, they gave up and wandered away. I guess you never know who's going to show up for a visit!

Showtime #3

"Beetles, Buses, and Things....oh my!" Our final show for this winter was the annual No Dough VW show in Port Orange, and it was the best one we have ever been to. The vehicles lined the whole City Center, sometimes two deep with overflow into the fields. There were more vendors too, making this a great day. Plus, making it even more special, we got to enjoy it with my brother Rick, sister-in-law Eva, nephew Matthew, and his roommate James. Enjoy the photos of some of the most unusual vehicles there!

*Important Footnote: If you are reading the blog on your phone, scroll down and click on the web version for past posts. There you will find an index of all my posts. I noticed that Blogspot is only showing a few of my posts on the main page, probably because of so many photos taking up space. 

Showtime #2

Antique Outboards was the theme for this show.  Jim and Scott joined us for the final AOMCI Gator Chapter meet of the season, held this time in Indiantown on the Okeechobee Waterway (which brought back many memories of cruising). 

It was also a "let's make a deal" garage sale and lots of parts and motors changed hands. Below are some photos of the displays.

Last, but not least, Dave debuted his project canoe and motor, and it won first place for best boat and motor combination! He has been working on this for about a couple of months, buying an old canoe, cutting off the stern and incorporating a flat wood piece to accommodate his recently acquired 1940 Johnson 2.5 h.p. outboard engine. Then he repaired the cane seats, painted the boat, and added decals. It came out awesome!

It is called 'Willet', not just because a Willet is a Sandpiper, but also because we wonder, "Willet" float, "Willet" run, "Willet" make it back to the dock? 😂  Originally we thought we would just display the canoe and motor on land, but the calm water was calling. That's when the three guys carried it down to the water to see"Willet" float....and it did! Thank goodness I had my two boat boys, Jim and Scott to help out! The engine hasn't been started yet and we have no oars either, so a dock line was attached to make sure they didn't go downstream (or up a creek without a paddle? 😉). 

Scott needed to sit in the front for weight, because with Dave and the outboard in the stern, it tried to do a wheelie. Dave alone in the middle balanced okay, but then he wouldn't be able to steer. 

Still, it was a good trial run (more of a float) and we came home with a coveted blue ribbon! 

Footnote: There is one more show to report on tomorrow. 😎