#RV Journal: Oscar Scherer State Park, Nokomis Florida

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My wife and I spent January 20-21, 2015, camping at Oscar Scherer State Park in Nokomis, Florida. We had hoped to stay for 4 or 5 days, but I was making the reservations only 2 or 3 weeks in advance, and I was only able to get 2 days at this very popular Florida State Park. Fortunately we were there for a visit with my wife’s brother and his family, and he and his wife kindly offered us their hospitality, so we availed ourselves of their generosity for a few days. That allowed us to not only enjoy their company, but also to visit some of the areas highlights such as the Venice Rookery and Caspersen Beach. More will be (or has been) posted on those, but this report is about camping at Oscar Scherer State Park…

T@b at Oscar Scherer State Park in Florida

T@b at Oscar Scherer State Park in Florida

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#RV Journal: Mike Roess Gold Head Branch State Park, Florida

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My wife and I stayed for two nights at Mike Roess Gold Head Branch State Park near Keystone Heights, Florida on Thursday, 1/15/2015, and Friday, 1/16/2015 so we could visit my aunt. This state park is kinda in the middle of nowhere in Florida, so I wouldn’t have picked it except for the proximity to Penney Farms, where my aunt lives. However, it’s within an hour of St. Augustine, has a beautiful picnic grounds and several small, picturesque lakes, and seems to have a nice bird population. The relatively remote location means no city lights tainting the night skies, so star-gazing was great there. While I might try Anastasia State Park if I wanted to visit St. Augustine, Gold Head Branch State Park is an attractive alternative.

Sandhill Cranes at Mike Roess Gold Head Branch State Park by Gerry Williamson, on Flickr

Sandhill Cranes in the distance at Mike Roess Gold Head Branch State Park

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#RV Journal: High Falls State Park, Jackson, Georgia

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My wife and I stayed at High Falls State Park on January 14, 2015, as an overnighter on our way to Florida. The park is close enough to I-75 to make it worthy as an alternative to a more expensive hotel or motel, and I had hoped to have time to walk the trail along the river. We took more time en route than I had planned, however, so no time for the hike, but the park was nice, and I’ll probably make it there another time with a couple of spare hours to explore the park more.

T@b at High Falls State Park, northeast of Macon, Georgia

T@b at High Falls State Park, northeast of Macon, Georgia

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Cormorant vs Catfish – Venice Rookery #birding #video

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While my wife and I were in Venice, Florida for a family visit, we took the opportunity for a couple of trips down the road to the Venice Rookery. There we got to watch cormorants feasting on catfish in the pond. Here are a few photos and a video.

(Click on the photos for a larger image)

Double-crested Cormorant - Phalacrocorax autitus

Cormorant drying in the sun.

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Beechdrops – Epifagus virginiana – Added to USWildflowers’ Database

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Beechdrops, a native species, has been added to the USWildflowers database (01/08/2015.)  Scientific name is Epifagus virginiana.  Photo below was taken along the Blue Ridge Parkway in Avery County, NC on Sep 1, 2014. Go to the Beechdrops detail page for more photos and information.

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Slender Ladies’ Tresses – Spiranthes lacera – Added to USWildflowers’ Database

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Slender Ladies’ Tresses, a native species, has been added to the USWildflowers database (12/24/2014.)  Scientific name is Spiranthes lacera.  Photo below was taken along the Blue Ridge Parkway in  Carroll County, VA on Sep 2, 2014. Go to the Ladies’ Tresses detail page for more photos and information.

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#RV Journal: Old Stone Fort State Park, Manchester, TN

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On Tuesday night, Nov 11, Cindy and I stayed at Old Stone Fort State Park campground in our T@b travel trailer. We’d had the T@b for a few weeks, and for various reasons had not yet used it for overnight camping (although we did use it as a “respite” while we worked a consignment sale event for about a week.)  I was anxious to try it out on a short trip so we could start tuning our procedures and expectations for some longer trip. We needed to make a run over west of Nashville to drop off a few items for my sister, and Old Stone Fort State Park is right along the path, so this fit the bill nicely, and allowed us to show off our new trailer to Sis.

T@b at Old Stone Fort State Park Campground

Our T@b at Old Stone Fort State Park

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