Sunset on the East Slough

Wednesday Afternoon April 2, 2013
St. George Island State Park
Eastpoint, Florida

 

This morning we visited Clyde Butcher and the NERR  which I posted about yesterday.  His art is fantastic and the NERR system is wonderful.   In the later afternoon after running some errands, we decide to take that Slough walk we had not chosen on the day we walk to the Primitive Campgrounds. It is only a 3 mile hike so we set out in time to be coming back at sunset.

 

After a half mile walk on the trail from the campground  to where the two trails split off, we cross the bridge at the beginning of the Slough trail

This hike is on the opposite side of the lagoon from the Primitive Trail. We will be looking at the other side for our sunset but the Primitive Campground which is right on the sound and would have the best sunset is too far a walk back to be there for sunset unless you are camping there or wish to walk in the dark with flashlights.

The lagoon is to our right, the sand dunes in front of the gulf are to our left as we walk out the trail.

 

 

 

With the sun lowering into our faces, we are forced to turn around to get shots of the beauty of the lagoon.  It won’t be long until all the grasses are green. 

There are several wooden bridges over the marsh.  In most winters, you might not need them but this year with all the unusual rain which continues, we’re glad to have them and have found some spots where we wished there had been some.  If you are here in a winter like this, be sure to wear actual hiking boots not tennis/running shoes.

 

 

 

 

 

The East Slough Trail leads over to the first Public Beach Area so folks from there can walk over to the primitive sites if they wish.  The first section of the trail from the beach area is a boardwalk suitable for the handicapped and ends in a nice large viewing platform.  From there on the trail is sand.  We, of course are walking it from the campground to the beach.  When we arrive at this platform, we know we are nearly there.

 

 

 

 

 

We cross the road over to the public beach and bathhouse.  The walkways there are some sort of cement/sand mix with sea creatures images pressed into the surface.  It’s really artistic.  Doesn’t the surface in the pictures look like sand?  But it’s not.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the beach, people are just packing up from a day in the water.

 

 

 

 

 

We cross back over the road, pass the dunes on the boardwalk and when we look off to the right we are flabbergasted to see the thickest stand of poison ivy either of us has ever seen.  It is tall like bushes and covers every inch beneath the pines.  Sure is a good thing they have a boardwalk here.  But they’d better watch out that poison ivy will grow all over it if not controlled.

 

 
♫ You’re gonna need an ocean, of calamine notion………..
At night while you’re a sleepin’ poison ivy comes a creepin’ arou-ou-ou-ound ♫

 

 

Walking back, of course we run into guess who??  

 

We have spent all our days here at St. George surrounded by his song.  It’s been wonderful hearing him everywhere in the campground and on the trails.

 

Now it’s time for the main event.  As we walk along the trail, the sun drops lower in the sky behind the trees over on the sound side.   I try different things with the camera to see if I can get pictures of what I’m actually seeing. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As it gets closer to the horizon, it turns into a ball of fire and the after colors are beautiful.  I never cease to marvel that all over the world this beautiful display goes on every evening.   It has been rainy and foggy here quite a bit so this beautiful sunset is a real treasure tonight.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just a sliver of a moon is left as we reach home.   Another beautiful day.  What a wonderful world we are lucky to live in.