Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.

Henry David Thoreau

Leaving the Everglades for Sebastian Inlet

Saturday February 16, 2013
Site 49 Sebastian Inlet State Park
Vero Beach, Florida

 

**in attempting to get caught up after 2 weeks without internet, I have published the last 3 posts from the Everglades all at once. 
If you’d like to read them, they are here, in order, Part II of The Marathon Trail Drive and An Eco Pond Morning & A Snake Bight Afternoon.

 

 

 

 

Back to Leaving the Everglades…..sniff, sniff.

We’re all packed up and ready to leave so when we get up this morning all we have to do is have breakfast, bring the slides in, jacks up, dump and we are on our way.

As many of you know, I am a hot water rather than tea or coffee drinker.  Water is really pretty much the only thing I drink and sometimes, I leave water in my cup overnight.  So imagine my surprise when this is what I see looking up at me when I go to have a sip from my Happy Camper cup this morning.

 

GOOD GRIEF!

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Where he came from and how he got in my cup I have no idea. We also have little tiny frog footprints on our mirror behind the dinette, no way to take a picture of them, I tried.  :-)  

I give him a ride outside and hope this is his neighborhood and he didn’t hop a ride with us from Snake Bight yesterday.   He is just THE cutest thing.  Maybe I should have kept him to see if he’d like to eat the plant gnats that are attacking my herbs.

 

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Speaking of which, I could REALLY use some advice on how to get rid of these gnats that seem to live in the soil, be attracted to water and are making my plants look strained and pained.

 

 

Winnona stops by the old 1960’s gas station on her way out of the park. 

 

 

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At the time this station was built, regular gas was $.31 a gallon.

 

 

 

 

 

I am braced for an uncharacteristically long (for us)driving day of 240 miles. 

We’ve decided to just bite the bullet and take the Florida turnpike.  It’s a long way and this is the most direct way. 

But we are pleasantly surprised that the turnpike is in great condition and not crowded at all.  The whole trip costs $16.75 and gets us within 34 miles of the park.  Of course that last 34 miles takes an hour.

 

 

We arrive and the winds are blowing.  Boy are they blowing.  

So we don’t set up much.   Our site, #49, is on the back row with some shade and protection from the wind – good.   BUT it also has mosquito potential – not so good.   Time will tell

 

Here’s our side yard.

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and our front window view for the next two weeks.

 

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You can bet I’ll be out on that beach tomorrow!  Haven’t seen the Atlantic since my birthday in December.  It will be a GREAT reunion.!!

20 comments:

  1. Sebastion Inlet is such a nice place. We haven't camped there, but did explore while we were staying at Disney's Vero Beach a few years ago. Be sure to walk down the pier and see the huge drumfish they catch!

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  2. Isn't that something... ha! well, the little thing... oh, lord! first thing in the morning ... a little frog in yer cup. well?

    hate gnats... just hate em.... gnats and mosquitoes are the only two things I will kill without hesitation... hate em...

    Beautiful camping site! I haven't seen the Atlantic in ... since 2007? really ... well, that's too long ... that's why I want to head back that way.

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  3. Great traveling along with you. I was in the Everglades years ago, but you have certainly piqued my interest to go, again. Your writing is like having a personal guide and your pictures are beautiful, as always. Made me think of the birding trails over on the coast of Georgia in case your interested: http://www.georgiawildlife.com/node/1356 Of course, knowing you and David, you may have already been on every one of them.

    The frog reminds me of a mug I bought years ago. Looked perfectly normal except there was a very real looking frog on the bottom. Can't tell you how many laughs I had giving someone something to drink and the reaction when they drank down enough to see its eyes!

    Hope to catch up one of these days with the couple of months I missed, but for now I'm just glad to see you and David enjoying the good life, Sherry.

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  4. Okay, how loud did you scream? What a hideous monster to see first thing in the morning. ;c)

    Enjoy your time in the ocean, you deserve some salt water therapy. Just try not to use up all that glorious water, please leave some for the rest of us...

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  5. Good thing you looked before you drank! I can't imagine how loud you would have screamed!! It was that little babies lucky day!!

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  6. We love Sebastion Inlet! We are a bit big to fit in most of the spots there, be sure to get out at sunrise when the wind is from the East, you will find some nice shells!

    We finally found a home in Punta Gorda, a great 55 community that doesn't mind a 41 foot Toy Hauler in its midst..looks like we will be settling here, Sanibel is just a short drive away, as well as some of the best beaches and fishing on the Gulf.

    Glad to hear you are doing well and enjoying life, I had some health challenges, but I tricked 'em all, (Doctors) and am getting better!

    Our love to you both!

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  7. The frog in your mug reminds me of the night last winter when I woke up with a tree frog on my face--rather startling. Like you, I took him outside to a cozy place. We stayed at Sebastian Inlet last year and loved everything except the mosquitoes and no-see-ums. Maybe it is not the season for them now. I enjoyed fishing there on the pier that is right in the park. Enjoy the ocean as I know you will!

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  8. Oh my! He is a cute little thing, however. Enjoy that salt water..sit and soak it in!

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  9. Haha Marti
    That's exactly what I was thinking. "I wonder how loud she screamed" Maybe he was working on those little things trying to get your herbs....

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  10. Cute little frog. Maybe he just wants to travel the world.

    You may have fungus gnats. They like moist soil. You might be keeping your herb pots too damp. A gecko or two would help that situation. That, or letting your pots dry out between waterings.

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  11. Those little frogs...so cute but when you aren't expecting to see them...(insert shriek here). As far as the gnats go, spraying the plants with a tablespoon of dishwashing detergent in a spray bottle of water might help. Remove the top inch of soil from the houseplants and replace wtih fresh soil. We've got sugar ants all over the place..ugh!

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  12. I don't know if you know it or not but I am deathly afraid of frogs, and especially tree frogs. If I'd have seen that I would likely have had a heart attack and died right then and there!

    They can get in through the roof vents. Al put screen over the tops of the vents in our old motor home, but hasn't gotten around to it on this one....yet. Guess what he'll be doing very, very soon? Al teases me that I'm not afraid of sharks or gators, but a tiny frog will send me running.

    I think you might enjoy visiting Pelican NWR while you're in the area. It was the very first National Wildlife Refuge. Also, I believe the Navy Seal museum is in the area and well worth a visit.

    We really enjoyed kayaking at Fort Pierce SP. Here is the link to my blog where we had a wonderful day there. http://florida-georgiacamping.blogspot.com/2011/09/great-day-of-kayaking.html

    You should be able to find some place out of the wind.

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  13. I think soapy water on your plants kills nats. Look up natural remedies for them. I saw once on a show they put chewing tobaco in a jar and made a bug spray from the water after it soaked. Probably would kill anything. Funny frog, we have them at our house in the summer. Wonder where they go all winter? Going to snow here for the weekend. Yuck. Dave fixed the weights on Earls clock, but still has done nothing to get it going. I got your dad the heated blanket.- Not much else new.
    Cindy

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  14. We had lots of frogs in Freeport, FL. We found them everywhere...but not in my coffee cup! What a surprise.....

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  15. Your frog in the cup reminded me of the Plague of Frogs from Exodus 8:8-10. I’ve always laughed at one small part of the story. When Pharaoh asks Moses to remove the frogs from his land (and cups and bed), Moses asks when Pharaoh would like to be rid of the frogs and Pharaoh says, “Tomorrow”. Why would he want to wait for tomorrow? You were smarter than that and escorted your little frog out the door that morning. As always beautiful pictures and enjoyable reading.
    As far as your gnats ... I've heard using your dishwater to water the plants will kill most plant pests.

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  16. What a cute little froggy! I drink a lot of water during the day but love my coffee in the morning. I switch between two large insulated mugs and probably wouldn't notice if anything had climbed in there.

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  17. Now that is a new one-I can only wonder why and how it decided on that cup:)

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  18. Enjoy the beach. We are hoping the wind finally dies down here this afternoon so we can get back to the beach.

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  19. I love the little guy - how cute!! He gave you a nice greeting for sure. Lucky him..you sent him on his way - I imagine being stuck in a white mug wouldn't have been his idea of a great day ;)

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  20. Oh what a sweet little frog! Sure am glad you saw him BEFORE you took a sip. Imagine he's pretty happy about that too.

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