Author: Kathleen

This Black-crowned Night Heron is a frequent sighting from the boardwalk at Brooker Creek Preserve. I watched him drinking water and looking for food for several minutes. As this occurred around the same time of so many high school and college graduations, I couldn’t help but notice how the head feather resembled the tassel of the graduation cap.

 

Turning off SR 65 on to FR 129, we drove nearly 2.5 miles on graded dirt road (that is official speak for “feels like driving over a washboard and watch for the potholes”) to the Fort Gadsden Historic Site. This fort hosted a Spanish settlement, British Fort, US Fort. Standing on the remaining earthworks, the reason becomes obvious. The river flows by, a primary and in some cases only mode of transportation in Florida for a long time. Not surprising, a good deal of Florida’s history involves water. Not just the Atlantic Ocean on one side and the Gulf of Mexico on the other, but all of the rivers and springs that run through the peninsula.

We visited the kiosk first, and then walked around the earth works. Several articles recommended visiting during spring when the bugs were less. Apparently they didn’t count deer flies, or yellow flies, or giant flying monsters that really hurt when they bite, whatever name you prefer. We wore long pants and I wore a long sleeve hike shirt. A couple walking back to the parking lot said that they were pretty sure all the flies had followed them, and that they had bites to prove it. Both wore shorts and t-shirts. The flies buzzed, but we escaped without any bites. Maybe they liked our attire? The entire way to the Fort and back on the dirt road the flies swarmed our car to a point we considered not getting out. We passed beautiful pine flatwoods full of flowers, and I wouldn’t even open a window for a photograph because of all the flies sitting on it look in!

The drive through the Apalachicola National Forest and Tate’s Hell National Forest along SR 65 is beautiful and peaceful. Fort Gadsden is well worth the visit, if only to read the history and gaze at the unspoiled section of the Apalachicola River.

We arrived in the city a bit early, on purpose. To enjoy a cup of good coffee while sitting at an outdoor table looking out at the rest of the world feels just a little decadent. We took our time; sipping from the cup, chatting occasionally, and watching the world go by. We visit here at least once or twice a year, so the newness of place has given way to a comfortable, familiar enjoyment. This visit we sought out the new, and also planned to revisit some of the familiar.

Like many towns and cities in Florida, Apalachicola relies on tourism for a good part of its economy. Unlike so many, in Florida and so many other places we visit, they offer more than the one after another “antique” and other shops, interspersed with various restaurants. Recently someone referred to these other places as “nothing to see but a lot of the same useless stuff to buy”. I find that a bit harsh, but I’ve felt the same way.

Two state parks reside in the city, one Orman House Museum and the other John Gorrie Museum. Apalachicola Maritime Museum contains maritime heritage exhibits and is a must see. Several galleries dot the downtown area, but we found most closed on Mondays. We peeked in the windows, and moved on.

One thing we never pass by is an independent bookshop. Apalachicola has two, and we visited both and of course couldn’t leave without a book. The book may be cheaper on line, but the experience of browsing and checking out carefully chosen titles, exploring eye-catching covers, chatting with the staff, and being greeted by the store cat makes the in person purchase more valuable. Plus, I find lately that the local books, the ones that bring the area to life, usually can’t be found on-line. Most independent bookstores are closing, and as Karl said one time, we simply don’t have the money to keep them all in business by ourselves. That said, whenever we visit a place we seek out bookstores and if we find them, they do get some business from us.

We arrived at St. George Island State Park on a blustery day. The yellow flags flapped and snapped in the wind from each flag pole along the straight, narrow road through the park. The island changed significantly since we started visiting almost ten years ago. Houses sprang up everywhere on the sand dunes along the narrow main road. Most appear to be rental property. Once past the ranger station to the park, the island reverts to its natural state. Dunes and scrub line the road, with occasional well-placed parking lots for beach access.

We walked along the beach mid-afternoon, enjoying the very stiff breeze which dispelled much of the hot and humid of the air. Several people swam in the water, or sat in their beach chairs under canopies and umbrellas. Others showed all the signs of spending the day there in spite of the wind, surrounded by coolers and beach bags crammed with towels and packaged snacks almost spilling out of the top. They staked out their bit of paradise for this Sunday.

The next morning we noticed the red flags, telling us the marine conditions had turned from a warning to dangerous. We once again walked along the boardwalk and on to the sand. No people dotted the beach this morning, a cloudy Monday morning with rain predicted most of the day. No sun showed between the clouds this day, and with the lack of sunshine and people, the beach took on a different tone. One lone shorebird ran along the waterline, hoping to find something in the sand.

We took a short walk. I spent a lot of time looking at, then photographing the red flags straight out in the wind. I took a lot of practice shots, playing with various settings. One I liked, most were deleted before they ever even made it to the computer!

We enjoyed our last photography hike of the season on May 26, 2018 at Brooker Creek Preserve. An enthusiastic group of photographers joined us for a surprisingly biting fly and mosquito free walk. We remembered last year’s hike at the end of May, and the rather quick march along the boardwalk through the swamp area, followed by hungry mosquitoes every step of the way!

Subtropical Storm Alberto made its way toward our area Saturday morning, and we arrived to clouds and rain. The forecast called for showers, so Karl prepared our classroom/roundtable session just in case. When rain or weather cancels one of our hikes, we move inside and do a classroom/roundtable with any photographers brave enough to chance the weather and arrive. It cleared enough that we hiked, and luckily the rain stayed away.

Next season we plan five programs: four hikes and one classroom session. The hikes coincide with the changes around Fall and the Fall wildflowers and take place the last Saturday of September and October, and the same for Spring in March and April. The classroom session, still in development, takes place the last Saturday in January. Please plan on joining us for some of all of these programs!

We ran into each other on an early morning hike. She doesn’t look startled at all, though soon after this shot she decided to leave.  Of the two photographs I took, I liked this one best. She looks like she is talking to me!

We watched this Yellow-crowned Night Heron walking back and forth in the water. He quickly dipped into the water a few times, but came up empty. We remained silent and still at first, then started moving around slowly and quietly. Apparently, he saw no threat because he remained for those in our group to photograph.

I took several photographs. I shot him finally finding that crab, and eating it. Unfortunately, those photographs did not meet my standards, the bird came out well but the sharpness of the prey in his bill did not.

I noticed him looking intently into the water, and saw his eye looking back at him. I shot that one on a whim, and it became my favorite. After all these years of bird photography, I still grab my camera whenever I see a bird. My focus changed over time, and the challenge of getting something different or unique for my own portfolio makes the challenge even greater.

 

Not very good shots at all. The eye is not in focus particularly in the first one. But he was cute and I like the snapshots!

While hiking the boardwalk at Falling Rivers state park, we noticed the skink in a tree crevice, enjoying the sun. I stopped, backed up slowly, and reached for my camera. I think walking on boardwalks creates more noise and vibration, even when we try to walk softly and I didn’t want to spook him. I took several shots, at several focal lengths and settings. After observing the skink for a few minutes, it suddenly became aware of our presence, turned, and left. Or, maybe it just let us get a good look before it left. After all, he displayed full breeding colors and a bit of preening made sense.

The Broad-headed skink ranges from northern Florida to part way down the peninsula and is the largest of Florida skinks. The orange head gives this one away as a male.

 

Thanks to cooler morning temperatures we had the Falling Waters State Park Waterfall to ourselves for quite a while. Most of the photographs I took initially froze the droplets. Since I had the time, I decided to play around with setting the time and getting the soft water look, or bridal veil, or any number of other names. The caption below each shows the settings I used on the camera, and the result. I handheld the camera since I did not have a tripod or monopod with me, but used the boardwalk to prop myself and avoid shake.