Exceptional Adventures in Paradise
Generally a trip outside helps me improve my state of mind. Yesterday, that did not happen. Please forgive me as I go way off-topic today. What I saw is sickening and try as I might, I can’t forget how it made me feel. If you are offended by profanity, just skip this entry because I’m not going to edit it out.
Continue reading “Trash leaves trash: filth in a public restroom”
I used to think that if you made a plan and could not successfully execute it on the first attempt, you had failed. I now know that some plans take several iterations before they are successful, and that’s what Judy and I experienced on our first attempt at hiking the Florida Trail from Clearwater Lake to Rodman Dam. Here’s our original plan and our first set of modifications. There may be more to come . . . who can say?
An update here is long overdue, but I’m looking forward to getting back to a regular schedule after January 1. I’ll return to a text post every Monday and a photo post every Wednesday. Thanks for your patience!
Continue reading “Florida Trail in Ocala National Forest: All That and a Bag of Chips”If you’re a woman who spends much time outdoors, chances are very good that at some point you’ve needed to pee. The trouble for us is that we must either partially disrobe or take the chance of peeing on our shoes and socks. Squatting in the woods can expose us (quite literally) to ticks and worse, and may leave us feeling quite vulnerable. It also takes time.
But it doesn’t have to be this way!
Continue reading “Does a Bear Pee in the Woods?”Spring is the perfect time to take a boating safety class! in 2021`, Florida boating accident stats indicated that 83% of boating deaths occurred on boats where the boat operator had never received boating instruction. The key to a safe and enjoyable day on the water is knowing what you’re doing! Such classes are not required for owners of non-motorized watercraft like paddleboards and kayaks, but the training is encouraged for them nonetheless. It provides critical knowledge to better prepare for risks they may face on the water.
Continue reading “It’s Time! Boating Safety Classes Increase Fun on the Water!”
Every now and then you’ll find a place so special you know you’ll go back again. A hiking buddy told us about Rice Creek, and after doing a bit of reading, I knew I wanted to see it. Three hiking buddies and Steve and I found a date that worked for all of us, and off we went for a new-to-us adventure.
Rice Creek begins where Palmetto Branch, Oldtown Branch and Hickory Branch combine to form this tributary of the St. Johns River. The Conservation Area is just west of Palatka and the St. Johns River, between Salt Springs and Keystone Heights. Prior to its current incarnation as a public area, it comprised commercial pine plantations. Before that, it was an indigo and rice plantation. Today, the area protects floodplain swamp, flatwoods, dome swamp, floodplain forest and upland mixed forest. This background information was adapted from AllTrails. https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/florida/rice-creek-plantation-levee-trail.
Continue reading “Rice Creek/Hoffman Crossing – Big Adventure on Beautiful Florida Trail”I was recently asked to go on a three-day hike through the Everglades with primitive camping. Wow. That’s a big nope from me. It sounds like something that might have fit 20 years ago but now? Well, if I can’t have ice for my big tumbler I get grouchy, and without a hot shower before bed, I get sticky and stinky. Saa-aa-aa-d that I am so old and soft, but here we are.
Why can’t I live out of a backpack for three days? Because there’s so much stuff that makes camping pleasant for me, and I need my car to carry it all. And here’s some of what that stuff entails:
Continue reading “Five Gadgets Make a Happy Camper”Note from Pam: Happy Thanksgiving 2021! This year, I’m giving thanks for Bert King, CPA, who has generously agreed to allow me to reprint his article on My Exquisite Florida. Bert, thanks again! The very last link on the list at the end of this post is from me (Pam) . . . wherever you are celebrating, you may want to learn about who originally lived on those lands.
Once again it is time for me to promulgate Florida’s place in Thanksgiving celebrations.
As we celebrate Thanksgiving Day, we take time to remember who we are, where we came from, and for what we are thankful. As Americans, we are from many different places. We have traditions of giving thanks and feasting from our many wonderful heritages.
While enjoying your traditional Thanksgiving celebration, keep in mind that what most people think of the First Thanksgiving is not quite accurate. Most of our Thanksgiving traditions are based on the New England traditions honoring the Plymouth Colony in 1621. In fact, the first giving of thanks in a permanent European settlement in what is now the United States was not at Plymouth Colony in 1621. It was in St. Augustine, in Florida, in 1565, some 56 years earlier!! There is also some evidence that the French and Spanish celebrated feasts of thanksgiving prior to St. Augustine but those were not in permanent settlements.
By the time of Plymouth Colony in 1621, St. Augustine was a thriving city in Spanish Florida with homes, businesses, and churches, governmental buildings, and fortifications. The Spanish had even built a watch tower (lighthouse) at the entrance to the harbor. There was an established society with laws, government and trade with a variety of indigenous peoples. There were established roads and paths for travel and communication with other Spanish settlements and missions across Florida, such as Pensacola and the Mission San Luis de Apalachee in current Tallahassee. The old parish church of St. Augustine later became the Cathedral of St. Augustine. The Roman Catholic parish congregation of St. Augustine is the oldest in the continental United States, with surviving records of the parishioners dating from 1594.
I like what former History Professor Michael Gannon (UF) said, “By the time the Pilgrims came to Plymouth, St. Augustine was up for urban renewal. (Sad to learn that Professor Emeritus Gannon passed away in Spring 2017, at age 89. He was a true champion of Florida history.)
The purpose of this post has been to highlight the feast of thanksgiving in St. Augustine in 1565. If you are interested in the true circumstances and the effect on indigenous peoples in New England, see the articles at the end on the following list.
For additional reading on the real first Thanksgiving at St. Augustine, here are several articles. The first two are especially informative.
http://www.internationalopulence.com/site-of-the-real-first-thanksgiving/
https://www.floridatoday.com/story/news/2015/11/23/florida-true-site-first-thanksgiving/76253670/
http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/americas-first-thanksgiving-was-in-florida-seriously.-it-was
http://www.traditioninaction.org/History/B_024_Augustine.html
When we left for Silver Springs, rain was in the forecast every day, so we did not take kayaks. As it turned out, rain was not a major issue on this trip. Without kayaks to enjoy the river, we spent much of our trip enjoying the trails and each other.
Continue reading “Camping at Silver Springs State Park”