A Full-time Life

Category: Florida

All About the Birds

All about the birds today — and our get-away to go see them. We actually took a few days off from our restoration work at the end of last month. It was a lovely time, made even lovelier because it had turned cold (for here) and heat on chilly mornings comes from the same presently non-existent source as air conditioning on hot days. (We lost our heat pump/air conditioner and all the duct work as well as under the floor insulation because of Hurricane Ian. )

Brown Pelican — Chokoloskee Bay, Everglades

We went to the Everglades/Big Cypress where it was beautiful and as birdy as ever … and the camper van was snug and warm whether we were driving or camping.  It was a wonderful birding trip. If anything, we spotted even more than usual for this time of year. Apparently the hurricane didn't affect the birds much. (That's an entirely unscientific observation — I hope it is correct.)

Big Cypress National Preserve

The sign is a sign of good things happening. The National Park Service is currently in the process of restoring many acres of land. They are turning the Everglades back into the river of grass it is meant to be. And the wetlands the restoration creates are definitely for the birds. And birders.

The other pictures in the mosaic really only go a little way toward showing the sheer number of birds we could see all at once.

Snowy Egret (yellow slippers)

I tried several times to count but kept losing track. It was more fun to try for pictures of the individual birds, although sometimes it was hard to focus because there were so many places to look.

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Everyone will understand why I related to the following from the National Park Service facebook page:

Me: “I’m an expert at identifying birds.”

Friend: “OK, what about those ones flying over there?”

Me: “Yep, they're all birds.

Whoever does the NPS page has a great sense of humor, but provides good (serious) information too. The page is well worth checking out often. Here's a link: National Park Service

So yes, as usual IDs were not easy for me. But whether I know their names or not, observing the birds is the important thing. The wildlife, the water, the nature — that's really why we keep coming to Florida.

Tri-Colored Heron ? Night Heron?

White Ibis

Playing a game of peek-a-boo maybe?

Great Blue Heron

It didn't matter whether you looked in the marshes, in the water, or up in the Cypress trees, birds were everywhere.

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We stayed at Midway Campground in Everglades National Park but most of the birds we saw were on loop roads in Big Cypress National Preserve — the two Parks adjoin.

Little Blue Heron

We enjoyed our little break from reality. Our cottage and our snowbird neighborhood are almost back to normal (pre-Ian). But it's still a bit of a construction zone around here so we are reminded daily of the damages that storm caused. But it was not nearly as bad for us as for much of the Fort Myers area.

We drove a different route on our way home coming back along along the recently reopened road through Fort Myers Beach, the area that was most devastated. So very sad still. A full three months after the storm there is very little recognizable about this seaside town.

Wood Stork

It was quite a contrast — from the beauty of the Everglades area which seemed unchanged to the beach which may never be the same. We were glad to get away from it all but glad to be home too especially with the reminder of how fortunate we really were.

LINKING this week to the following: Thank you to the hosts.

MOSAIC MONDAY; NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS; MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; WILD BIRD Wednesday; SIGNS SIGNS; THANKFUL THURSDAY; SKYWATCH FRIDAY; SATURDAY CRITTERS and RATHER B' BIRDING

January 8, 2023
Christmas Memories

We're making a different kind of memories this Christmas Season here at the Canal Cottage — not necessarily photo-worthy ones, but certainly days we will remember!

Meanwhile, here are some memories from the not-too-distant past — Holiday getaways from other Christmases spent in Florida.

Christmas, at least by our advanced age, is surely the most nostalgic time of the year. Our photo albums at home in Oregon are filled with older Christmas memories. (In the days when snapshots were more carefully rationed because the film had to be developed, family Holidays were when everybody's camera came out.) Although I never actually get around to it, every year I think about scanning those old pictures and making a real Christmas memory post (it would be very long!).

I hope everybody is staying warm, cozy, and well during this crazy winter storm season. We have had cooler than normal temperatures for here in SW Florida — and that is actually a very good thing for us. It's better working weather and perfect without needing an air-conditioner.

The Christmas pictures are from a trip a few years ago to Mt Dora — a sweet town in Central Florida that really goes all out on decorations. Pictures in the collage below are from a New Year's Holiday spent at the beach. Sadly, the resort where we stayed that year is gone because of the hurricane. Many of our favorite places are reopening though and we hope and expect that we'll get caught up enough to visit some of them later this season.

Comments on this post are closed for the Holidays.

and for catch-up time

MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

December 22, 2022
Our Canal Cottage update

Just one pretty picture from the road before we get down to business:

Most of the time this blog is my happy place and I don't have to work hard at all to find the joy. There's lots of blog-worthy life going on. And a review of past posts is always a good reminder to practice gratitude. But of course the blog also serves a second purpose as a journal of our "Full-Time Life." And today, that journal needs to record more about Hurricane Ian and the effect it had on the RV resort where we have our winter home. (As a review, the Category 4 hurricane happened here in Florida in late September when we were at home in Oregon. Water in our Canal surged several feet above the sea-wall and caused much damage.)

The picture above is the view we had from our porch on November 20, the day we arrived back at Upriver. That's what's left of the two houses directly across the Canal from ours. The yellow one is probably going to be removed also.

So yes, we are in our winter home now and doing fine. But many of our neighbors along our Canal were not so fortunate. Almost all the damage in our neighborhood was from the water surge rather than wind. Here in Florida, most homes do not carry water damage insurance. About a third of the homes along the Canal were total losses, including our dear next-door neighbor's home.

Ruined park model next door to us — You can see the roof line of ours through the arm of the excavator.

Below is the now-empty lot right next door to us. The yellow house (next door but one to us)will be renovated but is now completely stripped to the studs because it had water damage inside.

Our house sits higher off the ground than either of these did — we had water damage underneath (in the storage area/crawl space) but nothing inside. I wrote last week about all the work our newly-retired son Geoff did for us when he came from Colorado before we were able to get here. Below is the first picture he sent when he arrived, only a few days after the mandatory evacuation order had been lifted:

Like most winter-residents, we put hurricane shutters on all the windows when we leave Florida every year and then take them down when we get here for the season. They served their purpose this time.

Most of that debris on our side yard washed in from elsewhere. But the surge also soaked our under-the-house insulation, ruined a lot of stored items from our own "basement", and (most expensively) ruined the air-conditioner and its duct-work . Thanks to Geoff all of the debris was gone by the time we got here. Bill is doing a lot of the work on renovation of the damage himself. He is replacing plumbing drains, fastening water lines and wiring because most were knocked loose, and eventually will need to replace all the skirting. We will have to have all the insulation replaced as well as the ducting and the air-conditioner itself.

(Old snapshots of inside — all the same today except for no fresh flowers right now)

Because the crawl space got opened up and all of the wet insulation pulled out, there was no damage inside our "Canal Cottage" — it is the same as ever. The floors need a good scrubbing by now and the windows need to be washed, but I don't think I can get away with blaming Ian entirely for that.

Old (better) times on the Canal   (about ten years ago)

So "we" have a lot of work to do, a whole lot to be grateful for, and much to look forward to. We will return to the usual blog programming soon!

#

LINKS: THROUGH MY LENS; MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; and SKYWATCH FRIDAY

December 11, 2022
In-between

We can't quite decide here in Eugene whether it is Autumn or late Summer.

Stella de Oro Daylily

Colorful flowers are still blooming in the neighborhood …

But the squirrels are busy gathering as many acorns as they can.

Skies are smoky some days …

And bright blue on others.

It's a beautiful time to be in Eugene and we're always grateful to be here, and especially this year. But we are personally feeling very in-between seasons too. It's hard to enjoy beautiful Eugene when we're worried about our winter home in storm-damaged Fort Myers.

So we're thinking we'll spend a shorter time here this year than we'd originally planned. We know there will be lots of work to do at the Canal Cottage. And oh so much in the area that we will miss. The pictures in the Mosaic below are memories of happier years at Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island and Six Mile Cypress Slough. Both are among the many nature areas that are closed because of hurricane damage.

We remain hopeful — and, no matter what, grateful for the memories.

LINKING this week to the following sharing opportunities. Thank you to the hosts.

MOSAIC MONDAY; NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS; MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; THANKFUL THURSDAY; SKYWATCH FRIDAY; FRIDAY BLISS; and SATURDAY CRITTERS



October 16, 2022
Home Again

It's been five weeks since my last blog post and it's good to be back.

Morning Sky on our last day at the Canal Cottage

One busy week to close up the Canal Cottage and prep for our cross-country trip.

The Mississippi looking not so mighty from our RV Parked on the River

Two weeks of travel with the tiny trailer – 3500 miles (a night or two in ten different states).

Oregon summer flowers

And now it's almost two weeks since we arrived here in Eugene. It's just beginning to feel like we're home! Seems like it takes a little longer to get "Oregon-ized" than it used to. I might be getting older.

The "street" in an RV Park where we stayed somewhere in Missouri or Kansas. No storms while we were there thankfully.

What with the price of gasoline these days, we could have flown home for less money, but we already had the tiny trailer in Florida. And of course there are problems with air travel these days too. So it was the best choice this time.

Rawlins Wyoming — a rainy day

I didn't take many more pictures on this trip than I would have if we had flown. We did only incidental sight-seeing as we drove or in the RV Parks where we stayed… no touristy stuff this time. We wanted to be home by the first week in July.

Glenn's Ferry Idaho

Fortunately we like road trips — it's fun to think about what's different and what's the same in the different places we pass through.

Terrible "through the window" shot, but I always like to document the first mountains we see as we travel west from the flatlands.

We always get away later than we plan to, so the first night we stayed in Ocala Florida. Then somewhere in Georgia (lost the name of the town); Montgomery Alabama; West Memphis Arkansas; Cuba Missouri (in the Meremac Valley); Marshall Missouri; Salina Kansas; Oberlin Kansas; Kimball Nebraska; Cheyenne Wyoming; Rawlins Wyoming; Brigham City Utah; Burns Oregon; and Blue River Oregon.

The McKenzie River — just a couple of hours from home

For people who drive more than five or six hours a day, both the last two places are within a day's drive of home. But we have always preferred to take our time. The last day of the trip we stayed in Blue River, less than two hours from home. Both because we enjoy being on the beautiful River in this sweet little park AND because we don't like getting home when we're tired from traveling all day.

It's good to be home again.

Linking to the following sharing opportunities. Thank you to the hosts:

MOSAIC MONDAY; NATURE NOTES; TRAVEL PHOTO SOUVENIRS; THROUGH MY LENS; MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; SIGNS SIGNS; THANKFUL THURSDAY; SKYWATCH FRIDAY; FRIDAY BLISS; and SATURDAY CRITTERS

July 10, 2022
Winding Down and Wrapping Up

Our season in Florida is drawing to a close. This week we'll be getting ready to close up the house and getting the car and tiny trailer ready to head for Oregon — and then we'll be doing exactly that.

I didn't even get to take advantage of the last normal week at the Canal Cottage photographically because our weather didn't cooperate. We had a lot of rain. And gray skies. But we're grateful that we missed the terrible rains that hit further South. Our area just caught the tail end of the Florida monsoon that hit last week.

Red shouldered hawks, Eagles, Osprey

So none of the pictures in this post are new. They are all from this Season however. Even though we were busy doing a lot of non-blogging work on the Canal Cottage and didn't do nearly as much Florida exploring as we have in the past, there were still many photo opportunities. All of these birds of prey were seen in our own neighborhood.

Ibis, Little Blue Heron (immature), Tri-Color Heron, Northern Shrike, Ducks, Kildeer, Blue Jay, Red-Bellied Woodpecker, Snowy Egret

All pictures in the collage above were taken right here on the grounds in the resort where we live or at neighborhood parks or ponds. All were accidental sightings — none were from special birding trips. You never want to go anywhere here without a camera. Normal activities like morning walks or short errand runs frequently turn into great birding opportunities.

These are frequently seen roadside birds. Almost every time we drive anywhere we see Egrets on the ground or in trees, Wood storks in roadside wetlands or even in water-filled ditches, vultures doing what vultures do, and Ibis everywhere.

Grateful for our season in the sun. For the views, the warm winter weather, and the many accidental birding opportunities right here at home. (But not-so-secretly hoping we'll have time for a little more Florida exploring in another season.)

Linking this week to the following sharing opportunities: Thank you to the hosts.

MOSAIC MONDAY; NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS; MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; THANKFUL THURSDAY; SKYWATCH FRIDAY; FRIDAY BLISS; SATURDAY CRITTERS ; and RATHER B' BIRDING

June 5, 2022
Venice Audubon Rookery

May really is a pretty month here. The moods of the sky are fascinating and every morning walk is different.

Last week's morning walks at home

We stay busy indoors during the hot (and sometimes rainy) part of the day, but sometimes you've just got to get away in spite of the heat.

So one day last week we drove about an hour North of us to visit the Venice Audubon Bird Rookery. From their website:

"The Rookery island’s deep lake is small enough so that from the shaded pavilion benches you hardly need binoculars for a clear view of the birds. Tangled invasive plants have been replaced by Florida-friendly vegetation so you can easily walk around the edge of the lake and watch bird activity on all sides of the island."

Green Heron

May is the end of the nesting season, so there wasn't too much activity in the rookery itself. But there were some very nice birds around the edges of that small Lake. One of my favorites, the Green Heron was the first bird I spotted on that walk.

Great Egrets and Great Blue Heron

At the nests, which are on a bird island in the center of the Lake, we caught glimpses of a few big babies poking up their heads to be fed, but I think most of the nestlings had left home already. The ones we saw (I didn't get pictures) were as big as the parents.

There were a couple pairs of Black-Bellied Whistling Ducks on the opposite side of the Lake from the parking area.

Whistling Duck

There's just something about these guys that makes me smile. Maybe it's the pink legs?

Or the Mohawk Hair cut?

Black-Bellied Whistling Ducks

Or their pretty eyes? Or what seems like their curious nature. Whatever it is, they are a joy to watch. We've seen these ducks before, but not this close to home.

We spotted this high-density neighborhood on the edge of the Lake:

Purple Martin Condominium

And a condo tenant (Purple Martin)

He looks a little cranky. Most of the residents didn't want their picture taken at all. (The picture is highly zoomed. I really don't think he even saw me.)

Here's some more Spring color from walks in our own neighborhood:

More Florida Spring Flowers

LINKING this week to the following sharing opportunities: Thank you to the hosts.

NATURE NOTES; TRAVEL PHOTO SOUVENIRS; THROUGH MY LENS; MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; WILD BIRD Wednesday; SKYWATCH FRIDAY; FRIDAY BLISS; WANDERING CAMERA; SATURDAY CRITTERS and RATHER B' BIRDING

May 29, 2022
Total eclipse of the moon —

– and other news from last week.

The bird of the week at the neighborhood pond was this Little Blue Heron. Early in the week when it hadn't rained for a few days, the pond was almost completely dry, but then we had a few rainstorms. It would be interesting to follow the birds to see where they go when their feeding spot dries up! They always seem glad to be back.

One of those storms, I think on Wednesday, was a literal eye-opener. Rainstorms are common in late afternoon this time of year, but that one woke us up before dawn with loud claps of thunder and lightning briefly turning our bedroom into broad daylight. There's nothing like starting the day off with a bang!

Earlier last week though the weather was good. And on Sunday (a week ago) we were blessed with a beautiful day and evening without a cloud in the sky. So we stayed up late for the total lunar eclipse. We couldn't have had better seats for the show than we did from the dock area in back of the Canal Cottage.

Lunar Eclipse, May 15, 2022

During a full eclipse, the moon passes through the darkest part of the Earth's shadow (the umbra). According to NASA, the reddish hue happens because orange and red colors remain visible while blue and green light get scattered by dust particles in the atmosphere. Because of the color, lunar eclipses are sometimes called Blood Moons.

Tuesday, May 17

I hardly ever stay up that late these days, so that long night meant no early morning walk happening on Monday. But the next morning, the moon was visible on the street side of our house — and it still looked full. Although certainly not as dramatic, especially with the point-and-shoot camera which is all I carry on my normal walks.

Great Egrets are common around here — this one was standing perfectly still on a corner island in the middle of the supermarket parking lot. For a minute, I thought the store had installed a statue. But he was there hunting for food (just like all the rest of us).

In other news of the week for which I'm exceedingly grateful, we were both able to get our second COVID booster shot. We're still masking up in public places, but the booster provides a nice margin of safety.

And also (TA-DA) the bathroom project which has kept us (uh, half of us) busy all season is finished and it is beautiful. We (both halves of us, for sure) are delighted with the way it turned out. I'm amazed that Bill's talented design and skill incorporated a roomy walk-in shower, corner sink cabinet with storage, a wall-hung toilet, and space to maneuver in an area only 7 by 8.

LINKING this week to the following sharing opportunities: Thank you to the hosts.

MOSAIC MONDAY; NATURE NOTES; THROUGH MY LENS; MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; SKYWATCH FRIDAY; FRIDAY BLISS; and SATURDAY CRITTERS

May 22, 2022
Good Starts

We didn't cover a lot of distance last week but there still a lot of pictures. All taken last week on early morning walks right here in the neighborhood. May mornings are lovely but the days heat up rapidly here in subtropical Southwest Florida. It's good to get outside early and work on indoor projects during the heat of the day.

It looked like an approaching storm as the sun rose, but it didn't materialize in our neighborhood anyway.

These flowering branches look prettier in pictures than they do in real life. The Royal Poinciana tree across the front street from our house has been neglected for a long time. The flowering branches are up so high that most people wouldn't even notice them. The lady who lived in that house when we first lived here was a dedicated gardener, so we know the tree is there and we look for it every year around this time. All of the pictures were snapped within about six seconds — it's interesting to see how the sky was changing at that hour of the morning.

It doesn't take a whole lot of water to attract wildlife around here. This retention pond is part of a relatively new addition to the neighborhood. I've enjoyed keeping an eye on it all season, but it is even more active this time of year — partly because of the season and partly because so many human residents have already gone back to their homes "up North" for the summer.

I'm pretty sure these are Red-Shouldered Hawks and I'm also pretty sure there must be a nest in one of the larger trees near here, since this is the second week in a row I've spotted at least one on my morning walks. I swear I saw this one turn its head in a complete circle. Can that be possible?

Back at the pond on another morning — and I think this is an immature Little Blue Heron.

Not a lot of water, but enough to share.

This is a different hawk — and I know this because I could see this one and the one above at the same time. They were perched across the street from each other. They both look young to me and that's why I think there must be a nest somewhere nearby. I'll keep watching (through my lens from an appropriate distance).

Grateful for good starts.



LINKING this week to the following sharing opportunities. Thank you to the hosts.

MOSAIC MONDAY; NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS; MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY; FRIDAY BLISS; SATURDAY CRITTERS and RATHER B' BIRDING

May 15, 2022
At home with camera …

.. and a computer on which to download its contents. Life is good.

This morning … looking East from the back-porch:

SUNRISE: Like sunset in reverse, but without the wine.

Osprey seen on a hot day's drive in the Babcock-Webb wildlife area.

Red shouldered Hawk seen on a crack-of-dawn walk here in our neighborhood. I guess he'd already had breakfast because he made no move toward those little birds perched right below. I walked around the block and hawk and (I think) mockingbirds were still perched in exactly the same place when I got back to this point.

The Kildeer skittered around leading me away from its ground nest even before I even got anywhere close. I always wish I could tell them that I wouldn't dream of hurting their babies.

The bunny's defensive strategy, on the other hand, was to freeze in place also before I got anywhere close. There is a reason why rabbits are at the bottom of the food chain. But I always like spotting them. This grassy area borders the wildlife walk next door to our resort and I've probably taken pretty much the exact same picture every season we've stayed here. Except of course this bunny is at least the 12th or 13th generation of wild rabbits over that number of years.

Florida Spring flowers are anything but subtle.

The rainy season arrived early this year. That's good for flora and fauna. Here in subtropical Florida, the mornings are almost always sunny – the rains come later in the day. They move in fast and furious and then are completely gone for the day, with not a drizzle left. We need more English words for rain, because it's very different here than in our home state of Oregon.

Great Blue Heron (leftover from beach trip posted last week)

It was an ordinary week and in our family we have always been grateful for ordinary days. But when I think about how nice it is to sit at my nice new speedy computer to write these words, I can't help but think about how different an ordinary week is nowadays. I'm glad for that because I like this way of saving our memories.

Linking this ordinary week to the following sharing opportunities, with thanks to the hosts:

MOSAIC MONDAY; NATURE NOTES;  THROUGH MY LENS; MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY; FRIDAY BLISS; and SATURDAY CRITTERS

May 8, 2022