A Fun Filled Day

It was foggy and misting rain when we got up this morning but by noon the sun was shining and the temps were perfect.  We had located a spot for hiking yesterday and after breakfast off we went.  Cedar Key Scrub State Reserve just up the road a couple miles. We walked just over four miles and much of it through sand as if we were walking on the beach or in one of those southwest desert washes.  The Reserve is home to the Florida Scrub Jay found only in Florida, state protected and federally listed as a threatened species.  We saw lots of the Jay’s but none would sit still long enough to be photographed.  Instead I did get a photograph of this bird, a female cardinal, I think:

We came back to the motorhome where I made lunch, taco salads then we saddled up again and set off on a drive.  First over to Chiefland for gas then we drove out to Manatee Springs hoping to catch a glimpse of a manatee—not today, they were all in hiding but I got some great photos of other things:

Who let that cowboy come into Florida??

There were hundreds of these buzzards in the trees across the river from the boardwalk, some taking a bath, some just squawking!  Made me wonder who they were all waiting for????

This little guy and Emmi had a chat—he was quite busy eating that nut.

Back to the motorhome and just as we were climbing out of the jeep a truck pulled up in front and a woman’s voice said, “hello, are you Janna, I read your blog.”  YIKES!!  Someone found me!  The couple in the front seat, Janet and Sheldon are from Ontario and had friends with them whose names elude me (if I don’t write it down, I forget names!).  Janet and Sheldon have been coming to Florida for years; they are all staying in a RV park in New Port Richey and drove up to see if they could find us—when Janet’s husband asked how she was going to find us she said, “all I have to do is look for a pink motorhome and a yellow jeep.”  See what you started John!  We had a very enjoyable chat but we couldn’t convince them to get out and sit a spell as we say in the south—it was almost 5pm and they had a 100+ mile drive ahead of them.  Very nice to meet blog readers, hopefully our paths will cross again!

When we visited the Cedar Key Visitor Center yesterday I noticed a flyer advertising a quilt show for Saturday evening at a gallery just across the street.  So, off we went this evening—it was a small show and reception with beautiful quilts, many of them “art” quilts  (and guess who didn’t have a camera). By the time we walked through the quilt show we were starving and headed to Tony’s—OK, Laurie and Odel—we each ate a bowl of the best clam chowder—all the ads for this restaurant proclaim Tony’s clam chowder as “World Famous, World Champion Chowder.”  Well, this little (and it is little probably seating less than 30 people) restaurant won the world clam chowder cook-off held in Rhode Island in 2009, 2010 and 2011.  Because this team has won 3 years in a row, they are not eligible to attend again!!!  And oh, my, while I’m not the clam chowder connoisseur Odel is, that was one delicious bowl of chowder!!

As we drove out of Cedar Key tonight the sun had set giving everything a pinkish glow.  We are sure liking this place.