Hollywood Beach

North end was beautiful and mostly vacant

As much as I enjoy being out close to nature, relative quiet, seeing the moon and stars clearly at night, and wildlife sightings, I can also appreciate going in to the city, with its different sights and sounds.

I spent the last four nights at a nice county park in Hollywood, between Miami and Fort Lauderdale. Yesterday I took a bus to a park at the beach and took a long walk down the Hollywood Beach Broadwalk (yes, this spelling is correct).

This wide pedestrian and non-motorized vehicle path alongside the beach is lined with parks, bungalows, apartments, hotels, beach shops and eating/drinking establishments. Its only flaw is that it's not dog friendly. It made for great exercise and people-watching, with liquid rewards on the return trip. A great way to spend a sunny afternoon!

Margarita Time!

Wild and Scenic Loxahatchee

Yesterday I think I dropped the best-spent $16 of my trip so far. I rented a kayak for a couple hours here at Jonathan Dickinson State Park and went up the Loxahatchee River and Kitching Creek. I wish I had photos to share, but I won't take my phone/camera out where I'm concerned I can't keep it dry. It was a beautiful 75 degree day, and Kitching Creek is too shallow for motorized vessels, so it was calm and peaceful.

I ended up taking basically the same route at the same pace as two other kayaks and two canoes, and the nine of us had a fun rapport going up and down the creek, testing out the best pathways thru the vegetation and pointing out the wildlife as we spotted it. There were manatees, an alligator sunning itself within what was certainly and thrillingly striking distance of the narrow creek, turtles, several raccoons that had come down to the water's edge to forage (how can they be so adorable out in the wild, yet such a menace too close to the house?), and countless birds of many varieties. The further up the creek, the swifter the water, and it was fun to play around up and down with the current. I had asked a ranger about the advisability of using my own inflatable kayak, and they mentioned there were a lot of sticks to be concerned about in places. Good advice--I wouldn't have had nearly as much fun as I did in the rental.

The day before, I had taken a guided boat tour farther up the Loxahatchee to Trapper Nelson's cabin. Trapper Nelson was at first, and in the end, sort of a recluse, but for many years in the 40's and 50's he made a good living and his reputation as a legend charging a fee to people who wanted to see how the man lived a subsistence life along the river in the wild, selling what he'd trapped and grown, and displaying local exotic animals.

Trapper Nelson's cabin with hurricane log inscripted to the right of the door.

First home the trapper built on the site

The trapper had many display cages, labeled with the types of animals they held.
Sometimes he'd take them out to play and pose for photos with them.

At Jonathan Dickinson State Park, the Hobe Mountain lookout tower
is on the highest elevation point in southern Florida, at 86 feet

How the other half lives.
View from the tower of the InterCoastal Waterway and the Atlantic.

Before going the Jupiter area, I had gone into the Everglades National Park with the intent on a quick stay at the Long Pine Key Campground, which I hadn't been to. However, the campground was full so I made a snap decision to make the long drive down to the Flamingo Campground at the southernmost part of the Florida peninsula. I'd been there last year and it's beautiful and interesting (and horrifically buggy).

Crocodile or gator? This one's a croc, but Flamingo is rare habitat to both.

I don't know why I'm thrilled to see grey blobs in the water,
but a manatee sighting is always great!

Goodbye to the Keys

After four-and-a-half relaxing weeks in the Florida Keys, I'm headed back to the mainland. It's been wonderful. I've kayaked a lot, tried stand-up paddleboarding a couple times, got bit by a fish, and met a lot of people here. Key Largo is a great place to paddle because there are a lot of protected "trails" that are closed to motorized traffic.

You can head out for a short paddle or a long one, but the real interesting view is looking into the water at the fish, because the trails all pretty much look like this, surrounded by the mangrove:

At the campground, I had a lizard friend at my site:

Charley liked the close quarters here, so he could snoop on the neighbors. (I prefer more space and privacy, personally).

All in all, it's been a great stay in paradise!