Camping at Lion Country Safari

Well I wasn't sure about this one because the campground is a KOA, not our favorite but when we were parking the rig in our site early afternoon, we could hear the lions roaring just behind the fence and trees. And they kept that up all night. I know it makes sleeping rather iffy but who cares, it was so cool to listen to the roars of the big cats. I had the feeling of sleeping on the Kalahari all night. Blue had no interest, I guess if you are a cat, what's the big deal about another cat? And, they are cats for sure, the only difference is ours can't roar. But as you see in the photo, these big cats lay around all day (just like Blue) sleeping for up to 20 hours per day. Playing, eating and in general, making noise all night, just like Blue! When we entered the park, the person at the gate told me that they had complaints from past campers asking if they could turn down the animal noises at night. Hard to turn down a lion I guess.

Because the park is so big, one of the only drive through wild life parks in the USA, and I have so many photos, I will break this up into regions and try my best to list the animals in each region as they do in the park. This was great, and we will drive through tonight and probably again tomorrow. Soooo much fun!

Johnathan Dickinson State Park

JD sits very close to Jupiter Florida with endless places to visit and events to attend. One of our only rainy day's this winter, gave us a chance to drive to nearby Stuart for a look at the marina used by our sailing buddies Stan and Kathy. Unfortunately they are gone for the season but the small town was very cute. Today's excursion took us to the ArtiGras in Abacoa. The art fair is similar to the Uptown Art Fair with high quality artists from around the country. I have a few ideas and hope to put them to use.

Goodbye to the Keys

Well our 6 weeks in the Keys has come and gone, way to fast. We enjoyed a beautiful sunset in Long Key State Park. As we stood along the sea wall a small ray floated near enough for me to take a picture before he glided away. The next day we moved to Johnathan Dickinson State Park. Stopping for groceries the day before Valentines day Publix had a special to honor the day which we purchased for our evening meal at a great price, the lobster tails were just $3.99 per tail. Our dinner made the move a little less painful. Even Blue enjoyed a taste. The money saved went to a horse back ride in the park. Bell was my mount and she provided a slow but smooth ride through the park.

Islamorada Tarpon Feeding

Well there is no shortage of thing to do in the middle Keys, including paying to feed the big Tarpon at Robby's. If you click on the picture, you can take a closer look at the women laying on the dock with the little fish in her hand. The thing reaching for that little fish is the open mouth of a hungry Tarpon. It's mouth is as big as her head. Yeah, the fish are cool but pay to feed them, I don't think so, but it was fun to watch others. Then a quick trip to Islamorada to pick up the local catch for dinner. As much as I would have liked the bugs on the back of the boat (that is what the locals call the spiny lobster) they were already sold so we settled for the Yellow Snapper, Dolphin (not the flipper kind) and some scallops. Did I say we eat good while we are in the Keys? Last stop, the Bass Pro Shop next door to look at all the very cool fishing gear. No purchases this time.

Sunrise and campfires

Another sunrise and campfire at Long Key State Park.