Tag: summer

Well, They Are Gone

It is June and I am here in Florida for the summer. The snowbirds have gone, and at least maybe the roads won’t be so crowded now.

I’m not the only one who looks forward to the “snowbirds”, or whatever they like to be called, leaving the state.

It is now June, and they are gone. I suspect many leave in April, but surely by June they have gone back to their other homes. I can’t even imagine have two great homes to live in. Anyway…

This means that the traffic should be a lot better. Florida is still a very overcrowded place, but when all the northerners show up it’s horrible. And they keep coming. Everyone wants to move here, for some reason.

Camping spots may also be easier to grab – the nice ones that are never available. My niece just got this beautiful spot on the beachside area at Gamble Rogers. It was a cancellation and she snapped it up for the weekend! Unheard of!

We’ve stayed at Gamble Rogers campground a few times, but never on the beachside. With only 2 or 3 sites that have an actual ocean view, it’s tough to grab a spot like this one.

Gamble Rogers oceanfront site

Now that summer is here, we do not have any camping trips planned. I’m hoping to get out on the boat and do some lounging in the water. We won’t camp again until September when we will visit Wekiwa Springs for a couple of days. It will be hot, and I hope to swim in the spring.

So there is less traffic, and camping spots are easier to book, but who wants to go out and about in 90 degree heat with 90% humidity? Camping in heat is manageable, but it’s the packing and unpacking that gets me.

In August I will get a short trip back to New Hampshire for my youngest son’s wedding. I won’t have time to sit back and relax much, but just being in that environment will renew my soul.

Thanks for reading. Here are some other stories for you.

Stingrays Ruin The Day

Loads of stingrays ruined my day of beach combing.

We went boating the beginning of August and hadn’t been out in a white. Both my son and I had Covid and mine (being older, I’m sure) dragged on and on. The lack of energy was just awful. But… finally we just had to get out on the water.

Unfortunately the tide was high – not my favorite for beach-combing. And there were many, many stingrays! I often see them when the water is this depth, but not this many. They were everywhere!

You never know what you will find in nature, and this area is no exception. It’s part of the fun of exploring the great outdoors.

stingray in shallow water
Stingray
stingray in the shallow water
Stingray

I don’t know much about stingrays and where they live, but there were some creepy looking black tunnels in the sand. Is that where they hide out? The black would be the deeper sand that was dug up. I don’t usually see these things, so I assume they were made by the stingrays.

As you may be able to tell from my photos, stingrays blend in very well with the sand. At least I could see the bottom in the shallow water, and I would follow my own footprints back to the boat thinking I wouldn’t step on a “stingray house” accidentally. It didn’t mean they wouldn’t swim by!

weird tunnels
sand tunnels
Creepy sand tunnels

The Three Sisters Islands is an area we like to visit. It is especially nice at low tide when there is a little canal we follow in behind the islands. It gives us access to lots of sandy places to walk. The water never gets low enough to strand us, and it’s a good place to find unusual sea life.

high tide at 3 sisters
Facing the river

Those stingrays were too much for me though. The fact that many beach-goers had also been stung recently did not help. It was stingray season, it seems.

At low tide this area is sandy and muddy. Boats pull up from the river side and enjoy the “beach”. I did walk around a bit, and was careful to shuffle my feet and try to let any stingrays know I was there. But it was just too creepy for me. I’ve walked among stingrays before and know that sometimes they don’t easily scare off. I certainly did not want to be stung and get a barb in my foot or leg.

We took a ride to another island and took a swim. I did see stingrays here, but could keep my feet off the bottom at least! It was hot… we needed to cool off – haha… in the 90 degree water!

Hewes Redfisher island beach swimming

We went back out boating a few weeks later and I found a living sand dollar on Three Sisters! That was a great day for beach-combing. The stingrays were gone.

More Stories From the Blog

Indian River Boating Photos From Ponce Inlet

We seldom make the trip up to Ponce Inlet in our boat but the other day (this past summer- 2019) we did. Our usual boating area is farther south around Edgewater and Oak Hill. My son dislikes the trip north as it is slow going with mostly minimum wake zones.

A Trip North on the ICW

As we ride up to Ponce Inlet (see my photos from the beach) from the Edgewater area we pass many beautiful homes and see some amazing boats and yachts. We passed a couple of huge yachts on the waterway, but I didn’t have my phone out. The speed is slow the whole way, and we saw paddle boarders as well. It’s a pretty ride with nice views of how the wealthy live.

Boating north on the Indian River ICW toward Disappearing Island and the Ponce Inlet.
Along the river heading north

At the Inlet

The ocean is behind us, just out the inlet.
Our wake as we ride around the Ponce Inlet area

Even though we don’t own an ocean-going boat, my son wanted to see how rough the inlet was. The water was too choppy so we turned around and came back in by Disappearing Island. In the shot above, the ocean is behind us.

View of Smyrna Dunes Park from our boat
South side of the Inlet, beach and condos near Smyrna Dunes Park

It seemed like the channels were all different in the area, and I know they had been dredging, but we found ourselves in a very shallow area where we had to go slow. The water moves the sand around so even unmarked areas can be shallow and especially at low tide.

Condos in the distance as we boat across a shallow area near Ponce Inlet

Photo above: Heading toward the fishing pier at Smyrna Dunes Park, with condos behind it.

coast guard station
Coast Guard Station, Ponce Inlet, Florida
A very built up area

We didn’t see any manatees, but they should be enjoying the warm water this time of year. Boats have to go slow and watch for them. For the most part the manatees stay near the shore and out of the main channel, but we wouldn’t want to hit one. When they are swimming they leave a big bubble-looking wake.

Sign along the waterway

My son will usually drop me at an island so I can explore while he trolls and fishes just offshore. That is when I take most of my photos like the one below with the Ponce Lighthouse in the distance.

Ponce lighthouse beach water
A view of the Lighthouse at Ponce Inlet

My favorite time is when the tide is low or going out. It leaves lots of sandy beaches to explore. No one was on this particular island with us. I believe this beach is part of Disappearing Island, or just south of it.

Ripples in the sand at low tide along an island near the Ponce Inlet in New Smyrna Beach
Outgoing tide leaves a wide beach

Just thought I’d share some riding photos since I usually only share photos from my beach excursions. In this northern area if the ICW (Intracoastal Waterway), just south of Ponce Inlet, the houses are very big and so are the boats / yachts in their front yard.

Nice homes and big boats along the Indian River
Must be nice!

Photos While Boating in the South

Since we mostly stay in the backwaters while we ride, our boating photos are pretty boring. It’s just mangroves and water with the occasional muddy flat. My phone is tucked away in the plastic bag because it’s not waterproof. Even when we see dolphin playing or catch a nice fish I don’t have it handy. Soon I’ll have a new phone which should make things easier.

driving the boat

I get my best photos when I get out of the boat and explore beaches and islands away from all the people.