Halpata Tastanaki Preserve in the Van Camper

 

A Van Camper is great for a day trip to the HTP at the Pruitt Trailhead.

You have everything you need when you finish your hike. You can make a cup of coffee and enjoy a snack out of the refrigerator....oh and go to the bathroom! And sit down to eat!

We know we'll enjoy taking it on other days trips but of course Halpata Tastanaki Preserve is one of my favorite destinations and it's close to home.

These are the first American Kestrels I've seen in awhile. 

I took pics of this one and then when I started to move down the trail, it flew and so did a second one.

So I think I caught a male and female traveling together.

We might see a Kestrel from time to time during the year, but more of them are here in the winter months.

Dragonfly

Bagworm

And don't forget to look UP!

The clouds looked like feathers and I saw a little pile of real feathers too.

There are still lots of Flycatchers at the preserve.

A view of the trail and my turn around point. 

(get a drink of water and make the turn)

Time for some relaxation in the van before heading home.

Do you enjoy day trips?

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

  and Mosaic Monday HERE !

The "Birds"!

 What you focus on in this photo is the beautiful melodic Eastern Meadowlark.

He's always a welcome sighting at the Pruitt trailhead of Halpata Tastanaki Preserve.

But what you might notice on closer observation is 100s of black birds in the background.

They are crows! Hundreds of them! They streamed through until I gave up trying to count them.

It's Spring and the birds are on the move. And there are birds around that I don't normally see. 

I looked out at this beautiful tree and saw deer browsing. Later 3 more walked across the trail in front of me.

It's probably a good thing I don't get photos of everything I see. I walk slow enough as it is! 

They weren't the least bit concerned about me from that distance.

I watched a Swallow-tailed Kite overhead.

And then spotted this American Kestrel.

He's a little ruffled by the wind.

I saw several on this hike but they usually perch too far away for a good photo.

A few more sights along the way and we'll head back to the Jeep!

Oh and here's the 'monster' of the day!

Doesn't this piece of pine bark look a little like a gator?

I hope you are enjoying the birds of Spring where you live!

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

  and Mosaic Monday HERE !  

February brings signs of Spring!

 We definitely see signs of Spring in the month of February here in Florida.

I'm sure that's why so many people visit the state during this month.

I've seen more birds, wildflowers, colorful leaves and an abundance of butterflies already.

And I want to give an update on the honey bee hive at Halpata Tastanaki Preserve.

The bees are busy making honeycomb and it changes from week to week.

I thought in the beginning that it was a swarm and they would leave after a couple of weeks.

But they have been there for over 4 months now!

Here's the same photo taken a week apart and put together for comparison. You can see the same stick in each photo.

While I was on this particular hike, I got to watch 2 American Kestrels in all their glory!

This one was particularly cute!

Kestrel in flight

And even saw a few Eastern Meadowlarks!

They always show up in the Spring!

The weather has been beautiful allowing me to hike just about every other day for the month, which makes me very happy!

Are you seeing any signs of Spring where you live? Don't worry, it will be here before you know it! 

AHHHH Chooooo!!! lol

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

  and Mosaic Monday HERE !  

Peachy Keen

 

Peachy Keen, an adjective meaning extremely good or exactly right.

My blog break was good but not exactly 'peachy keen'. We are still working on that! lol

But the term came to mind when I saw this Mourning Dove.

I was convinced it was something special because of it's soft peachy colors.

It was just gorgeous.

We took this hike at Halpata Tastanaki Preserve from the Pruitt trailhead on a very windy day. 

It was around 70 degrees so it wasn't cold but it was extremely blustery.

One good thing about it was we walked into the wind so that when we turned around, the wind blew us back to our vehicle. 

That's a good thing when you are tired!

We saw several American Kestrels that day.

They have such rich colors with the soft light of a cloudy day.

And one of my favorite photos to take are the 'winter trees'. 

The grasses were all a burnt orange too.

I hope your holiday week has been good. 

What did I miss? 🚘

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

  and Mosaic Monday HERE ! 

Winter Hiking...Come on along!

 

Winter hiking is the best here in Florida, as you can imagine!

A 'bird' ornament high in the pine tree! It's REAL!

And some Reindeer Moss!

 Temps were in the 60s and 70s for these hikes....perfect!

And there are some trails that I have to save for the cooler weather. Walking down in the canal diggings is too hot in the summertime. I can hike in hotter temps as long as I have a bit of a breeze but in these low areas it's hard to 'catch a breeze'!

This is a section between the Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway paved trail and Shangri-La.

It's very peaceful and I love these big old limestone formations. 

I know I've shown them to you before but I still love to share.

You can imagine faces and animal shapes in some of the rocks.

When I got back up to the higher trail, I spotted an American Kestrel.

I thought it was perfectly posed and took a lot of photos on the perch.

But then it took off flying to snag a Dragonfly in it's talons!

So then I took another group of photos. 

Time to stand still and watch the Kestrel eat lunch!

I was ready for a break anyway!

Amazing!

Nature has outdone herself this winter with red berries!

What a fabulous day for a wintertime hike in Florida!

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

  and Mosaic Monday HERE !