Life...which trail will you follow?

 

Many of you have followed my blog for close to 20 years now. How time flies and how much can change over the years.

 

But one thing I still cling to is my love of nature and the more 'natural' it is, the more at home I am. 

I started an evening hike at 49th Ave trailhead and was pleasantly surprised at how many people were taking advantage of a 'less hot' evening.

This is the trail I walked on.

And this is the one that 'pulled' me in. 

There are a lot of deer in this area so I was happy to see several on my hike.

This is actually the smallest Buck I have ever seen.

Don't you love his spikes!

They moved into the brush and those are my favorite photos!

They were browsing! 

I waved and took photos of this group of joggers. They were enthusiastic and I loved seeing them enjoying some time together on the Greenway.

It's still too hot to get out much but I can't resist one of those 'trails less traveled'.

Casa Viola News! 

A BIG shout out to Brent for painting my house this week and doing such a fabulous job! I enjoyed having you around and getting to know you better too! THANKS Brent!!!

What's new at your house this week? 

Stay cool, safe and calm!

Hugs, Diane 💜

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE!

Through thick and through thin.....

 Isn't that true friendship? Blog friends that see you through thick and thin?

You'll never know how much you have all meant to me this past year, I can't thank you enough for sticking with me through the saddest time in my life.

White Ibis in my backyard

But time passes. And we are forever facing more challenges. I know you are all going through hard times, whether you share it in a blog post or not. And I continue to pray for each of you. 

I was so exhausted after months of my husband's illness that when he passed away, I thought something was seriously wrong with me. I even spent one long afternoon in the emergency room having test after test done to find out what was wrong. But the doctor gave me a bill of good health and said I was normal. 

He said to go home and take care of myself so that's what I've done recently.

MaMa Deer on the Greenway

My family and friends have been so great at supporting me and encouraging me. I'm finally back to walking the trails at a moderate rate and enjoying nature with a renewed spirit.

OH MY! 

The spotted Fawn is running as fast as it can to keep up! What a fun siting! 

And this isn't a big announcement but I've reconnected with an old friend I've know for over 25 years and that's made all the difference. He's visited me from Virginia and I've drug him down more than one forest trail and haven't scared him off yet. What fun it is to hike with someone who enjoys nature as much as I do.

The 'You are in Bear country' sign didn't even scare him off!

So please tell me how you are in your comments. I'll spend the weekend visiting my blog buddies and catching up! I can't wait!

Take care and God bless you all. Words cannot express the love I feel for each and every one of you. 

So here's a big Southern HUG for you all!

Sweet hugs, Diane 💜

A Walk along the River Trail at O'Leno State Park!

 Well, it's really TOO hot to walk anywhere in Florida right now but I still have a 'few' photos that I took last month. We are stuck inside right now but at least I'm being productive. I've been decluttering and cleaning. And hubby has made a few home improvements. So it's been a good summer so far!

O'Leno State Park is one of the best parks in Florida, in my opinion. 

There are trails along the Santa Fe River and miles and miles of nature trails in the forest.

I was almost finished with this hike, when I looked down a forest trail and saw these deer.

I saw the 'mama' and baby first.

And then I backtracked and saw 3 deer and a bunny.

(no photos of me chasing the deers and bunnies, thank goodness! hahaha)

So that was really a neat sighting.

This trumpet flower vine was winding it's way up a tree and dropping trumpets on the trail.

And a Red-bellied Woodpecker was pecking away.

The river had duck weed growing in a big swirl.

And the turtles were basking in the sun.

The bridge over the river.

Altogether a really good hike. I'll be SO happy when we can get back in the camper van and go again.

But I'll stay busy in the meantime. 

Is it too hot to hike at your house?

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

  and Mosaic Monday HERE. 

Bees a buzzin'!

 

Don't kick the bucket....

or in this case....the steel drum!

I saw bees buzzing all around this old steel drum alongside the trail at Halpata Tastanki last week.

The wild bee hive is still there and the steel drum is nearby. 

When I got around to the other side of this drum, I zoomed in and saw a hole about the size of a dime and bees going in and out.

You just never know what you'll see on a hike at the preserve.

Which trail do you want to hike?

We get to a 't' and have to decide.

It was a sunny day but it felt great to be in nature.

I spotted this deer lying down in the shade of some trees.

She turned her head to get a better look at me but decided I wasn't a threat and stayed put.

A Cardinal lit on a branch and I saw a Bobwhite fly low across the trail.

This Gulf Fritillary butterfly lit near by. I saw lots of butterflies and dragonflies but no other good photo ops.

Now we have turned back to walk to the trailhead.

I parked in the shade so that kept the Jeep cool.

And I saw a Northern Harrier swooping overhead at the end of my hike.

It was a good day and the heat and humidity has been perfect for mushrooms. I'm trying to figure out what these look like. Maybe they look like some kind of sandwich or pastry?

What do you think?

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

  and Mosaic Monday HERE !

Let's hike the trails at Manatee Springs State Park

 

Even though the Springs are the highlight of a trip to Manatee Springs, you know I'm going to find some hiking trails to explore!

So let's take a hike on the Sink Trail Loop first.

It was a beautiful trail with some really big surprises along the way.

Coral Bean in bloom.

Hubby leading the way!

We watched deer along the way and that's always fun.

But the surprise was the sink holes.

We see a lot of sinkholes here in Florida but these were the prettiest ones I've ever seen.

I'm not sure how many we saw on this short walk but I think I photographed 6 of them.

They all had water in them and were crystal clear!

How do you like these vines looping around over the sinkholes? 

We also hiked Deer Run and saw several small birds.

Northern Cardinal

Warbler

You couldn't sit down because the bugs would attack! 

And then there are the forest monsters to worry about!

I came home like a kid that had been to summer camp....bug bites on my legs and a patch of poison ivy on my ankle.

But of course I wouldn't have missed a thing! 

And getting out in the forest is what I love best!

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

  and Mosaic Monday HERE !