What does a squirrel have in common with a horse?

 

I wish I could come up with something clever but in truth all I can think of was the fact that they were both at Halpata Tastanaki Preserve on days I couldn't hike! HA! 

I've had a lot of those this summer. It's really been too hot to hike but my reason for observing wildlife from the comfort of the Jeep is a prickly heat rash. 

It's the first one I've ever had but it was stubborn.

So I've taken a few drives out to the preserve just to observe!

I actually had something exciting happen the first time I went out there in the mid afternoon. I took my coffee drink and a snack and pulled over into a shady spot to enjoy it. I had it all out in my lap when I saw movement in a tree across the way. I almost dumped everything in the floor I got so excited.

I witnessed a Fox Squirrel building a nest. It kept going out to the end of a branch to gather Spanish moss, and back down to the nest to 'feather' his nest. I didn't get any great photos but I sure enjoyed watching him.

And then on another day, John and I  drove out to the preserve to watch the horses in the field.

This one horse came out from behind the tree, walked a few steps, stopped to pose and then went on across the field. I had just enough time for a couple of photos but that's all I needed.

Thank you Mr. Horse!

Another beauty in the field!

It sure was a beautiful day for a drive 'off road' in the Jeep.

Sometimes you have to be happy with plan B. 

I think I had a plan B summer! 

Has that ever happened to you?

Love, Diane

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE!

Once Upon a Time....

Once upon a time there was a prince who wanted to marry a princess, but she would have to be a real princess. He travelled all over the world to find one, but nowhere could he get what he wanted. There were princesses enough but it was difficult to find out whether they were real ones.

"The Princess and the Pea" byHans Christian Andersen

Did you ever imagine yourself in a fairy tale? I have actually written a few fairy tales over the years and should take them out and dust them off. Of course I should shake up my creative juices and write or sketch or paint or draw. But I think the time will come when I feel artistic or creative and in the meantime, I will write! I will BLOG! And that makes me happy.

And driving out to Halpata Tastanaki Preserve makes me incredibly happy and I always find something to blog about.

So how did the white horse turn into a unicorn in my imagination? 

I saved an image of a horn and then added it to my horse photo in Photoscape. Easy peasy!

I got to hear 'the rest of the story' from the trainer of these two beautiful horses. The dark horse BIT the white horse. Or as the trainer said, 'SHE BIT HIM!' So she had her hands full trying to get control of these two fairy tale creatures.

Have you enjoyed any fairy tales this week? Maybe we should all pull out our story books and spend some time in fairyland!

Sorry about the background color on my text. 

Sometimes creating a blog post is even a creative challenge! hahaha! 

AND the winner of my blog anniversary giveaway is Jeanie from The Marmalade Gypsy. I'm sending you a gift certificate for something fun on Amazon. She and I started our friendship because of our love of books and continued because of our love of LIFE! Thanks Jeanie for adding so much joy to my life over the years. We've shared our love of life AND blogging! 

Love, Diane 💜

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE!

Let's drive out to the Gulf Coast!

 We're discovering the 'real' Florida so we won't see seashells on white sandy beaches!

Great Blue Heron flying overhead

But we might see some fisherman trying to catch something on a hot summer day.

Then again, we might not see anyone! haha!

Did I mention it was HOT!

This was my jeep in the parking lot all by it's lonesome! 

John and I stopped at Felburn Park first and walked on a shady part of the trail to see the beauty of the water ponded up on the canal.

It's one of my favorite spots in Florida but not for a hike in June! We are already in the mid 90s every day with high humidity. 

We had our choice of parking places there too! 

Then we drove down over 4 miles of a dusty white road looking out the window at the canal.

It was so hot, the birds were in hiding.

This is a stretch of the Withlacoochee Bay Trail that ends up at a point on the Gulf.

Happy Birthday John!!!

We were happy looking out at the overlooks. It was windy and surprisingly cool there.

I love exploring the backroads of Florida at any time of the year. But our picnic lunch was eaten inside the Jeep with the AC running! Yes, I know....we are wimps!

A horse on the drive over looks like it has 3 eyes! 

Have you packed a picnic this summer? 

It's TIME! And it tastes even better out on a nature trail!

Happy Independence Day America! 

Thanks again for visiting me and leaving such heartfelt comments. 

Blogger buddies are the BEST! 

Love, Diane 🌴

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE!

Halpata Tastanaki Preserve and the traveling Tortoise

 

I set off to drive to the preserve in search of birds. 

Isn't the back leg kicked out cute? I think he was traveling faster than me! 

I told myself, I would just walk around and look.

But walking around turned into a nice long...hot hike!

And I did see a beautiful Red tailed Hawk.

His tail really glowed in the sun!

But the sighting of the day was this cute and very clean Gopher Tortoise.

This looks like a regular road but the gate is locked so you rarely see a work vehicle on the road.

But on this particular day, I looked up ahead and saw this tortoise on a mission.

You really need to stand still and let them pass so that they can get on their regular trail that leads to their burrow. If they feel threatened, they will get off and go through the weeds but that is not their easy path to their home.

So I stood still in the hot sun and took photos. 

And there he goes!

It's funny how the sun doesn't bother you as much when you are watching something interesting.

Now the road is overgrown with grass and that makes a soft surface to walk on.

The views out on the preserve are stunning.

And the wildflowers are abundant.

I love this morning glory.

And at the trailhead, I was joined by another Jeep!

Jeep parking only! Haha!

Halpata Tastanaki Preserve

Have a beautiful weekend! 

Take a drive even it you can't hike!

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

  and Mosaic Monday HERE. 

Halpata Tastanaki Preserve and the Amazing Sights

 

It has been WAY too hot to hike anywhere and Halpata Tastanaki Preserve doesn't have much shade at the beginning of the Pruitt trailhead so my visits have been few and far between this summer.

It's such a great place to go because you can always see some amazing sights!

The Sandhill Cranes were right where I parked.

I took the photos before I even got out of the Jeep.

And these horses were at the trailhead too, finishing up a ride.

I think this is a blackbird, maybe a Red Winged Blackbird.

But it was hard to tell with the patchy color on it's wings.

Let me know what you think about the ID. Thanks!

The preserve had some beautiful Pickerelweed down in the wet areas.

A wide sandy trail.

And I've seen a lot of birds chase Hawks but I don't remember seeing a Pileated woodpecker chase one. Maybe there's a nest of young woodpeckers nearby.

Thanks again for the wonderful comments on my Woodpeckers last week. I felt so encouraged reading such sweet comments. Being encouraged by blog friends is one of the joys of blogging, isn't it?

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

  and Mosaic Monday HERE. 

Hiking to Josef's Table

 

Are you ready to hike? Cap, hiking stick, backpack with water (and emergency items), camera, comfortable clothing, hiking shoes and phone?

OK, let's park at the trailhead and take off down this trail.

The first bird sighting was this flock of wild turkeys!

Now we'll turn onto the Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway for a short distance on the paved trail.

We'll turn onto a horse trail and then onto the Florida Trail down...down...down...into the diggings.

There are a lot of really good articles (and books) written about the canal diggings but my sweet hubby helped me with some of the pertinent information.

"When I talk about the "canal diggings" I'm referring to a canal that was proposed in 1935 as a 30-foot deep, 150-foot bottom width, Ship Canal for commercial traffic to have a shortcut from the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico across Florida from Jacksonville to Yankeetown.

Concerns about salt water intrusion into the fresh water aquifer caused proponents to adjust the canal to a 12-foot depth thus allowing only barge traffic and the name changed to the Cross Florida Barge Canal.

After many starts and stops, construction resumed in 1964 only to be stopped for good in 1971 due to efforts led by environmental activist, Marjorie Harris Carr.

About one third of the canal did get completed, some at each terminus, but the remainder includes long stretches of earth having been dug out and piled up along the sides. Over the ensuing decades the forest has reclaimed this ground.

Today, the 110-mile long, 70,000 acre Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway (renamed in 1998) is a state park that provides over 300 miles of hiking and biking trails on the remnants of the Cross Florida Barge Canal."

Above written by sweet hubby

Now we are in the diggings!

Be alert! 

Doesn't this old root look like a serpent?

And what if you come across your knight in shining armor?

It could happen if you are paying attention!

At first I thought it was an Army man but he has a shield and a spear! 

And there are some amazing rock formations down in the diggings too.

You can hear and see woodpeckers in the forest.

Yellow bellied Sapsucker

Red bellied Woodpecker peeking out from behind a pine tree.

Finally we reach Josef's table. It's up ahead!

It's a little longer hike than I normally make but the weather was fine and I felt good. 

I love it deep in the woods. The pine needles under the trees soften the trail and it is a quiet you can't find anywhere else!

We did it! Thanks for coming with me today. 

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

  and Mosaic Monday HERE 

and Nature Friday HERE!