Reporting from an AirBnB
LAT 28.1, LON 81.3 degrees
This was another quiet day for me, based on the planned activity. The group was going to a wildlife preserve, which meant traipsing around marshes on a cloudy rainy day, and leaving at 6a to boot. My rule of thumb is that, on vacation, I don't get up earlier than necessary. So I laid back and used the pool and spa.
Meanwhile, Mindy piled into a car for an hour drive to a few wildlife viewing locations. Our first choice reserve was closed for the day (drat), but we drove the Black Point Wildlife Drive and saw so many fancy birds (herons and egrets and lots of others).
We also saw a ton of alligators, including one just lying in the road. There were places to get out along the way and walk short trails to get better views, and we did, but Mindy was always a little worried about the alligators.
We then stopped at a manatee viewing area. It might have been the Merrit Island Manatee viewing area, but Mindy was so fascinated by the MANY manatees there that she didn’t notice the name. There was a small shallow area where three or four manatees were hanging out, and they were easy to watch there. Farther down the boardwalk, in the deeper water, you could see other manatee swimming, and coming up for air occassionally, and tails coming up all the time. We couldn’t count the manatees! Even out in the distance, one could see manatee trails in the water. But watching them swim here, and the boats going by, one can understand how manatees could get injured by boats.
Leaving the manatee viewing area, we saw a bunch of vultures at the side of the road, and circled around to get a better view. Turns out they were eating a wild pig. It was the circle of life!
After this, part of our party went off further north towards the visitor center for the national seashore park, while Mindy and her sister went towards the house, and the hot tub!
#parkhopping