Lake Harney area to Butcher’s Bend G109

Jim and I left our dingy in the water so we could do an early morning trip ashore.

This is the view from Raisin’s walk.

It looked like we might have another pretty sunrise…..and we did….but not nearly as pretty as yesterday’s.

Larry had the only anchor out…it held beautifully. After the dingy was stowed on the swim platform, we headed back down the river. Down the river is N.

Larry spotted this small herd of horses. There were several cows back in the shadows of the tree line.

You can tell the river is up….this stand of palms is surrounded by water.

Another good idea.  A floating home. It looks like a bit of Key West…..everything was gaily painted.  I could live here too! This is floating one the river but anchored to shore.

This pair of Bald Eagles sat for a long time as we shut down the motor and drifted. There was a nice current.

Cute little gator….maybe 6’ or 7’.

A few years ago when boating with Larry and Diane, I felt I should title everything “The little green boat”. They had a Nimble Nomad and it was in most of my pictures…..now I have another one either following or leading us. We look a bit alike…same make…we have a hardtop that Jim built and Larry and Diane’s has a bimini. (and a whole lot of fancy stuff we don’t have: windlass, mermaid heat/air, bow thrusters and some stuff I can’t think of.)

Under the bridge is the entrance to Lake Jessup. There is a launch ramp just before the bridge.  Lake Jessup is very close to home but too shallow for us.

This is the restaurant near the RT 415 bridge by the Sanford Boatworks Marina. We decided to stop here and have lunch. Larry and Jim hiked to the marina store but they didn’t have the parts Larry needed. Lunch was great with very good service.

Larry and Diane crossing Lake Monroe.

Unfortunately this is our last day on the water for a few weeks. (at least we don’t have to wait for the ice to melt). We have some commitments that will tie us up awhile….then we’ll be back out and hopefully….headed to the Keys with Larry and Diane for company.

Our anchorage for the night is just N of Lake Monroe Park.

See you on the water soon.

Mullet Lake State Park, FL to Lake Harney, FL

There are several lakes along the St Johns River. Most of them we’ve been in or across…but it was done with boats with much less draft. The lakes in FL are shallow lakes to start with. That is why Lake George is so hazardous to small boats when the weather is bad.

The launching area at Mullet Lake is small so we decided to anchor in the river. A lot of fishing boats and air boats launch here and we didn’t want to be in their way. Since there was a pretty good current we both put out anchors when rafted up.

The weather is much warmer.

We were blessed with a beautiful sunrise.

Warm nights bring lots of bugs that are attracted to our anchor lights and the solar light I keep on the deck to see by, when I take Raisin out on the bow to do her business after dark.

Jim was up early and playing “swabbie”.

as was Larry….

This Blue Heron was standing in a tree top stretching it’s neck to get as much sunshine as possible. I think he was enjoying the sunrise as much as we were.

The sunrise striking the opposite side of the river really brought out the colors…….Jim is still “swabbing” down the boat.

Here’s a shot of the park. It has showers. Nothing fancy…but the water is hot.

Larry is still “swabbing” also. This is looking S.  Isn’t the scenery beautiful?

We didn’t see a lot of boats…but several were taking advantage of a beautiful day.

The is the view as he headed up the river. (the St Johns River runs N)

It is so beautiful out…no one is in a rush to get moving.

After the chores were done I think we spent an hour on deck just having coffee and talking. It was a perfect way to start the day.

They use airboats to spray to weeds on the waterway. 2 launched and headed S….an hour or so later we overtook them. It was interesting watching them work.

Jim found these trees intriguing.

Another big one….It’s nice to see there are still some  left.

Does it get any better than this?

This a brilliant idea for a section of the river that floods often during hurricanes or tropical storms. It is built on a pontoon barge and secured to 4 solid pillars that hold it in place while allowing it to float up and down with the river. They’ve added a floating dock and even the shed out back is on pontoons.    I could live here!!

Looking at the entrance to Lake Harney. We were told by a member of the boating club at the Boatworks Marina that it has a shallow bar at the entrance….we’ll pass on it this time. Jim and I have been already been aground once on this trip.

We turned around and headed up to the area where we saw the cows. We’ll anchor there tonight and hope to catch them coming down in the morning for a drink.

I know I have posted a lot of pictures…but it was such a beautiful day and I love this section of the river. I spent a lot of the day sitting on the foredeck.

Anchored for the night.  We only covered about 10 miles today. We dallied over coffee this morning and stopped early this afternoon.

We’re cruising around in the dingys looking for cows.

 

We did spot the white Brahma . I also saw deer tracks in the sand at the water’s edge. Hope they come down in the evening.

This has been the best day of the trip.