I love to watch these Bald Eagles.
Isn’t this tree spectacular? Jim noticed the moon was still up so we cruised around in the dingy until I could get a picture of it with the Eagles.
A little later I spotted this Eagle in another tree. I almost missed him ..it blended in so well.
One of the original pair moved into the finer branches of the tree…
and then took off….
I’m afraid my fight shots leave a lot to be desired. I’ll keep trying.
It was a cool night…the generator’s extended run tank kept the heater going and we were fairly warm all night. A lot of foggy mist rising from the water in the morning. I was surprised to find a bit of ice on the boat. I didn’t realize it was that cold overnight.
We anchored where the sun would hit us fairly early and we’d still have phone signal. But…I forgot the angle of the sun had changed in 2 months and a big tree was between us and the sunrise.
We like this spot…not just for the phone signal….there are a pair of Bald Eagles that spend a lot of time in the tree near us.
The twisted limbs of the tree and the spanish moss is beautiful and a perfect setting for this big beautiful bird.
Last evening we saw a Manatee in the Springs. We were thrilled. We’ve never seen one in Silver Glen. We later learned it had been released there. I think it had been in rehabilitation at Sea World for hypothermia. It had been at the springs for over a week.
We took the dingy ashore, paid our fee, and went to the “boil” (spring head) for pictures. On our way over we spotted this Blue Heron sitting on the post that ropes off the area that boats are not allowed to enter.
The pictures are not very good…
We took the hiking trail out to the “Sand Boils”. A nice walk.
They are small springs, but without enough pressure to keep it open and clear the sand….so they appear to “boil”.
We went back to the boat for lunch….around 2pm we headed back to the spring to take more pictures of the Manatee. We waited and waited and still it didn’t surface. A few minutes later we learned it hadn’t surfaced to breathe for over an hour and someone had been called to come check it out….it was dead….they towed it to a nearby boat ramp.
The next morning, as we were leaving the spring run, we noticed they were loading it into a small trailer that looks like a sling.
It looks like it’s resting. I heard there were over 300 lost this year to hypothermia. I guess the waters cooled down too fast for them to all reach the warmer spring waters.
They are beautiful animals. We were sorry to lose this one.
The sun was shining when we got up. Once the curtains were down it was very warm. Raisin had a trip to the “potty carpet” on the deck while I shut off the generator. After coffee and a hot bowl of oatmeal we headed for Silver Glen Springs.
A large flock of Pelicans were sunning and grooming themselves on this boat house.
The trip up Blue Creek was beautiful, as always. We met several fishing boats at the N entrance. They must have been looking for a nice spot out of the wind.
The lake was a bit lumpy but still a good ride. More fishermen near the entrance.
This is one of our favorite stops. Good place to swim. You can see the sandy spots on the bottom. That’s the clear water from the springs. Sometimes you can’t see bottom until you are past the island. Wind and tide play a part in how far the water stays clear at the entrance. Lake George and the St Johns River are a dark “tea” color.
This Anhinga had just come out of the water to dry it’s wings. They always look like they are having a bad hair day.
These men were fishing with bows. We see them in here quite often. The fish are easy to see in this clear water. There are some that come in at night. They have generators and big lights.
I took a swim and Jim spent an hour mopping the boat down. It’s a beautiful day….air is cold but the sun is warm. Time to kick back and relax.
All the last minute items were stowed….freezer food, pet food, milk etc.
We left the house fairly early…the air was cold but the sun warm. The bird and dog ride in the truck with us and we had the heat on.
The boat and trailer were backed down into the water…..for some reason the boat didn’t want to come off the trailer. Jim gunned it a bit and it still wouldn’t float free. OHHHHHHHH…one minor little problem…….when Jim replaced the shift cable….he hooked it up backwards…..LOL….so when he was trying to back off…he was really putting it back on…..once that was figured out…it launched perfectly….while I put up all the side curtains, Jim switched the cable.
We were underway by a bit after noon. The sun was warming it up inside but I had the bird’s “hot water heater” tucked up under the covers so she’d stay warm. Raisin had her sweater on and we had sweatshirts…all comfy cozy.
There were several gators out sunning themselves….my camera battery was dead….one of the things I forgot to check the night before.
We were having such a good time cruising we decided to skip Hontoon Island and head for the anchorage at G3. Jim had the extended run all set up for the generator.
The sun set about an hour before we got to G3 (Lungun Island).
All the black specks are swallows. The sky was full of them.
Once anchored, we started the generator, the heater and put up the side curtains. We were nice and snug in the cockpit for a bit of reading and a glass of wine. Then off to bed.
I have the bunks made up ( with all the heavy blankets)….. All the canned goods stowed…..towels….and some clothes are aboard. The last minute stuff…pots n pans, bird, dog, their food, freezer stuff…etc will go aboard just before we leave.
Off to the Motor Vehicle Dept tomorrow…..then I can load more of the “stuff”.
Thurs will be launch day if there are no more delays….Hontoon Island Thursday night. It’s supposed to be down to 39* by morning…..It will be much nicer to be at the dock and plugged into electric….it probably wouldn’t cost any more than all the gas we’d use running the generator all night…….. We get to dock there for 1/2 price. ….. Sometimes being over 65 can actually be a good thing.
If you ever get to visit Hontoon Island…be sure to visit their museum and watch the video. It is very good and you can see what Blue Springs was like years ago.
This time of year…keep a close watch for Manatees in that area. It is only a few miles N of Blue Springs…..and that is a haven for them. They stay there for the warm 72* water of the springs.
This is my favorite Manatee photo. We thought they were twins…but one is sort of adopted. They showed up at Blue Springs a day after this was taken on Nov 18. I sent the photos to Georgia Zern…she forwarded them to Ranger Hartley at Blue Springs…..this was his response to her…and then forwarded to me:
“The mother is H. Granger; her calf is to her left. The calf on the right is
Kee (female). I can make out the R brand on Kee's shoulders. Kee was
adopted by Della at Lowery Park Zoo while Della was recovering from a boat
strike. Della, Pal (her calf while in captivity) and Kee were released this
summer at Palatka. Della and Pal came in on 29 Nov. So did H. Granger and
calf. Kee was first seen with Park and calf on 2 Dec. Kee left Park and went
over to nurse on Cheryl (with calf), Cheryl was in on 18 Nov. Since arrival
Kee has nursed on several different mothers.”
So please be careful….and watch for H Granger and her calf….and maybe Kee will be with them. They are beautiful animals. You will love them.
The temperature is warming up…still having a few cool nights but it is beautiful weather for boating.
Time to start loading up…that means many many trips up and down the ladder…beds to be made…supplies stowed away….and hopefully a launch early next week.
Carole & Ed aboard Southern Cross will be heading up the St Johns River (S) about the same time….and we hope to meet up with them somewhere along the way.
So … check back next week…maybe we’ll be enjoying some time on the water.
This is what the shifting cable looked like when it came apart.
The outer casing had rusted and when put under pressure split. Without the strength of the casing, the cable just makes a loop and doesn’t do it’s job of moving the shifting lever on the back of the transmission.
This is the repair he made that got us home.
There is a plastic hose inside of the grey one…then several wire ties.
We are now looking for new cables.
