Bon Echo PP, ON (Trip # 12) June 2013

 
 
 
 
Week before school is out and there is lots of room in the campground.  Mosquitos are brutal however.  Loved kayaking on Lake Mazinaw.




Kayaking alongside 100 m high Mazinaw rock.

Lichen growing on the Rock.

One of over 260 Aboriginal pictographs on the Rock, only accessible from the water.

Young woodpecker calling for dinner.

Dinner has arrived.

Purple irises along shoreline of lake.

Deer feeding along trail.

North Bend SP, WVa (Trip # 11) June 2013

 

Love West Virginia - reminds me of northern Ontario without the bugs!  June was a great time to go - no problem getting a campsite as school is not out yet, but the weather is great.

Irises in Tomlinson Run State Park on the northern tip of West Virginia.

There's more than one Toronto!

Trail in North Bend State Park, WVa.

 

Paddling the North Fork Hughes River - artificially dammed to prevent flooding downstream in Cairo during heavy storms.

Fritillary butterfly along Rail Trail.

Black ratsnake along North Bend Rail Trail.

Sweet pea along the North Fork Hughes River.

Along the back roads of West Virginia.

Flickers in North Bend State Park.

 

Toxic caterpillar of the Buck Moth.

Butterfly weed along the North Bend Rail Trail.

Double rainbow over the campground after a tornado watch.

 

Luna moth on the restroom screen.

Biking in the tunnels of the North Bend Rail Trail.

View of the North Fork Hughes River from the boat launch.

Hocking Hills SP, OH & Cypress Swamps, southern IL (Trip # 10) May 2013

Our first Road Scholar trip - 3 nights at the cypress swamps of southern Illinois along the Cache River (south of St. Louis).  Based out of the Giant City State Park, we stayed in individual cabins and ate our meals in the main lodge.  This was a great experience, and has us seriously considering longer Road Scholar experiences (see trip # 16).




On the drive down, we travelled through Amish country in Ohio.

Stopped off at Hocking Hills State Park in southern Ohio to do some hiking on the way.  Beautiful waterfalls and river eroded rock walls.

 

More from Hocking Hills SP.

More from Hocking Hills SP.

More from Hocking Hills SP.

Hiking through the rock formations of Giant City State Park.

Kayaking through the duckweed matted swamps with the cypress forest in the background.

 

Our Road Scholar leader serenading us with some of his own tunes.

 

Cricket in a cave.

 

Florida Keys & the Everglades (Trip # 9) March 2013

Time to escape the cold and snow of southern Ontario for a month on Big Pine Key.  Also took some time to visit the Everglades and look for a place to spend next year (Bonita Springs).  It was very windy in the Keys, which limited our kayaking.  Also unable to find doggie daycare, so we either took turns biking and kayaking, or found dog friendly activities (mostly hiking).

Too many pictures to post here, so put together a youtube video with appropriate music.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwSqFvQJ2iQ&feature=youtube_gdata

 

 

Endangered key deer in the lot beside our rental on Big Pine Key - so tiny and so tame!

California (Trip # 8) December 2012

Spent a few days exploring state parks on the drive from San Francisco to Fresno where we are spending Christmas.

California coastline view south of San Francisco.

Warning sign on a roadside restroom.

 

Banana slug in Butano State Park.

Ensatina in Butano State Park.

Shorebirds on Pacific coast of Año Nuevo SP.

Silver dollar seashell at Año Nuevo SP.

Peacock at Casa de Fruta along Pacheco Pass Highway near Gilroy.

Trail through the foothills of Pacheco State Park near Los Banos.

Elk in the distance at Pacheco SP.

Wind turbine at Pacheco SP - not sure what the fuss is about them in Ontario!

Barn on the way in to Fresno.

Fort Walton Beach, FL (Trip # 7) November 2012

First time I have ever been to Florida!  Looking forward to escaping what I think is the worst month of the year in southern Ontario - days are getting shorter, cool, rainy, and little sunlight.  Driving down through Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee and Georgia to the Florida panhandle.  Renting a 1st floor condo, right on the beach.  Doggie daycare and dog park nearby. and lots to - kayaking, biking, hiking, outlet mall, beachcombing, even our first senior discount at the movies!

Again, too many pictures to post here, so a short youtube video with music at the link below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmX7yD2pn_I&feature=youtube_gdata

Dolphin sighting while kayaking along Intercoastal Waterway near Peach Creek.

Great Smokey Mountains NP, TN (Trip # 6) October 2012

Signed up for a weekend fungus identification field course in the Great Smokey Mountains of Tennessee, so made it a two week trip.  Drove down through Ohio and stopped at Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky before heading over to Tennessee (I see why they call it the Smokey Mountains - damp, rainy, and foggy).  On our way back we stopped off to travel the catwalk under the New River Gorge Bridge in West Virginia.

Too many pictures to post here, so have posted a youtube video (with music):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=za0sZ_spf78

The Great Smokey Mountains.