Samson Island

Had a great time leading trips out on Samson Island today. Saw a few birds, lots of neat plants, and met some great people. Here is a short video I shot of the hight lights:

Another Manatee-free Manatee Watch

Well, despite the cooler temperatures, we had another manatee-free manatee watch today. But it was still nice to get out, and on our way out of the park we got great looks at a snipe:

What was kind of odd is that he just sat there, snipes are not know for being posers.  Maybe just cold or something.

My last manatee watch for the year is in two weeks. Next Saturday,  I will be leading walks on Samson Island. Come out and join me! Remember, you can see cool pictures on the internet, but you can only truly experience cool stuff if you GOYB and join us!

Manatee(free) Watch

Joined by HFC David and Heather this morning, we had an eventful manatee watch although it was completely manatee free. We started by interrupting some guys who thought that the observation deck was a just dandy place to camp (despite all the actual camping areas in the park. Science comes first, we just walked by them and started the observation as if they weren't there. Eventually they woke up and left, but we were glad we had big strong David.

Due to much, MUCH warmer temperatures, we did not see a single manatee today. We did, however, get to see some cormorants fighting over a massive cat fish. If you didn't GOYB to join us, here's what you missed today!

 Om-nom-nom! I gots me a fishy!

Um... this things pretty big... not sure I can swallow it...

 Hey! That fish is too big for you! Share it!

No way, buddy! Get your own fish (slap, slap, slap, slap, slap - this went on for a while)

MY FISH!

Eventually, he turned it around and swallowed it whole. We didn't actually see him eat it, but we did see a cormorant with a HUGELY fat neck a few minutes later. How he didn't suffocate himself was beyond me.

Anyway, as always, it was great to get out in nature.  We only have 4 more manatee watches this year, make sure you GOYB and join us. I can't guarantee manatees, but I can guarantee fun and great company!

Another Awesome Manatee Watch!

Had another great time doing manatee watch today. There were only about 5, but they were very active and I got some decent video. Check it out here, and come out for a manatee watch with us soon!

Manatee Watch

Had a solo outing today, did the weekly manatee survey by myself this week. Too bad you didn't GOYB, cause I saw some wicked neat stuff.  Here's what you missed:

A really pretty dew-covered spiderweb on the fence going down to the shore.

There were a total of about 9 manatees today. We have had a lot of rain, and there was a ton of water coming over the dam which is what was producing all the foam. Didn't seem to bother the manatees any.

 A manatee tail.

A manatee back. The temperature was in the low 70s and rapidly rising while I was out there. Unless it gets cold again, I doubt we will see as many manatees going forward.

This Kestrel was sitting on a pole right behind my car. There have been a ton of them out at the preserve this year, even more than last year. If you want super good looks at Kestrels, just drive down Buffer Preserve Drive (the main entrance off of Babcock.)

Another cool web, this one on the barbed wire by the dam.

The water was all latte like.

This is the water coming over the dam. We do the survey from near the top of the dam.

When I got in my car to leave, I looked up, and there was a HUGE herd of wild turkeys on the berm across from where I was doing the survey. Of course I had to grab my camera and head back.

There are 9 in this picture, but thee were way more, I would have needed a wide-angle lens for that.

 A particularly pretty little egret.

This little guy was also near my car, a palm warbler. I got better shots of him for ID purposes, but this was my favorite shot, there was just something I liked about the framing of it.

It was an awesome morning out there, hope to see you out there on an outing with me.  Remember, you can see stuff like this on TV or the internet, but you can only really experience it if you come out and play with us!

Manatee Watch

We had our first real cold snap of the year, which means manatees, manatees, and more manatees! I shot a video of the manatee watch today. If you didn't GOYB and go with us, here's what you missed!

Remember, you can see stuff like this on the internet, but it's nothing like being there in person where you can hear the spray when they come up! Make sure you come out and join us for an event soon.

Goals and Resolutions 2014

I just realized that I forgot to post goals and resolutions last year. Here are some for this year:

• Traverse 1000 miles in a self-powered manner. Would like to do more walking this year than biking, but however I get there, at least I'll get there. 
• Spend (at LEAST) the first 1000 hours of 2014 junk-food free. This will be hard, but is doable.
• Delete Twitter/Facebook from my phone. I realized I was spending far too much time being out, but not in the moment, it was making me sad. No more. (This is already DONE!)
• My big one is to do something creative every day, and no wasting time on the internet till this is done. Blogging is creative - reading Fark.com is not. 

What about you? Other than DeeMotivation 2014, do you have goals for this year? Please share, we can all work together to make our lives the best they can be!