What I Did on My Summer Vacation (part 3): Mount Dora

We stopped in Mount Dora to visit with some dear friends, and fell in love with the town. Mount Dora is a quaint and historic town which sits atop the highest point in Florida (184 feet above sea level). There are actually some hills here - small ones, but hills, nonetheless. 

We stayed at the Lakeside Inn, which was built in 1883 and is on the US National Register of Historic Places. The building is gorgeous, and made me feel as if I were going back in time.

There's also a steam engine which still runs...

...with an old-fashioned red caboose.

Mount Dora sits on a huge lake - Lake Dora, as luck would have it. Lake Dora is part of the Ocklawaha River basin, which eventually empties into the St Johns River.

In the late 1800's, a canal was dug from Lake Dora to Lake Eustis, which became a haven for wildlife.

We took a guided cruise down the Dora Canal, and were excited to see alligators, three types of herons, and other wildlife.

An anhinga drying its wings after swimming with only its head and neck out of the water. Weird, huh?

The boat was moving and so were they, so I was not able to get clear photos of most of them, but we really enjoyed the ride.

... my favorite bird...

White ibises strolling through someone's front yard.

We went for a walk on Palm Island, a beautiful park...

... with what I believe is a real lighthouse.

Palm Island is a beautiful place to walk and enjoy the scenery and wildlife.

What I Did on My Summer Vacation (part 2) - Juniper Springs

Juniper Springs Recreation Area is located in Florida's Ocala National Forest. The swimming area, trails, and campground were constructed by Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930's. I think they describe it well on their website:
"The setting is unlike any other found in the United States, with hundreds of tiny bubbling springs and massive springs gushing out of crevices in the earth beneath a dense canopy of palms and oaks, an oasis within the heart of the desert-like Big Scrub."

 The swimming area is a curious cross between a natural pond and a swimming pool; the bottom is natural, but the CCC put walls around it, and terraced it so that people could sit.

 The old mill house, which works by water coming UP instead of down.

Walking along one of the hiking trails beside the creek.

This is the beginning of the kayak run, which a local kayaker told us was "hard as hell", with many hairpin turns and lots of obstructions to watch out for and get around.We opted out on this one.

There were 3 or 4 different types of turtles of pretty good size...

... and a very obliging and photogenic alligator...

These bright blue spots in the water are the places where water is bubbling up.

Here, I tried to photograph one; the water bubbling up reminds me of the "paint pots" and "sulfer pots" at Yellowstone.

Juniper Spring was a very unique and fascinating experience - a good place to relax, swim, hike, and kayak (if you're very experienced).

What I Did on My Summer Vacation (part 1) - St. Augustine, Florida

I don't want to be one of those annoying people who sit you down and show you hours of boring slides from their vacation. I can remember this being a regular occurrence when I was a child, back before there were digital cameras and computers. Luckily, in this day and age you can look at all, some, or none of them, and I'll never know the difference! Admittedly, I do have trouble leaving things out - editing is not my strong suit.

Drawbridge, St. Augustine

We started our trip in St. Augustine, Florida. The oldest continuously occupied city in the U.S., it was founded by the Spanish in 1565.

St. Augustine is known for its Spanish-colonial architecture and other historical buildings. This is the oldest house in St. Augustine.

Castillo de San Marcos was built from 1671-1675, and is the oldest masonry fort in the country.

Flagler College is just one of many examples of gorgeous architecture in St. Augustine. One of it's buildings is a hotel built in 1888.

We spent some time walking around the beautiful historic neighborhoods...

 

 Of course, we also went to St. Augustine Beach...

... and the beach at Anastasia State Park.

A live starfish.

Great Blue Heron

Where I've Been, part 3

While vacationing in Florida, I couldn't help but be struck by the difference in vegetation. The plants that people in Florida routinely grow in their yards are what we in Kentucky might refer to as 'extremely overgrown houseplants.' The huge tropical plants, palm trees, and Spanish moss-strewn live oaks strike me as otherworldly. I also took a trip to Selby Botanical Gardens while I was in Sarasota, and thought you might like to see photos of some of my favorite flora.

 The front yard of the lovely home where I stayed in Sarasota...

 ...views of the garden...

 ... with its fantastic intertwined trees...

... and peaceful gurgling fountain.

 

Another couple of highlights...

 ... from my hostess's yard...

 I would so love to be able to grow plants like these at home!

 Live oaks and other plants...

 ...across the street...

 A nearby tree...

 ... whose red-orange blossoms always seemed to glow in the sun...

The canal at the end of the street.

 Selby Botanical Gardens was just gorgeous...

 ... so much to see...

 ... though I neglected to write down their names...

 I did find out that this is a 'little blue heron'...

 This sago palm was unbelievably huge...

 The koi would actually come up to edge of the pool...

 and allow people to pet them...

 It was like being in a very well-kept...

... tropical rain forest...

 

...complete with over-sized pitcher plants...

... and  beautiful blooms everywhere.

 The oddest were these corpse flowers. The larger bud here is about 4 feet tall, and they're said to smell like rotting meat when open...

 ... which, at the time, they were not.


 Have a great week, everyone! I hope you enjoyed my plant tour!