TEN THOUSAND ISLANDS

 

Four couples of us towed our boats to Everglades City last week for our Spring overnight boating excursion.   We docked our boats and then used two of them to explore the waters.  (EC is only a little over an hour away by road, but it would have  been at least one overnight stop before we arrived at our destination if we had traveled all the way by boat.)  

Everglades City is at the edge of the Ten Thousand Islands, a chain of mangrove islets off the SW Florida coast.   And exploring at least part of this area was the goal for this trip.  We were grateful for good GPS and charts.  There are so many islets and they look so much alike it would be very easy to get turned around.   

 

 

I am pretty sure I'm right this time about these being terns.  (Again, thank you to all who corrected my bad-pun mistake last week when I mis-named a laughing gull.)   I think these are Royal Terns, and I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong.  This is a highly cropped picture of a sandbar islet we passed.

 

There were Ospreys on most of the markers we passed.  Many with babies at various stages.  This part of the Ten Thousand Islands is  part of Everglades National Park.  

 

 

 

We beached our boat on this small sandbar.  It was the first time we've anchored our boat.   (But we couldn't get off because none of us wanted to jump off the front.  The water in back (where our boarding platform is) was about 7 feet deep -- we didn't want to swim or wade either!)

 

The largest of the Islands is Chokoloskee, which is connected to Everglades City by a causeway.   It is the only one that is currently inhabited (by about 400 hardy souls).  We had  an early dinner one day at the Havana Cafe there.  Tables on the screened porch were surrounded by orchids and other tropical plants.

 

We stayed at an RV Resort that has dock space available for boaters.   The picture on the top left is our boat and one of the others from our group taken from the restaurant across the channel and the other picture is vice-versa (the restaurant taken from our dock.)    We walked to this restaurant on one day of our stay.

 

 

Companionable friends, birds, good food,  and beautiful scenery (some that we could only see from the water)  ... the recipe for another good boating excursion. 

 

LINKING this week to the following:   Thank you to the hosts.   (Last week the new INLinx tool did not work for me for the first couple of days.   On Wednesday when I tried for the fourth time, it suddenly worked again.  Fingers crossed that it decides this week to let me in from the first of the week!)

 NATURE NOTES;   ALL SEASONS;  THROUGH MY LENS;  MOSAIC MONDAY;  TRAVEL PHOTO SOUVENIRS; OUR WORLD on Tuesday;  SAY CHEESE;  WILD BIRD Wednesday;   MY CORNER OF THE WORLD;   SIGNS SIGNS;   THANKFUL THURSDAY;   SKYWATCH FRIDAY;   FRIDAY  BLISS;   SATURDAY CRITTERS;  and RATHER B' BIRDING  

 

 

 

Comments

[Annie]

What a wonderful world, Sallie !Here during two weeks, it was the beautiful Spring. Now, snow(just a little) is back. Flowers begin to blew. Inside, one of my orchids has... 4 flowers.

[A ShutterBug Explores]

How fun and exciting for you ~ lovely photography too!

Happy Days to you,
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)

[Anni @ I'd Rather B Birdin']

What a great excursion & fun time. To see such beauty of birds, wildlife and scenery is extraordinary!!

For all your sharing, I and we at I'd Rather B Birdin' send our thanks!!

[diane]

That must be a lovely way to spend the days.

[Adam Jones]

So many Royal Terns together. What a great sight.

[Debbie]

round 2!! good thing we are friends!! we see and share "different" things, things we each may never get the opportunity to see!! thanks for stopping by this morning!!!

[Jennifer Jilks]

You have amazing adventures!!

[Eileen Wise]

Hello, love the Osprey and nest. The Terns are a favorite bird too. The flowers are beautiful. Lovely sightings and photos. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Happy Saturday, enjoy your weekend.

[Margaret Birding For Pleasure]

How I envy your trip in your boat and all the birds you saw and photographed. I hope you have a lovely weekend.

[riitta k]

Boat living must be exciting! Pretty and exotic views. Wishing happy weekend.

[ellen b.]

So many great ingredients for a good time. Good friends, good sights, good food and wonderful creations. Looks like the best of times for you and your friends.

[Carver]

What a beautiful place to photograph. I envy your osprey shots. I've seen their nests on the NC coast but the only time I saw them was before I started always having a camera with me.

Thanks for stopping by and mentioning the kingfisher. I was happy about that. The only reason I got the shots of that one is they have such a distinctive call that I followed the sound and fortunately he landed where I could photograph him. I think they look like punk rockers.

[Jeanna]

The first thing I thought when I saw the anchored boat was that I couldn't get off of it. I'd probably have a hard time pulled up to a dock too. How did you find out the water was 7 feet in the back? That could have been a fun discovery. The island sounds wonderful and how cool a group of you took your boats to EC. I don't think I've seen a bird's nest perched on an arrow before (:

[betty - NZ]

My goodness, what a wonderful series of photos, Sallie! Wow! Thanks so much for sharing them. I'm so glad you linked up at My Corner of the World!

[Peter B.]

What a beautiful area. It would be so fun to explore by boat, especially some of the uninhabited islands!

[Linda Brown]

Oh! So much fun! Thank you for this wee peek at life in the WARM state!

[Lesley]

You'l need a rope ladder for next time you find yourself there so you can get off and on!

[Linda in Virginia]

Great shots! Neat way to take a vacation.

[RedPat]

Looks like a fun trip, Sallie!

[Colleen@ LOOSELEAFNOTES]

I want to say jet setters but maybe it's jet ski setters. You guys are like kids at play!

[Photo Cache]

When on the marina, I like reading boat names. Such funny names sometimes.

My SIGNS, SIGNS

[Lois]

You certainly got some wonderful photos Sallie. I always love seeing osprey nests!

[lea]

Love to see the birds (seabirds!), but those flowers are what really caught my attention!
Hope you are having a great week!

[Betty Crow]

Would love to visit here. Enjoyed your post.

[KB]

Lovely collection of photos

[Dina Johnston]

Fun shot of the royal terns. They always look like they are wearing toupees. Looks like a great trip.

[riitta k]

Lovely photos as always! yes, it is the nesting time for birds - soon in Finland too. Wishing you a great week.

[Terri]

What a neat place...I'm with you about jumping in over my head off the boat..LOL!

[Sylvia D.]

Sallie, What a wonderful post. Our weather is improving but we are a little behind. A month ago was still in the -17C range. Have a great week. Sylvia D

[Penelope Puddlisms]

The second shot of the terns is fantastic … they get all the best views! Also like the big FOOD signage, so straight to the point about something everybody needs. :) This chain of islets sounds fun to explore, especially with friends.

[William Kendall]

It looks like an idyllic way of life there.

[Photo Cache]

What a beautiful corner of the country. Heavenly.

Worth a Thousand Words

[Out On The Prairie]

Lovely area to visit, it has made a nice recovery from when I was down last after a hurricane.

[Junieper/Jesh StG]

What an adventure and see all these nests with babies! Sorry but I smiled about your dilemma how to get off the boat there by the sand bank:) What I am most amazed about is how summery it looks there!! FL is truly an overwintering place! Many thanks for sharing your trip which reminds us at All Seasons summer will eventually arrive where we live! Have an awesome week, Sallie.

[Alan Bates]

This sounds like a good outing to me. I love all the Ospreys!!

[NatureFootstep PhotoArt]

I don´t need 10 000 islands. I´ll take the one with the terns :) :)

[Lavender Dreamer]

What a fabulous trip! And it's amazing as to what you can see from a boat...and only a boat. We need to try to get on one of the boats in our area to go around the rivers. Love the beautiful birds and flowers you saw. Enjoy your week!

[Linda P]

I like the idea of boating with a group of friends. The Ten Thousand Islands area sounds exciting and also a challenge to navigate, but worth going there for spotting bird life from a boat. The Havana Café looks an attractive place with those gorgeous orchids and somewhere good to relax after a time on the water.

[Lisa]

Love the photo of the Terns. Look like you are living the high life with your boat. Pity you didn't fancy a 7 foot deep wade ;-)

[Sondra]

that looks like so much fun and in such a beautiful area...I must have missed the gull post so I gotta go back or I just didn't catch it..either way I think you're right Royal Tern the only other big tern with orange beak is the Caspian and it has little black "lips" I don't see that in your terns.

[Eileen Wise]

Hello, Sallie,

Your overnight boat trips sounds like a fun time. I love the terns, they are pretty birds. The orchids are lovely, the cafe sounds like a nice place to enjoy a meal.. Beautiful photos and mosaics! Happy Monday, enjoy your day! Wishing you a great new week ahead!

[Phil]

Hello Sallie. I was intrigued by your comment about Chokoloskee (wonderful name), "400 hardy souls", presumably because they sit out the hurricane season? Otherwise it looks and sounds perfect to me.

You have to watch out for these birders - one slip up and they will be onto you like a ton of bricks! Good to see the Ospreys doing so well. What a majestic bird it is.

[Heidrun]

I enjoyed your Post, thank you for sharing... happy MosaicMonday.

Have a good week.

[Calendula]

Beautiful orchids! What a relaxing day on the boat!

[Angie]

Sallie - so glad the linky worked for you this time. Your boating adventure is a welcome addition to Mosaic Monday! This brings back such pleasant childhood memories of St. Pete, and many a day hanging out around the mangroves. I would have been in the water in a flash at that sandbar!! I am ecstatic to see such a vibrant population of ospreys. Enjoy the upcoming week.

[Nancy Chan]

An enjoyable boat adventure. Its amazing where birds can build their nests. Beautiful birds and flowers. Have a great new week.

[Lady Fi]

You have the most wonderful adventures! Thanks for sharing them with us.

[Gaelyn]

Love this boating holiday. I grew up boat-camping. Gives a totally different perspective.

[Pat]

Isn't it wonderful that we have national parks to visit and enjoy? The joy of seeing nature at work! It must have been fun to go on this trip with friends. Sallie. The east coast has such wonderful birds and it is a pleasure to see these terns and ospreys thriving.

[Debbie]

this sounds like a super fun trip, with friends who enjoy the same things you do!!

our osprey have returned and we are seeing so many.

the restaurant sounds nice, the flowers are beautiful!! and by the way, how did you get off the boat??

[Al]

It looks beautiful. If I lived in Florida I'd want a boat.

[Taken For Granted]

What a fine looking trip you were on. Enjoyed seeing your photos. You also have a good looking boat. BTW, cowboys put an egg into their coffee pot to carry the coffee grounds to the bottom of the pot.

[mick]

great post and beautiful photos - all places and things I would love to see. The orchids are especially magnificent. Thanks for sharing.

[Fun60]

What a different viewpoint you get from the boat. Love the cafe surrounded by those tropical plants.

[Carol]

I do love a wonderful atmosphere like that screen porch with orchids and a view. Heaven!