Sunday, January 31, 2010
Good night from Flamingo
We made it to Flamingo. After a drive down the west coast and nearly 100 roadside alligator sightings, we've set-up camp, had some burgers and dogs and called it a night. We're all tired but the 75 degree weather really lifted our spirits. Tomorrow it's a ranger led bike trip and some afternoon time to relax. Goodnight.
Manatee, Manatee!!
We woke up and headed to the Homosassa Spring State Park in FL this morning. After a quick boat ride in an electric powered pontoon boat that was recharged with a hydrogen fuel cell, we entered an amazing oasis where literally hundreds of manatees had taken refuge from the recent Florida cold spell. In every direction the guys were shouting, "There's one here!," and "Here's a baby!" or "Whoa, a really BIG one." I shot some video and I'll try to post it at a later date. For now, here's DJ and John putting on there best manatee face.
Of course no trip to Florida would be complete without the obligatory flamingo shot...
This last photo will need more explanation. Homosassa (which means
"wild pepper" in native american) is home to a 50 year old hippo who arrived at the park during it's early years as a zoo. Braedon has some amazing photos of him that will post tomorrow. Outside his exhibit is this sign. Apparently charging isn't the only dangerous act these animals are capable of committing.We're off to Flamingo!
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Greetings from Homosassas FL!
We're in Florida! After 18 hours on the road, we're in Homosassa Fl. We left a day early to avoid the snow storm that has now dumped several inches of snow in Virginia and the Carolinas. We saw several ominous electronic signs that read things like " WINTER STORM WARNING -TAKE SHELTER" and "MAJOR WINTER STORM MAKE OTHER PLANS UNTIL MONDAY." We saw some light snow in Charlotte but it cleared and we rolled into Savannah around 11pm.
Because we left a day early, we gained an extra day to explore. We made the decision to travel to the Gulf coast of Florida and break the second half of our trip into two smaller chunks. This has given us the opportunity to visit a manatee sanctuary tomorrow morning.
The state park has a sanctuary for manatees that visitors can explore and meet several manatees and a resident hippo, oh and of course a slew of 'gators. We'll visit the park in the morning before heading down the west coast of Florida and arriving at Flamingo.
The weather has been rainy but things should improve tomorrow. We stopped at the Florida visitors center and it was Winter Fest. We drank orange juice and popcorn in our T-shirts while Braedon had a palm tree painted on his face by a local artist. All of the guys are loving the warm (65 degree) weather. They were all amazed to see oranges on trees, in backyards!
Several of the guys are convinced that the palm trees in the parks can't be real. We had a late lunch at a really good BBQ restaurant, we're the guys learned that Carolina BBQ sauce is made with vinegar.
As I write this the guys are finishing science homework. Since lunch was late we'll grab a quick bite to eat before heading back to our rooms and finishing up for the day.
In a few minutes I'll post a video blog entry from Layton and DJ. Layton has given us several memorable qoutes that I've been writing down and I'll post them near the end of the trip.
Don't forget to comment or ask questions. I'll have the guys (or me) respond.
-Lane
Because we left a day early, we gained an extra day to explore. We made the decision to travel to the Gulf coast of Florida and break the second half of our trip into two smaller chunks. This has given us the opportunity to visit a manatee sanctuary tomorrow morning.
The state park has a sanctuary for manatees that visitors can explore and meet several manatees and a resident hippo, oh and of course a slew of 'gators. We'll visit the park in the morning before heading down the west coast of Florida and arriving at Flamingo.
The weather has been rainy but things should improve tomorrow. We stopped at the Florida visitors center and it was Winter Fest. We drank orange juice and popcorn in our T-shirts while Braedon had a palm tree painted on his face by a local artist. All of the guys are loving the warm (65 degree) weather. They were all amazed to see oranges on trees, in backyards!
Several of the guys are convinced that the palm trees in the parks can't be real. We had a late lunch at a really good BBQ restaurant, we're the guys learned that Carolina BBQ sauce is made with vinegar.
As I write this the guys are finishing science homework. Since lunch was late we'll grab a quick bite to eat before heading back to our rooms and finishing up for the day.
In a few minutes I'll post a video blog entry from Layton and DJ. Layton has given us several memorable qoutes that I've been writing down and I'll post them near the end of the trip.
Don't forget to comment or ask questions. I'll have the guys (or me) respond.
-Lane
Friday, January 22, 2010
About the Trip
On Saturday January 30, 2010, an English teacher (you guessed it, me), a science teacher and an art/science teacher will take six students from Yellow Breeches Frankford and Fair Oaks to the Everglades National Park in Florida. Once there, we'll enter one of North America's most amazing ecosystems to study, teach and hopefully have a little fun too!
After a 20 hour drive and a nighttime layover in Savannah Georgia, we'll start our week by setting up camp Sunday night at Flamingo Bay. You can find Flamingo by looking at a map of the U.S. and running your finger all the way to the bottom of Florida. When you run out of land, you're there.
Our first full day in the 'glades will include a ranger led bike tour. We'll also be using this time to get our backcountry permits and rig our canoes for our two-day back country canoe trip through Hell's Bay.
Hell's Bay got its name because early explorers found it was very tough to navigate. While it's still tricky to maneuver through the thick mangrove water trail, a modern GPS and navigation markers have made this once foreboding waterway a superb example of what the Everglades has to offer, from amazing waterfowl and plant life to, well, you guessed it, ALLIGATORS and CROCODILES!
Once in the back country of Hell's bay, we'll spend a night at the Pearl Bay chick-kee. A chick-kee is a platform with a roof that sits directly over the water. We'll set-up camp and spend the night in the one of the last truly wild places in U.S.
Our morning breakfast will give us the needed energy to paddle b
ack to Flamingo, again through a maze of mangrove. Then we'll unpack and set-up camp. During study time we'll brush up on the fish that live in the Key's reefs. This will come in handy on tomorrow's snorkeling trip.
We'll make the 2 hour trip out of the park and head south. South? You're asking. Didn't you run out of land? Sort of. We'll take a series of bridges across several island
s that make up the Florida Keys, stopping at our destination; Key Largo.
From there, it's a short boat trip to the local reef. We'll don flippers, masks and snorkels to see how well we've studied the local species of fish. The reefs provide food and shelter for thousands of species of marine life. Then it's back to Flamingo for our studies, some saltwater fly tying lessons and of course dinner.
With our newly tied flies, half the team will head out fishing with our favorite fishing guide, Staz.
The other half of the team will participate in a beach study and maybe alittle relaxing at the beach time.
Saturday, we'll switch with one team headed to the beach and the other going out fishing. After that, a good nights sleep for our long trip home on Sunday.
Saying goodbye to Flamingo, we'll leave Florida and spend the night in Charlotte before making the trip back to our home in Carlisle, PA.
The staff and students are really looking forward to the trip. We still have a lot of preparations to make, food to pack and plans to make but we all feel this will be a very memorable trip. Keep an eye on the blog for updates from staff and students.
After a 20 hour drive and a nighttime layover in Savannah Georgia, we'll start our week by setting up camp Sunday night at Flamingo Bay. You can find Flamingo by looking at a map of the U.S. and running your finger all the way to the bottom of Florida. When you run out of land, you're there.
Our first full day in the 'glades will include a ranger led bike tour. We'll also be using this time to get our backcountry permits and rig our canoes for our two-day back country canoe trip through Hell's Bay.
Hell's Bay got its name because early explorers found it was very tough to navigate. While it's still tricky to maneuver through the thick mangrove water trail, a modern GPS and navigation markers have made this once foreboding waterway a superb example of what the Everglades has to offer, from amazing waterfowl and plant life to, well, you guessed it, ALLIGATORS and CROCODILES!
Once in the back country of Hell's bay, we'll spend a night at the Pearl Bay chick-kee. A chick-kee is a platform with a roof that sits directly over the water. We'll set-up camp and spend the night in the one of the last truly wild places in U.S.
Our morning breakfast will give us the needed energy to paddle b
ack to Flamingo, again through a maze of mangrove. Then we'll unpack and set-up camp. During study time we'll brush up on the fish that live in the Key's reefs. This will come in handy on tomorrow's snorkeling trip.We'll make the 2 hour trip out of the park and head south. South? You're asking. Didn't you run out of land? Sort of. We'll take a series of bridges across several island
s that make up the Florida Keys, stopping at our destination; Key Largo.From there, it's a short boat trip to the local reef. We'll don flippers, masks and snorkels to see how well we've studied the local species of fish. The reefs provide food and shelter for thousands of species of marine life. Then it's back to Flamingo for our studies, some saltwater fly tying lessons and of course dinner.
With our newly tied flies, half the team will head out fishing with our favorite fishing guide, Staz.
The other half of the team will participate in a beach study and maybe alittle relaxing at the beach time.
Saturday, we'll switch with one team headed to the beach and the other going out fishing. After that, a good nights sleep for our long trip home on Sunday.
Saying goodbye to Flamingo, we'll leave Florida and spend the night in Charlotte before making the trip back to our home in Carlisle, PA.
The staff and students are really looking forward to the trip. We still have a lot of preparations to make, food to pack and plans to make but we all feel this will be a very memorable trip. Keep an eye on the blog for updates from staff and students.
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