Oscar Scherer

It just keeps getting better. Oscar Scherer is also on our “return to” list. We got a very private, quiet campsite well away from all traffic noise. The park is near Venus for supplies and several great shelling and walking beaches. We knew right away that we did not book enough time here. While here, we managed to do some shelling, beach exploring, and have a great lunch with our friends Darvin and Marilyn. Unfortunately, our small portable camera decided to pack it in and we lost all our pictures of this part of our trip. We got some shots around the park though.

When I say our campsite was private, we did have to share it – we were the visitors after all – with a gopher tortoise. We were on his/her afternoon walkabout path. About 3:00 most afternoons, the tortoise would come merrily stomping through our site, stopping occasionally to munch a few grass blades.

Now Karen is the photographer. On a normal walk, she will average a photo every 90 seconds so I get a chance to stop and admire the surroundings. Thank heaven for digital!

There is a small pond - behind Karen - in the park with a little beach.

I wonder why we didn't see anyone in swimming? By the way, no one really knows how many alligators are in Florida. They did try to take a census but gave up counting when they reached one million. We have heard estimates of two million. When an alligator gets over three feet long, it has no natural predators, except in times of food shortages when the male alligator will turn cannabilistic.

We have had little rain, but the day it did, the skies really opened up. Florida is basically built on a pile of sand and shells, so the stream running under our trailer quickly disapeared when the rains stopped.

When it's not raining, we really enjoy the walks around here. The birdlife is very abundant. This cardinal caught our attention by calling for his mate, who we also spotted flitting through the trees.

I had to show you a shot of mullet – the fish swimming about in the school. Now if you believe in reincarnation, and you get a say in what you come back as, I would strongly recommend you pass on choosing to be a mullet. Mullets are known as the ultimate feeder fish. Just about everything bigger than a mullet from pelicans to osprey to alligators to larger fish love to eat mullet. Mullet swim around in convenient little schools near the water surface and occasionally splash about to gain attention. So there is not much future in being a mullet. Your basic career choices are being breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Now we are off to Myakka River State Park, about an hour's drive towards Florida's interior.