Our new home & golf cart :-)

Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park~boat rides and Florida Animals

 As soon as we got inside the building we saw that the boat was getting ready to leave and they told us to hurry and get on.  It was the last boat leaving for the day.  I had my camera with me thank goodness.  As we boarded the boat and took off the captain talked about the scenery and the animals in the surrounding area.  I loved how the tall trees hung over the river and all the wood ducks.  This boat ride was free to get to the animals.  The fee to get in the Wildlife park is not bad, the boatride was worth that :-)

Park's Hours and Fees

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Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park

Hours:

9:00 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. year 'round. Open 365 days a year.

Ticket counters close at 4:45 p.m.

Fees:

Adults (age 13 and over) $13.00

Children (ages 6 through 12)  $5.00

Children 5 and under are admitted free.

When we got off the boat, we had to cross the road to get to the Wildlife building to buy tickets.  We decided not to go this time as we had not planned to do that today.  We went back outside and headed for the tram to take us back to the entrance.  Lovely butterfly garden just at the exit of the building.

Taking the tram through the woods back to the entrance to go home.

On the ride Clearwater beach, we decided the weather was not looking  good so we turned around.  Now heading home and just hoping we miss the rain.  I could see where it had rained and seen a rainbow.  We did end up getting rained on and really hard.  The wipers could not keep up with the amount of rain that was falling.  Thank goodness it didn't last long. :-)

Fort Island Gulf Beach....small beach with lots of excitement

Drove down a long road with marsh and not much to look at but finally came to a sign that said beach.  It's time for lunch so happy to see a sign so we could stop. :-)  The name of the beach was called Fort Island Gulf Beach.  There were lots of people enjoying the water, eating in the shaded locations, and fishing.  As soon as I got out of the car I spotted a big bird on top of a light pole.  He didn't hang out long there before he flew off.  I did manage to capture a few pictures of him.

The beach was small but people didn't seem to mind the children playing and running around.  It was definitely  a family kind of beach.  I did love the view from the beach as it was very relaxing and beautiful. Flocks of different species of birds were flying above the water and making some noise. 

Marlon got our lunch out of the car while I was taking some photos.  We sat in the shade and ate our lunch talking about where we were going to next.  I was listening to Marlon talk when I also saw something in the swimming area making big splashes. I got up to get a closer look.  All I could see was a big fish of some kind.  This fish  did not care about all the people in the water.  

More and more splashing by this fish, I still can't tell what kind of fish it is.

When the fin appeared on top of the water, I freaked out thinking it was a shark.  With all the children in the water, I wanted to yell to get out of the water. 

I saw the fin come up again but by that time the people in the water had seen it too.  They said it was a dolphin which made me feel better.  The children and adults were trying to get out there to reach it.  I don't know why they couldn't just leave it alone?  Lots of people had their phones out recording the experience.

What an exciting and delightful time at this small beach location.  They say the sunsets here are magnificent.  The sunsets will have to wait till another visit as its time for us to leave.

Trip to Kings Bay Park & Hunter Springs Park

Marlon decided today would be a no work day, yeah.  He had packed a cooler with picnic stuff and drinks.  Made us a ham and cheese frittata  and boy was it delicious.  We had some ketchup with jalapeno in it and I used some of it on mine, which to me made it even tastier. :-)  S2000 is packed and we are on our way. Looking forward to exploring our surroundings. First stop was Kings Bay Park.  After parking, we walked to the park and checked out landscaping ideas on the way.  

  I do like all the moss covered trees as we admire the beauty of the park.

 Marlon has spotted a White Ibis bird, I hurried to try and get a picture of it.  Not a good pic but you can at least tell what one looks like.

 The marina is not busy at the moment but within 10 minutes this place had lots of boats in the water and people in kayaks and paddle boards.

As we were walking back through the park Marlon spotted a baby alligator in the water.  I was looking at the same thing but thought it was a stick LOL.  Better stay out of these waters yikes!!!

I spotted a patch of flowers and noticed that the bees and butterflies were busy enjoying them also. 

We didn't make it back to the car because we spotted another sign Hunter Springs Park.  We decided to go and walk a little further to see what was in this park.  As we got closer it turned out to be a nice little beach and fishing area.  Lots of people were taking advantage of the free parking and  no admission to the beach area.  Nice picnic areas and a clean area to enjoy.

 We walked along the pier and saw some very interesting fish in the water.  Don't know what they are called but there were many of them in the water.