Florida offers so many opportunities to explore. We’ll chronicle our encounters with nature and interesting places and share our stories about the fun events we attend.
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Cape Coral
Springtime in Cape Coral, FL means one thing …. burrowing owls. Nesting season is almost finished and most of the new owls have grown as large as their parents. They can fly and are learning to hunt. The family units are still intact so it’s fun to see several together outside their burrows. The city
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Highlands Hammock State Park
Now that the summer is upon us and the weather is getting hot, a favorite location for us to visit is Highlands Hammock State Park just outside Sebring. Like many other parks in Florida, it has a diversified habitat. The park transitions from a dry, primitive area with scrub oaks and pine trees to a
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Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park
Just outside of Gainesville in the town of Micanopy, FL lies Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park. It is one of the largest parks in the state with almost 23,000 acres. It is designated as a National Natural Landmark. The preserve is known for snail kites, which is why we traveled there. There are also herds
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Fort De Soto Park
A great location that is often featured on many photography websites and in magazines is Fort De Soto Park in Tierra Verde. The park has a very diversified environment which includes several miles of beaches. Fort De Soto Park sits at the end of Tampa Bay where it flows into the Gulf of America. In
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Sarasota Celery Fields
The Celery Fields nature preserve in Sarasota is another top destination for birders and photographers on the gulf coast of Florida. It’s also a popular place for runners and walkers with a series of trails. From the 1920s to around 1995, the fields were used for growing celery crops which is how the area got
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University of Florida
The University of Florida is recognized as one of the top public universities in the country. It’s also known for its highly successful athletic programs. But this year, UF also had the distinction of being home to a rare yellow cardinal. According to most data, there are an estimated 15 million cardinals in the eastern
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Sebring Area
Sebring, Florida is known for its famous Sebring Raceway and the 12 Hours of Sebring. Racers from all around the world just descended on the small city of 10,000 people to drive in the annual event. The race is part of the prestigious IMSA sports car series. Sebring is surrounded by thousands of acres of
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River Ranch
From March to September, Florida is the summer home to swallow-tailed kites. Hopefully, I’ll be writing about some great photo opportunities over the coming months. We began seeing these incredible birds around the end of February, so we decided to take a drive to an area that is known to have a decent population. KICCO
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Baby Sandhill Cranes
Again, this year, we had a pair of sandhill cranes nest right around the corner from our house. The eggs finally hatched and there are now 2 new crane “colts” enjoying the neighborhood. The cranes chose to build their nest by a pond that they used 2 years ago. Luckily it was in a spot
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Okeechobee
A few weeks ago, we took a long ride down by Lake Okeechobee to look for a couple of rare birds for our region. They had been sighted at a campground on the south end of Lake Okeechobee. On the ride over we spotted a bald eagle with opossum roadkill for breakfast, and we were
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More Scrub Jays
We recently ventured out to nearby nature preserve which has a large stand of scrub oaks. In Florida, when you find sizable areas of scrub oaks, you may find Florida scrub jays. They are very sociable and curious and tend to travel in family groups. Scrub jays can be very approachable which makes them a
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Circle B Bar Reserve
One of the most popular destinations in Florida for photographers, birders, hikers, and families is Circle B Bar Reserve just outside of Lakeland. It’s a fantastic place to see amazing wildlife while walking some lengthy trails. The park is located along the western side of Lake Hancock. The terrain varies widely from swampy water areas