6 February 2023, Southern Camping Trip Day 32

Okeechobee KOA Campground

Lake Okeechobee

Okeechobee, Florida 

A bottle brush tree complete with bees.

Marc-  We spotted this beautiful bottle brush tree on our morning walk around the campground.  Before going over to Vero Beach again we found the cheapest diesel fuel (as yet seen) in Florida.  

Very nice day today with sunshine and temperatures in the 70's.  We went over to visit with my cousin Armand again.  He was very nice to us and helped us replace a tire tube on Sue's bike.  His knowledge and experience as a bike racer is incredible and we learned a lot on how to do what appeared to be a simple task.  In fact I had replaced this tire tube in the recent past and its early demise was due to my using a screwdriver in part of the installation. We learned to do it with fingers only and no stress.  

Door decoration at Waldo's Beach Hotel and Restaurant in Vero Beach.  We enjoyed an excellent lunch here on the beach deck.  Waldo's is mostly built of driftwood.

Vero Beach

Staying ahead of the tide.

Vero Beach Art shop.

Armand and his daughter Michelle.

Bougainvillea 

The road back to Okeechobee.

5 February 2023, Southern Camping Trip Day 31

 Okeechobee KOA Campground

Lake Okeechobee

Okeechobee, Florida

Visit with my Quebec cousin Danielle and her husband Martin at their beautiful home in Ft. Lauderdale.

Marc- The trip from Okeechobee to Ft. Lauderdale became exciting when heavy downpours began once we reached Route 95.  Luckily Sue was driving and we made it past five crashes along the way.  The weather improved greatly once we arrived in Ft. Lauderdale.  

Mama Muscovy duck and her ducklings running for cover when we arrived.

We passed near many mega yachts on Ft. Lauderdale's marina mile.

4 February 2023, Southern Camping Trip Day 30

 Okeechobee KOA Campground

Lake Okeechobee

Okeechobee, Florida

Florida's largest lake at 730 square miles.

Marc-  Although we started our day with a walk around the campground, next came a bike ride on the Herbert Hoover Dike that surrounds Lake Okeechobee (110 miles).  We only biked a small fraction of the bike trail but we did have to deal with 25-30 knot wind gusts in one direction.  We turned around at one of the 11 locks that penetrate the Dike.  The only boats going through today were bass boats.  Lake Okeechobee is higher in elevation than the surrounding land and waterways during most of the year (15 feet above sea level).  The principle purpose of the Dike is flood control.

Lake Okeechobee is the second largest lake in the U.S.  Only Lake Michigan is larger.  The other 4 Great Lakes are partly in Ontario, so we are not counting them.

The Dike is 30 feet high and capped by a paved bike path.  

Bike trail rest area.

Flying pelicans staying low to spot fish.

Bass boat coming in from the Lake.

South Florida Water Management District Lock at Okeechobee (security is an issue here).

Another bass boat headed for the Lock.

In the afternoon we scouted out a recommended walking path several miles away.  We found the trail winding its way between a small river and several ponds.  Unfortunately the air quality was quite poor as the trail is downwind of a water treatment plant.  The highlight of the afternoon was going over to the Agricultural Exposition Grounds to see a horse barrel racing competition. 

Both men and women do barrel racing but the women do it bareback.

Only kidding, women ride with western saddles too.

Meanwhile back at the campground a red-bellied woodpecker is working.

(Those are pickleball courts in the background.)

3 February 2023, Southern Camping Trip Day 29

Okeechobee KOA Campground

Lake Okeechobee

Okeechobee, Florida

Iconic restaurant in Vero Beach.

Marc-  Sue and I started the day with a tennis match.  We also had time for ping pong and pool.  Our walking about the campground revealed several fishing boats on some of the larger campsites (boats that are pulled by the big rigs). Most of the fishing boats are kept under cover in a large garage.  There is a bass fishing tournament starting next week on Lake Okeechobee.  This lake boasts the worlds best bass fishing.  Other fish caught here include speck, sunfish, catfish, pickerel, bowfin and gar. 

Smallest fishing boat we saw here.

Typical bass boat.

Center-console fishing boat.

This campground is next door to Lake Okeechobee as seen below.

Vast campground with 9-hole golf course.

There are many large rigs like this in this campground.

The smallest rig in the campground:  a Mercedes Benz convertible and a small tent.

We went to the East Coast at Vero Beach for lunch with my cousin Armand Langevin.  Armand is an incredible athlete having completed 60 Triathlons in 10 years.  We enjoyed a nice lunch at Mr. Manatees and later drove around the town.

Vero Beach mooring field (wish our boat was here now).

Pelicans waiting for the fishing boats to come in.

Victim of anchor dragging.

Most of the land between Vero Beach and Okeechobee is cattle country.

We did see one dairy farm.

And only one citrus farm (their oranges are terrific).

 

2 February 2023, Southern Camping Trip Day 28

 Okeechobee KOA Campground

Lake Okeechobee

Okeechobee, Florida

Fort Pierce Inlet anchorage.

Marc-  (76 degrees at 8 am) We did our usual morning walk looking for wildlife and interesting trees around the campground.  Initially we saw little but row upon row of campers until we reached the edge of the golf course.  Here we did find some new birds as well as some we knew.

Whistling duck and common pigeons.

Duck in flight.

Red-bellied woodpecker (note that this bird is not interested in the bird feeder food but would rather look for worms just below the tree bark).

The same woodpecker.

White egrets.

Once the temperature reached 80 degrees at 10:00 we went for a cool drive to the East Coast Beaches about 1.25 hours away.  There was a nice sea breeze  blowing from the East to keep the temperatures in the low 80's.  We started out at Ft. Pierce Inlet.  This is a man made inlet that is deep and wide enough for small ships.  It was dredged by the creator of Crayola Crayons who wanted to improve the fish population in the Indian River in front of his house.  He hired a steam shovel to dredge out a passage to the ocean about 1/2 mile in length.  The result of the new passage greatly improved the fishing and the quality of the water.  Much recreation and some commercial traffic passes through this inlet.  There is a shipyard nearby and several marinas.  The area around the Inlet is also excellent for anchoring out with a number of protected bays with excellent holding.  And it's free with a dinghy dock included and several parks.

Large Banyan tree at Ft. Pierce Inlet.

The same Banyan by the bay.  

The old railroad station is now a museum.

Sue enjoyed this plate as she drove us back to Okeechobee.

1 February 2023, Southern Camping Trip Day 27

Okeechobee KOA Campground

Lake Okeechobee

Okeechobee, Florida

Wood Stock waiting for some handouts.

Okeechobee Campground

Marc-  It is fitting to start the blog off with a bird since we spent a great morning doing the Park Ranger birding tour at Highlands Hammock State Park.  A group of about twenty people gathered for a birding tour in the park behind the Ranger's House.  Ranger Blake Lewis introduced us to the many bird species that inhabit the area behind his house.  He has been a bird enthusiast since his early years and can recognize and make many bird sounds or calls.  He even tricked Sue's birding app  "Merlin" into believing a great horned owl was present.  He brought us to where we could view an Eagle's nest that was actively in use.  We also saw robins, red-headed woodpecker, red-bellied woodpecker, kestral, cardinal, sand hill crane, eagles and many many small birds - sparrows and warblers.  We also saw 2 white tailed deer.

Much of the day was spent making a campground change.  The new KOA campground could not be more different than the last.  It is really built up and has all of the modern amenities including pools, 9-hole golf course, tennis and pickleball courts, shuffleboard and pétanque (French for bocce ball). Sue and I played ping pong and pool.

Sunset from the Lake Okeechobee Pier.