Chipola River and Tallahassee Trip

This post is being pulled from my distant memory.  We made a trip to North Florida last November to explore some new waterways.  We stayed in Tallahassee at the Governor's Inn..interesting finding parking downtown with the kayaks on the roof of the truck..but the valet managed it.  On the day of our arrival we stopped at Maclay Gardens for a beautiful stroll, even if it was a bit cold.

  We set out early on the next morning seeking an area near Natural Bridge.  It was brisk and chilly so I wore long sleeves and a kayak shirt John gave me..it warmed up quickly though as I paddled.  The location was remote and it was a nice paddle.  

Day two on my agenda was to visit Marianna Caverns and paddle from the State Park on the Chipola River.  In the Summer, we had taken the boys to the Smoky Mountains and everyone had a blast looking for salamanders.  I was delighted to find one underground in Florida in the caverns.

The Chipola River was gorgeous and even showing Fall colors - a rarity in Florida, especially Central Florida where we live.  But, this was North Florida in November..a tad too cold for us honestly though you warm up while paddling.

I am an avid bird watcher and even though I have seen lots of pied billed grebes there was something fun about watching this little cutie swim in front of our kayaks. 

Another part of this trip included a visit to St. Marks.  It was a birder's paradise there.  I ran into more bird fans that knew more about birds and had bigger lenses for their cameras than I did.

I freaked out when I saw the Shovelers..was first time I have seen them in the wild.  Also, I was pretty sure the two small ones were Green Winged Teals but one of the other birding experts told me it was too early for them to be here.  I consulted my bird books when I got home and still believe I was correct. 

Admittedly, I took more bird pictures than anything else.  I am still learning to use my Canon Rebel EOS digital SLR and these were taken with a zoom lens.  I didn't use a tripod..I am too active and moving around constantly for that..so the images are more blurry than the ones I take with my short lens and image stabilizer.  I have to take a dozen photos to get one to come out the way I like it. 

There was an abundance of monarchs.  We saw some with sticker tags on their wings; they are part of some tracking program.  Looking back at this picture now and knowing more about butterflies than I did then, I also see some sort of skipper on the edge of this picture.

The last paddle of our trip was at Econfina River State Park on the way home from North Florida.  The water levels were low and we had to pass through several areas of exposed limerock in certain spots..nerve wracking in kayaks you don't want to scratch. 

We paddled past lots of houses on the water and several otters swimming about.  They weren't too shy but I have heard about otter attacks so I keep my distance.