Myakka River State Park
A Florida palm forest! So many of the original wild stands of palm trees were raided by new residents demands for palms in their yards, or torn down by need for land to build these new housing developments. It is rare to find a fully intact palm forest!
I hope you get a chance to visit here one day and visit a real palm forest.
Myakka River State Park
Where River and Prairie meet the sky.
Myakka River State Park is one of Florida's largest and most diverse natural areas. The river and the 2 shallow lakes attract many wetland creatures making birding, canoeing,fishing, and wildlife observation popular to many visitors here.
There are more than 39 miles of hiking trails here, so bring comfey shoes and lots of skeeter spray! Here are some of the wild critters found on our walk abouts!
A good sized gator and lots of hungry vultures!
Another alligator in another area of the park, looks like he was just cruisin' by.....
RACOONS!
Chuck went to throw away some trash he had picked up and found this family of raccoons living in the garbarge container!
We reported that the raccoons had taken up living quarters in the garbarge container
but the park rangers said it was a never ending battle to keep them out!
Awwwww! Aren't they cute ????
The anhinga is definately a prehistoric leftover from the past!
A bird with both feathers and fur! There is fur mixed with the body feathers which is great while swimming (think of fur creatures like the beaver an otter!) but when this bird wants to fly, the fur is too heavy and it must dry out first before it can take flight!
Another tour we missed was exploring the treetops using Myakka/s canopy walkway! There is also a 70' tower for an awesome view of the wetlands, forest, and prairie that make Myakka River State Paark so special. There are bicycles. canoes and kayaks for rent if you so desire to spend your time this way. Well worth a few days stay here, lots to do!
One of our last trips in our Oliver and the Suburban! We had lots of good times in both!
OK! I am trying to catch all of you up on this, our exploration of Florida! Next blog will be on Highlands Hammock State Park!
Happy Trails from Geri, Chuck, Scotty and Doogie Bowser
I really enjoyed seeing Myakka River again. It's been almost 10 years since I was there.
ReplyDeleteMy most vivid memory there was watching the birds on the water at sunset as an alligator cruised stealthily toward them. The birds appeared oblivious to his presence. All of the sudden, there was an explosive thrashing of water, as the alligator devoured one of the birds for dinner.
I also almost sat on a cottonmouth moccasin while fishing from the bank!
Great memories. Thanks for the update on the park.
I also enjoyed seeing your Casita friends... and congratulations on the new 5th wheel!
Chuck and Geri an excellent blog here. I live in Sarasota so I'm close to Myakka State Park. I hope you were able to climb the canopy hammock through the trees to the 76foot observation tower. Very cool. My company 'Rinehart Video Productions' is due to shoot another travel video here. Just a fantastic park to visit. All the best.
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