It's Sunday, February 18th and it's pouring outside. It's cool and there's no desire to go anywhere. We've talked a lot about Crystal Lake RV Resort, but not so much about the interesting places and people that we either know or met. Last weekend we went to Manatee Park, which is on the north side and east of central Ft. Myers. It is an interesting place that features walking trails along the waterway where manatee's are known to gather. We didn't see any, as the weather was too warm. Apparently they like cooler water temps. But we did see an alligator resting. Of course Florida has an abundance of alligators, but they seem to be hiding from us. So far, we've spotted two. Everyone we speak with about not seeing alligators tells us that we need to go to this place, or that place. So we do that. We go that place or this one, which results in a sighting total of two.
The couple between Julie and I are John and Liz. They're our former next door neighbors from NH. They were in the midst of a fly/cruise vacation that took them all around southwest Florida. The ship was small that accommodated around 90 passengers. We met on Marco Island and spent the day catching up. It was a lot of fun and we had the opportunity to dine on the gulf, then walk the beach. Afterwards, we were allowed on board and they showed us their accommodations and the dining, lounging, bars and entertainment areas. It was impressive. It's worth noting that they are world travelers and have embarked on a lot of other river cruises; they're pros!
We also met up with Susan and Lance in Ft. Meyers for dinner. This was after we went to Manatee Park. It was good seeing them. I first met Susan on an old baseball website, where I learned she and her sisters (I affectionately named the Dolly Sisters), were originally from Connecticut. They were devout Red Sox fans and to this day bleed everything Boston baseball. They were also pivotal in establishing a grass route charity that benefitted ALS. The relationships established through Red Sox baseball spans all over the US and even overseas. It was Susan who brought a lot of us together at her home in Ft. Meyers, not just for the charity, but also because of a lot of spring training games.
A couple of weeks ago, we met up with Amy and Pat. Amy was Julie's college roommate. They've remained close all these years and were down in Naples so we got together and spent the day on Vanderbilt beach. We also hooked up with them to go water-taxi hopping. Both experiences were a blast. Julie posted some of the pictures on Facebook. Can't say for sure, but I'd guess they stood in the gulfs water for over an hour.
On Saturday, we drove up to Estero and went to Koreshan State Park. If you are ever in southwest Florida, we suggest this place be on your must do/see list. It's a fascinating place that's on the National Register of Historic Places. A lot there is restored and preserved. The grounds and buildings are meticulously maintained and the volunteers are extremely knowledgeable. We spent hours there and could have spent even more time. There's an RV site on the property, but it's hard to get in, as it is booked months and months in advance. The fascination is all about a guy names Cyrus Teed, who who formed the Koreshan Unity. His belief was similar to other settlements like the Shakers, Mormons or the Harmonists. What was different is the idea that they lived inside the earth. The two top pictures (middle and right), detail what Teed thought. It was an establishment of New Jerusalem.
The bottom pictures show walking trails, along with a turtle (protected in FL), heading to its shelter. Note the green tape that keeps visitors from damaging the entrance.
Dinner was at Coconut Jacks in Bonita Springs. It's a place we'd been to before on a trip to Florida several years ago. We're sitting on one of several piers that boaters can pull up to, get off and eat. They had fresh stone crab, which is really hard to pass up.
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