Thursday, March 01, 2007
St. Johns River Near Welaka, FL -- Saw Me a Gator!
Wednesday, February 28, 2007. As we left our anchorage heading south this morning, I could have sworn we were on Lake Wilson in North Alabama (well, before all the development along the shoreline there). The St. Johns River is several miles wide, and the shores are heavily wooded, dotted occasionally with small hamlets. This would be a fabulous area for sailing – wide open spaces, deep water, nice wind. Maybe we could live here – naaahhh. Those hurricanes, and Florida’s insurance, and property taxes! Besides, we’d miss our friends!
After we passed the city of Palatka (we’ll probably stop there on our return), we noticed a large cut to the west. This channel was originally to be the northern Cross Florida Canal, a project permanently nixed by President Nixon because of environmental and right-of-way concerns. With the exception of some gulls that used our wake as a fishing ground, we had the waterway mostly to ourselves. Gradually the river narrowed and became wilder and even less populated. Was that a Bald Eagle I saw? Yes, I believe it was!
Today’s destination was an anchorage just north of the town of Welaka. Again, Bob’s new anchor set perfectly the first time we dropped it. It was 1:30 p.m., time for a great dinghy explore. I’ve wanted to see a gator for days, and sure enough, Bob found one for me. He was a baby, but it was definitely an alligator on that log! The birds in a cove were spectacular. Back on the boat we sipped our afternoon toddy as we watched the egrets, ospreys, and anhinga roost for the night.
After we passed the city of Palatka (we’ll probably stop there on our return), we noticed a large cut to the west. This channel was originally to be the northern Cross Florida Canal, a project permanently nixed by President Nixon because of environmental and right-of-way concerns. With the exception of some gulls that used our wake as a fishing ground, we had the waterway mostly to ourselves. Gradually the river narrowed and became wilder and even less populated. Was that a Bald Eagle I saw? Yes, I believe it was!
Today’s destination was an anchorage just north of the town of Welaka. Again, Bob’s new anchor set perfectly the first time we dropped it. It was 1:30 p.m., time for a great dinghy explore. I’ve wanted to see a gator for days, and sure enough, Bob found one for me. He was a baby, but it was definitely an alligator on that log! The birds in a cove were spectacular. Back on the boat we sipped our afternoon toddy as we watched the egrets, ospreys, and anhinga roost for the night.
