February 16, 2016
We are enjoying the ebb and flow of life on the prairie. I thought
it had only been one week since I had posted, but it has been almost
two weeks! We are finally having more seasonal weather with less
rain. Last night was the first big downpour since our International
Dark Skies event on February 6
th.
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| Big storm moving in |
That event went well in terms of attendance and programming, but
was a washout for stargazing. After a long application process
Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park was awarded the first
International Dark Skies certification in Florida. The head of the
organization came to make the presentation and we had several great
talks and photo shows from experts about light pollution, dark sky
ecology (how plants and animals are affected by constant light during
daytime and nighttime), an astronomical trip through the universe by
a planetarium presenter, and a talk on astronomy by our resident
volunteer astronomer. Bill spends January and February camped in the
park and makes his telescope available for sun and night sky viewing
for our campers.
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| Bill's astronomy presentation |
We were also entertained by a troubadour from Canada who won a
Florida folk music contest for his original song about our unique
park. At 8:30, after all the presentations were over, Bill was to set
up his telescope, and a half dozen other astronomers who were camped
on our “astro pad” were going to do the same. No stargazing took
place. We had downpours all evening. Everyone was packed into our
small ranger station and the presenters had to compete with the
pounding rain on the roof and the wind that blew through whenever we
opened the doors.
Greg had a booth set up on the porch to help people put red
plastic on their flashlights to help keep our local light pollution
down for the evening's star gazing. He didn't have too many takers. I
manned the inside desk and answered the phone and fielded questions
from our visitors.
Sunday dawned clear, but most of our campers had to leave before
nightfall and the pristine sky that followed. That night the stars
were amazingly bright and the Milky Way was clearly visible. Well, we
got to enjoy it. One of the privileges of volunteering in this remote
lovely place.
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| The flooded dry prairie behind the oak hammock where we camp |
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| Clearing skies after the big storm |
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| Local residents enjoy the newly flooded lawns |
One of the disadvantages of the remoteness is our bi-weekly
grocery run, a two-hour round-trip to Sebring in the interior. We
went again a week ago and have been stocking up for two weeks at a
time. Here is my teeny-tiny fridge and freezer. A week in and still
jammed full!
Greg had a couple more days out in the swamp buggy doing trail
maintenance. This week he finally got to drive! Today he is back to
pulling invasive plants. We took a walk on the Hammock Trail for the
first time since we arrived. It is muddy with a few huge puddles, but
has been impassable until now. Great to get in there, but Greg found
a whole bunch of Sida growing in there, so he is back there this
morning.
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| Some trail sections had 4 feet of water |
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| Stopping to repaint trail markers and clear brush |
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| Swamp Buggy Helmsman |
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| The Hammock nature trail |
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| Any gators in there? |
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| Invasive Sida shrubs that the deer and feral hogs refuse to eat |
Greg bikes frequently, mostly to his jobs, but still can't go very
far. Most trails are still impassable. We both biked the road to the
gator hole, found a few gators, but also met a nice couple of retired
teachers from Georgia who full-time in a small Casita trailer.
They've been on the road almost as long as we have, but are still
moving from place to place frequently. Kind'a gave me itchy feet...
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| Searching for dry trails |
We are getting better acquainted with the birds and wildlife. But,
with the huge amount of unseasonable water here, the gators and
wading birds are more widely disbursed over the 54,000 acres this
year. Not as many to be seen. The gators are supposed to be gathering
in groups to begin mating, but we haven't seen or heard them lately with so much flooded land for them to spread over.
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| The "Gator Hole" is always popular with the big guys |
The turkeys continue to wander through our campsite most days. The
crows are constantly exploring the camper's belongings. Hawks are
nesting in the family campground, and we've seen crested cara-caras,
woodpeckers, harriers, gnatcatchers, kingfishers, larks, kestrels,
ibis, egrets, herons, doves, and sandhill cranes.
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| Tricolor Heron |
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| Cattle Egret left his cow behind |
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| Possum visiting our camp |
The vultures are loving the wild pig culling that is taking place
out on the reserve at night aided by infra-red sensors. The pigs are
not native in the wild. They are descendants of domestic pigs that
got loose. One breeding pair can be responsible for 1,000 pigs in two
years! They very quickly grow dark hair and tusks. Like piggy
rototillers, they tear up the underbrush looking for a particular
type of root they like to eat. Very destructive to the ecosystem.
After culling, the pigs are left in the wild to be cleaned up
“naturally”. (Cue: The Circle of Life). Greg has seen wild pigs
on his swamp buggy rides. We also see deer, rabbits, and a waddling
possum made a leisurely trek across the back of our site.
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| Not an Alligator! |
We have 6 more weeks here. Some of the volunteers have left and we
have some new ones. Some like to move between state parks more
frequently than others. Others want to be closer to civilization and
the stores and restaurants. This time, we are enjoying the slow pace,
and getting to know a place more intimately. We have a busy summer
and fall coming up, so this feels like a good respite. I commented to
Greg last night that I can't believe that we get to stay free for
three months in this beautiful quiet spot, and all we do in return is
an easy 10 hours of work apiece, which we often double.
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| Strolling on the "high" ground behind our camp |
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| Fungus growing on a burnt palmetto root |
And BOOM! There goes the downside of bordering Avon Park Airbase.
We hear small explosions, but that one was a doozy. I felt the blast
through the open window and thought the glass would break! Didn't see
anything through the trees, but wouldn't like to experience that
again. Last week we had a few fighter jets make several low passes,
but we could hear them coming. Oh, well, guess we can't totally
escape civilization as long as we are in the East!
