Boyd Hill Nature Preserve

Boyd Hill Nature Preserve is a jewel. Located on the south shores of Lake Maggiore, Boyd Hill is another St. Petersburg park hidden in a residential area. There are 245 acres of unspoiled Florida, and entering this oasis feels as though you've stepped back in time, before Pinellas County's population explosion. In much need of time away from that population, and craving the type of regeneration only nature can provide, Anna and I set off to see what what we could see.

Boyd Hill has 5 unique ecosystems (hardwood hammock, sand pine scrub, pine flatwoods, willow marsh, and lake shore), but we've never covered them all at once. My tendency is to drift towards the shoreline, and, since we'd covered some of the pine flatwood trail on previous visits, we decided to walk towards Lake Maggiore.

Along the way, we crossed some short bridges, and came across lots of cypress knees looking like primeval fingers reaching up from the earth. Crossing one of the bridges we spied a little gator snoozing on a lily pad. They sure are a lot less intimidating when they look small and the lily pad looks big!

Back on the trail, we heard a hawk in the pines. We followed its calls, and saw it swoop to the ground. Next we heard what sounded like a squirrel in distress, and I have to admit I was relieved that squirrel hadn't become the hawk's lunch. I know how the food chain operates, but I don't really want to witness it.

There's a small peninsula jutting into Lake Maggiore, and we'd read that's where birds hang out, so we headed up the trail to find it. Just over another short bridge, it's a bird oasis. Anhingas and Cormorants filled nearby trees, ducks splashed in the lake, terns flew overhead. A family of (presumed) tourists approached us, asking if we'd seen the alligator just behind some brush, then proceeded to get way too close to it in order to show us. Anna waked off with a "Oh, hell no!" but I wanted some shots, although with my zoom, I felt safe. Well, fairly safe....

It wasn't until we'd crossed back from the peninsula to the main trail that it occurred to us: what would we have done if that alligator decided to come out from the brush? Especially if it had blocked access to the bridge. Hmmm.

Our return trip to the nature center was fairly uneventful, although there was one highlight: a banana tree blossom, deep purple and sexy. I love how in Florida there's always the possibility of running into something unexpected and exotic.

We had a great day at Boyd Hill, and, once again, the universe confirmed we're on the right path. How do I know? As we walked across the parking lot, talking about the wonderful things we'd seen, a bald eagle flew by.

Dunedin Hammock

Have you ever forgotten how much you've enjoyed a place, then rediscovered it, and it's even better than you remembered? That's how I feel about Hammock Park in Dunedin. I grew up in Dunedin, and, over the years, spent time walking the trails, but only recently have I started really exploring the Hammock. I'm in love.

The Hammock was surveyed some 158 years ago, and the North-South boundaries remain to this day. It was purchased by the City of Dunedin in 1965, and, in 1974, the Dunedin Garden Club helped create the first self-guided nature trails. There are 5 miles of trails in this 90 acre natural park, and each trail is different.

The Skinner Tail is the Hammock's main drag, and it runs alongside a stream, where I've watched great blue herons, white egrets, green herons, and cormorants do their thing. I always follow the Skinner Trail to the Friends of the Hammock's new butterfly garden, located next to Andrews Memorial Chapel. Butterflies are one of my favorite subjects to photograph, but they don't make it easy, unless they're in caterpillar state, which many of the monarchs were. Fat and stripey, they were in abundance on this trip, many munching leaves, first up, then down, as though the leaves were corn-on-the-cob.

My usual route is to backtrack from the butterfly garden to the Sugarberry Trail, because I always see something on the Sugarberry. Turtles are plentiful, and further down the trail there's always the promise of a raccoon tip-toeing across the trail and into the water, or a green heron searching for food. Today, I discovered a tangerine tree packed with tangerines. I'm used to seeing orange trees in the Hammock, but had never come across wild tangerines before. They're fiery orange when the sun shines on them. Some unripe tangerines had fallen to the ground, and it was hilarious watching a squirrel attempting to roll one up to a tree branch.

When I finished the Sugarberry Trail, I decided to try my luck at the end of the Skinner Trail, where there's a large pond. There are always birds there, and I was curious if I'd see anyone new. Along the way, I took the time to notice wild flowers, which I don't always do, and was rewarded with both irises and spiderwort, both in the most spectacular shades of purple. The usual gang was hanging out at the pond: snowy egrets, great blue herons, anhingas, and osprey soaring overhead. Nobody new, but that's ok. I'm never disappointed with the same old same old when it comes to nature!

From visit to visit, I never know what I'll encounter at Hammock Park. Sometimes there's more action than others, and either way is fine with me. I'm a wanderer at heart, and being outside is my joy. With no expectations, I know there's always the promise of things to come.