January 23, 2024 Most Recent Posts:
Silver Springs State Park Jarring and Calming on the Silver River
Silver Springs, Florida Everything Was Going Fine and Then …
Silver Springs State Park is among my favorite parks in Florida and I have returned every year since we began coming to Florida in 2011.
I have a conflict between my desire to explore new territory and to return to the comfort of a familiar and well loved place such as this. A question about that later.
THE SWAMP TRAIL
The Swamp Trail is my favorite at Silver Springs even though I had a concerning near encounter with the monkeys here last year. Here is a link to that post.
It’s not a long trail, about a 2 mile loop. But if I do it and the River Trail, I can get 4 miles. So if I go out to kayak in the morning and hike the Swamp Trail in the afternoon, it’s a lovely plan.
The swamp section has a boardwalk over it and that’s where I encountered the monkeys walking toward me.
Right about here actually.
I love swamps especially in winter when the mosquitos are absent.
I know that when the leaves come out this area will be dark and spooky. I’d love to see it then but…..I wouldn’t like the heat or the mosquitoes.
One of my favorite books Where the Crawdad’s Sing takes place in a swamp. I am reminded of it whenever I hike here.
There really is nothing else like Cypress Knees.
After the swamp, I arrive at the river. The path on the left goes down to the boat access for the Ocala Schools educational boat which picks up students several times a week and takes them up to the spring head doing much needed environmental education along the way. The right walk goes to an overlook.
The Silver River is fed by springs that discharge an AVERAGE of 516 MILLION GALLONS of water per day. The water I see here flowing by was in the Florida Aquifer 2 or 3 days ago.
The dock gate is on the left. This is the view from the right walk which has a bench where you can sit and watch what happens on the river.
Such a beautiful day, a beautiful place, but time to head back. I have an appointment which is why I am not out on the water.
THE STEPS RESOLUTION
Those of you who follow along with my adventures and mishaps will know that I had one of those mishaps on my way into the park. I still have no idea what caused my steps to fail but today was the day they were replaced and I could stop using the 2 step ladder to get into and out of Winnona.
Many thanks to Richard at The Trailer Doc and Fab Shop for getting the steps for me. He got nothing out of it. And thanks to Jim and Matt who got nothing but work out of removing the steps so I could take them to Richard.
And thanks to Andy of Andy’s Mobile RV who picked them up on his way here and then installed them.
I’m so lucky!
Andy set to work trying to prop the VERY HEAVY steps up so that he could attach them to the underside of my RV which was leveled with jacks down and thus higher than if I had not been living in it.
I offered to store the jacks but he said he thought he could work it out.
He tried several different things and managed to make it happen.
Then the motor had to be connected. That blew a fuse which had to be replaced and neither of us had the one we needed of course so I raced down to an auto parts store and got one. SO glad to be near an urban area just now.
And then there they were. It’s amazing how much I took for granted ease of getting into and out of the RV. It was an expensive fix. The total with the cost of the steps and Andy’s time and expertise was almost $1200. BUT they are new,
“should” not fail and I’m back to ground zero as it were.
A parting thought,
every year I struggle with whether to set up 11 month in advance reservations in Florida or spend the winter in Texas and/or Arizona. Without reservations that far in advance, I will have to give up Florida. So I need to know when and where to make other Winter reservations. Can any of you help with suggestions of spots where it will be warm and not Florida during the months of November through March? I’m interested in towns and parks if you can recommended them.
Hallelujah! I am very happy about the steps. I know that was a hassle, and I'm glad for you that it's fixed. I have no ideas about winter spots out west except to say that we were at Zion in 2018 for Thanksgiving, and it was cold at night, but in the 70's by mid-day. It was a beautiful time to be there, but the cold nights probably won't work for what you want. I hope you find the perfect spots.
ReplyDeleteThanks Pam I'mhappy to have it all over with. Zion at Thanksgiving sounds wonderful.
DeleteGetting "things" fixed is always such a wonderful feeling - glad you were surrounded by heroes to get it done. The pics of your hike are stunning. Such a gorgeous place! The coldest we ever were on the road was Marfa, TX in January, but the Corpus Christi area was comfortable with several wildlife refuges and stretches of beach. Of course I'm partial to your finding your way to Arizona. February is the busiest month, when you'll have the most difficulty with reservations. Even in the south we get cold, but not for weeks at a time. Louisiana wasn't on your list, but I'd consider it as a closer option if needed.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the Corpus Christi recommendation Jodee. Not sure about Louisiana in January. 🥶 If I'm ever in Arizona, a stop at your place is happening. All of this may be just another of my big dreams.
DeleteSeeing those monkeys walking toward you on the boardwalk would've had Bev screaming, lol. So glad you had competent help to fix the steps. Some things we take for granted in life or consider menial are the very important ones...
ReplyDeleteNo no, no screaming.😄 my rescuers were all wonderful and you were one of them once upon a time.
DeleteDon't know myself about where you could stay, but this guy might be able to help you with TX:
ReplyDeletehttps://ofmadventures.blogspot.com/
ReplyDeleteAnd there are other RVers who might help with AZ. Here's one: http://www.theboondork.com/mainphp
ReplyDeleteSorry, I don't know why it's taken me so many comments to paste two addresses. Anyway, each of these guys would probably be willing to share information.
ReplyDeleteNo problem Judith. Probably Blogger not you. Thanks so much for your help. I'll look them both up.
DeleteSorry to know you won't be back on Florida Tom. Sounds like you came back from Hawaii too soon.
ReplyDeleteAll kinds of places in Texas....but not near kayaking in many of them unless you head towards South Padre Island. Other wonderful hikes, though and places to see...you can always go to our blog and see where we wintered in Texas and Arizona...beautiful steps! Beautiful river views!
ReplyDeleteI'll look at your blog Jeannie. Did you have any favorites of places you were?
DeleteGlad to see the new steps are installed on Winnona. No more "high stepping" for you now. :c)
ReplyDeleteGreat hip exercise though
DeleteBeautiful swamp and park and wow...those steps look great!! So glad you got the help you needed for that job. And, I love Zion...could you start there and plan out? Even thinking about it seems complicated, just like booking for winters in Florida and summer camps for kids...:/
ReplyDeleteThanks Carrie. You are so right that even thinking about heading so far west alone seems complicated.
DeleteWe've spent a lot of time in S. Cal, Arizona and Texas in the winters and I don't think you'll find anything (except South Texas and perhaps the Gulf Coast of Texas) as warm as you like it to be. We don't mind cold temps and have loved all of those places. The only thing holding us back now is that since we're no longer full-timing and are living in NC, everything other than Florida is such a long way to go for the winter!
ReplyDeleteLove your photos of the river reflecting the clouds. We just kayaked the Silver River a couple of days ago and it was gorgeous, as always. So glad you got your new steps!
Laurel I appreciate your insight about wintering out west since you did that cross country trip every year for so long. My concerns are not just temperatures in the 30s but also the blowing sand in Arizona. But most of all it is the distance, not knowing where to go and going alone.
DeleteFunny that I am writing about Silver River while you are there.
Sorry I'm just commenting. Have been reading your blog on my Android, and as you know the clicking on the pics to see them got to be too much. Pictures look better on my computer anyway :) Glad you got your steps fixed! Yay! No recommendations on winter stays. We workamped in Ocala one winter which worked for us. Other than that we were in California a lot. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you are able to read on a laptop Laurie. The format was designed for them and everything looks much better.
DeleteSo… having RV’d from coast to coast I’m going to say AZ State Parks have been grand for warmer winter month weather! We’ve had tremendous experiences in multiple parks in AZ! They’ve all been clean, well organized, reasonably priced, and not too crowded at all! We stayed on our way west, and are repeating the same on the trek east again! We’ve been chasing the sun in both directions and have been pleasantly intrigued with the water/desert combinations!!! Lake Havasu tops the list for us!!!
ReplyDeleteWonderful information Mary thank you. I'm very surprised that you were able to keep warm in Arizona although I don't know how you define that term.
DeleteYou haven't run into the infamous Arizona winds either it appears.
Everything costs a fortune these days. Just glad you were able to get it fixed. Nowadays that is an accomplishment. Still seeing some beautiful places.
ReplyDeleteYes repairs are amazingly expensive if you can even find someone to do them well. I was very lucky
DeleteHey Sherry. I finally got our router replaced in addition to our modem. In the mean time nothing was working right, and I couldn't see your blog much less the photos. So here I am, better late than never. First thing that came to mind when you asked about places you could possibly be out west is that there really isn't a lot of choice during the winter that is reliably warm. The deserts can be cold, and Arizona even more so than California. It is why we stick to the California desert near Desert Hot Springs when we go in winter. Often Arizona can be really cold at night, and there is no way to plan around that. We skipped visited Mike and Janna because snow was predicted when we planned to be there in early February. San Diego can be nice most of the time, but there is no place to be that isn't really expensive. I think there is a reservoir that an old time blogger used to visit, but as I said earlier, the weather isn't that reliable. Even if it isn't cold, the winter rains can come and cause a lot of flooding, and then the winds are crazy sometimes. My only thought is that maybe you could change from staying at the beautiful state parks and try to stay in private RV parks in Florida. As someone else mentioned, Gulf Shores along the coast is pretty nice, but again, I have no idea about getting reservations there either. Texas ....well you couldn't get me to go there for anything. The coast around Galveston can be warm sometimes but it can also be pretty cold and the waters are all brown looking. Brownsville is way south, and probably warm but we didn't go there because of the reviews of overcrowding and too many people down there. I just don't know what to tell you as a person who travels out west in the winter and early spring. It is a crap shoot all the time. Sometimes good, sometimes horribly rains, sometimes freezing, and sometimes unbearably windy. We still try it, but we dont' try to boondock much and do love our stays at Catalina Spa. It is 42 a night with Passport America. If the wind is blowing and the rain is flooding we can always hang out in the pools or go to the movies. There isn't a single place to kayak and the hiking around there isn't anything like what you are used to. So. It is a trade off. I wish I could offer more information but I just have no clue. I have been worrying about this since I first read your blog. Your kayaking and hiking in Florida is stellar and cannot be repeated anywhere else in this country that I know of. So you either deal with the reservation thing, park in a private park in between reservations at the state parks, or come west and deal with the unexpected problems that come with a completely different environment. At least there you are somewhat close to your homes and can escape if needed. Last but not least, glad you got those steps fixed!
ReplyDeleteSue you are such a wonderful friend to put such a long and informative comment here. You are just repeating what I have been thinking and why I have not gone West for the winter before now. Still a couple of Blogger people that I know Heyduke and of course Gaylen do spend every winter in the West so there is a way to do it and perhaps I'd have to be much less of a warm weather wuss. Florida forces me to make reservations 11 mos in advance or know that I will not be able to come to Florida. So rather than take a chance, I do that every year which gets me into quite a catch 22. To cancel that entire winter reservations in the state parks ends up costing $300 or more. So it is not like I can just cancel if I change my mind. Too many people RVing. This reservation thing is really difficult. Thank you thank you again for taking the time to put such a long comment. You're such a wonderful friend
DeleteYou are right Sherry. You could hang out in Quartzsite and Yuma and Kofa and Ogilby Road but no kayaking and boondocking most of the time except for trips to dump and take on water. I don't remember if you have solar as Gaelyn does. I also remember how much trouble you had with the unrelenting sun and dry air out west. So there is that as well. And Gaelyn lives a bit differently than you or I are willing to live I think.
DeleteI would have to agree about the swamp being overrun during summer. Glad the step is fixed. Mine is manual and needs a little help.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sue's comments. I haven't stayed in a campground/park since August because I'd rather do free on public lands. There are a couple areas along the lower Colorado River, reservoir backwaters, like Imperial Dam LTVA. Desert winter's can be windy, dusty, dry, and cold, but only Dec-Feb. It's different out west. No thanks to Texas!
~Gaelyn