Thursday January 14th 2021

After three days of little to no sunshine, it was back today. By late morning the sun had won the battle with the clouds and warmed the air temperature into the high sixties before setting this evening. Clear conditions remain overnight through around noon tomorrow. The next cold front is forecast to arrive tomorrow afternoon.

Taking advantage of the better weather I explored along the Hillsborough River a little more extensively. The wildlife was a little more active. More birds were visible and others were singing their chants from the trees. The fish were visible in the clear calm waters of the river and the warm sunshine brought the alligators onto the river banks.

There were plenty of human visitors to the park too. Across the river from one rather large alligator a small group gathered. Among the people was one gentleman that seem to think he was an “expert”. He loudly proclaimed that the “crocodile” was in her nest keeping her eggs warm. Others in his party were eating up his expertise. As far as I know, alligator matting season is still a few months away and I don’t think the eggs are attended during incubation. Do you think any of his friends knew the truth? Sometimes it’s fun to overhear things and sometimes it’s just a sad. Those folks need to visit Myakka River State Park to see more than a couple of gators. The alligators on this river bank aren’t that big or plentiful.

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The campsites in this state park seem to turn over frequently. Some of the nearby sites have changed occupants two or three times since I arrived on Monday. It will be interesting to see if the sites get occupied by weekenders or continue to turn over daily with travelers.