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February 11, 2026 – Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge

At the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, there is an abundance of nature and wildlife to observe. Over 500 species of wildlife and more than 140 species of freshwater and saltwater fish have called the refuge home. Additionally, the refuge is a popular place for birdwatching and to date 358 species have been identified here. Black Point Wildlife Drive is a 7-mile, self-guided automobile tour where you will have a chance to see birds, alligators and other wildlife.

I started the day by driving the Gator Creek Loops before entering the Refuge, getting a preliminary view of the watershed and wildlife. I arrived near sunrise but with my luck the day started off with fog and heavy cloud cover. Still an enjoyable ride and some acceptable views of nesting and flying birds.

After hiking the Scrub Ridge trail an unimpressive mile plus loop I headed to the Manatee Observation Deck to see a couple but the water was so cloudy photos were useless.

February 12, 2026 0

Tracking birds on a cold Forida Morning

It’s 35 degrees but bright and sunny so I decided to check out the wildlife at Bulow Creek SP and Betty Steflik Memorial Preserve. I wasn’t disappointed but I wish I brought along my 600 mm lens.

January 28, 2026 13

Washington Oaks Gardens State Park – November 13, 2025

After spending time hiking in the River to Sea Preserve (Ocean to Matanzas River) near Marineland, I decided to revisit the Coquina Rocks along the ocean in Washington Oaks Gardens State Park. It had been at least three years since my last visit and shockingly the vista has significantly changed. As a result of the recent hurricanes and storms, the sand was washed away, and the rocks were at lease 50% more visible.

Coquina rock is a type of sedimentary rock (specifically limestone), formed by the deposition and subsequent cementation of mineral or organic particles on the floor of oceans or other bodies of water at the Earth’s surface. In other words, the rock is formed by the accumulation of sediments.

I spent an hour and a half wandering the rocks and walking the beach – even if it was in the low 40’s in the sunshine state.

November 15, 2025 8

Japan Tour 2025 Day 18

The final tour day started with a ride on the bullet train from Fukuoka to Osaka, a trip of two and a half hours. The ride was very smooth, but the train didn’t give any indication of how fast we were traveling. Generally, the train travels up to 200 mph. Notable on this trip and what we noticed all around southern Japan, is the significant number of tunnels you go through. I can’t even estimate how many we traversed. Because the land is so mountainous, most roads and rails must go through rather than around the hills.

We had an early dinner and went to bed, planning on making an early flight the next day. Well, our travel plans had a shakeup. A 5 am text informed us that our connecting flight to DFW was canceled, and we were rebooked later in the day. At about noon, we received another text saying that the rebooked flight was canceled, and we were then rebooked for two days later. Well, we took our first leg flight from Osaka to Tokyo and tried to work with AA customer service to get an earlier flight out rather than waiting the two extra days – after two hours searching we managed to move are return flight back a day by flying Tokyo to JFK, JFK to Miami the on to Orlando.

Hope you enjoyed our adventure. We arrived safely in Ormond Beach late on Tuesday night.

April 9, 2025 2

Japan Tour 2025 Day 17

The first stop was the Clover Garden in Nagasaki. This open-air museum exhibits the mansions of several of the city’s former foreign residents and related buildings. It is located on the hill where Western merchants settled after the end of Japan’s era of seclusion in the second half of the 19th century. The main attraction of the garden is the Former Glover House, the oldest wooden Western-style building in Japan. Thomas Glover was a Scottish merchant active in various industries, including shipbuilding and mining.

Oura Catholic church is considered the oldest standing Catholic church in Japan. Built by a French missionary in 1864. Oura church is dedicated to the memory of the 26 Christians who were executed in the city in 1597. Nearby, there is a children’s library.

Lunch was a sit-down and a multi-course affair featuring Nagasaki Champon – a hearty broth, thick noodles, and a variety of seafood and vegetables.

An hour bus ride brought us to Okawachiyama Village, a secluded pottery village outside of Imari. It was a major porcelain producer of high-quality pottery for the imperial court, shogunate, and various lords. So, we splurged, getting a serving plate and a Saki set.

We spent the night in Fukuoka with a street food dinner with the locals, then a splurge for dessert.

April 9, 2025 0

Japan Tour 2025 Day 16

Kumamoto Castle was completed in 1607 by Kato Kiyomasa, the first feudal lord of the castle. It was innovative in its design and construction for the period. The castle is a hilltop Japanese castle – large and well-fortified. A large earthquake in 1691 did considerable damage to the castle and outbuildings and reconstruction is ongoing.

Leaving the castle, we headed to a tea museum & workshop where we attempted to make tie-dyed cloth from tea – needless to say, mine was a bomb that no one would see.

The final stop of the day was Mt. Inasa for a spectacular view of Nagasaki – getting there was half the fun (passed on the 640-step climb). We took a tram.

April 6, 2025 2

Japan Tour 2025 Day 15

After a 3-hour ride, we arrived at Amano Iwato Shrine in Takachiho built near a cave where Amaterasu (Shinto sun goddess) was hiding from her brother’s cruel pranks, depriving the world of her life-giving light. We had a tour of the cave by a priest. The path to the cave has thousands of stone statues piled along it. Amaterasu deprived light from the world until another female deity performed a lively dance that made the other gods laugh so hard that Amaterasu emerged to find out why.

Another adventure – cook your lunch over an open fire!

Next was an invigorating hike of the Takachiho Gorge 23 floors down then back up. It is stunning natural beauty, with draw dropping cliffs and waterfalls.

April 6, 2025 2

Japan Tour 2025 Day #14

Started with a morning walk around Lake Kinrin a place of scenic beauty representative of the town of Yufuin. It’s a small lake with a perimeter of about 400 meters. With all the water gushing out from the bottom of the lake and mountains the lake is replaced 2 and a half times a day. It was a cloudy day but we did see some of the noted mist off the water but no reflections could be found. One complaint the town of Yufuin is quaint shopping town but the tour made a mistake having us here for 3 hours.

The hot springs system Hells of Beppu is a nationally designated “Place of Beauty” in the onsen town of Beppu. The “hells” or “jigoku” in Japanese are for viewing rather than bathing. Five of the 7 hells are centrally located. The boiling clay of (blood lake) and the blue lake ( sea hell) are beautiful. Can’t forget the mud pots – they’re clearly not as good as Yellowstone.

Takasakiyama Monkey Park – a monkey reserve at the base of Mt. Takasaki, a 628-meter-high mountain. The mountain is home to some 1500 wild. Japanese macaques that roam freely around its steep, forested slopes. The monkeys are divided into to troops of 700 to 800 individuals. The troops take turns coming down to the monkey park, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

April 6, 2025 0

Japan Tour 2025 Day #13

Today, we took a ferry to the island of Miyajima, a cultural world heritage site. This is considered one of the three most scenic spots in Japan. If you haven’t figured it out by now, everything in Japan is one of the three best. The main shrine on the island is Itsukushima, dedicated to three goddesses who are worshiped as the deities of the seas. It was first built in 593 and then remodeled in 1168.

The O-torii gate, also known as the floating gate, has been designated a national important cultural property. The present gate, the ninth in its history, was built in 1875.

Daishoin Temple the oldest temple on Miyajima. It is the headquarters of the Omuro School of Shingon Buddhism and “Betto” or administrator of the Itsukushima shrine.