Views From Our Kayak

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Rock Springs Run

Pileated Woodpecker

When you go out kayaking there are no bad days. You only have good days and not so good days. Today was one of those rare not so good days. A solo visit to the first place we kayaked, Rock Springs Run, was not as good as I expected. Maybe it was because the effort, the lack of wildlife, or maybe the difficulty to shoot pics, but it was a hard one. The Run, as I call it, was low and fast. Had to push my yak several times, specially in the sharp turns when tried not to be caught with the strong flow. Not too much traffic on my way up to Big Buck Camp. Had The Run to myself, but a lot of traffic on my way down, specially near the confluence of The Run with the Wekiva River.

Anhinga

Put In/ Take Out: Was the beach at the Wekiwa Springs State Park. If you plan to kayak here please bring a cart to carry your kayak. There is some distance to walk from the parking to the kayak/canoe launch. Started at 8:30 with a plan to kayak to Big Buck Camp and then return to the State Park.

Little Blue Heron

Since I had an early start, for me, was counting on seeing deer at The Run. Did not see any. Deer must be on vacation after helping Santa Claus on Christmas Eve night. Turned around at Big Buck Camp after taking a 30 minutes break. Anyways, will keep this one simple and just will show you the pics.

Red Bellied Woodpecker

Gray Catbird

Turtle

Limpkin

Black Crowned Night Heron

Ibis

Eastern Phoebe

Belted Kingfisher

Juvenile Little Blue Heron

Red Shouldered Hawk

Red Shouldered Hawks

Great Blue Heron

Turtle

Great Egret

Turtle

Great Egret

Pileated Woodpecker

Gray Catbird

Did You Know That? The Gray Catbird is a relative of the Mockingbirds and Thrashers. Its song may last for up to ten minutes. The male Gray Catbird uses his loud song to proclaim his territory. He uses a softer version of the song when near the nest or when a bird intrudes on his territory. The female may sing the quiet song back to the male. The Gray Catbird belongs to the genus Dumetella, which means
"small thicket". And that's exactly where you should look for this little skulker. It can live up to 17 years but the oldest known Gray Catbird lived almost 18 years. After listening to one of these birds singing, I understand why the name. Check this link from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and listen to the last two sound recordings. You will understand why too.

Juvenile Little Blue Heron

And that is all for this one. Not too much to say. Thanks for reading and see you soon in another Views From Our Kayaks.

Rock Springs Run

Monday, December 26, 2011

Wekiva River

Osprey

Today, December 26, 2011, kayaked the Wekiva River from Katie’s Landings. It was a solo and this time made a little adjustment to my routine when I kayak here. Started exploring the area across Katie’s as usual. Even went downstream for an hour but in front of Wekiva Haven decided to turn around and go upstream. The river was clear and not too fast. The wind was coming from the North and it was negating the river flow. Actually, the wind was pushing me South.

Anhinga(male)

Put In / Take Out: Katie’s Landings. Check the link to our first post about on this part of the Wekiva River for information.

Cormorant

Today started the paddle exploring the area across Katie’s Landings. As a rule of thumb you will see a lot of wildlife in this small part of the river. Today was not different from other paddles here. I was entertained for about 30 minutes, when realized how much time spend there, so continued my downstream paddle. Here are some pics of what I saw on those 30 minutes in front of Katie’s Landings.

Belted Kingfisher

Eastern Phoebe

Great Egret..bon appetit

Little Blue Heron

Mallards

Pileated Woodpecker

Robin

On my way to Katie’s was thinking about changing the routine today and paddle to the South. But when arrived at the put in, a large group of kayakers were going that direction so decided to stick to the known routine and paddle to the North. Did just that but when reached the zone where Wekiva Haven is turned around. Two reasons for that: First, my pass to Seminole State Forest is good until December the 31^st so this week I am going to kayak this portion of the river again. Second, I do not have the chance to explore South of Katie’s too often. It is open and my wife does not like to paddle when it is like that. With that being said, decided to do something different anyways. The kayakers I saw at Katie’s were, most likely, gone by now. On my way upstream made a stop at Katie’s left the camera bad in the mini van and then continued my paddle.

Sandhill Crane

Red Shouldered Hawk

It was a good decision. Had lots of pics chances. While having a sip of water spotted a large bird with a white head. A Bald Eagle!!! We have seen eagles in this general area of the Wekiva River before but it was a pleasant surprise. The raptor was pic friendly and did not fly away while I had a field day shooting pics. By the way, did shoot 316 pics total today. After my wife checked them less than a hundred made the cut. That tells you why I do not like to paddle without her. Back to the paddle, the sun did hide after I cross the SR46 Bridge over the river. I was thinking about reaching Wekiva Falls, a popular camping place, and turn around. But after arriving at the entrance of Wekiva Falls did paddle upstream another 15 minutes and then turned around. By that time the Sun made a comeback and do did the wind. I had to work my way downstream because the wind was pushing me back.

Bald Eagle

Osprey

Did You Know That? The osprey is the only raptor whose outer toe is reversible, allowing it to grasp its prey with two toes in front, and two behind. The Osprey is sometimes known as the sea hawk and it has a wingspan of 6 feet. When migrating ospreys will cover an average of 175 miles a day, but it can be a maximum of 269 miles. The ospreys are found in all continents except Antarctica. The osprey diet consists almost exclusively of fish. Ospreys mate for life and normally, reach sexual maturity and begin breeding when they are three to four years of age, though in some regions with high Osprey densities, they may not start breeding until five to seven years old, and there may be a shortage of suitable tall structures. If there are no nesting sites available, young Ospreys may be forced to delay breeding. Ospreys are supreme fishers. The plunge feet first into the water to pluck live fish from the water's surface, often completely submerging themselves in the process. This skillful maneuver is aided by a few key adaptation, including oily plumage and the reversible toe we mentioned earlier. When an Osprey carries a fish to the nest, it carries it headfirst to make it as aerodynamic as possible.