Driving through the rural Florida interior, I saw a large
turtle crossing the hot pavement ahead of me – a suicide mission
for sure. I pulled over on the grassy roadside
so I could help him get off the road and to the water on the other
side. As I was about to get out of my truck, a pickup was coming up
behind me. Please PLEASE don't run over the turtle. I
hoped my presence on the side of the road would alert the driver
to the large turtle IN the road. They did indeed slow down to get
around my rig, but seemed completely oblivious to the BIG turtle in
the road. For a moment I thought I would witness an innocent
turtle slaughter. But that turtle could move. Lke lightning,
it ran to avoid the truck tires that passed just inches from
it and I thanked the universe for sparing me a gruesome scene. The
turtle was hefty, maybe 22" long. I carefully picked
him up and put him near the water. I don't know what kind of turtle
it was, but I bet he was on his way to spend quality time with his
turtle family, after a long day of doing turtle stuff.
Highlands Hammock State Park
This park, one of Florida's first state parks, was built by
the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1931 with the hopes of becoming
a national park. It never reached that status but it's still a nice
place to stop. The Cypress Swamp Trail is the most interesting and
beautiful - and also the most popular.

It's a jungle out there!
I took Harley on these jungle trails and kept him very
close. Poisonous snakes and alligators really like
it here. Then after seeing a woman in tears rushing with her little
white dog in her arms out of one trail, I figured Harley didn't really
need the jungle experience anymore. So I biked with him on the perimeter
trail through the open flatlands, where Harley got a chance to personally
go nose to feet with a couple of turtles. They retreated into their
shell at first, then apparently considered Harley a low threat and
continued on their merry way. Harley danced around and tried to say
hello face to face, but the head end made him nervous, as it darted
in the shell. So, like a proper dog, he focused on the back end, licking
the little turtle toes as it waddled away. Harley: Dances with Turtles.
To mark this historic event, I've mixed up deliciously green cocktail: Sweet
Turtle
Toes.

How to be Courteous to your Friendly Camping Neighbor
I feel compelled to take a moment to provide some friendly camping
advice and reminders to my fellow campers:
1) DON'T bang loudly on your new neighbor's door at 7:00 in the morning
(when the blinds are still drawn and she is sleeping soundly) to
ask if you should get her tram tickets.
2) If you DID happen to err and break rule #1, kindly express your
apologies in the afternoon when you see that your new Friendly Camping
Neighbor is awake and has had at least two cups of coffee.
3)
Please, please, please, respect someone's campsite and do not walk
through it at any time of day. And especially, please teach this to
your children.
Thank you for your attention and interest in making everybody's experience
an enjoyable one.
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