Three More Weeks at TGO

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It was only 160 miles from Lake Manatee State Park campground to Titusville and back to our recently purchased RV lot at The Great Outdoors (TGO). We were gone for just over a month doing our trip to points further south in Florida but it feels good to be back. Our lot did get rented out for 4 weeks while we were gone but the only way we know is by the notifications we get when a renter enters the grounds. Plus I can log into our account with the power company and see electric usage. As expected, there are no visible signs that we had tenants which is a good thing. It does look like we will need to do a little more weeding and possibly tree trimming but nothing too major will be needed.

We do find that having property, albeit a very small lot, does interfere with our normal hiking and biking activities but we still work in some fun stuff while we are in the area. We had seen a 7 mile trail on Merritt Island that looked like it would be an ideal place for a bike ride. We head over to the trailhead for the Gator Creek Loop. This is a gravel road that loops around a small part of the National Wildlife Refuge. The part we intend to bike is also open to vehicles and it is in good enough condition that just about any car could drive the loop. We hope that there aren’t too many people out in cars so we can enjoy the ride in peace.

Entrance to Merritt Island

Beginning of Scenic Drive

The first 2 miles of the ride are on a two way section of the road. There is plenty of room for cars to pass by one another and most are going slow enough that they aren’t kicking up too much dust as they go by us on our bikes. There is a nice view of the Max Brewer Bridge that head over the Indian River back into downtown Titusville.

Fish Mural on Concrete Barrier

Bridge Back Over to Titusville

It appears that a large number of the people driving the roads back here aren’t out for just a scenic drive but are looking for a good fishing spot. So many of the cars are just parked at the numerous pull outs along the way. When we get to the spot where the road begins it’s one way portion, we notice there is a chained off section of road that continues to the south. We decide to change plans and head down this part of the island and see where it leads.

Heron

Our Route Along the Water

Gator on Opposite Bank

It’s not like those first 2 miles had a ton of people, but once we got past the few people fishing beyond the chain, we did not see another person for many miles. We did see a few boats on the river but they almost appeared to be run aground as opposed to anchored to do some fishing. At one point there was a huge plume of smoke off on the horizon. It wasn’t clear if it was a prescribed burn or some other wildfire but it looked to be many miles away.

Beached Sailboat?

Beach Bean Flowers

Large Fire in Distance

When we got to about the 6 mile mark, we started to see a few other people along the road. It turns out there is another access point at a small bay named Peacocks Pocket that can be driven to. The road we are on has a similar cable across the entrance to prevent vehicles from driving from this direction as well. This area is right on the border with the NASA facility at Cape Canaveral. We can see some of the launch towers and the very visible Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) about 5 miles away.

Border Fence with NASA

VAB in Distance

I do have a story about this building that is rather unusual. Back in my working days at Eastman Kodak Company, our group was hired by NASA to help them calibrate all of there various film and video equipment that was used for recording all the space shuttle launches. This was back in the 2005 timeframe and I made several week long trips to Cape Canaveral to collect data and test their equipment. NASA has a pretty secure facility there and I had gotten a laminated photo ID so I could officially wander around some of the areas. One day, the NASA employee I was working most closely with said we needed to head over to measure some equipment in the VAB. This is a rather impressive building - about 500 feet by 400 feet and stands 526 feet tall!

We drove over to the VAB, parked and headed to the guard shack at the entrance which is about a football field away from the actual building. My escort signed us in and pointed me towards a large wooden thing that looked like an old mail sorting station with maybe a hundred small cubbies. Some of cubbies had employee photo badges while others had generic badges with unique numbers that matched the number on the cubby. He told me to remove my photo badge and trade it with one of the generic badges. I did so and we started to walk towards the VAB. I got to thinking that since this is a more secure facility than some of the others I had already visited, it was counterintuitive to trade my photo identification for a generic badge. So I asked the guy if he could explain the logic behind the badge swap. He told me the reason was not for security but to be able to identify the people that were in the VAB if it were to explode! The guard shack was fortified and far enough away that all the photo id badges would survive so that victim identification would be possible. Not exactly what I was wanting to hear but we didn’t have to test if their system works.

We turned around and started the long ride back to the car. When we got to the turn to do the loop we initially planned on riding, we decided to skip that part for another day. We ended up getting in almost 14 miles in what turned out to be a very nice bike ride.

Black-necked Stilt

Heading Back with River on the Left

The next day we would head back to Merritt Island for another bike ride. This time on the southern end of the island at Ulumay Wildlife Sanctuary. The trail listed on AllTrails was a 5 mile out and back on the western side of side of the property along a large creek. But when we arrived, we saw there was also a trail heading east so we changed plans and followed that trail.

Ulumay Wildlife Sanctuary

Nice Biking Conditions

It turned out to be a rather nice bike ride that eventually turned to the northern end of and continued for quite some distance. Then we realized there was a geocache hidden along a smaller trail that may not have been intended for bikes but was wide enough to let us complete the series of stages we needed to find this one.

Water View at Ulumay

This Way to Geocache

We turned around and headed back to the car. At this point we had already completed over 4 miles and after yesterday’s ride we decided to save the other section of the sanctuary for another day. Just down from the trailhead looked to be some sort of fishing pier so we biked down to check it out as well.

Fishing Pier

View from Pier

The next day was the solar eclipse. Now Florida was nowhere near the path of totality but we did get to see a partial eclipse. I played around with my camera setup and took pictures roughly every 5 minutes. I wasn’t super pleased with the results but given I was shooting picture of the sun that only got covered to 65%.

Sequence of Solar Eclipse Photos

Apparently we hadn’t had enough bicycling yet plus there was a launch of one of the Delta IV Heavy rockets - in fact it was the final mission of this series of rockets. We realized that the view from Peacocks Pocket might be pretty decent for the launch. This time instead of biking to this spot, we decided to drive down the dirt road the 2.5 miles to get to the parking area with our bikes on the rack. The plan was to watch the launch, have lunch, then go for another bike ride in the refuge.

Osprey Soars Overhead Before Launch

We staked out a spot about an hour before the launch and while we were waiting, more and more cars showed up. We were watching a simulcast of the launch on YouTube so we could be aware of any changes to the launch time - which happens frequently. This time, there were no delays required. As the video feed was counting down towards zero, I hear and saw a rocket launching. I guess I should have figured there was likely a time delay between the actual launch and the video feed. It was definitely an impressive sight. This style of rocket has the main booster and two others on each side so as it changed trajectory, we were able to see the glow from all 3 boosters.

Delta Heavy

Glow from 3 Boosters

Almost Out of Sight

Once the launch was over, we switched gear to biking again. The plan was to follow a side road that we had seen a couple days earlier. From the satellite view it looked like this trail would loop around and intersect the main road after about 5 miles or so and then we could follow the main road back to the car turning the ride into a loop. We started out on the trail and while technically it might be a road, it was not in the best shape with all sort of bumps plus the weeds were a couple feet tall so after a quarter mile or so, we realized this was a bad idea and we turned around to follow the same main road as before but in the reverse direction as the other day.

A Part of Our Bike Route

We followed this for 4.5 miles which got us to the starting of the one way loop we had skipped previously. We did see one lone spoonbill in the shallow waters off the road. We also saw the sails from what looked like a large group of kite surfers in the distance. We made it around the loop and back to the car. This time getting in over 12.5 miles. We will definitely remember this place for future visits to home in Titusville since the riding is fairly easy, scenic and very isolated from the crowds.

Spoonbill

Driving back to TGO, we spotted the kite surfers just off the road near the bridge back to Titusville. There were 5 or more zipping across the water. We stopped to watch them and marvel at their skill. One guy was using a hand held wing instead of a kite with harness. He also had a unique board that has some sort of keel underneath that causes the whole board to levitate 18 inches above the water once he reaches some speed. Looks like fun.

Looks Like Fun

Getting Going

Sailing Above the Water

By now we had tired of riding our bikes so much and wanted something easier to do. We had never been Canaveral National Seashore before but it is just a little beyond the refuge where we have been riding our bikes. We weren’t exactly sure what there was to do there but since it was so close we decided to give it a visit. This national seashore stretches 24 miles along the Atlantic Coast from north of Titusville to south of New Smyrna Beach. Our plan was enter the park at the southern end and drive its length making stops along the way to check things out. It was only after getting there that we realized the park road does not go all the way through. It extends about 6 miles of the southern end and another 6 miles in the northern end, but there is a 12 mile gap and the visitor center is in the northern end of the park. So much for our plans.

Entrance to Canaveral National Seashore

The southern entrance station is about 3 miles from the beach. Along this drive are over half a dozen pull outs that overlook some of the ponds and other water features. There is also a really decent view of the northernmost NASA launch complex. I’m not sure how many of the launches take off from there, but we will need to remember this fact when we are back in the area during more launches.

Kennedy Space Center Launch Facility

We make it over to the road that heads northwest right along the Atlantic. There are dunes all along this stretch of beach so we cannot see it from the road, but there are 13 large parking areas every quarter mile or so along the road and each of these has restrooms and a boardwalk up and over the dune to reach the beach.

Boardwalk to Beach

Pretty Desolate Beach Today

We weren’t sure if there were any trails near the far end of this section of the national seashore, but we were planning on driving to the end to check it out. We were a bit surprised to find the following sign along the road as we drove north. Not that we have anything against nude sunbathing or didn’t expect to stumble upon a nude beach during our travels in Florida, but the fact that this place is in a unit of the National Park system was rather unexpected.

You've Been Warned!

As we continue past boardwalks 1 thru 12 with each area has a car or two but when we got to Boardwalk 13 at the end of the road, most of the 50 parking spots were taken. We find a spot and head over the boardwalk to the beach. We didn’t even make it to the sand before we could confirm we might encounter nude sunbathers here. We decided that we really didn’t need to take a long walk on the beach here and head back to the road. There is a gate at the end of the road with some sort of observatory building but signs indicate that no trespassing is allowed so the only way north from here would be a walk on the beach - in the nude?

View from Boardwalk 13

For Observing Stars or Bathers?

We head back to the Eddy Creek Boat Launch area we had seen on our drive earlier. We were hoping to find a picnic table to enjoy lunch. The boat launch provides access to some of the waterways inland from the ocean. There were a few cars but no picnic tables. We head over to the boat launch and spot some activity in Eddy Creek very near the shore. It takes a minute to determine that we are looking at possibly 40 manatees in the very shallow waters along the beach.

Active Manatees

We decide to grab our lunch and come sit in the sand and just watch them while we eat. I was glad I had brought along my DSLR and long telephoto lens. One other couple was here and she was taking pictures of the manatees. We talked with her for a bit and she thought this might be some sort of group mating thing taking place. That might explain why these normally low activity animals were splashing around so much.

Splashing Manatee

Egret Caught Something for Lunch

Over time, the number of manatees seemed to diminish and my attention was drawn to dozens of small fiddler crabs that were present all around us. They were out of their holes looking for food or rolling small balls of sand or occasionally fighting one another. If I made any sudden motion, the crabs closest to us would scurry back into their holes in the sand only to come out after they were convinced we weren’t coming for them. They were kind of fascinating to watch as we finished lunch.

Fiddler Crab

Let's Get Ready to Rumble

We had seen about as much as there was to see on the southern section of Canaveral Seashore. Since we couldn’t get to the northern section from inside the park, we head out and head north towards New Smyrna Beach. We saw a parking area for the Pine Flatwoods Trail and decide to stop for a little walk. The trails were okay but the pines are very infrequent so it was a full sun walk. We did find that the trail led east to the water but not the ocean, maybe the Indian River? Probably not the most interesting walk but it did allow us to stretch our legs.

Trail at Pine Flatwoods

Water View at End of Trail

A bit further north near Oak Hill was a place called Seminole Rest. This historic site is part of Canaveral National Seashore. This was the site of some large shell mounds from the Timucua Indians many centuries ago. There are also two old homes from the 1880’s that are in excellent condition.

View of Indian River

One of the Old Homes at Seminole Rest

Stained Glass Window

We arrived in New Smyrna Beach in the late afternoon. We had an Adventure Lab to help tour the town. It looks like a nice place to explore but by now we were getting a little tired and decide to skip heading into the northern portion of Canaveral National Seashore and save that stop for a future visit.

River View at New Smyrna

Old Sheldon House

Marina

I mentioned earlier that owning our lot at TGO doesn’t take a lot of time, but we did need to deal with some things before we head north for the season. The biggest job was to deal with the palm trees we have on our lot. There are only 8 of them with the tallest ones being about 25 feet tall. Being from western NY for 32 years and living on 50 acres of mostly hardwood trees for half that time, I know a thing or two about tree maintenance but palm trees are a very different than oak, maple or hickory trees. We watched many YouTube videos on pruning and caring for palm trees. Many of the residents here simply hire and outside company to deal with their palm trees but I was sort of missing some of the “fun” of yard maintenance so I ordered a 16 foot pole saw - a simple saw blade on a stick not a chain saw. When it arrived, we headed out to see what we could do with it. I was surprised at how much I could tackle from the ground with this thing and just how much limb debris I could produce from what seemed like pretty small trees. Fortunately we can just pile up the cut palm fronds along the road and the crew from TGO will pick them up.

Palm Tree Trimmings

We ended up driving over to the other side of Florida to visit with my sister and brother-in-law near Hudson. We didn’t have any touristy things planned for our stay. We just wanted to visit them and get a chance to catch up. We even made it to the trivia night contest at a local restaurant one evening we were there. Our team ended up winning the whole thing although it wasn’t clear we were a big help to the team. I helped with a few chores around their house to fix a few things that were within my capabilities.

On the drive back to Titusville, we stopped at a Skyline Chili restaurant near Winter Garden Florida just outside of some of the massive Disney resort. We don’t get the chance to eat the Cincinnati style chili lol that often and this place was not too far off our route. Just down the road from Skyline was Disney Animal Kingdom Lodge. We didn’t realize this place was behind a guard station but the cover story we came up with to get by them was apparently good enough to not create too much suspicion. We had an Adventure Lab to complete here so it walked us around the grounds and thru the building itself.

Animal Kingdom Lodge

Maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised how neat this place was since it is a Disney property. But the great hall in the main building was pretty amazing. In the grounds behind the lodge were giraffes, antelope and zebras. I can imagine sitting on the balcony of my room and watching all the animals below me. We didn’t stay to have dinner which was our explanation to the guard but we still enjoyed the stop.

Inside Main Lobby

Ornate Light Fixture

Giraffe on the Move

Found Something Tasty

Antelope

Zebra

On our last few days at TGO, I worked on fixing a few things on the rig as well as cleaning the exterior of our shed which was pretty dirty. I was able to reach most of the siding and roof from my ladder but did need to crawl up on the roof to get to the highest parts in the center. My one picture shows the roof of the shed after cleaning the perimeter from the ladder but before cleaning the rest of it. It was pretty clear where I had left off in the scrubbing when I finally went up to finish the shed.

Shed Roof Cleaned Around Perimeter

The three weeks went very quickly but as we pulled out, the site looked very good and the trimmed palm trees will make it easy for us and any potential renters to get into and out of the site. We will be heading north on our next post and I’ll show the plans we have for the upcoming spring, summer and fall.

How Our Site Looked the Day We Left