Hi Everyone,

We have been enjoying hiking trails around Titusville to do birding in the morning. Trying to put in 5 miles a day. We have seen some wild pigs, cattle, dead snakes and deer along with seeing what birds we can.

My plans are made and Diana will be flying to LA on the 22^nd to visit with Zach for a few days. He will drive her up to Petaluma spending a couple of days then return to LA. We are in luck that our cousin Mara is free on Friday when we plan to drive up, so we will meet up with her in San Francisco or Berkley to have some fun together. Diana’s sister’s surgery is on the 30^th so she will stay until Feb 5^th then returning to FL to get the boat ready to move shortly after her return.

David has signed up for the continuing education conference in Orlando so he’ll start driving back and forth Saturday for classes that continue until next Wed. He has been in touch with an old college roommate. Russ will be there to so they hope to get together one evening and catch up. After the Veterinary conference ends the birding festival starts in Titusville so David will be busy with that. 

Diana had to hoist David back up to the top of the mast this week. You will be thankful that we didn’t take a picture of the boat after an osprey landed up there and had his lunch. The boat decking was covered with fish parts and blood. Not a pretty sight. Since we have all in instruments off of the top it’s a nice flat high spot where osprey like to dine. We decided instead of putting the instruments back on then have to take them off to get under bridges when we leave here, a trip to the hardware store was in order.  We picked up bird spikes that you put on a roof to keep birds off. So up David went to cable tie the rows of spikes down. So far so good, the osprey landed with a big fish but had nowhere to put the fish down to rip it apart. We banged on the spreaders to scare it off and it hasn’t been back.

Yesterday in getting things ready for Abe’s arrival David by accident washed the inside of the bunkroom when he went to fill the water tanks. The ports were open and when he turned the hose on full blast it went wild stopping right by the open port and spraying inside. Today the mattress are dry and I’m putting things back into place.

This morning we joined up with a Florida Trail Association for an 8-mile hike along the Florida Trail over by Christmas FL. It was a beautiful walk across a field then into the woods for most of the 8 miles. 

Endangered Florida Scrub Jay

Spoonbill.egret, wood stork and friends

Flicker

Turkey Vulture

Three Manatee drinking

View of Buck Lake part if the St Johns watershed

Abe joined us for a hike

here's looking at you.An eye ball found on deck this morning