Koreshan SP (Dec 26-Jan 8)

Thursday - We had a good trip down with no problems. We are in and set up at 2 PM in site 14. It is warm and rather humid and feels like it could rain, although there is a nice breeze.

Friday - We put our kayaks in on the Estero River here in the park with our friends Mary and Dave from Canada. We decided to target tilapia with the same set up we were successful using on the Myakka River. John caught two fish that resembled tilapia except for coloration. They had black and white stripes running laterally along their bodies. He also caught two tilapia one small and one somewhat larger, while Joan caught one that was about the same size as John's larger one. Dave unfortunately did not catch anything. There were many Kamakazi kayakers out on the river today plus bigger boats that don't seem to understand what idle  speed no wake means.

Saturday - Since there is forecast that storms are headed this way, we decided to put the kayaks in again while we can. We tried fishing for saltwater species with bigger flies, but never got a hit. It was also harder with even more canoes and kayaks out and more wind. 

Sunday - Raining here. It was a very nice service this morning at the Estero United Methodist church, not far from here. After the service, it was still raining a little, so we went to Bass Pro Shop so John could get some needed fly tying materials and we could just do some looking around. Before heading back, we stopped for veggies at a roadside stand and then went to Publix for some needed items. John had to follow the Bears game on his iPhone app, because by being in the Tampa area we were forced to watch Tampa Bay get killed by New Orleans. Sadly the Bears were able to make a game of it but not quite pull it off. 

Monday - We put in on the river again, and hoped that by going out earlier, fewer people would be on the water. However, this was not going to prove to be the case. There were still way too many kayakers for good fishing, but we enjoyed the paddling anyway. A family passed us and one of them had a Downers Grove North t-shirt on, so John enjoyed meeting a family from his home town. We also enjoyed watching some manatees on the river. John managed to catch two tilapia, but  were too small to make them worth while filleting. John tied four Clouser minnow flies with new craft fur and dumbbell eyes he got from Bass Pro Shop.

New Years Day - Happy New Year friends. This morning we drove over to Ding Darling wildlife refuge, which is on Sanibel Island with our friends Mary and Dave. We launched our kayaks at mile three on the nature drive. Dave is beginning fly fishing and John fixed him up with one of his Clouser minnows. He managed to catch several fish including a couple of trout, but they were too small to keep. John also caught several fish with the trout coming up two small as well. This is a beautiful area with no buildings anywhere to be seen, just hundreds of birds. On the way back, we stopped at Bowman beach to check it out and get our feet wet. It was way too crowded.

Thursday - Again, since we have a cold front coming in tomorrow, we have adjusted our kayaking schedule around that. We put in at Lovers Key State Park Kayak launch with our friends Mary and Dave. We paddled and fished for two hours in this beautiful place, but never got a hit. Nevertheless, we enjoyed the scenery and especially seeing a dolphin swimming around. On the way back, we decided to go through Ft. Myers Beach, which was a huge mistake. Traffic was bumper to bumper and it took us an extra hour to get to Skip 1 seafood restaurant where we met for a delicious grouper dinner.

Friday - We got rain and wind in the night, which was quite noisy since we are camped under a monkey tree that has huge pods that dropped on our roof during the night. Thankfully there was no damage and we awoke to sunshine and a very cool breeze, with temps in the low 50s. Chicken and rice on the Dutch oven today. Yum!

Saturday - Thankful for playoff games as it is cold and rainy. 

Sunday - We got a reprieve in the weather today, so after a wonderful worship service, we decided to go back to Lovers Key and launch the kayaks again. The first thing that we noticed when we got there was that wind had stirred up the water and made it very murky. This did not exactly increase our confidence for catching fish. We finished for two and a half hours without a single bite. To console ourselves, we stopped for pizza at Enzos on the way back.

Monday - Cold here by Florida standards. We did some needed cleaning and light maintenance and watched the BCS Championship Game. Yeah Noles! 

Tuesday - Sunny, but still cold. B&N trip to use wi-fi. 

Wednesday - It sprinkled in the AM with wind and warmer in the PM. We got things ready to leave here in the morning. 

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Oscar Scherer SP (Dec 16-25)

Monday - We got here in about an hour, got set up, had dinner, then went over to North Jetty to enjoy the sunset and full moon rise. They are doing a lot of construction in the park and we're not quite sure what it will look like when they are done. John fished from the jetty, but without any success.

Tuesday - We took a long hike this morning on the Green Trail and around the campground. It was quite cool, but nice. We then went to the coffee social and saw some old friends and met some new ones. Late morning we launched the kayaks in on South Creek here and fished going out and along the residential canals. Joan caught a nice jack crevalle and a ladyfish while John caught a ladyfish, several small snook, and a couple of small mangrove snapper. It was good action, but nothing for the table. The temperature was perfect while we were out there. For dinner we went to our favorite pizza place here in the area Fratelli's, but it was no longer by that name, but is now now El Panificio. However it was still quite good.

Wednesday - This morning we went on a hike with the ranger on the Green Trail. We hoped we would see scrub jays, but they didn't cooperate. Instead we did see a bald eagle on the nest and another in a dead tree. In the afternoon we launched the kayaks in the park again. John did all the catching today with a 20"+ snook to the boat, another that broke off, and still another that came unhooked. John caught a good fighting fish that we have not yet identified. It was a beautiful evening. Snook must be 27" to keep.

Friday - We hiked our normal 2 miles on the green trail, had breakfast, then drove south of here to the Englewood area and put in at Lemon Bay Park. When we got there we discovered that it was very windy. We decided to put in anyway and let the wind blow us south and fish along the way. John managed to catch a small Jack Crevalle and a very large ladyfish that gave him quite a fight. It turned out to be about 20 inches long, but unfortunately they are still not to eat. We talked to a man who kayak fished and did quite well. He paddled across the bay to an area that he says has harder bottom. We will remember that the next time we go there.
Saturday - We enjoyed the kayak trip we did last year about this time with the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program, so we decided to do it again this year. We launched very near the entrance to Neil preserve at the bridge that goes to Amelia Island. We headed north and paddled couple of miles very close to where it enters into Robinson Preserve. It was very windy, so we didn't miss not being able to fish, although the area look very promising for trout due to the nice seagrass. We met and talk to some very nice people on the trip. Brad who is a teacher at Sarasota Mote Marine Aquarium led the trip and was very informative. On the way back we stopped at the Seafood Shack for lunch. We both had the grouper sandwiches which were excellent.

Sunday - We attended a very nice contemporary service at Vamo United Methodist Church. The music was excellent and message very appropriate for the season. We were very impressed with the food distribution that they have for folks in the area that are in need. It was very windy today so we stayed close to the campground.

Christmas Eve - Is there room in your inn for Him? 

Christmas Day - Merry Christmas friends. We hope you are enjoying this blessed day. We drive over to Myakka State Park to enjoy dinner with our friends Tom and Jane, who are camping there and Skip and Shirley who drove down from Zephyrhills. We shared a wonderful meal with perfect weather outside at their campsite, then went down to the river and caught a whole bunch of tilapia. Four were quite large, so they went home with Skip. Tom says he has caught some there that are huge. Maybe next time. John was using a green weenie tipped with a small piece of Gulp worm. Joan quit fishing when some really big gators came around. 

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E. G. Simmons County Park (Dec 9-15)

Tuesday - After watching the Chicago Bears beat the Dallas Cowboys that we had recorded from last night, we put the wheels under the kayaks and walked them up to a place to put in. It was an absolutely gorgeous morning, but the fishing was rather slow. We saw quite a bit of action and some manatees that were in the area. John was the only one to catch anything, but they were not eaters. He caught one ladyfish and two Jack Crevalle.

After dinner we drove over to an area we have fished many times. Joan had the hot hand landing six ladyfish. John hooked a few but either got cut off or spit out. We enjoyed watching several manatees in the area and a gorgeous evening. 

Wednesday - What a gorgeous day today. The humidity has dropped and the temperatures have fallen a little. We drove over to Apollo Beach to see if there is a good place to launch the kayaks. We would have to put the wheels under them and pull them a little ways, but there is a nice beach area to launch. Most important, there is a restroom. While we were there we joined watching a group of people who were fishing from shore and threw in for a while. No one including us caught anything. On the way back we stopped at the grocery store, the veggie stand, and for Chinese. The Chinese was okay except Joan found a bug in hers. We probably won't return. Even worse, we went to McDonald's for an ice cream sundae and to use their Wi-Fi, but their ice cream machine was broken and the Wi-Fi was slow. In the evening we went back to our spot and fished for a little while before it got dark. John caught four ladyfish and Joan caught one. They were bigger than others we have been catching and gave us a very good fight.

Thursday - Our friends Mike and Christina that we met at Little Manatee River State Park last year, came and joined us. They are camping in the site next to us now. We fished for a while at the same place by the sandy beach and caught several ladyfish. Later we came into our motorhome and shared crackers, sandwiches, wine, veggies, strawberries, etc. The temperature has dropped here considerably.

Friday - Skip and Shirl came down in the afternoon to check out this place and kayak a bit. We put in at the far end of the main road near where the water faucets are for rinsing boats. Skip and Shirl trolled up and down the channels while we casted under the mangroves and around points and channels. The fishing was very slow today but the scenery was beautiful. S and S do not like Mexican food, so we went with just our friends Christina and Mike. Siri told us that the best one around was Los Amigos in Ruskin. She was absolutely correct, as it was outstanding.

Saturday - Today was the day to set out wreaths on all of the graves at Saratoga Natuonal Cemetery. We had no idea what to expect, but it's far surpassed our highest expectations. 1500 people, including at least 1000 motorcyclists helped in setting out the 6500 wreaths. This activity was followed by a very moving service to honor veterans and their service. On the way home we stopped at O'Brian's Farm and had our lunch at their picnic tables followed by one of their wonderful strawberry shortcakes for dessert. Next we stopped at Hamer Park near Parrish, Florida and fished from their dock. John caught a hard fighting Jack Crevalle while unfortunately Joan lost whatever she had on.

Sunday - We attended the contemporary service at Sun City United Methodist church where we went when we were staying at Little Manatee River State Park last year. The music was great and the folks here very friendly. We fished at our spot again, but very little action. John caught a lizard fish and had one bigger big fish on, but it got away.

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