Oscar Scherer SP (Jan 9-22)

Thursday - All set up. This site (65) is very long and narrow. Our canopy is behind the M.H. We went to Ilias Greek Restaurant and had the best gyros ever. Next, we got gas and made a Walmart run. It is good to be back here.
Friday - We took the bikes on the Green Trail and checked on the eaglets. There are two and they are being well taken care of by both parents. One was on the nest and the other nearby. We did some errands and ended up at Scramblers Cafe for a Reuben and BLT. Excellent!  Our friends Mary and Dave just got in today, so it was good to check in with them. It was warm & humid today.
Saturday - We launched our kayaks here in the park with Mary and Dave to do some fishing. We fished spots where we caught fish two weeks ago, but never found them. John caught the only fish, a decent sized ladyfish. It was breezy, but nice. Later in the day the wind really came up, so we lowered the canopy and awning just to be safe. The four of us went out for very good pizza at Frankie's, then to the Jetty where we enjoyed watching a dolphin and John threw a fly without success. It got quite cool while we were there and really poured during the night. 
Sunday - Down day. 
Monday - We returned with our friends to Lemon Bay Park. It was a little breezy, but otherwise the weather was perfect. Be headed over to the other side of the bay towards Blind Pass and found it extremely nice there. There is a kayak launch there in a park, but no washrooms. We saw lots of fish activity with pelicans crashing into the water, but not much catching. John caught the only fish, a small trout. John has a theory that  the heavier tippet we began using is limiting the action of the flies. We will return to 10 pound tippet the next time we go out and see if that makes a difference.
Tuesday - We Had to get the blower motor replaced in the envoy so we took it to Sunset GMC in Sarasota. They also found a couple of other things like the throttle body and the evaporator that needed work so we had that done as well. All together it cost us $600, but not complaining the car has done very well for us. It is also running much better. 
Wednesday - We went to the Tampa RV super show today just to see what's new. We committed on not buying anything this year. We did see a Big Horn fifth wheel with a front living room that we really liked and also a Southwind class A motorhome that was nice as well. We also picked up a lots of good campground information, especially helpful will be the north east for our trip this summer.
Thursday - We finally got our lazy selves out of bed and went over to the nature center and enjoyed a pancake breakfast that the hosts prepare every week. Later in the day, we returned and enjoyed listening to a weekly music jam of mountain music. It is non-professional, but very good. It has cooled down a little more. 
Friday - Another cool day. Laundry, Walmart, fill the Envoy. John wanted to see if there are any tilapia here in South Creek. We tried the same tactic we used on the Myakka. Negative.
Saturday - Still cool and it has become windy, so no kayaking again. Instead, we decided to explore and find another place to launch. After some study of maps we have collected, we decided to check out the Nokomis County Park kayak launch. First, Joan was able to get her hair cut at a place recommended by our host here, Pat. Looks good. We drove to the park and found out that until some work is completed, we would have to wheel the kayaks about 100 yards to the launch. No problem. The area was quite shallow and covered with oyster beds, so we will have to watch tides. The area is beautiful and looks very fishy. We have decided to try it out on Monday if the weather permits. We also took a walk over at Casperson Park which is a great area with a kayak launch, hiking and biking trails.
Sunday - We attended the early contemporary service at Nokomis-Venice UM Church and had a great experience. The music was good and the people very welcoming. 
Monday - We launched the kayaks at Nokomis Park and dodged oyster beds until we got to Curry Creek. This is a beautiful area and according to a guy who was in his yard, told us that dozens of snook come around his dock every evening. John got a real surprise by catching an 18 inch juvenile tarpon on a chartreuse Clouser. This was a first for us. He also caught a small mangrove snapper. After, we stopped at Frankie's for excellent pizza. 
Tuesday - We checked out a park that is at the end of Laurel Road called Laurel Park. The park is situated on the Myakka River. There are some good areas to fish, but kayak access would be tricky, plus there are some very large alligators. We fished for awhile hoping for tilapia, and managed a few bream, one of which was decent size. Some small boys who were hiking with their parents, enjoyed holding and throwing them back.
The temperature is dropping again, so we went to Walmart and got some things put away around the campsite in preparation for moving tomorrow. In the evening, we went up to the nature center and listened to Carl Ross do a program of mountain music. 

View Pictures: Click Here

No comments: