Lake Manatee SP (Jan 24-Feb 6)

Tuesday - We took our sweet time getting here and didn't get on the road until afternoon. We got in, got set up, and went to a pot-luck dinner here in the park. It was excellent and we ran into people we have met here and at other parks. We have a nice site which, like others, is more open than Oscar Scherer. It is a nice change to be able to see the surroundings from the site.

Wednesday - We checked out a new park (Bennett Park) that we heard might offer a place to launch the kayaks into the Manatee River. The park has some ponds (Joan caught a small bass and a nice bream), a playground, paved walking trails, and the launch. The launch is unimproved and would be rather muddy. Hopefully they will put some sand or gravel there to make it easier. We stopped on the way back at O'Brien's Farm and picked up veggies and enjoyed strawberry shortcakes. It is great to be an age where you can have your dessert first. When we got back to the park, we went down to the boat ramp and dock and fished for awhile. Joan caught a nice bream on a mini-Clouser and lost another one.
Thursday - We returned to Robinson Preserve because we thought there we could escape the wind that came up today. Fishing, even with the anchors we have, proved quite tricky. The only action we saw was a snook that took a swipe at John's fly, but missed.
Friday - Rainy day today. Looks like a down day. John bought a new ebook on Florida saltwater fly fishing. Joan is catching up with friends on the laptop.
Saturday - We went to a nice coffee at the host's campsite on the other loop, then did some motorhome cleanup. In the evening we attended a ranger talk on owls and then went on an owl walk. She played screech owl calls, which caused one to respond, then come check us out.
Sunday - We attended an absolutely wonderful worship service at Bayside Community Church. The service was full, with a good mix of enthusiastic people, and we all appreciated gread music and a meaningful message on anger.
Monday - We launched on the Bradon River about 10 miles west of the campground. It was windy again, but we managed with our anchors to cast near many oyster beds. We saw some action, but never got anything to bite. Fishing new areas each time we go out is not working well for us in catching, but we are seeing some beautiful places. Afterwards, we headed to Cracker Barrel and had trout for dinner.
Tuesday - We returned to Robinson Preserve on the far side of Bradenton and launched the kayaks in this beautiful park. It was windy again, but less so than yesterday. John started things off with a small snook and followed with three flounder. The first two were barley keeper sized, but the last one was 15", so we invited him home for dinner. He accepted, and was extremely good. This is by far one of our favorite spots to kayak in Florida.
Thursday - We launched kayaks on the lake here and fished for bass along the shoreline. We put on foam hoppers and made them gurgle on the retrieve. John had a good strike, and missed him, but managed to hook another. He measured 13" long, which is an inch short of keeper size. He was released unharmed.
In the afternoon, we enjoyed our second potluck here. We brought Charlie Bread that John makes in the cast-iron Dutch Oven. It was yummy.
Friday - We put in again on the lake here early to try to beat the wind that is coming today. We used our lighter rods and small Clouser flies in hope s of catching some bream or small bass. Instead, Joan started things off with a small crappie, then caught another that was 14" long, and year another that measured 13". That is the one in the picture on Picassa. John finally caught one that was 13". We didn't have our fish bag to put them in to bring them back to camp because we had taken them out of the kayaks after our last trip.
Saturday - Another great service at Bayside Community. Afterwards we had a great steak dinner at Applebee's.
Sunday - We returned to the lake here and for the first hour were getting skunked. John had the first action in a small bay, but lost it. He quickly landed one, however, then Joan caught one in the same area. We caught a couple more, released one, and Joan caught a couple big catfish. We had plenty of crappie, so we released the catfish. We came back to camp and John filleted and cooked them. Delicious! Super Bowl this evening.
Monday - We met Joan's brother Skip and launched of Hwy 64 west of Bradenton, before the Causeway. There was good incoming tide action and we saw fish rolling, but catching was not to be. John had a nice redfish on, but it came unhooked. We got heavy rain on the way back to camp.

View More Pictures: https://picasaweb.google.com/114754015214438395393/LakeManateeSPJan24Feb6
View Video of Joan fly fishing for crappie
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeAyrGs-mb8
View Video of Joan catching a catfish on the fly rod
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHQU__7TGuY&feature=related

Oscar Scherer SP (Jan 10-23)

Tuesday - We are back here for two weeks. We love this area. After getting set up, we headed to Walmart to get resupplied. We brought our food home, then went to North Point Jetty to fish and enjoy the sunset. John caught a small flounder from the jetty, then we went over to the beach to fish the surf and view the sunset. No fish, beautiful sunset.
Wednesday - Rainy day today. We got some financial stuff taken care of and walked the campground a couple of times between raindrops.
Thursday - We drove the 70 miles south and attended the Tampa RV Supershow. We enjoyed the booths of products and services, and seeing the new RVs on the market. We didn't see anything we liked enough better than what we have to buy anything, but it was still fun to look. We did see a fifth wheel that was beautiful, made by Excel. If anyone is in the market look at them, plus the Bighorn, which is what we have in north Georgia. On the way back, we stopped at Cracker Barrel and had a great dinner with wonderful service.
Sunday - We appreciated an excellent contemporary service at Christ UMC in Venice. After, we had breakfast at Ophelia's Pasta House, which is an odd name for breakfast. However, it is a popular spot for good reason. It has been quite cool, so we have enjoyed watching football instead of kayaking. It is supposed to warm up tomorrow.
Tuesday - We put in at the campground and fished in previously productive spots, but three hours netted us nothing.
Wednesday - Six of us (Skip, Shirley, Tom, Jane, and the two of us) put kayaks in at Blackburn Point to fish. Skip caught a flounder and trout, Tom caught a trout and John caught a flounder. It began to thunder, so we cut the outing short.
Thursday - The six of us went to Robinson Preserve in Bradenton to kayak and fish. This is near the area we will be next month when we are at Lake Manatee SP. The kayaking was great, but Skip caught the only fish, nabbing a flounder and a snook. Afterwards we stopped at Cracker Barrel and had the fish we didn't catch.
Friday - Today was a Walmart and other chore day, so other than this and our two walks, we Stayed close. It was good to have some down time.
Saturday - We drove to the Venice boat launch on the Inter-coastal waterway to watch people launch their boats and enjoy being by the water. John was going to tie some flies, but it was too windy. He attracted some attention from folks who were interested it fly fishing, by casting from the dock. A highlight was a couple who brought an antique steam-powered boat to launch. It took them several minutes to get steam pressure. Afterwards we went to Fratelli's for pizza.
Monday - We drove about ten miles north to Turtle Beach and launched the kayaks. The area is built up near the launch, but as we kayaked back south, we discovered that it enters into a wildlife area. While we we're out, we saw at tri-colored heron, white heron, a bald eagle stealing a fish from an osprey, and a dolphin. We fished hard, but did not catch anything. Reports from other fishermen were negative as well. We were joined by our friends Tom and Jane, who came later.

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