Chicken Pot Pie at the Cozy Corner

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Monday, 16 January, 2012

This morning we closed up the camper and walked down to the river. Hillsborough River SP is a beautiful place, the river is placid by the campground, yet has rapids on the other side of the park. We will probably come back here to spend more time, maybe rent a canoe and enjoy the river.

We drove south then east, hating the traffic through Brandon and environs. We were happy to finally reach the farm areas in the central part of the state. We saw fields of strawberries and cabbages and other crops we didn’t recognize. We turned south at Yeehaw Junction and once past Ft. Drum, turned back west to Kissimmee Prairie Preserve SP. It is literally out in the middle of nowhere, a birder’s paradise, I hear. The campground was small, but clean, and the people were very friendly. We read that we would be able to see lots of stars at night, but were surprised to see the lights of the east coast, and realized we see more stars at home.

Tuesday, 17 January

We drove down Hwy 441 along the east side of Lake Okeechobee, past more run down rv parks than I thought possible, though many were more like fishing camps. At Port Mayaca we crossed the St. Lucie Canal and saw the lock we passed through to enter the lake over 8 months ago. We hokey pokeyed through Pahokee and south through Belle Glade and South Bay, where we picked up Hwy 27. The old highway is now 4 lanes and the pines that used to line the east side of the road are long gone. Still in evidence, though, are the sugar cane fields and the sod farms. Harvesting of the sugar cane was underway and trucks loaded with the cut stalks rumbled up the highway. We could see the smoke from several of the sugar plants.

We got to Mom’s in Miami Springs by mid afternoon and relaxed and visited before going to supper at Cozy Corner Café, the going place in the Springs.

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Photos

Hillsborough River
at Hillsborough River State Park

Hillsborough River
Hillsborough River SP

Kississimmee Prairie Preserve SP
Kind of pretty

Kississimmee Prairie Preserve SP
Just kind of looks like scrub land

Port Mayaca Lock
between St. Lucie Canal and Lake Okeechobee. This is the lock that lifted us 3".

Comments

[Mark and Linda Smith]

Great pics
Hey guys, we really enjoy the pics. We haven't been to a lot of the areas you show and are now looking forward to them one day soon. Safe travels. Mark

[Dave]

Canoe? Really?
I would LOVE to see the two of you in a canoe! Get a picture of it and I'll hang it on the wall in the living room. We love and miss you guys. Give Grandma our love.