Are We Home Yet?

 Physically we have been home for weeks, but in this space, the answer is no! 

We went to the Jacksonville Zoo while we were there!

We saw tons of gorgeous animals!!

It was crazy cold!!

We drove surface streets through the immense city and were very impressed!!

Will I be showing all of the sights? 

NO! 

Otherwise, I will never catch up! After all, Thanksgiving has come and gone, we attended a wonderful pickleball tournament,  our Christmas tree is up, and we each played a role in "A Walk Through Bethlehem" at our church. Oh yeah, we did the Advent reading this past Sunday as well. (this is the condensed version)

So, with all that out of the way, let's check out some fantastic birds and mammals!

Mind you it has been weeks ago so of course I've forgotten most all of the names, but truth be told, what would you do with the information anyway? Right?

There's the charcoal color, the red beak, a smidge of yellow as well as the little whiskers, all adding up to a crazy handsome bird.

As all good readers of Camera Crazy know, I love me some birds, however, if all mammals were as handsome as this Eastern Bongo I might just be persuaded to change my allegiance.

A member of the antelope family, I was so enthralled with them that I'm showing another photo of the gorgeous color, the delicate white stripes, and that fantastic face!!

Even the inside of the ears were attractive!! Hearing for years that the Jacksonville Zoo was a good one,  I can now confirm the truth in that rumor. They were setting up for Christmas so in some areas, there was a little mingling of the holidays, what with the reflection in the glass at the penguin swimming hole.

A plethora of beautiful birds to ogle,  including the Lorikeets flying around the aviary, sometimes landing on the patrons!

Arriving it was chilly as can be, prompting a quick trip to the gift shop where Bruce insisted on buying me a sweatshirt, which turned out to be a wise move indeed. It has been so warm I've not had the chance to wear it again, however, perhaps we will get lucky one of these days and it will cool off.

Look at this color!!

Look at this bill!

The faces of the squirrel monkeys, along with their charming behavior, was so much fun to see.

Along with the animals, there are beautiful gardens scattered about, including a beautiful Japanese one.

I am truly selling this experience short because there was so much to see and I've only touched the surface, however, should you be in that neck of the woods, it comes highly recommended by the Pecks.

As we drove back across the city there was a lot to see, especially in an area of town where there were a lot of murals, another place I would like to revisit. Is it a coincidence that while Bruce was driving, I photographed a woman holding what looks to be a bird with binoculars around her neck? I think not!

Once back at the campground I made another run over to the beach as the sun was beginning to set, reflected in the clouds over the Atlantic.

The temperature did a little bit of plunging, the last such time in weeks now, but we were all snuggled up in our sleeping bag with quilt atop of that, super cozy in spite of the next morning's thermometer reading.

Quickly we dressed, riding back over to the beach before sunrise, or what we were hoping would be the case. A few other hardy souls were about, including this surfer and friends. Seriously, taking one's shirt off in such a chilly environment is so unappealing to me! Perhaps the same could be said of those reading this who would never be caught dead in a tent. Am I right?

Hallelujah and Amen, finally, after three mornings, rewarded with a gorgeous sunrise.

Very much well worth the wait! Hopping back on our bicycles we rode back to our site, prepared a hearty breakfast, and admired our handiwork before we began dismantling it.

Taking the tent down takes only minutes, but between everything else we have, a hour and half is just about the right amount of time to pack the Forester and be on our way, leaving no trace behind.

One last look at the ocean before heading South.

Following an uneventful drive home, we stopped by the lake to dry out our tent, still a little damp from the light rain, along with the horrible humidity. We got a few funny looks from our neighbors driving by!

Before long everything was dry, including the ground cover that we put underneath the tent. Now that thing was mighty messy, but nothing that a broom could not conquer. Another successful camping trip in the books!

Between cards, our upcoming community party, shopping and baking to do, sneaking in another trip might be a stretch, but then again, who knows? We might just be able to make it happen.💜

your friend, 

Gail

p.s. This is a fun post from about this time during our year in Vancouver  called, "Hello Sunshine My Old Friend". Should you read it you will get that title.