A Trip to Punta Gorda!

Ken and I were up at 7 and got ready to head to Punta Gorda with Chuck and Melissa to meet Noela and Ernie!  Ken made breakfast, again, while I finished my blog from yesterday.  Ken had taken plenty of pictures for me to download and put on the blog.  We cleaned up and were on our way to Punta Gorda at 8:45.

Ken wanted to stop on Burnt Store Road to try to get a "sighting" of the burrowing owls.  We stopped at a place where there were 4 burrows, but no owls.  So we were on our way when Ken yelled, "stop, I think I see one sitting on a perch".  Sure enough, when we turned around, we got to see 2 of them fairly up close and personal.  There are about 1,000 nesting pairs in and around Cape Coral, which has the largest number of pairs in Florida.  They are protected by State law and if they dig a burrow on your building lot, you can not disturb it.  Buying a lot as a speculation may not be a good idea.  You might not be able to build your home there when you are ready if a burrowing owl "beat you to it".  They are so petite and cute!  Made Ken's day!

Within these stakes is the protected area for one pair of the
 burrowing owls.  No sighting here!

This is what their burrows look like!  No owls here!

Our 1st sighting of the burrowing owl.  So cute!

A pair of burrowing owls.  They seemed relaxed when we were nearby!

We got to Ponce de Leon Park at 10 and met up with Ernie and Noela.  We did a walk towards the Peace River which meets up with the Myakka River.  Short, but nice walk.  Then we went into the Peace River Wildlife Center where injured birds, owls, and squirrels can get treatment and hopefully be returned to their nature habitats.  Or, if the injury is too severe, they will spend the rest of their days at the Center where they are well cared for and comfortable. They have a vet on call 24/7 and even do surgery at the center.  It was an interesting place. 

There is a narrow, short beach at the park!

Just some trivia!

We shared a few secrets!

More trivia.......boy are all of us getting "smart"!

Walking out to the Peace River!

Standing on the fishing pier overlooking the Peace River.
What a good looking group of people!

This eagle injured its wing as a eaglet when he left the nest!

This woodstork has a twisted beak and would
not be able to eat out in the wild.  It can't eat
off the ground, but from buckets of food
hung on the trees!

Lots of pelicans in the wildlife center with wing injuries or
totally missing a wing.

A nest of blue heron in a tree at the center!

We left there to go to Fisherman's Village for lunch at the Captains Table.  We walked through the shoppe area 1st, and it was very nice with such a variety of things to purchase.  The restaurant was very full and we had to wait about 45 minutes to be seated.  But, it was well worth the wait.  The food was delicious, very reasonably priced, and Margaret, our waitress, was wonderful.  It was a fun experience with a fantastic view.

At the animal center they told us their special owl, Luna,
was on a field trip.  She was at Fisherman's Village when
we got there.  She is a very rare  miniature albino screech owl.
They told us if we live another 100 years we would never
see another one.  They had to do a lot of research at the center
to figure out what type of owl she was! 

Walking through the "mall" at Fisherman's Village

The Captain's Table Restaurant is on the end of this building
on the second floor!

The Happy Lady Campers.  I was chilly in the air conditioning,
so the large cloth napkins came in handy!

The Happy Male Campers!

Not a bad view while eating lunch!

Ken loved his blackened grouper, shrimp and scallops with
fresh green beans!

I guess he liked it A LOT!!!!!!

You can't help but be happy and smiling BIG when you are
eating good food in sunny Florida!!!

Before we left to walk on the Harbor View Walkway, we played on the "adult exercise park".  What a hoot!!!!  We walked on the trail for several miles, going under Route 41 and walking along the Peace River.  We passed several "hut type" eateries on the water, parks, and beautiful, large boats in the marinas. We even stopped for some ice cream and the gentleman who worked there was certainly into his job.  He was so enthusiastic and fun!

There were 4 or 5 pieces of equipment for us to try!

You can ride bike on the trail too!

An ibis and a juvenile ibis!

What a gorgeous river walk.  At night all of these tree trunks
are lit with miniature Christmas lights!

You will have to look very closely.  You probably
 can't  see Melissa.   Her outfit blends into the
stools at the ice cream shop!

How many men does it take to put a pin on a map to show
the location of where you live????  Must be more than 3!!!!
No, Chuck, not up there!  Your home state is Tennessee!!!

We said our good-byes to Ernie and Noela (but we will see them again tomorrow at Pine Island) and were back to our CG on Pine Island by 6:00.  (This was going to be a "short" day!)  I guess not!!

We had a light dinner and then I had a nice conversation with Doloris and Fred. They are enduring the rain so that the snow will be gone when we return to PA! next week!  We appreciate it!  So good to talk to them and we look forward to seeing them when we return.  We went to Chuck and Melissa's to play games at 7:14 (Ken's suggested time)!  The women won Up the River or 7-up as they call it in the south and Skip-Bo.  The men pulled out a win in Pinochle at the very end.  A good night for the ladies - finally!!!!!!  Back to Waldo around 10:15. Another special day!!!