It was an early start yesterday to
cross Lake Okeechobee. Tide's In passed us as we untied from the
dolphins. It was a nice night and we were actually stationary enough
to be able to tune into Monday night football. Stephen and Pam on
Tide's In have spent the last 3 winters in Banana Bay so it was fun
to see someone we knew on the waterway!
Funny thing about the lock: we just
drove through it! The lake was the same level as the waterway leading
up to it so no raising or lowering needed – easy for sure :-)
This lake lived up to its reputation as
the second largest fresh water lake in the US (Lake Michigan is the
largest) as we couldn't see any shoreline once we were out on the
lake. It was a nice crossing with the winds calm but building by the
time we were across (about 3 hours). Good thing we left when we did.
We tried to see the lake one
of the times we had driven my mom down here but from the area around
the lake, you can't see it at all! Only thing you can see is the
earthen levee around it.
Once across the lake, it was another 7
miles around the edge in an almost canal like area that rims the
lake. You can see the very tall mound of dirt that keeps the lake in
its place. The visitor center at the St. Lucie lock stated that if
this levee had been build today it would never be build with dirt and
stone! Nice public areas in this area though.
The birds sure liked to follow the guy
mowing the grass. I'm not sure what they find in the cut grass but
they seemed to follow any of the mowers we saw along the route. Very
similar to the seagulls that followed us across the lake today.
We stopped about 1 pm at Moore Haven. A
very small town whose grocery store had just closed for good last
Saturday. Now everyone has to drive at least 45 minutes to the next
closest store. There was no evidence of industry – not sure what
keeps folks in this area. However, I was able to finally get a
haircut which was GREAT and long overdue. Almost took the scissors to
my hair ….. always a bad outcome ….
Today was a short 25 miles to Labelle,
FL. Mostly farmland along the river again – very little evidence of
homes or anything else. The water plants (most likely an invasive
species) were really evident in one area of the river in particular.
This was also at the visitor center. Amazing how quickly it can take
over a waterway.
This little bird seemed to be enjoying
the ride down the river though :-)
We're docked adjacent to Tide's In
tonight (and tomorrow night as we are both staying another night) at
LaBelle. Really nice docks – free with power included. Can't beat
that for sure.
So off came the bikes and we made the 1
½ mile ride to Winn-Dixie. I loved the sign along the street warning
of the live oaks overhanging the street. In Ohio, these would just be
trimmed back but not here in the south! The live oaks are like sacred
trees with the arms often totally grown across the street.
Shopping again with backpacks. Limited
needs as we will be leaving the boat next week for a trip to Ohio. We were sure spoiled by having a car during the month we spent at New Bern.
Tomorrow: Thanksgiving – parades,
football and a good dinner. What more could we want?
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