North East Florida
October 9-13, 2018
Trip Journal #11
Heading southeast into northeast Florida a day before the hurricane hits there, we enter our last state to visit on this east coast tour.
Old Neighborhood
Keeping with the theme of revisiting our roots, we drove around Dinsmore, a suburb of Jacksonville, to find the house Dan lived in for 5 years as a child. We think we found it. A mix of small old homes and farms on Old Kings Road, we drove up and done for a few miles. When we stopped by an old church, a large dump truck pulled in beside us and the driver inquired if we were lost. This nice person was concerned because he said that this area was not safe. This was such a nice gesture of kindness.Barrier Islands
A series of barrier Islands grace the coastline of the Atlantic Ocean east of Jacksonville Florida. We were here 10 years ago with Mariah and Kaia for a great week exploring these islands, swamps and beaches. This visit brings us into places we did not explore then.Our bicycles transported us through tree-canopied roads, deserted beaches and salt marshes. We camped at Little Talbot State Park under a canopy of majestic spanish-moss draped live oaks with an understory of saw palmetto, magnolias bordering coastal grasslands. Beyond the hammocks of land there are sand dunes separating the fresh water ponds from the beach of the Atlantic Ocean.
Bicycling
We biked for 10 miles under an oak canopy at Fort Clinch State Park on Amelia Island, camped at Little Talbot State Park and biked another 8 miles along the beach the next day. Should you be concerned about exhaustion setting in … know that we now have e-bikes with battery assist for going uphill or when tiring. We estimate we actually use the extra boost about 20% of the time.
Birds
The birds are incredible. Most have migrated south, but a few remain for our enjoyment. The Ibis and the Egret are similar, but I think I have begun to tell them apart. I have captured a few delightful photos. |
| Snowy Egret just taking to wing |
Salt Marsh
The Salt Marsh along the Amelia and St. John’s rivers is not only beautiful but provides a number of ecological benefits. They provide critical nursery grounds for finfish and shellfish; and filter water and absorb pollutants, reducing toxins entering tidal creeks and estuaries. The large amount of plant materials absorbs excess water controlling coastal flooding; they act as a natural barrier against brief storm surges, helping to protect the delicate coastline.A note on the environment here. The Florida State parks, private preservation organizations and National Environment interests have collaborated to create vast wildlife refuges and natural beaches, lagoons and undeveloped islands. We honor those efforts as we enjoy the natural world around us.
Kingsley Plantation
Being a southern phenomenon, plantations attract us westerners. This one especially called to us … literally, because we were not sure where we were heading as we left the barrier island we had camped. The road sign promised a historic preserve and we ventured down an isolated narrow canopy dirt road following an instinct.
To our surprise, we had arrived at the oldest plantation still standing in the state of Florida. Moreover, this was “Harvest Day” and we arrived about 20 minutes before it opened … the lines of cars were actually following us in and thus our perception of isolation. This plantation is unique in several ways.
Dating back to 1798, Zephaniah Kingsley moved to Spanish Florida with his African wife, whom he had purchased in Cuba. Setting up home on the 1,000-acre island and taking advantage of Spain’s views on race and society, Zephaniah freed her and their children and she became her husband’s business partner and owned her own slaves. Another unusual facet of Kingsley was that he owned five other plantations around this part of Florida: producing cotton, indigo, potatoes, rice, citrus and hickory nuts.
Demonstrations revealed many of the processes in the cultivation and harvesting of cotton and indigo. I didn't realize cotton has beautiful flowers.
The enslaved peoples quarters were made of tabby; a material formed of oyster shells, sand and water and layered to construct the walls.
More Family
Dan has seven siblings providing lots of family to visit. Four months ago, this lovely family drove from Florida to Mesa Verde Colorado for a family reunion … where we met the children and had a great time with Brian (our favorite hiking guide.) Now it is our turn. We stopped for a visit here with Brian, Dan’s nephew (Marilyn’s son) and his lovely children, TJ and Kimberly who have the most lovely smiles in our family.
You may have noted: we did not actually go into Jacksonville … too many people and too much traffic.
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