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Trip

India 2024

India in 8 days! 
Rickshaw ride!
Temples
Amber Fort where they had elephant rides!
Taj Mahal!!!
An amazing trip!!
First we had to apply for a Electronic Travel Authorization to even enter the country:

On September 9, 2024 Eileen and I flew via American Airlines first to Washington DC, then to New York, then on a 15 hour flight to Delhi, India.
Those flights are long, but they feed you and you can watch several  (lie seven?!) movies. 
Upon arrival we found pillar #17, our guide found us and took us to the hotel, about an hour’s drive away. The drive to the hotel in Delhi gave us a view of trees, and other vegetation along every beautiful road. We also some of the roadside vendors and poorer aspect, including a guy feeding the pigeons (he was helping his karma our guide said).

Our hotel, the Park Plaza was quite nice. We got settled and walked around a bit.
The next day we had breakfast (many interesting dishes, I tried some, some were very good.)
We went with our guide all around the city. Our guide told us that all that horn honking was just friendly honking!

Day 1

We had quite a tour of the city today 9-10-2024.The rickshaw ride was fun, the Chandni Chow Street was interesting. We walked for blocks passing stalls selling everything under the sun. 
1. Royal Mosque
2. Walk around Old Delhi
3. Rickshaw ride
4. Mahatma Gandhi
5. Sikh temple
6. Humayun’s Tomb
     A busy fast paced day

 First, we visited the Royal Mosque.

The Mosque is surrounded by the old city, it was a long walk from the entrance to the structure.
The Jamid Masid, the Royal Mosque served as the imperial mosque of the Mughal emperors until the demise of the empire in 1857. The Jama Masjid was regarded as a symbolic gesture of Islamic power across India.
Women had to wear black!

After walking a while through the bustling streets they treated us to a rickshaw ride: 

Along one street the building had reliefs cut into stone at the bottom od columns, this was in a destitute area.
Wandering through Old Delhi one could get lost very quickly, good thing we had a guide! The yellow PushPin is where we were along the main road. a road few cars were on, mostly rickshaws and other small vehicles.
Chandni Chow Street
An old man rode his bicycle/truck into us while we were on the rickshaw, Eileen got whacked in the head pretty hard by the steel supports for the roof. She was feeling that for quite a while.
A very busy street.
Chandni Chow Street

Next we went across town to the memorial Raj Ghat a memorial complex in DelhiIndia. The first memorial was dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi where a black marble platform was raised to mark the spot of his cremation on 31 January 1948 and consists of an eternal flame at one end.

Next, further south to Humayun’s Tomb, Delhi

This tomb, built in 1570, is of particular cultural significance as it was the first garden-tomb on the Indian subcontinent. It inspired several major architectural innovations, culminating in the construction of the Taj Mahal.
Park is open to the public, but we were as “foreigners” allowed to skip the long lines!

There are actually 12 tombs at this site! We only went to one, a long day!!

Another  stop a sikh temple where they feed 20,000 a day!

Sikh temple
Volunteers making bread.
Food for the poor.

Sikhism was founded in India in the Punjab by Guru Nanak in the 15th Century CE and is a monotheistic religion. Sikhs think religion should be practiced by living in the world and coping with life’s everyday problems.
Sikhism advocates equality, social justice, service to humanity, and tolerance for other religions. The essential message of Sikhism is spiritual devotion and reverence of God at all times while practicing the ideals of honesty, compassion, humility and generosity in everyday life.

Day 2

9/11/2024
In the morning we drove to Jaipur, the second city of the “Golden Triangle”. 

On the way we stopped in a truck stop for lunch.

The first stop in Jaipur was the  “City Palace”, a huge complex.
The City Palace forms one of the most famous tourist attractions and a major landmark in Jaipur. The beautiful palace was built by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh during his reign. Among the various forts and palaces of Jaipur, City Palace stands apart, with its outstanding art and architecture.

Google map of the site.

Guards
One of the entrances
Typical dress of the women of India.
Worker repairing a portion of the building
Eileen takin a photo of a panel.
Detail of that panel
Guards with our guide on the right.
Eileen with one of the water contaiers in the background.
On the right is one of the two silver water containers.

This plaque reads:

Believed to be the largest silver vessels of this kind in the world, the “Gangajalis” were made to hold holy water from the river Ganga. These were cast by the silversmiths of the “Mistri Khana” (one of the thirty-six Karkhanas or workshops of the Jaipur Court) following the order of Maharaja Sawai Madho Singh II. They were made to carry water for the Maharaja during his 1902 trip to England to attend the coronation of King Edward VII. Gangajalis were made from silver as the metal was traditionally considered purifying. Each jar was made of approximately fourteen thousand silver coins issued by the State treasury. A wooden mold was first prepared, and then the coins were melted into sheets of silver, beaten and shaped over the mold. The jars each weigh around three hundred and forty-five kilograms, and have a capacity of approximately four hundred gallons, or around two thousand liters. A circular base with wheels was constructed to allow them to be moved easily, and ladders were used for reaching the mouth of the Jar.

Three hundred and sixty KG is 760 pounds, filled they would weigh  almost 2 tons each.

From the City Palace we walked down a busy street to a place that sold rugs. We ere treated to tea while they displayed their stock of handmade rugs.

We saw monkeys walking from one building to another.
Vendor cooking something (mabe nuts) on the street.

Dinner at the hotel.

Day 3

9/12/2024
Still in Jaipur.
The top of our hotel in Jaipur was quite interesting with a pool and a bar:

Portable air onditioner on wheels.
View of the city of Jaipur with the interesting mountains in the distance.

On a  trip to India it goes without saying that you will see cows. Everywhere, cows. Not so many cows in the country, but all over every city. You cannot go a mile without seeing one or a group of four to six. Our guide explained.

A hundred years ago cows were worshipped. They were an integral part of the every day life of the people. They were used to pull the plow, used for milk, grown for their meat, their waste was used to burn for fuel, their hide was used for clothing and shoes, and other things. They were valuable to many . Anyone finding a cow not on a farm was precluded from killing it.

Fast forward to today. No one wants a cow any more. No one eats the meat or drinks the milk. The thousands of stray cows in the cities are taken care of by the residents because it is “good karma”. Out on the highways the cows stay on the shoulders near the traffic. Our guide said that in the fields, flies and insects bother the cows, if a cow stands near the traffic the air from the car whizzing by blows the insects away. You can be travelling at 60 miles an hour and have to almost stop if the cows wander onto the traveling lane. In the cities they usually stay out of traffic, but it is not uncommon the have all traffic stop and wait for a cow or two to move.

Travel is mainly by car, but maybe 20% are motorcycles or mopeds. In town are the Tuc Tuc vehicles, by the thousands, the bicycles and the rickshaws.

Yellow and green Tuk Tuks.

Of course you have to have the street performer and his cobra.

We entered Jaigarh Fort where they had an elephant used to give rides. It started to sprinkle and the rider got out a tarp to cover the whole animal! The Jaigarh Fort is the most imposing and spectacular fort that overlooks Jaipur. It is famous for the Jaivana canon, considered the largest canon in the world. The fort was built by Sawai Jai Singh II in 1726 to protect the Amer fort.

From the Jaigarh Fort we went to the Amer fort. Amer Fort is known for its artistic style elements. With its large ramparts and series of gates and cobbled paths, the fort overlooks Maota Lake, which is the main source of water for the Amer Palace.

We parked the van and they took up up to the entrance in a Jeep.
Then we had to walk.
Looking down at another elephant giving rides at this fort.
Wall of mirrors
Uppon leaving the fort there were people who offered beads and bangles, also, check out the obliquitous cows
We stopped to let us pet some camels along our route.

Our next stop was Jantar Mantar where a man created astronomical instruments to tell time.

Each of the structures represent a zodiac sign and as to where you can see them in the sky. Eileen is a Leo!

Next we went to a place where the workers took cloth and wood cut patterns and made long drapes or other goods with repeating patterns on them
Videos: https://www.facebook.com/100001033300024/videos/544621354797258/

and https://www.facebook.com/100001033300024/videos/pcb.8539081086136250/1506813830224630

In the back is the worker who inks the wood block and applys it in rows onto the white cloth in front of him.On the table are several pieces of wood that have been carved to do the block patterns.Each as a handle.
The propritor's hand is on the cloth that they had imprinted with many strikes with the wood block (front right).
Initial block print before the colors were added.
We were taken from the block printing to where they were making camel hair dloth.
When we returned the cloth had dried and the multi colored block print Eileen made (see above) was ready to transport.

Next we stopped at our guides relatives home where we talked with them for a while.

The small door we entered through was meant to keep attackers out, if they tried to enter, because they were leaning forward a lot, it was easy to cut off their hears!

Next we stopped at the Palace of the Winds. It has 953 small windows called Jharokhas decorated with intricate latticework.

Day 4

9/13/2024
After breakfast we drove from Jaipur to Agra.

There was no room inside or any more room on top of this vehicle so a man was standing on the rear bumper and hanging on as they sped down the highway!
Now some cow photos.
60 to zero really quick for this one.
I porchased the musical instrument we were playing.
Agra gate.

Around the corner was Fatehpur Sikri.

The QR code says this site is the monument Fatehpur Sikri.

It is amazing what they did with stone!

Leaving the complex we traveled through local streets.

Typical side of street vendors selling everything from food to fruits to vegetables and everything else.
Dad, mom and baby, typical all over.
Interesting sidewalk art!

Then we arrived at the Agra fort.

In the distance was the Taj Mahal

Next we went to a gemstone place.

Some of the semi precious stones they use

Next we went to a place that cut the same marble used in the Taj, and inserted semi precious stone into the cuts. I purchased an elephant with 360 inserts!

The artists are cutting the stones to be inserted and then sanding them to the correct thickness (4mm thick)
Employee wrapping up a gift for me of a tiny elephant!
A marble chair.
A marble elephant with inserts.

Day 5

Taj Mahal

We had to get up at 4 AM to get to the Taj before the crowds and when it was in the mist. 10-14-2024

Me on Lady Diane's bench.
The entraance to the Taj Mahal area.
Detail of the face of the tomb.
We got there before the sun was up.

Day 6

Our plane did not leave until almost midnight, so we got an extra day the rest did not. We hired a guide to drive us around. And he sure took us a lot of places!! 10-15-2024

Our first stop is where Gandhi was killed, (earlier we saw where his cremation remains were) Gandhi Smriti Museum and marker. We had to go barefoot on the grass where Gandhi had walked.

Gandhi lived in a room in the top white building and was killed at the white spot lower left.
The white stones in theshape of shoes to the left of the oblisk were where Gandhi last walked.
On the left are markers where Gandhi last walked.
Eileen going barefoot.
Gandhi's bed,
In the museum beside Gandhi's room were many statues.
Gandhi made his own thread on a spinning wheel( I purchased a model of the wheel), then he made all of his own clothes.
A scle model of the spinning wheel Gandhi used that I purchased.

Stop number 2 was a water well, built so people could walk down and fetch water! “We love the architecture and uniqueness of this step well . It is a 1000 year old structure that has been used to store and collect water.”

Stop number 3  The Snri Laxmi Narayan Temple,  a Hindu temple located in New DelhiIndia. The presiding deity in the temple is Laxminarayan i.e., Vishnu along with his consort Lakshmi. The temple was inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhi ensured that members of all castes would be allowed in the temple. It was built by Jugal Kishore Birla from 1933 and 1939. There are also small shrines on the sides dedicated to ShivaGaneshaHanuman and Buddha

No photos were allowed and we had to go barefoot. We had to take off anything leather, they supplied pants to cover our legs and we had to walk clockwise around the inner sanctum,

I had to use the bathroom, the seat of the stool was unique as far as I knew, a bow to those who squatted to use the stool and those who sit:

Stop number 4 was Lodhi Gardens. A huge garden area. 
Lodi Gardens is a city park situated in New DelhiIndia. Spread over 90 acres,[1] it contains Mohammed Shah‘s Tomb, the Tomb of Sikandar Lodi, the Shisha Gumbad and the Bara Gumbad,[2] architectural works of the 15th century by Lodis – who ruled parts of northern India and Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of modern-day Pakistan, from 1451 to 1526 are present here.

Eileen and the lion wire sculpture. In the middle of the gardens is the Bara Gumbad ("Big Dome"), it consists of a large rubble-construct dome and is not a tomb but was constructed as a gateway to either the attached three domed masjid (mosque) or a large walled enclosure.
Ladies having therir photo taken were happy for me to take their photo too!
The park is where many people come for an afternoon.

Stop number 5

Jahangiri Mahal (Jahangir’s palace) Agra Fort, Agra.

Agra Fort is a historical fort in the city of Agra in India. It was the main residence of the emperors of the Mughal Dynasty till 1638, when the capital was shifted from Agra to Delhi. The Agra fort is a UNESCO World Heritage site

Gate.

Bath
This is the Jahangiri Hauz or Jahangir’s Bath Tub. It is monolithic tank used for bathing 5 feet in height, 8 feet in diameter and 25 feet in circumference (It looks similar to Bhimar Charia in Hazo Assam. Read about it here about it here). On the rim there is an inscription in Persian, the only decipherable part now shows that it was Hauz e Jahangir (Jahangir’s bath or made for Jahangir) in 1019 A.H. (A.D. 1611).

A guard carrying a chipmunk.
Eileen issmiling and pointing to where we can see the Taj Mahal from here.

Stop number 6

We went to the Gurdwara Bangla Sahib, one of the most prominent Sikh gurdwaras, or Sikh house of worship, in Delhi, India, and known for its association with the eighth Sikh Guru, Guru Har Krishan, as well as the holy pond inside its complex, known as the “Sarovar.”

Visitors to a Sikh house of worship, called a gurdwara, are expected to cover their heads as a sign of respect for the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy text:
  • What to wear
    Visitors can wear a scarf, cloth, or bandana. If you forget yours, you can ask someone at the gurdwara, as they usually have extras for visitors.
  • Other customs
    Visitors should also remove their shoes and wash their hands before entering the prayer hall. If it’s your first time entering the prayer hall that day, you can acknowledge the Guru Granth Sahib by walking up to the front and bowing. 

The interior was amazing, sets with idols etc. that people were worshipping.

Stop number 7 

Qutb Minar and its Monuments, Delhi

Built in the early 13th century a few kilometres south of Delhi, the red sandstone tower of Qutb Minar is 240 feet high, tapering from 9 ft in diameter at its peak to 47 ft at its base, and alternating angular and rounded flutings. The surrounding archaeological area contains funerary buildings, notably the magnificent Alai-Darwaza Gate, the masterpiece of Indo-Muslim art (built in 1311), and two mosques, including the Quwwatu’l-Islam, the oldest in northern India, built of materials reused from some 20 Brahman temples.

Located here is the famous “iron pillar”.

 

Can an iron structure stand tall for 1,600 years without rusting, despite being exposed to the elements?

It seems implausible, considering the supposed lack of technology at the time of its construction.

 

Yet, inside New Delhi’s UNESCO-listed Qutb Minar complex – a collection of historic monuments and buildings built in the early 13th century in the city’s southern Mehrauli district – one mysterious structure stands as a testament to this very enigma.

Visitors to the courtyard of the complex’s Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque will immediately spot an imposing 7.2-meter, six-ton iron pillar with a decorative top that’s even older than the complex.

Remarkably, the pillar is now as pristine as the day it was forged, defying both age and environmental adversities, including the Indian capital’s intense temperatures and increasing pollution. Dating back to the 5th century, its remarkable resilience continues to captivate travelers today.

Purchases

Scale model of Gandhi's spinning wheel.
Had scarf I had to wear at the Sikh temple.
Refrigerator magnets
Tote
Turban
Musical instrument and case - steel drum with bag, percussion instrument
Taj Mahal in lucite
Two drums - refrigerator magnet
Elephant refrigerator magnet - Ganesha is the elephant-headed Hindu god who is worshipped as the remover of obstacles and the bestower of good fortune, prosperity, and health:
Shawl
Left-elephant with 360 inlays made from Taj Mahal marble.....Gift of jade elephant...Taj refrigerator magnet...goddess Parvati
Ting chess set

What an amazing fast paced tour of India, three cities – the Golden Triangle.

Categories
Uncategorized

December 2023 #3

Two Ibis looking for breakfast.
Little Blue
Little Blue preening
Oyster Catcher on an oyster bed.
Osprey watching for an opportunity.
Osprey fishing.
Brown Pelican resting on a piling.
Anhinga drying his feathers.
Male Anhinga checking me out.
Great Blue Heron
Cormorant
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Wood Stork
Snowy Egret
Grackles eating at a bird feeder.
Female Mallard Duck
Male Mallard Duck
Categories
Daily Blog

November 2023

Wednesday, November 22, 2023
Happy Turkey Day to everyone tomorrow. This is my last kayaking for more than a week, tomorrow is Thanksgiving, then Eileen and I are headed to Lisbon, Portugal for 9 days.
Today was off and on clouds, then as I returned it started to rain. No manatees or dolphins today. 🙁

Osprey
Anhinga
Little Green Heron
Great Blue Heron
Little Blue Heron
Fish for breakfast!
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Male Kingfisher

Monday November 20, 2023
Marian came with me, it was cool at first, but tee shirt weather soon. We saw birds, a dolphin and manatees, but did not get to interact with them.

Marian all smiles!
An Egret I think up on a roof.
Flock of Nanday Conures
One of several Anhinga's we saw this morning, this one on the bow of a boat.
Anhinga #2
Anhinga #3
Anhinga #4
Anhinga #5
Osprey #1 on mast.
Osprey #2 in tree
Little Green
Juvenile Night Heron
Little Blue
Cormorant
Cormorant on the pipe telling the Snowy off.
Snowy kept coming, he wanted to go to the west end of the pipe, Cormorant said no.
The Cormorant and the Snowy touched beaks.
After touching beaks for a while, the cormorant was mollified and he let the snowy fly over him to the other end.
Snowy
Great Egret on the water goat.
Ibis in a tree.
Another cormorant that followed us drifting down the creek.
Manatee.
Manatee tail.
Tricolor

Sunday, November 19, 2023
A picture perfect day. 68° and full sun, no wind.

Osprey
Oyster Catchers
Sandpiper
Breakfast!
Great Blue Heron
Osprey on the mast
Little Green Heron
Laughing Gull
Blue Jay
Anhinga
Snowy
Grackles
Little Blue Heron
Black Crowned Night Heron
Asleep
Neighbor out kayaking
Cormorant
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
With breakfast!
Juvenile Night Heron
Ibis
Idling coming down for a landing.

Thursday, November 16, 2023
It has been some cooler (70’s) cloudy weather, even today not much sun (photos are not very sharp) and it is now raining.

Osprey
Ibis
Little Blue
Male Anhinga
Cormorant
Mallard Ducks
Male Kingfisher
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Nanday Conures
With three of them on the feeder at once it does not tip or swing so they can eat easier!
Two Great Blue Herons
Turkey Vulture.

Sunday, November 12, 2023
No manatees or dolphins today, just no wind, flat water and a few birds. First a video of me doing cleanup, then a video of a Snowy as I glided along beside him.

Daybreak
Osprey
Cormorant
Juvenile Black Crowned Night Heron
Same Snowy as in the video above.
Blue Jay
Little Blue
Flock of Nanday Conures
Mallard Duck with missing left eye, but she does fine.
Female Anhinga on the light on top of Lady Pearl
Osprey on top of a sailboat mast.
Osprey back at home.

Saturday, November 11, 2023, Veterans Day
A quiet day, tee shirt weather, lots of birds and fish jumping.

Osprey,before dawn.
Coast Guard
Stork flying overhead.
Two more storks
Today where the Osprey was yesterday on top of the mast was an Anhinga on top of the mast!
Cormorant
Flock of Nanday Conures
Great Blue Heron
Little Green Heron
Juvenile Spotted Sandpiper
Black Crowned Night Heron
Juvenile Black Crowned Night Heron
Female Mallard Ducks
Male Mallard Duck
Little Blue eating a crab for breakfast.
Birds shake off the legs and just eat the body of crabs.
Osprey

Dolphin from yesterday (11-10-2023):

November 10. 2023, Friday
Weather is great, water up the Bear Creak is like a mirror.
No manatees or dolphin today. 

Two masts, two osprey!
Osprey no 1.
Osprey no 2.
Anhinga
Cormorant
Little Blue
Mallard Ducks,male and female.
Kingfisher
Little Green Heron
Ibis on the wing.

November 9, 2023, Thursday
A wonderful day, temperature perfect, several birds and two dolphins running all around! They even splashed with their tales once!

Brown Pelican fishing.
Great Blue Heron flying by.
Osprey on top of a sailboat mast.
Osprey eating his breakfast of fish.
His fish!
Gull came to the top of the post to see what the Osprey left.
Anhinga
Anhinga stretching his wings.
Little Blue Heron searching for breakfast.
Mocking bird
Dolphin
Tern
Ibis

November 5, 2023
Beautiful day, manatee and turtle! Wind brought me home quickly. A neighbor came out as I was returning, but I met Nature John out there.

Some say I should not play with manatees because “it is against the law”. But it is NOT, the law says that you cannot “harass” manatees. I do not harass manatees.
Manatees are protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, the Endangered Species Act of 1973, and the Florida Manatee Sanctuary Act of 1978. “It is illegal to feed, harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, annoy, or molest manatees.”
I only pet them when they come up to my kayak.

Noa sent me this photo of me.
Gul looking askance.
Little Green
Little Blue Heron
Huge Turkey Vulture.
Made for trearing into carrion.
Nanday Conures. About 50 flewoverhead.
Turtle
Turtle was stuck between the pipeline and the seawall. I took him back where he could climb up onto the shore.
Grackle
Juvenile Night Heron
Great Blue
Neighbor coming out to paddle up Bear Creak.

November 4, 2023
Cool 63° to start out. Windy and sunny.
No manatees or dolphins today.
About an 18 inch mullet jumped not too far from my bow:

Dawn
Osprey feathers ruffled due to wind.
Little Green
Cormorant fishing.
Kingfisher
Night Heron
Egret on the dam, behind is the new yellow water goat.
ibis on top of tall Norfolk Island pinetree.
Young person throwing a cast net perfectly.
Great Blue Heron

November 3, 2023
Still cool 70° and breezy.  I saw a mother and her calf manatee, but did not get photos. They disappeared quickly.

Anhinga drying out while sitting on top of a kayak..
Seven month old and 70 pounds already!
Little Green
Geat Blue 747 flying overhead.
Snowy on the wing.
Egret on a new Water Goat.
Cormorant
Mallards on the wing.
Grackle
Kingfisher, two of them were flying about.
Two of four Ibis along the shore.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Guys from Meadows Tree Service trimming our mangroves. They sculpture them!

November 2, 2023
Also cooler and windy. Noa came with me today.

Kevin took this photo of hundreds of White Pelicans on Fort DeSoto. This morning Noa and I saw them overhead!
Little Green Heron
Night Heron
Egret
Kingfisher.
Tricolored Heron
Great Blue Heron
Mocking Bird
Cormorant
Ibis and Snowy enjoying the low water exposing the bay bottom.
One of the Ibis
Three Mallards.
Osprey

Amy told me that the video of the dogs does not show up, 
here is the link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG1ezuo8G54

November 1, 2023
My 75th Birthday is today! Windy and cooler today.

Sunrise this morning. It looks like Halloween!
Early morning Night Heron.
Osprey
Female Anhinga
Turkey Vulture
Little Green
Snowy
Snowy (left), Egret.
Tricolored Heron
Storks
Great Blue Heron
Royal Tern
Categories
Uncategorized

Scams

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30 Scam Phone Numbers To Block and Area Codes To Avoid

November 12, 2023

By Joshua Rodriguez

Internet scam.

Scams are becoming more and more prevalent. They’re so common that experts have coined the term “scam economy.” Unfortunately, it’s easy to change a phone number, and scammers often do so to avoid getting caught. The good news is that scams operate in many known area codes, so you can avoid being the next victim simply by knowing the list of scammer phone numbers.

List of Scammer Phone Numbers

Wouldn’t it be great to have a list of scam phone numbers handy to avoid them altogether or at least have 1-888 scammer numbers be clear in their intention on the caller ID? Short of never answering the phone or putting yourself on every national “do not call” list, there are some red flags you can alert yourself to before accidentally giving out your Social Security number or being a victim of identity theft.

Here is a list of scammer phone numbers that are known by government agencies such as the Federal Trade Commission.

11 Common Scam Phone Numbers

  • AT&T raffle winners: (904) 495-2559
  • Bank account temporarily on hold scam: (858) 605-9622
  • Card lock scam: (878) 877-1402
  • Debit card frozen scam: (863) 532-7969
  • Failed delivery attempt scam: (469) 709-7630
  • Fake Publisher’s Clearing House win: (805) 637-7243 
  • Student loan forgiveness scam: (202) 221-7923
  • Weight loss and delivery scam: (312) 339-1227
  • Wells Fargo text message scam: (865) 630-4266 
  • Unpaid taxes scam: (347) 437-1689
  • USPS scam: (301) 307-4601 

List of Scam Area Codes

More than 300 area codes exist in the United States alone which is a target-rich environment for phone scammers. The good news is that scam callers will often show up under common area codes for incoming calls. Here are 19 area codes you should never answer if you don’t know who’s on the other end.

19 Common Scam Area Codes

  • 216: Cleveland, Ohio
  • 218: Northern Minnesota
  • 232: Sierra Leone
  • 268: Antigua and Barbuda
  • 284: British Virgin Islands
  • 332: New York City
  • 347: New York City 
  • 469: Dallas, Texas
  • 473: Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique
  • 649: Turks and Caicos Islands
  • 646: Manhattan
  • 657: La Palma, California
  • 664: Montserrat
  • 712: Western Iowa
  • 767: Commonwealth of Dominica
  • 809: Dominican Republic
  • 829: Dominican Republic
  • 849: Dominican Republic
  • 876: Jamaica

What Is a Scam Phone Number or Area Code?

Scam phone numbers and area codes typically involve calls you receive from numbers you don’t recognize. Often there is no customer service you can contact or law enforcement you can involve for these calls obfuscated by distance or sheer volume. Changing a phone number is easy, so it’s challenging to catch every scam phone number out there. 

However, if you get a call from a phone number or area code you don’t know, it’s likely best to avoid picking up the call and research the following before you call back: 

  1. Look at the area code: Start by comparing the phone number’s area code to the list of area codes you should never answer. If it’s on the list, there’s a good chance there’s a scammer on the other end of the line
  2. Scammer phone number lookup: Another option to determine if a phone number calling you is likely scam activity is to search for it on Google. Several websites track scam numbers, and a quick Google search may pull one of those sites up. If it’s a common scam number, you’ll probably find reports from people who have answered.

3 Common Types of Scam Calls 

Several different types of phone scams exist. Since there is no limit to a scam artist’s potential, recognizing signs of common scams will serve you well. Here are examples of three of the most common scams out there today and how to block these spam calls:

  1. One-ring scams
  2. Traffic pumping scams
  3. Package delivery scams

1. One-Ring Scams

Scammers use one-ring scams to get you, the victim, to call back. The scammers use robo-dialers to call you and hang up after just one ring. When you call back to see who called, they might charge a connectivity fee and per-minute fees for what will appear on your bill as premium services.

In another variation of this scam, the con artists leave voice mails requesting that you call them urgently. They may say you have a sick relative or claim some other urgent matter. When you call back, the longer you stay on the phone, the more money they steal from you.

2. Traffic Pumping Scams

Traffic pumping is also known as access stimulation. It’s based on the way phone services work. When you make a long-distance call, your local carrier gives the call to a long-distance provider. That long-distance provider then covers the call most of the way before handing it off to another local provider. They pay an access fee to that provider for the ability to do so. 

Local carriers with high access fee rates may make arrangements with other companies with high call volume operations in an attempt to benefit from increased access fee revenues. Although this doesn’t cost you anything personally, it increases the costs of phone services for all.

3. Package Delivery Scams

This scam starts with a text message or voicemail saying you need to take action to receive your package. When you call back or click the link in the text, you end up on a website feedback page that looks like Amazon or another familiar site. On this site, you’re told you have won a prize.

To claim the prize, you need to give your credit card information. However, there’s no prize, and Amazon, UPS and USPS aren’t part of the conversation. Instead, it’s just scammers looking for your credit card number.

Final Take To GO

There will likely always be scams and scam phone numbers out there. The good news is that you can decide not to be the next victim. To avoid being taken advantage of by a scammer, use the following strategies:

  • Call your carrier: Ask your carrier if they have any services to protect you from scam phone calls, or if you can file a complaint about robocalls and robotexts.
  • Register on the National Do Not Call Registry: Put your phone number on the Federal Do Not Call Registry. This won’t stop all scams, but it could minimize the calls you get.
  • Use apps: There are several spam-blocking apps you can use to avoid becoming the next victim.

FAQ

Here are the answers to some of the most common questions about scam phone numbers.

  • How can I check if a phone number is a scam?
    • Search the phone number you suspect is a scam on Google. If anyone has reported it to a website that tracks scams, it should show up in Google’s results.
  • What numbers should I not answer?
    • You should only answer phone numbers you know. Scammers learn from their mistakes and tend to evolve with the times. Although there are scam area codes to watch for, which are listed above, scammers now use phone number spoofing to make it look like they’re calling from your local area.
    • If you don’t know a phone number, let the call go to voicemail and research the number before you call it back. And if they leave a voicemail claiming to be someone you know or a company you do business with, call back at the number you have for the other person or company, not the number that left the voicemail.
  • How can you tell when it’s a scammer number?
    • A scammer number is one you don’t recognize in your caller ID. Some mobile devices alert you with a “scam likely” notification. Even if you don’t have that option, it’s good to be able to recognize popular scam phone numbers by the area code. Here are some to know:
      • 216
      • 218
      • 232
      • 268
      • 284
      • 332
      • 347
      • 469
      • 473
      • 649
      • 646
      • 657
      • 664
      • 712
      • 767
      • 809
      • 829
      • 849
      • 876
  • Should I answer 888 numbers?
    • 888 numbers indicate it is a toll-free call. Calls made to toll-free numbers are paid for by the recipient rather than the caller, making them particularly popular among call centers and other businesses. An 888 area code doesn’t necessarily indicate that it’s a scam, but will most likely be a robocall so answer at your own discretion.
  • What is the scam block number?
    • Depending on your provider, there are several ways to protect yourself from scams. For example, T-Mobile offers a scam blocker where you can download the free Scam Shield app and toggle it on to prevent scam calls
Categories
Daily Blog

October 2023

October 30, 2023
Another nice day! No dolphin, nor manatee though.

Juvenile Night Heron
Great Egret on the wing.
Great Egret with two Snowy.
Snowy
Anhinga
Cormorant.
Little Green
Tricolored Heron
Ibis
Osprey eating fish on a piling.
Another Osprey eating his fish.
Business end of a machine to install pilings.

October 29, 2023
Sixteen species of birds this morning
1.Snowy Egret
2. European Starling
3. Wood Stork
4. Cormorant
5. Kingfisher
6. Tricolored Heron
7. Great Egret
8. Yellow Crowned Night Heron
9. Black Crowned Night Heron
10. Osprey
11. Little Green Heron
12. Anhinga
13. Mockingbird
14. Mallard
15. Crow
16. Blue Jay

Osprey with breakfast.
Racoon fishing by my place.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Cormorant fishing
Cormorant drying wings
Great Egret
Great Egret with breakfast.
Female Anhinga
Little Green fishing
Snowy
Breakfast!
Male Mallard
Female Mallard
Kingfisher
Great Egret
Stork
European Starling
Blue Jay
Mocking Bird
Crow
Tricolored Heron
Night Heron

October 28, 2023
An AWESOME day! My manatee came over to play! I brought along the watertight case so I could get underwater video as well! He even turned on his side to let me scratch his belly.
Then upon my return the Osprey had a huge fish for breakfast to show me!!

Osprey with breakfast!
Yellow Crowned Night Heron, comfortably on one foot.
Little Green on a dock,
Ibis, his right wing sagged.
Mallard duck, one of seven floating around.
Snowy on the top of a boat hoist.
Tiny House Wren
Tri-color on top of a tree.
anhinga on top of the same tree.
Anhinga getting ready to flee.
Great Blue Heron
Great Blue on the wing.
Little Blue Heron
Got an itch.
Manatee
Turkey Vulture on the wing.

We walked with the 1800 stray dogs in the jungles of Costa Rica:
https://www.territoriodezaguates.com

The word “zaguate” is used in Costa Rica to refer to a mixed breed dog, a mutt, a stray. Territorio de Zaguates is a “No-Kill Shelter,” a dog sanctuary for over 1,800 wagging tails, where we do not believe in euthanasia as a solution to the problem of abandoned dogs in Costa Rica. Our mission is to find a home for all the dogs that are in our care. We are a temporary home for hundreds of puppies looking for a second chance, and we are also the permanent home of many others who may never find their own family.

Territorio de Zaguates is a non-profit organization founded by the spouses Lya Battle and Alvaro Saumet, who since 2006 have been dedicated to promoting animal welfare and respect for animals.

Our Goals: 

1. Rescue and improve the quality of life of street dogs.

2. Promote the adoption of animals rescued by the organization.

3. Reduce the number of stray dogs on the streets by spaying and neutering all dogs we have rescued, and raising awareness about responsible pet ownership and care.9

Thursday, October 26, 2023
Another beautiful day kayaking!

Osprey
Juvenile Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Brown Pelican
Male Anhinga
Cormorant
Rooster
Little Green Heron
Little Blue Heron
Osprey on the wing
The Turkey Vultures are back, they come during the fall and winter.

Wednesday. October 25, 2023
I am back from Costa Rica and out kayaking again. Costa Rica was nice, it was raining every afternoon, but the mornings were nice.
Today I saw several manatees, but they did not want to come and play.

My elusive Kingfisher.
Little Green
Crow
Osprey
Mocking Bird
Great Heron
Snowy
Cormorant

Sunday, October 15, 2023
Another beautiful day. Sunny, mid 70’s. Nice time to be in Florida. Two Tri-Color Herons, many other birds today.

Tri-color Heron
Two Osprey
Three Ibis and a Snowy.
Snowy
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Juvenile Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Little snack for breakfast.
Male Mallard Duck
female
Little Blue Heron
Little Green Heron
Brown Pelican swallowing his catch.
Great Egret
Osprey on the wing.

Saturday, October 14, 2023
Finally a day of sunshine! We had a front come through and sat on us for a few days with clouds, but little rain. Nice days for bicycling though.

Great Blue Heron on the wing.
Osprey
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Black Crowned Night Heron
Ibis
Two Snowy on the wing.
Three Snowy photobombed by an Osprey in the background.
Anhinga drying his feathers while sitting on a kayak.
Little Green Heron
Snowy finding insects to eat on the seawall.
Egret on a branch.
Little Blue Heron
Blue Jay
Conures on the wing.
He takes this as his personnel backyard feeder.
Fishing for mullet.

Sunday, October 8, 2023
A nip of winter in the air, 72° out!
Nothing exciting today, just my birds.

Osprey
Anhinga
Little Blue
Egret

October 6, 2023
Another fun day with manatees! Ten minutes of playing with one manatee while two others were close by. The one (I called him “Stinky Breath”) spent all ten minutes with me. He would roll over and I would scratch his belly! He would nudge the kayak, he would nibble on the kayak, he just came back again and again to have me scratch him all over. He grabbed my hand with his two flippers and held it. He just played with me! The skin on his body under his flippers is very soft, it felt like supple leather.

Manatee
Osprey on mast
Another osprey on another mast.
Little Green Heron
Snowy
Mocking Bird
Little Blue
Ibis
Great Blue
Dolphin

Wednesday, October 4, 2023
Manatees galore! A herd of manatees were playing just off of where Lady Pearl is moored! I spent more than 10 minutes with them!  Three times they came up under my kayak and twice I was quite jostled! I was able to scratch the head of two of them!! An amazing day!

Manatee!
Ibis
Osprey
Anhinga
Little Green Heron
Snowy
Ducks
Squirrel eating bird food.
Apollo
Apollo's buddy.
Gull
Fish jumping.
Black splotch on the left making the fish jump?
Mallard Duck
Osprey
Brown Pelican
Categories
Daily Blog

September 2023

Monday, September 25, 2023
Still feels like fall is coming, but it was warm toward the end of my run. I got a great photo of the Brown Pelicans this morning.
I met Nature John, but we did not see any manatees. He went on to get some August bricks he found on the shore up the creek.

Osprey at the beginning of my paddle, you can see him in the video.
Brown Pelicans. taken from Allan's place.
Little Blue Heron , taken from Bob's place.
Little Green looking for breakfast.
Little Green
Junior Black Crowned Night Heron
Snowy
Snowy Egret with his unique yellow feet.
Great Egret
How does he keep so white?
Mallard Duck
Yellow Crowned Night Heron.
Great Blue Heron
Osprey at the end of my paddle.

Sunday, September 24, 2023
Manatees! Two or more manatees were up near the dam. I first saw the head of one come up by the dam. Then I waited and two manatees showed up, just their backs on the surface. I paddled over to be beside them when one lifted his tail, then  lifted it higher and bumped my kayak!
Osprey and Anhinga! Again an Anhinga was way up high, this time on top of a mast! The two Osprey decided to go together on top of the other mast! Two on one mast, wow!

Two Osprey on one sailboat mast!
An Anhinga on the other mast!
A manatee's back.
Tail
Snowy
When the bird is standing on one foot it means thta it is comfortable and not distressed.
Little Green
Great Egret
Christine and her two kids out to walk beside the creek.
Little Blue
White Dove
Two Ibis
Mallard Duck
Flowring planrt.

Noa sent along her photos from today, 9-23-2023!!!

The Cormorant that surfaced right by my kayak, Noa got this excellent photo!!
The sun reflected perfectly off of the water! Noa
Noa's photo of an oak tree.
Bridge from DC's home to her rental! Noa
Noa photo of oak overhanging creek.
Noa's photo od the bridge.
Noa's photo of the reflections on the water of glass.
More glass like water!
Noa's photo of Nature John's place.

Noa came kayaking with me today, we stopped and talked to Allan and then stopped to talk with the two dogs, Elvis, and the little one Presley.
Such flat water! And fall is here, sliding glass doors and windows open!

Noa
Pelicans
Mallard Ducks
Great Blue Heron
Black Crowned Night Heron
Snowy on the water goat.
Noa said that this lonely chair by the tree would make a great beginning to a story.
Little Green
Osprey

Friday, September 22, 2023
Awesome day, on the water there is a nice breeze, a little hard going out, but a free ride going home. To start out there were several birds. The Kingfisher,  two Osprey, two Pelicans, a Tern, Gulls, etc. Some I got photos of, others not. It just is such a peaceful ride up the creek and seeing birds. Allan said there was a manatee fifteen minutes ahead of me, but I never saw it.  
The guy whose umbrella I rescued thanked me, he said that his brother gets this web site and really enjoys it. I hope all of you do as well.

Osprey by my place.
Osptey on the wing!
Little Blue
Little Green
Little Green
Tri-color
Anhinga on top of a mast! Still trying to act as an Osprey!
Tern n the wing!
Back to my place Osprey.

Thursday, September 21, 2023
Another beautiful day. I thought that I saw manatees, but it was snook surfacing!

Osprey
Great Blue Heron
Ibis
Little Green
Little Blue
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Nandy Conyer flock
Snowy
Anhinga on the pinnacle of the Lady Pearl
Female Anhinga
Osprey

Monday, September 18, 2023
I only did half of my usual trip this morning, a thunderstorm kicked up. I got out of the kayak in time, but the sprinkles started as I carried the kayak up to the house. Then a few minutes later it poured. An hour later it was clear skys!

The morning started out nice! I only made it to Lady Pearl before the thunder chased me back home.
Junior Night Heron
Ibis
The sun was not up yet, so the photos of the Cormorant are dark.
Off the piling and off to fish.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Juvenile Little Blue
Brown Pelican
Great Egret

Sunday, September 17, 2023
Noa went with me this morning, weather was perfect. No manatees or dolphin, but a nice quiet ride. Met new people on Lady Pearl.

Ibis
Little Blue Heron
Adult
Juvenile Little Blue Heron
Adult Yellow Crested Night Heron
Juvenile Night Heron
Great Heron
Osprey
Check out those claws!

Saturday, September 16, 2023
Two Tri-colored Herons were the surprise visitors today, but they were in deep shade unfortunately.
I did see four manatees, they were under the bridge, thus not so good photos.
Also a surprise visitor, a Black Crowned Night Heron!

Tri-color Heron
Manatee noses!
Snowy on left, Ibis on right.
Junior Ibis
Snowy
Juvenile Night Heron
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Black Crowned Night Heron
Little Blue Heron
Grackle
Little Green Heron
Osprey on a mast.
Osprey on a branch.
Osprey in the mangroves.
Fiddler crab (about an inch overall).

Friday, September 15, 2023
Osprey took the top spot today!

Look ma, only one foot!
Breakfast!
Female Anhinga preening
Great Egret
Yellow Crowned Night Heron (adult)
Juvenile Night heron
Still has hias babu feathers!
Little Hreen
Cormorant
A new bird to this area, a Cattle Egret!
Ibis

Thursday, September 14, 2023
Another great day! Marian was already on the water when I got out.  No dolphin or manatees today, just a smooth beautiful day.

Juvenile Night Heron
Ibis
Anhinga on the top of Lady Pearl
Adult Little Green
Juvenile Little Blue
Nanday Conures
Marian cooling her feet.
Anhinga
Osprey
Brown Pelican

Wednesday, September 13, 2023
Another nice day. I spotted an Anhinga on the top of the light on the pinnacle of Lady Pearl, then saw an umbrella that had been blown into the water. I retrieved it for them. An hour later when I came back by, the umbrella was up by the building, they found it.

Anhinga on top of Lady Pearl
Little Green
Juvenile Little Green
Snowy
Little BlueHeron
Ibis
Blue Jay
Pirate ship in for repairs.

Monday  September 11, 2023
We need to remember another September 11.
A beautiful day today,  good for bird watching. Allan and I saw a mom manatee and two babies, but too far away for photos.
Here is a video of the start of my journey by my place, one Osprey, two Ibis and two Yellow Crowned Night Herons.

Osprey
Ibis
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Cormorant by Allan's place,
Manatees
Little Blue
Snowy
Little Green Heron

Sunday, September 10, 2023
Another beautiful day, a manatee and a dolphin! A lot of  traffic today on the water, Nature John, another couple in their kayaks, and Chris, his wife and a friend all on their boards.
We watched a manatee going north and one dolphin chasing fish up in a draw. Lots of fun!!

Our local little guls.
Male Osprey
Juvenile Night Heron
Baby feathers poking up on his head!
Duck
Little Green Heron
Great Egret
Dolphin chaing fish for breakfast.
Manatee
Manatee's nose just to the right of Nature John (John was filming him with his phone.) I filmed him with the GoPro, but it is impossible to see him, he is so tiny in the frame.
Chris D on his paddle board.
Chris d's wife.
Friend.
Osprey

September 7, 2023 Thursday
Friday I have a consultation with a diabetes doctor.
Saturday I am meeting in Tampa with my bridge breaking crew (balsa wood bridges)
Today Nature John and I paddled up the creek and back, We saw the swirls and evidence of manatees, but no manatees to photo.
I did see for the second time in quite a while the Kingfisher, this time I got photographs!

Kingfisher
Male Anhinga
Great Egret
Osprey

Wednesday. September 6, 2023
A nice day, the humidity is way down and the temperature is in the 70’s. So great!
Nature John and I went up and down the creek together. A dolphin went by us and Nature John decided to go after it. My video shows that the dolphin followed him!
We did not see any manatees today though.

Osprey
Female Anhinga
Great Egret
Snowy
Male Anhinga
Blue Jay
Dolphin zipping by

September 4, 2023
Another cooler and beautiful day. I stopped by the Magnus family on their back lawn. We sighted both manatees and a dolphin!

Not the best photo of a manatee!
Manatee head.
Ibis turning every crevice looking for breakfast.
Juvenile Little Green Heron
Adult
Little Blue Heron
Cormorant
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Juvenile Night Heron (note the baby feathers on his crown).
Great Egret
Great Egret and the moon.
Squirrel found Alan's bird feeder and can stretch to reach the goodies.
Another victim of Idalia, crews are still retrieving dock boxes and fixing wiring at the marina.

Sunday, September 3, 2023
The temperature has gone down, only 74° this morning. Idalia took away our humidity and sent down cooler air. Still picking up some plastic and trash, but not too much. The tide was out this morning, and I had to take out at my alternative spot. An Osprey was eating its breakfast right over my usual take out spot as well. I did not want to disturb it.

Female Anhinga
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Juvenile Night Heron
Juvenile darts after a crab, their main source of food.
He gets the crab but does not know what to do with it!
The crab hangs on to his lower beak!
Finally the crab lets go and scurries off. He did not get eaten today! Normally the Night Heron will shake the crab until the appendages all fall off, then they swallow the body whole. Not this time!
Great Blue Heron
Snowy doing his "I am king here" routine.
Snowy with Great Egret
Great Egret
Great Egret with Great Blue Heron
Great Blue
Squrril trying to get to bird seed.
One of several chickens in a cage.
Little Green Heron
Adult Ibis
Juvenile Ibis

September is here already. I spent September 1 cleaning up from the hurricane Idalia, I found a chair out in the bay and took it to Ann, and cleaned plastic out of the mangroves. I found one of the kayaks on the port side of Lady Pearl had come off and was half sunk. I got it back on deck.
I purchased a wedding gift for Stephanie and Jason and fed the poor on Friday as well.

September 2 was back to normal.

Kayak on the left (port side) had come lose and was half sunk. I got it back on board.
Osprey on the wing.
Tha couple from Canada's dock got mangled by the storm.
Mallard Duck
Snowy
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Juvenile Night Heron
Anhinga
Ibis
Little Green Heron

September 2nd photos below

Twenty five birds were by the seawall, a mix of Egrets, Snowys, and Ibis.
Breakfast for this Snowy.
This is MY patch of the shore, get away.
Little Blue
The first Tri-color I have seen in months.
Juvenile Night Heron
Anhinga
Categories
Daily

GoPro Videos

September 10, 2023

September 4. 2023

August 25. 2023

August 7, 2023

The GoPro cuts off after only seconds, I do not know why!

August 4, 2023

August 3, 3023
With Noa, who looks elegant!

July 29, 2023

July 28, 2023

July 21, 2023

I was right the first time, zooming in I see this IS a Snowy, not a juvenile Little Blue.

July 20, 2023

July 14. 2023

Categories
Daily Blog

August 2023

Tuesday, August 29, 2023
Awaiting Hurricane Idalia, we have had two bands go by so far, just a short rainfall each time.  I do not expect too much, some rain and a small surge. Hopefully not too much in my garage. I lifted everything up so if some water does get in nothing will be damaged.

I am in a High School opened as a shelter. Nice and Air Conditioned and good Internet. I have a nice teachers desk and chair – what more could I ask for!

It was such a nice sunrise this morning.

Sunday, August 27, 2023
The weather was awesome, lower humidity and slightly cooler. No manatees or dolphin today. I met up with three others on the water including one lady an a board, one lady in a kayak, and Nature John.  Lots of birds though.

Yellow Crowned Night Heron.
Female Anhinga
Female Anhinga on the wing.
Juvenile Anhinga
Sandwich Tern
Juvenile Little Green with his baby feathers on top of his head.
Adult Little Green
Juvenile Ibis
Grackle
Snowy Egret
Brown Pelican
Osprey

August 26, 2023
More manatees! Two dolphins and a pod of manatees today. 

The Gindlesperger's new puppy Presley!
Elvis and Presley.
A female Anhinga.
A male Anhinga.
Snowy Egret
"Nature" John videotaping the manatees.
Manatee heads.
Baby Yellow Crown Night Heron trying to stay cool.
Adult Yellow Crowned
Little Green
Ducks
Female Osprey

August 25, 2023
Back to America and kayaking. This morning Marian (freshly back from Vermont) rousted me out of bed to go kayaking, and we had a beautiful day to do it. 75° and low humidity ..full sun. Shortly we found that we were surrounded by manatees! At least six. Then up Bear Creek we spotted about six more! Manatee haven this morning!  

Manatee snout.
Osprey
Two Osprey, female bottom. male top.
Female Osprey
Snowy
Little Green Heron
Female Anhinga
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Great Egret

August 23, 2023
We got up early and caught the first train from Bath to Reading, then another train from Reading to Gatwick. Every train we took (and we took 17) was on time or they notified us if it was going to be 2 minutes late. We only had one that we had planned to take, but it  left early! Luckily we had planned to have two hours to spare at the airport, so waiting for an hour for the next train was ok. Next time I go to England I will save some money and go regular rather than First Class. The upgrade was not needed.

The weather was beautiful, and I got this shot of a red hot air baloon in the beautiful blue sky as we were leaving Reading.
Most of the country we saw was farmland.
A pure white German Shepard, 7 months old named Wolf!

August 22, 2023
Our last full day we spent in Bath, England with a side trip to Stonehenge, Stonehenge was built at the same time as a Pyramids. An Englishman was showing his Egyptian girlfriend the Stonehenge. She said that his ancestors were rather puny and weak!

Exhibits
Stone used to point the equinox.
Yard at our B&B
Abbey in Bath
Pulteney Bridge is a bridge over the River Avon in Bath, England. It was completed by 1774, and connected the city with the land of the Pulteney family which it wished to develop. Designed by Robert Adam in a Palladian style, it is highly unusual in that it has shops built across its full span on both sides. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building.
Live aboards in Bath.
Tea pots!
Entrance to the Roman Baths

August 21, 2023
WE travelled by train from Glasgow to Oxford where we spent the afternoon at the University of Oxford. 

Railroad Station
Eileen at the Oxford mall.
I got an ice cream, Eileen said she wanted nothing, she was not hugary. So when we passed a Wendy's she got a vegi burger!.
Harry Potter stuff everywhere. This is Dobby.
Trinity College.
Many buildings make up Oxford College.
Angel over the door.

Uploading Loch Ness photos, then today, August 20 photos.
So far sun every day, 70’s and very nice. Most days tee shirt weather.   

Our craft on Loch Ness ready to hunt the monster.
Not cold, just windy, sun in and out, no rain.
Urquhart Castle
Arriving today the 20th, Dundee, we stopped at a cafe for an English breakfast.
The ship Discovery who went down to rescue Shackleton.
Shackleton's cabin.
Beside one of Shackleton's Emperor Penguins.
Watt's steam engine that revolutionized the world!

August 19  2023
We spent the day in Edenburgh, they have the Fringe Festival going on and we stopped to se a lot of the events, we also walked down to Arthurs Seat, but did not climb it. It was a two hour walk (climbing almost 800 feet) but we had walked enough (three times my expected per my watch) so we passed.

Lady dressed up as a statue of Marie Curie.6

August 18, 2023
Flash: NEWS: We did Not see the Loch Ness monster. 🙁
We did have fun on the boat and up to the castle though. No rain!! Just 19 degrees and nice. We have had exceptional weather – sun at least part of every day.

August 17, 2023
I got an email back from one of the swimmers in one of my photos in Dover, Lee wrote:
” I have swam the English Channel solo amongst other marathon swims UK & abroad. I have been involved with open water swimming at all levels for over 25 years; coaching, managing, regional development and organising races. I am currently coaching the young guy who was in the water with me to swim the English Channel. He is due to go on 22nd /23rd August and should complete the swim in under 11 hours which is considered fast. The average time is 15 hours and the world record is 6 hours 58 minutes.”
Amazing who you might meet traveling!

A very busy trip! August 15 we left Dover and went to Bradford where Eileen’s ancestors were from. We did a lot of hiking and went to a museum that was just like where her GGGrandfather may have worked. Then we took a train to Edinburgh (they pronounce it Edin-brh) and went to the castle there. The castle still has 400 soldiers living there!

Worlds largest Festival "Fringe"
Edinburgh Castle

August 14, 2023
We had a good flight over here to England, a long eight hours in the air but they fed us well.  Then we got to Gatwick, found the train real quickly, hopped on the train down to Dover. We had found the bed and breakfast that we had reserved and just had to walk across the street to get there from the station so that was very convenient. We were really lucky when we arrived here in Dover that the lady who manages the bed and breakfast happened to be outside. She let us in and put our bags inside. We also were really lucky to have the beautiful sunshine, everything so far other than some bumps and bruises is going splendidly.


Then we climbed the mountain where the castle is and climbed up in the castle and checked out the King and Queen’s quarters and down in the basement checked out the kitchen. At the castle I was a little chilly so I bought a t-shirt and put it on over my shirt,  two t-shirts, which was enough to keep me warm. The weather has been just wonderful sunshine for the most part we had a cloud come over and a few drips of precipitation but then it went away and there was a rainbow so we got to see beautiful sunshine. Both yesterday and this morning is sunny  and about 59 degrees out there which is really refreshing and nice. and then hiked back down over the mountain and down to the beach where we found a seal had come ashore, he was still laying on the beach and took pictures of the three statues. The seal looked like it was fish out of water it was laying there and just moving its head a little bit it was waiting for the tide to come in apparently to pick it back up again and go back in the water.

We stopped in a bar and had that drinks but before then we stopped at a restaurant that was really good had a really good breakfast. A vegetarian breakfast no less, with vegetarian sausages that were absolutely delicious. The mushrooms that they use are delicious as well. best mushrooms I’ve had forever!


London Victoria station.
Our B&B for the night, our landlady Jan and Eileen.
On the climb up to the castle there was a gatehouse with a phone booth! Eileen and I had a good walk up there!
Eileen up on the castle looking over Dover, wind was strong but sun was out most of the time.
Kids playing human chess!
Castle in Dover.
Three guys braving the ice cold water.
Three cut out statues (see lable below).
White cliffs of Dover.
Trail down to seal. He dragged himself down there.
Laying on his side, quite the claws!

August 12, 2023
I am off to England starting tomorrow.
Today Noa came with me, and we met Nature John out there.
Noa and I saw a large dolphin, but no manatees.
We had a good time anyway and I got photos of birds.

Noa out kayaing with me.
Dawn out on the water.
Snowy checking for bugs for breakfast.
Got one!
Little Blue Heron
Mallard Duck
Little Green hiding in the trees.
Juvenile Yellow Crowned Night Heron.
Osprey

August 11, 2023
Lots of manates! A pair of twins about a month old surfaced  three feet from my kayak! The adults (I guess about three more) were having a good time thrashing about at times!
On the GoPro, I think I may be using the wrong SD cards. I have ordered a high speed card which should be here by the end of the month.

One of the manatees.
Two manatees, the one on the right has an apple barnacle on his back.
Mom and two babies.
Patty came out to join Nature John and me to watch the manatees.
Osprey
Adjusting tailfeathers.
Great Blue Heron (those are my porch and banana trees behind him!).
Brown Pelican
Little Blue Heron
Great Egret
Crow, he was eating off of the corn cob Alan had out.
Juvenile Little Green Heron.
Almost has his adult feathers - Little Green Heron.
Adult - he was watching over the juveniles, standing on one leg shows that he is comfortable.

August 10, 2023
Mostly cloudy, but Allan and I saw a dolphin, and I saw two manatees up at the dam! The tide was high enough that I could go over the pipe and paddle to the dam. There were two manatees, taking turns with their noses over the dam taking in the cool fresh water.

"Nature" John paddled with me for a while, the couple who had the big dog behing the lady also were out.
A flock of ducks.
A flock of Brown Pelicans flying in formation.
A Pelican and an Osprey flying together, they stayed together for quite a while.
Osprey
Little Blue fishing.
Little Green not happy about the Little Blue invading his space.
Another Little Green.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
A little crab that makes up meals for the wading birds.

August 9, 2023
Allan and I saw a mother and a calf manatee as they went by his place.
A very warm day toward the end.

Little Green Heron
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Little Blue Heron
Black Billed Gull
Crow
Snowy
Snowy tossing breakfast up into his throat.
Great Blue Heron and a Gallinule.
Ibis
Downy Woodpecker
Two Woodpeckers!

August 7, 2023
Another BANNER day! A small herd of manatees were in front of Bob’s place! I played with then for 15 minutes and even got to pet one! At times there were three heads out of the water at a time! One came galloping toward me, up and down like a bucking horse, he went right under me!!
I met Java and family from Columbia and Jeff whose boat submerged but the electric motor seems to be OK.
I think tomorrow I will stop by where the mural is and ask who painted it. Scott has a nice mural of a pair of frogs on his wall. He was not around to ask who painted it though.
UPDATE on the murals:

St Pete’s finest… both were done by Vitale Bros. They have done most of the big commercial murals all over the city.
 
Vitale Brothers Art Studio
(727) 520-0969
https://g.co/kgs/Lb86wD
Scott's mural.
Manatee nose
Two manatees! A third was to their left.
Osprey
Osprey on a mast shaking the water off.
Ibis on top of a tree.
Great Blue Heron
Yellow Crowned Night Heron -Juvenile
Jara's puppy.
Jeffrey's dog.

August 6, 2023
Another great day. Allan said he saw 3 dolphins, but 8 minutes before I got there

Juvenile Little Blue.
A mural painted on a house along my trail, it was painted yesterday!
Snowy
Little Green
Little Green with his feathers up.
Little Blue
Little Blue with breakfast.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Juvenile Night Heron in my pathe.
Blue Jay
Ibis on top of tree.
Great Blue Heron
Osprey
Osprey with wings akimbo trying to stay cool.

August 5, 2023
Another beautiful day like yesterday. Lots of birds.

A baby Night Heron, I chase him away from my path most mornings. He is here eating the fiddler crabs I imagine.
Osprey, many times they sit staring at their feet.
Sometimes the Osprey seems like he is moving.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Adult Ibis
Juvenile Ibis, his neck still has the baby feathers.
Youngest Juvenile Ibis
Adult, Junior and baby all together!
Adult Little Blue
Juvenile Little Blue with most of his blue feathers in.
Juvemile Little Blue Heron
Two Cormorants
Little Green on some oysters at Allan's seawall.
Adult Little Green Heron.
Juvenile playing like a Osprey way up in the mangroves.
Anhinga
Snowy
Female Mallard Duck
Rare Gallinule
Taking a ride to the marina.
Brown Pelican taking off.
Great White Egret
When it gets hot, birds open up their wings to cool off!

August 4, 2023
A nice day, the lower humidity was nice, people were coming out on their back yards to enjoy the weather. I added two more videos.

Closer view of the Osprey.
Ibis on the oyster bar.
Juvenile Night Heron
Great Blue Heron
Little Green Heron
Yellow Crowned Night Heron with one foot up (meaning that he is comfortable) and his eye cover over the eye (probably due to the sun being so bright).
Ibis up in a tree.
Snowy
Anhinga
Osprey eating his breakfast of a huge fish!

August 3, 2023

A fine day, Noa went with me this morning. I saw one manatee surface, but we did not see him again. A nice breeze picked up which made it not so very hot. I added three videos to the video page.
Videos of Noa are on the NEW GoPro Videos

Yellow Crowned Night Heron early in the morning,
Sun behind clouds so not so crisp. Oyster Catcher.
Breakfast!
Two Oyster Catchers!
Ibis with breakfast!
Royal Tern
Juvenile Night Heron, no permanent feathers yet.
Little Green
The tide was out and thus exposed the dam.
Juvenile Little Blue
Snowy
Anhinga drying feathers.
Osprey

August 2, 2023
A beautiful day this morning, a day of Little Green Herons. They were out, young and old. No sense using the GoPro as it still has issues with the SD cards, and the Little Greens are too little to be seen on a video.

A juvenile Night Heron, he was in my path to the water and flew up into the mangroves.
Juvenile Ibis, he is brown now, but as he molts he will turn all white.
Adult Ibis
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Juvenile Little Green Heron.
Adult Little Green Heron
Adult
Another Juvenile Little Green Heron
Very young Little Green Heron with his baby feathers.
Snowy
Osprey
Categories
Dally Blog

July 2023

July 30, 2023
Another banner day. One dolphin, he was longer than my kayak! I got a video of the waves he left behind when he surfaced 15 feet beside me. But the GoPro was pointed ahead. 
I still am having problems with the GoPro reading the SD card, so I brought a second one with me. I was moving the card in and out trying to get a good connection when zing, the card hit my elbow on its way to the bottom of the creek. I reached for it under the water and it bumped my hand but sank to the bottom. Some archaeologist a thousand years from now may be digging up the creek and come up with it. I put a piece of thin plastic on the back of the SD card I have left to hopefully push it closed to the contacts.
I met Nature John out today – he had seen the dolphin as well. I also met a new person, Stefane on her inflatable board.

Five week old Presley.
Female Anhinga
Ibis with wattle.
Juvenile Little Green
Snowy
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Display, it may be because of the heat.
Adult Little Green on a day mrker.
Anhinga
Osprey, look at those long white legs!
Brown Pelican on the wing.
Stefane on her inflatable.

July 29, 2023
Another great day! No dolphin, but one manatee! I was trying to get the GoPro to record and so missed photographs of the manatee, he was 1/3 the way across the bay which surprised me, I had never seen them out here in the shallow water. Nature John and I waited at the dam for them but they did not show today.
I finally got the GoPro to save to the SD card, I will not take the card out again if it continues to work.

Company out there today, she said the dog always wants to go with them!
They can pedal their kayaks.
There were two Osprey by my place.
Two Cormorants were fishing around.
Another Cormorant was up the creek.
Juvenile Little Green was out.
Juvenile Little Green sees mom and is racing to meet her. Breakfast!
Snowy with the black beak.
Another Snowy with an Ibis in the background.
Snowy
Much larger Great Egret.
Little Blue Heron
Great Blue Heron
Great Blue by the nest.

July 28, 2023
Another beautiful day, the surprise today was the Nanday Conures who had found the birdfeeder at Alan’s place! Seven of them flew in and chowed down. 
The lady who lives by the dam said the manatees had been there yesterday, but not so far today.

Nanday Conure
This guy was doing tricks!
Then with only one foot! He was a character! Doing this over and over!
Juvenile Ibis
Little Green Heron
Osprey
Female Anhinga
Little Green Heron
Great Egret
Yellow Crowned Night Heron scratching an itch.

July 26, 2023
A beautiful day, lots of birds! Another brood of tiny ducklings! I thought that the ducks were done for the year, but here were six itty bitty ducklings with their mother! I tried eight times to get a video, and I thought that finally I got one, but upon looking at the files, three of them had zero bytes, and the others did not register at all! The GoPro kept saying SD card error. At least I did get stills.

I love the little pink tongue!
Little ones catching bugs on the seawall.
Ibis up in the mangroves.
Juvenile Little Green, still has his baby feathers!
Adult Little Green not far away, watching.
Junior Little Green further up the creek.
He was watching a Great Blue who was getting close, that is why the frathers on thee head upraised.
Great Blue Heron
When a bird is hot he opens the mouth and flutters his throat.
Downy Woodpecker on a palm tree!
Juvenile Night Heron.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron with a huge blue crab for breakfast!
I do not know how he is going to get that down!
A different Yellow Crown Night Heron, I saw four.
Little Blue Heron
Two Osprey were at my place.

July 24, 2023
No dolphins, manatees or sharks (never sharks or alligators!). A few more videos of the birds, you can see how small they are in the videos, but my camera brings them closer.

Anhnga in the woods.
Anhinga in the water.
Anhinga on the oyster bar drying out.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Great Blue Heron
Juvenile Ibis.
Breakfast
Osprey with breakfast.
Little Green Heron
Beautiful Lucy
Oyster Catcher.
Fiddler crabs, hundreds of them on the oyster bed, breakfast for the birds!
Willet
The Pheonex

July 22. 2023
Pleasant day out, no surprises. I learned afterward that 4k was not turned on on my GoPro, but an uneventful day.

Yellow Crown Night Heron
Female Anhinga.
Juvenile Ibis with breakfast.
Older Ibis.
Yellow Crown Night Heron with his breakfast.
Juvenile Night Heron.
No crown feathers in yet.
Oyster Catcher.
Raising leg, showing that he is comfortable.
Great Blue Heron
Little Green
Egret on a pipeline.

July 21, 2023
No dolphins, manatees or sharks (never sharks or alligators!). A few more videos of the birds, you can see how small they are in the videos, but my camers brings them closer.

Osprey talking.
Female Anhinga
Oyster Catcher
Breakfast?
Another AMOY (American Oyster Catcher)is approaching.
Juvenile Little Green with neck outstretched.
Back to normal.
Adult Little Green
Ibis
Yellow Crowned Night Heron.
Snowy.
Photo of an Egret photobombed by a Duck!
Butterfly by my place.

July 20, 2023
A great day, a dolphin and lots of birds!
I was taking photos of the dolphin when it was far away, then when it got closer I should have turned on the GoPro, it would have made a good video as the dolphin passed within 5 feet of my bow! I got great photos as he stayed on the surface for a long time.
I did take new videos with the GoPro (link is above).

He looks like a submarine!
This shows how close he was to my bow!
Female Anhinga by my place.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron, one of five I saw today.
Squirrel eating corn with a second squirrel climbing up!
Brown Pelican
One of several Snowy, one snowy was standing on the bow rail of a boat - he just stood there as the boat powered along!!!
Little Green Heron, one of three I saw today.
Adult Little Green
Blue Jay.

July 19, 2023
I have been busy with lights and projector for the theater. 

https://gulfportcommunityplayers.org/

Today was very nice, Allan spotted a manatee covered in barnacles, I paddled out to where he was, the manatee circled around and put his nose up to my kayak! So I petted him! Then a second manatee (with no barnacles) was spotted ahead. I paddled to catch up, but never saw them again. When the one which was beside my kayak I tried to take photos with the GoPro, but it had an error message, SD card error. My big camera said no battery! I reinserted the SD card and it continued to work, then I reinserted the battery and that one continued to work. But in the heat of the moment, I had neither camera and a manatee right beside me!
Some birds today, but not many.

Osprey by my place.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron by my place.
Ibis - he caught a crab! On the oyster bar.
Swallowing the crab.
Egret way up in the trees on the island.
Three Black Skimmers flew by!
Junior Green Heron was out again!
Adult Little Green Heron was not too far away.
A duck coming in for a landing.

Friday July 14, 2023
No manatees today, but a dolphin or two. Lots of birds today, including the baby Little Green Heron out again!

He makes me laugh with all those baby feathers out fuzzy!
Patiently waiting for mom and food.
Female Anhinga, I saw four today!
Brown Pelican on the wing looking for breakfast.
He sees fish and down he comes.
Splash, in he goes.
Snowy Egret.
Little Blue Heron
Wave in the water from a dolphin. The dots in the forground are called "bokeh". Out of focus light.
Junior Yellow Crowned Night Heron, His yellow crown is not fully in.
Adult Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Long legs on that Great Blue Heron.

Thursday, July 13, 2023

Dolphin sightings again! Ann went with me today, I tried out the GoPro, unfortunately I had only a 2 GB chip in it, so it only recorded for 9 minutes, not much scenery during that time, just the mangroves and the sunrise. I have a 16 GB in the GoPro now.
The Little Green Heron  baby was out, looking for food from momma!

And here is momma not far away.
Ann kayking along.
My new GoPro next to the duck.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
I am mystified by the Yellow Crowned lowering his wing, some birds do that to shade the water so they can see fish better, but he is doing it over the rocks!
Osprey on top of the mangroves.

Tuesday, happy Forth of July, 2023!

Dolphin sightings! A very nice day, the sea was like glass again, with a light breeze to keep us somewhat cool. 

Osprey
Beautiful sky above this Great White Egret.
Little Blue starting to get his blue feathers!
Dam and water goat where the manatees have been playing.
One of the dolphin coming downstream.
Great Blue Heron
Osprey at my place.

Monday, July 3, 2023
Lots of fireworks last night, it may have scared off my birds! Also, no manatees anywhere today, but four dolphins!

No wind this morning.
Oyster Catcher
The tide was out and so the oyster bar was starting to show.
Two Oyster Catchers, neither one was tagged.
Ibis also checking out the oyster bar.
Juvenile Little Blue Heron
Egret on the boat lift, one of the yellow labs on the right.
Great White Egret
Little Green
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Blue Jay
Anhinga.
Ducks
Tides

Sunday July 2, 2023
Today made up for yesterday, five adult manatees and a baby! Lady Four Scars was at the dam and I played with her for quite a while, still as playful as ever. Then on the way back I saw one adult manatee under a bridge, then across from Bob’s there were three adults and a baby! The baby and one adult were tugging on the prop roots of the mangroves, another adult was munching on the leaves and the last adult had its nose in the grass on the side of the creek. I must confess, I was stationary for about five minutes – splashing with my right hand to get the manatees to come. No one came, they were all out of sight. So I decided to move on. I put my left paddle in and pulled, then put my right paddle in. I had been looking to my left. When I put the right paddle in I hit something. An adult manatee surfaced right beside me! I had not seen him and touched him with the paddle! He continued north, but it was funny that he was there all the time! Five adults, one baby, a record!
I also got some good shots of a Pelican fishing.

Four Scar by the dam coming to visit.
She has a very soft pink tongue.
Friday someone said that they were very afraid of manatees, with their huge head coming out of the water, but the manatee is the most docile animal!
Love that pretty face! (Shadow is my paddle)
Hello!
Egret at the dam.
Mango tree on the side of the creek. I had one, it was awesome!! These are hanging over the creek but are too high for me to reach.
Nose of the baby manatee pulling on the prop roots of the red Mangrove.
Little guy tugging.
An adult also tugging on the mangrove prop roots.
Adult manatee with head in the grass.
Anhinga with a huge mouthful in its neck, it is a good thing birds do not breath through their throat!
Slowly moving on down.
Juvenile little Blue.
A dolphin came by!
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Anhinga drying out.
Black Skimmer zipping by!
Another Anhinga, several sited today.
Anhinga preening.
Osprey watching.
Juvenile Night heron
Female anhinga.
Brown Pelican
Now that is a mouthful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tide at Gulfport

Saturday July 1, 2023
For three days John and I played with the manatees. Today Noa and I went out and – no manatees. It was a nice day and we saw a few birds.

One thing you may notice, I used a different camera, my Coolpix P900. I also did not crop or edit any of the photos at all. I usually lighten or darken them a bit and crop them, not today.

Osprey by my place.
Female Anhinga
Ibis
Noa
The water was like glass again.
Juvenile Night Heron
Osprey on top of a mast.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Snowy on the water goat.
Snowy up in a tree.
Egret on the water goat.
Egret in the tree.
Entering a side creek.
Night Heron watching me.
John's decorated pilings. John made each one!
Great Blue Heron.
Categories
Daily Blog

June 2023

Third day in a row playing with manatees! I just park my kayak on the dam and they come to me. One sucked my hand right into his mouth! They have teeth like sting rays, just two hard plates, but a very soft pink tongue!
Nature John and I played with them for a while then decided to go over the dam and over the water goat and go up the creek. I had been only one other time and was stopped by a fallen tree, same this time but a fallen tree further north.
Nature John sent two videos of me and a manatee, and one he called Kayak Cleaner!

Manatee nose in the cool water coming over the dam.
Manatee snout while he uis nibbling on my kayak. It is amazing, they are longer than my kayak and weigh a ton, but they are very, very gentle.
Manatee coming up to see me.
In this photo you can even see his eyes!
His nose and pink tongue.
This one has a gash on his back.
This one has four scars from a propeller going fast.
Osprey on the top of a mast.
Little Greeh Heron preening on a boat lift.
Snowy Egret on the water goat.
Great White Egret
NJ slapped his paddle on his kayak to scare me, but all it did was scare the birds and the manatees. This photo is the Egret looking down to where we were as he was longingly trying to get back to the water.
Nature John petting a manatee.
Two juvenile Ibis between two adults.
Osprey

Thursday, June 29, 2023
Yesterday there were two manatees at the dam, this morning there were three! Again I rested my kayak on the dam and a manatee would come up to me! Nature John came up later and we both enjoyed the manatees for a while. Then NJ allowed me to use his guest bathroom, saved the day there!

TWO manatee noses on the dam.
Manatee head with whiskers!
Nose of a manatee letting the cool water from the forest go over him, the water north was much cooler than the ocean water.
Two noses!
Juvenile Little Blue
Snowy on the dam fishing.
Egret, Duck, and Snowy all on the goat.
Great Egret
Alan put out a corn cob for the birds!
Anhinga
Great Blue Heron.

Update:
Manatees are protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 and the Endangered Species Act of 1973. It is illegal to feed, harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, annoy, or molest manatees.
The manatee is also protected by the Florida Manatee Sanctuary Act of 1978, which states: “It is unlawful for any person, at any time, intentionally or negligently, to annoy, molest, harass, or disturb any manatee.”

Others say molesting the manatees is considered if you have 2 hands on one of them.

One hand is not considered molesting them or they would have left!

So I am sure we are fine, the manatees come to us, we did not feed, harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, annoy, or molest them.
There are places here in Florida where you can swim with them and touch them all you want!

June 28, 2023
A day that will go down in history for me. Nature John and I were paddling up Bear Creek when we saw dolphins. Then as we got up further, about 8 AM we came across two manatees. Nothing unusual about that but we followed them up to the dam. One put his snout right up on the dam and was drinking (I think) the cool fresh water coming over the dam. It was about 2 inches deep and was really cold. The second manatee was swimming right nearby. So, for the next hour and 15 minutes Nature John and I reveled in playing with the manatees. State law says you cannot harass manatees, but we did no such thing. The manatees would come up right beside us again and again (where is my GoPro) and “sniff” at our hand in the water. Then they would swim around and take a “bite” out of the side of the kayak. Then they would clean off any algae that was on the kayak. Around and around they circled us. Twice I had one manatee on either side of me and was able to touch both at the same time. For more than an hour they played with us. Many years ago I was able to touch a manatee, but this was another level of amazing. They really were curious, coming up behind Nature John’s kayak and plying with his lifting handle, several times. What an experience. Obviously they were too close to photograph when I was touching them, but I got a few with Nature John accepting an advance from one!

Allan's photo of a dolphin from his dock.
Allan's photo of a dolphin playing with his food before eating it!
Dorsal fin of dolphin zipping by.
Nature John paddling after a dolphin.
Manatee with head out of the water.
Manatee snout!
Manatee snout by my bow.
Manatee checking out JJ's lifting handle.
Quite young Little Blue.
Six ducks.
One of two Great Blue Herons I saw today
One of four Yellow Crown Night Herons.
One of five Anhingas hiding in the mahgroves.
Following is a series of photographs of a Brown Pelican. He took off, flew for a bit, thensubmerged completely. When he resurfaced he drained the water out of his pouch and lifted up his beak and swallowed the fish he had just caught.

Update Monday:
Out my back window is an Osprey eating his lunch.

Monday, June 26, 2023
Even more interaction with dolphins AND manatees!
A manatee lifted the stern of my kayak and turned me about 30° counterclockwise! He did not dump me, I think it may have been a mistake. It sounded like he had barnacles on his body that lifted my stern leaving little pin hole marks.
Also Jason and I watched two dolphin chasing fish, the larger dolphin caught a 12 inch fish!.

Dolphin dorsal fin near my kayak!
Smaller dolphin.
I saw dolphins, then saw manatees, then this is the second sighting of a dolphin!
Manatee snout
Kinda looks like an elephant!
Ibis
Brown Pelican
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Little Green
Small flock of parrots.
Great Blue Heron
Apollo
Blue Jay
Alan put out a new wood box, I do not know what it is, but a squirrel was messing with it!
Snowy
Crow
One of three rigs to build docks. A barge with a crane, spuds to hold it in place and other equipment.
Ever faithful Osprey.

Sunday, June 25, 2023
Dolphins, manatees! A great day! First came the dolphins, I do not know how many but I saw several break the surface to take a breath, they were so quick. I only got one small dorsal fin photo, even though I saw at least 6. One was coming straight at me and rocked my kayak! At the same time a lady on shore said that there were several manatees right there! I only saw one nose, too quick to get a photo.

Dorsal fin of one of the dolphins.
Dolphin coming straight for me, throwing up quite the wake, rocked my kayak!
Crow harassing the Osprey, I cannot see any reason, just mean. Then later i saw a Moxking Bird chasing a Crow.
Black Skimmer making his rounds, he skimmed all around the island and back and forth, he came within 20 feet of me, but was too fast to get a photo.
Cormorant flying by.
Little Green Heron
Female Mallard Duck
Like water off of a duck's back!
Snowy Egret
A bite for breakfast!
The female Anhinga is back where she had been for months in a mangrove tree.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron I just woke up.
He came out displaying!!
Osprey by my place.

Saturday. June 24, 2023
A beautiful day!! A few high clouds, moderate temperature, NICE! Today there is no wind and the bay is like glass.

Female Anhinga at dawn by my place.
She got s little excited as I approached.
She regained composure as I moved away.
Oysters squirting water into the air at the oyster bed.
One of two Osprey on top of masts!
Second Osprey on a different mast.
Juvenile Night Heron. Black Crowned or Yellow Crowned yet to be displayed. On one foot showing that he is comfortable, in fact when I went by later he was asleep in the same place!
Junior Yellow Crowned Night Heron.
Little Green on board a powerboat.
Little Green figured I was too close, raised its crown and flew across the creek.
Female Mallard Duck.
Great Egret standing on the dam fishing.
Female Cardinal flouncing her feathers. The male was behind abush.
Blue Jay.
Cormorant
Great Blue Heron on the smaller oyster bar.
Brown Pelican overhead!

Thursday, June 22, 2023
A short day today, I almost made it home before a small thunderstorm hit! The thunder and lightning hit at the same time! Then pouring rain filled my kayak, I got home soaked!!

Osprey by my house.
Another Osprey on the island.
Great Blue Heron soaking wet.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Cormorant came up right in front of my kayak.

Monday, June 17, 2023 Juneteenth, a federal holiday.
It has been cloudy and rain the past few days, but today was clear and beautiful. 
Manatees today! Several cavorting around in front of Bob and Di’s place!

The head of one of the manatees.
Manatee tail
Two manatees.
Osprey keeping watch over me.
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Juvenile Little Blue Heron
Great Heron on the dam in front of the water goat.
Snowy on the dam.
(AI ) A beautiful bright red Cardinal perched on a wooden railing, fluffed his feathers and looked towards me. The remarkable bird was enjoying a peaceful moment in the yard, as he waited patiently to get the seeds from the bird feeder, which was hanging few feet away. As soon as he saw some action, he flew over, balancing himself with his sharp claws on the bird feeder, and started nibbling away at the seeds in the feeder. The Cardinal bird, with his distinctive red plumage and distinctive crest atop his head, appeared to be perfectly happy with his own company and the delicious seeds from the feeder. The natural scene was a wonder to behold, with the vibrant bird and his surroundings. It was a delightful moment of nature and beauty that filled the heart with peace and tranquility.
The Cardinal was then chased away by a Grackle.
Grackle.

Thursday (Thor’s day) June 15, 2023
(I have a necklace with Thor’s hammer on it!)
The tide was in (Nature John called it what it was, a King Tide). 
Another day for the GoPro. An Osprey landed right in front of me going after a fish. Too close to get a clear photo!! The two photos I did get off were way out of focus. He really surprised me landing so close!
Allan said that I missed the dolphin. All around a crazy day! The day started out solid clouds and windy, the clouds moved away and the wind picked up to 10 to 15 knots, a wave splashed right into my kayak – it made for hard to photograph anything it was so rough.

Osprey hit the water right in front of my bow!! A GoPro moment!
Osprey too close taking off.
Two Osprey close together! That is unusual!
Osprey on the right, all photos of the one on the left are blurry due to wave action on my kayak!
Ibis up in the mangroves, probably due to the choppy water..
Another GoPro moment, this Snowy landed almost above me then took off.
Juvenile Little Blue with his white feathers, his tail is showing his future colors though.
Snowy Egret
Great Egret

Monday June 12, 2023
Another nice day, I spotted one Skimmer, a Great Blue exposing himself, and lots of ducks.

In the quiet of the marina, a great blue heron perched on a powerboat with wings akimbo. Was it displaying looking for a mate? The bird's long, slender legs stretched out beneath its graceful body, balancing it delicately on the windshield. Its gray-blue feathers glinted in the sun, adding a touch of ethereal beauty to the tranquil surroundings. With a regal tilt of its head, and a slight squawking noise, the heron gazed out over the shimmering water, as if lost in thought. Perhaps it was pondering its next catch or simply enjoying the peacefulness of the moment. Whatever the case, its presence added a touch of wild wonder to the otherwise-manicured marina, a reminder of the natural world beyond the boats and docks.
Female Anhinga drying out.
Cormorant on a day marker.
Ibus in the mangroves on the north end of the island.
Odprey on a light pole in the marina eating his breakfast of fish.
It was a big fish, with the tail hanging over!
Two Little Green Herons on the bow rail of a boat in the marina.
The fab four are now flying!!
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Snowy Egret.
Another of the three Ospreys around.

Sunday, June 11, 2023
Sunshine with a few puffy clouds! 74° and nice. Slight breeze out of the south.
Two Black Skimmers came by! They are so fast it is hard to get a photo! Skimming along above the smooth water next to the marina!

Osprey behind my house.
You are forewarned a bird is about to fly when they dump any waste!
....and off he goes.
Flying high, looking for his next meal.
Cormorant preening.
A Crow harassing a Great Blue Heron. The Crows have taken over the island where the Great Blues and the Little Greens used to have their nests.
Four juvenile Mallard Ducks
Female Downy Woodpecker on a dead tree.
Male Downy Woodpecker at the entrance to what looks like a hole to a nest.
Little Green Heron

Saturday, June 10, 2023
Another fabulous day, full sun after a bit of clouds on the horizon. 

A young female Anhinga.
Baby Little Green with his baby feathers on his head sticking up!
Osprey way up on the sailboat mast watching for breakfast!
Dove up in a tree.
One of three Yellow Crowned Night Herons this morning.
Snowy Egret on a pipeline catching little fish.
Cardinal

Friday, June 9, 2023
Beautiful weather, a dolphin encounter this morning! As usual, I cannot get photos of things closer than ten feet. This morning I had been watching a dolphin up in front of me. when all of a sudden to my left about 3-4 feet away, a dolphin came up! He was facing me. He looked at me for a second, then splashed me and submerged under my kayak! WOW! I took 4 photos of him, none are recognizable as anything but a blur. I have thought many times of getting a go-pro for times like this. It would have made a great video! They are $400 and only take video for 85 minutes, I am out for 3 hours and I have no idea when nature will suprize me.

Dolphin surprised me - 3 feet away, where is my phone or Go-Pro?
Dolphin 500 feet away.
Dolphin 600 feet away.
Osprey 100 feet away.
Osprey 300 feet away up on a mast of a sailboat in the marina.
Third Osprey 100 feet away.
Little Green Heron
Female Anhinga

Thursday, June 8, 2023
For the first time in almost two years I did not get a photo because my battery had died. The battery in my Nikon D300 lasts a long time, I do not have to charge it up for about a month. This morning a Black Skimmer came around fishing – I missed the shot. I have put a spare, fully charged, battery in my waterproof container that I take every day, so, if it ever happens again I am prepared.
No dolphins or manatees, but a Yellow Crowned Night Heron catching a crab!

Little Green Heron
Juvenile Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Crab for breakfast!
Juvenile Little Blue Heron
Fab four
Snowy

Monday June 5, 2023
Two dolphins today, no photos of them though, they were too close! All nine plus mom ducks are doing well.

Osprey dragging his feet in the water to clean them!
Snowy checking out the bugs on the seawakk, breakfast!
Cormorand on a piling.
Osprey drying off.
Two juvenile Ibis.
Juvenile Little Blue.
Mom and nine still sticking together!
Yellow Crowned Night Heron
Buckeye butterfly.

Sunday June 4, 2023
Another awesome day, three dolphins!

Friday, June 2, 2023

Another great day. Tuesday I volunteer at Gulfport, so no kayaking. Wednesday it was cloudy and in the afternoon we had a severe thunderstorm, dropping more than 5 inches of rain, my rain gage only goes to 5 inches, and it was overflowing! Thursday was a cloudy day. Today, sunshine, 70° and nice.

(AI ) The Snowy Egret is a beautiful bird that can be found along the seawall searching for food. With its bright white feathers. yellow feet, and contrasting black legs and beak, it stands out sharply against the grey concrete of the seawall. It is a skilled hunter, using its long, thin beak to catch small fish and crustaceans that live in the shallow waters and on the seawall. It is an agile bird, quickly darting its head into the water to snatch up its prey. Watching them hunt is a sight to behold, as they move gracefully through the water, at times their wings spread wide to maintain balance. The Snowy Egret is an essential part of the ecosystem, playing a crucial role in controlling the populations of small animals that they prey upon. It is always a joy to see these wading birds in action, as they work hard to survive in their natural habitat.
(AI ) The Snowy Egret is a small, white heron with a delicate appearance, often visible in wetlands and marshes. These birds are skilled at walking slowly and standing still, waiting for their prey to appear. Today, this Snowy Egret was seen walking along the dam in front of a "water goat," a device designed to remove debris and pollutants from water. As the egret strutted along, it suddenly caught sight of its next meal. With lightning-fast reflexes, it lowered its head and snatched a small fish from the water's surface. The egret's sharp beak and keen hunting instincts allowed it to find food even in an area altered by human activity. As the egret continued on its way, undisturbed by the water goat, it reminded us of the resilience and adaptability of nature in the face of human development.
Snowy fluffing its feathers.
Snowy on the wing up high!
(AI) The osprey is a magnificent bird of prey that is often found near bodies of water. It is a skilled hunter, using its sharp talons to catch fish from the water's surface. Once it has secured its meal, the osprey will often head to a nearby perch to eat and dry off. The bird's feathers are specially designed to repel water, but they can still become saturated after diving into the water. To dry off, the osprey will often spread its wings wide, exposing its feathers to the sun and wind. This helps to dry off the feathers and make them more manageable for flight. As the osprey dries its feathers, it provides a beautiful sight for birdwatchers and nature enthusiasts.
Osprey way up high on the wing.
Second sighting of an Osprey.
(AI ) Juvenile Little Blue, just like any other young bird, was still in the process of growing and developing. Only a few blue feathers had started to come in, indicating that he was still quite young. As he matured, he would continue to gain more blue feathers, and his deep blue color would become more prominent. Despite his young age, Little Blue was already learning how to fly and navigate his surroundings. He would pursue insects and other small creatures to feed himself, honing his hunting skills. He would also socialize with his peers, learning the customs and behavior of his species. Although he had much to learn and still had a long way to go, Juvenile Little Blue was full of potential and promise, eager to explore the world and discover everything it had to offer.
Juvenile Little Blue on top of warning sign.
On the shore fishing.
The fab four plus mom.
Mom plus nine.
Mom with one new duckling.
Great Blue Heron
Mockingbird
Brown Pelican on the wing.