Trip #5: J. Dickinson & Oscar Scherer SPs

Osprey at J D S P

November 25 - 28, 2007 Thanksgiving day

JOHNATHAN DICKINSON STATE PARK - Jupiter, FL

OSCAR SCHERER STATE PARK - Sarasota, FL

Did thanksgiving with family in Jupiter and headed for the Shrek Swamp for the night. Whoah, that was a humid night at JDSP. Discovered no-see-ums live there. And bite.

The next day we crossed the state to Oscar Scherer State Park. A perfect day, dry and cool with a full moon to boot. Got spot #98 on the river, but no canoe or bikes this trip. Barb and Roo came for a cookout and drinking contest. Prickly pear margaritas and a moonlight hike thru the bushes at midnight. Did manage to hike 7 miles on sandy trails, plus a dusk hike that revealed an armadillo and wild hogs! Last year we also saw a bobcat at this park.

Park Info: JDSP -Located just south of Stuart, this park teems with wildlife in 13 natural communities, including sand pine scrub, pine flatwoods, mangroves, and river swamps. The Loxahatchee River, Florida's first federally designated Wild and Scenic River, runs through the park. Ranger-guided tours of the 1930s pioneer homestead of Trapper Nelson are available year-round. Legends are nothing new to the east coast of Florida. In 1696, a Quaker merchant named Jonathan Dickinson shipwrecked off the coast in the area of Hobe Sound. Dickinson, his family and other survivors, made an arduous journey along the coast to St. Augustine. His journal, describing encounters with Native Americans and Spanish settlers, gives valuable information about life in early Florida. Oscar Scherer - In 1955, Elsa Scherer Burrows bequeathed 462 acres of land to the state for use as a park. The land was donated in memory of her father, Oscar Scherer, an inventor who developed a process for dyeing leather for shoes in 1872.

Thanksgiving day in Johnathan Dickinson Park

The G's for dinner at Oscar Scherer

  

Trail at Oscar Scherer

Saw this bobcat at Oscar Scherer on a visit the year before