Florida is for the birds… Nature and History Weekend

St. Augustine is the oldest continuously occupied European established city, and the oldest port, in the continental United States.  Founded in 1565, it is home to Castillo de San Marcos, which is a really cool old fort, and a bunch of cool old buildings (including Flagler College).  It's a neat city and one we plan on exploring.

So far we have Florida, and history but what about the Nature stuff?
Well, to start with, we'll have luxury car camping (yes, we'll have water and electricity) right smack in the middle of a nature park.

This tranquil park contains 1,450 acres along Pellicer Creek, an aquatic preserve and State canoe trail. The creek, pine flatwoods and mesic hammock are home to many deer, turkeys, hawks, bobcats and river otters.

And that's just the start!  Biking, beachcombing, swimming, fishing, picnicking, windsurfing, hiking, wildlife-viewing, canoeing and kayaking are all potential activities just outside our campsite!  Be sure to bring your bikes!  If you don't have one, we'll try to track down a rental.  Our campsite is only about 15 miles from Historic St. Augustine.

And if that weren't enough, we'll be going to a very special place, the St. Augustine Alligator Farm.  I know, I know, it sounds cheesy, but read on:

Founded in 1893, the St. Augustine Alligator Farm is one of Florida's oldest zoological attractions. For over a century, it has entertained millions of visitors with their exotic reptiles, scary critters and bird sanctuary.  A true piece of Floridana, the St. Augustine Alligator Farm has inspired popularization of the alligator in the national consciousness and helped to fashion an image for the state.

In the mid 1970s the St Augustine Alligator Farm expanded its Alligator Swamp exhibit and inadvertently developed an outstanding natural bird rookery. Among other changes, the boardwalk was extended through the swamp and more alligators were added. Although the Alligator Farm has always been a popular spot for wading birds to roost, the enhancement of the swamp created a unique nesting opportunity for them. The additional alligators provide protection from arboreal predators such as raccoons, opossums, and snakes. Although the birds do lose some hatchlings to the alligators, their losses are far fewer than if predators raided their nests.  (In other words, be prepared to see both the best and worst of what nature has to offer.)  The extended boardwalk enabled visitors to view nesting birds virtually feet away. Over the years, the rookery has grown in size to what it is today, one of the largest natural bird rookeries in the state of Florida.

The swamp extends over approximately two acres of natural wetlands and is home to around 150 American Alligators and many native turtles. During the non-breeding season many birds fly into the swamp in the evening to roost, or sleep, over the alligators. Among these are Black and Yellow Crowned Night Herons, White Ibis, and Roseate Spoonbills. Once the weather starts warming up, the roosting birds migrate to their preferred nesting habitat and the rookery birds begin to gather. The large live oaks on the North and East side of the swamp are the favored nesting sites and are usually the first to be occupied. It is generally the Great Egrets that arrive first and begin their courtship. The lower elderberry bushes along the peninsula are usually left for the later arrivals, the Snowy Egrets, Tri-colored Herons, Little Blue Herons, and Cattle Egrets. The tops of the oaks are favored by the Wood Storks. The Green Herons choose nesting spots deep within the trees of the swamp or elsewhere on the farm.

The basic trip cost includes admission but photogs take note:  You can buy a special separate pass ($70) that will give you access to the park one hours before it opens.  You'd be responsible for getting there early on your own and paying that fee. 

Here's the plan:
We leave town Thursday around lunchtime.  We'll arrive at camp and set up our tents.  We may take a midnight walk in the woods after that to stretch our legs from the long car ride... other than that Thursday night will probably be about stargazing and goofing off by the campfire.

Friday:
We'll get up and have a campside breakfast then figure out what we want to do that day; maybe rent canoes and kayaks (very cheap at the campsite; about $5/hour), maybe take a long bike ride, maybe go into the city for some history.  Be back by dinner time!  Your trip leaders are going to whip up a nice campside meal.

Saturday
This is our "structured" day.  After everyone is up and ready (be ready by 9am), we'll head over to the Alligator Farm, where we'll spend the day.  Be sure to bring your cameras and a snack!!  We'll leave the park when it closes, and then those who are interested can head into town for dinner and a little exploration. 

Sunday:
Sunday morning will start with another lazy breakfast and then we'll pack up.  Once we're packed up, we can spend some time exploring more of the city and the various historical sites in whatever groups we choose; there is a lot to see!  Or, we can do whatever nature stuff that we didn't get to do in the past few days.  Or perhaps we can visit Ft. Mose, which is another important historical site.  We'll plan to head back to Atlanta no later than 2pm.

What are we going to eat?
Friday night, your trip leaders will prepare a simple but hearty meal (yes, we will have both carnivore and vegetarian choices), good bread, and salad/veggies.  

Once we get the trip roster in place, we can decide as a group how to handle the rest of the meals.  I know we'll want to enjoy at least one meal in St. Augustine.  Sooo... you MIGHT be on your own, but most likely we'll end up teaming up and doing group meals.  We'll let you know once people send in their deposits.

Also, note... people who fish are most welcome, especially if you catch something yummy and cook it up for us!  Feel free to bring your gear; I know fishing is allowed.  However, you're on your own for licenses; I have no idea how that works.

A deposit of $20 is required by 3/15/10, with the balance due by 4/10/10.

Although it's ok to bring some of your car camping favorites, please try to pack at least a little on the light side.  This is a loooong trip, and we are hoping to take as many bikes as possible. 

Once you sign up and pay your deposit, please let your trip leaders know if you will be able to drive and transport multiple bikes.

Your trip leaders will send email updates once the trip roster is in place; we'll discuss group meals, as well as bringing items the entire group could share (like a stove) instead of everyone bringing too much of the same stuff. 

Since we'll be taking a large group, a lot of gear, and potentially a lot of bikes, we'll plan on calculating gas costs as a group and then splitting the overall cost.  For example, let's say someone has a truck that can transport 4 bikes and a bunch of gear but only two people.  Then, perhaps there's a small car that gets much better mileage and can take 5 people but not much gear... it's only fair to distribute the overall cost with the group.  Drivers, PLEASE keep receipts and keep track of mileage.  We need to make sure this is a team effort and that means sharing all mileage costs.  

* If you cancel on or before April 10, full payment is refundable less a $5 AOC administrative fee. After this date, NO refund unless someone from the waitlist replaces you and pays in full. At that time, you would receive full refund less the $5 administrative fee.