The Wandering Disciple

Venice Fire Department is sporting a new look these day.  Engine 51 was just added to the fleet and features a new graphic design, the first in the city to have the makeover.  The red and gray look is a departure from the red and white design that Venice has used for years.  (Photo: June 21, 2017)

A drive through the Smoky Mountains near Gatlinburg and there are scars everywhere, a reminder to the devastating wildfires that effected the area in November.  While the region is quickly rebounding, it will take a while for the mountains to completely heal.  Meanwhile these signs will be a reminder at how delicate the balance between wilderness and civilization can be.  (Photo: June 14, 2017)

Sarasota, Florida: The Gulf Coast League season kicked off this week and the Orioles and Twin met for a four game series to start the campaign. Thursday afternoon's game was played at Ed Smith Stadium and those in attendance were treated to a pitcher duel that saw the Twins pick up a 1-0 win. The only run of the afternoon game in the top of the first inning. Akil Baddoo doubled to left and later scored on a ground ball by Alex Robles to give the Twins a 1-0 lead. From that point on, pitching and defense highlighted the afternoon. Pedro Garcia tossed 6 2/3 shut-out innings to pick up the win. Vadim Balan closed out the game with 2 1/3 scoreless innings to secure the win for the Twins. Click on the photo above to view my Orioles/Twins photo gallery .

At 6,053 feet above sea level, you are at the highest point along the Blue Ridge Parkway.  The Richland Balsam Overlook in North Carolina is the highest point along the 469 mile scenic highway that stretches from Roanoke, Virginia to Cherokee, North Carolina.  (Photo: June 14, 2017)

A brightly colored Rhododendron flower provides a splash of color on a dreary day along the Blue Ridge Parkway.   Mother Nature paints a colorful picture each summer when the Rhododendron come into full bloom.  (Photo: June 13, 2017)

This rustic cabin in the middle of the Pisgah National Forest was once the ranger's cabin for the Biltmore Forest School.  This large tract of land on the Biltmore property was home to the first forestry school in the country.  Today the heritage of the school and its accomplishments are the centerpiece of the Cradle of Forestry in America.  (Photo: June 14, 2017)

Overlooking the Blue Ridge Mountains just outside of downtown Asheville is the largest private estate in the country.  It is here where George Vanderbilt built his little mountain escape.  The Biltmore is anything but little featuring 4 acres of floor space, 250 rooms, 33 bedrooms, 43 bathrooms and 65 fireplaces.  (Photo: June 12, 2017)

Asheville, North Carolina:  There is no better way to see and learn about a city than by taking a ride with a local.  That's exactly what Asheville Trolley Tours does, gives riders a glimpse into the local culture of Asheville.  Cradled in the mountains, Asheville is a quirky town with something to offer for everyone. Your trip on the bright red trolley begins at the Asheville Visitor's Center, stop one of the tour.  Park your car here in one of the many free parking spots and hop aboard the trolley for a day filled with interesting stories and amazing sights. There are ten stops along the route, each with something new and exciting to explore.  During the summer, there is a trolley every thirty minutes giving you time to explore the area around the stop.  If you choose to stay on the trolley, it takes about an hour and a half to complete the entire circuit.  We chose to stay onboard for one entire circuit to hear the history of the area and get ...

When they came up with the old saying of having your head in the clouds, I don't think this is what they had in mind.  While traveling up the Blue Ridge Parkway during last week's road trip, we truly did have our heads in the clouds.  While at an elevation of around 5,200 feet, we met the clouds as the clouds began to envelope the parkway.  (Photo: June 13, 2017)

When Dr Carole came to town to run the Highland Hospital, he needed a place to live. Homewood was the answer to his housing needs. The stone manor in the prestigous Monford area of Asheville was built in 1927 for Dr Carole and his family. Homewood would a centerpiece in the Asheville social scene as Dr Carole and his wife entertained the Vanderbilts, F Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald and many other prominent residents. Today the Homewood is still entertaining as it is one of the premier wedding venues in the country. (Photo: June 11, 2017)

Englewood All-Stars clean-up hitter MJ Patrick takes an offering deep over the centerfield fence for a homer during Sunday's game against the Venice All-Stars.  Patrick's homer was the only home run for Englewood in the tournament.  The Englewood All-Stars lost to Venice and have been eliminated from the district tournament.  (Photo: June 18, 2017)

Englewood All-Stars centerfielder Donte Taylor gets under a fly ball to center to record an out during round one of the Little League District tournament at Twin Lakes Park.  Englewood lost the opening round to Sarasota-National and will return to Twin Lakes on Sunday for a round two matchup against Venice.  (Photo: June 17, 2017)

Englewood, Florida: Today the Englewood All-Star team got their final work-out in before kicking off the District All-Star tournament tomorrow in Sarasota.  Weather had not been kind to the team this year, forcing the team to practice indoors at Top Prospect in Punta Gorda.  Today's practice was the first time the team had been able to conducting fielding practice as a team, just hours before taking the field for the first game. The 2017 Englewood 10-12 Year Old All-Star Team consists of  Wyatt Bush, Adam Lee, Cody Mayes, Jake Patrick, MJ Patrick, JP Schlicher, Wyatt Seckel, Owen Tannehill, Donte Taylor and Gabe Todaro.  Mike Patrick is the team manager with Rick Goff and Tyler Goff as coaches and Dominic Todaro and John Schlicher rounding out the coaching staff. The tournament kicks off on Saturday at Twin Lakes Field in Sarasota and Englewood squares off against Sarasota-National.  The tournament is a double-elimination format with the winner advancing o...

The mountains dominate the skyline in North Carolina making the interstate drive a lot more enjoyable.  On our recent road trip, we embarked on a 700 plus mile roadtrip which as flat, dull and borning.  That is until the last 200 miles or so when the upstate South Carolina hills gave way to the mountains of North Carolina.  Pictured here is I-26 near Tryon, North Carolina.  (Photo: June 11, 2017)

Asheville, North Carolina:  The final day of our trips are always bittersweet, you say good-bye to the amazing adventures of your trip but return home to your friends and family back home.  While I would have loved to stay in the mountains and escape from reality a little more longer, life back home was calling and we needed to answer the call. Today was a very uneventful day in terms of the past four days.  Today was spent in the car from 12 hours driving back to the sunshine state.  We got to take back life long memories made in these great mountains to share with friends and family and in the days to come you readers as well. Over the course of the past four days, we traveled almost 2,000 miles and crossed 5 states.  We got to see some amazing sites while we were in town but we only scratched the surface at what the Asheville area has to offer.  My wife had made a comment last night that still sticks to me as I write this, Asheville was the first ...

Kodak, Tennessee: The Tennessee Smokies struggled to contain the poweful offense of the division leading Chattanooga Lookouts as they dropped the series opener 8-1 on Wednesday night at Smokies Stadium. The Lookouts used three long balls to help them win the opener. After a scoreless first inning, the Lookouts took command of the game in the second inning. A solo home run by TJ White and a three run homer by Nick Gordon gave them a 4-0 lead. The Smokies scored their lone run of the night in the sixth inning. Charcer Burks singled to center and then moved to third following a double by Andrew Ely. Burks then scored on a ground ball by David Bote to make it 4-1. The Lookouts struck again in the seventh. The loaded the bases following three straight singles by Gordon, Edgar Corcino and LaMonte Wade. Gordon scored on a single by Jonathan Rodriguez. After Corcino was thrown out at home, Wade scored on a sac fly by Dan Gamache to make it 6-1. Chattanooga scored two more runs ...

Asheville, North Carolina:  Today was bonus day on our summer road trip.  We had originally planned on heading home, but instead we extended our trip by a day.  So with nothing hard scheduled today, we decided to wing our itinerary. After breakfast at the hotel, we decided to hit the Blue Ridge Parkway and head south to the southern terminus in Cherokee.  We got lost a bit getting to the parkway, but it was nice to see other areas in Asheville.  It is easy to see why the town has won so many awards. Once we reached the parkway, we began our journey southward.  Along the way, we stopped at each of the overlooks, just taking in the beauty of the region. During our journey, we reached the town of Brevard where we got off the parkway and headed into the Pisgah National Forest.  There were a few things we wanted to see within the forest, however I forgot the list in the hotel room so in the spirit of the day, we just decided to wing it again. One...

Asheville, North Carolina:   Our wonderful summer road trip continued into day three with a horseback riding adventure.  This too had been a bucket list item for my wife and she was really looking forward to riding the mountainside. The day began with breakfast at the hotel before hitting the roads to nearby Marshall.  The drive to Marshall was very scenic.  There were some two-lane roads on the trip that we a little hair raising for a family used to flat Floridian roadways.  There were amazing views around each turn making the drive just as exciting as the destination. We arrived at Sandy Bottom Trail Rides a little early and sat on the front porch for a while making friends with their cat and dogs that roam the farm.  We were then paired up with our horses which would be our transportation for the next three hours.  My wife was paired with George, my son with Drifter and I got Twinkie,  Yeah, kinda ironic that a fat guy would be paired up ...

Asheville, North Carolina: The Asheville Tourists gave the home crowd a show on Monday night as they shut-out the Rome Braves 7-0 at McCormick Fields. The win helped the Tourists avoid a series sweep and snapped a three game losing streak. The Tourists wasted no time getting on the scoreboard by scoring in the opening frame. Manuel Melendez led off the bottom of the first with a bunt single. He later scored on an RBI double by Colton Welker to give them a 1-0 lead. The Tourists increased the lead by scoring a pair of runs in the third. Melendez got things started with a double to right. Melendez stole third and then scored on a wild pitch. Later in the inning Welker singled to center and then scored on an RBI double by Vince Fernandez to make it 3-0. Asheville added three more in the fifth inning. Carlos Herrera homered to right to lead off the inning. They then loaded the bases following a double by Jose Gomez, a single by Welker and Fernandez getting hit by a pitch....

Asheville, North Carolina: Today we had a big day exploring the Biltmore Estate.  The crown jewel of Asheville, the Biltmore has been a place we have wanted to visit for a while.  It was also a bucket list thing to do for my wife so we were pretty excited to visit. We started the day with breakfast at the hotel.  The free complimentary breakfast was a lot better than we had expected.  It had omelets, waffles, biscuits and gravy, sausage and much more.  Much more than the standard cereals, toast, etc you come to expect at a hotel complimentary breakfast. After breakfast, we headed out to the Biltmore.  To say the grounds and estates were awe-inspiring is an understatement,   During our trolley tour yesterday, they told the story of the Vanderbildt's and described the immense size of the property, but it doesn't truly sink in until you arrive at the estate.  From the gate, it is still a 2 1/2 mile drive to the Biltmore House. We decided to...

Asheville, North Carolina:  With a city as steep in history as Asheville, it would only make sense for there to be a rich paranormal history as well.  This historic town nestled in the mountains is home to many ghost stories and we decided to learn a little more about them by taking the Classic Walking Tour by Haunted Asheville. We have gone on ghost tours in some of the most haunted cities in the country and were really looking forward to hearing what haunts lie in wait in Asheville. We met our guide Tadd and the rest of the group in the alley behind the Masonic Temple.  This is where our ghostly adventure would begin. From there, we hit the streets of Asheville to listen to tales of hauntings in this great city. Tadd gave us a brief overview of the city and a history of how it became one of the more haunted cities in America before taking us to our first stop, Pack Square and the Jackson Building.  The Jackson Building is one of the first skyscrapers...

Asheville, North Carolina: After a great trip in the mountains last year, we decided to return to the mountains again this year for our summer vacation.  We had originally planned on going to New Orleans, however the great advertising package run on television by Visit Asheville guided us to changing out venue to North Carolina. We departed for North Carolina early, hitting the road by 3am.  The original plan was to leave early and reach Columbia, South Carolina in time for the Columbia FireFlies matinee.  However, my wife had woken up early so we decided to hit the road earlier than planned.  As a result, we were going to be passing through Columbia too early for the game so we decided to head straight to Asheville instead. While on the way up, my wife checked on the rates at our hotel and found that the room had been reduced again.  Over the course of planning this trip, we have saved considerably since the original booking.  When we changed the t...

We have it the road once again for our summer road trip adventure.  This year's trip takes us back into the mountains once again, this time to Asheville, North Carolina.  We have a great itinerary planned including a trolley tour, ghost tour, a visit to the Biltmore, horseback riding in the mountains and much more fun adventures.  Be sure to follow the site on Facebook for updates during the trip and be ready for photos and article recapping the trip on the website in the coming days and weeks.  (Photo: June 9, 2016)

How much wood can a woodpecker peck if a woodpecker could peck wood?  This hairy woodpecker is getting busy at the Ann Dever Memorial Park in Englewood.  The woodpecker uses its beak to pick apart the tree, eating the bugs located under the bark.  (Photo: January 1, 2017)

A pair of eagles stand guard over their nest at Cedar Point Environmental Park.  The park located along Lemon Bay is home to the nesting pair of bald eagles.  During the winter months you can catch the eagles at their nest, visible from the hiking trail.  (Photo: January 1, 2013)

A gravel trail leads you on a nice leisurly walk in the woods at Ann Dever Memorial Park in Englewood.  While most people know this park for its sporting activities, the hiking trails are the hidden gem of this park. (Photo: December 30, 2012)

A seagull looks at its reflection in the still waters of Lemon Bay at Indian Mound Park.  This popular park on the bay is a hot spot for wading birds at low tide as the comb the shore looking for a meal.  (Photo: December 30, 2012)

A double-crested cormorant takes a break from the water to soak up some Floridian sunshine at Ten Thousands Islands National Wildlife Refuge in South Florida. The double-crested cormorant is a common sight along the waterways of the sunshine state. This guy is constantly confused with the similar looking anhinga which can be found in the same habitat. Although both birds are the same size and color, the bill is the best way to tell the difference. The bill of a cormorant is hooked while an anhinga has a long straight bill. (Photo: December 9, 2012)

The sun paints another perfect picture on the Florida landscape as it sink below the swampy horizon at Fakahatchee Strand State Park in South Florida.   One of the cool things about this state park is that you can enter into the depth of the swamp without ever leaving your car long the dirt road that passes through the park.  The 11-mile Janes Scenic Road takes you through the heart of the park with plenty of beautiful scenes like the sunset pictured here.  (Photo: December 8, 2012)

Lying at the end of this boardwalk lives a world of wilderness, vast acres of swamp on the edge of the Florida Everglades.  The 7,000+ acre Collier-Seminole State Park sits just south of Naples and on the edge of the civilization, combining with Big Cypress, Ten Thousand Islands and the Everglades to form one of the largest swamps in the country.  (Photo: December 9, 2012)