The Wandering Disciple

While the development boom of Florida has eliminated much of the old scrub forests that once covered the stats, there are still sections of Old Florida preserved in state parks across the sunshine state. These forests are critical to the ecosystem and are home to some unique plants and animals, some are threatened due to habitat loss.  This Old Florida forest is found on the north trail at Little Manatee River State Park. The 6.5 mile hike through dense foliage takes you into the heart of the preserved forest and along the banks of the Little Manatee River.  Taken: November 8, 2014 at Little Manatee River State Park (Wimauma, FL)

A white tail deer practices roadway safety as it stops, looks and listens before crossing the road. The roadways in a lot of the Florida State Parks are great places to get up close to deer and because they are used to the traffic, they are more likely to stand and watch to instead of darting across the road in front of you. (Photo: November 8, 2014)

A full moon illuminates the Little Manatee River State Park.  Little Manatee River State Park is 2,433 acre state park along the Little Manatee River. The park features 6 ½ miles of hiking trails, canoeing and kayaking on the river and camping in the full-service campground.  (Photo: November 7, 2014)

A white flower blooms along the banks of the Little Manatee River in the Little Manatee River State Park. Plenty of wildflowers like these can be seen throughout the trails and along the river. (Photo: November 8, 2014)

A white-tail deer enjoys a morning snack along the park drive at Little Manatee River State Park. The 2,400 acre park in southeastern Hillsborough County is home to a diverse collection of wildlife including deer, bobcats, scrub jays, gators, otters and more. (Photo: November 8, 2014)

Wimauma, Florida: The second day of our camping trip at the Little Manatee River State Park started off waking up to a brisk 43 degrees in our tent. This was far cooler then the forecasted 55 degrees but thanks to our warm sleeping bags, it wasn’t that bad. We headed into town for a hot breakfast to help our bodies warm up and to give the energy we would need to explore the park’s trails. On the way into Sun City Center for breakfast, my wife spotted a bald eagle on the ground along the highway at the north end of the park. So we doubled back to get a photo of it. I kept a safe distance away from it so I did not spook it into traffic, but as I was photographing it, a hawk flew down and the eagle went airborne into the tree I was standing under. What an amazing experience. We decided on Sunshine Café for breakfast. It had really good ratings on Trip Advisor and it wasn’t too far away from the campground. My wife had an omelet, I had biscuits and gravy and my son had panc...

A full moon illuminates the campground at Little Manatee River State Park. The park features 34 campsites including four dedicated for camping with horses. (Photo: November 7, 2014)

Wimauma, Florida: With the weather cooling down, it’s time to break out the camping gear and hit the parks. There was a cold front that was forecast to bring a lot of rain Saturday night into Sunday, so we broke from out normal routine and booked a campsite for a Friday night. Because we waited till last minute, campsites in the Florida State Park system were slim picking. But they did have one spot available at Little Manatee River State Park in Wimauma. We have never been to that park or that area so I decided to book the site. So I spent Thursday night checking out our gear and packing the truck in advance of our trip. The anticipation of the trip made Friday’s work day take forever. But quitting time finally rolled around and we hit the road for the short drive to Wimauma. Check-in was a race against the clock as we had to beat the setting sun and get our camp set up before running out of daylight. Luckily for us, I have this down to a pretty good routine. And it ...