Honeymoon Island State Park, 12/31/2016

We spent the last day of 2016 at this state park on a barrier island on the northern part of the Florida Gulf Coast. The park is an important location for nesting and foraging for shorebirds. There are four miles of beautiful sandy beaches and a large pet beach (leash required) can be found on the southern park of the island. Swimming, fishing, kayaking, and hiking the nature trails are the primary activities here. Our first stop was the pet beach. 

We spent a good amount of time walking along the shoreline where we encountered fishermen, other dogs, and many just enjoying a lovely day at the beach. Seaweed lined this portion of the beach and we saw lots of sponges washed ashore as well.

We saw this sailboat at Hurricane Pass. Yikes!

We continued our beach walk to the northern edge of the dog beach (marked by a sign) where the Honeymoon Cafe building can be seen in the distance.

Beach gear can be rented here as well and we saw many families enjoying the beach. 

We made our way back to where our car was parked. There are benches set back from the shoreline at various intervals and a wide sandy path from the beach to the parking lot. 

Driving north on the island we stopped at the 2nd Honeymoon Cafe. Food can be purchased inside and taken to the tables on the deck. There is also a small gift shop. 

Our next stop on the island was to visit the Rotary Centennial Nature Center. Exhibits here provide information about the plants and wildlife on the island as well as the cultural history of the island. In addition to birds, raccoons, gopher tortoises (endangered) and various snakes (including the eastern diamondback rattlesnake).

Below is the skull of a turtle and skeleton of an armadillo. Also shown is a horseshoe crab shell and sponge (right rear).

The first known occupants of the island were the Tocobagan tribe who were wiped out by diseases brought to them by the Europeans (Spanish) in the 1500s. By the 1830s it was known as Sand Island and then by 1880 Hog Island (named after a successful hog farm operation). In 1921 a destructive hurricane, divided the island creating  Hurricane Pass and what is now known as Calidesi Island.

The park was named in 1939 when a developer from NY, Clinton Washburn, purchased the island. In collaboration with LIFE Magazine, a contest was held for newly-married couples whereby the winners would stay in a thatched bungalow on the island for two weeks. The name Honeymoon Island stuck and became the official name. 

At the rear of the Nature Center is an expansive observation deck providing fantastic views of St. Joseph Sound.

We drove to the northern park of the island to hike the Osprey Trail. It is about 2 miles round trip through a virgin slash pine forest, one of the few remaining in Florida. 

About a quarter mile from the start of the trail great horned owls can frequently be seen. This is the only photo I got of one with his back turned to us.

Aptly named, we saw more ospreys here than we have seen in any single location anywhere in the country. They build their nests in pine snags that can be seen along the trail. You will spend most of the time looking up as you walk through this beautiful  wooded area of the island. 

Living on a diet of fish, the osprey are usually seen high on a perch keeping a sharp eye out for its next meal. We saw this one carrying a fish through the air before landing on this branch to eat it. 

Here are a few more shots of this majestic bird of prey.

There is a pair of bald eagles who have built their nest along the trail too. Federal law requires that humans remain at least 300' away from the nest to protect the eagles and their eggs (usually two). Therefore, there is a barrier along the trail but the nest is clearly visible. Both parents share the responsibility of incubation of the clutch and of feeding the eaglets once they hatch. 

The nest is in the tree to the left in the photo below. The eagle remained on the branch next to it the entire time we were in the area.

It is always such a treat to see a bald eagle in the wild! Loved it.

We hiked back on the loop trail to the parking area. There is a large picnic area (where we had lunch), playground and restrooms. 

We saw many other hikers on the trail, but it did not seem to bother the birds of prey. Unfortunately, we did not see a gopher tortoise (although we have seen many of them here in FL) or a snake (something John is always looking for!) We really enjoyed this trail and highly recommend it for others, especially if you want to bring your dog (leashed, of course). Between the dog beach and the trials, this state park had it all for us!

Nearby are two other state parks, Anclote Key Preserve and Caladesi Island, that also attract shorebirds and boast pristine beaches. We will likely visit them as well during our three month stay in the area.  

Admission to Honeymoon Island State Park is $8/vehicle. We purchased an annual pass to Florida State Parks so that gets us in for free. For additional information about the park, check it out at www.floridastateparks.org/park/Honeymoon-Island. 

Imperial Bonita Estates, October 29 to December 29, 2016

Rating:  4.0 on a scale of 5

Location: We found Bonita Springs to be a great location to explore Southwest Florida. We visited Everglades National Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, Marco Island and Naples to the south as well as Sanibel Island/Captiva and Ft. Myers to the north. Naples was a short distance away and we loved the art museum, botanical gardens, and beautiful beaches there. A dog park and dog beach are nearby, for our sweet doggy, Sadie, and multiple hiking trails can be found at nearby state or local parks. Imperial Bonita Springs is only 2-3 miles from I-75, the primary route to everything north and south.  

Lot size: We had a very nice pull-through, full hook-up site (C-10) of gravel with a concrete pad. During most of our stay, we did not have neighbors on the sites on either side. 

The central part of the location has RV sites that are interspersed with site models of various sizes and quality. There are larger site model homes with beautiful landscaping in the area called the village. As a resident-owned RV community, the entire place is immaculate. I think we saw landscaping staff working 5 days a week here! Beautiful.

Amenities: Outdoor activities, group activities, every convenience, and more are all available here. 

There are two large laundromat in the park. Laundry cards are purchased in in either laundromat where you purchase credits via credit card. Both washers and dryers are activated by the laundry card. There are also ice machines at both laundry centers (no charge to residents for the ice). 

Near the entrance is a beautiful pool where water aerobics and water volley happen at scheduled times. Nearby is a pavilion next the the Imperial River that runs along the border of the park. 

Tennis courts, bocci ball courts, horseshoe pits, and shuffleboard courts are all found here and are very will maintained. 

Next to the shuffleboard courts is Founders Hall where there is a large library with a great selection of books to borrow as well as a pool table and ping pong table. Residents gather here to play card or board games, complete jigsaw puzzlers, or watch TV as well. 

The fenced, off-leash dog park is located near the park's dumpsters and storage ages. Sadie had fun catching her frisbee and running around here.

Cost: $600/month (price goes up to $1,100+ in Jan). An seasonal recreational fee of $150 per couple is required for community activities. 

Management: We arrived on a weekend when no one is in the office. Our site location and other information was left for us in an "display case" next to the office doors. All of my interactions with the office were very pleasant. Information regarding social and residential gatherings are posted on a common display board.

If you want to receive mail at the park, you may purchase a key ($15 refundable) for a mailbox. If you receive a package, they leave you a key to a larger postal mailbox where your package can be retrieved at your convenience. Newspapers (daily) are sold behind the mailboxes as well. 

There is a signup sheet in the office to advise the park to deliver a picnic table and/or recyclable bin to your site (which were delivery the next day). We paid our $600/monthly fee the first month; and, second month they applied our $250 advance payment to the $600 fee and we paid balance of $350.

General Comments:  This is a 55+ community which suits us just fine. The folks we met here were very friendly. Most of the seasonal residents were from Northeastern US or Canada, and many having been coming here for years. 

Sites are available for purchase. I do not know what the monthly homeowners fee is, but the association evidently does a good job of maintains a beautiful community. Another thing we really liked about the park were the gopher tortoises (endangered species) that we saw here on multiple occasions.

Also, we saw this red-bellied woodpecker on the telephone pole next to our site. 

We would definitely stay here again October to December due to the great location, price and fantastic weather. 

Website: www.imperialbonitaestates.com 

Last Night in Bonita Springs, 12/28/2016

Since we began full-time RVing about three years ago, we have established a tradition of going out to dinner the day before we leave for our next destination. We usually do laundry, thoroughly clean the motor coach, pack stuff for travel, and then enjoy a nice, leisurely dinner out. 

Tonight we decided to try Cirella's Restaurant (as I found a good bargain for dinner and it had good on-line ratings). It is a an Italian Bistro and Sushi Bar with an interesting menu that is half Italian and half sushi. 

The restaurant was doing a great business on a Wednesday night with most of the indoor tables filled. Here is a photo of the sushi bar as well. 

Nightly specials are offered as well as an early bird menu (half sushi/half Italian) that is a fixed price ($40) for appetizer (salad or soup) and entree for 2 plus a bottle of wine. That's a bargain. I had the lasagne (superb) and John had the chicken parmigiana (also very good) with salads to start. The white wine (I know, you're supposed to drink red with Italian food) was a good bottle of Savignon Blanc that I enjoyed. They will cork it and seal it into a plastic bag, so you can take it home if you do not drink it all at dinner. 

Our table was on the covered patio in the front of the restaurant. We could have brought Sadie to the table, but decided to leave her in the car (nearby) because it was a very cool evening. But, we really liked having the option. 

Our server was a lovely young women, Janelle, that provided excellent service. We enjoyed chatting with her about her kids and our travels. We really like everything about this place! Here's a photo of Janelle with me and then another of John and me. 

Next to the restaurant is a movie theatre that has this lovely outdoor sitting area.  

This was a great way to end our two-month stay in Bonita Springs. We would highly recommend Cirella's! They have two other restaurants in the state of New York. 

Website: www.cirellasrestaurantsfl.com