March 2, 2008 Orange City, FL Manatees and MOC Rally

We went to Blue Springs State Park near Orange City, FL. This is an area where Manatees gather during this time of year near large springs and the water temperature remains a steady 72 degrees year round. The water is The St.Johns River. After the waters of the Atlantic warm, the Manatees sidle, or whatever it is called that they do to move in the water, on out to the ocean. When we entered the park the Ranger said that they had seen 57 Manatees this morning. We didn't see 57 but we did see over a dozen Manatees, from babies to full grown adults. Manatees are called Sea Cows and are HUGE! One volunteer mentioned 3500 pounds for an adult. The "tiny" babies are about 800 pounds. This park is beautiful - The greenery is rich and the park is clean and orderly. We saw birds that were feasting on the fish in the St. Johns River. We saw a young alligator hunting along the shoreline. For a while, only its eyes were above the surface of the water, then it slowly rose to show us its length. We saw Gar and Australian fish. There were Talapia nesting under the platform we were on. Carol does not like the taste of fish but she likes Talapia and now she knows what they look like - grey with big, white eyes. And, of course, we saw the mammoth Manatees. When we returned home I had a message announcing that we were named Wagon Masters for the 2008 Fall Montana Owners Club Rally in Goshen, IN. What a trip this will be. I have been an administrator but never for anything like this. Carol has said that she will help in the background. The rally is scheduled for the end of September to first part of October so hopefully this will give enough time to learn a whole new ball game. During the summer, while working at Waldenwoods Campground, I will be trying to pick up as much RV and Rally information as I can. I was told that my job is to roam the campground and talk with the campers and so I will be asking them about rallys that they have attended and what they liked and didn't like about them. Should be a goldmine of information there.