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| ifif1938 |
Posted: Aug 06 '08, 3:43 pm |
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Reviews written: 761 Member since: Jan 17 '00
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: pvreditor There were alligators and large iguanas EVERYWHERE when I was in South Florida in May 2007. You couldn't miss 'em. I was walking around Fairchild Gardens in Coral Gables when a large iguana fell out of a tree practically on top of me. We did a hike in Everglades National Park and were within 12 feet of alligators of various sizes. No fences between us and them, either. The quantity of alligators was astonishing... we counted something like 27 in one pond that was perhaps 150 feet long and 30 feet wide. We went right over multiple alligators on the airboat ride.
A highlight of the trip was when I spotted a Florida panther crossing the road about 1/4-mile ahead of me. They are very rare and seldom seen in the wild. My wife was looking at a map and missed it!
Edit: Here's another shot I took on Anacapa Island. It was a beautiful day.
--Bob
wow, you are so lucky..I've been to the Everglades dozens of times and never saw a Panther, though I look for them all the time especially when I see the panther crossing signs on the road...Iguanas, I saw one last week on the road right near my house just casually walking across the street and my daughter has them practically living behind her house on the dock. They are really amazing creatures though and look like they are the direct ancesters of the dinasaurs....but they have become a big problem down here in South Florida.
Loved that photo...where was that on taken? |
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| pvreditor |
Posted: Aug 07 '08, 11:03 am |
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Reviews written: 391 Member since: May 31 '02
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: ifif1938 wow, you are so lucky..I've been to the Everglades dozens of times and never saw a Panther, though I look for them all the time especially when I see the panther crossing signs on the road...Iguanas, I saw one last week on the road right near my house just casually walking across the street and my daughter has them practically living behind her house on the dock. They are really amazing creatures though and look like they are the direct ancesters of the dinasaurs....but they have become a big problem down here in South Florida.
Loved that photo...where was that on taken?
Yeah, I know it was exceedingly lucky to spot the panther. The ranger in Everglades National Park said there are panthers in the area but they are seldom seen.
The photo was taken on Anacapa Island in the Channel Islands National Park, off the coast of California. Anacapa Island is actually broken into two pieces and this photo was taken at the westernmost point on the eastern portion of Anacapa Island. The other "islands" that you see there are mostly the rest of Anacapa Island. You can actually walk only on the easternmost part of the island -- the rest is an animal preserve.
--Bob |
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| ifif1938 |
Posted: Aug 07 '08, 11:54 am |
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Reviews written: 761 Member since: Jan 17 '00
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: pvreditor Yeah, I know it was exceedingly lucky to spot the panther. The ranger in Everglades National Park said there are panthers in the area but they are seldom seen.
The photo was taken on Anacapa Island in the Channel Islands National Park, off the coast of California. Anacapa Island is actually broken into two pieces and this photo was taken at the westernmost point on the eastern portion of Anacapa Island. The other "islands" that you see there are mostly the rest of Anacapa Island. You can actually walk only on the easternmost part of the island -- the rest is an animal preserve.
--Bob
Looks so beautiful...thanks for sharing it with us..Oh are they off the North or South coast? guess I could look at a map, lazy old me...:)
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| pvreditor |
Posted: Aug 07 '08, 5:10 pm |
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Reviews written: 391 Member since: May 31 '02
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: ifif1938 Looks so beautiful...thanks for sharing it with us..Oh are they off the North or South coast? guess I could look at a map, lazy old me...:)
The Channel Islands are in the Pacific, starting about 12 miles west of Oxnard, CA. We took a boat from Oxnard to get there, but there is probably also a boat service from Ventura. If you don't know California, Oxnard is maybe 30 miles up the coast from Los Angeles. Not sure what you mean by North or South coast.
--Bob |
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| pilarzmom |
Posted: Aug 08 '08, 6:47 am |
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Reviews written: 679 Member since: Jan 18 '03
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: cmaw63 Western states are fine, particularly Colorado. I've really been wanting to visit there. I barely remember Pike's Peak from my childhood. :)
Julie
Yeah, I saw a lot of the national parks as a child (Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Bryce, Zion, and Grand Canyon) but I barely remember them. So hopefully we'll revisit them. Being here in Colorado, it's fairly easy - just finding the time! I think next year we might do Yellowstone and Grand Teton and maybe even extend it over to South Dakota to see Badlands and Mt. Rushmore. I do recall Badlands - it was a muddy muddy mess! LOL! But as a kid that was fun.
I think the best national park trip we did was Yosemite. One year the Portland Public School ran out of money so we got out school in May and we immediately headed down to Yosemite. The park was so empty so we had lots of fun, but my brothers and I sort of got in trouble for throwing rocks at trees from the top (open) deck of one of those double decker buses.
Peggy |
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| ifif1938 |
Posted: Aug 08 '08, 7:45 am |
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Reviews written: 761 Member since: Jan 17 '00
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: pvreditor The Channel Islands are in the Pacific, starting about 12 miles west of Oxnard, CA. We took a boat from Oxnard to get there, but there is probably also a boat service from Ventura. If you don't know California, Oxnard is maybe 30 miles up the coast from Los Angeles. Not sure what you mean by North or South coast.
--Bob
I know the coast pretty well having driven the coast road north to Oregon from Los Angeles...That was what I meant, the North Coast of Oregon and up to Washington state and the South to San Diego...I've never been more south than L.A, but we went to Mendicino County once and to Carmel, Monterey, San Francisco a few times, even stayed in Pacific Grove. We just love Northern CA....Saw my first whale off the coast of Mendicino, I've been a nut about those big creatures ever since..LOL..but never a Panther that live practically in my back yard....:) :) |
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| pilarzmom |
Posted: Aug 08 '08, 2:11 pm |
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Reviews written: 679 Member since: Jan 18 '03
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: cmaw63
Riding an air boat through the Everglades is on my bucket list! But, then again I am going to have to live a very long time to finish off my list. :)
Julie
Next year the kids and I are going to Florida for spring break and we're going try to squeeze in an air boat ride, although it won't be in the Everglades. I think it'll be fun, nevertheless.
Peggy |
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| popsrocks |
Posted: Aug 08 '08, 9:26 pm |
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Reviews written: 1832 Member since: Aug 25 '02
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: ifif1938 I'm sure if you are going to Maine you've got Arcadia National Park on your list, but if you are going to be really south, The Everglades is like no other place in America, but not in the heat of summer! :)
Barbara
Quote: cmaw63 We are definitely doing Acadia! My mom is going so camping is definitely out. That's why we'll be staying in Bar Harbor. The only way we could get her to go is by promising her 2 full days in Boston (civilization). :)
Riding an air boat through the Everglades is on my bucket list! But, then again I am going to have to live a very long time to finish off my list. :)
Julie
Barbara's suggestion of Acadia national Park would be my suggestion too. In fact, I should be there next Friday.
Air boat rides in the Everglades are awesome too. I believe all rides are outside the National Park grounds but the Everglades are bigger than the park itself.
If going that way I suggest a state park in the north Florida Keys by the name of John Pennekamp. Their snorkeling trips are first rate.
If ever out west I suggest Crater Lake. WOW!! what a view and a colour that isn't real.
enjoy whatever you do.
pops |
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| ifif1938 |
Posted: Aug 09 '08, 9:29 am (Updated: Aug 09 '08, 8:14 pm) |
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Reviews written: 761 Member since: Jan 17 '00
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: popsrocks Barbara's suggestion of Acadia national Park would be my suggestion too. In fact, I should be there next Friday.
Air boat rides in the Everglades are awesome too. I believe all rides are outside the National Park grounds but the Everglades are bigger than the park itself.
If going that way I suggest a state park in the north Florida Keys by the name of John Pennekamp. Their snorkeling trips are first rate.
If ever out west I suggest Crater Lake. WOW!! what a view and a colour that isn't real.
enjoy whatever you do.
pops
John Pennekamp is one of my favorite places...
I was just thinking of a park we took my kids too when they were young and was wondering if anyone had heard of it, Dinosaur National Park...they were just thrilled with it but I don't remember where it was, I mean what state, I know it was during I road trip we took out west, I think when we went to the Great Salt Lake, then to Lake Tahoe and Colorado, my brain is just not working today...
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| pilarzmom |
Posted: Aug 09 '08, 9:54 pm |
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Reviews written: 679 Member since: Jan 18 '03
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: ifif1938 John Pennekamp is one of my favorite places...
I was just thinking of a park we took my kids too when they were young and was wondering if anyone had heard of it, Dinosaur National Park...they were just thrilled with it but I don't remember where it was, I mean what state, I know it was during I road trip we took out west, I think when we went to the Great Salt Lake, then to Lake Tahoe and Colorado, my brain is just not working today...
Dinosaur National Monument - straddles the border of Utah and Colorado |
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| popsrocks |
Posted: Aug 10 '08, 11:51 am |
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Reviews written: 1832 Member since: Aug 25 '02
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: pilarzmom Dinosaur National Monument - straddles the border of Utah and Colorado
Yes, dem dinosaurs were big.
pops
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| ifif1938 |
Posted: Aug 11 '08, 10:40 am (Updated: Aug 11 '08, 10:41 am) |
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Reviews written: 761 Member since: Jan 17 '00
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: popsrocks Yes, dem dinosaurs were big.
pops
yup....they certainly were...;)
Thanks for the info Peggy. Knew it was somewhere in that general area...what we enjoyed most were the excavations that were still going on. I would love to return there one day, maybe with my grandkiddies...boy, time sure does fly |
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| pvreditor |
Posted: Aug 23 '08, 7:18 pm (Updated: Aug 25 '08, 9:24 am) |
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Reviews written: 391 Member since: May 31 '02
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RE: State & National Parks
I just went to a great state park in upstate NY: Letchworth State Park. It's about 35 miles south of Rochester, on the Genesee River. It's a pretty good-sized park, with three large waterfalls and a beautiful gorge carved by the river. There is a lovely old manor home at the largest of the falls (the Middle Falls), which has a hotel and a very good restaurant with reasonable prices. There are also cabins and camping elsewhere in the park. Lots of trails lead all over the place, but there are significant elevation changes on the trails -- they are not for the out-of-shape. (I'm not saying that anyone reading this is out of shape, just that the trails take some effort.) The bottom line is that most people in the US would not believe such scenery exists in NY State... really spectacular.
Anyway, Letchworth State Park is beautiful and there are many other attractions within 90 minutes' drive or so, including the Finger Lakes region, the Erie Canal, Niagara Falls, Lakes Erie and Ontario and others. Maybe I'll see if I can review the park...
--Bob |
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| cmaw63 |
Posted: Aug 24 '08, 6:56 am |
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Reviews written: 275 Member since: Dec 10 '06
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: pvreditor I just went to a great state park in upstate NY: Letchworth State Park. It's about 35 miles south of Rochester, on the Genesee River. It's a pretty good-sized park, with three large waterfalls and a beautiful gorge carved by the river. There is a lovely old manor home at the largest of the falls (the Middle Falls) has a hotel and a very good restaurant with reasonable prices. There are also cabins and camping elsewhere in the park. Lots of trail lead all over the place, but there are significant elevation changes on the trails -- they are not for the out-of-shape. (I'm not saying that anyone reading this is out of shape, just that the trails take some effort.) The bottom line is that most people in the US would not believe such scenery exists in NY State... really spectacular.
Anyway, Letchworth State Park is beautiful and there are many other attractions within 90 minutes' drive or so, including the Finger Lakes region, the Erie Canal, Niagara Falls, Lakes Erie and Ontario and others. Maybe I'll see if I can review the park...
--Bob
And the photos are where? I'm putting in a standing order for any and all pictures of vacations to Parks. :)
I still haven't got the download thingy down...and wondering if my dial up could even handle it.
Julie |
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| pvreditor |
Posted: Aug 25 '08, 7:21 am (Updated: Aug 25 '08, 9:44 am) |
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Reviews written: 391 Member since: May 31 '02
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: cmaw63 And the photos are where? I'm putting in a standing order for any and all pictures of vacations to Parks. :)
I still haven't got the download thingy down...and wondering if my dial up could even handle it.
The pictures are on my computer at home. One of the most memorable things about this park happened during lunch in the elegant restaurant: A chipmunk came through the open door and scavenged for crumbs on the floor. Sure was a cute little guy! I'll try to get some pix linked tonight.
If you connect to the Internet with a dial-up line, you really can't expect to download a 65 MB file. Do you have cell phone coverage at your home? If so, you might be able to use a wireless broadband gizmo/service from Verizon or Sprint. I work for Sprint and use its wireless broadband device at my home in the mountains, where there are no good data options. I can usually get 400-500 kbps, which is 10 times the speed you get with dial-up. You pay for it, of course (about $60 per month) but it's a good alternative to satellite data services.
Or maybe I should just find a 30-second segment of the airboat ride and e-mail that!
--Bob |
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| pvreditor |
Posted: Aug 26 '08, 7:09 pm (Updated: Aug 27 '08, 10:36 am) |
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Reviews written: 391 Member since: May 31 '02
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: cmaw63 And the photos are where? I'm putting in a standing order for any and all pictures of vacations to Parks. :)
Here's a shot I took of the Middle Falls at Letchworth State Park in New York. This was taken from an overlook about 50 feet from the Glen Iris Inn, which is the restaurant/hotel I mentioned. It was great weather for the whole week, which helps things look their best. It's really a nice park and surprising if you've never spent much time in Upstate NY. (The locals call it "Western New York," actually.)
--Bob |
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| AliventiAsylum |
Posted: Aug 27 '08, 1:48 pm |
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Reviews written: 1850 Member since: Aug 11 '00
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RE: State & National Parks
Letchworth State Park is one talked about quite often on the various camping groups I belong to. It was always on my list to do. I'm glad you got there! It looks like a beautiful trip. |
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| cmaw63 |
Posted: Aug 27 '08, 4:00 pm |
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Reviews written: 275 Member since: Dec 10 '06
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: pvreditor Here's a shot I took of the Middle Falls at Letchworth State Park in New York. This was taken from an overlook about 50 feet from the Glen Iris Inn, which is the restaurant/hotel I mentioned. It was great weather for the whole week, which helps things look their best. It's really a nice park and surprising if you've never spent much time in Upstate NY. (The locals call it "Western New York," actually.)
--Bob
Beautiful shot Bob! I love the "stairsteps" in the waterfall. I don't know if I'll ever get to New York again, but if I do I'm definitely putting this Park on the itinerary.
Thanks for pic.
Julie |
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| ifif1938 |
Posted: Sep 01 '08, 2:58 pm |
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Reviews written: 761 Member since: Jan 17 '00
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RE: State & National Parks
Quote: pvreditor Here's a shot I took of the Middle Falls at Letchworth State Park in New York. This was taken from an overlook about 50 feet from the Glen Iris Inn, which is the restaurant/hotel I mentioned. It was great weather for the whole week, which helps things look their best. It's really a nice park and surprising if you've never spent much time in Upstate NY. (The locals call it "Western New York," actually.)
--Bob
Beautiful...just beautiful, reminds me of a spot in Oregon I was so impressed with....I wonder if I scan some of my pictures if they would come out the right size to post. I didn't have a digital camera on that trip and saw some amazingly beautiful sights...
Thanks for sharing this picture
Barbara |
