Re-charging the Spirit at Bok Tower Gardens

''Make of it the most beautiful spot on earth where the bird and human can rest and find themselves.''

Edward W Bok

Even though we have been traveling and enjoying so many RVentures together for the last five years, let it be known ... there are certain tourist activities that one of us prefers more than the other. And that would be visiting botanical gardens. While I secretly thought that I may just try to become a Master Gardener in my retirement, Doug really had no interest in yard work beyond the mandatory mowing of the lawn. Selling our house put an end to his mowing duties as well as my Master Gardener dream, but didn't quench my delight in walking through the gardens of other ''masters''.

So when my ''master gardener'' friend let me know that we were very near one of her favorite botanical gardens, I had to check out the highly acclaimed Bok Tower Gardens located in Lake Wales, Florida. Our visit fell on Valentine's Day, so my love gave me the perfect gift ... the chance to leisurely explore this beautiful garden. I, in turn, gave Doug his perfect gift by sparing him ''flower overload'' and allowing him to hung out and relax in our home on wheels.

With all the crazy cold weather around the country this past week, I am sure that there are at least a few of my readers in the frozen tundra who are longing for a glimpse of spring, so come along as I enjoy a stroll around Bok Tower Gardens.

Successful Ladies Home Journal magazine editor and Pulitzer-prize winning author Edward W Bok and his wife began wintering in this area of central Florida in 1921. With shared interests in music, cultural activities, and philanthropy, they soon set out with the help of famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr to transform the arid sand hill into ''a spot of beauty second to none in the country''. With the completion of the 60-bell carillon Singing Tower in 1929, they successfully melded the beauty of flowers with the beauty of music.

While still considered early spring in central Florida, I was surrounded by colorful blooming azaleas, camellias, and various spring annuals as I walked through the 250 acre garden.

Every half hour the carillon bells gave all the park visitors a short musical treat. Thursdays through Sundays, the resident carillonneur, Geert D'Hollander fills the park with music during an hour long concert at 1 and 3 pm.

Although Edward Bok died just a year after his gardens and singing tower were dedicated, his life philosophy lives on in his many famous quotes and through the beauty of his garden and musical tower. Come with me as I share some of his philosophy that was transformed into this unique beauty to be enjoyed by future generations. 

''Make the world a bit better or more beautiful because you have lived in it.''

''Find your place and hold it; find your work and do it. And put everything you've got into it.''

''The making of money, the accumulation of material wealth, is not all there is to living ... and the man who misses this truth misses the greatest joy and satisfaction that can come into his life -- service for others.''

A visit to Bok Tower Gardens gave us both the perfect Valentine's Day gift. Whether that gift be spending time in a spacious garden or a compact van ... we each enjoyed the chance to recharge in our ''happy place'' so that we can continue to give our best to each other and to our world.

''Give to the world the best you have and the best will come back to you.''

Florida's Historic Coast: The Tales These Coquina Walls Tell

The Cross of Burgundy, a historic Spanish military flag, flew over the thick walls of Castillo de San Marcos. As we entered this 325 year old fortress, we were amazed at how well it had held up over the years. Just the impact of a few strong hurricanes would surely do a fair amount of damage. Yet this structure withstood those storms as well as the fierce impact of cannonball warfare over the years. And even today, its coquina walls still stand tall ... seemingly ready to tell us the tales of a long, colorful, and sometimes dark history of St Augustine, Florida.

St Augustine, as we all learned in grade school, is purported to be our nation's oldest city. Settled in 1565 by Spanish explorers, it was the center of a number of battles through the centuries. While structures constructed of wood have long since burned or rotted in this humid climate, buildings such as Castillo de San Marcos and several other area homes, churches, and businesses still stand tall. The secret? They were constructed using coquina rock, a very durable natural substance formed from seashells that is found nearby in the shallow coastal waters off the Atlantic coast. 

After losing nine wooden forts in the first 107 years of the city's existence, the Spanish discovered this amazingly durable rock that was able to absorb the stress of cannon fire. Made of compressed shells of dead marine organisms, coquina looked like sandstone but acted like foam as the cannon balls just bounced off the twelve foot thick walls. The impermeable fort, completed in 1695, allowed the Spanish to remain in control of eastern Florida despite frequent British attacks. Many historians believe that if the British would have captured the fort in the early 1700s like they attempted to do a number of times, it would have changed the course of the Revolutionary War and ultimately, the history of the United States.

Since we were staying nearby at Anastasia State Park, we were able to cross the Bridge of Lions to make a day trip into St Augustine. While there are plenty of shops, restaurants, and other tourist attractions to vie for our interest, I was happy to explore the historic national monument and discover some of the tales of ''Old Florida'' that these coquina walls still tell.

Tales of military drills in the center courtyard.

Tales of fierce battles between Spain and Britain as they struggled over control of land and sea trade routes.

Tales of a soldier's every day life ... with even less room to store ''stuff'' than we have.

Tales of defending the community of St Augustine and allowing it to become the longest continually inhabited European-founded city in the United States. 

And after Doug had taken in all the tales that he could handle ... a chance to enjoy an IPA at the local pub while looking across at the oldest wooden schoolhouse in the US.

After our stay in the St Augustine area, we moved an hour south to Tomoka State Park near Flagler Beach, Florida. It was on one of our drives down the moss-ladened back roads to our daytime beach hangout that I came upon our second opportunity for ''coquina wall'' tales. 

A stop at Bulow Plantation Ruins Historic State Park brought tales of a darker part of US history. In 1821, Florida became a territory of the United States. As settlers moved into the new region, much of the land was taken away from the Seminole Indians who called this area ''home''. That year, Charles Bulow purchased 4,600 acres along a tidal creek near to present day Flagler Beach. The land was cleared, a grand mansion was built, and crops were planted and harvested all with the work of slaves.

Using the labor of almost 200 slaves, he established his plantation with a stately home on the banks of what would come to be known as Bulow Creek. After his death two years later, his 17 year old son, John Bulow, took over his holdings and built one of the largest sugar mills in the area using coquina rock to fortify the walls. John ran a successful business for thirteen years until the beginning of the Second Seminole Indian War. Although he was sympathetic to the Native American cause, he was forced by the US government to abandon his property. In the battle that ensued between the Indians and the military, his plantation was burned to the ground in January 1836 ... leaving only the coquina walls of the sugar mill to tell the tales. John Bulow died under mysterious circumstances three months later, and the land lay abandoned until the state took it over in 1945. 

As we walked around the historic state park grounds, we saw that there were very few remains of the main house or the slave quarters that encircled it. The ''typical'' slave cabin was staked out for us in order to try to imagine how a 12 by 16 foot wooden structure could house up to eight people. Stones from the base of a small fireplace is all that is left to tell the tale of this sad part of plantation history.

We walked down the nature trail to see the eerie remains of the massive sugar mill. Plaques around the mill told the story of the intense labor that was needed in order to turn raw sugarcane into sugar.

But more importantly, the massive coquina columns told the tale of a turbulent time in Florida's past when settlers rushed in to claim land and become wealthy at the expense of other human beings. These coquina columns stand as a reminder of the need for us all to work towards a more just society.

The coquina walls of Florida's Historic Coast tell important tales ... tales of both successes and failures in our past. And we need to listen so that we can work to improve our society for future generations.

In Search of Alligators Along the Tamiami Trail

See that smiling creature sunning himself on the side of the road? Alligators galore waited to greet us as we recently spent a day exploring a portion of the Tamiami Trail. This southern end of US Highway 41, completed in 1928, is a hidden gem that should not be missed if you enjoy the history, nature, and wildlife of ''Old Florida''. Come along as we go in search of alligators along the Tamiami Trail!

Many years ago as a college student, Doug became very familiar with the northernmost stretch of US 41 that began (or ended?) near his college town the snowy upper peninsula of Michigan. Upon graduating, he was told to follow Highway 41 as it winds south through Wisconsin, Indiana, Tennessee, and Georgia, and stop where the natives have no idea what a snow shovel is. That would be in southern Florida ... where our most recent journey on US 41 started out near Naples, Florida.

On our way down we had to stop for a 

walk along Bonita Springs Beach. We were

last there on our honeymoon 35+ years ago.

We reserved a site at Collier-Seminole State Park because we wanted to explore the beach on nearby Marco Island. Like many of Florida's state parks, this one started out as the private property of Barron Collier in the early 1920s. Wanting to preserve the magestic royal palms that grew naturally on his property, he created and donated the park-like setting that many enjoy today. The royal palms still stand tall, greeting the many visitors to the park and campground.

As we walked around the state park, another exhibit sparked our curiosity. The Bay City Walking Dredge, listed as a National Historical Mechanical Engineering Landmark, was proudly on display near the entrance of the park. That designation alone caught the attention of both the engineer and his history buff wife. 

(Collier-Seminole State Park photo)

The surrounding plaques told of how this huge contraption aided in the building of the Tamiami Trail in the 1920s. This massive tool clawed its way through the mud, muck, and limestone of the Florida swampland to aid the construction of the road that eventually connected Tampa with Miami in 1928. Doug found a informative article online that pointed out some of the interesting stops along the Tamiami Trail, so our ''field trip'' was set.

As we drove along the Tamiami, we could see the water-filled canal that was a result of the Bay City Walking Dredge. We couldn't help but think about how this engineering feat had to have disrupted the environmental balance of this unique ecosystem. A park ranger explained how the park service continues to work with the government to raise sections of the road in order to restore the natural flow of water from the north into the Everglades. In the meantime, the alligators don't seem to mind hanging out in the canal alongside the highway. But the ranger also warned us to drive cautiously along the Tamiami ... especially at night. That ''speed bump'' that you hit could very well be a gator since there are no barriers dissuading them from crossing the highway.

Shark Valley Visitors Center; Everglades National Park

We drove an hour to our furthest and first stop along the Tamiami Trail. The Shark Valley Visitors Center in Everglades National Park started our national park visits off for 2021. This visitors center is named for the area in the Gulf of Mexico where this water flows into, so fortunately you won't find sharks in these ponds. Better than sharks ... an abundance of alligators! When we arrived, we got out our bikes (you can also rent bikes at the visitor center) and rode the 15 mile paved bike trail that loops around this popular alligator hangout. Very shortly into our ride, we met our first friendly gator sunning himself not too far off the trail. 

Gator search success!

Not sure how close/far away to stay from these guys, but since this one would have to turn around in order to grab ahold of me, I felt a little more brave posing for this photo.

These wetlands that surrounded us make up the largest subtropical wilderness in the United States, and over 200,000 alligators live in the saw-grass marshes of this national park. There estimated to be over 1.5 million alligators in the entire state of Florida!

At the mid-point of the bike path, we climbed the 65 foot observation tower for a bird's eye view of the Everglades. 

With alligators to the left of us,

... and to the right,

... we pedaled along and enjoyed the sights.

Oasis Visitor Center; Big Cypress National Preserve

After lunch, we turned around and headed back west to check out a few of the other places that were highly rated as Tamiami Trail stops. Bordering the Everglades to the north is Big Cypress National Preserve, so we stopped at the Oasis Visitor Center to check out another ''new to us'' natural area.

There is a boardwalk that rises above and runs along the canal so we had a good view of more alligators enjoying their Florida swampland. 

But the best way to see these beauties is up close, so we got off the boardwalk and walked along a short trail that thankfully, had a fence between us and them.   

Even alligators enjoy a little ''snuggle time'' on a sunny afternoon!

Kirby Shorter Roadside Park; Big Cypress National Preserve

Time to turn our focus from the alligators to the beautiful cypress swamp that surrounded us. A walk along the boardwalk at Kirby Shorter Roadside Park took us into a cypress paradise.

Decorating the tree tops were numerous types of bromeliads that brought new beauty to dead tree limbs with their cascading foliage.

While we didn't see any gators at this stop, we are sure that they are around since they dug this huge ''gator hole'' at the end of the boardwalk. These ''gator holes'' ensure that there will be water and shelter for the alligators during dry seasons, and gives them a steady food supply as unsuspecting birds, reptiles, and mammals enjoy the local ''water hole'' also.

Ochopee Florida Post Office

Can't pass up the smallest post office building in the US along Highway 41 in Ochopee, Florida. The postal service moved into this tiny shack in 1953 when a fire destroyed their larger building. Seems that they (like us) have not felt the need to ''go bigger'' as they serve the sparsely populated three county surrounding area.

Big Cypress Bend Boardwalk

The sun was beginning to set, and there were still a few stops along the Tamiami Trail that we (meaning I) wanted to check out, but they will have to wait for another time. Our last stop at Big Cypress Bend Boardwalk led us under a shady canopy of cypress and palm trees that provide the prefect resting spot for the birds of this unique wetland. They, like us, have enjoyed another beautiful day in the wilderness.

Our search for alligators along the Tamiami Trail gave us a glimpse into the unique beauty of the Everglades as well as the challenges it faces. The building of this roadway across southern Florida opened up a desolate area of our country ... but it also brought changes to the natural environment. 

Hopefully as a nation, we can embrace the ''tree hugger'' in each of us ... and continue to work together to protect the many unique ecosystems in our country so that future generations can also travel down the Tamiami Trail in search of alligators.