Winter Wanderings 2012 - Day #8 - 2/3

This day was slightly cooler and less sunny than the day before but we still decided to go out "for the day".  With typical Emery efficiency we managed to be pulling out of their driveway by 12:02 PM and headed towards Tampa.  We stopped at a AAA office to get discounted tickets for a future "dolphin cruise" and then headed on to Lettuce Lake Park beside the very sluggish Hillsborough River.

We parked near an empty shelterhouse and had a late picnic lunch, after which we spent a lot of time on the boardwalks through the cypress swamps at the edge of the river.  We only saw one alligator, a small young one sunning itself on a big log, but we saw far more big wading birds than we had last year.  We saw several sizes and shapes of herons, several wood storks (the nearer bird in the picture), several ibis and a whole lot of egrets (such as the rear bird in the picture).  At one point we (or something else) disturbed the nearby egrets, although the storks were unfazed, and it was as though a snow squall passed overhead - very impressive.

Eventually we moved away from the river to a more open area, set up our lawn chairs and all sat and read newspapers, Kindle etc, which was all very relaxing.  Towards the late afternoon we actually began to feel cool since we were all in single light tops so we packed up & headed home, but first we made a stop at Costco - my first experience of a Costco (which I found astonishingly similar to a Sam's Club) - and looked around an J&P bought some supplies, mostly fresh foods.  Once nearly home Jean also popped in to a regular food store for some things in smaller quantities.  Once home we quickly prepared and ate late dinner & then sat and relaxed.