Blackwater River State Park is located about an hour east of Pensacola, in the Florida panhandle.   I’m looking forward to the next two weeks because there are many hiking trails in the area.   The campsites are nice and roomy and the park is well maintained.    I spent the first day studying the trail maps, I can’t wait to get started!   That evening I took Brutus for is walk.   There are no lights out here so it’s really dark.   He was sniffing around, when there was a sudden rustling in the bushes. Whatever it was - there were several of them, they sounded big, and they were headed right for him. Seconds after I snatched him up, a herd of armadillos came out right in front of me, two of them actually walked over my foot. Because he’s deaf, he never heard them.   I don’t know about his sense of smell, but I don’t think he had a clue they were even there. As for the Armadillo’s, I don’t think they see or smell very well, so they were equally ...

I arrived at Faver Dykes State Park, near St. Augustine on Saturday.   This is a very nice campground with private shady sites. My assigned space had a very narrow opening with several trees placed in such a way that it was very difficult to back in.    I must be getting better at it, since got lined up and backed in perfectly on the first try.   After setting up, I spent the day re-arranging my living room.   Since I took out the couch, I have much more space.   After all that hard work, I decided to spend the afternoon playing my new Wii games.   Sunday I hiked the nature trail in the park.   Basically the trail wanders through pine and scrub brush, but it ends at a beautiful lake.   This park is a gateway to a state canoe trail, Pellicer Creek.   It’s supposed to be one of the most beautiful creek systems in northeast Florida, and on my list of things to do while I’m here.   As I was headed back to camp, I heard some rus...