It seems like many of my weekly stories are about adventures in far-off places, but really enjoying my own backyard is its own adventure. Now it is clearly spring, nearing summer, and my yard has …

When I travel anywhere I am always on the lookout for sights and experiences that I can relate to my local readers in Florida. And there is always something. This time, I’m reminiscing about …

Our home feels empty. There is no longer a cat scratch post, a litter box, food and water dishes, cat toys, and a lamb’s wool mat on our spare bed, that was once the “cat’s …

It was not a usual trip to Cumberland Island for me a little while ago. I was on the ferry from St. Marys alone this time, not with a handful of other friends. But I was not going to be alone long. …

It’s blueberry picking season! Recently, I got a hankering for picking my own blueberries and hopefully other produce from a U-pick farm near us. It took a bit of Googling but I found a few …

Last week I wrote about walking around the town of Darien, Georgia and all the historical and scenic sights. But when Bucko and I go to Darien, it is not just about the town, but about the various …

Darien, Georgia is only an hour north of Fernandina but it is years in the past from the bustling town we now call home. Bucko and I go there for a night or two to savor the quietness and history of …

I confess that I’ve been less active these days than I was in years past. Back in the day, I routinely took five-mile walks around our area and led Newcomer’s Club friends on once-a-month …

A few weeks ago, I was chasing a single small, innocuous brown butterfly along a path in Fort Clinch State Park. I didn’t know the species, I was curious, as always, and the best way I know to …

Bucko and I drove across Florida to the Big Bend area, south of Tallahassee, where the panhandle starts, to enjoy the Sopchoppy Worm Grunting Festival …

It makes me laugh just to say it: Sopchoppy Worm Grunting Festival. And it has made all our friends and acquaintances do a double-take when we mention that we are going there. We’ve had a lot …

Low tides are my favorite times to go to the seashore, wherever I am. On the West Coast of the United States, the pools left behind the retreating tides are full of anemones, urchins, sea stars, and …

Whenever I get a hankering for fresh live caught local shrimp I wait for Friday, Saturday, or Sunday mornings when Martin Holton is manning his pickup truck on Eighth Street near T.J. Courson Road. …

I just returned from our special place in Belize with my heart and soul filled with the tropical beach scenes there. But here I was at home again on Amelia Island, it was low tide, and I started my …

Ever since we started routinely going to Belize, I’ve been wanting to eat an iguana. As all my friends know, I love to try different exotic foods — tarantulas in Cambodia, monkey stew in …

I knew about this even before Bucko and I arrived in Placencia, Belize, this time: there would be a “Lionfish Shootout” when we were there, and I was eager to photograph the action. …

I’ve been a friend of Amelia River Cruises ever since I moved here nearly 30 years ago and met Kevin McCarthy at a talk I was giving on right whales. Kevin introduced himself to me and invited …

On a whim, I stopped into Sam’s Flying Frog Ranch pet store in Yulee recently and couldn’t be more impressed with the collection of animals contained therein. It was about four years ago …

This past Sunday, I was looking for a story — maybe about the birds of prey now nesting in our area. A pair of great horned owls and at least one chick are in their usual yearly nest in Fort …

Whenever a friend calls with an idea for an outing I am usually game. This time, my friend Diane Stoecker and her husband Ed planned to take their boat out on a sunny, mild winter day. Did I want to …