On our way to the west coast of Florida, we went through Lake Wales, the home of Bok Tower Sanctuary. Bok Tower is a 60 bell carillon tower build in the 1920s. It is built on the highest point in penisular Florida and is surrounded by a beautiful garden sanctuary. We arrived just in time for a 30 minute concert! What a treat to walk in a beautiful garden surrounded by beautiful music.
After spending 3 days in the Tampa area we drove south and crossed the Tampa Bay Bridge. It is 15 miles long from one side to the other (that's St. Petersburg, Florida in the background). We were wa-a-a-y-y-y up in the air going over the bridge.
Howard on the Gulf Coast of Florida wearing his "IDAHO" hat.
At Naples, Florida we headed east again and stopped at Billie Swamp Safari. It is located on the Big Cyprus Semonile Reservation. We went for an airboat ride on this airboat. It was pretty neat sitting down in the water going really fast sometimes and slow really close to the animals.
This little racoon stood on this tree for quite a while watching us watch him. Some of the trees have no roots, they just seem to float in the water.
This is the dry season so the moss on the trees is dry. There is a bird in the middle of the brush.
This big guy was sunning himself in the water. We went pretty close to him as we slowly went by. Florida mostly has aligators, but there are crocodiles around the Florida Keys in salt water.
