On the Water

Wednesday, 15 May
Mid-Bay Shores, Maxwell-Gunter Rec Area — Niceville, Florida
Temps: Lo 56F / Hi 81F (13C / 27C)

Mui had it in his mind to wash the coach today … it turned into a wash and wax job.

While Mui was working on the coach, I went for my morning walk on the beach.  I got a rather late start, so there weren’t many birds around.  But I did come across an American Coot not far from the boat channel at Lake Pippin.  I’ve seen coots before, but always from a distance, so I especially enjoyed the “see-the-red-of-its-eyes” close encounter.

It might swim like a duck, but The American coot is a closer relative of
sandhill cranes than of mallards.

I continued my walk around to White Point to check on the osprey family.  Mom and dad were home, but the chick was nowhere to be seen.  I didn’t wait around for junior to make an appearance as I had an assignment to take care of before the temp rose even higher.

Oakleaf Hydrangea

What did I need to do?  Rent a kayak from the campground office.  Taking advantage of Mui’s mid-morning break from coach-washing, we set out to enjoy the calm waters of Choctawhatchee Bay for a few hours.

The campground has a selection of tandem kayaks for rent for $5/hour.

Ready … set … kayak!

Not bad for a photo taken with back focus!
We really are offshore, but the water is not very deep.  How shallow is it?  See below.

Mui decides to go for a walk; and while at it, plays photographer.

Our kayak outing was lots of fun … even if we didn’t see a whole lot of birds or other critters.  Papa osprey flew over a couple of times, searching for sustenance for junior.  And there were some terns diving as well.  They looked a lot smaller than the ones I’ve seen in other places, so I was hoping they were least terns.  Sure enough, when one of them landed on the beach, I got my proof.

Least tern in breeding plumage
(as indicated by the black cap with a clean-cut white forehead chevron).

We returned home shortly after noon, had lunch, and Mui got started on the driver’s side wash and wax job on the Phaeton.  He kept at it all afternoon; by 6:00p, he was ready for happy hour.  Now that the coach is all slick and shiny, it should cut through any air resistance we encounter on the road like a hot knife through butter;-)