This past December, the week before Christmas, we traveled to central Florida to visit our friends, Aubrey and Phillip, and to have a short vacation. It was so nice visiting and simply relaxing. One way we like to relax is to head into nature to watch and photograph the local wildlife. On this particular trip it was extremely cold, especially by Florida standards. With average lows that week in the lower twenties and high teens, we had a rare chance to witness one of nature's great spectacles. When temperatures dip really low, Manatees head into the warm waters of the local springs - in this case, Blue Springs State Park - for survival. We have seen our share of these gentle giants over the years, but never in these numbers. There were literally hundreds of them ... the sight was staggering! We also got to photograph many of our favorite birds. It was a great trip ... I miss Florida :-)!
