Where We Be
| Port Canaveral, Florida |
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| "I'm ready for my close-up" |
| Seashore view from the pier at Jetty Park Campground |
| Robin stands on the covered pier at Cocoa Beach |
| Looking back at Cocoa Beach pier during our beach stroll |
| One of a dozen surfers near the pier at Cocoa Beach |
| Row of surfboards at Ron Jon's, the mecca of surf shops |
| Large alligator at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge |
| We were excited to see our first manatee at Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge |
| Florida oranges growing wild |
| Living simply for a few days at Jetty Park Campground |
| We were surprised to see this submarine pull into Port Canaveral |
| Long stretch of sand at Cocoa Beach |
At the far end of Port Canaveral, flush up against
the cruise port from which many Disney Cruises
depart, is Jetty Park Campground, where we spent
two nights camping in our van. We arrived midday
and walked along the beach to the long fishing
pier at Jetty Park, showing up just in time to see
eight dolphins, one of which jumped clear out of
the water. Pelicans posed on pier stanchions and
a baby raccoon ate a pile of spilled Fruit Loops.
Half a dozen small sea turtles swam alongside the
pier, sticking their heads up above the water.
At nearby Cocoa Beach, we watched surfers from
the end of the covered pier and walked off lunch
by strolling two miles along the beach, all the way
to Ron Jon’s Surf Shop and back.
At Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, one of
the best bird sanctuaries we've visited, we drove
along Black Point Wildlife Drive, a one-way auto
tour of 7 miles. We saw "a bazillion birds," as
Robin put it -- roseate spoonbills, stilts, great
egrets, blue herons, white ibis, pelicans, and
ducks packed so thick in places they seemed to
form moving islands. We also saw three alligators,
and, near sunset, our first manatee ever.
the cruise port from which many Disney Cruises
depart, is Jetty Park Campground, where we spent
two nights camping in our van. We arrived midday
and walked along the beach to the long fishing
pier at Jetty Park, showing up just in time to see
eight dolphins, one of which jumped clear out of
the water. Pelicans posed on pier stanchions and
a baby raccoon ate a pile of spilled Fruit Loops.
Half a dozen small sea turtles swam alongside the
pier, sticking their heads up above the water.
At nearby Cocoa Beach, we watched surfers from
the end of the covered pier and walked off lunch
by strolling two miles along the beach, all the way
to Ron Jon’s Surf Shop and back.
At Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, one of
the best bird sanctuaries we've visited, we drove
along Black Point Wildlife Drive, a one-way auto
tour of 7 miles. We saw "a bazillion birds," as
Robin put it -- roseate spoonbills, stilts, great
egrets, blue herons, white ibis, pelicans, and
ducks packed so thick in places they seemed to
form moving islands. We also saw three alligators,
and, near sunset, our first manatee ever.
| Famous Cocoa Beach pier, where surfing is king |
