One last Tallahassee, Florida stop...

While visiting with our friends in Tallahassee we took a walk at J R Alford Greenway Park .

There is a fairly new trail here that we walked. It's a new, safe way to cross over and above the railway tracks below via a big bridge and elevated walkway through the canopy of the trees.

 After crossing above the tracks the path winds around a lake. We spotted a huge alligator here but he doesn't look that big in the picture.

 Around the lake there are what they call fishing fingers. Places built for fisherman to fish from.

 Aayla examines a snail she found.

 Diesel stops for a drink.

There just happens to be a playground halfway around the lake.

Afterwards we went to Merv's and Ian ordered something which I can't remember the name. He looks totally unimpressed because this sandwich is too big to eat really. It literally had a burger between two grilled cheese sandwiches. He ate about 1/2 of it. Who even thinks these things up?

We then headed to Tallahassee Fun Station and the girls had a blast! I don't personally like arcades but the girls had so much fun here and seeing their excitement as they scored armfuls of tickets was worth it!

Aayla was tickled pink she won a watch in one of the games.

 

We headed to Arin and Dawns for one last campfire with them and of course found some treefrogs.

 Since we are just passing through Tallahassee to say good bye to our friends we stayed at Walmart for the night. Thank you Tallahassee Walmart at 4021 Lagniappe Way!

Sun Splash Water Park, Cape Coral, Florida

Today Grammy Sue decided that it was treat day and took the girls to Sun Splash Water Park in Cape Coral Florida and they had a blast!

Since this is a water park I didn't get many photos but I got a few in the beginning. First up was Aayla on the younger kids water slides.

Sierra tried out the next smallest slides and loved them.

Aayla also really liked their rope course and did it many times throughout the day.

Next up was the lazy river so I could then go put my camera away and enjoy the day.

There were other bigger water slides but my girls are not fans of big slides so we didn't go on them. That fact made this park kind of expensive since we only used half the park. I will admit the lazy river was very fun and definitely more my pace. It would be nice if they had a "no big slides" price to make it more economical for families who just want some wet fun but not all the big slides. Non residents fees were kids $17.95 and adults $19.95, making this a $100 excursion. Thanks Grammy Sue!!! They do offer discounts for residents which is nice for locals.

We packed a lunch to take with us but when we arrived we were given a coupon for snacks (and their bad weather policy), which made their lunch very affordable and way less hassle. If we ever were to go again I'd just go with the pre-pay snack option.

Fort Island Beach and Fort Island Trail Park, Crystal River, Florida

Last time we visited Crystal River we had a wonderful time and enjoyed all of our outings. The only thing we felt Crystal River was missing was a beach...little did I know it has one!

This time I did a bit of homework. I even asked some locals and was told, "Nope sorry no beaches around here". I guess they want to keep this area a secret and rightly so I guess as it's not very big so don't go expecting a beach similar to St Petersburg or Clearwater. This is small and quaint.

This beach may not be big and today was too cold to actually venture into the water but I can imagine a nice hot day, slipping into the water here would be wonderful.

There is a a nice little beach with quite a few covered tables with barbeques for cooking. There are wash rooms, drinking fountain and an outside shower to get the sand off yourself or your feet.

 As well as lots and lots of birds.

To the right you can see a wooden fishing pier. 

There is a trail from the beach along a raised wooden board walk.

Near the end of the pier where it joins the board walk there is another covered area with multiple tables. From here the path continues either to the pier, or to another smaller parking lot.

View of the beach from the pier

 This sign is posted from the other smaller parking lot.

My girls found some fallen palm fronds and were using them as walking sticks and fans...however the breeze was a huge fan it'self today!

There are also boat ramps at the end of the road just a minute from the beach with a large parking lot. There was no sign-age to say no over night parking here. Has anyone boondocked at this location over night before?

When we left here we headed back along the road we came in on as the boat ramps are the end of the road. I did however neglect to take a picture of these ramps. We stopped at Fort Island Trail Park. I'm not sure where the trail is or goes as we only stayed here long enough to snap a couple pictures. My girls were cold.

The fishing pier

The boat ramps from the parking area closer to the pier.

One of the covered picnic areas

This park also had wash room facilities and a few different covered picnic areas. The boat dock had a large parking lot which is open from dusk until dawn.

 We left to try to find a community playground I heard about but without a data plan on my phone I wasn't able to find it. I did however find it when we returned to the camp ground and hope it is nice enough tomorrow to go check it out.