We weren’t too sure about our choice to stay at Lake Kissimmee State Park. It was easy to find a site for 5 days. That could have been a bad sign. Even as we were driving into the park, we had our doubts. We went down an 8-mile-long winding road. Meanwhile, our cell service kept getting weaker and weaker. The tree cover along the entrance road wasn’t particularly lush. We worried that our site might not have shade. Boy, were we wrong.
This Might Work
Pulling into the campground, we noticed all of these beautiful live oak trees just dripping with Spanish moss. They are such majestic trees, and they were everywhere. Our site was wonderfully shaded.
Official Greeting
On our first walk down the path to the bath house building, we saw a beautiful red headed woodpecker, squirrels, and a very single-minded armadillo. The armadillo passed right in front of us without even looking up. It was busy rooting in the leaves. I assume it knew we were there. It just didn’t care.
Kindred Spirits
Across from our sight, we noticed another van like ours, but a different builder. We saw the owners outside and asked them how they liked their van. From there, we struck up a conversation. They mentioned that they were going hiking the next day if we would like to go. Patra and Jim had gone on a few hikes already and offered to show us the area. We took them up on their offer and went with them the next day. We pushed ourselves harder than we probably would have if we had not been with them. We had a great time.
Where There’s Smoke
Our trail took us over a bridge and passed a cow camp. As we looped back, we saw rangers on the road. They had apparently started a controlled burn along our route. They were surprised that we were out there, and we were surprised that the woods were on fire.
We had to wait for the flames and smoke to subside before we could get back to our campground. As we got to the bridge that we had crossed earlier, we saw caution tape and a caution sign. I swear that wasn’t there earlier.
On Walkabout
We hiked every day for several miles. It was hot and humid, but we still had a blast. Every day we passed by the area that had burned just to check it out. It was fascinating that one side of the road was lush while the other side was charred. The rangers told us that in a few weeks, you’d never know that there had been a fire there.
Good Vibrations
It turned out that we had a lot in common with Patra and Jim. We became very friendly. Patra is a wonderful cook. She fed us vegan meals that were very tasty. We spent a good deal of time with them over the next few days. Both Patra and Jim are Reiki masters. They did some energy work with us and led us on some guided meditations. We were able to de-stress from 2 weeks on the road. It was very relaxing.
If I Could Talk to the Animals
We had more wildlife encounters at Lake Kissimmee than we’ve had anywhere else. There were cardinals everywhere, or maybe the same couple of cardinals followed us around. Deer came through the site in the evenings. Armadillo brazenly walked right up to our camp chairs like we weren’t even there. It all felt very Dr. Dolittle-ish.
Do You Get the Feeling That We’re Being Watched?
By the bathhouse, which was very clean by the way, there were vulture trees. Every evening before sundown, the vultures would come to roost in the tall trees. We counted at least 16 of them that first evening., and I’m sure there were many more than that. It was a little off-putting at first. We got used to them though. They are huge birds.
Back to Civilization
I felt sad to leave. Lake Kissimmee felt like a magical place. All the beautiful trees and abundant wildlife were peaceful and calming. It gave us a chance to recharge our batteries just in time for Miami.