One of the volunteers at Merritt Island encouraged me to make the 2-hour trip again today, only to visit the Lake Woodruff NWR instead. She said that the both the pileated woodpeckers and swallowtail kites were abundant and that babies had been spotted. Despite being tired from yesterday and not looking forward to another long drive, I loaded up and headed out.

When I arrived at the Visitor’s Center, there was my friend from Merritt. She and her husband just moved onto the property. She gave me the scoop and also let me know that even the alligators were hatching early. Excited to see what was in store, I hopped back in the car and drove the next 1-2 miles to the first parking lot, for the Mayaka Loop.

As I was unloading, I was pleasantly surprised by the sounds and sights of my beloved pileated woodpecker! There were two of them right at the edge of the parking lot. The lighting really wasn’t working with me and to be honest, I could barely see them against the trees. Fortunately, the Sony saw a lot better than I did. I was surprised when I got home and could actually make them out. In fact, there were two on a single tree. I never saw the other one in the field.

As I walked into the woods, three more flew past. Unfortunately, they were too far and too fast for me to capture them in flight. When I hit the fork in the trail, I decided to turn left, away from the loop and towards the water. I really hoped to catch some hatchling gators. It was still fairly early in the day and the trees provided some welcome cover. I really wanted to test this 200-600 so everything became a subject.

I came out of the woods to find one of several lakes. There seemed to be benches throughout the day which provided a relief from walking. There were also several gazebos to catch some shade and rest. I really enjoyed this section since the trail went through two lakes and there were photo opportunities on both sides. It didn’t take long to start finding young gators.

Despite weighing in around 4.5 pounds, I didn’t find the lens too difficult to handhold. And with the stabilization, I found it remarkable at how sharp most of the images came out. I tried to isolate some subjects since some of the scenes were so incredibly busy. It really did a great job.

I really have a fondness for the great blue heron. The just seem so proper and regal. The feathers are so detailed and perfect on their heads. I almost missed this guy and he was just feet away from me.

As I walked towards the observation tower, the gators were out and grunting. Unfortunately, the grass and cattails were too high to see them. I did scare one from the bank into the water, though I never actually saw him. Dragonflies were humming around me and I took the opportunity to see how the lens would do with such a small insect. This turned out to be one of my favorite shots of the weekend.

Arriving at the observation tower, I couldn’t help but appreciate the sawgrass. It made for such a beautiful landscape. The dark reds broke up the brown and green vegetation.

As I made my way back to the Myaka Loop, I came upon another heron friend and some rather large softshell turtles. The first one didn’t pay too much attention to me, but the one in the road was none too pleased. As I walked closer and eventually behind him, he started kicking dirt at me with his hind legs. He never budged, but he let me know he wasn’t happy.

I was pretty hot and exhausted at this point. I decided to head to the car, sit in the AC, and enjoy lunch. I was now the only car in the lot. I think everyone else was smart and came early when it was cooler. Relatively speaking, of course. After all, it’s Florida.

I think I did err at that first turn. I should’ve done the loop first. I didn’t see any more birds, though I did hear some songbirds. I was walking through a nice, cool section of trees when I spooked a nice sized doe. There is definitely some wildlife to be seen here. Though I didn’t capture any babies, I did meet two more friends on my way out. It’s not often that you see gopher tortoises out of their burrows, so it was a pleasant surprise to see not one but two out enjoying lunch.

I’d never heard of this NWR and I’m so glad the volunteer told me about it and encouraged me to make the trip. If you’re looking for someplace new to explore, give it a visit. I don’t think you’ll go home disappointed.