Looking for ducks before my walk

On March 26, 2025April 10, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography7 Comments

At the beginning of January I went out for a walk and stopped to look for ducks first. Not just any ducks but wintering ducks. Every winter the water reclamation facility pond in Tarpon Springs fills up with winter ducks. When I got out of the car I saw a robin under the tree and quickly snapped the above before walking over to the pond.

The top picture was about half the ducks. They were all redheads. Usually there’s a mix of redheads, lesser scaup and ring-necked ducks. In the past if you zoom in and look closely you can find a random rare duck but all I saw this morning were redheads. The males have the red heads and the females are all brown. They will leave by the end of February.

As I was watching the ducks a few more robins landed in front of me.

Zooming in on the redheads, many were taking early morning baths.

Since I was up at Tarpon Springs I did a quick walk on the causeway at Fred Howard Park. The tide was super low again and the sky was clear. It was 58 degrees. I wish it would stay this way through at least May but that won’t happen. Winters here are so short.

On my way home I stopped at Craig Park on the bayou. The boats for the Greek Epiphany celebration were already in the water, a few days before the event. I attended the Epiphany a few years earlier and you can read about the event and it’s meaning here.

Tarpon Springs is back open

On January 13, 2025February 5, 2025 By dinajohnstonIn Tampa bay sights7 Comments

A week after Hurricane Helene came through I went out for an early walk on Dodecanese Blvd in Tarpon Springs. I like to go early and walk around before the street is crowded with tourists that are there to shop and eat. I knew there wouldn’t be any tourists here this morning. This morning there were only construction people. Everything was closed since the area flooded during the Hurricane. They were still hauling stuff out of stores and restaurants and the doors were open while workers were going in and out. Floors and walls had to be replaced. I parked behind Hellas Restaurant and they had all of the kitchen equipment and furniture out on the back lawn while the restaurant was being restored.

I didn’t see a lot of boat damage. They must have had everything tied up very well.

The old sponge diver statue was still there.

All of the streets around the area looked like above with furniture, drywall and kitchen cabinets piled on the curb. This street was several streets back from the water and most of these houses were several feet up but the water got too high this time.

In early November I went back for another walk after Hurricane Milton. There was still a lot of stuff on the curbs and the stores and restaurants were trying to restore by Thanksgiving since that’s a huge tourists week.

Hellas was almost finished and the bakery part of the restaurant had all new fixtures in and was about to open.

On this walk I did notice some of the boats and buildings across the water had some damage. Many of the old docks were falling apart.

The streets were still deserted with the exception of construction workers.

This old boat was still around, up on pilings. I wondered what it’s story was. It’s been up there for years.

Most of the area looked like this. New floors and walls and new equipment in boxes. Most opened back up right before Thanksgiving and almost all were opened before Christmas.

Linking to A Stroll Thru Life.

Being a tourist in my town

On April 22, 2024May 12, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn Florida animals, Tampa bay sights9 Comments

I finally made it to the Tampa airport to see the big flamingo statue. It’s really big and right in the middle of the airport. I was there picking up my sisters. Both were in town for a week of Florida fun. We had a busy week doing tourist things and eating a lot.

Our first stop was the Manatee Viewing Center at the electric plant. They had put in a new dock that goes half way across the channel. The electric plant seemed so big seeing it this close.

It was much better seeing the manatees close up as they swam under the dock to get to the inside of the channel. The view from the old deck (which is still there) is much farther away. Since it was late February and the water had been cold there were hundreds of manatees in the channel that stays warm from the water flowing out of the electric plant.

I was hoping to see some birds here. Last time I saw an eagle but this time I only got a turkey vulture.

After a morning watching the manatees swim by we headed into Tampa to eat lunch at the Columbia Restaurant in Ybor City.

One morning we headed up to Tarpon Springs to walk along the docks and shops and get some Greek food for lunch. We ate at the famous Hellas Restaurant and then stopped in their bakery to get some desserts to take home.

One day we drove over to Orlando to go to Disney Springs for lunch. Debbie and I were hamming it up with Tigger.

On Debbie’s last day we spent the morning at Honeymoon Island looking for shells. I was tired from the week and took a break on the sand while she continued to look for shells. Somehow she fit a box of shells in her carry-on bag.

We did much more but I’ll save that for later.

A cold Tarpon Springs walk

On April 4, 2024March 24, 2024 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Tampa bay sights6 Comments

You know it’s winter here when you see the water plant in Tarpon Springs full of ducks. There are mostly redheads but also a few scaup and ring necked ducks mixed in.

The few times I stopped by in the morning they were all sleeping but I caught a few bathing and shaking off one morning.

I saw one female bufflehead in the mix.

Heading farther north to Craig Park I saw 2 eagles sitting on a tower. I pulled over and took the above. When I was heading home later they were still sitting there. I’m assuming they don’t have a nest since both are spending the morning on the tower.

When it’s cold the bayou in Craig Park fills up with manatees staying warm.

All was quiet and calm the morning I was there in early January. The boats were still in the water from the Epiphany celebration a few days earlier where the high school boys dive in and try to be the one to retrieve a cross thrown in the bayou. The celebration (in remembrance of the baptism of Jesus Christ in the Jordon river) is over 100 years old. I attended it back in 2022 and you can read about it in my post here.

A bunch of quick stops north of me.

On April 10, 2023March 31, 2023 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography2 Comments

My first stop of the morning was at the water treatment plant in Tarpon Springs in late February. I knew the ducks that hang out there in the winter would be heading north before too long. The majority of the ducks were redhead ducks but you never know what you can find mixed in.

There were a handful of lesser scaup floating together away from the redheads.

Far away there were two female buffleheads.

I stopped by the eagle’s nest just north of Tarpon Springs. I pulled over and got out and quickly shot the above before hopping back in the car. There’s no parking along this road and the parking lot at the nearby park was too far away for me to walk so I didn’t stay. These twin babies were much older than the ones in my neighborhood. I didn’t see any adults in my quick stop but I’m sure they were nearby hunting for food.

Another stop was nearby Anclote Gulf Park. The fishing pier is right in the parking lot so I took a quick walk onto the pier. It was a quiet morning here but I managed to see an osprey taking a bath farther down the shore. (Notice the blurry kingfisher sitting on a log in the upper right corner of the 2 middle pictures. I was wishing I was closer to get him as well)

One more stop as I circled back towards home was the Starkey Market just north of me. I had never been before and it was fun to check out the cows next door before going in and getting some vegetables to cook for dinner that night.

Ducks and humps

On February 4, 2023February 1, 2023 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Florida animals3 Comments

I was heading north to Tarpon Springs for a walk and decided to stop by the water reclamation facility to see if the winter ducks were here. There were a lot of ducks but not as many as in past years. The water pond is huge and they really need to be on the far right side to get any shots of them. They were almost in the middle of the pond the morning I stopped. They were mostly redheads and a few lesser scaup mixed in.

There were a few stragglers along the fence and I realized this was a greater scaup with that round bright green head and almost white sides. This was a first for me.

Not too far away were a few lesser scaup as well.

After shooting the ducks I was on my way to Craig Park for a walk around the bayou. Last year at this time I had seen two manatees in the small bayou and was hoping to see some again this year. After a few minutes I saw 2 snouts come up for air.

There were at least 10 manatees in the water. They didn’t come close to the sea wall since the water was low but you could see their backs coming up as they dove back down in the water. Here were 4 different backs. The top one had a lot of algae on it. The 2nd one had only a few barnacles on it. The 3rd one had some algae and a lot of boat scrapes. The last one had a clean back.

There was one with a lot of barnacles on his back but for some reason I only got a picture of his tail. I went back a few weeks later and they were still there. I guess the shallow water in the bayou stays fairly warm so they spend a good part of the coldest months here.

Sun comes up over Tarpon Springs

On December 5, 2022November 12, 2022 By dinajohnstonIn Tampa bay sights3 Comments

It was early October and we had a nice break in the heat so I headed out for a walk at the Tarpon Springs sponge docks. I like walking here early in the morning before the workers and tourist are out on the sidewalks. It feels like a different place when it’s quiet, almost like I can feel the history of the street.

Some of the old boats along the water.

The above boat was built in 1935 and was used for sponge diving until 1943. It was then used as a rescue boat for the Navy during World War 2. After the war it went back to being a sponge boat until it was retired in the early 80’s.

A view of the working part of the docks.

More shots away from the tourist area.

One of my favorite houses along the bayou. It was built in 1885 by one of the founding fathers of Tarpon Springs. It is still a private home and was last sold in 2010. I would love to see the inside but it’s probably already been updated.

The sun coming through the crooked tree at Craig Park along the bayou.

So glad to see the eagles again

On October 27, 2022October 2, 2022 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography8 Comments

I finally caught the bald eagle in the tree at the Oldsmar pier. I had stopped by several times with my camera before finding him sitting high up there. He didn’t stay long, taking off not long after I had arrived.

As he left, he flew by so close that I couldn’t fit his wings in. I still haven’t figured out if this is one of the eagles that has a nest in my neighborhood or somewhere else. There is a another nest nearby but that couple did not use it this past year. He always flies north towards my neighborhood when he leaves which is why I’m thinking it’s him.

Walking on the pier I noticed another eagle sitting in a tree at the far end of the park. He was facing the water and wasn’t very visable from the sidewalk but I caught the above from the pier.

A few of the other birds at the pier. I think that tricolored heron was keeping his eye on the sky in case the eagle was heading towards him.

A cormorant cruises by the pier.

The black terns were still there.

The next day I was heading up to Tarpon Springs for a walk and I saw 2 eagles on a tower. I pulled over into a parking lot and shot the above. It wasn’t until later when I cropped up the picture that I realized the eagle on the right is a dummy. I don’t know if they put the fake up there to attract or repel other birds. The real eagle on the left didn’t seem to mind. Now I laugh when I drive by there and see that fake sitting up there.

Summer skies in July

On August 11, 2022August 2, 2022 By dinajohnstonIn Tampa bay sights6 Comments

It was sunny and hot early in the morning during my walk around the Safety Harbor marina. I was traveling light so all of the shots in this post were taken with my phone. The local news said this was the hottest July on record in 40 years.

Another sunny morning at the Dunedin marina.

A rainbow on the 4th of July, coming home from a late afternoon cookout with friends.

We had an early dinner in Tampa one weekend and hit the causeway coming home right at sunset. Brett was driving so I snapped this through the windshield.

From partly cloudy to dark clouds during my walk around Olds Park.

A sun halo in our backyard one day around noon.

A walk at some parks near Tarpon Springs. This was the first time I had seen this mermaid statue. She is called “Ama” and was installed in 2014 as part of the Amaryllis Art for Charity project. There’s a small sponge on the base to represent the sponge diving industry here and there’s a small manatee on the left front of the base. Manatees are common in this area.

Walking in the Greek fog.

On April 7, 2022March 29, 2022 By dinajohnstonIn bird photography, Tampa bay sights6 Comments

I got up early and was headed to see some eagles north of Tarpon Springs. It was only barely foggy at my house with the sun peaking out but as I drove north the fog got so thick I could barely see. I was thinking the eagles would be tough to shoot in the fog so I decided to stop for a long walk (I was going to walk after the eagles anyway). I parked along the main strip in Tarpon Springs where the sponge docks were and was one of only a few out that early. It was weird to walk around in the fog here. I’m usually here at lunch on the weekends with all of the other tourists.

A few of the sights along the strip.

At the far end of the strip away from the restaurants and shops, I found some local fish markets. I made a note to get back up here for some seafood to take home.

The water was quiet and I could barely see some pelicans still sleeping in the mangrove bushes across the way.

I thought this was a cool old building, off the beaten path. I’m sure there’s some great history here.

After my walk I finally made it to the eagles nest. There were two babies in the nest but I could only see one of them sitting up. They were fully grown at this point but hadn’t left the nest yet. An adult was sitting in a snag close by, looking all magestic even in the fog.