It Was a Field Day!

Friday was fun. At least for a few of us it was fun. While my oldest was facing his chemistry final at college (the one who was decidedly not having fun), my two other kiddos and I loaded up for a field trip to the GTM NERR. That's a lot of letters that stands for an even longer collection of words:  The Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve. Son was there to observe nature in all its glorious and dizzying forms. Daughter was there to capture it on film. I was there to enjoy the gorgeous day. Collectively they represented the Biology and Photography classes of Summit Homeschool Co-Op. Our guide for the day? My friend Michelle, a.k.a. Appliejuice over at Wordpress.

The day couldn't have been any better. The air was cooler and humidity was down. We all gathered together, recorded the moment for posterity, and were off.

Here is the happy group, ready to start!

And oh, for all the nature we encountered!

Alligators!

Wren eggs!

Hermit crabs!

Cnidarians! (a.k.a. jellyfish)

Evidence of raccoons!

Butterflies

And so much more I didn't take photos of, like skinks, insects, birds, and fish.

We hiked one mile out to the edge of the river and ate lunch while we looked at the beauty surrounding us. I'd never been to this part of the GTM before, so it was with new eyes that I gazed around. It was lovely. I can't wait to return!

Daughter, contemplating life, perhaps?

An old well

Drift wood

Thanks, Michelle! For getting it all organized! I'm so glad I could come along!

Our fearless leader...