Day 35 MM 779

St. Augustine Municipal Marina, St. Augustine, Florida

Sunday, November 4, 2011

We spent two nights in St. Augustine a little noisier because we were right at the Bridge, but handy to town.  Can you believe it, a town that size--all the grocery stores were 3 miles away.  Took off later than we planned, encountered rain about a half hour out but just sprinkles did not last long, cooler than we thought but still in the 50’s. We have been very lucky with the lack of rain on travel days.  But most of you know "Mr.  Weather Man, John”, always checks the weather.   The Florida countryside is different than Georgia; Northern Florida has some marshes but also high trees, expanses of water but no depth except on the Magenta line.

“We are one with the Magenta Line”. 

 In Florida, hammocks are not places to sleep in the shade, but a type of island.  Like the many Eskimo words for snow, in Florida there are many words for island.  The island lingo depends on the trees.

If an island is covered with hardwoods, such as live oaks or pinelands in sawgrass, it is called a hammock, or more precisely, a hummock. If the island is a mangrove or a pine, then it’s a Key.  If the island is covered with willow or bay trees, it’s a head.  An island of cypress is a dome.

Florida is so flat that every few inches of elevation makes a huge difference.   Raise the soil a tiny bit above the waterline and the island becomes a buttonwood hammock instead of a mangrove key.

And a new type of island throughout south Florida is an island created by canals and covered with houses is called a development. (Little joke there)