Florida

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	(Note)	Lighthouses used to be important
Now, Cell towers are important	Looking up at the new staircase	Sea Turtles need special care
		Barely see the ripples from the spring
		Cypress knees never become trees
(Note)	Temple Mound, 600 A.D.
"main mound"	Thanksgiving week 2008 at Disney	We were there-upside down Grandma Lois
Brianna and Morgan	Magic Kingdom	Buzz Lightyear
Daniel and Stitch	Animal Kingdom parade
Pinocchio	Snow White	Cinderella and her Prince
		Everest the roller coaster ride
We went on Kilimanjaro Safari
	"Canboree"	Hollywood Studios parade
	Made from Legos
	Resort pool
	She said we were cousins!	Andrew and Jennie, Dec. 5, 2008
Happy Birthday to Me - 65 years young!	20 years of friendship - Judy, Lana and Susan came to Florida to celebrate my birthday- those are our "bug eyes"
Kilimanjaro Safari
That was a first! Usually, he is laying down
Russell's high school cheer team was at Disney competing - finished 9th!!		Toy Story Mania
	Fantasmic! show
	Nemo clam mobile
	Our transport from Epcot to Magic Kingdom
		Tired!
	Port Orleans-Riverside - our Disney home

The St. George Island Lighthouse is being rebuilt after being destroyed by a hurricane in 2005. It has a history of damage and recontruction like many lighthouses. It used to be right on the water about 10 miles down the island, but was moved once to be more visible for ships coming from the east in 1848. That lighthouse was destroyed by a hurricane in 1851 and rebuilt in 1852 using materials recovered from the old lighthouse. When it was rebuilt that time, it was moved 500 yards inland and was built on a foundation of pine tree pilings that were driven into the sand. Over the years, the beach erosion had narrowed the distance between the gulf and the lighthouse to less than 100 ft. In 1992, hurrican Andrew caused more extensive erosion and 1994, the lighthouse was deactivated. It was the first time in 160 years that the entrance to the Apalachicola River was dark. Later hurricanes caused the lighthouse to begin to lean and several public attempts in making it straight were some what successful. But in 2005 the lighthouse was completely destroyed. A public group, with state funds have recovered all the bricks from the old lighthouse and all the steel structure at the top and are working to restore it. It is due to open to the public Oct 1, 2008. Many thousands of hours of volunteer time has been dedicated to chipping conrete off the bricks so they can be used. (Return)

The sea turtles lay their eggs on the beaches of St. George Island after being at sea for over 20-25 years. The female turtles come on shore and dig a hole for their eggs and leave, never to return again. When the baby turtles hatch out, they wait for night time to break out of the sand and crawl toward the ocean. They crawl toward the water by being able to sense the light from the moon bouncing off the ocean. They have requirements along the coast to keep all exterior lights off at night so that the turtles will not become disoriented and not find their way to the water. Once they get to the water, they swim away from the shore for at least 24 hours before starting their new life in the ocean. (Return)

The mounds seen in these photos were created around 500 - 1,300 A.D. . Some were burial mounds, some were just used for other ceremonies. Now, with all the other trees, etc. around them, they just look like little hills until you realize that all the surrounding land is flat, sandy land along the river and that there are no hills around here. There has not been any digs going on here since the 60's but they are beginning to do some other research with new electronic techniques to view what is under the ground. In the one main burial mound that was opened in the 60's, they estimate that there were over 1,000 burials in it. The one that is labelled 'main mound' is actually shaped like a trapezoid mound seen in the Inca areas of South America. (Return)

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