ACTIVITIES and EVENTS

July 14th, Saturday, 7:30 AM, KAYAK/CANOE THE PICTURESQUE JUNIPER SPRINGS RUN:  The scenic & challenging run is a wonderful trip. This is quite a challenging paddle that may not be suitable for beginners.  Bring bug spray, sun block, water, snacks & lunch. We will meet on US 17 at the McDonalds across from the Orange Park Dog Track.  Please be on time, since it is about a two hour drive to the river. Canoes are available for rent at the park.  Leader: Gene M.  998-2312.

July 21st, Saturday, 8:00 AM, BIKING AT THE BALDWIN TRAIL:  We are going to bike on the Jacksonville to Baldwin bike trail. It is a 30 miles round trip but you can ride as far as you like and turn around. It is an easy ride and any type bike can be used on the ride. Directions to the meeting place/trail head are take I-10 to I-295 north to Commonwealth Ave. to Imeson Blvd. turn right. The trail head is about a half a mile on the left. Bring snacks, water and you bike. Leader: Judy M. 398-2750.

July 28th, Saturday, 8:00 AM, STAYING COOL AT BLUE SPRING PARK:  We are going to swim and float in the springs and paddle in the Santa Fe River. You can rent canoes and tube in the park or bring your own boat and launch from the boat launch. Admission price is $10.00 for adults. We will meet at Hardee’s on Lane Ave (just south of I-10) to caravan over together. Bring lunch or buy lunch at the concessions in the park and plenty of water. Last year we brought mask and snorkels and life jackets and floated from the springs to the river. http://www.bluespringspark.com/index.htm Leader: DIane J. 821-6707.

August 1st, Wednesday 6:30 pm, MONTHLY MEETING: We will meet at the Southeast Regional Public Library at Gate Parkway off of J. Turner Butler Blvd. for a discussion on past events and highlights of upcoming events. There will be door prizes and refreshments. Mr. Maynard Cox will be our speaker this month. He is referred to as "The Snake Man" because he knows everything about snakes. He is very knowledgeable and also very entertaining.

August 4th, Saturday 8:30am: KAYAK TO THE ZOO -- FREE ZOO ADMISSION!  We will meet at Hardee's on Merrill Road and 9A in Arlington at 8:30am, then drive to a nearby boat ramp on Heckscher Drive for a leisurely 1.6 mile paddle on the Trout River.  Zoo admission is free to anyone who arrives by water, and the zoo features many recent upgrades and improvements which are worth seeing.  This is mostly a "beginner" trip except possibly for the last 400 yards when we will have to cross a small open bay where winds sometimes cause choppy conditions which may require a slightly aggressive paddling technique to maintain stability.  (The current forecast is for mild wind, but...)  Then we'll paddle alongside the zoo's floating dock and disembark, a maneuver which involves good balance and/or help from a buddy if you want to avoid tipping.  This can be a bit tricky, so you may want to bring extra clothes in a dry bag just in case you get wet, or you can just tough it out if it's hot.  You should also bring a bicycle lock and cable so that you can secure your kayak to a dock cleat.  (Cable is better than chain, two locks are more flexible than having just one, and one cable usually will secure two kayaks.)  Lunch is on your own, but consider supporting the zoo concessions in appreciation of the free admission policy for aquanauts.  (They sell fairly decent mexican food, chicken, angus beef burgers, hot dogs, etc.)  We'll head back when we're all "zooed out" or if the weather starts looking too ominous for comfort.  Leader: Frank N. 708-4607. 

August 11th, Saturday, 10:30 am, TOUR OF CATTY SHACK RANCH: You can get up close with lions, tigers, panthers and a white artic fox at this tour. Come on out and do something good by donating 10 $ each person (entrance fee) and help a good cause. The Catty Shack Ranch is dedicated the rescue and care of big cats. They provide sanctuary to cats confiscated by the state for illegal ownership, improper enclosures or maltreatment. They also educate the public to discourage illegal, private ownership. Wild animals, especially big cats, do not make good pets. The Catty Shack Ranch Wildlife Sanctuary located in North Jacksonville. Check out their website: http://www.cattyshack.org. You can also join the Catty Shack Ranch in helping to save these beautiful animals by volunteering your resources. Meet at Hardees on Merrill Road (Right by 9A overpass) at 10.30 AM. Leader Heike M. 998-2312.

August 18th, Saturday, 8:30 am, St. AUGUSTINE WALKING TOUR:  We will visit the Castillo de San Marcos National Monument, which is a fort built during the Spanish colonial period ($6 entrance fee) and the Spanish Quarter, a living history museum with people dressed as they would have been during colonial time, performing tasks of the time ($6.89 entrance fee).  We'll walk down historic St. George Street, which has shops in old buildings, and have lunch in a restaurant.  We'll be outside a lot, so wear sunscreen and bring water. Cost of the event, $12.89 plus money for lunch and parking. We will meet at the Southeast Regional Public Library at Gate Parkway off of J. Turner Butler Blvd. - 10599 Deerwood Park Blvd.
Leader: Marsha C. 744-6322

August 25th, Saturday, CAMPING/FLOATING/HIKING AT O'LENO STATE PARK: We will be heading to O’Leno State Park - planning to meet at the Hardee’s on Lane Avenue at 6 PM on Friday night.  We will car pool to O’Leno State Park.  It’s about a 1.5 hour drive, which should give us plenty of time to set up camp and EAT!

NOTE:  On 5-11-07 Columbia County banned the use of charcoal grills or propane stoves for any purpose. NO PROPANE – this could make eating a real challenge!!!!

Saturday a.m., we will take a 3-hr+ float down the Ichetucknee River (about $5).  Saturday night will be MORE food, fun etc. around the campfire.  On Sunday, those of you who bring bikes are welcome to enjoy biking and those of us not so inclined to bike can hike one of their trails.  There are no group camping places here so it seems the best way to handle reservations is to do this EARLY and NOT wait until the last minute. Campsites are $15 each BUT 2 tents can be put on each site - only 2 cars per site as well.  We had a GREAT area back in 2005 but getting reservations in EARLY and not waiting until the last minute is imperative!!!!!  Listed is a link for the park trails and directions for those wishing to go on their own.  The General park web site has park fee info. We will camp in the Dogwood Area campground.  In looking at the campsite map, the following sites are TENT sites: 32, 33, and 34 – same sites as last time. They are available as of TODAY and would mean a MAXIMUM of 6 tents.  I can’t stress enough the need to BOOK EARLY so we can all get IN and be close together!  They have a nice link to book online.  If you would let me know what site you will be on, I can help guide others.  If anyone is interested in sharing a campsite, please let me know that as well. Leader: Karen B. 226-8364.

September 1st, 2nd and 3rd Saturday, Sunday and Monday, LABOR DAY WEEKEND: OPEN

September 5th, Wednesday 6:30 pm, MONTHLY MEETING: We will meet at the Southeast Regional Public Library at Gate Parkway off of J. Turner Butler Blvd. for a discussion on past events and highlights of upcoming events. There will be door prizes, refreshments and a speaker once a quarter.

September 8th, Saturday, PADDLE ON HAW CREEK:  Leader: Earline V. 998-4244

September 15th and 16th, Saturday and Sunday, CAMPING AND SWIMMING AT SALT SPRINGS:
Leader: Kathy B. 772-0790.

September 22nd, Saturday: OPEN.

September 29th, Saturday, 7:30 AM, MURALS OF PALATKA:  This is a walking tour featuring murals depicting the city’s cultural and historical resources painted on historic buildings throughout the town of Palatka.  One of the attractions featured is City Hall, a 1917 Romanesque Revival building with hand-painted murals depicting the city's history.  Wear comfortable shoes and bring water and sun block.  We will meet on US 17 at the McDonalds across from the Orange Park Dog Track.  For more info visit the website: http://www.conleemurals.org/CMC-NEWTourguide-1.html  Leader Heike M. 998-2312.

October 5th to October 8th, CAMPING AT VOGEL STATE PARK AND HELEN GEORGIA:  We will camp for 3 nights at Vogel State Park. Georgia's second oldest state park, Vogel is located in the shadow of Blood Mountain and is in the heart of Georgia's Chattahoochee National Forest. The centerpiece of the park is 20-acre Lake Trahlyta. Access to the Appalachian Trail        (http://georgiatrails.com/features/apptrail.html) is from Neel's Gap, just a little higher up Blood Mountain and of course the famous Oktoberfest in Helen is not to be missed. Three campsites have been reserved and, like they say, the early bird gets the worm.  After these are gone please contact the park, by telephone at 1-800-864-7275, and check it out at: http://ngeorgia.com/parks/vogel.html. Leader: Heike M. 998-2312.

January 19th, 20th, 21st MLK WEEKEND CUMBERLAND ISLAND SEA CAMP CAMPING TRIP:  Make plans to go camping at Georgia’s largest and southernmost barrier island when the weather will be cool and the insects will be minimal.  Cumberland Island was established as a National Seashore by the National Park Service.  This is a beautiful, pristine, secluded island with a lot of history including the Dungeness home, the First African Baptist Church, the ruins of a mansion built by the Andrew Carnegie as well as the Plum Orchard mansion.  Cumberland Island contains four major historic districts and 87 structures listed on the National Register of Historic Places, as well as the oldest known ceramics in North America and shell middens from early natives. Wild horses live on the island and are amazing to watch.  Hiking on the island is a favorite activity and wildlife is plentiful.  Bicycles can be rented from the ferry boat staff.

Sea Camp has rest rooms, cold showers and treated drinking water.  Each campsite has a grill, fire ring, food cage (to keep those pesky raccoons out of your food) and a picnic table.  As there are no stores or restaurants on the island, you must carry all your food and gear on the ferry. Hand carts are available for you to take the gear the short distance to the campsites at Sea Camp.  Coolers can be brought along since we are camping so close to the ferry dock.

The ferry fee is $17 and the camping fee is $4 a night.  So the total cost for camping and the ferry is $25.  You will be responsible for your meals.  The limiting factor for camping on Cumberland Island is the space on the ferry.  The ferry makes two trips a day, one at 9am and one at 11:45am.  We’ll be taking the 9:00 am trip.

I will be making ferry and camping reservations if you let me know you are coming and will be collecting money in advance as I will have to pay for this in advance.  If you want to go, you will need to pay in advance (by July 19th).    If we have enough people, we may get the group site; otherwise we’ll have multiple sites.  As Cumberland is very popular in the cooler months it fills up very quickly (especially Sea Camp).   Reservations can be made 6 months in advance, so I will be making these reservations on the morning of July 19th.

Call Diane at (904) 545-5087 to reserve your campsite or for more information.

Additional information about these activities and events may be
announced at monthly meetings and on our YahooGroups Email list.

2007 Monthly Meeting Schedule
MONTHLY MEETINGS are always on the first Wednesday of the month at 6:30 p.m.
at the Jacksonville Public Library, Southeast Regional Branch, at the Gate Parkway exit off
J. Turner Butler Boulevard.  Subscribers to our free YahooGroups email list service
receive an automatic reminder message in their email two days before the meeting.

WEDNESDAY, August 1, 2006 – 6:30 PM
WEDNESDAY, September 5, 2006 – 6:30 PM
WEDNESDAY, October 3, 2006 – 6:30 PM
WEDNESDAY, November 7, 2006 – 6:30 PM
WEDNESDAY, December 5, 2006 – 6:30 PM

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