This week I headed back to one of my favorite stomping grounds – Blackwater River State Park near Holt, FL. Every time I hike there, I find something new.
Walking around Juniper Lake, I wandered off the trail (luckily, my smartphone has a compass and GPS), and found the abandoned pilings from an old boardwalk. The path was lost through the underbrush, but the trail head was still visible, and much too tempting to not go exploring. I had to wonder why the boardwalk was taken down… I need to concoct a story about it.
I will admit, I was also hunting for alligators, but was only able to scare up a couple of little green and brown lizards, and a fat, muddy swamp turtle. Better luck next time…
You can click on any image to see a larger photo, or the series as a slideshow.
(Photos shot with a Nikon D60, using an 18-55mm, 55-200mm, 20mm f/2.8 wide-angle, 50mm f/1.8 prime lens, Nikon CoolPix S205 and/or iPhone4)
For more photos, please visit my Flickr photostream.

As soon as I saw that sign I wondered, did she find an alligator?
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A beautiful collage of a beautiful place!
🙂
Traci
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Man, I love your pictures!!! The alligator sign would have stopped me!
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I looked up the location but this is a long way from where we live. We love to visit State Parks….don’t get off the beaten path much though! Enjoy your week!
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New and linking up with sundays in my city. Ria
http://airforcewife-cabral.blogspot.com/2013/04/sunday-in-my-city-red-fox.html
The photo of the tree reflection in the water is gorgeous.
Great photos. Wish we had such nice weather. its still cold and snow in ND
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Love, love, love the photos, and, like Lance, I like the play of light and shadow in them. Along with your great eye, you capture peace and serenity in your photos.
Thanks for sharing.
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Looks like you had a beautiful day. But… you were PURPOSELY hunting for alligators? Yikes!
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I have photographed a gator in that lake before, and was hoping to see her (him?) again. I think it might be still too cold for her to be out swimming.
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I am FAR more scared of snakes than alligators. Probably totally illogical, but I don’t care.
I especially love the leaves in the water pic.
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I want a picture of you rasslin’ a gator…not really, I like you too much for that.
I love the swamp pictures. The mix of light and shadow is beautiful.
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When I went to Costa Rica a few years ago the bus driver stopped on the near side of a bridge and made us walk across. We were totally baffled as to WHY until we looked down into the river below and saw a crocodile “parking lot” with dozens of the monsters parked down there!
Pretty cool – – – but I was VERY glad to be safe up on the bridge.
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