Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park

“Be where you are; otherwise you will miss your life.”
― Siddhārtha Gautama

“There are times to stay put, and what you want will come to you, and there are times to go out into the world and find such a thing for yourself.”
― Lemony Snicket, Horseradish

“I can choose either to be a victim of the world or an adventurer in search of treasure. It’s all a question of how I view my life.”
― Paulo Coelho, Eleven Minutes

Well, the holidays are behind us, and we’re into a new year – 2020, as well as a new decade. Debi and I took a little break from our “wanderings” over Christmas – we just had so much going on. We are truly blessed to have our daughter Kristen and her family – Justin and our grandkids (Jordyn, Jacqueline, and Franklyn) – living here in Florida, fairly close to us in Punta Gorda. My brother Nelson also lives close to us here in North Port with his wife Lin, and they were also here to celebrate with us. We were doubly blessed this year as our oldest son, Jon and his girlfriend, Steph drove down from Massachusetts in their motorhome (a classic 1979 Chevy Leisure-Craft) to spend Christmas with us as well. It was so awesome being able to spend Christmas with our family!

So, for the first trip of 2020, we decided to stay local – here in North Port. We opted to go for a morning hike at one of the many wildlife parks/preserves throughout North Port – Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park. It’s really conveniently located only about a mile off of I 75 (Exit #182 – Sumter Blvd.) https://www.scgov.net/Home/Components/FacilityDirectory/FacilityDirectory/557/4323.

We arrived at just about 9:00am and decided to walk the “Yellow” trail which is about a mile and a half loop. The weather was great – about 75 degrees and sunny, with a nice breeze (this is the reason why we live here in South West Florida).

The trails here are very well marked and make for an easy walk through some beautiful scenery. Most of the trails run along side a small stream where a variety of birds and wildlife are frequently seen. There are numerous wildlife viewing areas, many benches along the trails if you need a quick breather, and lots of wooden bridges over the stream and wetland areas.

We might have been just a little late in the morning to capture a lot of wildlife along the trail, but Debi did manage to grab a few shots of this guy – what I believe is a Florida Red Tailed Hawk.

We had a great walk just enjoying the outdoors and nature.

We did meet a couple of new friends on the trail…..Virginia and canine companion, Dixie. Virginia told us she also lives in North Port – She’s originally from Michigan and was an engineer for General Motors. Both she and her husband were also corporate pilots (they are both retired) We had a great time chatting. This is one of the things Deb and I love about our Crazy Wanderer travels…..we always meet such really nice people!

We spent a couple of hours on our hike, between actually walking, checking out the scenery, taking photos, and chatting with Virginia and Dixie.

If you are ever in the North Port area and looking for a nice wildlife hiking area, this is definitely worth checking out. It is a relatively small area and can easily be hiked in a couple of hours. There is also a nice picnic area to enjoy as well.

Thanks for joining us on our latest adventure. Please feel free to leave us a comment or two. We love hearing from you.

So, until next time, stay safe and enjoy life.