Walking back to the house, I saw this partial rainbow that appeared only on the one cloud.
Still storms on the coast on 2 September.
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| Sandbags on the ocean restaurants - the Ocean Deck. |
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| A coconut - I wonder where it came from? |
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| A squirrel at the bandshell. |
A great dinner at Brian's BBQ for nickel beer night.
Tuesday morning's walk was very different, and some interesting discoveries.
Lis's cactus has had many flower buds, they bloom late at night and close when the sun comes out. We were out early enough to see one bloom still open. That was nice, with bees all around it.
Internet: Beautyberries grow on shrubs in clusters – along roadsides, in pine land and hammock forests, or in parks. Beautyberries are distinctive with the bright purple berries growing on long woody stems, with green leaves.
Fall is
the season to pick Florida’s native Beautyberries – distinctive with the bright
purple berries – and make divine jelly (jam) with a rich, flavourful taste. They are not very tasty when picked directly
from the bush but are delicious when made into a jelly, or as a sauce over ice
cream.
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| Obviously very tasty leaves! |
I see a lot of these eaten leaves, and did some research: (The vine is know as 'air potato'.)Air Potato is a herbaceous, perennial twining vine that attains lengths of 20 metres or more, rendering it capable of climbing over and smothering native vegetation. Air Potato is native to much of Asia and Africa, and was introduced to Florida in 1905. It has become extremely aggressive. By the 1980s, air potato vines were growing in thickets, waste areas, and hedges in many parts of south and central Florida. By 1999, it was recognized as an invasive exotic that alters plant communities by displacing native species, changing community structure, and disrupting ecological functions.
After
extensive research on its safety and impact, a leaf-eating beetle (Lilioceris
cheni) from China was introduced in Florida for biological control of the air
potato vine.
The beetle, in Florida is referred to as the 'Air Potato Beetle'.
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| A nice stretch of walking path near Lis and Harvey's. |
Popular Florida ferns for landscape include macho, foxtail, Boston, holly, fishtail, wart, and asparagus fern.
A Florida native plant, the Giant Sword fern (also called the Macho fern) grows about 3 feet tall and almost as wide.
The worst of the hurricane wind and rain was Tuesday night and still raining Wednesday morning, so Jim and I did not go for a walk - just to the end of the driveway. No damage, just moss and limbs from the large trees.
Thursday morning was beautiful at the beach.
There were a lot of birds on the beach - more than usual, and I thought all the debris on the beach was seaweed washed up during the hurricane.
The treasure trove of ocean artifacts washing up on the beach is one of the few good things about hurricanes. From Oceanography of Florida Tech: “The storm generated unusually large waves and violence out there and dislodged some things that normally aren’t found on the beach.”
The shells and small sea life was fascinating! Locals had not seen so many unusual shells and small sea life washed up at Daytona Beach before.
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| This one had a small crab in it. |
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| A lot of dragonflies around this bush. |
The Daytona Beach Classic is to be held at the end of September: body building, fitness, figure, bikini, physique competitions; the 9th Annual this year. There were two photo shoots at the beach three weeks before this competition - probably for promotional purposes.
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| The end of our street - intersection of A1A and Ora Street. |
Saturday evening, the Bandshell concert was an AC/DC tribute band Highway to Hell. Diane and I attended and had a great time - a good cross section of AC/DC songs.
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| The two lights on the horizon are fishing trawlers, first day out since Hurricane Dorian. |
Internet: Over a century ago, it was recognised that conservation measures were necessary to maintain good fishing in public waters. Built in 1926, this warm water hatchery is used to raise fish for stocking programs.
An aquarium showcasing the hatchery program
is in the town of Welaka.
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| Blue crab. |
The Fire Tower is for the Forestry Dept to watch for wildfires in the State Forrest.
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| Found more Beautyberries! |
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| Lake Como Community Hall. |
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| This may have been Lake Como ... didn't find any signs for the numerous lakes. |
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| The community piano. |
The monument and soldier statue on top face to the south. It was erected in 1924, a monument to Palatka's Confederate soldiers killed in the Civil War.
Internet: The St. Johns River is the longest river in Florida and its most significant for commercial and recreational use. At 310 miles (500 km) long, it flows north and winds through or borders twelve counties. The drop in elevation from headwaters to mouth is less than 30 feet (9 metres); like most Florida waterways, the St. Johns has a very low flow rate and is often described as “lazy”. Numerous lakes are formed by the river or flow into it, but as a river its widest point is nearly 3 miles (5km) across. Palatka is a destination for bass fishermen.
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| The St. Johns River at Palatka, and US Highway 17 bridge. |
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| A chainsaw carving at a riverfront park. |
Other replicas are suspended over the bar, part of a decorating scheme that includes walls adorned with historic racing photos from the early 1900s.
"Racing was the reason for the rise of Ormond Beach and this place is a celebration of that history."
Walks to the beach each morning for the week - cooler temperatures, but with several weather systems in the Atlantic Ocean, there were a lot of clouds.
Monday, 16 September.
Tuesday, 17 September.
Internet: Lake Helen is between Daytona Beach and Orlando, it was originally a winter retreat for north-easterners. Citrus groves were planted and thrived, a sawmill and brick works were established.
In 1887 the railroad arrived and Lake Helen flourished, and grew quickly. Sadly, the winter of 1894-1895 brought the “big freeze”. Most of the citrus trees were destroyed and families lost everything. Lake Helen carried on, but time seemed to “pass her by”, and became a quaint little community off the beaten path.
Internet: Cassadaga
is another quaint central Florida town, but if you choose to stop, you will be
sent back in time in American history when spiritualism and mediumship were
common.
They
arrive daily – sometimes by the bus load.
They are the bereaved seeking comfort, paranormal enthusiasts, and the
curious. They are tourists, and they
come to consult one of the more than 100 mediums, physics, and healers. Cassadaga, Florida – home of the Southern
Cassadaga Spiritualist Camp – the oldest active religious community in the
southeastern United States.
The town is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and provides a step back in history. The majority of residents of Cassadaga are trained mediums, spiritualists and healers who share their gift with seekers and visitors alike.
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| The George P Colby Memorial Temple in Cassadaga. |
The novelty has since worn off and over the years, the town has become a mish-mash of New Age tarot card readers, numerologists, and psychic healers, living alongside spiritual traditionalists.
Not much modernisation has made it to Cassadaga. I liked these old gates and twisted wire fence, with stone posts.
However,
during the Great Depression the camp lost ownership of the hotel, and it was
sold to private owners, and since has been resold several times. The hotel how
includes Sinatra’s Restaurant and a coffee bar. Physic readings, seances
and meditation areas are provided in house.
The hotel also claims to be haunted by ‘friendly spirits’; and
advertises a “truly unique experience”.
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| Jim and I enjoyed a cup of coffee on the hotel verandah. |
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| Inside the Cassadaga Hotel - beautiful furniture. |
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| This old beer dispenser. |
By supporting the organisation, DeLand will work with local conservation and garden groups to create butterfly gardens throughout the city. Officials will also encourage residents to plant native milkweek and nectar plants, which are vital to the monarch species.
Some other murals in DeLand: 
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| Interesting signage on Woodlands Boulevard, DeLand. |
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| Corinthian columns in DeLand. |
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| Ionic columns in DeLand. |
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| Woodlands Boulevard, DeLand, Florida. |
All rather exciting!
Internet: Roller Derby is a contact sport played by
two teams of five members roller skating anti-clockwise around a track. Game
play consists of a series of short match-ups (jams) in which both teams
designate a jammer (who wears a star on the helmet). The jammer scores points by lapping members
of the opposing team. The teams attempt
to hinder the opposing jammer, while assisting their own jammer – in effect,
playing both offense and defense simultaneously.
After our walk to the beach we drove a little north of Daytona Beach to the outskirts of Ormond Beach along the Intracoastal Waterway, via "the Loop". The first stop was Dummitt Plantation Mill Ruins.
Internet: In its heyday, the Dummitt Plantation Mill harvested some 2,000 acres of
sugarcane to be distilled into rum.
Built in 1825, it was the site of the first steam-powered cane crushing
mill, helping bring the Industrial Revolution to the growing United States.
Today, little remains of the plantation, which was burned to the ground during the Second Seminole War. The ruins of the mill are a large, irregular wall made from brick and coquina with twin chimneys. Some say the site is haunted, but the eerie structures remain silent relics of the area’s troubled past.
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| Driving 'the Loop' in Ormond Beach. |
A narrow sandy road to the State Park.
The plantation was destroyed in the Seminole War of 1836.
The property and ruins were acquired by the State of Florida in 1945 and dedicated as a State Historic Park in 1957, and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1970.
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| Also a small lizard! |
Our walk to the beach on Monday morning 23 September. A group of photographers 'capturing' a beautiful sunrise.
28 September - walk to the beach.
In the 1940s, some of the land was leased to the first dermatologist in Daytona Beach and he had a keen interest in dinosaurs. He wanted to turn it into a theme park, so enlisted Manny Lawrence to create huge dinosaurs and other pre-historic animals. These were crafted out of chicken-wire and concrete, which towered over the few tourists who trickled through. The park also included a recreated Seminole village, the historic sugar mill ruins, and live animals, including its namesake baboon, Bongo. A miniature train whisked visitors by the attractions. But as it turned out, this strange mish-mash of exhibits wasn’t enough to draw in a crowd. In 1952, just 5 years after it opened, Bongoland closed. Some of the concrete dinosaurs have withstood the test of time. Today they are embedded in a peaceful garden.
Sunday
evening, the live music at the Hard Rock Hotel was an Australia – Blues singer 8
Ball Aiken. Jim and I had seen him perform at
the Tamworth Country Music Festival in January.
The Hard Rock Hotel in Daytona Beach is 1 mile from our house. It opened about 12 months ago, but we had not been there to check it out. Diane and I went to the evening entertainment.
A shower
of rain prior to the show, cooled the air nicely on the patio. It is a fabulous venue – music on one side
and the ocean on the other.
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| View south, from the Hard Rock Hotel towards the Main Street Pier. |
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| 8 Ball Aiken performing on the patio. |
On Monday afternoon, Jim and I picked 8 Ball up from the Hotel and showed him around the beachside, and took him to lunch at our favourite 'Florida' restaurant, Hidden Treasures at Ponce Inlet.
Once everyone regrouped and settled into the restaurant area, by a unanimous decision, 8 Ball continued on - everyone enjoyed it.
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