Tags
Adirondacks, batak, Brown's Landing, Florida, gator, Jacksonville, Palatka, Poconos, Rice Creek, Scranton, St. John's River, Steamboat
Yes it is true. The train ride from Scranton, Pennsylvania to Jacksonville, Florida was rather boring; especially the last hundred miles. It was either swamp in Georgia or pine flats in Florida.
But then we got to Jacksonville. By ‘we’ I mean all three of us – – – Jimmy McFee from Tennessee, Bogdan Yelcovich from eastern Europe and me.
I would have told you which country Bogdan is from but with all the wars and border changes over there I am not too sure he knows where he is from himself. Sometimes he says Ukraine then other times he says Austria and still other times he says Russia.
Anyway, we ended up in Jacksonville with plans to get on to Palatka via the St. John’s River and Rice Creek. Our final destination would be “Brown’s Landing.” Someone had told Bogdan that Browns Landing was going to be the next big city in Florida. He had heard it was an interesting area with great bargains in land purchases. I can now see why there are bargains; there is nothing here.
The people there are dirt poor; for the most part. Sometimes there are tourists and land buyers – – – like Bogdan, Jim and I – – – that show up from time to time.
And then there were the sports that had already left way too many footprints in the Pocono and Adirondack Mountains.
Nice ‘gator there! I bet the guy holding it is the guide.
I think that the lady in the boat must have gotten the vapors – – – probably because it was her husband who shot the poor little thing.
Bogdan, Jim and I decided that hacking a clearing out of this wilderness – – – especially with all the mosquitoes, snakes and monster spiders – – – was not something that was in our best interest. So we took this steamer back to Jacksonville and a train back to Scranton.
On the way we met a very interesting gentleman.
The boatman said the cabin owner would make us a great lunch from greens he finds in the wilderness. It was a delicious meal and none of us got sick.
Take a look at the clever dog house he made. Mostly small branches. Keeps the panthers away but not the insects.
Poor dog!
waldotomosky 
I vaguely recall having read somewhere that the train ride down the East Coast in those days rolled through vast areas of desolation wrought by denuded forests, leaving fields of stumps and slash, further stripped of everything else green by grazing livestock, and, I suppose, by grazing people, because poverty reigned. It must have looked like hell on earth, especially in the Great Dismal Swamp.
BTW, now I finally have a way to make a doghouse for free. Except Buddy would require windows.
Same is true in PA. I stopped in a bar for a quick beer and a hamburg about 40 years ago. As I sat there I looked at some photos over the bar. It was a view of a clear-cut valley and a railroad yard with flat cars full of lumber. I asked the bar-keep where the photo was from. He said “turn around and look out the window. All I could see was a beautiful forest and a trout stream running through it. He re-assured me that the photo and the view was one and the same.
Nature is amazing in its ability to recover.
Make sure the windows are triple pane. Buddy deserves the best. He looks like a great companion.
I guess the clear-cutting was the same all over the coast as the big cities developed. Yeah, it’s hard to keep a forest down.
THEE VOYAGES by Rene’ Laudonniere translated by Charles e Bennet indicates that land area … not so far from where I live now … was quite like paradise in 1532. Also that is a very small alligator in the drawing. http://bearspawprint.wordpress.com/2013/11/24/alligator/?relatedposts_exclude=11140 You are right, nature is amazing in her ability to recover… if we allow her to do so. That is the key. W have to leaver her alone long enough.
I have to agree on the size of that alligator. The guys look like they had their macho on.
🙂 🙂