[Dunnellon, FL.–] Mac Stone is kicking across the Rainbow River against the strong current as fast as he can, and even though he is carrying a bulky underwater camera with two protruding …
Exploring the Lake Wales Ridge: Central ‘highlands’ with old-fashioned flavor
10 May 20188:56 AM
When folks say Central Florida, what comes to mind? Orlando, Disney, theme parks?
There is another Central Florida and it makes a delightful discovery: the Lake Wales Ridge.
Like a spine up the middle of the state, the Lake Wales Ridge is a 150-mile-long stretch of higher ground, extending from Clermont on the north to Lake Placid on the south.
How high is the ridge? The highest point is Sugarloaf Mountain near Clermont at 312 feet, so, no, you won’t need to worry about climbing any peaks.
But you will be enjoying some of the most beautiful rolling hills, forests, streams and quaint small towns that Florida has to offer. And it’s all within two or three hours of urban South Florida, Tampa and Orlando. It is, in fact, the geographic center of Florida…read more of the article from Bonnie Gross of the Florida Rambler.
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 Swamps and Springs){kind=link}
 Swamps and Springs&body=[Dunnellon, FL.--] Mac Stone is kicking across the Rainbow River against the strong current as fast as he can, and even though he is carrying a bulky underwater camera with two protruding strobes, it is very difficult to keep up.
Panting through my snorkel, I finally catch up -- just in time to see him dart away again in hot pursuit of a cormorant which itself is in hot pursuit of a sunfish darting through the eelgrass at the bottom of the river. From a distance, I can see the strobe firing over and over and I really hope he's getting the shots he wants.
Later, Stone said he kind of did.
"Today I got a lot of cormorants fishing, but I didn't get the apex moment-- the 1/100th of a second when the fish is in front of its beak and the beak is open," he said. "You try to put yourself in as many situations as possible. Even if you get skunked, you're okay because you're getting closer to your goal."
That attitude is typical of the "high hopes but low expectations" that Stone, 33, brings to his craft as one of the most sought-after professional wildlife photographers in the southeastern U.S. For this Gainesville-raised, former Florida Audubon biologist, shooting fish, birds, landscapes and other natural subjects is NOT about producing pretty pictures. Through his images, he aims to stir the emotions of regular people enough to make them care about the ecosystems where they live and want to conserve them-- especially in Florida.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/MacStone-0811.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4708" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/MacStone-0811.jpg" alt="" width="1400" height="933" /></a> <a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/MacStone-1134.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4709" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/MacStone-1134.jpg" alt="" width="1400" height="933" /></a>
"There are things in Florida that don't exist anywhere else in abundance," he said. "Every state has things to marvel at, but Florida just seems Old World....places you can go to and feel like you are the first person who has seen it."
Stone first became interested in photography in high school, but got away from it for several years while studying international politics, environmental science, Spanish and biology as a student at Virginia Tech. Following graduation, he took a job teaching photography to youngsters in Honduras. Later, as a biologist conducting research on fish and birds in the Everglades, Stone began to realize "the power of photography to compel people to see their natural habitat in a different way. After a year working there, I started making all these photos. No one, in a compelling way, had told the story of the wildlife and the way it relates to the flow of water," he said.
The Everglades was and is in peril because of the lack of freshwater creeping south across the Florida peninsula to replenish it-- the result of manmade re-plumbing over the past century for development and farming. In 2014, Stone published "Everglades: America's Wetland" to convey to readers through breathtaking images the absolute dependence that species like the roseate spoonbill, Everglades snail kite, alligators and others have on the correct amount, timing and quality of water delivered. The book is now in its second printing and Stone has made wildlife photography a full-time career.
Lately, his attentions have turned to Florida's imperiled springs and that's why he was chasing cormorants fishing in the Rainbow River. The Rainbow, located in west-central Florida, is fed by a second-magnitude spring that pumps more than 450 million gallons per day of fresh, 71-degree water. While strikingly clear compared to Florida's mostly tannin-stained water courses, the Rainbow still suffers from degradation from manmade sources.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/MacStone-1500.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4711" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/MacStone-1500.jpg" alt="" width="1400" height="933" /></a> <a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/MacStone-1176.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4710" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/MacStone-1176.jpg" alt="" width="1400" height="933" /></a>
Stone's photos undoubtedly will drive home the importance of saving this and other springs.
"Springs are so unique," he said. "They're accessible, but not celebrated like other habitats are. We don't realize that when we fertilize our lawns and run our sprinklers year round, that could have a negative impact on the aquifer."
So he and I spent nearly four hours snorkeling and drifting in the Rainbow, with me carrying the dive flag and he wielding his camera to capture the images that would seize potential conservationists by the heart. He didn't feel like he got them that morning.
"I just keep coming back and chasing the shiny red ball like a Labrador retriever," he said, and headed back to the Rainbow that afternoon.
To learn more about Mac and his book, "Everglades: America's Wetland", please visit <a href="http://www.macstonephoto.com/">http://www.macstonephoto.com</a>. https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/shooting-and-saving-swamps-and-springs/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=No End to Spring Break Family Fun at Guy Harvey Outpost&body=If you and your family are planning an escape to Florida from the frigid north for spring break, you're probably already salivating over the prospects of sipping a cool drink on a warm beach, splashing in the waves, or catching a fish dinner for the restaurant at one of our Guy Harvey Outpost resorts. But there are plenty of other attractions and activities for vacationers of all ages to keep busy and have fun when you decide to take a break from the beach. Here are some suggestions:
ISLAMORADA, FLORIDA KEYS
Check out our <a href="http://guyharveyoutpost.com/islamoradapackages/">Spring Family Fun Packages in Islamorada</a>, or inquire with the Guy Harvey Outpost Travel Desk at <a href="mailto:sales@guyharveyoutpost.com">sales@guyharveyoutpost.com</a> for special savings at Theater of the Sea when you book a stay at the Islander Resort, a Guy Harvey Outpost. Must book at the web site or with the GHO Travel Desk for these deals.
<a href="http://www.FloridaStateParks.org">State Parks Boat Tour</a>: 305-664-9814
Visit two of Florida's state parks in a three-hour guided boat tour out of Robbie's Marina offered Fridays through Sundays through April. Your first stop is Indian Key Historic State Park where you will walk the perimeter of the 10-acre island that served as the 19th century county seat of Miami-Dade. You'll see the ruins of a once-thriving town populated mostly by 'wreckers'-- people who made their living salvaging merchant ships that got stuck on the nearby coral reefs-- and check out the tropical plants originally grown by a physician/botanist who lived there in the 1830s.
Your second and final stop is nearby Lignumvitae Key Botanical State Park located only a short boat ride away where you will join a park ranger for a guided tour of the Matheson House and the surrounding tropical hardwood hammock. The house, built in 1919, looks much as it did at the turn of the 20th century, with polished wooden floors, cisterns and the remains of a windmill tower now occupied by an osprey nest.
In a walk through the woods, you'll spot the eponymous lignumvitae tree which doesn't look like much, but whose wood is so dense and hard that it was used extensively in shipbuilding. You'll also get a look at trees with weird names such as poisonwood, strangler fig, and gumbo-limbo.
<a href="http://www.captainslate.com">Underwater Easter Egg Hunt</a>: 305-451-3020
Join Captain Spencer Slate on a shallow-water dive/snorkel/glass-bottom boat trip April 16 as he dresses up as the Easter Bunny and leads the tenth annual underwater Easter egg hunt. Prizes will be awarded to everyone who attends, but there's a special surprise for whoever is lucky enough to find the golden egg.
For lodging packages at the Islander Resort, a Guy Harvey Outpost in Islamorada, <a href="http://guyharveyoutpost.com/islamoradapackages/">GO HERE</a>.
ST. PETE BEACH
<a href="http://www.swimwithourfish.com">Get Tanked!</a>
You just can't help gazing at the mesmerizing peacefulness of the 33,500-gallon aquarium at the RumFish Grill at Guy Harvey Outpost, a Tradewinds Beach Resort on St. Pete Beach. Filled with numerous species of colorful, native tropical fish, it was designed and built by the crew on Animal Planet's popular television show, TANKED. Lately it has added some new inhabitants, including two stingrays, Atlantic blue tangs, doctorfish, ocean surgeonfish, and a large French angelfish--enhancing its hypnotic appeal.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/14352097_1101744903237377_6817329903301162398_o.png"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4628" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/14352097_1101744903237377_6817329903301162398_o.png" alt="14352097_1101744903237377_6817329903301162398_o" width="1179" height="579" /></a>
But you don't have to be content to just admire the aquarium's residents from the restaurant. Visitors aged 8 and up are invited to plunge right in with these friendly sea creatures on guided snorkeling tours. It's safe, fun, and a lot more exciting than watching "Finding Dory" on TV.
<a href="http://www.tampabayboatshows.com">Tampa Bay Boat Show</a>
Check out a variety of watercraft from kayaks to cabin cruisers at St. Petersburg's expansive Tropicana Field March 10-12. Boats new and used will be on display indoors and outdoors. You may end up towing your new purchase back home after spring break. Admission is free; parking costs $6.
Art Shows - <a href="http://www.tarponspringschamber.com">Tarpon Springs Fine Arts Festival</a> and <a href="http://www.mainsailart.org">Mainsail Arts Festival in St. Pete</a>
Make plans to attend the 43rd annual Fine Arts Festival on the Bayou in Tarpon Springs April 8-9. Held at Craig Park on the scenic Spring Bayou, it will feature as many as 250 exhibitors of a wide range of juried art. The event also includes food and live entertainment. Admission is $5, with free parking and shuttle service.
Then on April 22-23, St. Petersburg will host the 42nd annual Mainsail Art Festival at waterfront Vinoy Park. Peruse paintings, sculpture, ceramics, jewelry, tapestries and many other media while listening to live music and munching on local treats. Kids will be able to create their own artworks in a special tent; adult professional artists will vie for a share of a $60,000 prize purse. Admission is free.
To arrange your stay at Guy Harvey Outpost, a Tradewinds Beach Resort, <a href="http://guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/florida/st-pete-beach/">GO HERE</a>.
ST. AUGUSTINE
<a href="http://www.floridasbirdingandphotofest.com">Florida's Birding & Photo Fest</a>
Attend workshops and lectures on birding and photography; take walking, boating and kayaking tours of scenic woods and waters; and add to your life list in this April 26-30 outdoors extravaganza.
The event will be based at the Guana Tolomato Matanzas Estuarine Research Reserve, located just off A-1-A about halfway between St. Augustine and Jacksonville. Outdoors and photography gear will be on display and food trucks will be standing by to serve hungry hikers. Some of the outdoor tours already are sold out, so make a reservation now. There's a $25 registration fee. Cash and prizes will be awarded in a photo contest.
<a href="http://www.alligatorfarm.com">Alligator Farm Zoological Park</a>
This is the only place in the world where you can see all 24 of the world's alligator and crocodile species in one place-- including Maximo, a 15 1 2-foot-long, 45 year-old Australian croc. Other reptiles such as the Komodo dragon are housed here as well. An ancient, spreading oak in the middle of the park serves as a scenic rookery for many colorful local birds and provides limitless photo ops. You can tour the park on foot or take a zip line tour.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/16711474_10154845538210803_6926099617369395332_n.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4629" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/16711474_10154845538210803_6926099617369395332_n.jpg" alt="16711474_10154845538210803_6926099617369395332_n" width="583" height="418" /></a>
<a href="http://www.saaquarium.com">St. Augustine Aquarium</a>
This just-opened, 80,000-gallon aquarium holds more than 200 marine fish, and also features a shark and stingray cove. There are hands-on displays and opportunities to snorkel with the tank's inhabitants. An odd-looking guitarfish and a friendly nurse shark are among the highlights. Future plans call for a zip line and educational facilities.
More information on Guy Harvey Outpost, St. Augustine coming soon! https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/no-end-to-spring-break-family-fun-at-guy-harvey-outpost/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Tagged Sea Turtles Reporting Safe After Irma&body=Five green sea turtles that came ashore to nest on Broward County, Fl. beaches in the past couple months have reported safe to scientists with the Nova Southeastern University/ Broward County Sea Turtle Conservation Program in the wake of Hurricane Irma.
Dr. Derek Burkholder-- a research scientist at NSU's Guy Harvey Research Institute who heads the program--and colleague Glenn Goodwin, a Nova PhD student, glued satellite tags to the animals' shells after they completed depositing their eggs and were returning to the ocean. The tags beam the turtles' locations every time they surface, which is downloaded to the scientists' computers. The study subjects have kept in touch ever since-- even in the thick of Irma's onslaught.
"Everybody sought out deeper water or at least moved away from where things were rough," Goodwin wrote in an email. "Afterward, everyone returned to their normal areas, except Therese who wandered around, then ended up near Key West."
The tags usually transmit for about a year-- time enough for the scientists to try to solve several mysteries that are key to conserving the threatened and endangered reptiles: where do green and loggerhead turtles come from to nest in South Florida; how frequently do they come here; and where do they go between nesting events. Genetic samples taken during tagging will show whether sea turtle populations along the U.S. east coast are linked.
"We don't know what this population does when it leaves here," Burkholder said. "This project is to learn where they end up: who's going where and who's playing with who."
That information is vital to sea turtle conservation, Burkholder said, because it informs management decisions at the state, regional and federal levels, such as whether the animals are nesting and travelling through areas with high fishing and boating pressure that might warrant additional regulations.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Therese20170910-Irma-002-e1507034887821.png"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4915" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Therese20170910-Irma-002-e1507034887821.png" alt="" width="711" height="400" /></a>
"Giving them the protection they need when they need it and where they need it," Goodwin said.
In addition to the five with satellite tags, seven others were implanted with internal chips and wear external tags so that divers and anglers who encounter them can report their locations.
While the animals handled Irma just fine, their nests on Broward beaches did not; over half were swept away by winds and waves. Fortunately, it happened late in the nesting season rather than the mid-summer peak.
Broward County's Sea Turtle Conservation program has been in operation for 28 years -- focused primarily on monitoring and protecting nests from various threats and gauging hatching success. So far this season, surveyors have counted 3,337 nests--2,692 loggerheads; 634 greens and 11 leatherbacks on 24 miles of beach (excluding Mizell-Johnson State Park). It was a record year for greens; the previous mark was 500 in 2012. Nova Southeastern University and the Broward County Sea Turtle Conservation Program are part of a network dedicated to sea turtle conservation that includes several volunteer organizations --Sea Turtle Oversight Protection (STOP), the South Florida Audubon Society, and Sea Turtle Awareness Rescue Stranding (STARS). The volunteers work tirelessly throughout the season to help protect sea turtle hatchlings by redirecting them away from disorienting coastal lighting back to the moon- and star-lit ocean.
The three-year tagging study is funded by a $45,000 grant from the Community Foundation of Broward County. But the program could use some help, since each tag costs upwards of $4,500. The first turtle to be tagged was named George Finley (even though it's a female) after the winner of Guy Harvey Outpost's May sweepstakes.
If you would like to sponsor a tag for next season, contact Burkholder at dburkholder@nova.edu or call 954-262-3673.
https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/tagged-sea-turtles-reporting-safe-after-irma/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Cuba Un-canned: See It With the Locals&body=Here are some of the locals you will meet during <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/">Guy Harvey Outpost's</a> guided people-to-people expedition to Cuba December 13-18:
--The son of Fidel Castro's official photographer;
--the director of the Cuba's Masonic museum;
--a rural tobacco farmer;
--a mixologist who will teach you how to make the perfect Mojito.
And the locales you will visit will combine mainstream stops (Floridita --creator of the daiquiri-- and Museo de la Revolucion, stone walls with 1950s bullet holes) with way un-trodden destinations (Cueva El Palmarito --the largest cave system in Latin America, and a fishing cooperative in Cojimar, where Ernest Hemingway's captain spent most of his life).
Your hosts will be Justin White-- operator of <a href="https://www.docfordscubaexpeditions.com/">Doc Ford's Cuba Expeditions</a> and nephew of best-selling novelist Randy Wayne White--and Sports Illustrated photographer Ron Modra.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/MG_1480.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4874" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/MG_1480.jpg" alt="" width="2100" height="1400" /></a>
"The people we are going to meet are incredible-- interesting, intelligent, diverse age groups," White said. "You'll see the monumental places but the targeted people and events introduce you to real people living their daily lives. The most valuable experience you can have is to be with the people and ask them questions. There are no airs put on."
With new U.S.-to-Cuba travel restrictions set to take effect in mid-September, White is taking special care to stay on the right side of the law: staying only in private lodgings, taking meals in private restaurants; interacting one-on-one with Cuban people; and travelling in a 12-member group.
"We will abide by all the policies and restrictions put in place," White said. "We focus on people-to-people exchanges."
The six-day, five-night itinerary is packed with authentic experiences: poring over photo albums with Raul Corrales, whose father shot reams of images of late Cuban leader Fidel Castro and his friend author Ernest Hemingway; walking the docks at Cojimar, the small fishing village where Hemingway's "Old Man and the Sea" was set and where the author's captain Gregorio Fuentes lived to be 104; visiting Finca Vijia where Hemingway's boat, Pilar, still sits; touring a tobacco farm and coffee plantation; and hiking to a huge cave in the countryside. It also hits some of the typical tourist spots such as the Tropicana nightclub and Old Havana. And there will be multiple opportunities to ogle (and photograph) all the old cars, with Modra coaching on the finer points of capturing images.
If you <a href="https://guyharveyoutpost.com/expeditions/cuba/">book your expedition</a> by Aug. 31, you'll receive free airfare from Fort Lauderdale to Havana. For more information, visit <a href="https://www.guyharveyoutpost.com">www.guyharveyoutpost.com</a> or call the Outpost Travel Desk at 800-513-5257. https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/cuba-un-canned-see-it-with-the-locals/){kind=link}
 Endless Fish on Endless Summer){kind=link}
 to double black diamond (most difficult). Instead of a guide clipping your cables and demonstrating each element, you do everything yourself. If you have a problem or a question, just call out to a staffer for advice or --if you're really too scared to swing through the trees--someone will climb up and escort you down.
Even though I stuck to the green and yellow courses during my visit, I found the experience exhilarating and fun. I could understand why a 12-year-old from the neighborhood who the staff calls an unpaid intern visits here twice a week for his three-hour workout.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Treehoppers3-e1492097028812.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4675" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Treehoppers3-e1492097028812.jpg" alt="" width="3264" height="2448" /></a>
After airborne exercise, I headed back to Tarpon Springs-- stopping en route for a little refreshment at the Florida Estate Winery in Land O'Lakes, not far from TreeHoppers. It's a popular waypoint for many wannabe Tarzans and Janes.
For more information about TreeHoppers, visit <a href="http://www.treehoppers.com">www.treehoppers.com</a> or call 813-381-5400.
On the day after my swing through TreeHoppers, I visited a very different kind of park--Key Vista Nature Park in tiny Holiday near Tarpon Springs. This quiet, 100-acre reserve of mostly sand pine uplands is bordered by the Gulf of Mexico and Rocky Creek, inviting visitors to fish, swim, hike, and picnic. I walked most of its 1 1/2 miles of trails and climbed the observation tower for a scenic view of the lighthouse at Anclote Key Preserve State Park.
Key Vista is best known for bird watching; with more than 220 documented species, it's a must-stop on the Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail.
Save for a nesting osprey cheeping in the pines, I saw few birds on my afternoon walk, but I did get to eavesdrop on an amorous gopher tortoise trying to get lucky with its partner in the scrub.
For more information on Key Vista Nature Park, call 727-938-2598. https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/a-tale-of-two-parks-near-tarpon-springs/){kind=link}
TRAVEL DESK : 800.513.5257
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