Florida Spring Training 2017 - Day 44

Another cold front came through last night, this time bringing a fair amount of rain and wind. The rain had stopped when we got up this morning but is was much colder and windy.

By game time with the Atlanta Braves, the skies were partly cloudy and the temperature was only 63 degrees.  Along with the lower temperatures the wind was gusting from 10-20 mph out of the NW.  That combination makes for an uncomfortable day at the ball park unless you dress appropriately, which we did.  We wore sweatshirts and coats and had hot drinks instead of cold beverages today.  After an opening ceremony featuring a Little League team whose members stood with their Phillies' counterparts for the National Anthem, the game got underway.  Happily, the Phillies won the game. shutting out the Braves 9-0.  It was their first shutout of the Spring Training season.

Day 44 Pictures - Baseball

Eileen, Linda, Eileen's daughter Ali, her husband Dan and their two daughters also attended the game.  They all held up pretty well under the challenging weather conditions and we went over to Frenchy's Rockaway Grill in Clearwater Beach after the game for dinner and to celebrate Eileens birthday.

Day 44 Pictures - Eileen's Birthday

The forecast for tomorrow is more partly cloudy skies, low temperatures and wind again. Our next game is Friday so the plan tomorrow is to work in the RV and try and finish up our tax return that we couldn't complete before we left on the trip.

Florida Spring Training 2017 - Day 43

Today was a stay-at-home day.  We slept in, did the laundry, then after lunch Judy had her nails done.  I picked up a few things at the grocery store and worked around the RV a little.

There is a weather change coming.  It has started raining this afternoon and it is expected to continue through the evening.  Tomorrow should be clear but much cooler for the next three days.

We will meet Eileen and Linda along with Eileen's daughter, Ali, her husband Dan and their two girls at the game tomorrow.  Ali and Dan are visiting from Pennsylvania and will be here for a few days.   After the game, the plan is to over to Frenchy's on the beach for dinner and the sunset over the gulf.

Florida Spring Training 2017 - Day 42

The Phillies played the Boston Red Sox today.  It was a sell-out crowd at the ball park with a lot of Red Sox fans there.  The skies were cloudy with no wind with a threat of showers that never materialized.  One of the special events today was an appearance by a local Little League baseball team before the game started.  Each of the players stood with his Phillie's counterpart for the National Anthem and received a signed baseball.  As for the game, the Phillies started slowly but came back and won it in the 9th inning 6-5.

The highlight of the day was that my seat number was picked at random and I won a $100 gift certificate good at several restaurants in the area.  That's pretty good odds considering there are 10,000 seats in the stadium.  Maybe I should go buy a lottery ticket.

No baseball tomorrow.  The forecast is for some rain and cooler temperatures.  Whatever the weather turns out to be it will be better than what the people next to us from Vermont and Boston were complaining about back home at the moment - snow and cold weather.

The plan for tomorrow is to get caught up on things around the RV and take it easy.

Day 42 Pictures

Florida Spring Training 2017 - Day 41

We had long and busy day today.  We took a nature walk this morning on Honeymoon Island, ate lunch at Frenchy's Outpost, and went on a sunset cruise from Clearwater Beach.

We have done the nature walk at Honeymoon State Park several times in the past and wanted to do it again.  It was  a nice day for a hike as well as a good opportunity for weekend beach time (sunny, 80 degrees and a slight breeze).  The traffic over the causeway to Honeymoon Island was heavy and the beaches along the causeway and in the park were packed.  Spring break visitors are also starting to kick-in with a noticeable increase in young visitors escaping the rigors and tensions of present-day college life with the more traditional spring break activities such as excessive beer drinking, displaying the latest in minimalist beach attire, and engaging in young person mating rituals.

The nature trail is slightly inland from the park beaches and is home to a variety of wildlife including ospreys, horned owls, gopher tortoises, eastern diamond back rattlesnakes and the highlight, an active and protected American Bald Eagle nesting site.  The tour today was planned to be a guided hike lead by a park volunteer, but no volunteer showed up.  So on our own, we took an enjoyable one mile hike on a partly shaded trail.  We saw just about all the wildlife in the area, including a big rattlesnake, an elusive gopher tortoise, lots of ospreys and two adult bald eagles.  We didn't see the female Great Horned Owl who another hiker on the trail said was nesting with two chicks in a secluded nesting site.

Day 41 Pictures - Honeymoon State Park Nature Trail

After the hike, we ate lunch at Frenchy's Outpost, another Frenchy's restaurant at the end of the causeway in Dunedin.  It was another great meal at a very popular area restaurant.

Day 41 Pictures - Frenchy's

We then drove over to Clearwater Beach for our scheduled sunset cruise on a catamaran sail boat.  It took awhile to get over to Clearwater Beach although it was only 5 miles away. You have to travel over a causeway with a two lane roundabout at the end funneling traffic to and from the causeway as well as north and south traffic along the barrier islands.  We had enough time however and had a drink at a dockside restaurant before we boarded the boat for the cruise along with about 40 other people.  The boat was motor powered until we went under the bridge and into the Gulf of Mexico.  The crew then unfurled the sails and we headed out to sea for about an hour.  We then turned around and watched the sunset as we returned.  It was a very smooth ride and an enjoyable end to a busy day.

Day 41 Pictures - Sunset Cruise

More baseball tomorrow with the Boston Red Sox coming to town.  

Florida Spring Training 2017 - Day 40

The Phillies played the New York Yankees today and were shut out 5 to 0.  The Phillies couldn't seem to get anything going - they left 17 runners on base and their pitching was shaky.  The good news is that it is still only spring training, the games don't count and there are 3 weeks to go before the season starts.  There are still plenty of games to play and many of the rookies/free agents are playing a lot as the team sorts out who will be on the final roster.  It is too early to make a prediction regarding how the team will do this year and we'll see how everything looks as the regular payers and pitchers finish up spring training.

Dinner was in the RV tonight (actually great take-out pizza.)  No baseball tomorrow. The plan is to take a guided late morning nature walk on Honeymoon Island State Park and a sunset cruise on a catamaran from Clearwater Beach.  Baseball again on Sunday.

Day 40 Pictures

Florida Spring Training 2017 - Day 39

After stopping at the local Walgreens to pick up a prescription, we traveled across town to watch the Phillies v. Toronto Blue Jays.  

We are about 6 miles from Spectrum Field (The Phillies complex) and it generally takes about 15 minutes to get to and from the park, depending on traffic.  One note about Florida traffic here in the Tampa Bay area:  The local drivers are aggressive and skilled in cutting you off and pulling in front of you at the numerous turn lanes and intersections. Oh, and turn signals remain an optional concept.  We have also noticed that speed limits appear to be just suggestions and have not seen a lot of enforcement on the surface streets, many of which are 6 lanes wide with numerous turn-outs.  I am relearning and emphasizing my defensive driving skills while we drive around town.

The Phillies did not play a good game today, losing 6-4 to the Toronto Blue Jays.  Spring training to-date has seen a lot of rookie/free agent players trrying to make the team.  We are now getting into the part of spring training whjere the regulars will be getting more playing time.

More baseball tomorrow, this time against the NY Yankees.

Day 39 PIctures

Florida Spring Training 2017 - Day 38

We traveled down to Pinellas Park, a community/city that is part of the St. Petersburg metroplex, to visit a nature park we had read about.  The park is called Sawgrass Lake, a Pinellas County park that is also home to an environmental education center.

Sawgrass Lake was originally a marsh land subject to tidal and watershed fluctuations. Over the years due to several agricultural enterprises, and water diversions, it is now a stable lake that has been saved as a nature preserve and environmental education resource.

The park is very nice with several trails along raised boarded walkways.  We walked out to an observation deck overlooking the lake.  We saw several different species of birds and a number of baby alligators. "Momma Gator" was nearby keeping her eye on the flock, but was avoiding the paparazzi while we were there, hiding under the observation deck.  It was a pleasant visit and an enjoyable walk in the "woods".

Day 38 Pictures - Sawgrass Lake Park

Our next stop was a trip over to the nearby Gulf Coast to visit another beach village, John's Pass, that is adjacent to a larger beach town, Madeira Beach.  We had lunch at a boardwalk seafood restaurant, The Friendly Fisherman Seafood Restaurant.  We had another great lunch, despite picking a restaurant we knew nothing about.

After lunch, we walked along the waterfront boardwalk.  The area seems to be a great place to come if you want to participate in water sport adventures, including dolphin/sunset cruises, kayak/jet ski rentals, and fishing charters.  Businesses along the boardwalk were typical Florida beach town staples - souvenir shops, beach attire, restaurant and tiki-style bars.

Day 38 Pictures - John's Pass Village

Our original plan was to then go over an visit another nature park and the Florida Heritage Village but we overplanned and ran out of time to do those two things today.  Plan B was to go up to Clearwater Beach and see if we could get on the sunset cruise on the catamaran sailboat, one of our goals for this year's trip.  Alas, they were full for today but we made a reservation for Saturday.  While there we did see a couple of fishing charter boats come in and unload their catches - very impressive.

We drove back to the RV through Tampa Bay rush hour traffic - also very impressive. Dinner was not needed again due to a relatively late and substantial lunch.  Back to baseball again for the next two days.