Everglades National Park and Key Largo, Fla.

This past week, John and I headed down to South Florida. My friend Melissa works as a wildlife biologist there, where she is responsible for the study and removal of invasive snake species found in Everglades National Park. Here are some highlights.

John and I were very happy to find that the original African Queen was permanently docked in Key Largo. We enjoyed the movie, and decided to get some pictures of the 1912 built vessel.

Although we did not see any Florida Panthers while we were down there, I decided to show my frightened look as practice in case we did see one.

Walking along the Anhinga Trail was very nice. We really enjoyed seeing the vast expanses of unaltered landscapes. We saw Anhingas, Green Herons, Great Egrets, and alligators while on the boardwalk. My favorite thing was the alligators.

Above, John and I are hiking through the Everglades. It was pretty swampy, and had a foul odor. I liked it though, because I knew we were experiencing the real Everglades, and getting a glimpse into Florida's natural landscape before mass development took over.

After our tromp through the Everglades, we took a kayak trip out into the marine bay just south of the park. We saw a lot of beautiful birds, including Roseate Spoonbills, White Ibis, Skimmers, and Great Egrets.Heading back into the park, the sunset was amazing.

Here is the house where Melissa and Scott live. It was very charming, and lots of fun. Geckos and a variety of Anoles were everywhere.

It is great to have so many talented and gracious friends inviting us to see where they live and work. Florida's natural history is fascinating, and I'm glad we got a first-hand glimpse into it.

Hocking Hills, Ohio

In May, John and I visited with his college friend, Katrina, who lives in Logan, Ohio. She works as a wildlife biologist for the Wayne National Forest in the Hocking Hills region. It is such a beautiful and unique place!

While there, we saw lots and lots of spring warblers, and really cool rock formations and overlooks. Above is a picture looking out of the Rock House. While on the Rock House trail, we heard Cerulean Warblers, and saw Red-eyed Vireos, and a male Hooded Warbler.

This is a breath-taking overlook at Conkles Hollow. I can imagine it's even more amazing in the fall. At Conkles Hollow, we saw Black and White warblers and heard a lot of Black-throated Green warblers.

John and I really loved our horseback ride through Hocking Hills with Katrina and Carl. We brushed and saddled the horses first with the help of the guides, and then went up into the hills. It was a really pretty morning. We couldn't believe how well the horses could maneuver around the rocks and steep crevices.

Thank you for inviting us to Hocking Hills, Katrina and Carl! We'll definitely be back.