11/23 Ft. Myers and East on the Okeechobee

Monday, we took a walk to the Edison Ford Winter Estates and Gardens.  There was so much to see.  Edison came first to Ft. Myers.  Then Ford bought the lot next door.  There is a huge banyan tree located on the property.   That is not many trees; it is all one tree.  A statue of Edison stands below it.

Edison had a laboratory there looking for the best way to harvest latex to make rubber.  Ford's wife, Mina, was instrumental in the grounds and gardens.  Here is John on a bench with her. 

The docent that took us around the estates was excellent.  This is a huge bougainvillea.  He told us that it is supported with metal supports. 

The garden paths overlooked the Calasoohatchee River, which makes up the Okeechobee.

This tree had orchids growing all over it.  It was spectacular.

 Edison also experimented with bamboo as a filament in light bulbs.  So there were great stands of bamboo in the garden.

I learned why a pick up truck is called a pick up truck.  Apparently, when you ordered the early trucks, it would come in a wooden box by train.  The new owner would go Pick Up his new truck at the train station.  The wood of the box became the truck bed and the sides.  The engine and other pieces would be put together.

In the museum, there was the Ford car that Ford gave to Edison.

There were many inventions on display from both men.  I liked these sayings by both men.

In the afternoon, I got a mani/pedi in downtown Fr. Myers.  It was just a short walk up First St.

Tuesday morning,  I went back to Bennett's Donuts.  It was practically just across the street from the marina.  They have been featured on the Food Network.  The fritters were amazing.  We gave the boat a good scrubbing.  It was covered in salt.  We made a second reprovisioning run to Publix, too.  In the evening, a friend of mine, Wendi Stevenson,  that I worked with at Carilion who now lives in Ft. Myers, brought her family by to say hello and tour the boat.  What a good time it was.  Her twin daughters are 16.  They wanted their dad to buy a boat. 

This morning, we headed across the Okeechobee.  When we were first thinking about this trip we rented a small trawler and went a short way across the Okeechobee.  That was my first experience with a lock.  I remembered being so excited.  Today, we went through that same lock.  It only changed elevation by 3 feet.  After all the locks we have done, it seemed so simple.

The Okeechobee reminds one that not all of Florida is a city or Disney.  There were ranches with cows and horses.

Miles of orange groves line the river.

I loved the structure of this railroad bridge in the open position.

Manatees have found that power plants have warm water discharge and they move to the power plants for the winter.  Everyone winters in FLA.

Tonight we are in La Belle, Florida and will cross Lake Okeechobee tomorrow.

Lat 26 degrees 47.76 North
Long 81 degrees 17.65 West