Awake: 6:04am Temp 45 sleep 5+50 sunny overnight @ St. Augustine, FL.
Small breakfast for us again this morning; then we visit Mary Ann & Ed @ their rented condo before riding with them to the nearby Beach Comer Restaurant for lunch. Very popular restaurant but we did beat the bikers from Canada & thus, our waiting time was a mere (20) min. Kathy had a fish taco & I had a fresh tuna steak with salad plus we each have an Amber Bock beer. I can see why this place is so popular; our meals were excellent.
During our lunch we discussed a few choices of what to do today; Ed was prepared to drive on the beach & hang out there all afternoon until, (2) people we didn't know, sitting across from us, started talking about the Ravine Gardens State Park in Palatka, FL, a (30) mile drive one way. Just yesterday they had walked the trails & toured the Ravine & marveled how wonderful the azaleas are looking. Well, that sparked a strong interest for Mary Ann & Kathy so away we go....to Palatka.
The Ravine Gardens were developed by the City of Palatka, the Federal Civil Works Administration (CWA) & the Works Progress Administration (WPA) during the Great Depression from (1933-39) in an effort to spur the economic recovery of the city of Palatka. Gosh, there could easily be a deja vu for other cities coming up any day now funded by our government stimulus plan.
This place was amazing; not only were there many Azaleas in full bloom but also the trails & (2) suspension bridges that we crossed in good condition plus the different plants & trees: live oaks, hickory, sweet gum, longleaf pines, cabbage palm & many more filled in the spaces around the very deep ravine. We read that in 1934, over 95,000 azaleas were planted by Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) workers. We figure we went up & down the Ravine trails for a good (2) hrs.
Before we left town, we each had an ice cream cone from Dairy Queen as a reward to ourselves that nobody fell off the cliffs or got bruised.
It was dark when we got back to Ed & MA's place so we just said our thanks for another swell day & we'll see you guys tomorrow.
K & I finish the movie: "Dinner at Eight" with Marie Dressler, John Barrymore, Wallace Beery, Jean Harlow, Lionel Barrymore, Lee Tracy, etc. Vintage MGM constellation of stars portray various strata of society in N.Y.C., invited to dine & shine; Harlow in fine comedy form. 1933. Kathy wasn't that impressed, but being born & raised on the farm, I paid strict attention.
Lights out: 12:13am
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