Feb 04, 2010 - Fort DeSoto State Park



Hibiscus, Fort DeSoto State Park



Today started off with a phone call from an unknown number. Normally, I don't answer it unless the number is in my contact list, but this one had a home area code, so I took the call. Good thing, as it turned out to be our credit union. They have a company that monitors their credit/debit card transactions for suspicious activity, and all our recent out of state debit card use had raised a red flag in the system. I explained that we were indeed in possession of the card, were in fact out of state on vacation, gave her the names of some of the places we'd used the card, and answered the secret question correctly. All was well. She asked us about the weather down here, wished us a good time, and said we wouldn't have any problems from here on out. Not to be cynical, but I added the number to my contact list in case they call again. Hopefully we won't have to ask you all to pass the hat in order to get us home.



Tree roots, Fort DeSoto State Park



If you took a look at a road map, you'd think Fort DeSoto Park was miles away from the nearest civilization, stuck out in the Gulf on this tiny dot of land, but it just ain't so. Civilization creeps right on past the edges of the mainland and right onto those tiny dots of land. Heck, I think we could easily ride our bikes to get whatever we might need in terms of supplies, or to take in a restaurant meal. But since we just got supplies in GA, and we do most of our shopping online, we rode our bikes out to North Beach instead, about a 4 mile trip. It was a bit chilly (60 degrees) with a little breeze when we hopped on the bikes, so we thought this would be a good way to kill some time and see if it was going to warm up enough to spend some time on the beach. There's all sorts of stuff to do: you can rent canoes and kayaks, or you can rent these things that look like extra wide surfboards, which you (get this) stand up on and propel with a very long paddle. Supposedly you can make them go where you want, and not just in random directions. The multi-use hike/bike trail system is extensive and paved, and if you don't have your own bike, you can rent one with 2, 3, or 4 wheels. If you don't want to exert yourself, well then you can take a guided 90 minute Segway tour. One of the Segway tours was apparently just getting underway in the parking lot while we were there; the guide was giving operating instructions to a group, and amidst all the giggling, we heard a lot of stuff like this:

"Uh-oh!"

"Nyaaahhh!"

"Yoicks!"

Okay, I made that last one up, but you get the idea. To the group's credit, nobody crashed and nobody got hurt, although for a few seconds there they sort of reminded me of Shriners doing figure eights in their mini-cars. In fact, for the most part they all seemed to get the hang of it pretty quickly and looked to be having a great time. As the guy bringing up the rear went whipping by, he yelled back to me over his shoulder, "Man, you gotta try this. This is big fun. Whoops!"

Hmmm. I can't decide which thing has the most potential to hurt me: the Segway, or the standup surfboard.



North Beach - Beth is happy.

But no worries - the sun came out and it warmed up nicely, and we returned with chairs and beverages and books and had a great afternoon sitting safe and secure on the beach that was rated #1 in America two years running by TripAdvisor.com. As Beth said, "Just think. Some people actually live here."

Our friends Floyd and Sue are leaving MI tonight to meet up with us Saturday, and should have left around 6:00 PM. So about 9:00 PM I sent him a text message: "R we there yet, dad?"