John D. MacArthur Beach State Park

September has been a busy month for us here in Florida.  We really haven't taken anymore big trips except for a quick one day trip to the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute Emergency Room in Miami for Hubby's inflammed eye.  All is good now so, last Saturday, we visited a park close to home.  The 325 acre park is named after the previous owner, John D. MacArthur, who wished to preserve it for future generations.

There are nearly two miles of beach for swimming.  It's is a prime nesting site for sea turtles too.

You get to the beach via a 1,600-foot boardwalk that spans Lake Worth.

It was fascinating to look into the water at all the fish.  In cooler weather you can see manatees too.

If you get tired you can sit down and wait for the tram to  take you back across the estuary to the Nature Center.

The Nature Center has displays and live animal exhibits to learn more about the park.  This is NOT a live exhibit.  YUCK!  That is a live hand though.

This IS a live exhibit.  DOUBLE YUCK!  They're not poisonous but I don't want to meet up with one of them.

The park also has nature trails.

This Banyon Tree has a ways to grow before it reaches the size of the one at Thomas Edison's home.

The fruit on this Sea Grape Tree looked good enough to eat.

Hubby pointed out this guy in one of the trees.  I watched where I walked after seeing that!

Then, we spotted these guys in one of the parking lots.

As I approached, the larger Turkey Vulture flew away but this one let me get close - maybe, too close.  You can tell this one is still a juvenile because his head hasn't turned red yet, so maybe he didn't know any better.  I decided I was close enough.  He was looking at me with a hungry eye!

You can also observe the wildlife by renting a kayak so, tomorrow, we're slathering on the sunscreen, packing up our water bottles, and trying our hand at kayaking.  It will be a new experience for us.  I'll let you know how it goes!