Short but great ride today from Fort Meyers to the beginning of the Everglades about 20 miles South of Naples. 56 miles. It was not as hot as it rained off and on most of the afternoon. Stopped in Naples to visit a former partner and my mentor during my business career before moving to Sandpoint. I'm hanging out at a marina for a couple of days and plan on touring the Everglades tomorrow and getting back together with my friends from Naples. As I was walking around the marina this afternoon I saw a big splash in the water and thought it might have been some fish. To my surprise, it was a very large alligator who spent several minutes watching me and then swam off. Won't want to fall off the dock!!!
So you might ask...what's with the caption "This One is for Claudia!!" For those who don't know, she is my wife and puts up with a lot from me. For example, I took off on the ride right before our 47th anniversary and she had to spend it on her own. 12 years ago, I took off on a 6 month 10,000 mile ride when I retired...missed that anniversary as well. Anyway, she has been collecting elephants her entire life....we have elephants all over the house. Thus, the picture of the elephants from early this morning during today's ride. I'm sure there is a story behind the elephants as they were just there on the side of the road.