I like to pretend I am car sick (at least that is the theory) so I get invited to be co-pilot when Dad is driving. 
Maybe I really do get motion sick. Maybe laying in the back of the moving motorhome reading on my Kindle does it to me.
After several hours of driving we arrived at the 6 mile entrance road to the preserve. We were told in advance that the road was in rough shape. We had no idea how bumpy it would be. The rain washed a lot of the road out and there were giant potholes.
We backed in just before dark and only went as far as the lake in our site allowed. BY morning the water had receded quite a bit.
Mom and I went for an early morning hike to survey the flooding. Most of the roads were passable but had standing water.
The run off areas were flooded. I enjoyed dragging my stick in the water.
We hiked down to the horse camp. The roads at horse camp were really flooded.
Mom hiked one way and we all went the other way.
E and I played outside from sun up to sun down. We made a fishing hole out of the spot where the fire right was sitting. We moved the fire ring to higher dryer ground so we could have a campfire.
The park is a Dark Sky Park. We met with the resident volunteer astronomer and got to see sun spots.
We hauled firewood for a fire. E and I made it most of the way back to the campsite.
Dad helped get the final few sites.
E and I collected moss and other trinkets around the campground and covered the picnic table while Daddy desperately worked on the stubborn fire.
The next day we took a swamp buggy tour.
We went out into the soaking wet prairie.
Some places the water was very deep but the buggy easily went through.
We saw lots of unique birds: crested cara cara, bald eagles and lots of vultures.
We even discovered a carcass of a wild boar.
There were lots of alligators along the riverbanks.
We learned some survival skills as well. We learned that saw palmetto can be picked a certain way and you can chew the stew for the water inside. It tasted kind of funny but if I were really thirsty it would work for me.
