Will by a Warmer River

The 27th of December dawned yesterday with a passing shower and then cleared off to this weather here in Florida. This boat departed from the private docks here on Hutchinson Island at the Coconut Cove Condo's. The pier pole sitting pelican and I watched them quietly depart for either a cruise around the Indian River Estuary and intra coastal waterway or out the cut to the Atlantic Ocean.
     My son and I talked about how much the water calls to him when he is near the ocean. And our time together over on the gulf shore was spent playing in the waves with his children and nephews. We had days of really nice waves for the gulf, with boogie boards and kayaks to surf them. Plenty of sand and water for my son.The Indian River Estuary, here on the Atlantic side of Florida, is a very biological diverse ecosystem that is a reminder of how much I love being near the water, but even more near a river. I love the ocean views, especially when the shore has some bluffs and rocks for the waves to break against. The gulf and the Atlantic are nice here, with great beaches, but they don't call me to go boating like rivers do.
     Here in Central Florida they have started to work on the recovery of the Indian River Estuary, looking at storm water discharges, the health of different fish and turtle populations. Throughout America, just like Salida Colorado, we are embracing our rivers and their health. Building to watch to river, not have it in our back yard, but our front yard. Here they don't have dams to be concerned about, but they do have runoff from huge areas that affect the health of this system. I am a member of Trout Unlimited and so read their magazines about opening up rivers to the sea and know that we are doing better, the success of the salmon returning to the Elwha River on the Olympic Peninsula after those dams were removed is proof of this. There are many more not so public successes. I suspect those working for the Indian River Estuary will find success also. I think our climate awareness adds to this process, if for no other reason than this feels more local than the ozone and we might be able to make a change. I was encouraged as I watched some YouTube video yesterday to acclimate to what we might do here during our visit, that talked about the work in progress.
   It is warm and lovely here, and with all the weather happening north of us, rain, snow and tornadoes, the scene above seems especially tranquil.
     I love being Will by the river, but in winter, I love that this river is in a warmer climate!