I LOVE TO GO A-WANDERING!
A WALK IN ORTEGA FOREST, JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA
It's a beautiful North Florida Sunday with temperatures in the eighties, but with far less humidity than we had to suffer throughout July, August, September, and even October until now!
After church I did a little yard work, but it's still too hot to spend too long outdoors doing physical labor, so I came indoors to download and edit the iPhone shots I took during my 10K walk with my walking group, First Coast Trail Forgers which is affiliated with the American Volkssport Association, the AVA, which in turn is a companion organization to the International Federation Of Popular Sports, or IVV. The international organization was established in 1968 in Germany and soon spread world wide.
“So what is the benefit of belonging to such a club?” you may ask. The most obvious benefit is the fitness aspect, of course.
I have completed three 10K walks with my local club so far, and have had the pleasure of exploring three different areas around Jacksonville, areas I had not visited in such a way before. Also, when you are walking with companions the time goes past much more quickly, and before you know it you have walked 10K – that's 6.2 miles!
At the end of each walk we go somewhere cool for lunch, so we get to socialize with each other afterwards. Our group consists of both men and women in their twenties through seventies, and we are from all areas of the city and its surrounding communities!
We don't compete against each other, but we do have IVV books that are stamped so that we accumulate points for the the distances walked, and for the amount of organized events attended. Some walks are known as YRE or Year Round Events, which means that you can pick up a map at a scheduled place (normally a cafe or restaurant) and take the walk at your convenience. When you return to the restaurant, you then stamp your book according to whether you have done a 5K or a 10K walk. When you reach certain levels of achievement, certificates and pins etc. are awarded.
Another great advantage of the club, is that I can walk anywhere in the world where there are clubs, either with an organized event, or by using a map for a YRE or Year Round Event!
For Sublime Sunday organized by the very talented @c0ff33a then, I give you this visual record of yesterday's walk through the beautiful Ortega Forest neighborhood, a neighborhood of large mansions, giant live oaks and waterways. Enjoy!
We started our walk at the beautiful Stockton Park located on the St. Johns River
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 8 Plus
At 9am fisherman were out ready for the big catch of the day
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 8 Plus
This bench is waiting for you...
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 8 Plus
This beautiful hanging Spanish moss is hanging from all the live oak trees in the park.
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 8 Plus
A few members of the group setting off through the stately oak trees at Stockton Park.
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 8 Plus
This garage sale looked so enticing, but no time to stop...
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 8 Plus
I love this house with its white picket fence and red brick driveway.
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 8 Plus
My self portrait on this beautiful tree lined street!
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 8 Plus
Some are fortunate to have a boat moored at the end of their back yards!
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 8 Plus
Thought I'd throw in a funky edit for the tag created by @tattoodjay and @krazypoet. Do you like it?
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 8 Plus
Trick or treat anyone?
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 8 Plus
Yet another beautiful park on the St. Johns waterfront.
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 8 Plus
And this is where we stopped for lunch. See the kitty entering the shot? I imagine she's stopping by for some seafood!
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved. Camera: iPhone 8 Plus
Please note that this is all my original work and a very similar post can be found here on WEKU.
Looks like a great place!
The richest neighborhood in the city of Jacksonville. Very nice!
As a follower of @followforupvotes this post has been randomly selected and upvoted! Enjoy your upvote and have a great day!
Thanks for the Upvote!
What a beautiful area for a walk, and how cool to go for a walk and then enjoy a lunch with like minded walkers :)
Yes, I hardly realized I had walked 10K, and lunch afterwards is fun!
Oh my goodness, what a place! Oh well, it's Florida, how could we expect anything less? Do you have a guest room for a humble Canadian trying to escape cold winter moths? lol. Stunning photography my Dear 💛😊💛
Thanks Lena! We do have a guestroom! :-)
My pleasure and it's good to know my Dear, lol.
Congratulations! Your post was selected by the @dropahead Curation Team (dCT)
That club seems just like fun. You get to know many different places and different persons from all over the world. What has been the most interesting walk you have ever done?
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Well, thank you! I appreciate that!
It will always be a wonderful place to visit reason why we should conserve so that both animal and plant species should not get extinct. i upvote your post as well as follow you
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Thanks for that!!
Wow, you have so many wonderful pictures of your outing. I love the moss laden trees and what you did for JJ's fun edits. Looks so cool.
Thanks! It was a great walk with wonderful company!
Absolutely stunning photography, I know @deadgrlsuppastar shares some amazing photographs of Florida I would love to visit some time.
The spider web and inflatable ghost are awesome in front of that house. Loving the boat #FunkyEdits
#thealliance #witness
Thanks! Wishing it would cool down a bit, so that I can fit in some more 10ks before I leave for Budapest next week. The weather there should be great for walking!!