When captain Tucker came to meet us he was as happy as a person can be. He introduced himself then proceeded to tell us that recently he'd been diagnosed with cancer and was given a few months to live. This morning he was informed that whatever echo machine they'd used wasn't working properly and he'd been misdiagnosed! A real life "Last Holiday"--Queen Latifah story! A new lease on life. I'll bet he appreciates each new day from now on as a gift and blessing.
So on to the tour. It was about 20 degrees hotter & 3 pm when we started the tour. We were all so grateful when we saw a cover over the top of his swamp boat! Tucker headed for the nesting areas and knew exactly where to find the gators. I think Ethan had been living for this moment. 
This was completely different from our first tour. It seemed like Tucker was just waiting for his not so little alligator friends to swim on over and welcome us to their neck of the woods. After some sweet talking, along came Suzette. She's about 9 years old and had her first litter last year. Suzette like to eat marshmallows!
Next came Bella. Apparently she was mad because she was only getting marshmallows. Must've wanted meat. She bit Capt T last week so she's not exactly in his good graces. When he put the oar in the water she chomped on it and left some serious teeth marks.
After leaving that area we were cruising down an area that looked very much like the Meadows on the California Delta when Heidi spotted Max heading our way Pretty impressive. She just saw his eyes heading our way so we stopped and waited and he came right up to the boat. Max was quite a bit larger than Suzette's & Bella and is probably about 30-40 years old.
We also saw the same osprey as we did 2 weeks ago. Last time we went by there were 3 babies in the next which could be heard but not seen. This time we saw 2 of the babies in a nearby tree but mama osprey has been trying unsuccessfully to get baby #3 out on his own without much luck. He kind of reminds me of Baby Huey. Can you tell which is mom and which is baby? Yes, of course you can, because mom is larger, but not by much. And Baby Huey is back a bit. Oh, and the nest weighs around 300 pounds--more or less!
I personally think this pic is a great shot as we cruised under the I-10 interstate. If we took it the other direction we'd get to Danielle's eventually.
Another trip to Avery Island gave us even more detailed information about the island and workings of the Tabasco plant. The Nemeth's thoroughly enjoyed sampling all of the products, including raspberry Tabasco ice cream, Tabasco chili and a variety of other spicy sauces. Kennedi particularly liked the chili. Every time I saw her she had another sample. I didn't realize she was such a "Spice Girl!"
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