FRIDAY, 11 OCTOBER Birds thought they had a new feeding ground . . . . . . and as I watched these White Ibises, the entire flock flew to where the circle is; a hawk then attacked them, missing them all. Several herons also stopped by, but realized there was nothing in the water for them. A major disappointment for them, I'm sure. Patrick is still enjoying his lakefront property . . . . . . as the water continued to rise. So why was there a flood for the first time in over 50 years, I hear you ask. I will try to explain to the best of my understanding (if I'm wrong, correct me in the comments below, please). This area is surrounded by and run through by Brooker Creek, which has a flood stage of 12'. Brooker Creek empties into Lake Tarpon, which is just across East Lake Road from the area shown in the drone video linked on the previous page.
The small circle is our previous house; the rectangle is where my hairedresser, dentist and vet are located . . .	. . . the red marker is our current house. If they ever build a bridge, dig a tunnel, or set up a ferry, my trips there would be 10 minutes, instead of 30.
Lake Tarpon empties into Old Tampa Bay, via a canal. When Brooker Creek reaches flood stage due to rain, and Lake Tarpon is also high due to rain, the gates on the canal can be opened to alleviate the water overflow. However, this can only be done at low tide; when the tide turns, the gates are closed until the next low tide. Which is why it took several days to bring the Lake Tarpon and Brooker Creek water down and alleviate the flooding. Tarpon Lake is a lovely, but unswimmable, lake. In fact, most, if not all, lakes in Florida are unswimmable, due to the alligator population. You can boat, fish, jet & water ski on the lake, which is one of the reasons I didn't look for a house with lakefront, as these are all noisy activities and who needs that? Also, you cannot build a fence on the lakefront, so you could have alligators in your yard or pool at any time, especially if you have small dogs to tempt them! We had six dogs at the time I was looking for a different house. WE HAVE NO ELECTRICITY.

HURRICANE MILTON, THE AFTERMATH:
THINKING OF BUILDING AN ARK HERE