Starting the Titusville Tour

Shortly before my trip to Florida, two new series had popped up in my searches and they were two that I knew I HAD to find.  Glory Train had placed two series of boxes, one taking a tour of some historic spots in North Brevard county and the other in Space Walk Park in Titusville.  Although these boxes could have been so wrong, they were actually some of the best boxes I have found in quite a while.  They were in pouches which is a no-no to many Floridian boxers (and also many non-Floridian boxers) but it was really the only way the boxes could have been hidden they way they were.  The stamps were simply carved but very appropriate for the areas that they were in and I just loved the whole experience.  Even Bill seemed to enjoy himself as we completed these boxes.  The first box on the Titusville tour took us to a park in Mims which is dedicated to Mr. and Mrs. Moore, early supporters of the NAACP and desegragation in the 1940's. 

  

In 1951, after devoting their lives to eliminating desegregation, the Moore's were murdered when a bomb blew up under their bedroom.  The house below is a replica of their home.

 After I had found the box there, I decided to go on the front porch and see what was inside.  It was very early in the morning so it was feeling a bit desolate there because Bill had waited in the car.  I have to admit that I jumped about a foot when I peered in the window to see people standing there.  I was so relieved when I realized that it was just Mr. and Mrs. Moore having breakfast.

 

We then headed down the road a bit to Space Walk park in Titusville.  Bill kept telling me he was familiar with this park because he had watched a space launch from it a couple of years ago.  In fact, he has a rather remarkable story about the space launch view.  Bill has a son who is a bit of a nomad and we never know where he is from month to month.  The last we had heard, he was in Maine.  There were over a million people in town to watch the launch and who should Bill see in Space Walk park but his son, the first time he had seen him in several years.  What are the chances!

Below is a picture of the dock in the park.

 When I zoomed in as much as my little camera can zoom, I could pick out the NASA building across the waterway.  It is the tiny little blob on the central right side of the horizon.  It is hard to believe from this photo that this building is one of the largest buildings in the WORLD by volume.

 We found the box that was there and when I went to find the next one, Bill asked where I was going. He had no idea that this park expanded a couple of blocks further than the area he was familiar with.  While I searched for boxes, he had a good time reading all of the memorials that are dedicated to the different eras of the space program.

 Bill took control of the camera as I was stamping in. 

 I have always been a fan of President Kennedy who was killed when I was 12 years old.  He was responsible for promoting the space program and encouraging its development and growth and he is also remembered in this park.

 Who can forget the days that the Challenger and Columbia crews were taken from us in tragic accidents.  They will live on also in the park.

 

And I am still stamping in!

 I didn't get picture of the middle three North Brevard county boxes because Bill was getting just a little bit antsy and I had to move fast but I did get some of the last one.  It was located in one of my most favorite parks in the US.  We travel to the Canaveral National Seashore almost every time that I visit Florida.  Most of the time, we are hunting for alligators but today we were looking for a box.

 

We stopped in the park office so I could make a purchase that I was really excited about.  I had turned 62 in December and at that age, one can purchase a Senior Park Pass which gets me into all national parks free for the rest of my life.  I had planned on buying it at this park since I love it so much and now, I can get in free!  Oh, I also bought their new patch for my patch collection.

The last box was also dedicated to the early African American community and I was rather startled to find that in my obsession with searching for alligators, I had never noticed the gravesites that dot the road through the park.

 

 One other thing that we often do when we visit Merritt Island is take a peek at the nude beach there.  The last couple of times that we had been there, the weather had been less than idyllic and the sun bathers were sparse.  But this was a sunny although rather chilly day and the beach was definitely occupied.  I quickly snapped a picture, a little nervous to take too many because of invading people's privacy, but after I got home and thought about it, I figured that the people who enjoy this lifestyle are probably not very concerned with others seeing their nude bodies.  Next visit....more pictures!