Kay Phoenix: Author Elsie Davis

This past November, hubby and I traveled to the Northern Florida region for a ten day clear-water kayaking trip. I planned this trip years ago, determined to kayak and swim with the manatee. Something always got in the way, but finally it all worked out and the trip was amazing. I picked the week before November 15^th because some of the areas start to close to boaters (including kayaks) on the 15^th as more and more manatee come in to winter in warmer waters. This way I gave us the greatest chance to see and experience the manatee.

We love to be outdoors so we camped along the way, mostly staying in state parks with electric and water. (Not to rustic…lol) During the ten days, we managed six kayaking trips ranging from a few hours to six hours. The longer one included a stop at a restaurant for a wonderful lunch and fine wine while sitting outdoors on a deck overlooking the river.

#1 We covered the Suwannee River trail from Fanning Springs to Manatee State Park. There was a shuttle service to take us back to our vehicle for a charge, but way better then paddling upstream. We saw a couple of manatee and were pretty excited since it was only our first kayak trip. Hubby had one manatee surface, push his nose out the water, and inch right up to the kayak to investigate. Up close, you get a real feel for the size of these “sea cows.”

#2 We covered the Silver River from Ray’s Wayside Park to the Silver River State Park. Here we did a little Yakorkeling. This is a combination snorkeling and kayaking. Crazy, I know. We kayaked upstream and then put on our snorkel gear and floated down the river with our kayaks tied to our wrist with a long rope to pull it along. Swimming in crystal clear water with the fish was an amazing experience.

#3 We covered Rainbow Springs were we saw wild monkeys, alligators, manatee and the old Rainbow Springs theme park, which is now owned by the state park system and who recently opened the area up to kayakers. Pristine run.

#4 We covered the Homosassa Springs/Monkey Island area. We put in at Macrae’s but it was pretty windy. Monkey Island had nothing on the wild monkeys we saw in trip #3.

#5 We covered the Crystal River/Kings Bay area. We kayaked around the inlets and one of the volunteers they have to monitor boating activity to protect the manatee, told us where to find them that morning. We paddled to the inlet and discovered a pod of about 20-25 manatee. The water was more murky but up close, still got great pictures. Out at one of the head springs, the water was crystal clear and this is where we had our only opportunity to swim with a manatee. It was an incredible experience. Ours was a baby. 😉

#6 We covered Ichetucknee Springs from the North to South entrance. Big tuber area in the summer, but we had the place pretty much to ourselves in November. Very pristine.

Side note: We were scheduled to paddle the Blue Springs River at Blue Springs State park, but due to a recent hurricane, we walked the trail they provide, but weren’t able to kayak. Beautiful water and picturesque settings.

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Title: Back in the Rancher’s Arms

Series: Trinity River novel – Book 1

Author/pen name: Elsie Davis

Genre: Sweet, Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Entangled Publishing

Date of Publication: April 9^th, 2018

ISBN: 9781640635128

Number of pages: 200

Word Count: 55,000

Blurb:

Dylan Hunter has always loved the girl next door. Part of loving her meant making sure she left their small town to study to become a veterinarian. He just never expected it to take this long for her to come home. His hands are full raising his younger brother and bringing his ranch through the drought, but one look at Kayla and his feelings are back full force.

Kayla Anderson’s not prepared to see the guy who broke her heart in high school again, but she can’t get out of returning home to be maid of honor at her cousin’s wedding. She’s determined to have fun and celebrate the special day, despite the fact Dylan is her family’s closest neighbor and the best man, and get the heck out of Dodge.

But Dylan already lost the woman he loved once. This time, he’s determined to win her back...

Buy links:

Amazon: http://bit.ly/2uVHuBRBitRAAmazon

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2HakoJSBitRAKobo

Barnes &Noble: http://bit.ly/2Gzho8PBitRABarnesandNoble

iBooks: http://bit.ly/2uOsDJ1BitRAiBooks

Excerpt:

“Is everything okay?” Her mother sounded nervous, and it was unsettling.

“The thing is I didn’t know he, I mean he—” Her mother’s gaze shifted to the right, past Kayla.

“She’s trying to tell you I’m here.”

A wave of heat coursed through her veins. Her stomach pitched like it was falling from the top of the Grand Canyon into the deepest part of the ravine.

Dylan. Damn it. Dylan.

She swung around to face her first love. The man she’d given her virginity to. The man she’d been all too willing to give up her dreams to be with forever. The man who’d ripped her heart to pieces when he walked away and then betrayed her in the worst way possible.

He was the man who’d managed to get both her and her ex-best friend, Becky, pregnant.

“What are you doing here?” Contempt dripped from

her voice, but the words fell flat. Five years to prepare a scathing remark and none of them surfaced to rip his heart out, to give him a small taste of the pain she’d felt when he walked away.

The urge to hurt overrode years of determined effort to forget him and move on. One small setback. She took a deep breath and tried to refocus her energy, to return to the hard-won inner peace she’d carved out for herself.

“Hello to you, too, Kayla.” His familiar grin mocked her. “But to answer your question, I’m fixing the roof.”

Tall, dark, and better than an Elephant Ear. Nothing puffy about him. Bulging pecs filled his T-shirt and made it look like it came from the boys’ department. Rock-hard triceps stretched the cotton short sleeves to the limit. Jeans that dipped low in the front, weighed down by a large silver buckle with the letter H emblazoned across it.

Hunter. A few other H words came to mind. Handsome. Hunk. Hot. The list went on. History. Hurt. Hell.

And heartache. Don’t forget the heartache.

Author bio:

Elsie Davis discovered the world of Happily-Ever-After romance at the age of twelve when she began avidly reading Barbara Cartland, the Queen of Romance, and has been hooked ever since. After building her dream log home on top of a small mountain, she turned her attention to do what she loves most, writing.

An award-winning author and active member of RWA, she writes contemporary romance and romantic suspense. She writes from her heart, hoping to share a little love in a big world. She will never forget the moment of exhilaration when she first got the email offering her a contract for publication. A moment that has repeated itself, and one that keeps her energized and moving forward.

Three daughters, four grandchildren, and her own hero husband, keep her extremely busy when she’s not glued to the keyboard. She loves: birding, kayaking, camping, fishing, wildlife, disc golf and nature walks. Basically, all things outdoors, EXCEPT cold weather. Her and her husband are avid Caribbean cruisers, but Elsie’s favorite vacation was their cruise to Alaska. (In spite of the cold!)

Indoors, she enjoys a toasty fire, a glass of red wine, and of course, a great romance with a guaranteed Happily-Ever-After.