You can fish from shore in the Gulf not far from Ocala. Yankeetown and Crystal River are about a 45 minute drive from SW 55+ communities. The state has fishing docks all along the coast. I like fishing in the Barge Canal. At different times of year you can catch different species of fish including redfish, sea trout (not a real trout), Amber Jack, Sheepshead and Sharks among others.
Just another reason to move to Ocala.
Fishing dock florida barge canal
View from fishing dock
Gopher mounds
Gopher mounds are often mistaken for fire ant hills by newbies to the Ocala area. Unfortunately I am somewhat of a gopher expert and can tell you from experience that these are not ant hills. Much like Bill Murray in Caddyshack I too am plagued by gophers. All these pictures were taken by me in my yard in SW Ocala. The little buggers seem to come out in the late fall and winter. They are hard workers and can dig several feet of tunnels a day creating multiple mounds in just one day.
Industrious little Bugger