This whole area is known for it’s shelling – collecting shells. I had been wanting to go shelling so Mike found a place where I could go shelling. While the dogs weren’t allowed on the beach there was a trail right there that they were allowed to go on. So while Mike and the dogs hiked the trail I went down to the beach.
When I first arrived I immediately noticed a large flock of pelicans circling over the water. These birds were very high up in the air and it seemed as though missiles were being shot done from the sky. I don’t know how they could possibly see fish from way up there. But they would dive straight down…..
And enter the water. I thought it was very interesting to see how their wings were when they enter the water. I'm surprised their wings don't get ripped off as they enter the water with such speed.
And they make a huge splash as they enter. I'd say the splash was a good three to four feet tall.
After about five minutes I guess they'd eaten all the fish as all at one time they just left. I suddenly realized I'd been easily distracted from my task of shelling. So I decided I'd better get on task when I noticed this pretty bird. Mostly I noticed him because he came and landed just a couple feet from me. He acted like I was supposed to feed him - but I had nothing.
Mike had told me that I could go shelling but that I wasn't allowed to actually collect any shells as we had no place in the RV to store them. So unlike everyone else I just took pictures of the shells.
I was not the only one there shelling. There were a lot of people shelling - I was just the only one shelling in hiking boots! Everyone else was barefoot which really is the way to go as I had to keep running up the beach every time a wave would come - I think the tide was coming in. The couple on the left of this picture were multi-tasking even at the beach! They were fishing, shelling, reading a book, and knitting. I asked the guy if he was catching anything. He said "Not a thing but it's a lot better than being up north in the cold and working." I sure couldn't argue with him there!
There were so many people shelling that I began to wonder what it really was that everyone was searching for as I didn't see anyone with a bag or pail to put all their shells in. So I stopped this very nice lady to ask if she was searching for something in particular. She informed me that everyone is searching for sharks teeth. She showed me some that she had found and explained that these teeth are hundreds or thousands of years old....she told me which but I forget. Anyway, they are very old and very polished. Most are fairly small although I did find one fairly large one. I did collect a few teeth so I could show them to Mike.
Since Mike and the dogs had to go a different place from me, I didn't shell too long as I was worried they'd be waiting for me at the car. As I was going back I noticed an opening in the foliage just across the street. I was pleasantly surprised to see a Great Blue Heron standing right there only a foot or two away from me.
Many of the Great Blue Herons we have come across have been very tame. The fishermen tend to feed them often so they just think of people as food dispensers. This was just a cove but it was beautiful and so peaceful. Just me and the Great Blue Heron.
I decided to walk down the path to see if I could find my family. The path was made of shells. It seemed too pretty to be walked on but that was the path for a while.
As I continued on the path changed to dirt and there were pretty trees around.
I have no story about this picture other than I just thought it was pretty. These are large mushrooms growing on the tree.
I finally found my sweet family coming back up the trail. Slugger loved this trail as there were a lot of lizards. Which of course makes for a very slow walk!
Here is a map to give you a little idea of the area we are exploring. Up on the right side of the land there is kind of a sticky out bump where you can see a city called Punta Gorda - it's the only city shown on the right side. That's where we are living. On the left side you'll see some red dots. The place we went shelling is the uppermost red dot.
Just before we were leaving I got a phone call from Dave, my brother. What a very pleasant surprise! When he told me it was -22 where he was (not including the wind chill) I was very happy that I was the one on the 75 degree beach! What is he thinking!!
On our way home Mike decided to stop and show me the place he and the dogs had been hiking the other day where they saw the alligators. It's less than a block from where we are staying.
Sure enough, as soon as we got to the pond we saw two alligators sunning themselves. I'd say this one is probably about 12 feet long.
Closer to us was a small gator - probably in the range of 9-10 feet.
As we were walking away I noticed this smaller one near where we were standing.
We sure have noticed a lot more alligators as we've gotten further south in Florida. The guys are really going to have to stay on leash!
Debbie
2/13/07
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