Sanibel Sunset in Pastel

Our high temperature today was 91 and the low last night was 75.  I'm lovin' that low temp. :)

This evening, we started on our way to the beach, but just after we started, we saw a little man that we see all the time as he's riding his bicycle.  I've often thought, that man is a lot older than I am and he rides all over the island on a regular basis.  What's wrong with me?

But, this time he wasn't riding.  He was walking and trying to push his bicycle.  At first glance, we thought he had a flat tire and was just pushing it on home, which wasn't too much further.  We waved to him as we passed, and he just kept his head down.  I looked back and he appeared to be wobbling back and forth, then he almost fell.  As I watched, it looked like the bicycle was so heavy that he couldn't hold it up and couldn't push it straight.  We turned around and started back.  Another car came toward him in the opposite lane, he swerved in their direction and then waved them on.  We drove up beside him and I put my window down and asked if he was ok.  He said he was, but it was then that I noticed he had blood on his shirt, arm, elbow and a little on his face.  I got out and asked again if he was sure he was ok.  Again he said he was.  I kept asking him questions to find out what happened, like was he hurt and his reply was no.  When I asked if he had fallen and he said, he had.  I told him we lived just down the street from his house and saw him all the time and how about letting us take you home.  At first he didn't want to and I told him that we couldn't let him push that bike all the way and we would just put it in the back of our suv.  Finally he said, that would be ok, if we didn't mind and it woudn't be too much trouble.  We got him in the back seat, put the bike in the back and off we went.  We kept talking to him and at first he had said he had an accident, then said the gears went out, but there were no gears on the bike.  He kept saying he wasn't hurt, but I don't think that was true, since he had blood on him.  I told him I knew which house he lived in because I had seen him out working in his yard.  He said he sure hadn't been working in it enough lately.  (So, that led me to believe he was coherent.)  When we got to his house, we helped him out, unloaded the bike and I pushed it over to park it by another one. (The bike pushed easily, nothing wrong with it.)  He thanked us over and over for the trouble. I told him that I knew he would do the same for us if we needed it, he said he sure would.  I wanted to help him to the door but he said, no he was fine.  I asked if he was going to be by himself, or was his wife home.  He told me she was home and he wouldn't be by himself.  I tried to tell him I would go to the front door and ask her to come around and help him, but he didn't want me to.  As he started to walk away, he kept swaying and I thought he was going to fall over, but he put his hand against a post to steady himself, stood there for a bit.  I went over to him again and asked to help him and the answer was still no.  He had a difficult time, but made it to the door.  We made sure he got in, waited there in the driveway for a couple of minutes, then left.  Now I'm still worried.  I'm afraid he had a stroke, heart attack or something and feel bad that I didn't go to the front door to talk to his wife.  Oh my, what should a person do in that kind of a situation.  He was so positive he didn't need help and I didn't want to insult him or hurt his feelings because he seemed embarrassed that he had to have help.  There was no way he would have been able to push his bike all the way home, he was ready to collapse.  I know what I am going to do tomorrow.  I am going to his house, walk up to the front door and ask if he is feeling better.  At least I will feel better.

After that, our enthusiasm for going to the beach had sort of disappeared.  So, we just drove out to a causeway island to watch the sunset.

There was so much cloud cover near the horizon, that we couldn't actually see the sunset.  But, there was a cool wind blowing, it was quiet and peaceful, and the sky was beautiful!

If you enlarge this photo, you'll understand why I said, "It's a bird, it's a bird, it's a plane!"

I mentioned last week, that I had noticed more picnic tables were on the Sanibel Causeway islands.

Now on your next visit, if you'd like a table with a view, there may be one. :)  The two causeway islands have roadsides totaling around 10 acres that are used by thousands of people for recreational areas.  Lee County Parks and Recreation maintain the islands.  After placing a counter on only one section on the gulf side of island B, it was determined that during the month of July there were 8,000 vehicles, just in that area alone.  During the month of March the total was 20,000 vehicles.  Those numbers prompted the county to add 20 new picnic tables and 30 garbage and recycling cans.  There are a few more dead trees to replace, then the landscaping project on the causeway islands will be complete.

Evening on a Sanibel Beach

The high temperature today was 91, we got around 1/4" of rain this evening and it got cooler.  It's 77 tonight.  Every little bit helps.  I know a couple of you are hoping for cooler days by the time you get here.  I really think it will cool off by then. :)  It's always cooler on the beach near the water anyway.

This evening, around 5, we went to resident access 2 on West Gulf Drive.  It was cloudy and there was a cool wind.  It was very nice.

Small shells again today.  There were plenty to look through, but none that I thought I needed.  I know, that's kind of unusual.  Well....truthfully, I did take home 5 or 6 that I didn't need. :)  It's hard to pass them all up, especially when one is calling out to you.

We saw a couple more turtle egg shells today.  They're the things that look like a mashed and broken, dirty ping pong ball.

We had the beach all to ourselves.

Well.....except for this bird, who didn't seem to mind sharing.  But, we walked around him and gave him his space.

It sprinkled rain on us, off and on, but not enough to run us away.

As soon as we left and started down the street, this is what happened....

I was happy we got away, just in time!

Since it was pouring down rain, we thought we would just stop somewhere for a bite to eat.  Jerry's and the building that is home to both Timbers and the Sanibel Grill, have parking underneath their buildings.  We chose the Sanibel Grill.  We had a queso dia with black beans and rice and a lobster tail with rice.  Both were very good. :)  By the time we were ready to leave, the rain had stopped.

Below is a Whale Shark.  The world’s largest fish-like vertebrate.

This morning I was reading an interesting article about a lost satellite tag, that prematurely detached from a female whale shark named 'Sara' earlier this summer.  The tag was attached to Sara on May 28 and transmitted information about her movements via satellite link.  She was tagged just off the coast of Sarasota, then traveled south near Sanibel Island, then was going north again, to near Crystal River.  Around the beginning of July the information transmitted by the tag was different, alerting the scientists that the tag, was most likely, floating free.   The tag continued to transmit it's location, but the readings were 12 hours behind the actual location, which wasn't helping to locate it.  The tags cost around $1900, and could possibly be used again. They would also like to learn why it detached. The satellite link was shut off to save additional costs, which can run into hundreds of dollars.  They are now hoping that the public will spot it either floating in the Gulf or washed up on the beach and will get the tag back to Mote Marine Laboratory.  Who knows, maybe one of you will be out in a boat or on a beach and find it.  The tag is black, torpedo-shaped, about 6 inches long, has a black antenna and likely has a wire tether still attached.  Mote will pay the shipping cost for the return of the tag and will provide the returner with a special Mote Center for Shark Research shark tagger’s cap. Please call 941-388-1827 or 800-691-MOTE (6683) ext. 323 if the tag is spotted. Go to www.mote.org/sharkbolo to learn more about the tag and see the information it recorded about the shark’s movements before detaching.

Everything you ever wanted to know about a Whale Shark and more.

Sunday Sanibel Sunset

It was a hot, 91 degrees here today, with a little rain.  The sun was shining brightly this evening as we drove over to resident access 5 on West Gulf Drive.  That is the access where we saw the spider web and the Spiny Orb Weaver spider last week.  It was still there.  We had to duck under it again.  What a creepy spider.

We saw lots of neat looking clouds when we got to the end of the path.  Obviously we were going to see a pretty sunset.

But, we could get wet!

As we were walking out toward the water, I saw a small pile of shells that someone had left behind.

There were some shells scattered about, mostly at the high tide line.  They were all small shells, and since I like them, I looked around through those for a while and picked out just a few to take home.

 The clouds quickly changed shape and colors as we wandered around looking at shells. 

Kind of looks like snow covered mountains in the distance.

We were feeling a few drops of rain off and on, but not enough to send us running.  The cooling wind, was very nice.  It was a good evening to be out.

I had been watching the sun, as it started peeking from behind the clouds; then turned to look behind me, at just the right time.  There was a huge rainbow.  I could only get a small part of it in the picture.

The sun was shining brightly again, just before it started to disappear.

At this point in our evening, we met a lovely couple that had just moved into a home on the beach.  They have lived on the island for a number of years, but just moved to a different location.  We had a nice time getting acquainted as we watched the sun go down.

Below are the tiny shells I took home.

Just a little piece of a Florida worm snail,

tiny Kitten paws, and one the size of a grain of rice that I think is a Velie's Marginella shell.

To and From Sanibel

Yes folks, once again I found myself enjoying the view as we traveled from Sanibel and back. The temperature was pretty high today, in the upper 90's. It was just too hot for me to make a beach visit. Instead we traveled over to Ft Myers for some shopping.








The grounded sailboat is still lying on it's side.




I saw this pickup truck loaded with a bench and tables that were made from trees. I don't know if they are, but they looked like some of the things I've seen carved from big Australian Pines that were blown down during Hurricane Charley. These had fish carved in them and were really nice. There's a phone number if you're interested. :)


On the way back across the Sanibel Causeway, I could see dark clouds with rain coming down, in the distance. Later, the thunderstorm reached the island, bringing a little rain, but it didn't last very long.

Sea Turtle Nest Thursday

This was the day for our usual turtle walk, but since the season is over now except for those nests that still have not hatched. We just went over to our zone before sunrise, parked near the area of our nest, which is by the Sanibel Inn on East Gulf Drive.

As we walked around the Sanibel Inn pool area, their flag was flying in a strong, cool breeze. It was a perfect morning for a beach walk.




There had been a very high tide, so between that and all the recent rain, their regular access path to the beach was standing full of water. We found another small path that ran through the dune area.


The warm light of the approaching sun, is the best start to any day!


Now I have my own suspicions as to how this visor made an appearance on the beach.


Since I know that the Sanibel Thriller passes by here each afternoon, and I also know from personal experience that someone always looses a cap or visor on nearly every trip, I'm guessing this flew right off some lady's head and was washed in to the shore. Mystery solved! By the way, if you haven't been on this cruise, be sure to go. It is awesome! I think it's, by far the best dolphin cruise I've ever been on and also an interesting narration by a really cool lady that is a personal friend. If you go, say Hi to Leena for me. :)


Just after we started walking, I saw a helicopter coming toward us.


It flew very low, right over our heads.




I watched the helicopter go up to the end of the island and then turn to come back again. This time I could see spray coming out. They were spraying for mosquitoes. You think this could mean I'm well protected now? Hmmmm? They made several passes before disappearing.


We see this nice lady on each of our turtle walks. You'll notice she carries a bag and picks up trash as she goes along. This morning she was on her way back with a full bag.




I only picked up one shell to carry home today, and you'll find it below.








There was quite a bit of Manatee grass left on a high tide line, in several places.


Manatee grass is one of seven different sea grasses that grow in our Gulf waters, providing a habitat and food for marine animals. In the winter, much of the grass dies and floats to the surface, and Manatee grass breaks off easily in storms. It is very buoyant and floats to the surface, drifts around, gets bleached by the sun, and, eventually, washes up on beaches. It sometimes leaves a bad smell on the beach, as it decomposes.





Our turtle nest has been washed over once before by a high tide, last night the high tide got up as far as the first stake. We're still hoping it will hatch.

As we walked back from the beach, I noticed how green and fresh all the vegetation is. I suppose from the recent rain and perhaps the high tides.



There were a lot of bikes at the Sanibel Inn, just waiting for someone to take them for a ride.




Here's my treasure, from a perfect morning on the beach.


These are the shells I carried home last evening.


Just before sunset we drove out to a Sanibel Causeway island to watch the sunset. There were lots of thunderstorm clouds around and I thought that would make the sunset spectacular. But, no such luck. There was just too much cloud clover, so we didn't even get a peak at the sun. Since you know how I love clouds, you know I wasn't disappointed. :)