The Day After a Sanibel Christmas

With the forecast of a cold front and rain passing through here on Christmas Day, you would think that was bad news. But, on Sanibel, where I was, there were only a few sprinkles. By afternoon, the sun was shining and it was a pleasant 70 degrees. No, that wasn't the picturesque image you think of at Christmas time, but I'll take it over freezing temps and a blizzard any day. :-) I suppose it's all in how you envision 'Winter Wonderland'. Palm trees and sunshine is mine.

The temperature was rather chilly last night at 58 degrees, but today it was sunny and 65. On the beach, I was comfortable with a sweatshirt on. I really didn't intend to get my feet in the water, but there were some rather large waves that sent water up pretty high on the beach now and then. Of course I was looking down for shells and got caught in it. The water felt a little cold for just an instant, but after the first shock was over, it wasn't so bad.

Coming onto the beach from resident access 5, this is how the beach looked if you turned west. There didn't seem to be many shells between access 5 and 6.




Turning to go east, there was an area that did have a lot of shells. After a quick look, I didn't see anything spectacular, but there were plenty of shells to look through and I imagine some treasures are hiding somewhere.







Walking west again....

I was walking along with my head down, of course, when I noticed a smell that was vaguely familiar. When I looked up, I saw that it was some red drift algae. I didn't notice any as I walked east from access 5, but walking to the west, there was narrow strip, as far as I could see.







You could certainly tell who lives here; the ones with sweatshirts on. Others were in short sleeve t shirts; which I perceived to be visitors. The island was infiltrated today by hundreds of cold travelers looking for some warm air and sunshine. The multi-use paths were crowded with bikers, wearing huge smiles. Traffic on the streets is once again, bumper to bumper. I hope all of our visitors find some R & R after the hustle and bustle of the Christmas holiday and plenty of warmth. I'm sure we will all enjoy the gradually climbing temps this week.