“A real friend is someone who takes a winter vacation on a sun-drenched beach and does not send a card.” --Farmer’s Almanac

Tuesday on Manasota Key was a sheller's delight.  The week-end NW winds had finally produced some shells.

The strong winds over the week-end had my hopes up for some shell action but as of late Sunday nothing was happening. Today was like any other week day for me - haircut at 11, bank errand in the next town over, wash truck, bank errand in my town, class at 3 and all it took was one phone call to bring it all to a screeching halt.  My cell phone rings (well actually a guitar strums because there is no banjo on my ring selection) and it's my mom. "Your cousin just called and said you asked her to give you a heads up if there was a shell pile on the beach - well there is and she said you should get out there quick". 


 I don't know if I was happier about the shell pile or having a cousin that takes a good shell pile as seriously as I do but at any rate I mentally rearranged my afternoon schedule as I sat in the car while the car wash-thingy cleaned off the last of the grime still there from my Sanibel Shellabration trip 2 weeks ago.  Between the beach grime & the  recent tree pollens I could barely see out my car windows. As I motored out to Manasota Key the first beach parking lot was jam packed with cars.  As I rounded the corner to park at Middle Beach it became apparent I was in for a bit of a walk.  My usual spot on the front row was long gone.  I finally found a parking spot four lots behind where I usually park.


  I was dressed for bank errands not the beach but when the staple of your wardrobe is Columbia capri pants this is never a problem.  It was a problem when I dropped my perfectly sweetened iced tea on the ground & now had nothing to drink on the hot beach.  I stayed long enough to walk the sand bar.  It was packed with spring breakers and snowbirds enjoying a brilliant beach day.  The shell & shark tooth hunters were out in full force.  I never did see my cousin on the beach and my thirst finally got the better of me.  Later on at my last stop of the day I looked down at some  white stuff ringing the edges of my brown capris - What the heck?  I realized it was dried salt from where I had gotten smacked by a wave earlier on the beach. Just another day in paradise.

Manasota Key usually  gets a nice shell line after a NW storm.

There are lots of sharks teeth mixed in with the shells.

This is what I call a Manasota Beach Starter Kit - sharks teeth, shells, fossils, & tumbled drift shells.

There was a lacy murex, an apple murex, & a nutmeg in the mix.

Wish you were here!