The Essential Beachcomber

"Excuse me, do you live here?" I was asked as I stood in the Englewood  Walmart deli line waiting for the discombobulated deli guy to slice my lunch meat for the week.   It could have been the bright aqua blue t-shirt with sand dollars all over the back that I was wearing or maybe it was the hot pink Havaianas flip-flops I was wearing in 55 degree weather - but it was obviously a sure fire bet that I was a local .   Next question - "Do you know where I can get some really good Key Lime Pie?" Really ?  Is a 3 pound seagull fat? This Florida girl knows her way around A key lime pie. Some things to know: ~ Authentic Florida Key Lime pie is yellow not green. ~Real Key Lime pie is topped with whipped cream not mer ing u e but the topping is really a personal preference. ~The filling has to be tart enough to make your lips  pucker up.  This is what an authentic piece of Key Lime Pie should look like with the exception ...

So true! Sign for sale by Country Marketplace. Walking provides an easy & inexpensive way to get fit.  It's good for the body and the soul.  Walking gets the heart pumping, detoxes your lymph system and gets the ole head back into good space.   I've tried walking every day but my schedule is kinda crazy and it just doesn't work out for me.  M y rule of thumb is not to go 2 days in a row without walking at least 2 mile s.  I do tend to get bored walking the same path all the time.  A beach walk is the perfect way to mix things up. We had a rainy day here in SWFL so today was perfect to walk the 1.3 miles out to the end of Stump Pass and back .  It was a light , drizzly rain (for the most part) so I donned my raincoat and got moving. The tide was rising on the very southern end of Stump Pass State Park. At low tide this sand bar is uncovered leaving a nice siesta spot for the birds.  In another hour it will be submerged as the ...

The good news  - there are shells.  The bad news - the red tide makes it impossible to breathe to get to said shells. It is extremely helpful when one is a beach blogger to be able to go to the beach.  Sure, I could blog about a new recipe I made from Pinterest , my latest find at Goodwill or heaven forbid a table scape (mine are the ones with the matching cool whip salad bowls). W e all know you are here for the sand, shells & sharks teeth right?   Well, me too.  The Red Tide algae b loom that has been traveling up and down the SWFL coastline since October 2012 has put a major damper on everyone's beach going.  The 120 mile long floating algae bloom has been causing sneezing, hacking & burning eyes as it meanders back and forth off the Sarasota, Lee & Collier county coastline.   Sadly, it is killing a record number of manatees according to a story by the Associated Press. My beach  blogging has also been curtailed by an in...

(Photo Credit:  Michael Sullivan)     Be careful out there.  No day at the beach is worth trading your health for. (Photo Credit:  Stephen Hayford GNS) Can you believe Red Tide is still with us on the shores of SWFL ?  Yuck!! The algae bloom has been meandering  up and down the coastline from as far north as Clearwater Beach to as far south as the Keys.  The highest concentrations have been on Venice Beach, Manasota Key, and Pine Island Sound (the backside of Sanibel/Captiva).  Before you head to the beach on SWFL check The Florida Fish & Wildlife Con s er vation Commission site for an update on your local beach. Here's a throwback from happier shelling times from a year ago .  I'm re-posting my adventure to become a Guinness World Record holder in my favorite sport - the Sanibel Stoop.   (Originally posted on February 19, 2012) On Friday February 17, 2012 - 700 Sanibel Stoopers set ...

Misty Morning Dewy Dayspring Soupy Seashore Bleary Boulders Petrified Patterns Pea-soupy Shells Treasure T rove Trio Shrouded Serenity (Thank the Lord for http://thesaurus.com/ )

Even the shy guys come out of their shell to watch the sunrise. Sunrise at 7am - Low tide at 7:30.  My favorite spot to converge with nature is Boca Grande . A 20 minute drive puts me on the beach right as the sky is waking up. My camera batteries went dead so all my pictures were taken on my iPhone.  I caught a huge parade of pelicans crossing the pass heading south to Cayo Costa Island on the other side. Someone must have missed the pre-flight meeting. A little Egret sashays by.  He was making sure I didn't have a bait bucket with some freebies for him. My heart le a pt in my chest when I spotted this beauty in the shallows. The hermit crab chose a lovely Horse Conch for a home.  Sadly, t his one went back in the water. Huge Lightning Whelks were everywhere in the shallows of the low tide.  It was fun just to have a closer look and then place them back where they were found. This Orange-...